Still dazed by the crowded incidents of the last twenty-four hours, Ward followed the detective to the Criminal Court House, on the ground floor of which the coroner's office is situated. They found Coroner Hart in his private room, engrossed in the routine of his work.
"Just a word, coroner!" Britz called him aside.
The two held a whispered consultation, after which the coroner returned to his desk. Britz and Ward occupied chairs at the farther end of the room, near the window. Half an hour passed, in which neither of them spoke. Presently an attendant entered and whispered to the coroner.
"Bring Horace Beard over from the Tombs!" the coroner said aloud.
Ward began to display signs of uneasiness.
"Must I meet him?" he inquired.
"It won't do any harm," Britz replied.
A moment later the door opened again, and was held ajar by the attendant. Ward tried to avert his gaze from the swinging portal, but his eyes insensibly wandered back to the spot through which his successful rival in love must enter. Suddenly the banker leaped out of his seat and stood stiffly erect, gazing tensely at the attractively slim figure of Josephine Burden.
"Joe!" he called, advancing timorously.
She shrank back toward the door.