hanking Mrs. Havers for the aid she had offered, the party left
Ferndale and made a swift trip back to Kendon. Unaware that she was
under suspicion, Mrs. Masterbrook had retired when Mr. Nichols and the
young people arrived. The detective pounded on her door.

"What is it?" called the housekeeper.

"Please come out here a minute," requested Mr. Nichols.

"I am ready for bed. Can't you tell me what you want from there."

"No, I cannot, Mrs. Masterbrook. Come out unless you prefer to tell
your story to a policeman."

"A policeman!" echoed the housekeeper with a little shriek. "Oh, my
goodness! I'll come right out."

She was dressed in five minutes but did not take time to remove the
curlers from her hair.

"Just what is it that you wish?" she asked tartly as she gazed from one
person to another. Everyone was watching her soberly.

"Look at this letter," said Mr. Nichols, placing the anonymous
communication in her lap.

A flush spread over the housekeeper's face but she threw back her head
defiantly.

"Well, what about it?"

"We know that you wrote the letter," said the detective sternly, "so
you may as well admit the truth."

Mrs. Masterbrook hesitated, and for a moment Penny thought that she
meant to deny the charge. Then the woman said coldly:

"Well, what if I did write it? You can't send me to jail for trying to
do a good turn."

"No one has any intention of causing you trouble--providing you tell us
everything," replied Mr. Nichols significantly.

"What do you wish to know?"

"First, how did you learn Mr. Crocker's secret?"

"I worked for him a great many years," returned the housekeeper with a
slight toss of her head. "Both at this cottage and later when he lived
at his present home. Not being stupid, I suspected a fly in the
ointment so to speak when he came into his fortune."

"You did a little investigation work?" prompted the detective.

"Exactly. I read the letters in the attic, and I thought it was time
someone knew about the great injustice which had been done Walter
Crocker."

"That was very kind of you, I'm sure," said the detective dryly. "What
did you do when you found the letters?"

"I didn't do anything at first. Then Mr. Crocker discharged me----"

"I see," interrupted Mr. Nichols. "His high-handed ways made you
remember the letters in the cottage attic. Thinking that the nephew
should learn of them you no doubt entered the cottage and secured the
evidence."