“This servant had done these things before?”
“Not these things. He arrived but a few days ago, and Ito the butler, attended to the Doctor. But Sunday afternoon and evening Ito has off, so I began to train Nogi.”
“Yes; he is not to be found this morning. Nor has his bed been disturbed.”
“Then we may take it he left in the night or early morning. Now the doctors judge that Doctor Waring died about midnight. We must therefore admit the possibility of a connection between the Jap’s disappearance and the Doctor’s death.”
At this suggestion, Gordon Lockwood looked interested. Whereas he had preserved a stony calm, his face now showed deep attention to the detective’s words and he nodded his head in agreement.
“You think so, too, Mr. Lockwood?” Morton asked, in that sudden and often disconcerting way of his.
“I don’t say I think so,” the secretary returned, quietly, “but I do admit a possibility.”
“It would seem so,” Mrs. Peyton put in, “if Nogi could have got into the study. But he couldn’t. You know it was locked—impossible, Mr. Lockwood?”
“Yes,” Gordon returned. “I heard Doctor Waring lock his door.”
“When was that?” asked the detective, sharply.
“Sitting in the window nook outside the study door.”
“Could you not, then, hear anything that went on in the study?”
“Probably not. The walls and door are thick—they were made so for the doctor’s sake—he desired absolute privacy, and freedom from interruption or overhearing. No, I could not know what was taking place in that room—if anything was, at that time.”
“At what time did you last see the doctor?”
“After supper I went with him to the study. I looked after his wants, getting him a number of books from the shelves, and selecting from his files such notes or manuscript as he asked for. Those are my duties as secretary.”
“Then he practically dismissed me, saying I might leave for the night. But I remained in the hall window until eleven o’clock.”
“Out of consideration for my employer. He was exceedingly busy and if a caller came, I could probably attend to his wants and spare the doctor an interruption.”
“Yes; I was doing some work of my own, and it was later than I thought, when I decided to go home.”
“And you spoke to the Doctor before leaving?”