Cyphers are mostly crude;
but I've often thought what a right down beauty it might be possible
to make, given a little pains. The detective story writers make very
good ones sometimes; but then the smart man, who wipes everybody's
eyes, always gets 'em--by pulling down just the right book from the
villain's library. My cryptograph won't depend on books."
Peter chattered on; then he suddenly stopped and turned to his notes
again.
He looked up presently.
"The hard thing before us is this," he said, "to get into touch with
Robert Redmayne, or his ghost. There are two sorts of ghost, Mark;
the real thing--in which you don't believe and concerning which I
hold a watching brief; and the manufactured article. Now the
manufactured article can be quite as useful to the bulls as the
crooks."
"You believe in ghosts!"
"I didn't say so. But I keep an open mind. I've heard some funny
things from men whose word could be relied upon."
"If this is a ghost, that's a way out, of course; but in that case
why are you frightened for Albert Redmayne's life?"
"I don't say he's a ghost and of course I don't think he's a ghost;
but--"
He broke off and changed the subject.
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