Kendrick had a flash of inspiration. He sprang to his feet, reaching excitedly into his pocket.
"Has Miss Lawson ever owned a pin like this? Is this her's?" and he unfolded the dollar bill and held out the blouse pin for inspection.
"Sure, that's her's. She told me she lost one from her best hand-painted set in your canoe that night."
Kendrick sat down in the nearest chair and laughed as if Stiles had said something which was exceedingly witty. The outburst was so spontaneous and unaccountable that the bookkeeper stared at him. He could not know that Phil would laugh with equal abandon just then if somebody were to inform him that the real reason a hen crosses the road is to get to the other side.
"She seems to have taken you pretty well into her confidence, Jimmy.
Perhaps you can tell me who her escort was that night of the fog—a Joe
Somebody."
"Oh, that was me. I paddled her across the bay that night. We agreed to call each other by fake names in case anybody heard us talking. When she got into your canoe by mistake I was only about ten yards away, but I was scared to move. I knew she could take care of herself."
Again Phil laughed. But Stiles was growing impatient and his worried look returned.
"Say, never mind all that, Mr. Kendrick, please. We've got to do something about this other thing right away quick. Nickleby's been havin' Podmore watched an' he had a seance yesterday afternoon with the fellow that's doing it. There's liable to be others setting out with the same idea she had——"
"What do you mean?" demanded Kendrick, seriously.
"Miss Lawson took the train west last night to get that darn envelope you hid in the stump in the woods——"