Part III, Secrets Summary and Analysis

This section, the longest in the book, is made up of eleven chapters. Marconi continues to conduct experiments and expand the size and number of his transmission stations, but the main action belongs to Crippen. His life takes a fateful turn, and the section ends with the shocking news that Belle has died in America.

Crippen meets Ethel Le Neve when she goes to work for a patent medicine company where he is employed. Drawn to the gentle doctor, she becomes his private secretary. She witnesses several tempestuous scenes between Crippen and Belle, and learns that Belle has exchanged affectionate letters with Bruce Miller, who has rejoined his wife in Chicago. When Ethel discovers the letters, she feels less guilty about the growing attachment she shares with Crippen.

Marconi scouts for a site for a North American...