t at a man in the wood, when no man was there."

"I certainly neither saw nor heard one."

"Nor did Casimir. The shot was a signal to his comrades, and told them
that his trick had succeeded. And then his fear about being dragged into
your quarrel! That was a blind, monsieur, meant to throw you off your
guard."

"It certainly succeeded," I was forced to admit.

"And the fuss he made about foundering his horse! It was a mere trick to
delay us on the road; there was nothing the matter with the beast."

"Do you think," I asked, "he behaved so rudely to those horsemen through
fear that they might upset the plot?"

"No, monsieur," replied Jacques, with a shake of the head; "I cannot see
through it clearly, but in my opinion that was all a part of the scheme.
I believe they were the fellows who rode out on you while I was lying
stunned."

"But why should they join us?"

"There is no telling, monsieur. It might have been to learn from Casimir
if it was safe to carry out their plot. He was a crafty rogue. I had no
suspicion of the truth until he began to make his horse plunge and rear.
Then I knew he meant to kill me--by accident!" he concluded grimly.

"And in the confusion it would have been an easy matter to settle my
account!"

"A very easy matter," agreed Jacques.

"The facts fit in well with your idea," I said, after a pause; "but if
you are right, the puzzle becomes worse than ever."

"In what way, monsieur."

"It brings us face to face with this question--was Casimir in the pay of
two employers--one my friend the other my enemy?"

"Pardon me, monsieur," exclaimed Jacques hesitatingly, "but are you sure
this adventurer is your friend? He once tried to take your life; he
belongs to the opposite camp, and he is a henchman of Monseigneur's, who
certainly does not love the Huguenots. You have done this man a service,
but it is easy to forget benefits."

"I am afraid that is so, Jacques, yet I cannot doubt L'Estang. Besides,
he had me in his power the night he came here."

"Yes," said my servant, with a queer smile, "but he knew that had he
done you any harm he would never have left the room alive."

"Still, we will assume that L'Estang is really my friend. In that case
Casimir must have sold his knowledge to the lawyer. But if he was in
touch with Cordel, who would shoot at him in the wood?"

"A friendly hand could shoot a hole through a cloak. Of course, it is
just possible Casimir did not come from L'