e,"
and he presented a thin glazed card with a coronet engraved on it.

"Well, Count," said Beecot, laughing, "what can I do for you?"

"Come up to your room," said the pseudo count, mounting the stairs;
"there's something to be talked over between us."

"No bad news, I hope?"

"Ah, my poor friend," said the detective, in his usual genial voice,
"you have had enough bad news, I am aware. To lose a lovely wife and a
fine fortune at once. Eh, what a pity!"

"I have lost the money, certainly," said Beecot, lighting his lamp, "but
the wife will be mine as soon as I can save sufficient to give her a
better home than this."

Monsieur le Comte de la Tour sat down and gracefully flung open his
overcoat, so as to expose a spotless shirt front. "What?" he asked,
lifting his darkened eyebrows, "so you mean to marry that girl?"

"Of course," said Paul, angrily; "do you think I'm a brute?"

"But the money?"

"What does that matter. I love her, not the money."

"And the name. Her birth--"

"I'll give her my own name and then we'll see who will dare to say a
word against my wife."

Hurd stretched out his hand, and, grasping that of Beecot's, shook it
warmly. "Upon my word you are a man, and that's almost better than being
a gentleman," he said heartily. "I've heard everything from Mr. Pash,
and I honor you Mr. Beecot--I honor you."

Paul stared. "You must have been brought up in a queer way, Hurd," he
said drily, "to express this surprise because a man acts as a man and
not as a blackguard."

"Ah, but you see in my profession I have mixed with blackguards, and
that has lowered my moral tone. It's refreshing to meet a straight,
honorable man such as you are, Mr. Beecot. I liked you when first I set
eyes on you, and determined to help you to discover the assassin of
Aaron Norman--"

"Lemuel Krill you mean."

"I prefer to call him by the name we both know best," said Hurd, "but
as I was saying, I promised to help you to find out who killed the man;
now I'll help you to get back the money."

Paul sat down and stared. "What do you mean?" he asked. "The money can't
be got back. I asked a legal friend of mine, and put the case to him,
since that monkey of a Pash has thrown us over. My friend said that as
no name was mentioned in the will, Maud Krill would undoubtedly inherit
the money. Besides, I learn that the certificate of marriage is all
right. Mrs. Krill undoubtedly married Aaron Norman under his rightful
name thi