Then followed a most amazing procedure.
Opening the box, Palermo produced articles of make-up, and with swiftness and precision, he began to apply cosmetics to his face.
He looked closely at the dead man’s face as he went through this operation. At intervals he paused, and turned to a mirror. He looked back and forth, comparing his own visage with that of Chatham.
The mysterious physician’s face rapidly underwent a surprising transformation. More and more it came to resemble the countenance of Horace Chatham, until it was impossible to distinguish any great differences between the face of the living man and that of the victim in the chair.
The only contrast was the hair. Doctor Palermo overcame that discrepancy by bringing forth a box full of wigs. He selected one that closely resembled Chatham’s dark, bushy hair.
When he had placed this on his head, Palermo stood before the mirror and chuckled maliciously as he studied his handiwork.
Palermo snapped his fingers twice. A panel opened in the wall, and from this concealed door stepped forth a tall, powerful, brown-skinned man. Palermo pointed to the body and uttered a few words in a foreign tongue.
The dark man placed his massive hands under Chatham’s shoulders, and lifted the victim with ease. He carried the body through the panel, and it closed after him, leaving a solid wall.
The murderer had taken away his victim. No trace of the tragedy remained— except Chatham’s hat and overcoat, which lay upon a chair in the corner.
Doctor Palermo disposed of these by donning them. Then he went to a small filing cabinet, and ran through the cards to the letter C.