e right," said he reluctantly, "but I have my doubts of Mrs.
Vrain, and shall continue to have them until she supplies a more
feasible explanation of her fainting. In the meantime, I'll leave you to
follow out the case in the manner you judge best. We shall see who is
right in the long run," and Denzil, still holding to his opinion, took
his departure, leaving Link confident that the young man did not know
what he was talking about.

As the detective sat thinking over the late conversation, and wondering
if he could shape any definite course out of it, Denzil put his head in
at the door.

"I say, Link," he called out, "you'd better find out if Mrs. Vrain is
really the wife of this dead man before you are guided by her story!"
After which speech he hurriedly withdrew, leaving Link to digest it at
his leisure.

At first, Link was indignant that Denzil should deem him so easily
hoodwinked as the speech implied. Afterwards he began to laugh.

"Wife!" said he to himself. "Of course she is the man's wife! She knows
too much about him to be otherwise; but even granting that Denzil is
right--which I don't for a moment admit--there is no need for me to
prove the truth of his assumption. If this pretty woman is not the true
wife of Berwin, or Vrain, or whatever this dead man's name actually may
be, the assurance company will get at the rights of the matter before
paying over the money."

Subsequent events reflected credit on this philosophical speech and
determination of Mr. Link. Had Mrs. Vrain been an imposter, her house of
cards would have been knocked down, as soon as reared, by the searching
inquiry instituted by the Sirius Assurance Company. It appeared that the
life of the late Mark Vrain was on the books of the company for no less
a sum than twenty thousand pounds; and under the will this was to be
paid over to Lydia Vrain, _nee_ Clyne. The widow, aided by her
father--who was a shrewd business man, in spite of his innocent
looks--and the family lawyer of the Vrains, went systematically to work
to establish her own identity, the death of her husband, and her
consequent right to the money.

The first thing to be done was to prove that the dead man was really
Vrain. There was some little difficulty in obtaining an order from the
authorities for the opening of the grave and the exhumation of the body;
but finally the consent of those in power was obtained, and there was
little difficulty in the identification of the re