early so becoming as this gown!"

"It is of the last century!" she protested. "But anything is better
than that masquerade! And when--when...."

"I think I can get Swain free this afternoon," I answered. "I'm going
to try, anyway. Mr. Godfrey 'phoned him the good news the first thing
this morning. This is Mr. Godfrey, Miss Vaughan," I added, "and very
eager to shake hands with you."

"Very proud, too," said Godfrey, coming forward and suiting the action
to the word.

There was a step on the walk outside, and Dr. Hinman appeared at the door.

"Well!" he cried, coming in, his face beaming. "There's no need for me
to ask how my patient's doing!"

"I'm afraid you haven't got any patient, any more, doctor," I laughed.

"I'm afraid not," agreed Hinman. "I'll have to go back to my office
and wait for another one. But before I go, Miss Vaughan, I want to
hear the story. Mr. Lester promised me I should."

Miss Vaughan looked at me.

"We all want to hear it," I said; "how you came to suspect--how you
got the glove--everything."

Her face grew sober, and a shadow flitted across it.

"Suppose we sit down," she said, and just then the sentry at the door
saluted and Simmonds stepped into the room.

I saw him shake his head in answer to Godfrey's questioning look and
knew that Silva had not been found. Then I brought him forward to Miss
Vaughan and introduced him.

"Mr. Simmonds," I explained, "has been in charge of this case; and it
was he who arranged to watch the house, for fear some harm would
befall you...."

"I know," broke in Miss Vaughan, clasping Simmonds's hand warmly.
"Annie told me all about it this morning. I don't know how to thank
you, Mr. Simmonds."

"Oh, it wasn't me, especially," protested Simmonds, red to the ears.
"It was really Godfrey there, and Mr. Lester. They were worried to death."

"We _were_ rather worried," Godfrey admitted; "especially after we saw
you at that midnight fireworks party."

"You saw that?" she asked quickly; "but how...."

"Oh, we had seen the show every night for a week. It was its failure
to come off last night which first told us something was wrong."

"Well," said Miss Vaughan, with a deep breath, sitting down again and
motioning us to follow her example, "it seems to me that you have a
story to tell, too! But I'll tell mine first. Where shall I begin?"

"Begin," I suggested, "at the moment when you first suspected the
plot."

"That was when you were telling me