Seventeen MISS PERCEHOUSE

Emily returned to find eggs and bacon, and Charles, waiting for her.
Mrs. Curtis was still agog¹ with excitement over the escape of the convict.
“Two years it is since last one escaped,” she said, “and three days it wasbefore they found him. Near to Moretonhampstead he was.”
“Do you think he’ll come this way?” asked Charles.
Local knowledge vetoed this suggestion.
“They never comes this way, all bare moorland it is and only smalltowns when you do come off the moor². He’ll make for Plymouth, that’s themost likely. But they’ll catch him long before that.”
“You could find a good hiding place among these rocks on the other sideof the Tor,” said Emily.
“You’re right, Miss, and there is a hiding place there, the Pixie’s Cavethey call it. As narrow an opening between two rocks as you could find,but it widens out inside. They say one of King Charles’s men hid thereonce for a fortnight with a serving maid from a farm bringing him food.”
“I must take a look at that Pixie’s Cave,” said Charles.
“You’ll be surprised how hard it is to find, sir. Many a picnic party insummer looks for it the whole afternoon and doesn’t find it, but if you dofind it be sure you leave a pin inside it for luck.”
“I wonder,” said Charles when breakfast was over and he and Emily hadstrolled out into the small bit of garden, “if I ought to go off to Princetown?
Amazing how things pile up once you have a bit of luck. Here I am—I startwith a simple football competition prize, and before I know where I am Irun straight into an escaped convict and a murderer. Marvellous!”
“What about this photographing of Major Burnaby’s cottage?”
Charles looked up at the sky.
“H’m,” he said. “I think I shall say the weather is wrong. I have got tohang on to my raison d’étre of being in Sittaford as long as possible, andit’s coming over misty³. Er—I hope you don’t mind, I have just posted off aninterview with you?”
“Oh! that’s all right,” said Emily mechanically. “What have you made mesay?”
“Oh, the usual sort of things people like to hear,” said Mr. Enderby. “Ourspecial representative records his interview with Miss Emily Trefusis, thefiancée of Mr. James Pearson who has been arrested by the police andcharged with the murder of Captain Trevelyan—Then my impression ofyou as a high-spirited, beautiful girl.”

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