"Mr. Harper," this hard-to-be-understood man now declared, "you may
safely administer the estate of my sister. She is surely dead."
CHAPTER XXIII
A STARTLING DECISION
Before Mr. Ransom and the lawyer had recovered from their astonishment,
Hazen had slipped from the room. As Mr. Harper started to follow, he saw
the other's head disappearing down the staircase leading to the office.
He called to him, but Hazen declined to turn.
"No time," he shouted back. "I shall have to make use of somebody's
automobile now, to get to the Ferry in time."
The lawyer did not persist, not at that moment; he went back to his
client and they had a few hurried words; then Mr. Harper went below and
took up his stand on the portico. He was determined that Hazen should not
leave the place without some further explanation.
It was light where he stood and he very soon felt that this would not
do, so he slipped back into the shade of a pillar, and seeing, from the
bustle, that Hazen was likely to obtain the use of the one automobile
stored in the stable, he waited with reasonable patience for his
reappearance in the road before him.
Meanwhile he had confidence in Ransom, who he felt sure was watching
them both from the window overhead. If he should fail in getting in
the word he wanted, Ransom was pledged to shout it out without regard
to appearances.
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