Character guide

Eileen Holland

major

Also known as Miss Eileen Holland, Miss Holland, the fascinating Miss Holland, Holland

Eileen Holland arrives at the Craigies' as a governess whose passport was obtained by dubious influence, and Mrs. Craigie already suspects that something is a little wrong somewhere. When a telegram pulls her out of the schoolroom, she trades her composure for a bewitching smile and enlists the laird in a mysterious surprise. Her looks, German, and nerve make her the perfect instrument for a trap being set around her.

Adolph Tiel

major

Also known as Herr Tiel, Mr. Tiel, Tiel, Presently Tiel

Tiel moves through the coastal parish as a minister preparing a sermon, while privately serving as a German agent with no patriotism and no morals. He jokes grimly that the secret service must sometimes creep about in the dust, and his willingness to bargain for his own skin makes him dangerous to everyone, including his own side. His cool nerve and shifting allegiance set the machinery of the spy plot in motion.

Lieutenant von Belke

major

Also known as Von Belke, von Belke, Belke, Mr. Belke, Conrad von Belke, Lieutenant von Belke

Lieutenant von Belke arrives expecting to command a covert operation, only to find himself the prisoner of men he thought were his allies. His pride flares into sarcasm and fury, especially toward the lady he calls a decoy, even as his own government's trust in Tiel is exposed as misplaced. His wounded honor and reluctant curiosity drive the interrogation scenes that unravel the whole deception.

Robert Drummond

major

Also known as Mr. Drummond, Robert, Mr. Robert Drummond

Robert Drummond is the man behind the clerical collar, the officer who took over Adolph Tiel's journey after the real spy was arrested at Inverness. He admits he felt the same temptation to give the show away that Tiel did, and uses that self-recognition to impersonate the traitor convincingly. His cool improvisation and willingness to risk a nasty bunker keep the counter-espionage scheme alive.

Commander Blacklock

supporting

Also known as Blacklock, III The Empty Envelope Commander Blacklock

Commander Blacklock runs the trap from behind the pulpit, having taken over the identity of the murdered agent Tiel and recruited Miss Holland on the mail-boat crossing. He is by turns steely with his captive and almost apologetic with his allies, confessing his own fear of cracking under interrogation. His patient explanation of the scheme is what finally forces von Belke to see how thoroughly he has been played.

Mr. Burnett

supporting

Also known as III, Mr. Burnett, And Mr. Burnett, II The Chauffeur Mr. Burnett, the worthy Mr. Burnett, III On the Cliff Gradually Mr. Burnett, Burnett, a Mr. Burnett

Mr. Burnett is the clergyman whose identity and passport the conspirators intend to steal, and whose resemblance to the false chauffeur unsettles the household without quite alarming it. He offers scones and currant cake to a genial stranger who is quietly cataloguing every detail needed to replace him. His trusting decency is the story's measure of what the spies are willing to destroy.

Mr. Craigie

supporting

Also known as old Craigie, Craigie, Richard Craigie, Richard

Craigie belongs to the ordinary domestic world that the story's spy-catcher heroine has temporarily fled, and he becomes the measure of what she gave up and what she must now reclaim. His forgiveness matters less for what he knows than for what he represents: a safe, dull life she is willing to resume because she has nowhere else to go and nothing else to do. When the heroine tells her handler she treated the Craigies rather badly, the moment quietly exposes the human cost of the work she has chosen.

Captain Ashington

supporting

Also known as Ashington, Captain Ashington—I, the real Captain Ashington, Ashington of the Haileybury

Ashington is the story's most uncomfortable paradox: a decorated officer of the Grand Fleet who has been recruited into Tiel's spy ring through a mixture of sullen temper and a sense of grievance. His younger brother serves on the flagship, giving him access to exactly the kind of information the Germans need, and his gross, physically imposing presence contrasts sharply with his frowning, joyless manner. His proposal about the fleet's sailing date sets the plot's central machinery in motion.

Mr. Taylor

supporting

Also known as Taylor, This Mr. Taylor, a Mr. Taylor, this Mr. Taylor

Taylor never appears in person, yet his name does decisive work: it is the false signature on the telegram that lures Burnett away from his papers and toward the cliffs. When Drummond denies all knowledge of any Taylor from Lancashire, the lie exposes the spy ring's method of using ordinary-sounding identities to move its victims. The mystery of who sent the telegram and why becomes one of the early questions that pulls the investigation forward.

Commander Wiedermann

minor

Also known as Wiedermann

A German naval commander and colleague of von Belke.

Captain Phipps

minor

Also known as Phipps

A British naval officer involved in the investigation.

Bob Blacklock

minor

Also known as Bob, Robin, Robin Blacklock

A younger relative of Commander Blacklock.

Lieutenant Topham

minor

Also known as Topham, Mr. Topham

A British naval lieutenant assisting in the operation.

Mrs. Craigie

minor

Wife of Mr. Craigie, a local resident.

Mary

minor

Also known as the sociable Mary

A servant or local woman who interacts with characters.

Alexander Burnett

minor

Also known as the Rev. Alexander Burnett, Alec Burnett, The Rev. Alex. Burnett, Mr. Alexander Burnett, the good Mr. Burnett, the real Burnett, the late Mr. Burnett, Alexander

A clergyman whose identity is used by another character.

Miss Burnett

minor

A relative of Alexander Burnett.

Mrs. Drummond

minor

Wife of Robert Drummond.

Captain Blacklock

minor

A naval officer, possibly related to Commander Blacklock.

Mr. Wilson

minor

Also known as Wilson

A minor character encountered during the story.

Rev. Mr. Maxwell

minor

Also known as Maxwell, Mr. Maxwell

A clergyman mentioned in passing.