“Where did they come from? How did they get there?”
“The spirit of Mr. Stannard placed them there,” said Natalie, solemnly. “You may scoff, Mr. Ford, you may suspect Blake of being mixed up in it, but you’re all wrong. The studio doors were locked——”
“While you and Mrs. Stannard were in there?”
“Yes, I locked them myself. All three. There are but three, you know. See, the one to the front hall, the outside one to the Terrace and the one to the Billiard Room. I locked them, and the windows were fastened too. Nobody mortal could have come into that room.”
“So it would seem. Now, who else has these leanings toward spirit forces beside you? Who sent for the clairvoyant lady?”
“Nobody. That is, she wrote herself to Mrs. Stannard, asking if she might come.”
“You liked her? You believed in her?”
“In Orienta? Oh, yes. She is not an ordinary person,—I mean she is refined, educated, cultured,—as correct in every way as we are ourselves. She’s not a professional medium, you know.”
“I know. And did Mr. Barry Stannard want her to come?”
“No; he strongly opposed it.”