Burt searched the cellar thoroughly. Stolburst had been removed—that was plain.
Burt bitterly cursed his luck. He was as far from finding Stolburst as when he began to search for him. Next he and the police officer went through the house.
On the mantel of a room that the negress said had been occupied by the heathen priest, Burt found a small miniature, painted on porcelain. The colored woman declared it to be a likeness of Ajeeb. Burt studied the features carefully, and then placed the painting in his pocket. He again questioned the negress.
“How long have these people been here?” he asked.
“About three months.”
“Does Ajeeb own the furniture?”
“Not all; he owns some of it.”
“How do you know all this?”
“I worked for the people who owns this house, and who lived here before he came.”
“Did he have many visitors?”