“Why those two? Why not Mrs. Embury?”
“Innocent child! Those two are deeply, desperately, darkly in love with the—the widow.”
“Let’s leave her out of this!”
“Ha, ha! a squire of dames, eh? and at your age! All right—leave the lady’s name out. But I’ve confessed my hidden purpose. Now tell me what brings you to my domicile, on false pretenses, and why do I find you on the point of breaking into my wardrobe?”
“Truth does it! I wanted to see if I could find a false beard and a white turban.”
“Oh, you did! And what good would that do you? You have cleverly discerned that I assumed an innocent disguise, in order to give aid and comfort to a most worthy dame of advanced years.”
“You did but why?”
“Are you Paul Pry? You’ll drive me crazy with your eternal ‘why?’“
“All right, go crazy, then—but, why?”
“The same old reason,” and Hanlon spoke seriously. “I’m trying, as I said, to find the Embury murderer, and I contrived that session with the old lady in hopes of learning something to help me in finding him.”