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Rh smiled in spite of himself. There had been an engaging quality about the young man's boyish yet very earnest outburst, which had enabled Odell to read his character more clearly than hours of grilling examination would have revealed; and he felt with relief that here at least was one person more or less intimately connected with the household whose complexities need not be taken into account. Nan returned as the front door thudded, her soft eyes sparkling and the dusky roseglow still suffusing her face; but color and light alike died from her expression as she closed the door carefully behind her and approached the detective.

"Rannie says that you have proof that my mother—" Her voice faltered and stopped. Then suddenly a swift cry burst from her lips. "Is it true that they were murdered, my mother and Julian?"

"I am afraid there is no possibility of a doubt," Odell returned gravely. "I have heard all that the rest of the family and the servants can tell me, Miss Chalmers; and now I have come to you. You experienced the same fears, the same vague suspicions as the others after your brother's death, did you not?"

"Yes, but I didn't really suspect; none of us did, I'm sure. I only felt nervous and afraid of something I couldn't see, as if I were a little bit of a girl again and woke up in the dark." She drew a deep breath. "I cannot imagine who would wish to harm us; I can scarcely believe that this dreadful thing is true. But, but granted that it is, the most awful part is that someone beneath our roof—"

Her voice had sunk to a mere whisper and once more it failed her.