Читать книгу The Great Diamond Syndicate; Or, The Hardest Crew on Record онлайн

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The hall down which the girl passed was not a long one, and ended at a door which connected with a hall in the wing. She was, therefore, soon out of sight. As she closed the door Nick saw a disdainful smile on her face.

“That’s a bright girl,” he said, as Chick stepped to his side.

“Mrs. Maynard is covering clues,” said the assistant. “Which shows that she has much to conceal. The girl said she came after a dress, but went away with the nightrobe which discloses the story of the struggle. She was in Charley’s room before she came here. I wonder what she took from there?”

Nick stepped down the hall a few paces and bent to the floor. When he came back he held a shred of cotton in his fingers.

“She took the packing from the casket in which the diamonds were brought here,” he said. “Mrs. Maynard is getting well fast. The robe shows the struggle, and the packing shows her touch. But she came too late.”

Chick drew the little drawer from the dresser and held it out—empty.

“And the handkerchiefs show the presence of the diamonds here, and also the grab made for them by the old man. She must have taken them before I got into the room, although I was only a second behind her. What does it all mean, chief? Is it possible that Mrs. Maynard knows who killed her husband?”