They fall in love. One day, while they are kissing, however, Petersen notices that this Edwardes has a peculiar phobia about sets of parallel lines against a white background. She compares Edwardes' signature on a letter to her with an autographed copy of one of his books, realizing that they do not match and he is an impostor. He confides to her that he has killed the real Edwardes and taken his place. He suffers from amnesia and does not know who he is. Petersen believes he is innocent and that he is suffering from a guilt complex. He disappears overnight, leaving a note for her. At the same time, it becomes public knowledge that the supposed Edwardes is an impostor, and that the real Edwardes is missing and may have been killed.