Imprisoned on a charge of murder, Phineas waits for trial knowing that not only his political career but his entire future may be destroyed, while his friends and the Duke and Duchess secure the strongest possible legal assistance and Madame Goesler relentlessly investigates Emilius's movements and past. When the trial begins, circumstantial evidence and Lord Fawn's testimony appear extremely damaging, but the defence led by Mr. Chaffanbrass exposes weaknesses in the prosecution's case, while the search for the missing key, coat, and evidence concerning a foreign bludgeon increasingly redirects suspicion toward Emilius. As the true pattern of the crime begins to emerge, the case against Phineas collapses and the jury acquits him, yet although he regains his freedom he leaves the ordeal profoundly wounded by the knowledge that society had so readily believed him capable of murder.
