"Well, of course, not impossible, but quite improbable." "Is there not a curtained alcove or anteroom next the library?" "Yes; but why should the girl have suspected us--why concealed herself there to listen?" "Heaven only knows, but it is possible that some accident brought her there--perhaps an errand of some kind--maybe to get medicine from me for her aching tooth. She caught a few words that aroused her curiosity, kept silence, and listened, overhearing the truth about herself." "It must indeed have happened that way!" "And the shock drove her mad," continued Doctor Jay. "Her resentment flamed against me for knowing so much of her low origin. In her first senseless fury she sought my life." "It is a terrible situation!" cried his friend, and both were silent for a moment, gazing at the lock of hair as if it had been a writhing serpent; then Clarke continued: "It is a wonder the fiend incarnate did not seek my life also, thus removing from her path the two who were plotting to oust her from her position and reinstate the real heiress!" But even as he spoke he remembered last night's accident when he had been aroused by the clink of breaking glass and found Roma in hysterics by his bedside. He told Doctor Jay the whole story, adding: "I could not imagine how the bottle came there. It was certainly not on the stand when I retired to bed, and when I read the label this morning, it ran: 'Poison--arsenic.'" "I should like to see the bottle." "Come with me," returned Mr. Clarke, leading the way to his room. Fortunately the chambermaid had not disturbed anything yet, so the fragments of the bottle and glass were found upon the table. "It is a fearfully strong solution of arsenic, and I fancy she intended to pour it into your sedative, so that in case you drank it you would be silenced forever," affirmed the doctor. They could only stare aghast at each other, feeling that Providence had surely preserved their lives last night. "She was nervous in the dark, jostling the bottle against the glass, breaking both, and thus defeating her murderous game! The toothache was probably a clever feint to explain her presence in your room," continued the old doctor, who had a wonderful insight into men and motives, and seemed to read Roma like an open book. A sudden terror seized on Mr. Clarke. "She has taken my darling wife away with her! What if she means to murder her, too? I must follow them on the next train and separate them forever!" he cried frantically. "I believe you are right, my friend." After further thought and consultation, they decided that, although Roma and Mrs. Clarke must be immediately separated, it would not be prudent to reveal the truth to her yet, for the shock would be sufficient to dethrone her reason. Therefore it would not be prudent to arrest Roma yet for her attempted crimes.