r behavior and your marriage had made
him wash his hands of you forever."

Tears filled Howard's eyes and his mouth quivered.

"Then my father believes me guilty of this horrible crime?" he
exclaimed.

"He insisted that you must be guilty as you had confessed. He offered,
though, to give you legal assistance, but only on one condition."

"What was that condition?" he demanded.

"That I consent to a divorce," replied Annie quietly.

"What did you say?"

"I said I'd consent to anything if it would help you, but when he told
me that even then he would not come personally to your support I told
him we would worry along without his assistance. On that I left him."

"You're a brave little woman!" cried Howard. Noticing her pale, anxious
face, he said:

"You, too, must have suffered."

"Oh, never mind me," she rejoined quickly. "What we must do now is to
get you out of this horrid place and clear your name before the world.
We must show that your alleged confession is untrue; that it was dragged
from you involuntarily. We must find that mysterious woman who came to
Underwood's rooms while you lay on the couch asleep. Do you know what my
theory is, Howard?"

"What?" demanded her husband.

"I believe you were hypnotized into making that confession. I've read of
such things before. You know the boys in college often hypnotized you.
You told me they made you do all kinds of things against your will. That
big brute, Captain Clinton, simply forced his will on yours."

"By Jove--I never thought of that!" he exclaimed. "I know my head ached
terribly after he got through all that questioning. When he made me
look at that pistol I couldn't resist any more. But how are we going to
break through the net which the police have thrown around me?"

"By getting the best lawyer we can procure. I shall insist on Judge
Brewster taking the case. He declines, but I shall go to his office
again this afternoon. He must----"

Howard shook his head.

"You'll not be able to get Brewster. He would never dare offend my
father by taking up my case without his permission. He won't even see
you."

"We'll see," she said quietly. "He'll see me if I have to sit in his
office all day for weeks. I have decided to have Judge Brewster defend
you because I believe it would mean acquittal. He will build up a
defense that will defeat all the lies that the police have concocted.
The police have a strong case because of your alleged confession. It