Chapter Twenty-Four THE BOTTLE OF WINE
AS regards Theodore Racksole, who was to have caught his man
from the outside of the cellar, he made his way as rapidly as
possible from the wine-cellars, up to the ground floor, out of the
hotel by the quadrangle, through the quadrangle, and out into the
top of Salisbury Lane. Now, owing to the vastness of the structure
of the Grand Babylon, the mere distance thus to be traversed
amounted to a little short of a quarter of a mile, and, as it included
a number of stairs, about two dozen turnings, and several passages
which at that time of night were in darkness more or less
complete, Racksole could not have been expected to accomplish
the journey in less than five minutes. As a matter of fact, six
minutes had elapsed before he reached the top of Salisbury Lane,
because he had been delayed nearly a minute by some questions
addressed to him by a muddled and whisky-laden guest who had
got lost in the corridors. As everybody knows, there is a sharp
short bend in Salisbury Lane near the top. Racksole ran round this
at good racing speed, but he was unfortunate enough to run straight
up against the very policeman who had not long before so
courteously supplied Jules with a match. The policeman seemed to
be scarcely in so pliant a mood just then.
'Hullo!' he said, his naturally suspicious nature being doubtless
aroused by the spectacle of a bareheaded man in evening dress
running violently down the lane.
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