“May I introduce myself?” he said. “I’m Robert Fessenden, of New York, a lawyer, and I was to have been best man at the wedding. You, I know, are Doctor Hills, and I want to say to you that if the earnest endeavor of an amateur detective would be of any use to you in this matter, it is at your disposal. Mr. Carleton is my old and dear friend, and I need not tell you how he now calls forth my sympathy.”

Instinctively, Doctor Hills liked this young man. His frank manner and pleasant, straightforward ways impressed the doctor favorably, and he shook hands warmly as he said, “This is most kind of you, Mr. Fessenden, and you may prove the very man we need. At first, we were all convinced that Miss Van Norman’s death was a suicide; and though the evidence still strongly points to that, I am sure that there is a possibility, at least, that it is not true.”

“May I learn the details of the case? May I go into the library?” said Fessenden, hesitating to approach the closed door until invited.