(Howard Da Silva). The grief-stricken boy shows him a way into the mansion, where he meets Christine. Though she is cordial, she refuses to cooperate with his biography. After O'Malley leaves, Forrest's private secretary, Clive Kerndon (Richard Whorf), fearful of how the reporter will react to the brush-off, convinces Christine to offer her help to O'Malley so that they can guide him in the direction they want. Over time, O'Malley gains the widow's trust. Christine is the "keeper of the flame," protecting her husband's memory and reputation. O'Malley's instincts tell him that a secret is being kept from him. He discovers that Forrest's elderly, mentally ill mother (Margaret Wycherly) is living in a separate house on the vast estate. Despite her servants' attempts to keep them apart, O'Malley manages to speak with her and obtains more clues from her ramblings. O'Malley notices "the arsenal," an old fortification near the Forrest mansion that served as Robert Forrest's office and library. One afternoon, O'Malley observes smoke rising from the arsenal's chimney. When he asks Kerndon about the building's purpose, Kerndon (who cannot see the smoke) tells him it is only a storehouse. O'Malley slips away to investigate. He discovers Christine burning what she claims are love letters, but he suspects otherwise. Later, Kerndon telephones somebody and assures the unnamed party that he will take care of the situation. As O'Malley learns more, he finds evidence implicating Christine in her husband's death and begins to wonder if she and her cousin, Geoffrey Midford (Forrest Tucker), are lovers and murderers. However, Geoffrey's announcement of his engagement to Rickards' daughter, and Christine's reaction, discounts that theory. When O'Malley admits he cares for Christine, she finally breaks down and reveals the ugly truth. Her husband had been corrupted by the adulation he received and plotted to use his enormous influence to turn Americans to fascist ideals to gain control of the United States. She shows O'Malley papers stored in the arsenal that reveal how Forrest (backed by secretive, ultra-wealthy, power-hungry individuals) planned to use racism, anti-union sentiment, and antisemitism to divide the country, turning social groups against one another in order to create the chaos that would let him seize power. Christine discovered the plot the day before her husband's death. She went riding the next morning and, coming upon the washed-out bridge, could have warned her husband, but decided that a "clean death in the