“I think I have,” answered the broker, slowly.
The housekeeper looked surprised. If anything new had been discovered, she at least had not heard it.
“May I ask what it is?” Ford inquired, carelessly.
“You shall know in good time. Let me, however, return the question. Have you heard anything calculated to throw light on the mystery?”
“No, sir, I can't say I have. To my mind there is no mystery at all about the affair.”
“I presume I understand what you mean. Still I will ask you to explain yourself.”
“Everything seems to throw suspicion upon that boy, Grant Thornton. Nobody saw him take the bonds, to be sure, but he has had every opportunity of doing so, living in the same house, as he does. Again, a key has been found in his pocket, which will open the bureau drawer in which the bonds were kept; and, thirdly, I can testify, and the boy admits, that he presented them at our office for sale, and received the money for them. I think, sir, that any jury would consider this accumulation of proof conclusive.”
“It does seem rather strong,” said the broker, gravely. “I compliment you on the way you have summed up, Mr. Ford.”
Willis Ford looked much gratified. He was susceptible to flattery, and he was additionally pleased, because, as he thought, Mr. Reynolds was impressed by the weight of evidence.
“I have sometimes thought,” he said, complacently, “that I ought to have become a lawyer. I always had a liking for the profession.”