“Don’t be too sure that it’s not au revoir, young lady, instead of good-by. I now suspect you of cutting in this affair a figure bigger than a cipher.”
Nick found Mr. Gilsey in his private office, dismayed by the news he had received, not only of Cecil Kendall’s murder, but also of the latter’s recent career, plainly indicating that the deficit at the bank was a deplorable probability.
“I now have experts at work on the books, Detective Carter, and we shall soon know the worst,” said he, after their greeting and a brief discussion of the crime discovered that morning.
“I am like a man in a nightmare,” he added. “I can scarcely realize what has occurred, and hardly know where I stand.”
“That’s not to be wondered at,” said Nick. “The situation is serious enough surely, but I shall continue my work on the case and do the best I can with it.”
“You have said that Kendall won a large sum of money last night, of which he was robbed. Do you think there is any possibility of recovering that money?”
“I certainly shall try to do so, Mr. Gilsey.”
“I hope you may succeed.”
“I shall make every effort, sir. There are several questions I wish you to answer, and I must then hasten away upon other work bearing on the case. To begin with, Gilsey, has Kendall been observably friendly with your private stenographer, Miss Braddon?”
Gilsey looked surprised for a moment, then answered: