But the Professor worked on, regardless and oblivious of everything. He was far too occupied, and Gwen was also too excited to dress and descend to dinner. Therefore, Laura served the meal upon a tray.

All was silence save the Professor's dry monotonous voice as he counted aloud the letters of the Hebrew text, recounted them to rea.s.sure himself, and then set down a Hebrew character as result.

Thus from after luncheon until midnight--through the time indeed that Diamond was so patiently watching the big house in Berkeley Square--the work of solving the problem went slowly on.

Gwen sat and watched her father's Hebrew ma.n.u.script grow apace, until it covered many quarto pages. Now and then she a.s.sisted in counting the letters, verifying her father's addition.

Then at last, just after the old-fashioned clock upon the mantelshelf had chimed twelve, the old scholar raised his grey head with a sigh, and wiping his gla.s.ses, as was his habit, said:

"Sit down, dear, and write the English translation at my dictation. I think we now have it quite complete."

CHAPTER THIRTY ONE.

EXPOSES THE CONSPIRACY.

While Professor Griffin had been so busily engaged deciphering the concluding portion of the secret record, a strange scene was in progress at Sir Felix Challas's, in Berkeley Square.

First, Jim Jannaway had arrived and had held a short consultation in the library with the red-faced Baronet, afterwards quickly leaving. Then, from the Waldorf Hotel, summoned by telephone, came old Erich Haupt, bustling and full of suppressed excitement.

Soon afterwards, the well-dressed Jim had returned, and had waited in momentary expectancy, ready to dart out into the hall on hearing the sound of cab wheels.

At last they were heard and the man-servant opened the door to Laura, tall, dark-haired and rather good-looking parlour-maid at Pembridge Gardens.

In the well-carpeted hall she recognised the man who had taken her out to dinner and the theatre on several occasions, and advanced excitedly to meet him.

"Oh! Laura!" he cried. "I'm so glad you've come. I had your `wire,'

and you got my message in reply, of course? You must see the gov'nor.

This is his house, and I want you to tell him how the Professor is solving that puzzle." Then, lowering his voice, he added. "There's a pot of money in it for both of us, dear, if you keep your wits about you. You recollect what I promised you last Tuesday, don't you?"

The girl sn.i.g.g.e.red and nodded. She was a giddy young person, whose head had been turned by the admiration of that good-looking man who called himself "Miller," and who said he was a lawyer's clerk. He had promised to become engaged to her and to marry her, provided they could get only a good round sum from "the gov'nor" for the information she could, with such ease, supply.

This had placed the girl upon the constant alert, with the present result.

Her nonchalant admirer led the way across the hall to the library, pushed upon the door, and introduced her to the two men therein-- Challas, fat and prosperous, and Haupt, white-bearded and bespectacled.

Then, when the door was closed and she had seated herself, Challas--or "Mr Murray," as he had been introduced--asked:

"I believe you're Laura, and you are parlour-maid at Professor Griffin's, aren't you?"

"Yes, sir," replied the girl, timidly, picking at her neat black skirt.

"Well, sir," explained Jim, bearing out his part of lawyer's clerk, "some time ago I explained to my young lady here, what we particularly wanted to know, and she's kept both eyes and ears open. To-day she's learned something, it seems."

"What is it?" inquired old Erich, in a deep tone, with his strong German accent.

"Let the young lady explain herself," urged the man introduced as "Murray," and they all sat silent.

"Well, sir," the girl faltered, a moment later. "You see it was like this. After luncheon to-day the Professor, who'd been very hard at work as usual all the morning, took Miss Gwen up to the study to speak to her privately; I listened, and I heard all their conversation. He told her how he'd solved the problem of the cipher."

"Solved it!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed the old German, staring at her through his spectacles.

"Yes, sir," the girl went on. "He told Miss Gwen that he'd tried and tried, but always failed. But he had taken the--well, sir, I think he called it the apoplectic number."

The German laughed heartily.

"I know," he said. "You mean the Apocalyptic Number, _fraulein_--the number 666."

"That's it, sir," she said, a little flurried, while Jim exchanged significant glances with Challas. "He commences at the tenth chapter of Ezekiel, eighth verse, and--and--" Then she fumbled in her pocket, producing a piece of crumpled paper to which she referred. "He takes the first sign of 6," she went on, "then the eleventh letter, the sixty-sixth letter, and the six hundred and sixty-sixth letter. After this, the fiftieth letter, the two-hundredth letter, the sixth letter, the fiftieth letter, the hundredth letter, the sixtieth letter, and the two-hundredth letter--making six hundred and sixty-six in all. He writes down each of the Hebrew letters, and then reads them off like a book."

"Wait--ah! wait!" urged the old German. "Let us have that again, _fraulein_," and crossing to Sir Felix's big mahogany writing-table, he opened the Hebrew text of Ezekiel upon it. "Where do you say the Professor commences--at the tenth chapter, eighth verse--eh? Good!" and he hastily found the reference. "Now?"

"Just tell this gentleman," urged Jim, "tell him exactly what you heard."

"Well, starting with the eighth verse, he commences with what he termed the first `waw' sign."

"Zo! that's the equivalent of the number 6," Haupt remarked.

"Then the eleventh letter."

The old professor counted and wrote down the letter in question in Hebrew characters.

"The sixty-sixth," said the girl.

The old man counted sixty-six, while Sir Felix and Jannaway watched with intense, almost breathless interest. Here was the secret, s.n.a.t.c.hed from their dreaded opponent, Arminger Griffin!

"And now the six hundred and sixty-sixth," the girl went on, apparently thoroughly at home with the strangely a.s.sorted trio.

This took some time to count, but presently it was accomplished, and the girl time after time gave the old professor directions--the fiftieth letter, the two-hundredth letter, and so on.

"Well?" asked Challas, a few moments later, unable to repress his excitement any longer. "Do you make anything out of it?"

The old man was silent. He was carefully studying the Hebrew characters he had written down.

"Yes!" he gasped. "It is the secret--the great secret!" And he started up, exclaiming, "At last! at last--thanks to _fraulein_ here--we have the key!"

"And we can actually read the cipher?" cried Challas.

"Most certainly," responded the old scholar. "The secret is ours!

Marvellous, how Griffin discovered it."

"Confound Griffin!" exclaimed Jim Jannaway. "We have to thank Laura, here, for our success! She ought to be well rewarded."

"And so she shall," declared the man, whom the girl knew as "Mr Murray."

"It's late to-night, and we want Erich to get on at once with the decipher. Besides, the young lady, no doubt, wishes to get back home.

Bring her to me to-morrow, or next day--and she shall be well rewarded."

"Thank you very much, sir," was the silly girl's gratified reply, as she looked triumphant into the face of the cunning man who had declared his love for her.