“I understand that, sir; but the thought that I cannot banish from my mind is, knowing so well her treachery and deceit, is it possible that she herself had a hand in the murder, and finding at last that there was no hope of gaining my friendship, did she fear the developments which might follow from what she had told?”

The elder man shook his head thoughtfully.  “We cannot say, my boy; the thought occurred to me almost instantaneously, for, without doubt, she both hated and feared him; but time alone will tell.”

CHAPTER XXIV

BETWEEN THE ACTS

For the ten days next ensuing the public craving for sensational developments in the Mainwaring case seemed likely to be gratified to an unusual degree.  To the exciting scenes of the court-room was added the suicide of Mrs. LaGrange, immediately followed by news of the discovery that Richard Hobson, the unwilling witness in the previous day’s proceedings, had absconded, leaving not the slightest indication of even the direction in which he had vanished.  By many the suicide of the one and the sudden disappearance of the other, occurring simultaneously, were considered as prima facie evidence that the two, so closely associated with each other, had been in some way connected with the Fair Oaks tragedy.

From this phase of the affair, however, public attention was speedily diverted by the report that proceedings to contest the old will had been instituted, but in the name of Ralph Mainwaring and his brother, Harold W. Mainwaring; his son, the sole heir under the will of Hugh Mainwaring, having altogether withdrawn from the contest.  This had caused an open rupture between father and son, and the latter had established himself in a suite of apartments at the Murray Hill.

Young Mainwaring’s course occasioned great surprise; many commended his wisdom, but few gave him credit for the genuine sense of honor which had actuated him.

“A neat little stroke of diplomacy,” said one club-man to another, “and worthy of Hugh Mainwaring himself!  There is no show for him, anyway, and it’s much better policy to yield the point now, don’t you see, than to fight it out along with that pig-headed father of his.”

“He understands on which side his bread is buttered, and don’t you forget it, my dear boy,” was the laughing rejoinder.  “It’s always best to stand in with the winning side; he won’t lose anything in the long run, and he knows it.”

Such remarks occasionally reached young Mainwaring, making him exceedingly indignant.

“You may say, once and for all,” he said to a reporter who was interviewing him in his apartments at the Murray Hill, “that in withdrawing from this contest I am not currying favor with Harold Scott Mainwaring.  He and I are the best of friends, but that fact would not hinder me from giving him a fair and square fight if there were the slightest doubt as to the validity of his claim.  But there isn’t; he has proved his right, legally and morally, to the property, and that’s enough for me.”