"Concerned in crime? Florence Lloyd! why, man, you must be crazy! The
idea is unthinkable!"

I was sorry I had spoken, but I remembered too late that the suspicions
which pointed toward Miss Lloyd were probably known only to those who
had been in the Crawford house that morning. As for the townspeople in
general, though they knew of the tragedy, they knew very little of its
details.

I hastened to assure Mr. Carstairs that I had never seen Miss Lloyd,
that I had formed no opinions whatever, and that I was merely repeating
what were probably vague and erroneous suspicions of mistakenly-minded
people.

At last, behind my locked door, I took from my pocket the newspaper I
had brought from Mr. Crawford's office.

It seemed to me important, from the fact that it was an extra, published
late the night before.

An Atlantic liner had met with a serious accident, and an extra had been
hastily put forth by one of the most enterprising of our evening papers.
I, myself, had bought one of these extras, about midnight; and the
finding of a copy in the office of the murdered man might prove a clue
to the criminal.

I then examined carefully the transfer slip I had picked up on the
Crawford lawn. It had been issued after nine o'clock the evening before.
This seemed to me to prove that the holder of that transfer must have
been on the Crawford property and near the library veranda late last
night, and it seemed to me that this was plain common-sense reasoning,
and not mere intuition or divination. The transfer might have a simple
and innocent explanation, but until I could learn of that, I should hold
it carefully as a possible clue.

IV. THE INQUEST

Shortly before two o'clock I was back at the Crawford house and found
the large library, where the inquest was to be held, already well filled
with people. I took an inconspicuous seat, and turned my attention
first to the group that comprised, without a doubt, the members of Mr.
Crawford's household.

Miss Lloyd--for I knew at a glance the black-robed young woman must be
she--was of a striking personality. Tall, large, handsome, she could
have posed as a model for Judith, Zenobia, or any of the great and
powerful feminine characters in history. I was impressed not so much by
her beauty as by her effect of power and ability. I had absolutely no
reason, save Parmalee's babblings, to suspect this woman of crime, but
I could not rid myself of a conviction that she had ev