Some fellow had fallen from a window, the taxi driver said. But the young man in the cab did not appear to be interested. He left the cab on Broadway, and shortly after, he might have been seen zigzagging down a side street.
That was the last any one could have seen of him. There were few people on the street. The only one who might have encountered the young man was a tall gentleman in black, whose face could not be discerned because of his broad-brimmed hat. He appeared on the side street shortly after the young man had faded from view.
THE newspapers carried accounts of the tragic death of Doctor Palermo. It was assumed that his Arab servant, Hassan, had thrown him from the roof outside the penthouse. The servant had evidently regretted his action and feared arrest; for he had been a suicide a short while later.
The real mystery in the case was the finding of a body of a Chinese dwarf. Stanley Warwick, the investigating detective, held the theory that the Arab had gone berserk; had killed the Chinese servant; and had then murdered his master.
Many of Doctor Palermo’s eccentricities were brought to light. The curious arrangement of the Chinese room was studied by the police, and some facts regarding it appeared in the journals.
There was no mention of The Shadow. Warwick had tactfully avoided it. His former experience had nearly made him the butt of ridicule. He saw no reason why he and his fellow detective should mention the vague form that they had seen just before it vanished in a puff of smoke.
The detective had much at stake. He had done his duty toward Palermo; the secrets of their negotiations and conferences had perished with Palermo. Warwick was glad the episode had ended.
The detective displayed good judgment in this respect. For the name of Doctor Albert Palermo came into disrepute a few weeks after his sudden demise.
Documents were brought to prove that he had murdered Horace Chatham; and that he had also killed Seth Wilkinson. His name was linked with the supposed suicide of Lloyd Harriman.
Among other articles discovered in Palermo’s apartment was the famous purple sapphire that was supposed to have brought destruction to all who owned it. The hoodoo had held true in the case of Lloyd Harriman. It had also functioned with Doctor Palermo.