“Sure.  I’d swear to that any time and anywhere.”

“Thank you,” and Lois breathed a sigh of relief.  “I feel quite certain that it will be valuable evidence.”

“Now, I wonder what that chap wanted that envelope for?” Andy mused.

“To leave it by old David’s body, of course, and to throw the blame on Mr. Randall.”

“Yes, that no doubt was his idea.  But why did he want to do that?  And if he committed that deed, why did he do it?  What object did he have in murdering an innocent old man who never injured anybody, as far as I know?”

“That is the puzzling thing which must be solved,” Lois replied.  “But I must go home now, Mr. Forbes, and I thank you very much for what you have told me this afternoon.”

She left the store with a lighter heart than she had entered it, and walked briskly up the road.  She somehow felt that what Andy had told her would be of great value in freeing Jasper and bringing home the crime to the right person.  But something more must be done, and she knew that it would be quite necessary to find the motive which prompted Bramshaw to pick up that letter and to commit the deed.

As Lois came to the road leading to the Haven, she found Betty waiting there for her.  The girl seemed brighter than she had been since the night of the murder, and Lois wondered what was the cause of it.  Had she heard some good news? she asked herself.

“Oh, Miss Lois,” Betty cried, “I have been waiting a long time for you and I thought you would never come.  May I go home with you?”

“Certainly, I shall be delighted to have you.  But you look brighter, Betty, than you did when I left you.  Have you heard anything new?”

“Oh, yes, Miss Lois, I have,” the girl replied.  “The captain told me that he has gone away.”

“Who?” Lois enquired.

“The artist!  Just think of that!  He has cleared out, and taken everything with him.”

“Why should that make you so happy, Betty?”

“Because he can’t hurt me now.”

“Why, did he ever try to hurt you?”

“Oh, yes, he said he would kill me if I told on him.”

“Kill you!” Lois exclaimed, stopping short.  “If you told on him!  I do not understand you.”

“Hush,” and the girl raised a warning finger and looked apprehensively around.  “Don’t speak too loud.  I am really afraid yet.  But I know he can’t hurt me because he has gone.”

“No, he won’t hurt you, Betty.  I will see that he doesn’t.  Tell me when he said he would kill you.”

“The night I went to meet Mr. David.”

“Oh!”

“Yes, I was hurrying along the road just up there when I heard some one coming toward me.  I was sure it was Mr. David, and so I rushed up to him and called out his name.  Instead of Mr. David it was the artist, just think of that!  My, he was surprised when he found who I was.  He was so excited that he caught me by the arm so hard that I cried out with pain and fear.”