o Armand.

A bottle and glass were found in the cupboard. It was St. Just who
poured out the brandy and held it to Heron's lips. Chauvelin was once
more pacing up and down the room in angry impatience.

"Pull yourself together, man," he said roughly after a while, "and try
and tell me what has occurred."

Heron had sunk into a chair. He passed a trembling hand once or twice
over his forehead.

"Capet has disappeared," he murmured; "he must have been spirited away
while the Simons were moving their furniture. That accursed Cochefer was
completely taken in."

Heron spoke in a toneless voice, hardly above a whisper, and like one
whose throat is dry and mouth parched. But the brandy had revived him
somewhat, and his eyes lost their former glassy look.

"How?" asked Chauvelin curtly.

"I was just leaving the Tower when he arrived. I spoke to him at the
door. I had seen Capet safely installed in the room, and gave orders
to the woman Simon to let citizen Cochefer have a look at him, too, and
then to lock up the brat in the inner room and install Cochefer in the
antechamber on guard. I stood talking to Cochefer for a few moments in
the antechamber. The woman Simon and the man-of-all-work, Dupont--whom
I know well--were busy with the furniture. There could not have been any
one else concealed about the place--that I'll swear. Cochefer, after he
took leave of me, went straight into the room; he found the woman Simon
in the act of turning the key in the door of the inner chamber. I have
locked Capet in there,' she said, giving the key to Cochefer; 'he will
be quite safe until to-night; when the other commissaries come.'

"Didn't Cochefer go into the room and ascertain whether the woman was
lying?"

"Yes, he did! He made the woman re-open the door and peeped in over her
shoulder. She said the child was asleep. He vows that he saw the child
lying fully dressed on a rug in the further corner of the room. The
room, of course, was quite empty of furniture and only lighted by one
candle, but there was the rug and the child asleep on it. Cochefer
swears he saw him, and now--when I went up--"

"Well?"

"The commissaries were all there--Cochefer and Lasniere, Lorinet and
Legrand. We went into the inner room, and I had a candle in my hand. We
saw the child lying on the rug, just as Cochefer had seen him, and for
a while we took no notice of it. Then some one--I think it was
Lorinet--went to have a closer look at the brat. He