.. Well, I must resign myself to the
inevitable!"

It was about half-past eleven when Sonia Danidoff rose to take leave of
her hostess. Thomery, hesitating, looked first at his old friend, then
at the Princess, asking himself what he ought to do. Madame de Vibray
felt secretly grateful to him for this momentary hesitation. As a woman
whose mourning for a dead love is over, she spoke out bravely:

"Dear friend," said she, "surely you are not going to let the Princess
return alone?... I hope she will allow you to see her safely home?"

The Princess pressed the hands of her generous hostess: she was radiant:

"What a good kind friend you are!" she cried in an outburst of sincere
affection. Then, with a questioning glance, in which there was a touch
of uneasiness, a slight hesitation, she said:

"Ah, do let me kiss you!"

For all reply Madame de Vibray opened her arms; the two women clung
together, sealing with their kiss the treaty of peace both wished to
keep.

When the humming of the motor-car, which bore off the Princess and
Thomery, had died away in the distance, Madame de Vibray retired to her
room. A tear rolled down her cheek:

"A little bit of my heart has gone with them," she murmured. The poor
woman sighed deeply: "Ah, it is my whole heart that has gone!"

There was a discreet knock at the door. She mastered her emotion. It was
the dignified mistress of the house who said quietly:

"Come in!"

It was Antoine, who presented two letters on a silver salver. He
explained that, believing his mistress to be anxiously awaiting some
news, he had ventured to bring up the last post at this late hour.

After bidding Antoine good night, she recalled him to say:

"Please tell the maid not to come up. I shall not require her. I can
manage by myself."

Madame de Vibray went towards the little writing-table, which stood in
one corner of her room; in leisurely fashion she sat down and proceeded
to open her letters with a wearied air.

"Why, it's from that nice Jacques Dollon!" she exclaimed, as she read
the first letter she opened: "I was thinking of him at this very
minute!" ... "Yes," she went on, as she read, "I shall certainly pay him
a visit soon!"

Madame de Vibray put Jacques Dollon's letter in her handbag, recognising
on the back of the second letter the initials B. N., which she knew to
be the discreet superscription on the business paper of her bankers,
Messieurs Barbey-Nanteuil. It was long and clos