"Unless what?"

"Well, there's a pretty black lot of evidence against him. Therese's
death in itself, the way in which she died, was a damaging admission.
It seems to me possible that he'll give up the fight entirely. It's
hard to predict anything. One doesn't know what cards he has up his
sleeve."

Her clouded gaze strayed past him out of the window at the glimmering
points of light.

"There is something still so terrifying to me about his machine-like
efficiency," she said, "that I can believe him capable of anything.
His whole plan was so perfectly thought out, down to the smallest
detail. It only broke down through the purely accidental. Once
through my losing the needle--though that wasn't so bad as his losing
his temper!--and once because he let Holliday give me the injection
instead of doing it himself. And yet when I think of what he may say
at the trial..."

He leaned forward suddenly and took her two hands in his.

"Esther, listen to me! Will you promise to marry me, at once, before
this beastly trial comes on?"

Once again the wave of colour swept over her face. She gave a little
nervous laugh.

"But you haven't asked me at all, yet!"

"I'm asking you now. Besides, you knew I meant to. I've been making
inquiries this afternoon. There are a lot of formalities that have to
be gone through with: we have to see an English solicitor, sign a lot
of papers, be _affiched_ two Sundays--a sort of banns, you know--and
then we have to be married at the _mairie_. Altogether the business
takes just over a couple of weeks, so the sooner one decides the sooner
one can set about it, you see?"

She could think of no reply. Her home, her sisters, came into her
mind; she stammered, then laughed again with a lump in her throat.
Those tears again! She mustn't be so stupid...

There was a sharp rap at the door, more businesslike than the last.

"Who in hell is that?" Roger burst out in irritable annoyance.

It proved to be the valet, obsequious and apologetic, yet full of
importance.

"There is a _sergent-de-ville_ to speak with Monsieur," he informed
them mysteriously, but with a Frenchman's full appreciation of the
ruptured tete-a-tete.

"I'll have to go, I suppose," Roger informed her. "But I'll get it
disposed of as quickly as possible."

Ten minutes went slowly by. She had tried not to let Roger see how
much she dreaded the prospect of the witness-box. In her present state
of nerves sh