Summary
A meticulously crafted narrative of moral entanglement and retributive justice, "The Hand at the Window" unfurls with the abrupt disruption of Tony the Banker's nuptials by Detective Moran, leading to Tony's swift conviction for counterfeiting and subsequent incarceration. As Moran ascends to the rank of Captain, his professional life intersects with a profound personal enigma: Laura Bowers, a new lodger whose clandestine entry into a building with a hairpin raises immediate suspicion. Despite her compelling assurances of a reformed life, a romance blossoms, culminating in their marriage. Yet, the tranquility of their union is shattered when Moran is gravely wounded by a shot fired through their window. The specter of Tony, who had vowed vengeance upon Moran's marriage, looms large. While news of Tony's prison escape and subsequent death resisting capture circulates, the incriminating fingerprints discovered at the crime scene offer a chilling, final indictment, meticulously tying the threads of this intricate web of fate and consequence, revealing a resolution as ingenious as it is unsettling.
Synopsis
The story gets away with a bang, as the wedding of Tony the Banker is rudely interrupted by Detective Moran and the bridegroom is dragged off to the station house. Tony is tried, convicted of counterfeiting and sent to prison. Moran becomes a police captain and, shortly afterward, runs up against the most baffling mystery of his career. Laura Bowers, a new boarder at the house where he lives, is the person that excites his curiosity. He sees her open a street door with a hairpin, but is forced to believe her when she assures him she is now leading an honest life. A love affair follows. After the wedding the couple go to their own home and Moran is shot while seated at a window. Tony threatened to get even when Moran was married and the news is brought that the Italian has escaped from prison. The fact is also established that he was killed while trying to resist capture, but finger marks outside the window prove that he is implicated in the shooting of Moran. The explanations are cleverly planned.
