“Do you mean that he was murdered?” he asked.
Ned nodded.
“Where?” was the next question.
“I found the body in a cavern on the western slope of the Rockies,” was the reply. “He had been dead only a few hours.”
Albert Lemon maintained a thoughtful silence for a time, during which Ned eyed his changing expression keenly.
“And what do you wish me to do about it?” he then asked.
“A crime has been committed,” Ned replied, “and it seems to me that you ought to do all in your power to assist in bringing the criminal to punishment.”
“Granted, sir. Tell me what to do.”
“First, tell me about the men your friend went away with.”
“That brings me to the negative proposition,” the other answered. “I have told you how Felix came by my coat, but I can’t tell you whether the man the coat was found on was Felix. You must see that for yourself. He might have given the garment away, or he might have sold it in the city to get money for opium. In short, the coat might have been on the body of a man I never saw.”