The Phantom laughed mirthlessly. The doctor’s theory, though at first glance shallow and far-fetched, impressed him uncomfortably, instilling in his mind an idea that had not occurred to him until now. Helen, standing a few paces away, was regarding him intently.
“To-day, I infer, you returned to the scene of your crime,” continued the doctor, speaking in the dry tones of one developing a thesis. “Criminals often do, but why you, a superior type, should exhibit the same failing is beyond me. Some time in the near future I shall write a monograph on the subject, with particular reference to your individual case. However, the fact remains that you returned to the scene of your crime. I take it that by some blunder or careless move you betrayed your presence. At any rate, you found yourself trapped in Gage’s bedchamber. What more natural than that, for the second time within a week, you should use the tunnel as a means of escape?”
The Phantom was silent for a moment. Helen Hardwick seemed to be searching his soul with eyes that gave him a distressing impression of doubt, suspicion, and reproach.
“You’re mistaken.” He was addressing the doctor, but the effect of his words was intended for the girl. “I went to Gage’s house this afternoon, hoping to find some clew to the murderer.”
“Ah!” The doctor’s chuckle expressed amusement. “You were acting on the idea that it takes a crook to catch a crook, I suppose. Go on. Your ingenious explanations are diverting.”
“I found myself cornered,” continued the Phantom, stifling his resentment. “With the house surrounded and the police pounding on the door, I had only a few moments in which to find a way out. I used the tunnel, but I discovered the opening by merest accident.”
“Impossible—flatly impossible! Yes, I see your wrist is scratched, but that proves nothing. That opening, my dear sir, could never have been discovered by accident.”
“You seem to know something about it yourself,” remarked the Phantom pointedly.
“I do,” admitted the anthropologist, with a broad grin.
“And the tunnel runs into the cellar of your house.”