Suddenly she uttered a cry of delight. She had discovered the letter which Max Laponi claimed had been sent him by the same lawyer who had notified Rosanna of her newly inherited fortune.
Although Laponi, upon his arrival at Raven Ridge, had flourished the document, he had permitted no one to inspect it closely.
Now as Penny read the letter carefully she recalled that the wording was identical with the message which Rosanna had received. Closely she studied the salutation, holding the paper to the light.
“I believe the name has been changed!” she exclaimed. “Max Laponi has cleverly removed Rosanna’s name and substituted his own. This must be the letter which Rosanna lost!”
It occurred to her that the man doubtlessly had found the missing key as well. She again ran her hand into the cloth pocket and triumphantly brought it forth.
“He’s nothing but a rank impostor!” she told herself. “I’ll keep this letter as evidence against him and the key will come in handy too!”
Penny hastily rearranged the suitcase as she had found it and prepared to depart. The search had well repaid her for her efforts, but it had taken longer than she had intended.
However, as she crossed the room toward the window she noticed a number of small objects spread out over the dresser and could not resist pausing to inspect them. They held her interest only briefly.
She turned away again but as she moved off a button on her sleeve caught in the lace work of the runner which covered the dresser top. It pulled awry and Penny paused to straighten it.
As she rearranged the piece, her fingers touched a small hard object on the under side. Her curiosity aroused she turned back the runner and looked beneath it.