constantly in touch by telegram, news came in unexpected
fashion through Olive.

"I've just heard from Riviere," she announced. "He's at Arles--down with
a touch of fever. That's the reason he hadn't written before. Those
scientist people are terribly casual in social matters."

"May I see the letter?" asked Lars Larssen. His reason for asking was a
desire to study the man's handwriting and draw conclusions from it. He
was a keen student of handwriting.

After he had read through the note he remarked drily: "I guess I can
give you another reason."

"For his not writing?"

"Yes.... _Cherchez la femme._"

"Why do you say that?"

"This note was written by a woman."

"It's a very decided hand for a woman."

"Yes it is. I'd stake big on that. Look at the long crossings to the
t's. Look at the way the date is written. Look at the way words run into
one another."

Olive examined the letter carefully, and laughed. "You're right," said
she. "He's travelling with some woman. Those men who are supposed to be
wrapped up in their scientific experiments--you can't trust them far!"

Then she added with a curious touch of conscious virtue: "But he'd no
right to get that woman to send a letter to _me_."

Larssen had noted the printed heading to the letter, "Hotel du Forum,
Arles," and he wired at once to Morris Sylvester to proceed to Arles and
hunt out further details. It seemed an unnecessary precaution, but the
shipowner never neglected the tiniest detail when he had a big scheme to
engineer.

His relief at the letter proved short-lived. Late that night came a
message from Sylvester:--

"Riviere not at Arles and not down with fever. Am following up further
clues. Will wire again in the morning."

Larssen did not show this wire to Olive. He had told her nothing of his
search for Riviere--had not even appeared specially interested in him.
But in point of fact his interest in the mysterious half-brother of the
dead man was steadily growing with every fresh check to the search. The
intuition on which he placed such firm faith told him insistently that
John Riviere was a factor vital to the fulfilment of his ambitions.

All the morning he looked for the telegram his secretary was to send
him. It came in the early afternoon:--

"Have found Riviere under extraordinary circumstances. Letter and
photograph follow."

CHAPTER XII

THE SECOND MEETING

Europe's beauty-spots of to-day were the beauty-spots of the