“I met Clive down the road,” began Osmun, with no salutation, as he mounted the veranda steps. “I was driving here to see him--to try once more to persuade him to come to Canobie with me. I made him drive on home in my runabout--he wouldn’t come back here with me--while I stopped to get his luggage. May I trouble you to have it brought down?” He spoke with studied formality, his rasping voice icy and aloof. “The servants aren’t up yet,” said Vail, no more warmly. “If you’ll wait here a minute I’ll go and get it for you myself.” He did not ask Osmun to enter, nor did Creede make any move to do so. As Vail retired into the house on his quest, Osmun’s blinking eyes, behind their thick spectacles, caught sight of Doris Lane just within the shadow of the hall. “Doris,” he said quickly, “if you and Miss Gregg want to get away I can have a car of mine here inside of twenty minutes. And if you and she will stay on at Canobie till Stormcrest is ready for you to go back to it I’ll be happier than I can say.” “Thank you,” she made cold answer. “But we are very comfortable here. We--” “Here?” echoed Creede. “But, dear girl, you can’t possibly stay on, either of you, after what’s happened. Clive told me about it just now. It’s unbelievable! And I know how eager you both must be to get away.” “You are entirely mistaken,” she returned. “Why should we go away? Of course, poor Willis Chase’s death is an awful shock. But he was never a very dear friend to any of us, long as we’d all known him. And Aunt Hester has decided that as soon as the inquest is over, we can settle down to life here as well as anywhere until Stormcrest is--” “I wasn’t thinking of the associations that must hang over this house,” explained Creede. “I suppose Chase’s body will be taken away directly after the inquest. I was thinking of the man who is your host. Clive has just left me in a huff because I told him I believed Thaxton Vail is the only person with the motive or the opportunity for killing Chase. It is true. A thousand things point to it.” “I am afraid nobody whose opinion is worth while will agree with you,” she answered. “I don’t care to discuss it, please. You’ll excuse me, won’t you, if I go in? I must find Aunt Hester and--” She finished the sentence by turning on her heel and disappearing down the dusky hall. Halfway in her retreat, she passed Quimby and Dr. Lawton and two of the three constables coming down from their examination of the upper rooms. “Anything new, Doctor?” she asked Lawton, detaining him as the three others continued their progress to the front door. The doctor waited until the trio passed out of earshot. Then, lowering his voice, he said quizzically: “The chief’s got another bee in his bonnet now. He’s all up in the air over it. He says it lands the case against a blank wall.” “What do you mean?” she asked, puzzled at his hint.