ave of the hand.

"'If you will but wait till I have finished, Monsieur Charloix,' he said,
'I will be glad to answer any and all of your questions. As I have said,
your father was bending over some object and was so absorbed that he did
not hear our good friend till she ventured a gentle cough by way of
introduction. At the slight sound, your father sprang forward with an
oath, leveling the pistol at the good dame's head----'"

"Oh!" breathed Jessie, and Lucile's hand went out instinctively to
silence the interruption. "Sh-h!" she warned, but the Frenchman seemed
not to have heard and continued his narrative, while his hand beat a
nervous tattoo on the arm of the chair.

"I sat fascinated, my eyes fixed strainingly on the face of the lawyer,
while he continued to speak, calmly, nonchalantly, as though that of
which he spoke were of every-day occurrence. 'Of course, the good dame
screamed, but the next instant her fear turned to terror when the weapon
fell from your father's hand and he reeled, falling upon the ground with
a strangling, choking cry, and lay motionless. She thought him dead, but
ran for assistance nevertheless. It was some hours before the doctor
arrived, and not long afterward your father passed away, quietly and
painlessly, for he had lain in a coma since the stroke.'

"'But, Monsieur,' I cried, forgetful of his admonition, 'you say this was
a week ago?' He nodded consent. 'But I myself but left the chateau three
days ago, and Madame Vidaud made no mention of the tragedy to me, who am
most concerned.'

"Then it was Cartier's turn to have surprise. 'You mean,' said he,
leaning his arm on the table and eyeing me steadily. 'You mean that you
were actually at the chateau three days ago and that the Vidaud woman
said nothing to you of your father's death? Are you sure that it was the
right chateau?'

"'Oui, Monsieur, I am sure,' said I.

"Then ensued a silence, during which the lawyer seemed to ponder, and I,
impatient though I was, must needs respect his silence and await his
pleasure.

"'Aye, it is strange--very strange,' said he at last, with a thoughtful
frown. 'However, it is only one more snarl in the tangled thread of
circumstances, and, with good luck, we ought to be able to get at the
root of all this mystery soon. But, my young friend,' said he, bringing
his gaze back from the wall and long line of books and centering it once
more upon me, 'there is one more very important matter which re