During the absence of the detective the red-headed young man moved swiftly about the room. To Maynard he seemed to be looking for something. He hung constantly in the vicinity of the chair upon which the murderer’s clothing had been placed after the exchange of garments. Once or twice he got down on the floor and examined the carpet. Maynard thought this remarkable, but said nothing.
When Nick returned from the phone booth and the young man was still busy in his search of the room, Maynard explained his actions to the detective, who smiled and said not a word in reply.
“Well, I’ve got to get a move on,” said the young fellow, in a moment. “Are you chaps coming with me?”
“We must wait for the coroner,” replied Nick.
And so they waited, while the young man fumed up and down. Nick turned to the clerk again, motioning him into the hall, where he followed.
“When Townsend entered the office,” he asked, “how did you know that he was the one this Martin Haynes had asked for?”
“Oh, Haynes gave me a description and a name.”
This set Nick to thinking on new lines for a moment. Then he said:
“While we are waiting for the coroner, we may as well go to the office and inspect the signature.”