It
had been stabbed in three places; two of the wounds must have been
fatal. The papers in the pocket identified the murdered man as the
famous English traveller, poet, and journalist, Mr. Geoffrey Cliffe. Mr.
Cliffe had just returned from an arduous winter in the Balkans, where he
had rendered superb service to the cause of the Bosnian insurgents. He
was well known in Venice, and the terrible event had caused a profound
sensation there. No clew to the outrage had yet been obtained. But Mr.
Cliffe's purse and watch had not been removed.
The Dean arrived in Venice by the midnight train, and went to the hotel
on the Riva whither Lady Alice had directed him. She was still up,
waiting to see him, and in the dark passage outside Kitty's door she
told him what she knew of the murder. It appeared that late that night a
startling arrest had been made--of no less a person than the Signorina
Ricci, the well-known actress of the Apollo Theatre, and of two men
supposed to have been hired by her for the deed. This news was still
unknown to Kitty--she was in bed, and her companion had kept it from
her.
"How is she?" asked the Dean.
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