That Hideous Strength

I

“WELL,” said Dimble, “there’s no one here.”

“He was here a moment ago,” said Denniston.

“You’re sure you did see someone?” said Dimble.

“I thought I saw someone,” said Denniston. “I’m not positive.”

“If there was anyone he must still be quite close,” said Dimble.

“What about giving him a call?” suggested Denniston.

“Hush! Listen! “said Jane. They were all silent for a few moments.

“That’s only the old donkey,” said Dimble presently, “moving about at the top.”

There was another silence.

“He seems to have been pretty extravagant with his matches,” said Denniston presently, glancing at the trodden earth in the firelight. “One would expect a tramp--”

“On the other hand,” said Dimble, “one would not expect Merlin to have brought a box of matches with him from the Fifth Century.”

“But what are we to do?” said Jane.

“One hardly likes to think what MacPhee will say if we return with no more success than this. He will at once point out a plan we ought to have followed,” said Denniston with a smile.

“Now that the rain’s over,” said Dimble, “we’d better get back to the car and start hunting for your white gate. What are you looking at, Denniston?”

“I’m looking at this mud,” said Denniston, who had moved a few paces away from the fire and in the direction of the path by which they had descended into the dingle. He had been stooping and using his torch. Now he suddenly straightened himself. “Look,” he said, “there have been several people here. No, don’t walk onto it and mess up all the tracks. Look. Can’t you see, sir?”

“Aren’t they our own footprints?” said Dimble.

“Some of them are pointing the wrong way. Look at that-and that.”

“Might they be the tramp himself?” said Dimble.

“If it was a tramp.”

“He couldn’t have walked up that path without our seeing him,” said Jane.

“Unless he did it before we arrived,” said Denniston.

“But we all saw him,” said Jane.

“Come,” said Dimble. “Let’s follow them up to the top. I don’t suppose we shall be able to follow them far. If not, we must get back to the road and go on looking for the gate.”

As they reached the lip of the hollow, mud changed into grass under foot and the footprints disappeared. They walked twice round the dingle and found nothing: then they set out to return to the road. It had turned into a fine night: Orion dominated the whole sky.