it and let my daughter have it. You will
find her address from Messrs. Harris and Culsom, Solicitors, Lincoln's
Inn Fields. You need only ask them for Monty's daughter and show them
this letter. They will understand. I believe you to be a just man,
Scarlett Trent, although I know you to be a hard one. Do then as I ask.

"MONTY."

Da Souza had left the room quietly. Trent read the letter through twice
and locked it up in his desk. Then he rose and lit a pipe, knocking out
the ashes carefully and filling the bowl with dark but fragrant tobacco.
Presently he rang the bell.

"Tell Mr. Da Souza I wish to see him here at once," he told the servant,
and, though the message was a trifle peremptory from a host to his
guest, Da Souza promptly appeared, suave and cheerful.

"Shut the door," Trent said shortly.

Da Souza obeyed with unabashed amiability. Trent watched him with
something like disgust. Da Souza returning caught the look, and felt
compelled to protest.

"My dear Trent," he said, "I do not like the way you address me, or your
manners towards me. You speak as though I were a servant. I do not like
it all, and it is not fair. I am your guest, am I not?"

"You are my guest by your own invitation," Trent answered roughly, "and
if you don't like my manners you can turn out. I may have to endure you
in the house till I have made up my mind how to get rid of you, but I
want as little of your company as possible. Do you hear?"

Da Souza did hear it, and the worm turned. He sat down in the most
comfortable easy-chair, and addressed Trent directly.

"My friend," he said, "you are out of temper, and that is a bad thing.
Now listen to me! You are in my power. I have only to go into the
City to-morrow and breathe here and there a word about a certain old
gentleman who shall be nameless, and you would be a ruined man in
something less than an hour; added to this, my friend, you would most
certainly be arrested for conspiracy and fraud. That Syndicate of yours
was a very smart stroke of business, no doubt, and it was clever of you
to keep me in ignorance of it, but as things have turned out now,
that will be your condemnation. They will say, why did you keep me in
ignorance of this move, and the answer--why, it is very clear! I knew
you were selling what was not yours to sell!"

"I kept you away," Trent said scornfully, "because I was dealing with
men who would not have touched the thing if they had known that you were