The front door opened and Luke shuffled out, a middle-aged man and woman standing on the front stoop to watch him go. Luke’s head hung low as he lumbered down the path, looking like a beaten dog. He carried a loaf of bread beneath his arm.

The man and woman still watched, and Nathaniel took cover behind the wide trunk of an ancient oak tree. The homeowners eventually retreated inside, but Luke continued his shambling, unsteady gait as he crossed the street and into the park. He was a mess. His clothing was disheveled and his hair had come free to hang over his shoulders.

Finally, Luke drew alongside Nathaniel with a grim expression as he tossed him the loaf of bread. Nathaniel caught it.

“They mistook me for a vagrant breaking into their house for food,” Luke said. “They felt sorry for me.” He gestured Nathaniel in closer and continued speaking. “Holland was already on the telephone when I got inside, but I overheard plenty before they caught me. He was talking to someone from a bank, who was annoyed to be called at home, but Holland said it couldn’t wait until Monday. He wanted the guy to open the bank right now so he could get his money. It sounds like he’s getting ready to run. He clammed up when the maid started screaming her head off at the sight of me hiding on the basement stairs.”

He went on to report that the telephone was in the kitchen, and when the homeowners brought him in for a hot meal, Captain Holland had hung up and didn’t say another word.

“Did he recognize you?”

“I don’t think so,” Luke said. “I kept my hair hanging in my face, and I got out as soon as I could. Holland is ten steps ahead of us, with a plan already in place to flee the country. He’s got money, papers, everything lined up.” He trembled so badly that his voice shook. “I feel like everything I’ve worked for is slipping away, and I don’t know how to stop it.”

“I do,” Nathaniel said quietly. If Holland had papers, they’d been forged. Tracking down financial crimes was his specialty, and he was ready to pull out the big guns.

Nathaniel and Luke spent the rest of the day in Wilkie’s office, untangling the Holland conspiracy. Luke shared more details of what he’d overheard while eavesdropping from the neighbor’s basement. Holland had been angry as he shouted over the line, claiming the only reason he worked with Foster’s bank was because they were big and ought to have plenty of ready cash on hand. The Foster bank was the largest on the East Coast, and Nathaniel had gotten to know Congressman Foster and his wife during the long presidential train trip.