CHAPTER XI.
A STARTLING DISCOVERY.The clerk passed out of the room with an offended air. He was loath to leave the presence of the great detective without gaining some notion as to his course of action in the murder case. The elevator boy soon made his appearance, and Nick asked:
“You have been on duty all night?”
“Yes, sir.”
“You carried a slender, dark-faced person up to this room an hour or so ago?”
“Yes, sir.”
Nick looked at his watch. The hands pointed to the hour of two.
“Can you tell me the exact time?” he asked.
“It was ten minutes past one when I left the office for the elevator,” was the reply.
“Did the person speak to you on the way up?”
“Yes, sir,” was the reply. “He asked me about the fire escape and the stairs winding about the elevator well. Seemed afraid of fire.”
