“Mr. Rockland received a letter from one of the trustees at New York stating that the death of Mr. Ragland created a necessity for Miss Bramlett to come there immediately. Within ten days after Harry had started for California, Viola was on her way to New York, accompanied by her cousin Cyrus.
“Over a month had elapsed after Viola’s departure, when Mr. Rockland received a letter from a lawyer in New York, of a most startling nature, the perusal of which plunged us all into the deepest gulf of distress. Here is the letter—let it speak for itself:
“‘NATHANIEL ROCKLAND, ESQ.:
“‘DEAR SIR—I know you will be surprised and deeply pained to learn that the trustees appointed by Bolivar Bramlett’s will have converted the entire estate into cash and fled to parts unknown. Every possible effort has been made to capture them, but without success, and it is pretty well ascertained that they have crossed the ocean, and are safe in some foreign land. But, my dear sir, I have not told you the serious part of the story yet—and you will think so when I do. Miss Viola Bramlett has mysteriously disappeared from her boarding house, and despite the efforts of the police to discover her whereabouts, the mystery remains unsolved. A week ago she left her boarding house on Fifth avenue, telling her friends that she was going to A. T. Stewart’s store on Broadway. Nothing was thought about it until night, when her friends began to make inquiries about her. She had been to the Stewart store, and made some trifling purchases, but instead of ordering the articles to be sent to her boarding house, as was her usual custom, she took them with her. Three experienced detectives were employed immediately, and up to this writing, they have failed to make any discoveries, except that she was seen standing on the wharf near the water’s edge just before dark on the day she left her boarding house. If she was alive, it seems to me that the detectives could not fail to find her; therefore I fear we may expect the very worst. Ever since her arrival in this city she has appeared to be very unhappy, and was often found weeping. She avoided company, rarely speaking to any one, and the only conclusion we can arrive at is that the poor girl has committed suicide. Every possible effort will be made to find her, and if we succeed, I will immediately inform you by wire.
“‘Very respectfully,
“‘ALBERT DALMAXIM.’
“I shall not trouble you with a history of our misery, produced by this awful news, but drive on to the end of this unpleasant part of my story. In obedience to Lottie’s request I set out immediately to New York to do all in my power to unravel the strange mystery; promising if Viola was found to bring her home with me. I wrote a short letter to Harry, inclosing Mr. Dalmaxim’s letter, and urged him to come home without delay.
“When I arrived at New York I learned that no clew to the missing girl had been discovered, and that the police and detectives had given up the contest. I went to work in earnest, determined to exhaust every plan I could think of to find Viola. But at the end of ten days hope died in my breast, and I was compelled to conclude that Viola had drowned herself. I remained in New York a month, and it was with a sad heart I started home, when I thought of the distressing news that I would be compelled to communicate to Lottie. I had not been back home but a short time when Harry returned from California looking more like a ghost than a man.
“‘Is she found?’ he gasped, as he staggered into my office and dropped into a chair.
“‘No, but we still have hopes. You are ill, Harry; let me go home with you—Lottie is looking for you.’
“‘No, I will not go home—I cannot bear to look into dear Lottie’s face now. I am going immediately on to New York, to spend the remnant of my life in searching for poor Viola; though I have but little hope of ever seeing her dear face again.’