Part 1, Vanishing Point Summary

The family that moved into Holmes' building became the object of his attention, mainly Ned's wife and sister. Ned did not like the amount of attention Holmes paid to his wife and sister, but could no see any real harm in it either. He let it slide.

Chicago, at this time, had so many disappearances that there was talk of creating "a separate bureau, a mysterious disappearance department" within the police force. However, that did not happen, because unless the person who disappeared had some money, the police did next to nothing to try to find the person.

Part 1, Vanishing Point Analysis

The scene is being set for the reader to see how well Holmes' building will work for his plan. The availability of the victims and the lack of police investigation will allow him to proceed with his...