k just to catch a glimpse of her
figure as she crossed the sidewalk on her way to and from her carriage.
Indeed, his senseless, almost senile passion for this magnificent beauty
became a by-word in some mouths, and it only escaped being mentioned at
the inquest from respect to Mr. Fairbrother, who had never recognized
this weakness in his steward, and from its lack of visible connection
with her horrible death and the stealing of her great jewel.
Nevertheless, we have a witness now--it is astonishing how many
witnesses we can scare up by a little effort, who never thought of
coming forward themselves--who can swear to having seen him one night
shaking his fist at her retreating figure as she stepped haughtily by
him into her apartment house. This witness is sure that the man he
saw thus gesticulating was Sears, and he is sure the woman was Mrs.
Fairbrother. The only thing he is not sure of is how his own wife will
feel when she hears that he was in that particular neighborhood on
that particular evening, when he was evidently supposed to be somewhere
else." And the inspector laughed.

"Is the steward's disposition a bad one." I asked, "that this display of
feeling should impress you so much?"

"I don't know what to say about that yet. Opinions differ on this point.
His friends speak of him as the mildest kind of a man who, without
native executive skill, could not manage the great household he has in
charge. His enemies, and we have unearthed a few, say, on the contrary,
that they have never had any confidence in his quiet ways; that these
were not in keeping with the fact or his having been a California miner
in the early fifties.

"You can see I am putting you very nearly where we are ourselves. Nor
do I see why I should not add that this passion of the seemingly subdued
but really hot-headed steward for a woman, who never showed him anything
but what he might call an insulting indifference, struck us as a clue to
be worked up, especially after we received this answer to a telegram we
sent late last night to the nurse who is caring for Mr. Fairbrother in
New Mexico."

He handed me a small yellow slip and I read:

"The steward left Mr. Fairbrother at El Moro. He has not heard from him
since.

"ANNETTA LA SERRA

"For Abner Fairbrother."

"At El Moro?" I cried. "Why, that was long enough ago."

"For him to have reached New York before the murder. Exactly so, if he
took advantage of every close connection."