“I've a bit of a faculty for finding things out,” answered Bryce boldly. “And I've developed it. I wanted to know all about Braden--and about who killed him--and why. There's only one way of doing all that sort of thing, you know. You've got to go back--a long way back--to the very beginnings. I went back--to the time when Braden was married. Not as Braden, of course--but as who he really was--John Brake. That was at a place called Braden Medworth, near Barthorpe, in Leicestershire.” He paused there, watching Folliot. But Folliot showed no more than close attention, and Bryce went on. “Not much in that--for the really important part of the story,” he continued. “But Brake had other associations with Barthorpe--a bit later. He got to know--got into close touch with a Barthorpe man who, about the time of Brake's marriage, left Barthorpe and settled in London. Brake and this man began to have some secret dealings together. There was another man in with them, too--a man who was a sort of partner of the Barthorpe man's. Brake had evidently a belief in these men, and he trusted them--unfortunately for himself he sometimes trusted the bank's money to them. I know what happened--he used to let them have money for short financial transactions--to be refunded within a very brief space. But--he went to the fire too often, and got his fingers burned in the end. The two men did him--one of them in particular--and cleared out. He had to stand the racket. He stood it--to the tune of ten years' penal servitude. And, naturally, when he'd finished his time, he wanted to find those two men--and began a long search for them. Like to know the names of the men, Mr. Folliot?” “You might mention 'em--if you know 'em,” answered Folliot. “The name of the particular one was Wraye--Falkiner Wraye,” replied Bryce promptly. “Of the other--the man of lesser importance--Flood.” The two men looked quietly at each other for a full moment's silence. And it was Bryce who first spoke with a ring of confidence in his tone which showed that he knew he had the whip hand. “Shall I tell you something about Falkiner Wraye?” he asked. “I will!--it's deeply interesting. Mr. Falkiner Wraye, after cheating and deceiving Brake, and leaving him to pay the penalty of his over-trustfulness, cleared out of England and carried his money-making talents to foreign parts. He succeeded in doing well--he would!--and eventually he came back and married a rich widow and settled himself down in an out-of-the-world English town to grow roses. You're Falkiner Wraye, you know, Mr. Folliot!” Bryce laughed as he made this direct accusation, and sitting forward in his chair, pointed first to Folliot's face and then to his left hand.