e began to wonder if his present step had not
been too precipitate. He felt sure that it was going to be difficult
to fasten anything on this man. He decided, however, that he had
gone too far to draw back now, and he went on with his questions.

"In the preliminary report which was given me," he said, "I noticed
that you made a statement to the patrolman you called in that the
noise in the flat above aroused both you and your wife."

"Yes," admitted Marsh. "I believe I did say something like that."

"But," added Morgan, "we have not been able to get an interview with
your wife."

"Such an interview would be quite useless. As a matter of fact, she
knows no more, and probably not so much as I do about what took
place."

"You're probably right about that," smiled Morgan, and there was a
sarcastic ring in his voice. "Just the same, I'd like to have a few
words with her."

"You know as well as I do, Mr. Morgan, that that would be
impossible."

Morgan raised his eyebrows. "I don't get you," he said.

"Well, to be more explicit, then, you know that my wife does not
live here."

"Here's a new game," thought Morgan. There was no doubt that Marsh
was openly fencing with him. In fact, the man seemed to know every
move which had been made. At last the super-criminal of literature
seemed to have stepped into actual life. Morgan was certain that
some crime had been committed, and the circumstantial evidence
against this man had been accumulating rapidly. Yet, as he faced him
and thought it over, he realized how intangible was their hold upon
Marsh. Of course, when they got this man down to Headquarters they
might force him to give more explicit details regarding his past and
present actions, but a man so clever as this had probably left
little behind him that would convict him of anything; certainly not
of his connection with whatever had taken place in the apartment
above. The cuff button, even, seemed to be growing doubtful in
value.

These reflections on Morgan's part flashed through his mind so
quickly that there was only the slightest pause between Marsh's last
statement and the next question.

"What would give you that impression?" asked Morgan.

"Your man went through my apartment yesterday, and I'm sure he found
no evidence of a lady occupying it with me."

Morgan found it difficult to conceal his astonishment, not only at
the statement, but the man's intimate knowledge of things of which
he was supposed t