"I see no way at present of fixing the date," Godfrey replied.
"It may have been twenty, fifty, or a hundred years ago, or even more," ventured Idris.
"Any period since the era of the discovery of platinum," answered Godfrey.
"Is there no way in these scientific times of ascertaining the age of that skull?" asked Beatrice.
Godfrey shook his head.
"The most skilled anatomist would be puzzled to determine the age of a given skull," he replied.
Idris paced uneasily to and fro, assigning the skull in turn to each of those who, to his knowledge, had been in any way connected with the runic ring—his father, Lorelie's father, the unknown assassin of Duchesne, and lastly the masked man of Quilaix.
"Whoever the victim was," said Beatrice, slowly and thoughtfully, "he must have been murdered by a woman."
"A woman!" ejaculated Idris. He could not tell why at that moment a cold feeling should come over him.