A group of men; who were really alive, but invisible to the searchers,
stood in the room where the discovery was made. Two of the number were
evidently angry, one in one way and one in another. The rest of the
group appeared to be very merry. One angry man was Brenton himself, who
was sullenly enraged. The other was the Frenchman, Lecocq, who was as
deeply angered as Brenton, but, instead of being sullen, was exceedingly
voluble.
"I tell you," he cried, "it is not a mistake of mine. I went on correct
principles from the first. I was misled by one who should have known
better. You will remember, gentlemen," he continued, turning first to
one and then the other, "that what I said was that we had certain facts
to go on. One of those facts I got from Mr. Brenton. I said to him in
your presence, 'Did you poison yourself?' He answered me, as I can prove
by all of you, 'No, I did not.' I took that for a fact. I thought I was
speaking to a reasonable man who knew what he was talking about."
"Haven't I told you time and again," answered Brenton, indignantly,
"that it was a mistake? You asked me if I poisoned myself. I answered
you that I did not. Your question related to suicide. I did _not_ commit
suicide. I was the victim of a druggist's mistake. If you had asked me
if I had taken medicine before I went to bed, I should have told you
frankly, 'Yes. I took one capsule of quinine.' It has been my habit for
years, when I feel badly. I thought nothing of that."
"My dear sir," said Lecocq, "I warned you, and I warned these gentlemen,
that the very things that seem trivial to a thoughtless person are the
things that sometimes count. You should have told me _everything_. If
you took anything at all, you should have said so. If you had said to
me, 'Monsieur Lecocq, before I retired I took five grains of quinine,'
I should have at once said; 'Find where that quinine is, and see if it
_is_ quinine, and see if there has not been a mistake.' I was entirely
misled; I was stupidly misled."
"Well, if there was stupidity," returned Brenton, "it was your own."
"Come, come, gentlemen," laughed Speed, "all's well that ends well.
Everybody has been mistaken, that's all about it. The best detective
minds of Europe and America, of the world, and of the spirit-land, have
been misled. You are _all_ wrong. Admit it, and let it end."
"My dear sir," said Lecocq, "I shall not admit anything. I was not
wrong; I was misled. It was this way----"
"Oh, now, for goodness' sake don't go over it all again. We understand
the circumstances well enough."
"I tell you," cried Brenton, in an angry tone, "that----
"Come, come," said Speed, "we have had enough of this discussion. I tell
you that you are all wrong, every one of you. Come with me, Brenton, and
we will leave this amusing crowd."
"I shall do nothing of the kind," answered Brenton, shortly.
"Oh, very well then, do as you please. I am glad the thing is ended, and
I am glad it is ended by my Chicago friend."
"Your Chicago friend!" sneered Brenton, slightingly; "It was discovered
by Doctor Stephen Roland."
"My dear fellow," said Speed, "Stephen Roland had all his time to
discover the thing, and didn't do it, and never would have done it, if
George Stratton hadn't encountered him. Well, good-bye, gentlemen; I am
sorry to say that I have had quite enough of this discussion. But one
thing looms up above it all, and that is that Chicago is ahead of the
world in everything--in detection as well as in fires."
"My dear sir," cried Lecocq, "it is not true. I will show you in a
moment--"
"You won't show _me_," said Speed, and he straightway disappeared.
"Come, Ferris," said Brenton, "after all, you are the only friend I seem
to have; come with me."
"Where are you going?" asked Ferris, as they left.
"I want to see how my wife takes the news."
"Don't," said Mr. Ferris--"don't do anything of the kind. Leave matters
just where they are. Everything has turned out what you would call all
right. You see that your interference, as far as it went, was perfectly
futile and useless. I want now to draw your attention to other things."
"Very well, I will listen to you," said Brenton, "if you come with me
and see how my wife takes the news. I want to enjoy for even a moment or
two her relief and pleasure at finding that her good name is clear."
"Very well," assented Ferris, "I will go with you."
When they arrived they found the Chicago reporter ahead of them. He had
evidently told Mrs. Brenton all the news, and her face flushed with
eager pleasure as she listened to the recital.
"Now," said the Chicago man, "I am going to leave Cincinnati. Are you
sorry I am going?"
"No," said Mrs. Brenton, looking him in the face, "I am not sorry."
Stratton flushed at this, and then said, taking his hat in his hand,
"Very well, madam, I shall bid you good day."
"I am not sorry," said Mrs. Brenton, holding out her hand, "because I
am going to leave Cincinnati myself, and I hope never to see the city
again. So if you stayed here, you see, I should never meet you again,
Mr. Stratton."
"Alice," cried Stratton, impulsively grasping her hand in both of his,
"don't you think you would like Chicago as a place of residence?"
"George," she answered, "I do not know. I am going to Europe, and shall
be there for a year or two."
Then he said eagerly--
"When you return, or if I go over there to see you after a year or two,
may I ask you that question again?"
"Yes," was the whispered answer.
* * * * *
"Come," said Brenton to Ferris, "let us go."