t opposite
Tinker, farthest from Courtnay. Slowly collecting his wits, Courtnay
grew eloquent and ran through the whole gamut of the emotions proper to
the occasion: honourable indignation, and passion so deep as to be
ready to forgive even this heart-breaking distrust. She listened to
him in silence with an unchanging face, her lips set thin, her sombre
eyes gazing straight before her.

Suddenly despair seized Courtnay, and he gave the rein to the fury
which he had been repressing with such difficulty. "At any rate, I'll
be even with you, you young dog!" he cried savagely. "I'm going to
throw you out of the train!"

"Oh, no; you're not!" said Tinker pleasantly. "By the time you've
thrown Blazer out there won't be enough of you left to throw me out."

Courtnay jumped up with a demonstrative hostility; Tinker hissed; with
an angry snarl Blazer drew in his tongue and put out his teeth, and
Courtnay sat down. For a while he was silent, seeking for an object to
vent his rage on; they could hear him grinding his teeth. Then he
burst out at Claire, taunting, jeering, and abusing.

"That's enough!" cried Tinker angrily. "Pstt! Pstt! At him, Blazer!
At him!"

For a few seconds Courtnay tried fighting, but his upbringing in France
had not fitted him to cope with a heavy bull-terrier. When the train
ran into the station at Nice, he was out on the footboard, on the
further side, yelling lustily.

"Come on quick, before there's a fuss!" cried Tinker, catching up
Claire's handbag, and opening the door. They jumped down, Tinker
whistled Blazer, and the three of them bustled along the platform.

"I've no ticket!" gasped Claire, who every moment expected Courtnay to
be upon them.

"I thought of that! I've got one for you!" said Tinker; and before
Courtnay had quite realised that the train had stopped, they were out
of the station.

Tinker hurried his charge along the line of fiacres, and stopped at a
victoria and pair.

"Hola, cocher!" he said. "From the Couronne d'Or? Wired for to drive
a lady and a boy to Monte Carlo?"

"Oui, monsieur!" cried the driver, gaily cracking his whip.

They scrambled in; and the horses stepped out. Tinker knelt on the
seat, looking back over the hood. They were almost out of sight of the
station when he fancied that he saw a hatless figure run out of it into
the road. It might have been only fancy; they were so far off he could
not trust his sight. Three minutes later he