be discovered before his brother
should be safe. As for Nina, she cared no longer what might happen to
Giovanni. She had had too many shocks and too little time for recovery.
All her sympathy was for her poor Uncle Sandro who, in the meantime, was
sitting in jail! Yet the thought of his situation in some way struck her
as ludicrous--almost like comic opera.

But following this there came a second letter, very different from the
first, written by the prince in great agitation, and saying that his
arrest was not for the death of the duke, but for the smuggling of a
Raphael out of the country.

At the shock of this news, the princess for once lost her self-control
and turned to Nina in frightened helplessness.

Nina's first thought was to send for Derby, and to her relief the
princess not only made no objection, but grasped eagerly at the
suggestion. Fortunately, she got him on the telephone just as he was
leaving his hotel, but in her agitation she did not stop to explain
further than that her uncle was under arrest somewhere because of
something to do with a picture. Derby answered that he would come at
once, and the reassurance that she felt from the mere sound of his voice
partly communicated itself through her to the princess, as they went
into the sitting-room to wait for him. A few minutes later the
_portieres_ were lifted--but instead of Derby, it was the Marchese
Valdeste who entered.

Happily he had been at a meeting in the Tribunale Publico when the
prince was arrested, and, as an important official and a great personal
friend of Sansevero's, had hurried to inform the princess what had
happened, and to place himself at her service. The case was very serious
not only because of the evidence against the prince, but because of the
lofty way in which the latter had replied some weeks previously to an
inquiry from the Ministero. Sansevero said his Raphael was in the
possession of the Duke Scorpa, but the duke, who had been chiefly
instrumental in discovering the sale of the picture, was unable to
shield his friend. Sansevero was questioned again, and refused to say
anything more. He had answered once, and that, in his opinion, was
sufficient for a gentleman.

The government thereupon had sent a representative to the Scorpa palace,
where Sansevero averred the picture was. The duke's servants were
catechised, but none had ever seen it. To add to the complication, the
duke was far too ill to be questioned further,