me a note to her?"

She rang, dictated a short note to a nurse, signed it, and languidly
dismissed us.

I don't know that I ever felt as depressed as I did after that interview
with one who had entered a living death to ambition, for while Craig had
done all the talking I had absorbed nothing but depression. I vowed that
if Gregory or anybody else was responsible I would do my share toward
bringing on him retribution.

The Closes lived in a splendid big house in the Murray Hill section. The
presentation of the note quickly brought Mrs. Close's maid down to us.
She had not gone to the hospital because Mrs. Close had considered the
services of the trained nurses quite sufficient.

Yes, the maid had noticed how her mistress had been failing, had noticed
it long ago, in fact almost at the time when she had begun the X-ray
treatment. She had seemed to improve once when she went away for a few
days, but that was at the start, and directly after her return she grew
worse again, until she was no longer herself.

"Did Dr. Gregory, the X-ray specialist, ever attend Mrs. Close at her
home, in her room?" asked Craig.

"Yes, once, twice, he call, but he do no good," she said with her French
accent.

"Did Mrs. Close have other callers?"

"But, m'sieur, everyone in society has many. What does m'sieur mean?"

"Frequent callers--a Mr. Lawrence, for instance?"

"Oh, yes, Mr. Lawrence frequently."

"When Mr. Close was at home?"

"Yes, on business and on business, too, when he was not at home. He is
the attorney, m'sieur."

"How did Mrs. Close receive him?"

"He is the attorney, m'sieur," Marie repeated persistently.

"And he, did he always call on business?"

"Oh, yes, always on business, but well, madame, she was a very beautiful
woman. Perhaps he like beautiful women--eh bien? That was before the
Doctor Gregory treated madame. After the doctor treated madame M'sieur
Lawrence do not call so often. That's all."

"Are you thoroughly devoted to Mrs. Close? Would you do a favour for
her?" asked Craig point-blank.

"Sir, I would give my life, almost, for madame. She was always so good
to me."

"I don't ask you to give your life for her, Marie," said Craig, "but you
can do her a great service, a very great service."

"I will do it."

"To-night," said Craig, "I want you to sleep in Mrs. Close's room. You
can do so, for I know that Mr. Close is living at the St. Francis Club
until his wife returns from the sanitarium.