here
steadfastly refuses to bring in. Delkin!"

Fullaway suddenly laughed, throwing up his arms.

"Delkin!" he exclaimed satirically. "A millionaire several times over!
The thing's ridiculous, Van Koon! Delkin would kick me out if I went and
asked him--"

"Delkin will have to be asked," interrupted Van Koon. "You will not face
the facts, Fullaway. Millionaire, multimillionaire, Delkin was the third
person (I'm leaving this valet, Ebers, clean out, though I've not the
slightest doubt he was one of the pieces of the machine) who knew that
James Allerdyke was bringing two hundred and fifty thousand pounds' worth
of jewels for his, Delkin's approval! That's a fact, Fullaway, which
cannot be got over."

"Psha!" exclaimed Fullaway. "I suppose you think Delkin, who could buy up
the best jeweller's shop in London or Paris and throw its contents to the
street children to play with--"

"What is it that's in your mind, Mr. Van Koon?" asked Allerdyke,
interrupting Fullaway's eloquence. "You've some theory?"

"Well, I don't know about theory," answered Van Koon, "but I guess I've
got some natural common sense. If Fullaway there thinks I'm suggesting
that Delkin organized a grand conspiracy to rob James Allerdyke,
Fullaway's wrong--I'm not. What I am suggesting, and have been suggesting
this last three days, is that Delkin should be asked a plain and simple
question, which is this--did he ever tell anybody of this proposed deal?
If so--whom did he tell? And if that isn't business," concluded Van Koon,
"then I don't know business when I see it!"

"What's your objection?" asked Allerdyke, looking across at Fullaway.
"What objection can you have?"

Fullaway shook his head.

"Oh, I don't know!" he said. "Except that it seems immaterial, and that I
don't want to bother Delkin. I'm hoping that these jewels will be found,
and that I'll be able to complete the transaction, and--besides, I don't
believe for one instant that Delkin would tell anybody. I only had two
interviews with Delkin--one at his hotel, one here. He understood the
affair was an entirely private and secret transaction."

Mrs. Marlow suddenly raised her head, and spoke quickly.

"You're forgetting something, Mr. Fullaway," she said. "You had a letter
from Mr. Delkin confirming the provisional agreement, which was that he
should have the first option of buying the Princess Nastirsevitch's
jewels, then being brought by Mr. James Allerdyke from Russia."

"True--t