Porteus Carmagee looked very much amused. A thin little lady in a hat far too big for her, giving her an indistinct resemblance to a mushroom, was attempting to draw more definite information from the lawyer by the feminine pretence of unbelief.
“But are you sure, Mr. Carmagee? It may only be a rumor; one hears so many extraordinary things.”
“I am perfectly sure, madam. There are facts, however, that cannot well be discussed.”
The suggestion of mystery lent a double glamour to Porteus Carmagee’s information.
“Then he has left the town for good?”
“I think I may swear to that as a fact.”
“And alone?”
“Quite alone.”
“But surely his wife—?”
Mr. Carmagee tightened up his mouth and stared reflectively into space.