"No; our waiter told us that the party consisted of only two."

"You mean Corbut?"

"I believe that's his name—the fellow who disappeared."

"How do you account for his disappearance?"

"I don't; but perhaps he was afraid of being mixed up in the affair. He may have a record which won't permit him to go before the police, even as a witness."

"How could he have got that cab?"

"I've thought a good deal about that. It was mentioned in the papers. I believe he may have slipped out the front way, called the cab, and then gone back to get something.

"Perhaps he went back for his clothes but didn't dare to take them."

"And how about the cabman's story of the man who engaged the cab?"

"The cabman's a liar. That's plain enough."