“I’m ashamed of myself,” she said, “but I really wanted to know what was going on in the murder case, and so I listened. I’m sorry.”
“It doesn’t matter,” replied Nick.
The woman sought her room, and Nick turned back to his assistant.
“There is a clever crook,” he said.
“I wonder how she got here so soon?” remarked Chick.
“You might go down and talk with the clerk,” said Nick. “I’ll wager that she came here after the assault on Maynard.”
While Nick made a second and more searching examination of the room, Chick talked with the night clerk, who still insisted on hanging about the place.
“The woman came here from the Grand Central Station in a carriage at seven-thirty,” said the clerk. “She registered from Chicago, as you see. No, there was no mail for her when the maid called. What other errand did she give the maid?”
“None whatever,” replied the assistant. “At least none that we heard.”
“Well,” said the clerk, “after making the inquiry at the desk, the maid went out to the café next to the reading room and talked with one of the waiters.”