The moment Doctor Winchester got into the room, Silvio began to mew and
wriggle; and jumping out of his arms, ran over to the cat mummy and
began to scratch angrily at it. Miss Trelawny had some difficulty in
taking him away; but so soon as he was out of the room he became quiet. When she came back there was a clamour of comments:

“I thought so!” from the Doctor. “What can it mean?” from Miss Trelawny. “That’s a very strange thing!” from Mr. Corbeck. “Odd! but it doesn’t prove anything!” from the Detective. “I suspend my judgment!” from myself, thinking it advisable to say
something. Then by common consent we dropped the theme—for the present. In my room that evening I was making some notes of what had happened,
when there came a low tap on the door. In obedience to my summons
Sergeant Daw came in, carefully closing the door behind him. “Well, Sergeant,” said I, “sit down. What is it?”

“I wanted to speak to you, sir, about those lamps.”  I nodded and
waited:  he went on:  “You know that that room where they were found
opens directly into the room where Miss Trelawny slept last night?”

“Yes.”

“During the night a window somewhere in that part of the house was
opened, and shut again. I heard it, and took a look round; but I could
see no sign of anything.”

“Yes, I know that!” I said; “I heard a window moved myself.”

“Does nothing strike you as strange about it, sir?”

“Strange!” I said; “Strange! why it’s all the most bewildering,
maddening thing I have ever encountered. It is all so strange that one
seems to wonder, and simply waits for what will happen next. But what
do you mean by strange?”

The Detective paused, as if choosing his words to begin; and then said
deliberately:

“You see, I am not one who believes in magic and such things. I am for
facts all the time; and I always find in the long-run that there is a
reason and a cause for everything. This new gentleman says these
things were stolen out of his room in the hotel. The lamps, I take it
from some things he has said, really belong to Mr. Trelawny. His
daughter, the lady of the house, having left the room she usually
occupies, sleeps that night on the ground floor. A window is heard to
open and shut during the night. When we, who have been during the day
trying to find a clue to the robbery, come to the house, we find the
stolen goods in a room close to where she slept, and opening out of it!”

He stopped. I felt that same sense of pain and apprehension, which I
had experienced when he had spoken to me before, creeping, or rather
rushing, over me again. I had to face the matter out, however. My
relations with her, and the feeling toward her which I now knew full
well meant a very deep love and devotion, demanded so much. I said as
calmly as I could, for I knew the keen eyes of the skilful investigator
were on me:

“And the inference?”

He answered with the cool audacity of conviction:

“The inference to me is that there was no robbery at all. The goods
were taken by someone to this house, where they were received through a
window on the ground floor. They were placed in the cabinet, ready to
be discovered when the proper time should come!”

Somehow I felt relieved; the assumption was too monstrous. I did not
want, however, my relief to be apparent, so I answered as gravely as I
could:

“And who do you suppose brought them to the house?”

“I keep my mind open as to that. Possibly Mr. Corbeck himself; the
matter might be too risky to trust to a third party.”

“Then the natural extension of your inference is that Mr. Corbeck is a
liar and a fraud; and that he is in conspiracy with Miss Trelawny to
deceive someone or other about those lamps.”

“Those are harsh words, Mr. Ross. They’re so plain-spoken that they
bring a man up standing, and make new doubts for him. But I have to go
where my reason points. It may be that there is another party than
Miss Trelawny in it. Indeed, if it hadn’t been for the other matter
that set me thinking and bred doubts of its own about her, I wouldn’t
dream of mixing her up in this. But I’m safe on Corbeck. Whoever else
is in it, he is! The things couldn’t have been taken without his
connivance—if what he says is true. If it isn’t—well! he is a liar
anyhow. I would think it a bad job to have him stay in the house with
so many valuables, only that it will give me and my mate a chance of
watching him. We’ll keep a pretty good look-out, too, I tell you. He’s up in my room now, guarding those lamps; but Johnny Wright is
there too. I go on before he comes off; so there won’t be much chance
of another house-breaking. Of course, Mr. Ross, all this, too, is
between you and me.”

“Quite so! You may depend on my silence!” I said; and he went away to
keep a close eye on the Egyptologist. It seemed as though all my painful experiences were to go in pairs, and
that the sequence of the previous day was to be repeated; for before
long I had another private visit from Doctor Winchester who had now
paid his nightly visit to his patient and was on his way home. He took
the seat which I proffered and began at once:

“This is a strange affair altogether. Miss Trelawny has just been
telling me about the stolen lamps, and of the finding of them in the
Napoleon cabinet. It would seem to be another complication of the
mystery; and yet, do you know, it is a relief to me. I have exhausted
all human and natural possibilities of the case, and am beginning to
fall back on superhuman and supernatural possibilities. Here are such
strange things that, if I am not going mad, I think we must have a
solution before long. I wonder if I might ask some questions and some
help from Mr. Corbeck, without making further complications and
embarrassing us. He seems to know an amazing amount regarding Egypt
and all relating to it. Perhaps he wouldn’t mind translating a little
bit of hieroglyphic. It is child’s play to him. What do you think?”

When I had thought the matter over a few seconds I spoke. We wanted
all the help we could get. For myself, I had perfect confidence in
both men; and any comparing notes, or mutual assistance, might bring
good results. Such could hardly bring evil. “By all means I should ask him. He seems an extraordinarily learned
man in Egyptology; and he seems to me a good fellow as well as an
enthusiast. By the way, it will be necessary to be a little guarded as
to whom you speak regarding any information which he may give you.”

“Of course!” he answered. “Indeed I should not dream of saying
anything to anybody, excepting yourself. We have to remember that when
Mr. Trelawny recovers he may not like to think that we have been
chattering unduly over his affairs.”

“Look here!” I said, “why not stay for a while:  and I shall ask him to
come and have a pipe with us. We can then talk over things.”

He acquiesced:  so I went to the room where Mr. Corbeck was, and
brought him back with me. I thought the detectives were pleased at his
going.