Champagne for One

"Is there any possibility that the baby is involved? I mean in her death? Anything or anyone connected with it or its adoption?"

"Not the slightest. Absolutely none. I handle that. You may take my word for it."

"Did she ever have any visitors here?"

"No. Not one."

"You say she was here five months, so she left in August. Did someone come for her?"

"No. Usually the girls don’t stay so long after the baby comes, but Faith had rather a bad time and had to get her strength back. Actually someone did come for her-Mrs James Robbins, one of our directors, drove her to New York. Mrs Robbins had got a job for her at Berwick’s, the furniture store, and had arranged for her to share a room with another girl, Helen Yarmis. As you know, Helen was there Tuesday evening. Helen might know if anything- Yes, Dora?"

I turned my head. The woman who had opened the door-middle-aged and a little too plump for her blue uniform-stood holding the knob. She spoke. "I’m sorry to interrupt, Doctor, but Katherine may be going to rush things a bit. Four times since nine o’clock, and the last one was only twenty minutes."

Mrs Irwin was out of her chair and moving. By the time she reached me I was up too, to take the hand she offered.

"It may be only a prelude," she said, "but I’d better go and see. I repeat, Mr Goodwin, I wish you success, in spite of what success would mean. I don’t envy you your job, but I wish you success. You’ll forgive me for rushing off."