gain carefully diverted
from her purpose by the assumed innocence of the venerable detective,
who saw that her real purpose was to secure evidence of having travelled
as his wife, in order to have a future power over him, as she certainly
believed him to be a man of great wealth.

She had told him that she had business that would prevent her seeing him
during the next day, at which he expressed extreme regret, and they
retired to their separate apartments for the night.

CHAPTER XVII.

Careful Work.-- Bristol's Trick on the Bell-boy at Queen's
Hotel, Toronto.-- The old Merchant.-- In the Toils.-- A
Face at the Transom.-- A cowardly Puppet before a brazen
Adventuress.-- The Horrors of Blackmail.-- "Furnished
Rooms to Rent."

As Mrs. Winslow had said, she was not to be seen the next morning; and
Bristol, after breakfasting early, came to the conclusion that he should
also be busied for the day following my instructions to watch her every
movement.

He ascertained the number of her room and leisurely strolled through the
hall until he located it, when he at once took a position where he could
observe any movement in or out of the door. At about ten o'clock he
noticed a waiter enter her room as if by summons, in a few minutes pass
out smiling, and shortly afterwards return with a very large glass
filled with some sort of liquor. Soon after he brought her breakfast,
and about a half-hour later he saw that the dishes were being removed
from the room, and, lying on one edge of the tray, an ordinary envelope,
from its puffed condition evidently containing a note. He felt sure that
this would give him the overture to the day's performance; but how to
secure it was another thing entirely. He could not take the letter from
the tray, as it rested on the front edge which projected over the boy's
shoulder, and was consequently immediately before his eyes. He probably
would not be able to bribe him into letting him have it, for the letter
might require an answer, and he would fear getting into trouble. Bristol
was standing at the end of the hall, by the window overlooking the
street, while the waiter was approaching the stairs which descended to
the lower floors near him. The boy had reached the second step going
down, and it was Bristol's last opportunity.

"Stop!" he said excitedly to the boy. "Here, give me that tray," and he
pulled it from the boy's shoulder and rested it upon the stair-ra