nately," he went on, "my information ends here, for the means of
inquiry possessed by the police are, of course, very limited. They can
only act upon facts, not on intentions, and so long as these are not
displayed in open acts, the hands of the police are tied. It is only
forty-eight hours since I heard of you for the first time, and I
have already your biography in my pocket. I hear that the day before
yesterday you were dining with M. de Breulh-Faverlay, and that this
morning you were walking with young Gandelu, and that La Candele was
following you like a shadow. These are all facts, but----"

He paused, and cast a keen glance upon Andre, then, in a slow and
measured voice, he continued,--

"But no one has been able to tell me why you dogged Verminet's
footsteps, or why you went to Mascarin's house, or why, finally,
you disguised yourself to keep a watch on the movements of the most
honorable the Marquis de Croisenois. It is the motive that we cannot
arrive at, for the facts are perfectly clear."

Andre fidgeted uneasily in his chair beneath the spell of those magnetic
glasses, which seemed to draw the truth from him.

"I cannot tell you, sir," faltered he at last, "for the secret is not
mine to divulge."

"You will not trust me? Well, then, I must speak. Remember, all that
I have told you was the account of what I knew positively; but, in
addition to this, I have drawn my own inferences. You are watching De
Croisenois because he is going to marry a wealthy heiress."

Andre blushed crimson.

"We assume, therefore, that you wish to prevent this marriage; and why,
pray? I have heard that Mademoiselle de Mussidan was formerly engaged
to M. de Breulh-Faverlay. How comes it that the Count and Countess de
Mussidan prefer a ruined spendthrift to a wealthy and strictly honorable
man? It is for you to answer this question. It is perfectly plain to me
that they hand over their daughter to De Croisenois under pressure
of some kind, and that means that a terrible secret exists with which
Croisenois threatens them."

"Your deduction is wrong, sir," exclaimed Andre eagerly, "and you are
quite wrong."

"Very good," was the calm reply. "Your emphatic denial shows that I am
in the right. I want no further proofs. M. de Mussidan paid you a visit
yesterday, and one of my agents reported that his face was much happier
on leaving you than when he was on his way to your house. I therefore
infer that you promised to release him