Lionel Dering and Percy Osmond were in for a long night of drinking and playing billiard at the old Park Newton estate with their mutual friend Kester St. George keeping the score and entertaining them. In the heat of the moment Lionel and Percy went into a fight which was stopped by Kester. All three went to bed and when Lionel woke up in the middle of the night he found out that Percy was murdered in his room.

T. W. Speight (1830-1915) was English author of novels and short stories mostly in the thriller and mystery genre.