‘Mr. Walker hurried into the kitchen,’ said the valet to Professor Fordney, ‘and told me he was called away unexpectedly and that I was to go to his library and take the money he had won last night to the bank.
‘I was busy,’ he continued, ‘but in about five minutes I went through the hall, and, thinking I heard a noise, I stopped and listened at the study door. There was someone moving about. The door was open. As I peered around it, I saw a masked man, gun in hand, hesitating near the fireplace.
‘Then he went over to the table in the center of the room, picked up the stacks of ten- and twenty-dollar bills, and left by the window. I called the police immediately and gave them a description.’
‘Exactly what time was that?’ asked Fordney.
‘Just about ten o’clock, sir.’
‘Had you been in the library before that, this morning?’
‘No, I hadn’t.’
‘Were you in your master’s room today?’
‘No. What’s that got to do with it?’
‘Nothing,’ murmured Fordney, ‘nothing at all! Does your master gamble often?’
‘I don’t think so.’
‘How much did he win last night?’
‘He didn’t say.’
‘Humph,’ said Fordney, as he pointed to a bill on the floor, ‘the thief dropped one.
‘I see your master has quite a library,’ he continued, glancing around the large, beautifully furnished room. ‘Do you read much, Wilkins?’
‘A bit, sir.’
‘Did you ever read, “Honesty is the best policy”?’
Why did the Professor think Wilkins had robbed his master?
