htening us!" exclaimed the Baronne de Vibray with a little
forced laugh that did not ring true, and the Marquise de Langrune, who
for the past few minutes had been uneasy at the idea of the children
listening to the conversation, cast about in her mind for an occupation
more suited to their age. The interruption gave her an opportunity, and
she turned to Charles Rambert and Therese.

"You must find it very dull here with all of us grown-up people, dears,
so run away now. Therese," she added with a smile to her granddaughter
who had risen obediently, "there is a splendid new puzzle in the
library; you ought to try it with Charles."

The young fellow realised that he must comply with the desire of the
Marquise, although the conversation interested him intensely; but he was
too well bred to betray his thoughts, and the next moment he was in the
adjoining room, sitting opposite the girl, and deep in the intricacies
of the latest fashionable game.

* * * * *

The Baronne de Vibray brought the conversation back to the subject of
Fantomas.

"What connection is there, President, between this uncanny creature and
the disappearance of Lord Beltham, of which we were talking at dinner?"

"I should certainly have agreed with you and thought there was none,"
the old magistrate replied, "if Lord Beltham's disappearance had been
unattended by any mysterious circumstance. But there is one point that
deserves your attention: the newspaper from which I read an extract
just now, _La Capitale_, draws attention to it and regards it as being
important. It is said that when Lady Beltham began to be uneasy about
her husband's absence, on the morning of the day following his
disappearance, she remembered noticing just as he was going out that he
was reading a particular letter, the peculiar, square shape of which
surprised her. She had also noticed that the handwriting of the letter
was very heavy and black. Now, she found the letter in question upon her
husband's desk, but the whole of the writing had disappeared, and it was
only the most minute examination that resulted in the discovery of a few
almost imperceptible stains which proved that it really was the
identical document that had been in her husband's hands. Lady Beltham
would not have thought very much about it, if it had not occurred to the
editor of _La Capitale_ to interview detective Juve about it, the famous
Inspector of the Criminal Investigati