"Name?" he asked, without turning.
"She didn't give it, sir."
"There in a moment."
He finished the test he had under way, then left the little laboratory and went into the hall leading to the sitting-room, where unprivileged callers awaited his pleasure. He sniffed a little as he stepped into the hall. At the door of the sitting-room he paused and peered inside. A woman arose and came toward him. It was Miss Clarke.
"Good-evening," he said. "I knew you'd come."
Miss Clarke looked a little surprised, but made no comment.
"I came to give you some information," she said, and her voice was subdued. "I am heartbroken at the awful things which have come out concerning--concerning Mr. Fraser. I have been closely associated with him for several months, and I won't believe that he could have had anything to do with this affair, although I know positively that he was in need of a large sum of money--ninety thousand dollars--because his personal fortune was in danger. Some error in titles to an estate, he told me."
"Yes, yes," said The Thinking Machine.
"Whether he was able to raise this money I don't know," she went on. "I only hope he did without having to--to do that--to have any----"
"To rob his bank," said the scientist, tartly. "Miss Clarke, is young Dunston in love with you?"