se meet me
tomorrow at the head of the avenue, promptly at a quarter-past seven,
and escort me to the church.'

For a moment the negative trembled on my tongue's end, but she turned
those enchanting eyes upon me, and I was undone.

'Very well,' I answered.

She seized both my hands, like a little girl overjoyed at a promised
excursion.

'Oh, Monsieur Valmont, you are a darling! I feel as if I'd known you
all my life. I am sure you will never regret having humoured me,' then
added a moment later, 'if we get the emeralds.'

'Ah,' said I, '_if_ we get the emeralds.'

We were now within sight of the house, and she pointed out our
rendezvous for the following day, and with that I bade her good-bye.

It was shortly after seven o'clock next morning when I reached the
meeting-place. The Lady Alicia was somewhat long in coming, but when
she arrived her face was aglow with girlish delight at the solemn
prank she was about to play.

'You have not changed your mind?' I asked, after the morning's
greetings.

'Oh, no, Monsieur Valmont,' she replied, with a bright laugh. 'I am
determined to recover those emeralds.'

'We must hurry, Lady Alicia, or we will be too late.'

'There is plenty of time,' she remarked calmly; and she proved to be
right, because when we came in sight of the church, the clock pointed
to the hour of half-past seven.

'Now,' she said 'I shall wait here until you steal up to the church
and look in through one of the windows that do not contain stained
glass. I should not for the world arrive before Mr. Haddon and his
friend are there.'

I did as requested, and saw two young men standing together in the
centre aisle, one in the full robes of a clergyman, the other in his
ordinary dress, whom I took to be the Honourable John Haddon. His
profile was toward me, and I must admit there was very little of the
madman in his calm countenance. His was a well-cut face, clean shaven,
and strikingly manly. In one of the pews was seated a woman--I learned
afterwards she was Lady Alicia's maid, who had been instructed to come
and go from the house by a footpath, while we had taken the longer
road. I returned and escorted Lady Alicia to the church, and there was
introduced to Mr. Haddon and his friend, the made-up divine. The
ceremony was at once performed, and, man of the world as I professed
myself to be, this enacting of private theatricals in a church grated
upon me. When the maid and I were asked to sign the