s too unbelievable.

_Am I the only one who really believes it?_ He asked himself this
question as he hailed a cab in the street and watched a fat man in a
bowler hat slip in and take it away from him.

"You're slipping, Taber," he muttered. "You're definitely slipping."

* * * * *

The bell rang. Rhoda Kane opened the door. The man standing there was
not extraordinary in any way. He appeared just short of middle age. He
wore a blue suit and a blue necktie. The word for him was _quiet_. He
was a man who did not stand out.

"My name is John Dennis," he said. "I would like to speak to you."

The abrupt demand annoyed Rhoda. She frowned and was about to retort
just as peremptorily, but an odd bemusement tempered her mood. The man
was uncivil enough to be interesting. She said, "I'm busy now," but
instead of closing the door, she stepped back into the room. The man
came in and it was he who closed the door.

"I don't wish to alarm you, Miss Kane."

"I'm not in the least alarmed."

As she spoke, Rhoda wondered if this was true. But the wondering itself
was on such an impersonal basis that it didn't seem to make much
difference.

Also, she was noticing that John Dennis was not quite as he'd first
appeared. He was much younger than middle-aged, really--somewhere in his
thirties. He was quiet, yes, but handsome, too. There was a rugged
individuality about him that was easily missed at first glance. A
definite attractiveness.

"I want to ask you about a friend of yours. Frank Corson."

This seemed like a logical request. It definitely seemed that way but,
at the same time, Rhoda was confused as to why it should appear to be. A
man came and knocked on the door and entered and asked a question like
that. It _shouldn't_ have been all right, but it was. He probably had
the right, she told herself, else he would not have asked.

"What do you wish to know?"

"Tell me about him."

"He is a doctor. Frank is an intern at Park Hill Hospital. After he
finishes there he will go into practice. I guess that's about all there
is to it."

"He had a patient named William Matson."

"William Matson? I don't know. He doesn't discuss his work with me."

"This was a patient with a broken leg who was taken to the hospital
night before last."

"He did mention one man. I don't know his name, though. A man Frank said
had two hearts."

"What else did he tell you about this man?"

"Nothing else. Fr