“I did not know any one was with you, mother,” he said as soon as he could speak. “I was told you were in your bedroom and came straight up. I saw the awful news in the paper, and started as soon as I could.” “Didn’t you get my letter?” cried Celia in surprise. “No; I have had no letter,” he answered. “But I saw I must come here at once. It was obvious from the account that it was the only thing I could do to clear myself as I had been here that night.” “As you had been here, John!” cried the old lady in a voice rising almost to a scream. “Was it you? Was it you down there? Merciful heavens, why wasn’t I told? Oh, my boy, they might have suspected you!” Humblethorne had no longer the least doubt that he had now heard the whole truth of the mysterious tragedy: the old lady’s tears of welcome and joy at the sudden appearance of her son had dispelled from it the last uncertainty. He rose to the occasion now. “No one, my lady,” he said with a grand air, “had any real reason to do that.” He opened the door and, summoning the agape Birts with his eye, said as he passed through, “You will wish to be alone now with him, no doubt, my lady.” Birts and Fairlie followed him, and Evelyn also left brother and sister to explain everything to one another and to their mother. “If you don’t mind taking a tip from me, Miss Temple,” she heard Humblethorne saying in her ear as they went along the passage, “you have a real gift, but you make one mistake.” “What is that?” she asked without the least interest. “In thinking that there can be only one explanation of any set of facts,” he replied. “Now I have had years of experience and I know that the same facts can often be explained in several different ways. And you see now that I’m right.” “Yes,” she answered slowly, “I see now: it is wonderful to see at last, isn’t it?” The End TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE This transcription follows the text of the 1917 edition published by Longmans, Green and Co., with the exception of the following changes, made to correct what are believed to be unambiguous errors. * One occurrence of “Inspecter” has been changed to “Inspector”. * An extraneous quotation mark has been deleted.