If not, the only hope remaining would seem to be Natalie Coolidge.

She would undoubtedly return to Fairlawn; was probably there already, and, by shadowing her, the whereabouts of Hobart would surely be revealed either sooner or later.
But possibly there was a quicker way to learn their purpose than by thus seeking to find either.

If it was the Coolidge fortune which was at stake, why not endeavour to learn in whose trust it was being held, and what steps were being taken to safe-guard it?
This investigation ought not to be particularly difficult, even though he possessed no authority; he could explain the nature of his interest to an attorney, and be advised how to proceed.

Determined to take all three steps the first thing next day, West rested back comfortably in the chair, already half asleep.

One hand rested in his pocket, and as his fingers fumbled some object there, he suddenly recalled the knife Sexton had found in the alley.
He drew the article forth curiously, and looked at it under the glow of the electric light--it was a small silver handled pen-knife, such as a lady might carry, a rather strange thing to be discovered in a dirt alley back of Wray Street.