“And so do I,” heartily agreed the other. “Trevor had to buy Madame de Berriot’s silence. If the scandal had gotten out it would have meant social ostracism, not only for the guilty woman, but for Beatrice Trevor and her father as well. It is another case of the innocent suffering with the guilty. Now, Tillinghast, do you know any facts about Mr. Gordon’s connection with this affair which have not been made public?” Seeing Dick’s hesitancy, he added, “Murders are usually outside my province, I know, but this one touches the President closely; first one of his aides is suspected, then his Attorney General is dragged into the affair. If innocent, they must be cleared as quickly as possible. Come, sir, I must have an answer.”
“You are right, Mr. Secretary,” replied Dick. “I only hesitated fearing I might get Gordon into further trouble.” Then, in a few words, he repeated what General Long had told him.
“Whew!” whistled the Secretary. “That certainly complicates matters. Do you think Trevor knew of Gordon’s former infatuation for his wife?”
“Indeed, sir, I was afraid to speak of Gordon,” confessed Dick. “I didn’t know what effect it might have. Mr. Trevor looked so desperately ill and worn.”
The Secretary nodded comprehendingly. “I am going to send for him to lunch with me to-day to tell him that he must on no account resign just now, and I will try and find out how much he does know of Mrs. Trevor’s old love-affair.” He paused a moment, then resumed: “There are two things which I think have a bearing on this case.”
“What are they, Mr. Secretary?” asked Dick, eagerly.
“First—find out who removed the Attorney General’s memorandum book. Secondly—while everyone has tried to prove who entered the Trevor house, no one has sought to find out when a certain member of the household left there.”
“Whom do you mean?”
“Why, what time did the private secretary leave the house, and where did he spend the evening?”
“By Jove! I never thought of him.”