"I suppose no one came by to inquire for her?" said Shelton.
"No one, sir; I did not see anyone passing that day except a doctor's carriage that whirled past in a desperate hurry soon after she left here."
"Let us hope she made her escape from whatever evils menaced her," said he, fervently. "Well, I must be going in earnest now. My kind friend, will you tell me your name? I may call on you again."
"My name is Mrs. Mason, sir," she answered.
"Do you live here alone?" asked he, as he jotted it hastily down in his note-book.
"Quite alone, sir. My poor husband and my only child have been dead these ten years—I am quite alone in the world," answered Mrs. Mason with a sigh.
"Good day, Mrs. Mason, and many thanks for your kindness to a wayfaring man," said the detective as he went down the path, leaped into the saddle and rode away.
Mrs. Mason's revelation had thrown his mind into a chaos of doubt, perplexity and suspicion. New light began to break in on him, startling him with a wondrous possibility he had not suspected.