“Look in the mirror,” Ned replied, “and you will see there a fairly good representation of the dead man. About the same in height, in size, and, yes, in feature.”
“Then it must have been Felix,” the other said. “His remarkable resemblance to myself has often been remarked. Poor fellow! I’m sorry that his end should come in so ghastly a form.”
There was a short silence, during which Lemon’s eyes flitted from the key in Ned’s fingers to the writing desk.
“I said a moment ago,” he observed then, “that I searched the pockets of the clothes before I gave them to him, or words to that effect. I remember now that I ordered Jap to do it. Did you obey orders?” he asked, turning to the servant.
Ned saw the Jap give a quick start, then regain control of himself. Lemon, too, looked crestfallen for a moment, then addressed the Jap in another tongue.
“I was talking in English,” he said, “and forgot for the moment that he would not understand me.”
There followed a short conversation between the two, and then Lemon announced that the Jap had forgotten to look in the pockets of the clothes. Ned ignored the explanation and put the key in his pocket. He knew now that the Jap could understand English, and also that the key belonged to Albert Lemon, alive or dead.
ILLUSTRATION No. 3