fortune."

"Yes?" said Madame de Medici, smiling, for the Colonel paused.

"He packed it up and addressed it to me, together with a letter. The
price that he asked was quite a moderate one, and when the Key arrived
in England I dispatched a check immediately. It never reached him."

"Why?" cried many whom this strange story had profoundly interested.

"He was found dead at the back of the native cantonments, with a knife
in his heart!"

"Oh!" exclaimed Lady Dascot. "How positively ghastly! I don't think I
want to see the dreadful thing!"

"Really!" murmured Madame de Medici, turning languidly to the speaker.
"I do."

The Colonel stooped and reached into the safe. Then he began to take
out object after object, box after box. Finally, he straightened himself
again, and all saw that his face was oddly blanched.

"It's gone!" he whispered hoarsely. "The Key of the Temple of Heaven has
been stolen!"

VI

MADAME SMILES

Rene entered his bedroom, locked the door, and seated himself on the
bed; then he lowered his head into his hands and clutched at his hair
distractedly. Since, on his uncle's own showing, no one knew that the
Key of the Temple of Heaven had been in the safe, since, excepting
himself (Rene) and the Colonel, no one else knew the lock combination,
how the Key had been stolen was a mystery which defied conjecture. No
one but the Colonel had approached within several yards of the safe at
the time it was opened; so that clearly the theft had been committed
prior to that time.

Now Rene sought to recall the details of a strange dream which he had
dreamed immediately before awakening on the previous night; but he
sought in vain. His memory could supply only blurred images. There had
been a safe in his dream, and he--was it he or another?--had unlocked
it. Also there had been an enormous ivory Buddha.... Yet, stay! it had
not been enormous; it had been...

He groaned at his own impotency to recall the circumstances of that
mysterious, perhaps prophetic dream; then in despair he gave it up, and
stooping to a little secretaire, unlocked it with the idea of sending a
note round to Annesley's chambers. As he did so he uttered a loud cry.

Lying in one of the pigeon-holes was a long piece of black silk,
apparently torn from the lining of an opera hat. In it two holes were
cut as if it were intended to be used as a mask. Beside it lay a little
leather-covered box. He snatched it out and opened it