"Will you kindly have her brought here, Mrs. Stapleton?" he asked. "I would like to question her."
In a few moments the nurse appeared. She was an extremely good-looking girl, smart and well dressed. Duvall recognized in her frank face, her clear blue eyes, the same appearance of honesty which had impressed him during his interview with Patrick Lanahan, her father.
"Mary," said Mrs. Stapleton, "this is Mr. Duvall. He is trying to find Jack for us. Tell him your story."
The girl turned to Duvall, who had risen. "I can hardly expect you to believe what I am going to say, Mr. Duvall, yet I a.s.sure you that it is the solemn truth."
"Go ahead, Miss Lanahan," said the detective. "I am prepared to believe whatever you may say."
The girl sat down, at Mrs. Stapleton"s request. She still was somewhat weak, from her recent illness.
"It was a week ago last Wednesday. I left the house with Master Jack at half-past ten, and we drove to the Bois."
"Just a moment, please." Duvall stopped her with a quick gesture. "How long had you been going to the Bois in this way?"
"Over six weeks."
"And you always left about the same time--half-past ten?"
"Always."
"Who accompanied you besides the child?"
"Francois--the chauffeur."
"Always?"
"Yes."
Duvall turned to Mrs. Stapleton. "How long has this man Francois been in your employ?"
"A year--in June."
"You have found him honest, reliable?"
"Always. Otherwise I should not have kept him."
The detective turned to Mary Lanahan. "Go ahead, please," he said.
"We reached the Bois shortly before eleven--Francois had orders to go slowly, when Master Jack was in the machine--and drove about for fifteen minutes. Then we stopped at the place where we were in the habit of playing."
"Was it always the same place?"
"Yes. There is a smooth field of gra.s.s there, and a clump of trees by the road, where the machine always waited."
"Go on."
"We left the car, and walked out over the gra.s.s. Master Jack had a big rubber ball, and he was kicking it along, and running after it.
Sometimes he would kick it to me, and I would throw it back to him. We played about in that way for over half an hour. Mrs. Stapleton wished the boy to have the exercise."
"I see. And you generally played about in the same place?"
"Yes."
"How far from the road?"
"About three hundred feet."
"And from the nearest bushes, or woods?"
"A little more than that, I should say."
"You could see Francois, in the machine, from where you were?"
"Yes, I could see the machine. I could not always see Francois; for sometimes he would get out, and walk about, or sit under the trees and smoke a cigarette."
"Do you remember noticing him, on this particular morning?"
"Yes. I saw him sitting in the machine."
"What was he doing?"
"Reading a newspaper."
"Had he ever done that before?"
The girl hesitated, as though a new idea had come to her. "No--I cannot remember that he ever had."
"Very well. Go ahead with your story."
"Well--after we had played for about half an hour--I got tired and sat down on the gra.s.s. Master Jack still kept playing about with the ball. I sat idly, looking at the sky, the road--dreaming--"
"About what?" interrupted the detective, suddenly.
The girl colored. "About--about some people I know."
"Go ahead."
"I heard the boy playing, behind me. Then I looked around--and--he was gone!" The nurse made this statement in a voice so full of awe that it carried conviction to her hearers. Duvall felt that, whatever the real facts of the disappearance of the child, this woman"s story was true.
"What did you do then?"
"I stood up and looked about. I thought Master Jack was hiding from me--playing a joke on me. Then I realized that there was no place that he could hide. The nearest trees were too far off. He could not have reached them. I called and called. I was very much frightened."
"Francois, who heard me, came running over the gra.s.s. I asked him if he had seen Master Jack. He said, no, that he had not seen anyone. After that we searched everywhere--in the woods, along the road--for nearly an hour, but could find nothing. Then we came home, and told Mrs.
Stapleton." The girl looked at her employers in fright.
"What about the rubber ball?" Duvall asked, suddenly.