That was a thought to make him keep afloat--to keep on rowing.
And suppose that he did find her, as he believed he would, sooner or later--given time.

What was to happen then?
That thought pursued him in his walk that night, and was his constant companion in the lonely days and nights of his wanderings which followed.
He had banished it before, but that course was no longer possible.

The impalpable yet terribly real menace of authority overshadowing them both now made it imperative that all the facts should be faced.

All the facts--but what were they?
It was the question he asked himself again and again as he strove to twist out of the black fantasy of that horrible night some tangible shred of truth which might help them both.

His own incredible share in it was forever being re-enacted in his mind, and haunted his dreams.