"I see you have brought your outfit," I said as we turned into the road;
for Thorndyke's machine bore a large canvas-covered case strapped on to
a strong bracket.
"Yes; there are many things that we may want on a quest of this kind.
How did you find Miss Haldean?"
"Very miserable, poor girl. By the way, have you heard anything about
her pecuniary interest in the child's death?"
"Yes," said Thorndyke. "It appears that the late Mr. Haldean used up all
his brains on his business, and had none left for the making of his
will--as often happens. He left almost the whole of his property--about
eighty thousand pounds--to his son, the widow to have a life-interest in
it. He also left to his late brother's daughter, Lucy, fifty pounds a
year, and to his surviving brother Percy, who seems to have been a
good-for-nothing, a hundred a year for life. But--and here is the utter
folly of the thing--if the son should die, the property was to be
equally divided between the brother and the niece, with the exception of
five hundred a year for life to the widow. It was an insane
arrangement."
"Quite," I agreed, "and a very dangerous one for Lucy Haldean, as things
are at present.
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