"Was not opened by me until I returned to town after the assault. And then I went at once to Scotland Yard," retorted Jerce. The juryman retired from the contest, and the Coroner then summed up the evidence as clearly and concisely as he could. Bearing in mind, he observed, the Purple Fern murders and the presence of Osip, who was clearly connected with the same, and above all, remembering the fatal mark on the forehead of the deceased, there could be no doubt that this crime was the eighth of the fatal series. One of the criminals who had perpetrated these terrible assassinations had been hanged, another had died from consumption, but the third--Alfred Osip--was still alive and had undoubtedly stabbed Henry Horran. It was proved by the fact that the usual warning had been given by means of the pictured fern. The window--according to Mr. Clarke--could be seen from the lane, so without doubt Osip, lurking therein, had seen that the window was open--as a light was in the room--and, waiting until the small hours of the morning, when his victim would presumably be asleep, he had entered and killed the unfortunate gentleman. The Coroner ended his speech with a request that the jurymen would bring in a verdict in accordance with the weight of evidence, which plainly pointed to Alfred Osip as the criminal. The jury did so very promptly, as not one of them, and not one of the listeners to the evidence, had any doubt but that Osip was the guilty person. Therefore, after bringing in a verdict of "Wilful murder against Alfred Osip," the inquest was brought to an end, and the jurymen, very well satisfied with themselves, went home. But although the verdict had been given, the criminal was still at large; and now that he had commenced operations in Crumel, it was doubtful when he would stop. The locksmiths of Crumel did a fine trade during the next few days, as everyone wanted bolts and bars, patent locks, and ingenious alarms. The quiet little Essex town was terribly scared by the presence of this unseen beast of prey. During the inquest, Clarice, looking round to see who was present, noticed a fashionably-dressed young lady, with a wonderful complexion and copper-coloured hair. At once she recognised her as the notorious Butterfly. Sarah--or Zara--Dumps was seated by her mother and greatly resembled the elder woman. But her mouth was firmer and her eyes were more deep-set. Notwithstanding the boldness of her appearance and the frivolity of her attire, she nevertheless looked clever and quite capable of dominating the weaker nature of Ferdy Baird. Once or twice Butterfly met the grave gaze of Clarice, and, rather to the latter's surprise, immediately dropped her eyes with a quick flush. This was strange, considering the known boldness of the girl, and Clarice wondered what it might mean.