“A good record won’t help him very much if he is blamed for this and can’t clear himself. And Dad admits that he did know the combination of the safe.”

“He knew it?”

“Accidentally. He was cleaning the library fireplace one day when he found a slip of paper with numbers marked on it. The combination was so simple that anyone could remember it if he read it once. Dad didn’t realize what it was until he had studied it a while, and then he put it back on Mr. Applegate’s desk. The window was open and the breeze had blown the paper to the floor.”

“Does Applegate know that?”

“Not yet. But Dad is going to tell him now. He says he knows it will look bad for him, but he’s going to tell the truth about it. He knew the combination, although of course he would never think of using it.”