“Not at all. Please come in, and before you ask, we haven’t seen a trace of the girl you were seeking the last time you were here.”

“I don’t expect you have. She returned to the shelter shortly after we spoke. I think she may have found hunting through garbage pails a bit too disappointing.”

“I’m so glad to hear that, Mr. Waterson,” Zelda said, having followed Cybil to the door.

“I’m not quite as glad as you are, Miss Goodnight,” Waterson said when they had moved to the parlor and taken seats. “You see, Sally was not the innocent child she appeared to be. She turned out to be far more devious than I had any right to suspect.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, Mr. Waterson. Has she run away again?” Cybil said.

“Yes, but more important, she ran away with all the money I had collected from my generous donors to finance the purchase of a permanent house of refuge for the girls.”

“How awful,” Zelda exclaimed. She might actually have believed this tale. Cybil would have a talk with her later.

“Yes, I’m afraid it’s my fault for being so trusting.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t keep the money in the bank,” Cybil said, allowing herself to sound reproving.

“I did, of course, but I’d just taken it out to make the purchase, you see. The owner wanted cash. I have a safe, and I thought it would be secure there overnight, but as I said, I underestimated Sally.”

“Are you saying the girl broke open a safe?” Cybil asked, not even having to feign her disbelief.

Waterson hung his head in shame, which he had every right to feel. “I hadn’t underestimated her that much, I’m glad to say, but she was clever enough to discover where I had written down the combination.” When both women gasped their dismay, he added, “I know, I know. It was foolish of me. I deserve everything you are thinking about me, but the real victims here are the poor girls. I was hoping to have a permanent home for them so they would never have to worry about being homeless again, but now . . .”

“Mr. Waterson, I cannot fault you for being foolish,” Cybil lied. “We have all made mistakes and trusted the wrong people, so you are no worse than the rest of us.”

“You are very kind, Miss Miles.”

“But I can’t help wondering why you came to tell us in particular your sad tale,” she added.

He had the grace to look abashed. “I was afraid that Sally might find her way back here and try to take advantage of you as well. I have been following in her footsteps to warn everyone who encountered her on her last escape. I’m sorry to have bothered you, but I did feel it my duty to warn you.”