Murgatroyd left the room and returned almost instantly followed by two men—Mixley and McGrath. It was one of these men a short while before who had stolen in through the French window and tampered with the letters on the desk.
"You will search here first," he ordered; and turning to the women: "Would you prefer to go or stay?"
"We'll go, of course," Shirley flung at him as she drew Miriam toward the door.
"Of course not, we shall stay," said Miriam, freeing herself from the girl.
The men passed in unceremoniously and proceeded to search the room—places that even Miriam had forgotten about; they overlooked nothing, but silently, quietly in their business-like way turned everything topsy-turvy, replacing things, in the end, as they found them. Presently they turned to their chief, and said:—
"It's all right, Prosecutor."
"Cover the rest of the house," again ordered Murgatroyd.
They grinned sheepishly.
"That's all done," they answered.
"What?"