As the seizure progressed, the maid had become hysterical with fright and fled. The man was of tougher
timber and had remained until the end. He had been much shaken, as had Dr. Y, by the after-death
phenomena. Upon the physician declaring that the case was one for the coroner, he had lost his
reticence, volunteering his name as James Martin, and expressing himself as eager for a complete
autopsy. He was quite frank as to his reasons. The Darnley woman had been his mistress, and he "had
enough trouble without her death pinned to me."
There had been a thorough autopsy. No trace of disease or poison had been found. Beyond a slight
valvular trouble of the heart, Hortense Darnley had been perfectly healthy. The verdict had been death by
heart disease. But Dr. Y was perfectly convinced the heart had nothing to do with it.
It was, of course, quite obvious that Hortense Darnley had died from the same cause or agency as had all