“Mr. Piff is going away too,” remarked Vevi.
“Mr. Piff!” exclaimed the nurseryman. “When did you last see him?”
“Only a minute or two before we came out here in your truck. He was in a taxi cab.”
“What made you think he was leaving Rosedale, Vevi?”
“He said so. He said the show had failed, and he was going away. The taxi was taking him to a train.”
“The show was a failure all right,” declared Mr. Van Der Lann. “But Mr. Piff has no call to go away without making a full accounting to the townspeople who contributed to his flower fund. He has run up many debts. Besides, I suspect he may be the one who took my bulbs!”
“Not Mr. Piff?” echoed Miss Gordon. “How could he do such a thing?”
“He has been here several times during the last few days,” the nurseryman revealed. “When he saw that his show would fail, he sought a means of making quick money. He wanted to sell my bulbs for me, but I turned him down.”
“Did he know where you kept them, Peter?” asked Miss Mohr.
“Yes, and he was here this morning while I was at the library. The housekeeper told me so.”