“Turn it off, Mac,� he said. “Put this room in complete darkness. Then we’ll all see the answer to the puzzle. It was too simple for the best cipher experts in the world to solve.�
The inspector reached upward and snapped off the switch. The room was plunged into Stygian darkness.
Fay widened his eyes and tried to make out details. There was a glow from the side windows which gradually brought out shadows.
“Come here, Chester,� commanded Sir Richard. “Come around the table and stand by my side. Look over my shoulder and tell me what you see on the paper. Keep yours eyes shaded with your hands to shut out all light. Now, what d’you see?�
Fay rounded the table and glided to Sir Richard’s side. He leaned over and strained his eyes as he stared blankly at the paper.
He saw nothing but fine black lines at first. He cupped his palms and pressed them to his temples. He moved his head back and forth from the page.
“Keep at it!� said Sir Richard with a positive chuckle.
Fay strained his glance. He saw then the first white glow of fire which moved phosphorescently between the typed-lines. It steadied. It disappeared. It came again—this time more prominently.
“Good God!� he exclaimed. “It’s there!�
“Yes,â€� said Sir Richard. “It is there! What do you make out between the first and second line? Be careful, don’t touch the paper. That’s it—what do you make out?â€�