d as I paced there by the dead man, and doom
seemed to settle down upon me more heavily as the moments passed. Then a
strange thought came to me.

"Several times I had repeated to myself half-consciously, as a sort of
refrain, the words in which I had heard Manderson tell his wife that I
had induced him to go out. 'Marlowe has persuaded me to go for a
moonlight run in the car. He is very urgent about it.' All at once it
struck me that, without meaning to do so, I was saying this in
Manderson's voice.

"As you found out for yourself, Mr. Trent, I have a natural gift of
mimicry. I had imitated Manderson's voice many times so successfully as
to deceive even Bunner, who had been much more in his company than his
own wife. It was, you remember,"--Marlowe turned to Mr. Cupples--"a
strong, metallic voice, of great carrying power, so unusual as to make
it a very fascinating voice to imitate, and at the same time very easy.
I said the words carefully to myself again, like this--" he uttered
them, and Mr. Cupples opened his eyes in amazement--"and then I struck
my hand upon the low wall beside me. 'Manderson never returned alive?' I
said aloud. 'But Manderson _shall_ return alive!'

"In thirty seconds the bare outline of the plan was complete in my mind.
I did not wait to think over details. Every instant was precious now; I
lifted the body and laid it on the floor of the car, covered with a rug.
I took the hat and the revolver. Not one trace remained on the green, I
believe, of that night's work. As I drove back to White Gables my design
took shape before me with a rapidity and ease that filled me with a wild
excitement. I should escape yet! It was all so easy if I kept my pluck.
Putting aside the unusual and unlikely, I should not fail. I wanted to
shout, to scream! Nearing the house I slackened speed, and carefully
reconnoitered the road. Nothing was moving. I turned the car into the
open field on the other side of the road, about twenty paces short of
the little door at the extreme corner of the grounds. I brought it to
rest behind a stack. When, with Manderson's hat on my head and the
pistol in my pocket, I had staggered with the body across the moonlit
road and through that door, I left much of my apprehension behind me.
With swift action and an unbroken nerve, I thought I ought to succeed."

With a long sigh Marlowe threw himself into one of the deep chairs at
the fireside, and passed his handkerchief over his damp fore