"Had you also seen the papers, Mr. Tait?"
"No; but I had read 'A Whim of Fate.' There I found the Larcher affair set forth in the guise of fiction. Astonished at this I sought out Linton, who, I learned, was the author hidden under the name of John Parver, and asked him whence he obtained his material. He mentioned your name, and so I have come to you."
"Why?"
"Can you ask? To find out all you know of the matter."
"For what reason?"
"I think you can guess my reason," replied Tait quietly. "My friend Claude Larcher wishes to find out who killed his father."
"After five-and-twenty years? Impossible!"
"So I said at first. Now I am of a different opinion. In a short space of time we have found out a great deal. With your help we will discover more, and so in the end the matter may be cleared up."
"You want my help?"
"Decidedly! It is solely for that reason that Larcher and I have come here."