The Chief Legatee

Anna Katharine Green's The Chief Legatee begins with a wedding-night shock: millionaire Roger J. Ransom rushes to a hotel in panic when his bride, Georgian Hazen, vanishes almost as soon as they are registered as husband and wife. What first seems like a straightforward disappearance quickly becomes a maze of disguises, hidden motives, and family secrets, as a detective, a wary lawyer, and a stream of uncertain witnesses try to untangle who was seen, who was lost, and who may be lying. As clues accumulate, Gerridge exposes contradictions in the hotel testimony and discovers that the bride may have slipped away in her maid Bella Burton's clothes. Ransom, tormented but loyal, believes Georgian acted under some powerful influence rather than from betrayal. Then the mystery deepens further: a deaf sleeping woman, a possible twin or double, a roadside encounter with a lively stranger, and the arrival of Anitra Hazen all complicate the question of identity. In a tense atmosphere of inheritance, suspicion, and possible murder, Ransom must face the possibility that love itself has become the most dangerous clue of all. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.