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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Blue Lights, by Arnold Fredericks
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Blue Lights
+       A Detective Story
+
+Author: Arnold Fredericks
+
+Illustrator: Will Grefe
+
+Release Date: January 15, 2012 [EBook #38577]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BLUE LIGHTS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Dianna Adair, Suzanne Shell, and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images generously made available
+by The Internet Archive/American Libraries)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+  THE BLUE LIGHTS
+
+
+  Illustration: A hasty examination of the sailing list showed her the
+  astonishing truth. Richard was not on board.
+
+
+
+
+  THE
+
+  BLUE LIGHTS
+
+  BY
+
+  ARNOLD FREDERICKS
+
+  AUTHOR OF
+
+  THE IVORY SNUFF BOX, ETC.
+
+  ILLUSTRATIONS BY
+
+  WILL GREFE
+
+  NEW YORK
+
+  GROSSET & DUNLAP
+
+  PUBLISHERS
+
+  COPYRIGHT, 1915, BY
+
+  W. J. WATT & COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+THE BLUE LIGHTS
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+
+The big, mud-spattered touring car, which for the past hour had been
+plowing its way steadily northward from the city of Washington,
+hesitated for a moment before the gateway which marked the end of the
+well kept drive, then swept on to the house.
+
+A man, stoutly built, keen of eye, showing haste in his every movement,
+sprang from the machine and ascended the veranda steps.
+
+"Does Richard Duvall live here?" he inquired, curtly, of the smiling old
+colored woman who came to the door.
+
+"'Deed he do, suh. Does you want to see him?"
+
+"Yes. At once, please. Tell him it is most important. My name is
+Hodgman."
+
+The servant eyed him with cool disfavor. "Set down, suh," she remarked
+stiffly. "I'll tell him you is here."
+
+The caller watched her, as she disappeared into the house, then cast
+himself impatiently into a chair and lit a cigar.
+
+He paid no attention to the attempts of two clumsy collie puppies to
+attract his favorable notice, but contented himself with making a quick
+survey of the wide comfortable veranda, with its big roomy chairs, the
+wicker table, bearing a great jar of red peonies, the smooth green
+lawns, swept by the late afternoon sun.
+
+"Fine old place," he muttered to himself. "Wonder if I can persuade him
+to go?"
+
+As the car which had brought Mr. Hodgman on his hasty trip from
+Washington dashed up to the front of the house, Grace Duvall, looking
+very charming in a blue linen dress, was just approaching it from the
+rear.
+
+She held a pair of shears in her hand, and her apron was filled to
+overflowing with hundred-leaf roses. "Dick--oh, Dick!" she called, as
+she came down the long avenue of syringas and lilacs which led to the
+house. "The sweet peas are nearly ready to bloom."
+
+Richard Duvall, looking as simply pastoral as though he had never
+tracked an international crook to cover, raised his head from the
+flower bed, in which he had been carefully setting out circle after
+circle of geranium plants.
+
+"Are they?" he laughed. "That's good. Now all we need is a few good hot
+days." He gathered up his trowel and rake, and started toward the barn.
+
+Grace put her arm through her husband's and together they strolled
+across the springy green turf, their faces smiling and happy. The
+honeymoon showed no signs of waning.
+
+This lovely old country place, in southern Maryland, had been one of
+Richard Duvall's dreams for many years, and after his marriage to Grace
+Ellicott, in Paris, it had become hers, as well. It was but a short time
+after their return to America that they decided to make it a reality.
+
+Grace had encouraged her husband in the plan of giving up, for a time at
+least, his warfare against crime, his pursuit of criminals of the higher
+and more dangerous type, and had persuaded him to buy the farm which had
+once belonged to his mother's people, and settle down to the life of a
+country gentleman.
+
+His office was still maintained, under the able direction of one of his
+assistants, but Duvall gave little or no attention to its affairs. He
+was glad to withdraw, for the first time in over nine years, from
+active work, and devote his energies to early potatoes, prize dogs,
+hunters, and geranium plants--and, above all, to the peaceful enjoyment
+of his honeymoon, and the making of Grace the happiest woman in the
+world.
+
+She, on her part, found in their present situation all the joys of
+existence for which she had longed. With little or no liking for the
+monotonous round of society and its duties, and a passionate love of
+nature, she found in the many and complex duties of managing her part of
+their extensive estate a far greater happiness than any which city life
+could have offered her.
+
+The considerable fortune which her husband's clever work while in Paris
+had restored to her, had been safely invested in well paying securities,
+and she found her greatest joy in utilizing at least a part of her
+income in beautifying their new home.
+
+Richard had steadily refused to make any use of the money. It was a
+matter of pride with him, that his own savings had enabled him to
+purchase the property; but when Grace proposed to build an addition to
+the house, to provide him with a more comfortable library and work room,
+or insisted upon having the roads throughout the place elaborately
+macadamized, he was obliged to submit to her wishes. In this way, they
+planned and built for the future, together.
+
+The farm was a large one, comprising some two hundred acres, and the old
+stone house surrounded by white oaks and tulip poplars had once been a
+show place, before the declining fortunes of its former owners had
+caused it to fall into a state of mellow and time-honored decay. Now all
+was changed. Grace, with the able assistance of old Uncle Abe Turner, a
+relic of ante bellum times, spent hours daily in bringing order out of
+the chaos of tangled myrtle and ivy, overgrown box and hedge, thickets
+of syringa and lilac bushes and weed-grown lawns.
+
+It was a gigantic task, yet a joyous one--as it ever is, to those who
+came to it with the love of nature in their hearts. To Grace, the plants
+and shrubs, the great strong oaks, the towering poplars, each seemed to
+have a distinct personality. Under her energetic hand, the place once
+more took on the aspect of well kept and orderly beauty which was such a
+contrast to its former down-at-the-heels appearance. It seemed as though
+the growing things realized the personal interest she took in them, and
+responded as they never respond to the ignorant or unsympathetic.
+
+Richard was concerned with his fields of timothy and clover, his early
+corn, his berries and fruit trees, to say nothing of his collies, his
+prize cows and Kentucky horses. In such a life, time never hangs
+heavy--he was busy studying, planning, working, from morning to night,
+and his active mind soon convinced his capable overseer and the farm
+hands as well that, although Richard Duvall was by no means a
+professional farmer, he could still show them a thing or two when it
+came to the rotation of crops, the spraying of fruit trees, or the
+proper treatment of worn out soils. These were aspects of farming life
+which the hide-bound conservatism of the local farmers caused them to
+jeer at, as newfangled notions gotten from books. Later when they saw
+the man who farmed with his head as well as his hands gather in two
+bushels where they had barely been able to secure one, they began to sit
+up and take notice.
+
+"I got the new hedges all set out today," Grace went on, as she patted
+her husband's rather grimy hand. "They will be charming, against the
+gray stone of the wall. But we must have new gate posts. The old ones
+are likely to tumble into the road at any moment."
+
+"I'll have Martin come out tomorrow and look them over. There's plenty
+of stone--down in the lower pasture. Why not carry the wall right along
+the whole front of the property? It ought not to cost a great deal."
+
+"We will. And I'm going to have a new spring house built, too. The old
+one is falling to pieces." She looked up at her husband as he deposited
+the rake in the tool room and they started up the shaded walk toward the
+house. "Aren't you glad, Dick, that we're _alive_?"
+
+He pressed her arm. "Well--I should say so, little girl! Why do you ask
+me that?"
+
+"Oh--you know what your friends all said--that a man might as well be
+dead, as buried out here in the country. I think they are the ones who
+are not alive--cooped up in the city. Don't you?"
+
+Richard nodded. He was thinking for the moment of his former active
+life--when some battle of wits with a noted crook had kept him sleepless
+for nights. "It's--rather different," he laughed. "Isn't it?"
+
+"Yes--and much better. Don't you think so, dear? You wouldn't want to go
+back to it--would you?"
+
+"Not for anything in the world," he assured her, as he swept the newly
+seeded lawns with a contented glance. "I liked the other life, of
+course--the excitement, the danger of it; but this is better--much
+better. Here, Don!" he called to a graceful collie which was barking
+vociferously at some distant vehicle in the road. "Come here and be
+quiet." He turned with Grace to the great vine-covered side porch and
+sank contentedly into a rocking chair. "Well, little girl--it's been a
+busy day, and I'm tired. We got the early rye all cut on the lower field
+today. Guess we'll put in late potatoes, after it's plowed. Here,
+Don--come back here! What's the matter with you?" He rose and whistled
+to the dog, which was bounding across the lawn in the direction of the
+road. "Come back, I say!"
+
+"It's someone coming in," said Grace, uneasily. "In a machine. I wonder
+who it can be?"
+
+"Possibly Hudson, the veterinary. He was coming today, to look at that
+heifer."
+
+"He hasn't a machine like that. This is a big touring car." She turned
+to her husband. "Hadn't you better go in and fix up a bit, Dick? It may
+be company."
+
+Duvall laughed. "If it is, they'll have to take me as I am," he said;
+then again called to the dog.
+
+A moment later the servant, who had interviewed the caller at the front
+door, came out to the side porch. "Gentleman to see you, Mr. Duvall,"
+she said. "Seems to be in a powerful hurry, too."
+
+"All right, Aunt Lucy," said Duvall as he made his way to the front of
+the house.
+
+"Is this Richard Duvall?" the visitor asked, in a quick, almost
+peremptory tone, as the detective joined him.
+
+"Yes. That is my name. What can I do for you?"
+
+The newcomer rose nervously from his chair and began chewing upon his
+half-smoked cigar. "Had the devil of a time to find you, Mr. Duvall."
+
+"You came out from Washington, I suppose," remarked the detective,
+wondering what his visitor could want with him.
+
+"Yes. Got your address from Hicks, of the Treasury Department. He said
+you were about twelve miles out. I seem to have come about twenty."
+
+"Perhaps you went around by way of Laurel. It's much further, that way.
+What can I do for you, Mr.----" He paused interrogatively.
+
+The man looked up at him quickly. "My name's Hodgman--Thomas Hodgman--of
+New York. I represent John Stapleton."
+
+"John Stapleton, the banker?" asked Duvall, surprised.
+
+"Yes. You know him, don't you?"
+
+"Yes. Quite well. I handled a case for him once--some years ago. Why?"
+Duvall's face became grave. He began to realize that the interview was
+likely to become suddenly important. John Stapleton, the
+multi-millionaire banker, was not in the habit of sending messengers to
+anyone, without good reason.
+
+"So he said," went on Mr. Hodgman, resuming his chair. "That's why I'm
+here. He wants you to take another--"
+
+"Another?"
+
+"Yes. Another case. Quick."
+
+"It's quite out of the question."
+
+"Nonsense! This is important. Money's no object; name your own terms."
+
+"It isn't a question of terms, Mr. Hodgman. I have withdrawn, for the
+time being at least, from active professional work."
+
+"I know." The visitor flicked the ashes impatiently from his cigar and
+sought nervously in his pockets for a match. "That's what they told me
+at your office, in New York. Said you were on your honeymoon, and didn't
+want to be bothered."
+
+"That's true. I don't."
+
+"I told Mr. Stapleton that. He sent me to see you; said you might change
+your mind, when you heard about the case."
+
+"It is quite impossible. I do not care to take up any detective work at
+present."
+
+Mr. Hodgman fidgeted nervously in his chair. "You must listen to what I
+have to say, Mr. Duvall, at any rate. Mr. Stapleton would not hear to my
+returning, after seeing you, without having explained to you the nature
+of the case."
+
+Duvall leaned back, and began to fondle the long moist nose of the
+collie which sat beside his chair. "If you insist, Mr. Hodgman, I will
+listen, of course; but I assure you it will be quite useless."
+
+"I hope not. The case is most distressing. Mr. Stapleton's only child
+has been kidnapped!"
+
+"Kidnapped!" Duvall sat up with a start, every line of his face tense
+with professional interest. "When? Where?"
+
+"In Paris. The cablegram arrived this morning. I don't know the details.
+Mrs. Stapleton has been spending the winter abroad. Mr. Stapleton was to
+join her this month. She is living at their house in the Avenue Kleber,
+Paris. The child was out walking with a nurse. It has been stolen.
+That's all I know."
+
+"When did it happen?"
+
+"Yesterday morning. Mrs. Stapleton did not cable at first, believing
+that the boy would be found during the course of the day. Naturally she
+did not wish to alarm her husband needlessly, and the Prefect of Police,
+it seems, had assured her that the child would undoubtedly be recovered
+before night. It wasn't. This morning Mr. Stapleton got a long cablegram
+from his wife, telling him of the boy's disappearance. He's half crazy
+over the thing."
+
+"What is he going to do?"
+
+"I don't know. He sent me to see you at once. I'm his secretary, you
+know. When I couldn't find you in New York, he told me to come here. I
+arrived in Washington an hour ago, and came right out. Mr. Stapleton
+said if any man on earth could find his boy for him, you could."
+
+"I suppose the thing is a matter of blackmail--ransom--"
+
+"Very likely. They will probably demand a huge sum. No requests have
+been made, as yet, so far as I know. These fellows usually wait a week
+or two, before showing their hand, to give the unfortunate parents a
+chance to worry themselves half to death. I suppose they figure that
+then they'll be more likely to come across with the money."
+
+"Yes. That's the scheme. A rotten business, too. Hanging is too good for
+such wretches!"
+
+"That's what I say. Of course you can understand how Mr. Stapleton
+feels."
+
+"Of course. He will sail at once, I suppose."
+
+"That's the worst of it. He can't go till Saturday. Tomorrow's
+Thursday--that's three days off. There's a deal on here involving
+millions--something he's been working to put through for months. Of
+course he doesn't consider anything like that, when it comes to his
+child; but he's got to think of his associates--men who have intrusted
+their money to him. He can't possibly sail before Saturday. He wants you
+to go ahead of him. There's a fast boat leaving in the morning. You
+could take that. We can have a conference tonight. It will mean mighty
+quick work, though." He glanced at his watch. "After six now. There's no
+train till midnight--the sleeper. But Mr. Stapleton told me to charter a
+special. We can be in New York by one o'clock in the morning, if we
+start right now." He looked at Duvall in eager expectancy.
+
+The latter frowned, his gaze wandering off to the distant fields, where
+the newly plowed earth reminded him of his plans for the morrow. Yet
+here was a man, a friend, who had helped him much, in the earlier days
+of his career, begging him to come to his assistance in a matter almost
+of life or death. It was a difficult decision that he was called upon to
+make. The thought of leaving Grace hurt him deeply; yet she would prefer
+to stay behind, in case he should go, to look after the affairs of the
+place. With the assistance of the overseer and the hands, he knew that
+she could manage everything during a brief absence on his part--it
+seemed unlikely that the matter would require more than three or four
+weeks, at the outside.
+
+Mr. Hodgman broke in upon his thoughts. "You'll go, Mr. Duvall? Mr.
+Stapleton is depending on you. He has the utmost faith in your
+abilities. He knows your familiarity with Paris--the work you have done
+there, in the past. He believes that, by intrusting the matter to a
+fellow countryman, he will get his boy back again. He hasn't much faith
+in foreign detectives. He's set his heart on having you start for Paris
+at once. I can't go back and tell him that you have refused." Mr.
+Hodgman spoke in a loud and earnest voice, due to his very evident
+excitement. Neither he nor Duvall noticed that Grace had approached
+them, and was standing in the open doorway of the house.
+
+Before the detective had an opportunity to reply, Grace spoke. "What is
+it, Richard?" she inquired, quietly.
+
+Duvall rose, presented Mr. Hodgman to his wife, and bade her sit down.
+Then, in a few words, he acquainted her with the circumstances which led
+to the latter's visit.
+
+"Think of that poor mother, alone there in Paris," Hodgman supplemented.
+"Think of her suffering, her anxiety. I realize how much we are asking,
+to take Mr. Duvall away from you, especially at this time; but, it is
+Mr. Stapleton's only child--a boy of six. You can understand how he must
+feel."
+
+Grace nodded. "Yes, I can understand," she said, slowly, then turned to
+her husband.
+
+"What do you think, dear?" he asked her.
+
+"I think, Richard, that you had better go."
+
+Mr. Hodgman sprang to his feet, and, coming over to Grace, took her
+hand. He knew that his battle was won. "I thank you, Mrs. Duvall," he
+said, "on Mr. Stapleton's account, as well as on my own. He will
+appreciate deeply what you have done, the sacrifice you are making, and
+he will not forget it." He looked again at his watch nervously, the
+anxiety he felt clearly evident in his every movement. "We had best
+start at once, Mr. Duvall."
+
+Duvall rose. "I will join you in a short while, Mr. Hodgman. I wish to
+say a few words to my wife." He took Grace's arm and drew her within the
+house, leaving Mr. Hodgman pacing nervously up and down the veranda.
+
+The conference between Grace and her husband was short. Each realized
+the distress which tore at the other's heart, as well as the dangers he
+would in all probability be called upon to face; yet they met the
+situation calmly. "You will not be gone long," she told him. "I can
+manage very well."
+
+"I know you can, dear," he said, pressing her to him. "I'm not worried
+about the place. You can run that as well as I can. It's you, I'm
+worried about--leaving you"--
+
+"I'll be all right," she assured him, in spite of her tears. "I have
+Aunt Lucy, and old Uncle Abe, and Rose, and Jennie. I won't be so _very_
+lonely. And you will be very careful--and--and come back soon--won't
+you?"
+
+"Of course, dear. Very soon. Now I'd better get a few things together."
+
+Fifteen minutes later Grace Duvall stood on the steps of the veranda,
+watching the flying automobile as it rapidly became a little red blur in
+the distant road. It was nearly dark. The frogs in the patch of marsh in
+the meadow were piping dismally. She shivered, and a great sense of
+desolation came over her. She sank into a chair and wept, while Don,
+inserting his long white muzzle between her hands, strove to lick away
+her tears.
+
+She heard Aunt Lucy, the old negro cook, singing away at her work in the
+kitchen, accompanied by Uncle Abe, who occupied a bench on the back
+porch. Everything seemed strangely peaceful, and lonely, too, now that
+Richard had gone. She patted the eager head of the collie. "We'll have
+to make the best of it, Don," she said, and rose to enter the house.
+
+Suddenly far down the road she heard the chugging of an automobile. They
+were not frequent visitors, upon this country road. Could it be Richard,
+she wondered, returning for something he had forgotten?
+
+She stood, straining her eyes into the dusk, waiting, while with one
+hand she restrained the eager dog.
+
+Presently she saw that the machine was not a red one. It was not
+Richard. She was about to enter the house, when she realized that the
+rapidly moving car had entered the grounds. She turned on the lights in
+the hallway and stood, waiting, the dog at her side bristling with
+anger.
+
+In a moment the automobile had stopped, and almost before she realized
+it, a small, foreign-looking man stood on the doorstep before her.
+"Madame Duvall?" he inquired, quickly, in a voice which showed plainly
+his nationality.
+
+"Yes," she replied.
+
+"Your husband! May I see him?"
+
+"He is not at home."
+
+The newcomer seemed greatly disturbed. "Then I fear, Madame, that I
+shall be obliged to wait until he returns."
+
+"He will not return. He has gone away for sometime."
+
+"Ah! That is indeed a calamity!" The man's face showed the keenest
+disappointment. "May I ask where I can find him?"
+
+"It will be quite impossible." Grace had no intention of telling her
+visitor where her husband had gone. She knew too well the intricacies of
+his profession, for that. "You cannot find him." She made as though to
+close the door, and thereby terminate the interview.
+
+The newcomer realized her intention. Slowly he raised his hand, in the
+palm of which showed the seal of a ring, turned inward. It was of
+silver, with curious figures worked into it in gold. The man glanced
+from the ring to Grace, eying her steadily. "I think, Madame," he said,
+with a meaning smile, "that you can trust me."
+
+Grace recognized the ring at once. It was similar to one she herself had
+worn, while engaged in the memorable search for the ivory snuff box for
+Monsieur Lefevre, Prefect of Police of Paris. Dear old Lefevre--the
+friend of Richard's, and of her own! This man who stood before her must
+be a messenger from him.
+
+"Come in, please," she said, quietly, and led the way to the library.
+
+The man followed her, calling out a few words to his chauffeur as he did
+so. No sooner had they reached the great book-lined room, than he drew
+from his pocket a sealed envelope.
+
+"Madame Duvall," he said, earnestly, "Monsieur Lefevre has cabled to his
+representatives in Washington a message. That message is contained in
+this envelope. I have instructions to deliver it to your husband
+immediately. In case I could not find him, I am to hand it to you.
+Permit, me, Madame." With a bow, he placed the message in her hand.
+
+Grace took the envelope, broke the heavy seal which it bore, and drawing
+out a slip of paper, hastily read the contents. The message was from
+Monsieur Lefevre. It said:
+
+     My dear Duvall:
+
+     You promised, on the occasion of our last meeting, to come to me
+     should I ever need you. I need you badly, my friend. Come at once,
+     both you, and your dear wife.      LEFEVRE.
+
+Grace looked up at the man before her, the letter crumpled in her hand.
+Here was a message the urgency of which could not be denied. She knew
+that, had Richard been at home, he would have gone to Paris at once in
+response to it; for it was to Monsieur Lefevre that they in reality owed
+all their happiness. She recalled vividly their wedding, with the
+lovable old Frenchman, acting as her father for the occasion, giving
+away the bride. She remembered the farewell dinner at the Prefect's
+house, and the beautiful gift he had given her on that occasion.
+Evidently Monsieur Lefevre desired Richard's presence very greatly, and
+her own as well. The thought suddenly came to her--why not go to him?
+
+True, Richard had left her in charge of things at home; but she knew
+that, for a reasonable time, at least, they would go on smoothly enough
+without her. Hendricks, the overseer, was a capable and honest man,
+devoted to her and to her husband.
+
+She could safely leave matters in his charge. Then, too, the thought of
+surprising Richard on the steamer sailing the next day appealed to her
+sense of mischief. How astounded he would be, to find her strolling
+along the deck! And how delighted, too! She wondered that the thought of
+accompanying him had not occurred to her more strongly before. She
+turned to the man, who stood watching her narrowly.
+
+"You know the contents of this message?"
+
+"Yes, Madame," he bowed. "It came to us by cable--in cipher."
+
+"There is a train for New York at midnight, and a steamer tomorrow
+morning."
+
+"Yes, Madame."
+
+"Can you drive me to Washington in your car?"
+
+"I shall be delighted, Madame." The fellow's eyes sparkled with
+satisfaction.
+
+"Very well. Mr. Duvall is in New York. I will take the message to him.
+Wait here, please, until I get some clothes together and give some
+orders to my servants."
+
+In half an hour, the thing was done. Hendricks, the overseer, had been
+given full instructions regarding taking charge of the place, with
+provision for his needs in the way of money, etc., and by ten o'clock,
+at which time the New York sleeper was open, Grace was at the station,
+purchasing her ticket.
+
+The obliging Frenchman gave her every assistance, and bade her _bon
+voyage_ smilingly as he helped her aboard the train. She retired at
+once, and lay in her berth, reading a magazine, and picturing to herself
+Richard's mingled astonishment and joy at their meeting in the morning.
+This time, she was determined that their honeymoon should not be
+interrupted.
+
+After a time, she fell asleep, and dreamed that she and Richard were
+sailing gaily toward Paris, in a large red touring car.
+
+In the morning, she ate a hasty breakfast in the railway station, and
+took a taxicab for the steamship offices. By great good fortune, she was
+able to secure a cabin. Then she hastily visited a banking house where
+she was well known, provided herself with funds, and drove to the dock.
+
+It wanted but half an hour till sailing time. Grace hastened to her
+stateroom, and busied herself in effacing the stains of her night of
+travel. She was determined to meet Richard looking her best.
+
+It was not until the big steamer was passing through the Narrows that
+she came on deck, and began looking about for her husband. In all that
+crowd, she knew it would take time to find him. After searching for an
+hour, she felt somewhat surprised at not seeing him. After another hour
+had passed, her surprise turned to alarm. A hasty visit to the purser,
+and an examination of the sailing list, showed her the astonishing
+truth. Richard was not on board!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+
+Richard Duvall arrived in New York at half past one o'clock Thursday
+morning. Hodgman, Mr. Stapleton's secretary, had wired ahead the news of
+their coming, and the banker's limousine awaited them at the railway
+station. Fifteen minutes later they were ascending the steps of Mr.
+Stapleton's residence on Fifth Avenue.
+
+Duvall had not been to the house before. His previous interviews with
+the banker had taken place at the latter's office, in Broad Street. He
+had no time now, however, to observe the luxury of his surroundings. Mr.
+Hodgman hurried him at once to the library, and in a few moments Mr.
+Stapleton had joined them.
+
+He greeted Duvall with a nervous handshake, and thanked him for his
+prompt coming. He was clearly laboring under an intense mental strain.
+
+"Mr. Hodgman has explained my reasons for sending for you, Mr. Duvall?"
+he inquired, sinking into a great leather-covered chair.
+
+"Yes." Duvall nodded.
+
+"Then you can appreciate my feelings." He sat in silence for several
+moments, looking gloomily at the floor.
+
+"Perfectly."
+
+"The devils! I wouldn't care if they were to steal my property--money,
+securities, anything like that. I can fight them--on that basis. But my
+child! Don't you see why your coming was of the utmost importance to me?
+I don't dare move against these rascals openly. If I do, they will
+threaten to retaliate by injuring my boy, and I am powerless. Whatever I
+do, must be done secretly. No one must know that you are in my employ.
+No one must know your object in going to Paris. You see that?"
+
+"Most certainly. These fellows cannot hold you responsible for any moves
+the police authorities of Paris may make; over them you of course have
+no control. But if you make any efforts on your own account, any
+independent efforts, to recover your boy, they must by all means be made
+in secret."
+
+"Exactly. You understand, then, what you are to do?"
+
+"Yes. But first I must ask you, Mr. Stapleton, to give me some account
+of the affair. Mr. Hodgman has told me only that your son has been
+kidnapped. No doubt you have learned by this time how the thing was
+done."
+
+"What I have learned, Mr. Duvall, convinces me of the importance of
+being on the ground at once. The affair, as cabled to me by my wife, is
+preposterous--absurd!" He again gazed at the floor in gloomy
+preoccupation.
+
+"How so?" the detective inquired.
+
+"I will tell you. My boy, who, as you know, is six years old, has been
+in the habit of driving, each morning, accompanied by his nurse, from my
+house in the Avenue Kleber, to the Bois de Boulogne. On arriving in the
+Bois, it has been their habit to leave the automobile in which they
+came, and spend an hour or more walking and playing on the grass. I have
+insisted on this, because the boy needs exercise, and he cannot get it
+driving about in a motor car."
+
+"During this hour what becomes of the car?" asked Duvall.
+
+"Our orders have been, of course, for the chauffeur to wait, within
+sight and call. I believe he has done so."
+
+"Thank you. Go ahead."
+
+"On Wednesday the nurse took Jack--the boy's name is Jack--to the Bois
+as usual. She played about with him on the grass for probably an hour.
+Then she sat down to rest. Jack was standing near her, playing with a
+rubber ball. She says--and, gentlemen, my wife cables me that she
+solemnly swears to the truth of her statements--that she turned away for
+a moment to observe passing vehicles in the road--turned back again to
+the child--and found that he was gone."
+
+"Gone--but how?"
+
+"How? That's the question. Here is this woman, sitting on the grass,
+with the child, a hundred yards from the road, in the middle of a large
+field of grass--a lawn. No one is within sight. The nearest person, it
+appears from her testimony, is the chauffeur, three hundred feet away,
+in the road. The woman turns her head for a moment, looks about--and the
+boy is gone. That is the story she tells, and which my wife has cabled
+to me. Do you wonder that I call it preposterous?"
+
+"Hardly," remarked Duvall, with a grim smile. "The boy could not have
+vanished into thin air. The woman must be lying."
+
+"That, Mr. Duvall, is what I cannot understand. I cannot believe that
+the woman is lying. My wife cannot believe it. She has been in our
+employ ever since the boy was born, and is devoted to him. Mrs.
+Stapleton cables that she is completely prostrated."
+
+"But, Mr. Stapleton, you can hardly believe such a story! How could the
+child have been stolen, if her story is true? It is, as you say,
+preposterous."
+
+"I do not say that the story is true, Mr. Duvall. I say that I do not
+think that Mary is lying. She is telling what she believes to be the
+truth. She turned her head for a moment--the boy was gone. That is what
+she says, and I believe her. The question is--how is it possible?"
+
+"It isn't," Hodgman grunted.
+
+"Everything is possible, Hodgman," said the banker, reprovingly. "The
+best proof of that, in this case, is that it has happened. What means
+were used, I cannot imagine; but the apparently impossible _has_
+happened. The boy is gone!"
+
+"Is the nurse a young woman?" the detective inquired.
+
+"About thirty, I should say."
+
+"An American?"
+
+"Yes. Of Irish parentage. Her name is Lanahan--Mary Lanahan."
+
+"A New Yorker?"
+
+"She comes from Paterson, New Jersey. Her people live there."
+
+"Are there any other details--any other points of interest?"
+
+"None, so far as I know. What I have told you, is what has been cabled
+to me by Mrs. Stapleton. She is naturally in a more or less hysterical
+condition. Nothing can be accomplished here. I want you to leave by
+today's steamer. I myself, I regret to say, cannot go until Saturday."
+He passed his hand nervously across his forehead. "Only matters of the
+most vital importance could keep me here at such a time, Mr. Duvall;
+but, unfortunately, such matters confront me now."
+
+"Have you any reason to believe, Mr. Stapleton," Duvall inquired, "that
+the kidnapping is the act of persons from this side of the water? Have
+any such attempts been made in the past?"
+
+Mr. Stapleton remained silent for sometime, buried in thought. Presently
+he spoke. "I am a rich man, Mr. Duvall--a very rich man. Men in my
+position are constantly in receipt of letters of a threatening nature. I
+have received many such letters, in the past."
+
+"Was the matter of the child mentioned in any of them? Were threats made
+involving him?"
+
+"There was one such letter."
+
+"When did you receive it?"
+
+"Last fall--perhaps six months ago."
+
+"Have you the letter now?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"May I see it?"
+
+The banker rose, went to a heavy rosewood desk at one side of the room,
+drew open one of its drawers, and removed a steel despatch box. He
+opened it with a slender key and took out a package of letters. From
+these, after some hesitation, he selected one and silently handed it to
+Duvall.
+
+The detective examined the letter carefully. It was enclosed in a cheap
+white envelope, such as are sold at all post offices, having the stamp
+printed on it. The letter itself was roughly printed in ink on a sheet
+of ruled paper evidently torn from an ordinary five-cent pad. It said:
+
+     "We demand fifty thousand dollars, to be placed in thousand-dollar
+     bills inside a cigar box and expressed to John Smith, c/o Express
+     Company, Paterson, N. J., next Monday afternoon. The man who will
+     call for the package on Tuesday will know nothing about the matter,
+     and if you arrest him, you will find out nothing. Keep this to
+     yourself and do as we say, if you value the safety of your child."
+
+There was no signature to the letter. Duvall read it through with great
+care, then turned to Mr. Stapleton.
+
+"You have observed, I suppose, that the place to which the money was to
+be sent, Paterson, New Jersey, is the home of your child's nurse, Mary
+Lanahan."
+
+Mr. Stapleton started. "I confess," he said "that, in the agitated state
+of mind into which this affair has thrown me, I had completely
+overlooked the coincidence. What do you infer from it?"
+
+"Only this, Mr. Stapleton, that Mary Lanahan may know more about this
+matter than she is willing to let on. I must keep this letter for the
+present."
+
+"Very well." The banker nodded. "It may prove a valuable clue."
+
+"Possibly. And further, Mr. Stapleton, I shall not sail by today's
+steamer."
+
+"But--why not?" Stapleton sat up in his chair in surprise. "You will
+lose two days."
+
+"I do not think they will be lost. I must make some investigations in
+Paterson, before I leave here. Please give me, if you can, the address
+of Mary Lanahan's parents."
+
+Mr. Stapleton frowned. "I am not sure that I can do so, Mr. Duvall. My
+wife has charge of these matters. But I recollect having heard that her
+father, Patrick Lanahan, is a florist in a small way, and no doubt you
+can readily locate him. But I fear you will be losing valuable time."
+
+Duvall rose. "I feel, as you do, Mr. Stapleton, that I should be in
+Paris at the earliest possible moment; but I think you will agree with
+me that some investigations on this side before I go are absolutely
+necessary, and may prove of inestimable value afterwards."
+
+Mr. Stapleton was silent for several minutes. Presently he raised his
+head. "Under the circumstances, Mr. Duvall, I am forced to admit the
+truth of what you say. Conduct your investigations as quickly as
+possible, however; for we must positively sail by Saturday's boat."
+
+"I shall be ready then." Duvall took up his hat. "Now I think I had
+better get a few hours' sleep, and in the morning I will make an early
+start for Paterson." He bowed to the banker and Mr. Hodgman. "Good
+night, gentlemen. I shall see you both on Saturday morning. The steamer
+sails shortly after noon, I believe. Suppose I come here at ten o'clock,
+and let you know what I have learned?"
+
+Mr. Stapleton rose. "If I receive any further news of importance from
+Paris, Mr. Duvall, I will advise you at your hotel. Where are you
+stopping?"
+
+Duvall gave the name of a Times Square hotel at which he usually
+stopped, and with a quick "good night" left the house.
+
+It was shortly after nine o'clock the next morning when he descended
+from the train at Paterson, and going to a nearby drug store, consulted
+the directory for the address of Patrick Lanahan. He found it without
+difficulty, and, by means of an electric car, was soon before the
+florist's door.
+
+The place was situated on the outskirts of the town, and consisted of a
+small, rather mean-looking cottage, from which spread out on each side,
+like the two wings of an aeroplane, the long glass greenhouses.
+
+A little gate opened to a short brick path, leading to the front door of
+the house.
+
+Duvall went up the path and rang the door bell. A wholesome-looking
+Irish woman, of perhaps fifty, opened the door, and, in response to his
+questions, told him that her husband, Patrick, was out in the garden at
+the rear of the house, busy with his plants.
+
+She directed the detective along a narrow areaway at the side of the
+house, and in a moment reappeared at the back door.
+
+"Pat," she called. "Oh, Pat! Here's a gentleman to see you."
+
+A short, heavy-set man, with gray hair and mustache and a ruddy and
+weatherbeaten face, arose from among a litter of flower pots and bulbs.
+
+"What can I do for you, sir?" he asked, coming forward and wiping his
+hands upon his overalls.
+
+The detective studied the man before him intently. The honest and
+clear-looking eyes told him nothing that was not favorable.
+
+"I came to ask you a few questions, Mr. Lanahan."
+
+"Questions, is it? About what?" The blue eyes showed a sudden flare of
+suspicion.
+
+"About yourself, and your family."
+
+"Who may you be, then? Is it the tax man?"
+
+Duvall smiled. "Not the tax man," he said. "I represent a firm of
+lawyers in Washington. My name is Johnson."
+
+Lanahan, still suspicious, pointed to a couple of kitchen chairs that
+stood on the brick-paved yard beneath a trellis covered with hop vines.
+"Sit down, sir. I'll have a smoke, if you don't mind." He began to fill
+his short clay pipe. "What would lawyers in Washington be wantin' with
+me?"
+
+"That is what I wish to find out, Mr. Lanahan. We--my firm--have been
+advised that a certain Michael Lanahan, of Dublin, recently died,
+leaving a large estate. We are trying to find his heirs. Tell me
+something about yourself and your family."
+
+The look of suspicion and reserve which the old man had up to this time
+shown faded from his face, and was replaced by a smile of incredulity.
+"Money, is it?" he laughed. "Mary--that's my wife--has been seein'
+bubbles in her tay for the week past. What is it you would know?"
+
+"Are you from Dublin?"
+
+"Me father was. I was born right here in Jersey, meself."
+
+"What was his name?"
+
+"Patrick, the same as me own. But he had a brother, Mike."
+
+"Ah. It may be the same." Duvall pretended a sudden interest. "His
+business?"
+
+"Mike's? Faith--I never heard he had any, lest it was drinkin' all the
+good liquor he could lay his hands on."
+
+Duvall pretended to make a series of entries in his notebook. "Now
+about yourself, Mr. Lanahan. Have you any children? Of course, should
+there be any money coming to you, they would share in it."
+
+"Children, is it? I have two."
+
+"Boys?"
+
+"One is a boy--a man be now, I should say. He's in the city--workin'.
+His name is Barney."
+
+"What does he do?"
+
+Lanahan looked up with a quick frown. "The last I heard tell, he was
+tendin' bar, Mr. Johnson--over at Callahan's saloon, on the Bowery. He's
+wild--wild--like me uncle Mike, I should say."
+
+"And the other?"
+
+The old man's face took on a contented look. "The other is me daughter
+Mary, bless her. She's nurse in the family of old man Stapleton, the
+millionaire."
+
+Duvall closed his book. "I see," he remarked, pleasantly. "She's not
+married, I suppose?"
+
+"Mary? Divil a bit! For a time, she was sweet on a French chuffer that
+worked for Mr. Stapleton; but the fellow's gone, now, and she's clane
+forgot him. That was near a year ago."
+
+"Ah, yes. Do you happen to remember his name?"
+
+"Alphonse, it was--Alphonse Valentin, or some such joke of a name. A
+comic valentine he was, too, with his dinky little mustache and his
+cigarettes." He laughed loudly. "Imagine my Mary, married to a gink like
+that!"
+
+Duvall replaced his notebook in his pocket and rose. "I'm mightily
+obliged to you, Mr. Lanahan. We will advise you at once, if our
+investigations show that you are related to the Michael Lanahan whose
+fortune is in our hands. I'm obliged to you for your courtesy."
+
+The florist nodded. "You're welcome, sir. I guess them Lanahan's must be
+a different breed. I never heard tell of any of my people makin' any
+fortune. Good day, sir." He turned to his work, chuckling.
+
+Duvall rode back to the station, and took the first train for New York.
+It was clear that Mary Lanahan's parents had nothing in common with
+blackmailers and kidnappers. Their honesty was as evident as the
+blueness of their eyes, or the redness of their hair. But the
+information about Alphonse Valentin, the chauffeur, and Barney, Mr.
+Lanahan's son, seemed more promising.
+
+It was close to one o'clock when Duvall arrived at Callahan's saloon, on
+the Bowery, near Canal Street. Here a disappointment awaited him. Barney
+Lanahan had thrown up his job and left two months before. Callahan had
+no idea where he had gone. He had not been about the place since. A
+negro porter volunteered the information that he had seen the man
+entering the Broadway saloon of an ex-prizefighter some weeks before;
+but, beyond that, Duvall could learn nothing.
+
+After a hasty luncheon he went to his office on Union Square, where his
+unexpected appearance caused his assistants unlimited surprise. He
+directed them to locate Barney Lanahan at the earliest possible moment.
+He then called up Mr. Stapleton's secretary, Mr. Hodgman, and inquired
+about the chauffeur.
+
+Mr. Hodgman informed him that the banker had employed Valentin in Paris
+some eighteen months previous, and had brought him to this country,
+where he had remained in his employ for about six months. He had been
+discharged, through some dishonesty in the matter of purchasing
+supplies, and nothing further had been seen or heard of him.
+
+Duvall, on receiving this information, proceeded at once to the office
+of the French line, and asked permission to inspect their passenger
+lists for the past year. He concluded that if Valentin had anything to
+do with the kidnapping of Mr. Stapleton's boy, he was, in all
+probability, in Paris, and, if so, would almost certainly have crossed
+by this line. He was therefore not at all surprised to find the name of
+Alphonse Valentin among those sailing during the preceding March.
+
+There was little more that he could accomplish, now, beyond writing a
+long letter to Grace, whom he naturally supposed to be patiently
+awaiting his return in the country. He had a short interview with Mr.
+Hodgman in the evening, and was lucky enough to secure a photograph of
+Alphonse Valentin, the chauffeur, taken at the steering wheel of his
+machine. The car had, it seemed, been photographed, along with a party
+of guests, by a friend of Mr. Stapleton's with a leaning toward amateur
+photography. Duvall placed the photograph among his belongings with a
+smile of satisfaction. He felt that his delay had been by no means
+unprofitable.
+
+One other step he took, before leaving. Accompanied by Mr. Hodgman, he
+made a careful inspection of the room which had been occupied by the
+nurse, Mary Lanahan, at the Stapleton house. The results were
+distressingly meager. All the woman's belongings she had evidently taken
+with her, on going abroad. There appeared to be nothing which would
+afford the slightest clue to her character or habits.
+
+Mr. Hodgman turned to the door with an impatient frown. "Nothing here,"
+he growled, and was about to leave the room.
+
+"Nothing much," said Duvall, glancing carelessly at the wooden edge of
+the bureau. "This woman, Mary Lanahan, is evidently an up-to-date sort
+of person."
+
+Hodgman paused. "Why do you say that?" he asked.
+
+"Smokes cigarettes, I see."
+
+"That so. How do you know?"
+
+Duvall smiled. "Too simple even to mention, Mr. Hodgman. See those burns
+on the varnish?" He pointed to a number of spots along the edge of the
+dresser. "Always find them somewhere about, where there's a cigarette
+smoker." He gazed out of the window for a moment. "Rooms tell a great
+deal about the personality of the people who have occupied them. For
+instance, I've never seen this Lanahan girl, but I know that she's not
+over five feet four, that she has light hair, that she reads in bed,
+that she writes with a stub pen, and that she's a Roman Catholic.
+Furthermore, she is left handed, inclined to be vain, wears her hair in
+waves, or curls, in front, is fond of the theater, and has a long narrow
+scar on the palm of her left hand."
+
+He chuckled quietly, as he saw Mr. Hodgman's look of amazement. "All
+very simple--quite elementary, in fact. I won't even bother to tell you
+how I know--just little things here and there about the room. Here's one
+of them," he said, as he picked up a rusty pen point from the desk.
+"That shows she uses a stub, of course; but the way the point is worn
+also proves that she's left handed. And here's another." He pointed to
+the electric bulb which hung over the head of the bed. "Nobody would use
+that light, except to read by in bed. The others in the room are more
+than sufficient for purposes of illumination. Yet the lamp has been used
+continuously, as its condition shows. See how blackened the glass
+is--and notice also how the white enamel of the back of the bed is worn
+off, just under the lamp. That's from propping a pillow against it,
+night after night." He turned toward the door. "Of course, those things
+aren't of any value, probably, in this case; but I can't help noticing
+them. Force of habit, I suppose."
+
+When Duvall arrived at the Stapleton house on Saturday morning, he found
+the banker somewhat disturbed by a cablegram he had just received. "Mary
+claims attempts made to poison her. Will recover. Come at once," it
+read.
+
+The detective appeared to be somewhat astonished, on reading the
+cablegram. "Looks as though somebody was afraid she might be going to
+talk," he remarked. "The sooner we arrive in Paris, now, the better."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+
+Grace Duvall's first inclination, on finding herself en route for
+Europe, without her husband, was to send him a wireless, advising him of
+her movements. Then she decided, for several reasons, not to do so.
+Chief among these was the fear that such a startling piece of news would
+be likely to cause him a great deal of unnecessary anxiety. She knew
+that she could never hope to explain matters, within the limits of a
+marconigram. And then, too, it was highly inadvisable, she knew, to
+mention in a wireless message the real reason which had caused her to
+leave home.
+
+So she decided to make the best of the matter, realizing that within a
+few days, she would see Richard in Paris, and explain everything to his
+satisfaction.
+
+Immediately on reaching Paris, she drove to the office of the Prefect of
+Police, and sent in her card to Monsieur Lefevre. She thought it
+possible that he would expect her, as his agent in Washington would no
+doubt have communicated with him. Nor was she mistaken.
+
+He rushed into the anteroom as soon as he received her card, and
+embraced her with true Gallic fervor, kissing her on both cheeks until
+she blushed. Then he drew her into his private office.
+
+"Where is your husband?" he asked, eagerly, as soon as Grace was seated.
+
+"I--I do not know. Probably on his way to Paris."
+
+"But--my dear child! Did he not then come with you?"
+
+"No. He--he had other business."
+
+"Other business! But I understood that he had temporarily retired." The
+Prefect seemed greatly astonished.
+
+"So he had; but an old friend, Mr. Stapleton"--
+
+Lefevre did not allow her to finish. "Stapleton!" he fairly shouted. "He
+is employed by him? Mon Dieu!"
+
+"Why not?" asked Grace in surprise.
+
+"But--it was for that very case that I desired his assistance. And by
+this Stapleton, who cables that the whole police force of Paris are a
+lot of jumping jacks! Sacre! It is insufferable!"
+
+"You wanted my husband for the same case?"
+
+"Assuredly! What else? The child of this pig of a millionaire is
+stolen--what you call--kidnapped! We have been unable to find the
+slightest clue. I am in despair. My men assure me that it is the work of
+an American gang. I conceive the hope that Monsieur Duvall may know
+these men--that he may be in possession of information that will lead to
+their capture. This rich American, he has spoken with contempt of the
+Paris police. The efficiency of my office is questioned. My honor is at
+stake. I send for my friend Duvall, to assist me, and--sacre!--I find
+him already working for this man who has insulted me. It is monstrous!"
+
+Grace could scarcely repress a smile. How excessively French the Prefect
+was, after all. "My husband did not know, when he agreed to take the
+case for Mr. Stapleton, that you wanted him. He does not know it now. He
+has not yet received your message."
+
+"Then he does not know that you are in Paris?"
+
+"No. I thought he would be crossing on the same boat. When I found that
+he wasn't, my first thought was to send him a wireless. Then I realized
+that I couldn't do so, without saying something about the business that
+had called me to Paris--without, in fact, mentioning you. I feared to do
+this--for there are so many people nowadays tapping the wireless. I
+thought it better to keep the matter a secret."
+
+"And you did quite right. I wanted your husband to take up this case,
+quite independently, and without it being known to anyone that he was in
+my employ." He paused for a moment in deep thought. "No doubt his
+employment by Mr. Stapleton is to be kept equally secret."
+
+"I suppose so. He asked me not to say anything about it. I had to tell
+you, to explain matters."
+
+"And he doesn't know that you are in Paris?" The Prefect gave a sudden
+laugh. "_Ma foi!_--what a joke!"
+
+"A joke?"
+
+"Assuredly! Don't you see? I am going to ask _you_ to take up this case,
+yourself. I must use every means to recover the child of this Stapleton,
+before others do so for him. My professional pride will not permit me to
+be beaten. If I can't have your husband, at least I shall have you."
+
+"But--I shall be working in opposition to him."
+
+"Not in opposition. You will both have the same object in view--the
+recovery of Mr. Stapleton's boy. Whichever of you does so first, the
+result will be the same--the boy will be restored to his parents. But I
+want you, my child, to be the one to do this."
+
+"But, Monsieur Lefevre, I could not hope to accomplish anything--where
+trained men have failed."
+
+"Who knows? I remember well the assistance you gave us, in the matter of
+the ivory snuff box. Without your help, we should never have recovered
+it. I have faith in a woman's intuition. You will find this child for
+me, and give your husband the surprise of his life."
+
+"But," said Grace, smiling mischievously at the prospect which opened
+before her, "suppose he should see me?"
+
+"You must disguise yourself somewhat. Change the color of your hair; it
+is easily done--here in Paris." The Prefect laughed. "A slight
+alteration in appearance only will be necessary. And do not recognize
+your husband, should you meet him face to face. That is most important."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because, should he become convinced that it is really you, I fear he
+would insist upon your dropping the case entirely, and that would not
+suit my plans at all. Come, my child." The Prefect's eyes twinkled with
+amusement. "Do this thing for me. It will be a little joke, between us.
+The honeymoon detectives, I called you, once. What an amusing thing,
+that now you should be working in competition with each other, on the
+same case!" He began to laugh heartily.
+
+"Well," said Grace, her sense of mischief getting the better of her,
+"now that I'm here, I suppose I might as well keep busy. Richard won't
+be here for two days, and I may find out something in that time."
+
+"Excellent!" The Prefect clapped his hand smartly upon his knee. "You
+have two days' start. In two days, much may be accomplished. Come, let
+us go over the case in detail."
+
+An hour later, Grace left the Prefect's office in a taxicab, having
+arranged to have her baggage sent to Monsieur Lefevre's house, where she
+was to stay while in Paris. Her previous acquaintance with Madame
+Lefevre made this an ideal arrangement. She was to pose as a friend, in
+Paris on a visit.
+
+She ordered the driver of the taxicab to take her to Mr. Stapleton's
+house in the Avenue Kleber.
+
+She found Mrs. Stapleton to be a very pretty and stylish woman of
+thirty; whose beauty, however, was sadly marred by the intense suffering
+through which she was passing. The poor creature had scarcely slept for
+over a week, and her distress was pitiable.
+
+She answered Grace's questions as well as she could, under the
+circumstances. There was, after all, little to say. The nurse, it
+appeared, stuck to her story--that the boy had vanished, in the
+twinkling of an eye, while her back had been turned for but a few
+moments. Mrs. Stapleton could offer no explanation--attempted none.
+
+"It is all so mysterious--so terrible!" she cried. "Poor Mary--she is
+too ill to see you, I fear, or I would have her tell you the story
+herself."
+
+"Too ill?" inquired Grace, who had come more to question the maid, than
+Mrs. Stapleton. "What is the matter with her?"
+
+"They tried to poison her--last Friday."
+
+"They? Who?"
+
+"I do not know. She went out for a walk. The poor woman was half dead,
+from nervous exhaustion and loss of sleep. She tells me that she stopped
+to get a cup of chocolate at a cafe in the Rue St. Honore. After that
+she came back to the Champs Elysees, and sat upon a bench. She began
+suddenly to feel deathly ill, and, calling a cab, was driven home. When
+she arrived here, she was unconscious, and had to be carried to her room
+by the servants. She has been in bed ever since. I am glad to say,
+however, that she is better, and I think she could see you, by morning."
+
+Grace left the Stapleton house, feeling somewhat baffled. The more she
+heard of this curious affair, the more inexplicable it seemed. She had
+hoped to visit the scene of the kidnapping, in company with the nurse,
+and examine the spot with her own eyes. This she now realized she could
+not do until the following day. She was walking in the direction of the
+Arc de Triomphe, revolving the affair in her mind, when a young man,
+evidently a Frenchman, of good appearance and not unpleasant face, came
+up beside her, bowed politely, and in excellent English asked her
+regarding Mary Lanahan.
+
+"Miss Lanahan--is she better?" he inquired.
+
+"Who are you, monsieur?" asked Grace, suppressing her inclination to
+resent the man's action, in her hope that she might learn something from
+him of value. His question showed Grace at once that he was acquainted
+with at least one member of the Stapleton household.
+
+"I am a friend of Miss Lanahan's," the man replied. "I hear that she is
+ill. I saw you enter and leave the house, and I ventured to ask you if
+she is better."
+
+"I was told that she is. I did not see her."
+
+A peculiar expression crossed the young man's face; but Grace could not
+determine, so fleeting was it, whether it indicated pleasure or
+disappointment.
+
+They walked along in silence for a few moments, and had almost reached
+the arch, when a ragged little urchin, a veritable Paris gamin, came up
+to Grace's companion and thrust a crumpled bit of paper into his hand,
+then darted off, whistling shrilly.
+
+The man looked after him a moment, then examined the note. Whatever its
+contents, they made a startling impression upon him. He looked about, an
+expression of fear upon his face, turned to Grace with a hurried bow,
+and a quick good evening, and at once walked off in the opposite
+direction at full speed, at the same time fumbling in the breast pocket
+of his coat, as though searching for something in it. In his efforts, he
+dropped several papers to the street. Grace watched him as he picked
+them hurriedly up and moved off into the gathering darkness.
+
+She fancied that one of the bits of paper had escaped his notice, and,
+on going back to the spot, found that she was correct. A small visiting
+card lay upon the sidewalk. She picked it up, and read the name as she
+walked away. It was Alphonse Valentin, Boulevard St. Michel.
+
+Grace slipped the card into her pocketbook. The man's name meant nothing
+to her--she fancied that he was some friend of Miss Lanahan's, concerned
+about her condition. Yet why did he not inquire for her at the house, in
+the ordinary way? And why should the note, handed to him by the street
+urchin, have caused him such evident alarm?
+
+She glanced at her watch, and saw that it was close to seven o'clock.
+She had intended to return to Monsieur Lefevre's for dinner; but a
+sudden determination to find out more about this man Valentin caused her
+to proceed at once to a hotel near the Louvre, where she ate her dinner
+alone.
+
+An hour later she descended from a cab at the number on the Boulevard
+St. Michel, which was inscribed upon Alphonse Valentin's card.
+
+The place was a dingy old building, the main floor of which was occupied
+by a dealer in cheese. A narrow doorway at one side gave access to the
+upper floors. Grace rang the bell, and waited in some trepidation. This
+going about Paris at night was rather an unusual experience. She thought
+of the simple joys of her life at home, and for a moment regretted that
+she had not stayed there. The opening of the door interrupted her
+thoughts.
+
+The woman who stood in the hallway regarded her without particular
+interest, and inquired her business. "I wish to see Monsieur Valentin,"
+said Grace.
+
+"He is not in."
+
+"Then I will wait. I must see him. He expects me."
+
+The woman shrugged her shoulders. "As you wish, mademoiselle. Come this
+way." She led Grace up a flight of stairs, and indicated a door at the
+rear of the upper hall. "That is Monsieur Valentin's room." Then she
+turned away, apparently quite indifferent as to whether Grace entered or
+not.
+
+The latter placed her hand on the knob of the door, and slowly pushed it
+open. The room was dark; but the light from the rear windows rendered
+the objects within it faintly visible. Upon the table stood a lamp. With
+some difficulty the girl succeeded in finding a match, and lit it.
+
+The light of the lamp disclosed a rather large room, with a small
+alcove in the rear, containing a bed. The alcove was curtained off from
+the main room. Grace, however, did not spend much time in examining her
+surroundings. A photograph on the table at once attracted her
+attention--not because it represented anyone she knew, but because,
+across the bottom of it, was inscribed, in a feminine hand, "Mary
+Lanahan."
+
+She had just completed her examination of the photograph, when two other
+objects attracted her attention. One was a crumpled bit of paper, upon
+which a few words were scrawled in lead-pencil. They were, "I am
+suspicious of Francois. Watch him." The note was unsigned.
+
+The third object upon the table which caught Grace's attention was a box
+of cigarettes, open, and nearly full. They were small gold-tipped
+affairs, of the kind generally used by women, and it was this
+peculiarity that at first attracted her attention. She thought it
+strange, that a man should use such cigarettes. She looked at the box,
+and observed that they were of American make.
+
+Illustration: Once inside he made without hesitation for the table,
+picked up the box of cigarettes and thrust it into his pocket.
+
+Idly she took up one of the cigarettes, and held it in her fingers. She
+read the name of the brand, printed upon the paper wrapper, and was
+about to drop it back into the box, when she heard a curious rasping
+noise outside one of the rear windows. It sounded as though someone were
+climbing the wall of the house. Instinctively she shrank back and
+concealed herself behind one of the curtains which hung before the
+alcove door.
+
+The rasping and scraping continued for some little time, and presently
+Grace, peering through the space between the curtains, saw a face appear
+at one of the windows. It was a determined face, heavily bearded, dark,
+evil looking. Its gleaming eyes swept the room with cautious care, then,
+evidently satisfied that it was unoccupied, their owner began
+noiselessly to raise the sash of the window.
+
+It was slow work. Several minutes passed before the man succeeded in
+raising the sash sufficiently to permit him to crawl into the room. Once
+inside, he made without hesitation for the table, glanced over its
+contents, picked up the box of cigarettes and thrust it into his pocket,
+and then, without paying the least attention to anything else, walked
+quickly to the door of the room and passed out into the hall.
+
+The girl waited for a moment, then stepped into the light. As she did
+so, she realized that she held in her hand one of the gold-tipped
+cigarettes she had taken from the box. She quickly thrust it into her
+pocketbook, and, with sudden decision, left the room and descended the
+stairs. She had an instinctive feeling that the man who had stolen the
+cigarettes was in some way connected with the kidnapping of the
+Stapleton child. She determined to follow him, leaving the interview
+with Alphonse Valentin to another time.
+
+She left the house, and saw the man going down the Boulevard some fifty
+feet in advance of her. She walked along after him, pretending to be
+totally uninterested in her surroundings, while at the same time keeping
+a sharp watch upon him.
+
+He seemed in somewhat of a hurry, and walked briskly along, looking
+neither to left nor to right. Grace kept as close to him as she dared,
+without running the risk of detection. The walk was a long one. When
+half an hour had passed, the girl saw that they were entering the Champs
+Elysees. The Seine they had long since crossed by the Pont Neuf. Up the
+brilliantly lighted avenue they went, toward Arc de Triomphe. At the
+corner of the Avenue Kleber, the man turned to the left. Grace followed,
+wondering where the chase would lead next. To her astonishment, the man
+disappeared suddenly through a gate which formed the servants' entrance
+of one of the stately houses which fronted on the avenue. She looked up.
+It was the house of Mr. Stapleton!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+
+On the day following that upon which she arrived in Paris, Grace Duvall
+sallied forth, determined to find out two things--first, the position
+occupied by Alphonse Valentin in the affair of the kidnapping; secondly,
+the identity of the man who had stolen the box of cigarettes from
+Valentin's room, and gone with them to the house in the Avenue Kleber.
+The latter incident seemed trivial enough, at first sight; yet she
+reasoned that no one would risk arrest on the score of burglary, to
+steal anything of such trifling value, without an excellent reason.
+
+She had a short conference with Monsieur Lefevre, before she left the
+house, and told him of the events of the previous night. The Prefect
+seemed greatly interested.
+
+"Could you identify the man who stole the cigarettes?" he asked.
+
+"Easily. I had a splendid view of his face."
+
+"Then go to Mr. Stapleton's house and take a look at all the servants.
+You may find him among them."
+
+"I had intended to do so, this morning."
+
+The Prefect smiled. "I do not know what your investigations will lead
+to, but they seem promising. I have a dozen men working on the case; yet
+so far they have not made the least progress. Their efforts, however,
+are directed toward finding the child. They are searching the city with
+the utmost care. We believe that by discovering the missing boy, we
+shall also find the persons who committed the crime."
+
+"Have you no one under suspicion?"
+
+"No one. The nurse, Mary Lanahan, is of course being closely watched;
+also the chauffeur, Francois. My men report, however, that he gave them
+the slip for an hour, last night. I have an idea that he may prove to be
+the one who took the cigarettes."
+
+"Can you imagine any reason for his having done so?"
+
+"I confess, my child, that I cannot. It seems utterly absurd; unless,
+indeed, there was something else concealed in the box."
+
+"What?"
+
+The Prefect laughed. "I cannot imagine. But if you can identify the
+man, we shall no doubt find out. As for the matter of Alphonse Valentin,
+we have already had him under observation. So far as we can learn, he is
+merely a chauffeur, out of work, who seems to be somewhat in love with
+the nurse."
+
+"Then his actions have not been suspicious, during the past week?"
+
+"Not in the least. He has hung around the Stapleton house for several
+days, asking for news of the Lanahan woman; but that is all. We
+attribute his actions to a natural anxiety over her illness."
+
+Grace left the house, by no means satisfied with the progress she was
+making. Her interview with Mary Lanahan, and subsequent visit to the
+scene of the crime, told her nothing she had not already known. Her
+greatest disappointment, however, came when she had Mrs. Stapleton bring
+in Francois, ostensibly to question him about his part in the affair.
+She saw at once that he was not the man who had broken into Alphonse
+Valentin's room on the night before. This man had been heavily bearded
+and tall. Francois was smooth shaved and rather short. Mrs. Stapleton
+assured her that none of her servants resembled in the least her
+description of the burglar. She left the house, greatly dissatisfied,
+after satisfying herself that this was the case.
+
+Her visit to the house of Alphonse Valentin that afternoon was
+productive of no greater results. The man was out. The woman who opened
+the door--the same one who had admitted her the previous
+evening--regarded her with ill-concealed suspicion, and informed her
+that she had no idea when her lodger would return. Grace left,
+determined to try again the following day.
+
+Throughout the whole evening she hung about the Stapleton house, hoping
+again to see the man with the heavy beard who had disappeared within the
+night before; but he did not put in an appearance. Grace began to feel
+discouraged. She thought of her lilac bushes, at home, of Aunt Lucy
+feeding the chickens, of the dogs, the sweet call of the wood robins
+among the poplar trees on the lawn, and half wished that she had stayed
+at home and left to Richard the apparently hopeless task of finding the
+abductors of little Jack Stapleton.
+
+What, after all, could she hope to do, where the entire police force of
+Paris had failed? The thing was absurd. Monsieur Lefevre had overrated
+her abilities. She heard the sound of church bells, striking the hour of
+ten, and decided to go home and forget the whole affair until tomorrow.
+Tomorrow--the day Richard must arrive! How she longed to be with him!
+This stupid interruption of their honeymoon seemed peculiarly cruel, now
+that over a week had elapsed since they had seen each other. She
+wondered if she would meet him, the next day. Then she thought of her
+changed appearance, of her hair, dyed a jet black, and worn in a new and
+to her mind unbecoming fashion, of her darkened complexion, her
+extremely French costume, her heavy veil, and laughed. If Richard did
+see her, here in Paris, when he fully believed her to be peacefully
+tending her flower beds at home, he would never believe the evidence of
+his senses.
+
+She was strolling toward the Champs Elysees, lost in thought, when
+suddenly she heard the soft throbbing of a high-powered motor car, as it
+came up the street behind her. She turned and glanced toward it; but the
+brilliant glare of the electric headlights blinded her. She could see
+nothing, except that the car was moving very slowly.
+
+Suddenly it stopped, almost abreast of her, and a tall man leaped to the
+sidewalk. Before she had an opportunity so much as to glance in his
+direction, he came swiftly up behind her, threw his arm about her neck,
+and choked her into unconsciousness. Her last sensation was of being
+lifted bodily into the already moving car, and then the feeling of rapid
+motion, quickly blotted out by the coming of insensibility.
+
+When she returned to consciousness, it was broad daylight. She lay upon
+a small wooden bed, in a low-ceilinged little room, the only furniture
+of which was a small chest of drawers and a chair. Upon this chair sat a
+large man, his face so thoroughly hidden by a mask that his features
+were quite unrecognizable. He was regarding her with keen scrutiny.
+
+"Oh--what--where am I?" she gasped.
+
+The man hesitated for a moment, then slowly spoke. "Where you are,
+mademoiselle, is of no importance. Attend to what I have to say."
+
+Grace made no reply. There seemed nothing that she could say. She sat up
+and gazed at the man, half dazed. Her head swam. She felt that she had
+been drugged.
+
+"Ten days ago," the man went on, in a cold and menacing voice, "the
+child of Monsieur Stapleton was taken from his nurse in the Bois de
+Boulogne. You are trying to find that child."
+
+"But--" Grace made a movement of protest.
+
+"It is useless to deny it. You have been watched."
+
+Grace gasped in silence.
+
+"I desire to send a message to the boy's father, and I have chosen you
+to take it to him. I have selected you, because to send one of my own
+men would doubtless result in his arrest. That is why you have been
+brought here."
+
+"The--the child is safe?" asked Grace.
+
+"Perfectly. You shall see for yourself." He motioned to the window.
+
+Grace rose, and looked out. The view comprised a bit of garden,
+surrounded by bushes. She could see nothing beyond--nothing that would
+enable her in any way to identify the place. On the tiny plat of grass
+in the garden sat a child--a little girl, playing with a small black and
+white spaniel. Her dark hair was drawn tightly beneath a pink sunbonnet.
+Her dress, her whole appearance, was that of a peasant child.
+
+Grace turned from the window, bewildered. "I see nothing," she said,
+"except a little girl--"
+
+"That is the child of Monsieur Stapleton," the man said. "Now attend to
+the message."
+
+She sat down again, wondering.
+
+"Tell the boy's father this: He will leave his house tomorrow evening,
+in his automobile, at eight o'clock. He will bring with him, in a
+package, the sum of five hundred thousand francs--one hundred thousand
+dollars. He will have with him, in the automobile, no one but himself
+and his chauffeur. He will leave Paris by the Porte de Versailles, and
+drive along the road to Versailles at a speed of twelve miles an hour.
+Somewhere upon that road, among the many automobiles that will pass him,
+will be one, from which a blue light will flash, as it approaches him.
+It will also slow up. He will toss the package of bank notes into that
+car, and drive on. If the package contains the sum of five hundred
+thousand francs, he will find his child at his house, upon his return.
+If not, or if these instructions are not carried out to the letter--if
+there is any attempt made at pursuit--the child will not be there, and
+you can tell him that he will be given but one more chance. After that,
+the boy will die."
+
+The man in the mask made this gruesome statement with the utmost
+coolness.
+
+Grace listened, aghast at the cruelty of his words, and at the same time
+struck by the extreme ingenuity of the plan. To catch the perpetrators
+of the crime, under these circumstances, seemed impossible. A rapidly
+moving automobile--one of a hundred. An instant's flash of a blue light
+in passing--the tossing into the car of the money--and it would speed
+away into the darkness, beyond any hope of detection. Should Mr.
+Stapleton have others in his car--should he have his car followed by a
+second, containing armed men, the occupants of the kidnapper's machine
+would no doubt refuse to give the signal, and nothing would be
+accomplished. It would be impracticable to line the road, for a possible
+distance of twenty miles, with gendarmes, nor could their presence
+accomplish anything, beyond putting the kidnappers on guard, and
+preventing the carrying out of the plan.
+
+The weakest point in the whole scheme seemed, to Grace at least, the
+delivery of the child to Mr. Stapleton, provided he paid the money
+demanded. Just how that was to be accomplished, without subjecting the
+person who brought the boy to arrest, she did not see. A moment's
+reflection, however, showed her that a stranger might be employed, at
+any point, who for a few francs would agree to take the child to the
+house. She turned to the man before her with feelings not devoid of
+admiration.
+
+"How can Mr. Stapleton know that you will do as you say?"
+
+The man shrugged his shoulders. "That is a chance he must take. If he
+does not believe that the child will be delivered to him, provided he
+pays the money, he had better not pay it. But if he does his part, I
+shall do mine--and this I swear by the memory of my mother!"
+
+Grace shuddered. A wretch of this sort, talking about the memory of his
+mother! "Very well," she said quietly, "I will take your message."
+
+"Good! You will not leave here, of course, until it is dark--tonight.
+You will be blindfolded, and conducted to some point in the city. From
+there, you can make your way to Monsieur Stapleton's house." He rose,
+and went toward the door. "Make no attempt to escape. It will be
+useless. Any attempts on the part of the police to interfere with the
+plan I have outlined will result in nothing. Food will be sent in to you
+at once. Good morning."
+
+It was close to ten o'clock that night, as nearly as Grace could judge,
+when she was led a considerable distance blindfolded, to a closed
+automobile, and driven away. She could form no idea of her whereabouts.
+The car continued on its way, for over an hour. Once she attempted to
+snatch the bandage from her eyes; but a hand was placed upon her arm by
+another occupant of the machine, and a low voice warned her to desist.
+
+After an interminable ride, the car suddenly stopped, and she felt the
+man at her side slip away from her and open the door. Instantly she
+snatched the bandage from her eyes. The man had disappeared. She stepped
+to the sidewalk, and looked about. She was standing upon a brightly
+lighted street, which seemed somehow familiar to her. The man on the box
+of the cab glanced down at her with a look of curious interest. She saw
+his face clearly, in the light of the street. It was the heavily bearded
+man whom she had seen take the box of cigarettes from the room of
+Alphonse Valentin two nights before.
+
+Grace stood with the bandage which had encircled her eyes, still in one
+hand. Suddenly she saw a dark figure uncoil itself from the rear of the
+car, and drop noiselessly to the pavement as the machine started off.
+She gave a low cry of surprise. The man came up to her, a grim smile
+upon his face. It was Alphonse Valentin.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+
+John Stapleton, the millionaire banker, accompanied by Richard Duvall,
+arrived in Paris early in the afternoon, and went at once to the
+former's house in the Avenue Kleber.
+
+Upon their arrival, Duvall waited for sometime, while the distressed
+husband and wife were closeted together upstairs. At last they descended
+to the library, and Duvall was presented to Mrs. Stapleton.
+
+The joy which her husband's arrival had caused her sent a new glow of
+hope to her careworn cheeks, and she greeted the detective most
+cordially. Clearly she felt that now something would at last be done, to
+find her missing child.
+
+Duvall's first questions related to Mary Lanahan, the nurse. He was
+relieved to find that she had quite recovered from her sudden illness.
+
+"Will you kindly have her brought here, Mrs. Stapleton?" he asked. "I
+would like to question her."
+
+In a few moments the nurse appeared. She was an extremely good-looking
+girl, smart and well dressed. Duvall recognized in her frank face, her
+clear blue eyes, the same appearance of honesty which had impressed him
+during his interview with Patrick Lanahan, her father.
+
+"Mary," said Mrs. Stapleton, "this is Mr. Duvall. He is trying to find
+Jack for us. Tell him your story."
+
+The girl turned to Duvall, who had risen. "I can hardly expect you to
+believe what I am going to say, Mr. Duvall, yet I assure you that it is
+the solemn truth."
+
+"Go ahead, Miss Lanahan," said the detective. "I am prepared to believe
+whatever you may say."
+
+The girl sat down, at Mrs. Stapleton's request. She still was somewhat
+weak, from her recent illness.
+
+"It was a week ago last Wednesday. I left the house with Master Jack at
+half-past ten, and we drove to the Bois."
+
+"Just a moment, please." Duvall stopped her with a quick gesture. "How
+long had you been going to the Bois in this way?"
+
+"Over six weeks."
+
+"And you always left about the same time--half-past ten?"
+
+"Always."
+
+"Who accompanied you besides the child?"
+
+"Francois--the chauffeur."
+
+"Always?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+Duvall turned to Mrs. Stapleton. "How long has this man Francois been in
+your employ?"
+
+"A year--in June."
+
+"You have found him honest, reliable?"
+
+"Always. Otherwise I should not have kept him."
+
+The detective turned to Mary Lanahan. "Go ahead, please," he said.
+
+"We reached the Bois shortly before eleven--Francois had orders to go
+slowly, when Master Jack was in the machine--and drove about for fifteen
+minutes. Then we stopped at the place where we were in the habit of
+playing."
+
+"Was it always the same place?"
+
+"Yes. There is a smooth field of grass there, and a clump of trees by
+the road, where the machine always waited."
+
+"Go on."
+
+"We left the car, and walked out over the grass. Master Jack had a big
+rubber ball, and he was kicking it along, and running after it.
+Sometimes he would kick it to me, and I would throw it back to him. We
+played about in that way for over half an hour. Mrs. Stapleton wished
+the boy to have the exercise."
+
+"I see. And you generally played about in the same place?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"How far from the road?"
+
+"About three hundred feet."
+
+"And from the nearest bushes, or woods?"
+
+"A little more than that, I should say."
+
+"You could see Francois, in the machine, from where you were?"
+
+"Yes, I could see the machine. I could not always see Francois; for
+sometimes he would get out, and walk about, or sit under the trees and
+smoke a cigarette."
+
+"Do you remember noticing him, on this particular morning?"
+
+"Yes. I saw him sitting in the machine."
+
+"What was he doing?"
+
+"Reading a newspaper."
+
+"Had he ever done that before?"
+
+The girl hesitated, as though a new idea had come to her. "No--I cannot
+remember that he ever had."
+
+"Very well. Go ahead with your story."
+
+"Well--after we had played for about half an hour--I got tired and sat
+down on the grass. Master Jack still kept playing about with the ball. I
+sat idly, looking at the sky, the road--dreaming--"
+
+"About what?" interrupted the detective, suddenly.
+
+The girl colored. "About--about some people I know."
+
+"Go ahead."
+
+"I heard the boy playing, behind me. Then I looked around--and--he was
+gone!" The nurse made this statement in a voice so full of awe that it
+carried conviction to her hearers. Duvall felt that, whatever the real
+facts of the disappearance of the child, this woman's story was true.
+
+"What did you do then?"
+
+"I stood up and looked about. I thought Master Jack was hiding from
+me--playing a joke on me. Then I realized that there was no place that
+he could hide. The nearest trees were too far off. He could not have
+reached them. I called and called. I was very much frightened."
+
+"Francois, who heard me, came running over the grass. I asked him if he
+had seen Master Jack. He said, no, that he had not seen anyone. After
+that we searched everywhere--in the woods, along the road--for nearly an
+hour, but could find nothing. Then we came home, and told Mrs.
+Stapleton." The girl looked at her employers in fright.
+
+"What about the rubber ball?" Duvall asked, suddenly.
+
+"It--it was gone."
+
+"Then it is clear that the child must have been taken away peaceably,
+without objection on his part. Had he struggled, cried, he would have
+dropped the ball, would he not?"
+
+"I suppose so."
+
+"How long was your head turned from him--while you were--dreaming?"
+
+"About a minute."
+
+"Not more?"
+
+"No."
+
+"How do you estimate the time so closely?"
+
+"I'm sure it could not have been longer. A minute is quite a long
+time."
+
+"What time was it when you got back to the house?"
+
+"About--about one o'clock, I think." The girl turned to Mrs. Stapleton
+for confirmation of her answer.
+
+"It was a quarter-past one," said Mrs. Stapleton, promptly. "I noted the
+time particularly, because it was later than usual. Mary had orders to
+bring Jack back for luncheon not later than one."
+
+Duvall began to make some figures on a piece of paper. "You fix the time
+of the boy's disappearance at 11.30. You say you hunted for him an hour.
+That would be 12.30." He looked at the girl searchingly. "You arrived
+home at 1.15. That would mean that it took 45 minutes to get here." He
+turned to Stapleton. "Please send for your chauffeur, Francois."
+
+Mr. Stapleton rang a bell, and ordered the servant who responded to send
+in the chauffeur. Meanwhile Mary Lanahan was regarding Duvall with
+nervous apprehension.
+
+"We must have hunted for him longer than I thought," she said, at
+length.
+
+Duvall made no reply, but waited until the arrival of the chauffeur. He
+proved to be a short, heavily built man, with long powerful arms, and a
+swarthy face--evidently from the south of France. His countenance was
+stolid and emotionless. He appeared the well trained servant.
+
+Duvall addressed him at once. "How long would it take you, my man,
+driving fast, to reach this house from the spot in the Bois where Master
+Jack was lost?"
+
+The man responded at once. "Ten minutes," he said, "easily."
+
+"What time was it when this woman," the detective indicated the nurse,
+"called to you, on discovering that the child was gone?"
+
+"I do not know."
+
+"Have you no idea?"
+
+"It must have been about twelve o'clock. We hunted for the boy till
+about one--then came home."
+
+"The nurse says it was half-past eleven."
+
+The man shrugged his shoulders. "It may have been. I did not observe the
+time."
+
+"What were you doing?"
+
+"I was asleep."
+
+Mr. Stapleton started. "Asleep?" he demanded, angrily.
+
+The man nodded. "The day was warm. I had nothing to do. For a time I
+read the paper. I must have dozed in my seat; for, the next thing I
+knew, the nurse was calling to me, and the boy was gone."
+
+Duvall frowned. "Then you could not say whether anyone else was near the
+nurse and the boy, at the time he was kidnapped?"
+
+"No, monsieur. I could not."
+
+"That will do." The detective turned to Mr. Stapleton. "Have your man
+drive us to the place where all this occurred."
+
+The banker gave the man the order, and he left the room. Then Duvall
+turned again to Mary Lanahan.
+
+"You were taken suddenly ill one day last week. Tell us about it."
+
+The woman looked up. "It was very mysterious, sir. I went out for a
+walk. At a cafe in the Rue St. Honore I had a cup of chocolate."
+
+"Alone?" asked the detective, sharply.
+
+The woman colored. "No," she faltered. "I--I was with a friend."
+
+"Who?"
+
+"A--a gentleman I know." She glanced fearfully at Mr. Stapleton. "I--I
+would rather not give his name."
+
+"Was it Alphonse Valentin?" asked Duvall, quickly.
+
+The woman colored still more deeply. "Yes," she replied, in scarcely
+audible tones.
+
+The banker regarded her in surprise. "Alphonse Valentin!" he cried. "The
+fellow I discharged last year, for dishonesty? Mr. Duvall--he's your
+man!"
+
+"No--no!" exclaimed the nurse, excitedly. "He knows nothing of the
+matter--nothing!"
+
+"That remains to be seen," remarked Duvall, slowly. "Where did you meet
+this fellow, Valentin?"
+
+"At the cafe in the Rue St. Honore."
+
+"You had met him there frequently before?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"After you left the cafe, what did you do?"
+
+"We walked to the Champs Elysees and sat on a bench, talking. Suddenly I
+felt very ill. Mr. Valentin called a cab and sent me home."
+
+"Give me the address of this cafe, please."
+
+The woman did so. As Duvall was entering it in his notebook, a servant
+announced that the automobile was at the door.
+
+In fifteen minutes the party, consisting of Mr. Stapleton, Duvall, and
+Mary Lanahan, were leaving the car at the spot in the Bois de Boulogne
+which had been the scene of the kidnapping. Francois was ordered to
+drive his machine to the exact spot, as nearly as he could tell, that it
+had occupied on the previous occasion. Mary Lanahan led the others to
+the place on the grass where she had sat.
+
+It was evident at once that the distances she had named in telling her
+story were less, if anything, than the actual facts. It was quite
+impossible to see how, in any way, the child could have been taken from
+the spot she indicated, to the woods, without consuming a considerable
+period of time--five minutes, at least. To believe that the nurse could
+have turned away her head for a moment, and then looked around to find
+the boy gone seemed the sheerest fabric of the imagination; yet the
+woman, in repeating her story, stuck to it with a grim pertinacity
+which, it seemed, could come only from the knowledge that she was
+telling the truth.
+
+Ten days had elapsed since the boy had been kidnapped. It seemed almost
+useless to search the spot for any evidences of the crime. Yet Duvall
+began to go over the ground where the nurse testified that she had sat,
+with the most minute care. Inch by inch, he examined the turf,
+subjecting almost every blade of grass to a separate examination. The
+operation required over half an hour, and both Mr. Stapleton and the
+nurse grew tired of watching him, and strolled about aimlessly.
+
+Hence they did not see him pick up a tiny object from the grass. It was
+a half-smoked cigarette, dirty and almost falling to pieces from the
+action of the weather, yet held together by a slender tip of gold.
+
+He placed it carefully within his pocketbook, and rose. "Nothing more to
+be done here," he called to Mr. Stapleton, and in a moment the three
+were proceeding toward the waiting automobile.
+
+Upon the return to the house, Mr. Stapleton drew the detective into his
+library. "Have you discovered anything, Mr. Duvall?" he inquired, making
+an effort to conceal his almost frantic anxiety.
+
+"I do not know--yet. I may have a clue; but I am not sure."
+
+"What do you think of the woman's story?"
+
+"It seems impossible to believe it."
+
+"You think, then, that she had a hand in the matter--she and this fellow
+Valentin?"
+
+"It begins to look like it."
+
+"On what do you base your conclusions, Mr. Duvall? I cannot bring myself
+to believe that Mary Lanahan is lying, ready as I am to suspect this
+fellow Valentin."
+
+"First, Mr. Stapleton, on the facts themselves. The boy could not have
+been taken away without her knowledge. Secondly, upon some minor
+matters--her error of half an hour, in telling her story, for instance."
+
+"I am sorry, Mr. Duvall, but I cannot believe that you are right. I'd
+suspect Valentin, at once; but if Mary Lanahan is not telling the truth,
+then my experience of twenty years in judging human nature has been
+wasted."
+
+"Yet you yourself heard her admit that she was with Valentin only last
+Friday, the day she was taken ill."
+
+"Yes. That is true." Mr. Stapleton passed his hand uncertainly across
+his forehead. "It's too much for me."
+
+"Let me have a word with the nurse, alone, before I go," asked Duvall.
+
+"Certainly," replied the banker. "I'll send her in to you."
+
+When Mary Lanahan entered the room, the detective went up to her and
+eyed her sternly. "Was Alphonse Valentin with you at any time, in the
+Bois, that day?"
+
+"No," replied the girl, steadily.
+
+"Does he smoke gold-tipped cigarettes?" asked Duvall, suddenly.
+
+The effect of this question upon the nurse was startling. She recoiled
+as though the detective had struck her. "He--he does not smoke at all,"
+she gasped, her face gray with fear.
+
+"Don't lie to me!"
+
+"He does not smoke at all," repeated the girl, almost mechanically, and
+stood confronting him with a defiant air.
+
+"Very well. That is all." The detective turned from the room and left
+the house.
+
+He did not, however, go very far. It was rapidly becoming dark. He
+passed down the street until he judged he was out of sight of the house,
+then slowly retraced his steps upon the other side, until he had reached
+a point nearly opposite the small iron gateway which served as the
+servants' entrance to Mr. Stapleton's house. Here, hidden behind a
+tree, he watched for perhaps half an hour.
+
+At the expiration of this period, he was rewarded by seeing a young man,
+evidently an under servant, emerge from the gateway. Duvall watched him
+as he proceeded down the street, then began to follow him.
+
+The young man seemed in no great hurry, and at the junction of the
+avenue with the Champs Elysees, Duvall accosted him, speaking in French.
+
+"Do you want to earn twenty francs, my friend?" he asked pleasantly.
+
+The boy regarded him with a quizzical smile. "Who does not, Monsieur?"
+he replied.
+
+"Let me see the note you have in your hand."
+
+The boy drew back suddenly, and made as though to thrust the letter into
+his pocket. "It is impossible, Monsieur," he began.
+
+Duvall took out a gold twenty-franc piece. "I intend to have the letter,
+my man. If you will give it to me peaceably, here are the twenty francs;
+if not, I shall be obliged to take it from you by force."
+
+The boy regarded the detective for a moment, as though contemplating
+flight. Duvall seized him by the collar. "Give me the note," he cried,
+"or I'll call a gendarme and have you placed under arrest!"
+
+The boy allowed the letter to drop to the pavement, seized the
+twenty-franc piece, and took to his heels.
+
+Duvall picked it up. As he had expected, it was addressed to Alphonse
+Valentin, ---- Boulevard St. Michel. He had waited, on the chance that
+Mary Lanahan would lose no time in warning her probable confederate.
+
+The letter gave him the man's address. That was so much accomplished, at
+least. Then he tore it open, and read the contents. They proved more
+mystifying than anything that he had yet encountered in this mysterious
+affair.
+
+"Destroy the cigarettes!" These three words comprised the entire
+contents of the note.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+
+Alphonse Valentin came up to Grace and took her roughly by the arm.
+"Come with me," he said, and started up the street.
+
+At first she felt inclined to resist him. A signal to a passing
+gendarme, and she could have had the man placed under arrest. Monsieur
+Lefevre had taken care to provide her with credentials that would insure
+her obtaining instant assistance from any member of the police.
+
+Then another thought came to her. This man Valentin she very much
+desired to see. His position, clinging to the rear of the automobile,
+indicated that he was in all probability not a confederate of the
+kidnappers. Just what he was, she could not imagine. She determined to
+go along with him, and hear what he had to say.
+
+A few minutes' walk brought them to the man's lodgings. For some
+reason, which she did not understand, the automobile in which she had
+been a prisoner had stopped on the Boulevard St. Michel within a short
+distance of Valentin's rooms.
+
+When they reached the house, Valentin, instead of opening the door with
+a key, rang the bell. The woman who had previously admitted Grace came
+to the door. Valentin nodded.
+
+"Is this the woman?" he asked.
+
+"Yes," said the landlady, recognizing her at once. "This is the one."
+
+"Good!" Valentin closed the door and led the way to his room. Grace
+followed, wondering what the man intended to do.
+
+"Why have you come here twice during the past two days?" he asked,
+abruptly, after he had lit the lamp and carefully shut the door.
+
+Grace determined to be quite frank with him. "I wanted to ask you some
+questions, Monsieur Valentin," she replied.
+
+"Ha! You know my name?"
+
+"Certainly."
+
+He appeared somewhat uneasy. "What are you up to?"
+
+"I am trying to find Mr. Stapleton's child."
+
+A queer smile came over the fellow's face. "Is that why you stole the
+cigarettes?" he asked.
+
+"I did not steal them. They were taken by a man with a black beard, who
+came in through the window when I was here."
+
+"A black beard?" He smiled incredulously. "And you let him take them."
+
+"Yes. Why not? Were they of such great value?"
+
+He glanced about uneasily, but did not reply to her question. "Who was
+the man?" he presently asked.
+
+"I do not know. I followed him. He entered Mr. Stapleton's house."
+
+"Sacre! It must have been Francois!"
+
+"Hardly. Francois has no beard."
+
+"But he might have been disguised." He seemed very much perturbed. "What
+a pity I was so careless!"
+
+"Monsieur Valentin, will you please tell me what those cigarettes have
+to do with the kidnapping of Mr. Stapleton's child?"
+
+He looked at her closely for a moment. "Everything," he answered
+gloomily, "and--nothing. I was a fool to have left them here."
+
+Grace began to feel more and more composed. This man did not talk like
+one of the band of criminals. "Do you know where the child is?" she
+suddenly asked.
+
+"Perhaps." He observed her narrowly. "Do you?"
+
+"No. If I did, I should restore him to his poor mother."
+
+"What were you doing in that automobile?"
+
+"I was a prisoner. And you?"
+
+Again he evaded her question. "It is my own affair," he growled.
+
+"Did you not see who it was that drove the car?" she asked.
+
+Instead of replying, he flung himself into a chair. "Sit down,
+Mademoiselle, and tell me the whole story. If I find that you are frank
+with me, I promise to be equally so with you."
+
+Suddenly Grace felt an intuition that the man was honest. She determined
+to do as he asked. "Very well. I will tell you the truth. I am trying to
+recover Mr. Stapleton's child. Last night I was watching the house. I
+was seized from behind, thrown into an automobile, and taken--I do not
+know where. This morning a message to Mr. Stapleton was given me.
+Tonight I was brought here, blindfolded, in an automobile. Then I met
+you. That is all I know."
+
+Valentin appeared disappointed. "Then you do not know where the child
+is?" he asked.
+
+"The child is where I was--I saw it."
+
+As Grace said this, her companion leaped excitedly from his chair. "Then
+we have them!" he cried.
+
+"I do not understand."
+
+"Mademoiselle, this evening I was watching Monsieur Stapleton's house.
+Like yourself, I desire to recover the child. I saw Francois leave in
+Monsieur Stapleton's automobile. I climbed in behind, as he left the
+house. It was dark. He did not see me. He drove out toward Versailles."
+
+"Toward Versailles?" exclaimed Grace.
+
+"Yes. Why do you seem so surprised."
+
+"Never mind. Go on."
+
+"After a time, he stopped by the roadside. I got out, and hid in the
+shadow of some trees. Presently you were brought, blindfolded, by a man,
+who entered the car with you. When it again started, I climbed on
+behind. That is how I came to meet you."
+
+"Then you don't know where the house is, from which I was brought?"
+
+"No. There are many houses--all about. There was no way of knowing, in
+the dark. Did you come far--when they brought you to the automobile?"
+
+"Yes. Several hundred yards, at least. But you know the spot, on the
+roadside?"
+
+"Yes. I can find it, without difficulty."
+
+"Monsieur Valentin, I have a plan--a very dangerous plan--for recovering
+Mr. Stapleton's boy. I cannot tell you what it is now. Tomorrow I will
+tell you--tomorrow afternoon. I shall want your assistance."
+
+"What am I to do?"
+
+"Can you drive an automobile?"
+
+The man smiled. "Decidedly. It is my profession."
+
+"Splendid! You will wait for me here, and I will come, and tell you what
+you are to do. I shall arrive not later than six o'clock." She rose.
+"Now I must go; but before I do so, tell me one thing. What is the
+mystery of the gold-tipped cigarettes?"
+
+Her question seemed to drive from Valentin's face all the good nature
+that had dwelt there the moment before. "I cannot tell you that," he
+growled. "You must not ask me. Let me advise you to drop the matter of
+the cigarettes, and report your message to Mr. Stapleton at once."
+
+For a moment, Grace almost regretted her frankness. Suppose, after all,
+he should prove to be but a confederate of the kidnappers, in league
+with Mary Lanahan, the nurse, to spirit the boy away in the first place,
+and now sent by them, in the guise of a spy clinging to the rear of the
+automobile, to find out what step she proposed to take to capture them?
+She paused in indecision. Suddenly there was a tapping upon the door of
+the room.
+
+Valentin went to the door and cautiously opened it. The landlady stood
+on the landing outside. "There is a man to see you, at the door below,
+Monsieur," she said in a low tone.
+
+"Who is it?"
+
+"I do not know. He gives the name of Victor Girard."
+
+"Very well. Send him up."
+
+Grace heard the name--Victor Girard. A sudden wave of weakness swept
+over her. It was Richard! He had used the name frequently, in the past.
+She heard him ascending the short flight of stairs. There was no escape.
+Yet Monsieur Lefevre particularly insisted that he should not recognize
+her. She hastily drew down her veil. "Get rid of him as soon as you
+can," she whispered to Valentin, and shrunk back into the shadow.
+
+Duvall came in, glancing sharply about him. He had been waiting to see
+Valentin since early in the evening, and had inquired for him twice
+before, only to find that he was out.
+
+"What can I do for you, Monsieur?" inquired Valentin.
+
+The detective drew the note from his pocket--the note which Mary Lanahan
+had sent to Valentin, and which Duvall had intercepted. "This is for
+you, Monsieur?" he asked, then suddenly paused, astounded. In the dim
+light, he caught sight of Grace, standing on the opposite side of the
+room, watching him closely. "I--I thought--Monsieur--I thought you were
+alone," he gasped, his eyes fixed on Grace as though he had seen a
+ghost. "I--I beg your pardon, but--" He was unable to proceed.
+
+Valentin looked at him in amazement. "What is it, my friend?" he asked
+sharply. "Tell me your business, if you please, and go. I have a
+visitor."
+
+"Yes--Monsieur--so--so I see." Duvall pulled himself together with a
+mighty effort and turned his glance to Valentin. He had suffered a great
+shock. For a moment he would have been ready to swear that Grace, his
+dear wife, stood before him in the flesh--and yet the thing was an
+absurdity: Grace, with her golden brown hair, her clear complexion, was
+three thousand miles away! This woman, dark, typically French, was quite
+evidently an entirely different person; yet the resemblance was
+startling--he felt himself shaking in every fiber.
+
+"Well, Monsieur, give me the letter, since you say it is for me," he
+heard Valentin saying.
+
+In an instant he had recovered his self possession. "Here," he
+exclaimed, handing the note to the man before him. "It is from Mary
+Lanahan. I have read it."
+
+"You have read it, Monsieur!" Valentin exclaimed, angrily. "By what
+right, then, do you presume to read my letters?" He took the note and
+hurriedly read its contents. "Sacre!" he exclaimed. "What does this
+mean?"
+
+"It means, my friend, that I want that box of gold-tipped cigarettes."
+
+Grace started. So Richard, too, was interested in the recovery of these
+mysterious cigarettes. What on earth, she wondered, could it mean?
+
+"In the first place, Monsieur, let me inform you that I have no
+cigarettes, gold-tipped or otherwise. In the second place, I question
+your right to make any such demands."
+
+"Does not the note from Mary Lanahan request you to destroy them?"
+
+Valentin turned pale. "I tell you I have no such cigarettes!" he cried.
+
+"Are they not the sort, then, that you usually smoke?"
+
+"I do not smoke at all, Monsieur."
+
+Duvall laughed. "So you both tell the same story, it seems. My friend, I
+dislike to discuss these matters before a stranger." He glanced
+significantly at Grace.
+
+She dared not go. To speak--even to bid Valentin good evening, would,
+she felt sure, betray her. So she remained silent.
+
+"Then take yourself off. I certainly have no desire to discuss them. I
+tell you, I do not smoke--I have no cigarettes--that is enough!"
+
+"What does that note mean, then?" asked Duvall sternly.
+
+"That is Miss Lanahan's affair--and mine."
+
+Duvall drew out his pocketbook, and extracted from it the bit of
+cigarette stump, with the gold tip, which he had found that morning in
+the Bois de Boulogne. "Monsieur Valentin," he said, "I found this end of
+a cigarette at the exact place in the grass, in the Bois de Boulogne,
+where Mr. Stapleton's child and nurse were, when the boy was stolen. The
+chauffeur was asleep. You could readily have walked up, taken away the
+child, and no one would have been the wiser. The story of Mary Lanahan,
+that no one came near her, that the boy disappeared into thin air, is
+absurd. The presence of the half-smoked cigarette, of a kind which I
+have reason to believe you use, convinces me that you were there in the
+Bois, with the nurse, at the time of the kidnapping--if indeed you did
+not take an active part in it. The message from Mary Lanahan, which I
+have just handed you, directing you to destroy the cigarettes,--which,
+no doubt, she feared, after my questioning, might be used as evidence
+against you,--serves as strong additional proof. I believe that you know
+where Mr. Stapleton's child is."
+
+The statements which her husband made convinced Grace that she had made
+a mistake in confiding in Valentin. She herself had seen the
+gold-tipped cigarettes on his table--had seen them stolen. It was not
+very conclusive evidence, she realized; but, taken with the nurse's
+letter, it was significant.
+
+Valentin, however, did not appear to be greatly alarmed by the
+detective's charges. "You are mistaken, Monsieur," he said quietly. "I
+know nothing about the affair."
+
+"Then what does this note mean?"
+
+"That I cannot tell you. And, if you have any other questions to ask, I
+beg that you will come again--at another time. I, as you see, am engaged
+for the moment." He indicated Grace with a glance.
+
+Duvall looked about, then turned to the door. His object in coming had
+been fulfilled. He had seen Valentin--located him--he hoped frightened
+him. It was one of his theories that a man, frightened by the knowledge
+that he is being closely pursued, is far more likely to make a false
+step, than one who fancies himself secure.
+
+He darted a curious glance at Grace, as he left the room; but her face,
+concealed in the shadow, told him nothing. Her silent presence filled
+him with strange disquietude. He stationed himself outside the doorway
+of the house, determined to learn, if possible, who she was, by
+following her, when she left the place. He had not counted on Valentin's
+being with her.
+
+The two left the house together, and the man at once called a cab. Into
+this he put Grace, all the while eying Duvall savagely. The latter gave
+up all ideas of pursuing Grace, and returned, somewhat disgruntled, to
+his hotel. He had barely reached it, when a message was brought to him,
+summoning him to Mr. Stapleton's house.
+
+Grace, meanwhile, had driven at once to the banker's, and delivered to
+him the message with which she had been intrusted by the man in the
+black mask that morning.
+
+Mr. Stapleton's face grew more and more angry as she proceeded with her
+story. He jumped up, as soon as he learned the purport of it, and,
+ringing up Duvall's hotel, requested the detective to come to him at
+once. Then he turned to Grace.
+
+"You have no idea where this place is located?"
+
+"Not the slightest."
+
+"You say you saw my boy? He was safe?"
+
+"I saw a child, which I was told was yours, Mr. Stapleton. I did not
+recognize him, of course. You know I have never seen your son. Also, he
+was dressed as a girl."
+
+Mr. Stapleton produced a photograph with nervous haste. "Was he like
+this?" he demanded.
+
+"Yes. It was the same." There was sufficient resemblance, even in the
+disguise the boy wore, for Grace to be practically certain of his
+identity.
+
+"How am I to know that these scoundrels will keep their word?" Mr.
+Stapleton groaned, his head on his hands.
+
+"Do you intend, then, to give them the money?"
+
+"Certainly. Do you suppose I would take any chances, for the matter of a
+hundred thousand dollars--or twice as much, for that matter? His mother
+and I are unable to sleep, to eat, to do anything in fact, under the
+strain of this thing. I shall by all means do as they ask."
+
+"But they will get away."
+
+"That is nothing to me. Let them. Once my boy is safe, I can spend
+another hundred thousand to catch them; but not now--when one false step
+might mean his death."
+
+"They won't harm him, Mr. Stapleton. They are too anxious for the
+money, to let anything happen to him."
+
+"I'll take no chances."
+
+Grace rose. "Then I might as well be going," she said. "I don't see that
+I can do anything more. I shall report the matter to the Prefect of
+Police at once."
+
+"Very well. And be good enough to say to him that I particularly desire
+that no steps be taken to prevent the carrying out of the plan. I shall
+pay this money and regain my boy. After that, the police may do as they
+like. Good evening."
+
+"Good evening." Grace left the house, feeling singularly disappointed,
+in spite of the fact that Mr. Stapleton's decision apparently meant that
+Richard's work in Paris, as well as her own, was likely to be brought to
+a sudden termination.
+
+As she was leaving the house, she saw Richard drive up in a cab. The
+sight of him filled her with joy; although she was forced to conceal it,
+and pass him by with a look of indifference. In the darkness, she knew
+she was safe. He recognized her of course,--recognized her, that is, as
+the woman he had seen in Valentin's room,--and her presence here at Mr.
+Stapleton's house evidently filled him with surprise. For a moment, she
+thought he was about to speak to her, as he descended from his cab; but
+she turned away and hurried down the street, and when she looked back,
+he had entered the house.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+
+Mr. Stapleton was standing in the middle of the library, when Duvall
+entered. He turned to him excitedly.
+
+"Mr. Duvall," he said, "I have just heard news that I hope will restore
+my boy to me within the next twenty-four hours!"
+
+"From the woman who just left the house?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Who is she?"
+
+"An agent of the police."
+
+"Ah! Are you certain of that?"
+
+"I know only what she says."
+
+Duvall looked at him curiously. "What is the news she has brought you?"
+
+"A message from the scoundrels who have stolen the child. They want a
+hundred thousand dollars, to return him."
+
+"And she brought you that message?"
+
+"Yes." The banker regarded his questioner uneasily.
+
+"Does it not seem rather singular, Mr. Stapleton, that a member of the
+Paris police should come to you with a message from the kidnappers?"
+
+Mr. Stapleton frowned. "I had not considered that aspect of the case,
+Mr. Duvall. I was--and am--too anxious to get my boy back, to care by
+whom these fellows deliver their terms."
+
+"What was the message, Mr. Stapleton?"
+
+"I am to drive along the road to Versailles tomorrow evening, leaving
+here at eight o'clock, and moving at the rate of twelve miles an hour.
+Somewhere on that road, an automobile in passing will signal me with a
+blue light. I am then to slow up and toss into the other machine a
+package containing one hundred thousand dollars. If I do this, and make
+no attempt to follow or capture the rascals, they agree to deliver the
+child here--at my house--by the time I return home."
+
+Duvall listened to Mr. Stapleton's words with growing interest. "They
+are a shrewd lot," he exclaimed. "They will get away in their machine,
+and have ample opportunity to examine the package to see that it
+contains the amount they demand. By signaling to confederates at any
+point along the road, or in another automobile, they can advise them
+whether or not to return the child."
+
+"But how will they be able to do this, without running the risk of being
+caught?"
+
+"That is easy. They take the boy to Paris, employ a passerby--a man of
+their own class, no doubt--for a few francs, to deliver him at your
+door. To trace them, through that means, will be impossible. If you give
+them the money, the chances are that they will never be caught."
+
+"Nevertheless, I shall give it to them."
+
+"I expected that, Mr. Stapleton. I can understand your feelings. It is
+not right, of course, to submit to this blackmail; but no doubt, were I
+situated as you are, I would do the same thing. Still, it is a great
+pity."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because we have an excellent chance to capture these fellows."
+
+"And lose the boy!"
+
+"Yes, that might be true. Such men are apt to retaliate very promptly,
+and very severely. They have no pity. I wish I might handle the case to
+suit myself."
+
+"What would you do?"
+
+"I would arrange to follow you, in a fast car, keeping say five hundred
+feet in the rear. I should have several men, well armed, in the car. By
+watching carefully, with field glasses if necessary, I would observe the
+car which signaled you with the blue light. When this car passed me, I
+would follow, but make no move which would alarm the kidnappers until
+they had given the signal--whatever it is--that would ensure your boy
+being returned to you. Then I would close in on them, and arrest them."
+
+"Your plan, Mr. Duvall, is open to serious objections. Suppose these
+men, undoubtedly on the watch, observe that they are being followed.
+They will give no signal--and I will lose not only my child, but the one
+hundred thousand dollars as well. No, no, I want no interference in the
+matter whatever."
+
+Duvall remained a moment in silence. "Very well, Mr. Stapleton, I am
+under your orders, of course. But I dislike very much to see these
+fellows get away."
+
+"So do I; but there's no help for it."
+
+"If I can work out a plan for their capture, which will not involve the
+loss of the boy, you are willing, I take it, to let me go ahead?"
+
+"Yes; but I insist that you first submit the plan to me."
+
+"Very well. And now, another matter. This woman who brought the message
+to you is, you say, an agent of the police. Did she attempt to explain
+how she came by the message?"
+
+"Yes. She was forcibly abducted, last night, carried a long distance out
+into the country, and the instructions given her. She was brought back
+to Paris, blindfolded, tonight."
+
+"Mr. Stapleton, what would you say were I to tell you that less than an
+hour ago I saw this woman in the rooms of Alphonse Valentin, a man whom
+I suspect to be very deeply concerned in the kidnapping of your son?"
+
+Stapleton started. "Is it possible?" he said. "Have you any idea what
+she was doing there?"
+
+"No. They seemed on excellent terms, however. Of course, it is not
+impossible that an agent of the police might pose as a friend of one of
+the criminals, and thus obtain information. But it looks decidedly
+queer."
+
+"It does, indeed. Still, as I said before, if I get my boy back, I shall
+be satisfied." He took a turn about the room, chewing nervously upon
+his long black cigar. "Now, Mr. Duvall, what is your plan to capture
+these fellows?"
+
+Duvall sat in deep thought for sometime. "It is not an easy matter, Mr.
+Stapleton, but there is one way which promises success, and that, too,
+without interfering with your arrangements to recover your boy."
+
+"What is it?"
+
+"This. It is necessary for us, in some way, to identify the car which
+gives you the signal of the blue light. It will pass close to you, at a
+moderate speed. I want you to mark that car, so that it may be
+recognized at once."
+
+"How can I do that?"
+
+"I will place in the bottom of your machine a small device, consisting
+of a rubber bulb, equipped with a small nozzle, projecting through a
+hole in the body of the car. The bulb will be filled with indelible red
+stain. When you stand up, to toss the package of money to the
+kidnappers, you must press this bulb with your foot. The two cars will
+then be side by side. The pressure on the bulb will discharge a blast of
+the red stain against the body and wheels of the car opposite you. It
+will then be a simple matter to identify it."
+
+"Yes--yes. I see that. But what then?"
+
+"The car, in passing you, will be headed for Paris. Undoubtedly it is
+the intention of these fellows to enter the city. I shall station myself
+at the Porte de Versailles, and I will arrange to have other men,
+members of the detective bureau, stationed at the neighboring gates in
+the fortifications. All cars entering the city will be momentarily
+halted. The one which bears upon its body or wheels the red stain will
+be seized, its occupants arrested."
+
+"But suppose they have not yet notified their confederates to return the
+boy to me?"
+
+"In that event, I feel certain that the child will be found in the
+automobile with them. Look at the thing as you would, were you in their
+place. They are forced to act with great quickness. Were they to signal,
+by lights or otherwise, to persons along the road, they could hardly
+hope to get the boy to your house before you yourself return there. They
+know you will return home immediately at your best speed as soon as you
+have delivered the money to them. What more likely, then, that they will
+have the boy with them in the car, will drive to some prearranged point
+in Paris, and deliver him to the person who will bring him to your
+house? That would seem, to my mind, their most probable plan."
+
+"And if not--if the child is not with them?"
+
+"Then there are but two courses open to them. The first is to signal, by
+lights or otherwise, to their confederates, before they enter Paris. If
+they do this, the boy will be returned to you, and we will capture the
+men as well. The only other alternative, of course, is for them to
+notify their confederates after they enter Paris."
+
+"But, if you arrest him at the barrier, they cannot do that, and my boy
+will not be sent back."
+
+"That is true; but I do not think they will wait to notify their
+confederates until after they enter Paris."
+
+"Why not, Mr. Duvall?"
+
+"First, because of the danger of being observed, in the crowded streets
+of the city. Secondly, because I do not think the child is in Paris at
+all. The woman who brought you the message from the kidnappers, I
+understand, saw the child at a point some distance in the country. It
+seems unlikely that these men would run the risk of conveying the child
+into the city, in broad daylight. By having the boy with them in the
+car, they avoid all danger of signaling anybody. They merely inspect the
+package of money, run into Paris, fully believing themselves for the
+time being safe, drop the child at a convenient point, divide the
+plunder, and scatter to their respective hiding places. Criminals of
+this sort know perfectly well that they are far safer, hiding in a big
+city, than fleeing through the country in an automobile. I feel scarcely
+any doubt that they have the child with them."
+
+"But if he is still in the country, and they wait until after they are
+in Paris before notifying their confederates?"
+
+"Then the latter are obliged to journey a long distance out into the
+country, get the child, and bring him back to your house. That would
+require a considerable period. They could not possibly do it before you
+return home."
+
+Mr. Stapleton considered the matter for a long time in silence. "Your
+arguments seem sound, Mr. Duvall," he presently observed. "Like
+yourself, I am anxious to capture these fellows. It makes my blood boil,
+to think of their getting away. Of course, your deductions may be
+wrong."
+
+"Then at least we will get the perpetrators of the crime, and it is most
+likely that one of them, at least, may be persuaded to turn state's
+evidence, and disclose the whereabouts of your son."
+
+Mr. Stapleton pondered the matter with great care. Evidently he feared
+any course of action which did not insure the return of the child.
+
+"It seems to me, Mr. Stapleton," the detective went on, "that you owe it
+to the public to let me make this effort to capture these fellows. It is
+a grave danger to the community, to have such rogues at large. Let me
+try my plan. Even if it fails, you are no worse off than you are now.
+The attempt cannot in any way be traced to you."
+
+"Very well," said the banker, nervously. "It is a chance--that's all.
+However, since it seems to involve no breach of faith on my part, I am
+willing to take it."
+
+"Good! I will bring the device I spoke of to your house tomorrow, and
+attach it to your car. Your man Francois will drive you, I presume."
+
+"Yes."
+
+"You trust him?"
+
+"I have no reasons for not doing so. And besides he will know nothing of
+the affair. His part will be merely to drive the car, as I direct him."
+
+Duvall thought for a moment. "You will not, of course, give him his
+instructions until the last moment--just before you start."
+
+"No. That will be best, I think."
+
+"Undoubtedly. And to avoid any possible interference, I think I had
+better not attach the identifying device of which I have spoken to your
+car until late tomorrow afternoon, immediately before you set out. Then,
+if by any chance your chauffeur is in this plot, he will have no
+opportunity to give a warning."
+
+"Very well. I think, however, that your precautions are needless. There
+has been nothing whatever brought out to connect Francois with this
+matter."
+
+"I know; but it is well to be careful. You will leave here tomorrow
+evening, at eight o'clock?"
+
+"Yes. Promptly at eight."
+
+"You might do well to have someone with you, some member of the police,
+perhaps."
+
+"The instructions expressly forbid it."
+
+"Ah--I see. These fellows are shrewd." He took up his hat. "Until
+tomorrow then. Good night."
+
+"Good night."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+
+At the same hour that Richard Duvall was arranging with Mr. Stapleton
+his plan for the capture of the kidnappers the following day, Grace was
+closeted with Monsieur Lefevre, the Prefect of Police, in the latter's
+library, going over the affair in all its details. The Prefect was
+speaking, ticking off on his fingers the points in the case as he
+proceeded.
+
+"First, we have the impossible story of the nurse, Mary Lanahan. She
+seems to be telling the truth; yet I believe she is lying. In my
+opinion, she is deeply concerned in the whole matter."
+
+"But what about the attempt to poison her?"
+
+"It is highly probable that she poisoned herself, taking a slight dose
+only. This would divert suspicion from her."
+
+"I see."
+
+"Then we have the case of Alphonse Valentin, and the mysterious
+gold-tipped cigarettes. Your husband, Monsieur Duvall, I am informed,
+has found one of these cigarettes, partly smoked, on the grass at the
+scene of the crime. This might indicate that Valentin was there, with
+her, on some occasion, but not necessarily on the day the kidnapping
+occurred. It might readily have been the day before--or the week before,
+for that matter."
+
+"I thought of that," remarked Grace, quietly. "It seems to me that
+Richard attached too much importance to the matter."
+
+"That remains to be seen. Now, supposing Valentin to be concerned, with
+the nurse, in the plot. He of course does not think, at the start, that
+the possession of the cigarettes would involve him in the affair,
+because he does not know that Monsieur Duvall has found the one in the
+grass. Your husband, however, asks Mary Lanahan what kind of cigarettes
+Valentin smokes. She at once becomes suspicious, and at the first
+opportunity warns Valentin, by letter, to destroy them. That shows
+clearly that they are working together."
+
+"Undoubtedly. But meanwhile the cigarettes are stolen from Valentin's
+room by a man with a dark beard, who subsequently enters Mr.
+Stapleton's house. For that, I confess, I can find no explanation."
+
+"Nor I. The destruction of the cigarettes could be of no importance to
+anyone, except to the kidnappers themselves. It is of course possible
+that someone else in Mr. Stapleton's house--Francois, for instance--is
+concerned in the plot."
+
+"But the man who took the cigarettes had a black beard, while Francois
+is smooth shaven."
+
+"I know. But it might have been a disguise."
+
+"I do not think so. The man I saw was taller than Francois, and not so
+heavily built."
+
+The Prefect considered the matter for a moment. "You are certain that he
+entered the Stapleton's house?"
+
+"Absolutely certain. I saw the gate close behind him."
+
+"Then I can only say that, so far, the matter is inexplicable. Now let
+us come back to Valentin. He claims to be working to capture the
+kidnappers--in order to clear the nurse, whom he loves."
+
+"That is as I understand it."
+
+"He denies that he smokes, yet offers no explanation of the presence of
+the cigarettes in his room."
+
+"None. Further, someone sends a note to Valentin, advising him that the
+writer is suspicious of Francois--suggesting that he watch him. Can this
+mean that Francois is in the plot, and they fear he may be
+weakening--preparing to turn against them?"
+
+"It certainly looks that way."
+
+"I wish I could see one of these famous cigarettes."
+
+Grace laughed suddenly. "Why," she exclaimed, "I have one in my
+pocketbook. I had quite forgotten it." She opened her purse and took out
+the slender white cylinder.
+
+Lefevre examined the thing closely. "An Egyptian cigarette of American
+make," he mused. "Expensive, here in Paris, and rarely used, except by
+Americans."
+
+"That is true; yet I understand that this man Valentin has lived a great
+deal in America."
+
+For a moment the Prefect did not reply. Then a puzzled look crossed his
+face. "This is a woman's cigarette," he exclaimed. "No man would smoke
+such a thing." He brought his hand down sharply upon his knee. "My
+girl, it is not impossible that the child was stolen not by a man at
+all, but by a woman."
+
+"A woman, apparently, that both Valentin and the nurse are trying to
+shield."
+
+The Prefect sat for a moment buried in thought. Then he glanced at Grace
+keenly. "It seems to me," he remarked, in a quiet tone, "that we should
+endeavor to determine whether or not Mrs. Stapleton is in the habit of
+using cigarettes."
+
+"Mrs. Stapleton!" gasped Grace, in amazement.
+
+"Yes. I confess the idea is a new one, to me; but it may prove of
+interest."
+
+"But why should the boy's mother wish to kidnap him?"
+
+"I do not know. There is but one point of significance. During the past
+week my men have, naturally, questioned Mrs. Stapleton closely as to her
+movements during the past two or three months. They did this, to
+determine, if possible, whether the criminals were of Paris, or from
+some other place, where Mrs. Stapleton may have been, with the child,
+during the past winter. You know these fellows work in bands, and have
+their regular field of operations."
+
+"I see. And where had she been?"
+
+"Monte Carlo!" The Prefect uttered the two words significantly.
+
+Grace was quick to grasp his meaning.
+
+"Then you mean that possibly Mrs. Stapleton may have lost large sums at
+the gambling tables, and, fearing to tell her husband of her losses, has
+enlisted the services of the nurse, and of her friend Valentin, and
+spirited the child away for a few weeks, in order to get the sum of one
+hundred thousand dollars from her husband without his knowledge?"
+
+"It is by no means impossible. I would recommend that you investigate
+the matter thoroughly. If we find that Mrs. Stapleton uses gold-tipped
+cigarettes of this variety, it may go far toward a solution of the whole
+affair."
+
+Grace, remembering Mrs. Stapleton's grief-stricken appearance, felt that
+the clue was a very slender one, but determined to follow it up,
+nevertheless.
+
+"Now," went on the Prefect, "we come to the sudden and most unexpected
+appearance of Valentin, clinging to the rear of the automobile that
+brought you back to Paris tonight."
+
+"As I have told you, he claims to have clambered into Mr. Stapleton's
+car."
+
+"Driven by Francois?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And you say the man who drove the car had a black beard--the same man,
+in fact, who broke into Valentin's room and stole the cigarettes?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Then either Valentin is lying, or the man with the black beard is
+Francois. Let us look at his story from both sides. If he is telling the
+truth, then Francois is one of the kidnappers."
+
+"So it would seem. You are having him watched, you say?"
+
+"Yes. My men report that he did leave the house, in Mr. Stapleton's
+automobile tonight, at about nine o'clock. That would seem to agree with
+Valentin's story. They also report that he returned about eleven,
+alone."
+
+"They did not follow him?"
+
+"No. It is impossible to do so, in another car, without arousing his
+suspicion, and putting him on his guard. We do not wish him to know that
+he is being watched."
+
+"But Mr. Stapleton must know where he has been--why the car was out."
+
+"Yes. We have questioned him. He says the man reported that the gasolene
+tank was leaking, and that he ordered him to have it repaired at once."
+
+"And was it repaired?"
+
+The Prefect smiled. "Yes. The car was at a garage in the Boulevard St.
+Michel from half past nine until half past ten."
+
+Grace fell back, astonished. "Then Valentin is lying!" she cried.
+
+"So it seems; unless, of course, Francois took out another car from the
+garage, while his own was being fixed."
+
+"They would know that at the garage."
+
+"They deny it. But these fellows all hang together. They would think
+nothing of protecting a brother chauffeur, in the matter of a little joy
+ride."
+
+"Valentin says nothing about this, in his story."
+
+"He may have omitted it, as an unimportant detail. I mean that he may
+have slipped into the second car, as he did into the first, without
+being observed. It was dark of course. He may not have thought it
+necessary to mention it. All this, of course, is on the assumption that
+he is telling the truth. Now let us say that he is lying--that the man
+with the black beard is not Francois, but someone else concerned, with
+Valentin in the plot. What is the purpose of his tale?"
+
+"I cannot imagine. Can you, Monsieur?"
+
+"No, not immediately. The first contradiction, of course, is this. If
+Valentin and the man with the black beard are working together, why
+should the latter have broken into his room to get the cigarettes?"
+
+"There seems no sense to it."
+
+"Yet he may have realized the danger of the cigarettes being in
+Valentin's possession, and instead of trying to warn him simply came and
+took them away. It is not a particularly plausible explanation; but let
+us admit it, for the moment, in order to get ahead with our reasoning.
+Suppose Valentin, the man with the black beard, and Mary Lanahan, the
+nurse, to be all working together, either with Mrs. Stapleton, or with
+outside parties. They have the child safely hidden. They abduct you, and
+send the message to Mr. Stapleton through you. They do not trust you,
+knowing, no doubt, that you are an agent of my office. They send
+Valentin along, on the back of the machine, to pretend to be an enemy of
+theirs trying, like yourself, to recover the child. He thus gets into
+your confidence. He advises you to report your message from the
+kidnappers to Mr. Stapleton at once. He questions you, and learns that
+you do not know the location of the house where the child is hidden. He
+then offers to show you as nearly as he can where the house is located.
+If he is in league with the kidnappers, he will take you, and the men
+whom tomorrow I shall send with you, to some location miles removed from
+the actual point where the child is concealed, and you will waste the
+day in a useless search. Decidedly it would be a clever move on their
+part."
+
+"It certainly would."
+
+"Further, you told this fellow that you had a plan to capture the
+scoundrels. You are to acquaint him with that plan, tomorrow afternoon.
+If you do so, he will no doubt get to the telephone on some pretext and
+warn his comrades of what you intend to do. I strongly recommend that
+you put no faith in the fellow whatever."
+
+"Still, you would advise trying to locate the house, as he suggests?"
+
+"Yes, we may be wrong about him. We must leave no stone unturned. And
+now we come to your interview with Mr. Stapleton. You gave him the
+message, of course. What did he say?"
+
+"He said that he intended to carry out the instructions I gave him to
+the letter--pay these fellows their money, and get back the boy."
+
+Monsieur Lefevre uttered an exclamation of anger. "Sacre! He must not do
+that! The stupid fellow! He will spoil everything!"
+
+Grace laughed quietly to herself. "Hardly stupid, Monsieur! The poor man
+is half mad over the boy's loss. He will do anything, to get him back. I
+can scarcely blame him."
+
+The Prefect held out his hand. "I beg your pardon, my child. You are
+right. It is perhaps but natural for him to feel as he does. But there
+are other things at stake, than the recovery of the child. For Monsieur
+Stapleton to pay over this huge sum to these criminals, and then to
+allow them to escape, is not only a grave reflection upon the efficiency
+of the Paris police, but is an injustice to the public as well. If these
+men are successful in this attempt, they will make others. Other
+children will be stolen. I cannot permit it. It must be prevented at all
+costs. These men must be brought to justice."
+
+"How can you prevent it, Monsieur? Mr. Stapleton is determined."
+
+"That, my child, is the question. I cannot stop Monsieur Stapleton if
+he wishes to drive out the road to Versailles and toss a hundred
+thousand dollars into the first automobile that passes him, showing a
+blue light." He rose and began to walk up and down the room.
+
+"I have a plan, Monsieur," said Grace, quietly.
+
+"What is it, my child?" The Prefect regarded her with an indulgent
+smile. He was very fond of Grace. He regretted that he had been unable
+to secure the services of her husband in this case. He knew, from past
+experience, her cleverness; but he did not believe that in a matter of
+this sort she would be able to outwit men who were probably among the
+shrewdest criminals in Paris.
+
+"First," said Grace, "we will have the location pointed out to us by
+Valentin thoroughly searched."
+
+"Assuredly! It will, however, probably result in nothing. Even if
+Valentin is telling the truth, these fellows will beyond question have
+moved the child before now to prepare for the work of tomorrow evening."
+
+"Possibly. At any rate, we will try. After that, I shall want Valentin
+to drive a motor car for me. He is an accomplished chauffeur."
+
+"You will take him into your confidence, then?" asked the Prefect, in
+some alarm.
+
+"No. I shall tell him nothing, except that he is to drive the car, and
+where."
+
+"Very well. But be careful. What next?"
+
+Grace leaned over and spoke to the Prefect in low tones for several
+minutes. He listened to what she said, occasionally smiling, and nodding
+his head. Presently he brought his hand down sharply upon the table.
+"Bravo!" he exclaimed. "You were born to be a detective. We will get the
+kidnappers, the money, and in all probability the child as well. I
+congratulate you!"
+
+"You think it will work, then?"
+
+"I do not see how it can fail. It is an inspiration. I shall certainly
+feel very well satisfied indeed, if I can return to Monsieur Stapleton
+both his child and his money, and at the same time place the kidnappers
+behind the bars. I could never permit it to be said that the police of
+Paris would knowingly allow a desperate band of criminals to get away
+with half a million of francs without lifting a hand to prevent it." He
+rose and glanced at his watch. "Come, my child. It is after midnight.
+You have had a long and exciting day. You had better get some rest."
+
+Grace rose. "Richard seemed awfully puzzled when he saw me."
+
+"Did he?" The Prefect laughed mischievously. "Really it is a great joke
+upon him. To be within a step of his own wife, and not to know her!"
+
+Grace seemed scarcely to appreciate the humor of the situation. "I think
+it's a shame," she said, "Poor Richard. He'll never forgive me. I really
+think I ought to tell him."
+
+Monsieur Lefevre shook his head. "If you do that, my dear child,
+everything will be spoiled. He will insist upon your dropping the case
+at once, and that would certainly not be fair to me."
+
+"But, Monsieur, after all, you really do not need me, with all the
+clever men you have upon your staff."
+
+"Who knows? Perhaps you may succeed, where they will fail. I have great
+faith in the intuition of a woman. And already you have advanced the
+case further in forty-eight hours than my men have done in ten days. It
+was a chance, I will admit, that these rascals should have chosen you to
+deliver their demands to Monsieur Stapleton. I confess I do not
+understand their reasons for doing so. They must have known that
+besides telling your story to him, you would also tell it to me. It may
+have been sheer bravado on their part--it is a characteristic, I have
+noted, in many criminals. They seem to glory in defying the police.
+These fellows, no doubt, think that they have matters so arranged that
+capture is impossible. I think we shall give them a little surprise."
+
+He turned to the door, and held it open, allowing Grace to pass into the
+hall. "Good night, my child," he called out to her, as she began to
+ascend the stairs. "I think I will smoke one more cigar."
+
+As for Grace, she lay awake a long time, thinking of Richard, of their
+home in the country, of the happy hours they had spent there--before
+this unexpected interruption to their honeymoon. It seemed very queer to
+her, to be lying there, alone. She had not gotten used to it. And
+somewhere, in this big city, Richard was also sleeping--and she not with
+him! The excitement of the affair was beginning to die out. The meeting
+with Richard on the boat, which she had planned when she set out from
+home, had not materialized. She had postponed this meeting, in her
+thoughts, until his arrival in Paris, and now--he had come, and still
+she had not been able so much as to touch his hand. She finally went to
+sleep, devoutly praying that tomorrow, and the capture of the
+kidnappers, would mark the end of their needless and cruel separation.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+
+Promptly at eight o'clock the next evening Mr. John Stapleton left his
+house in the Avenue Kleber, in a big French touring car, with Francois
+at the wheel.
+
+The car presented no points of peculiarity, being like a thousand others
+to be seen any evening upon the streets of Paris. It was of large size,
+high powered, and painted a green so dark as to be almost black.
+
+Mr. Stapleton sat in the tonneau, wearing a dark blue serge suit, and a
+Panama hat. In his left hand he clutched a small package, about the size
+of a cigar box. In the package were banknotes amounting to one hundred
+thousand dollars.
+
+Close beside his right foot lay a rubber bulb, from which a short pipe
+extended through a hole bored in the side of the car. The end of the
+pipe held a small brass nozzle. It projected but a short distance beyond
+the body of the car, and in the dim light of early evening was quite
+invisible.
+
+Mr. Stapleton told his chauffeur to drive out the road toward
+Versailles. "I feel like getting some fresh air," he added. "It's rather
+warm, tonight." Inwardly he was burning up with excitement.
+
+From Paris to Versailles is a matter of some fourteen miles. Mr.
+Stapleton's car proceeded slowly. He wanted to run no chances of missing
+the car with the blue light.
+
+At the Porte de Versailles he paused long enough to see Richard Duvall,
+standing in the shadow of the gateway. Then he passed outside of Paris.
+
+There were many automobiles and other vehicles on the road. The evening
+was a pleasant one, and all Paris seemed out taking the air. The
+majority of the vehicles were coming toward the city. He observed a car,
+some distance behind him, containing a single occupant, a man of middle
+age, but paid no attention to it. His eyes were strained to detect in
+the cars approaching him some evidence of the signal light which was to
+rouse him to sudden action.
+
+He noticed that Francois, like himself, was carefully scrutinizing each
+car as it approached them. He wondered if the chauffeur could have any
+idea of the purpose of his expedition; but presently dismissed the
+thought as entirely unlikely, and devoted himself to the passing cars.
+
+He had proceeded perhaps four or five miles beyond the fortifications,
+when he saw a large car approaching slowly from the direction of
+Versailles. It contained but two persons, the chauffeur, and a heavily
+veiled woman.
+
+The chauffeur, who was keenly observing the machine in which Mr.
+Stapleton sat, began to swerve to the right side of the road, so as to
+pass as closely to the banker's car as possible. At the same moment
+there showed through the gathering darkness a brilliant spot of blue
+light in the tonneau where sat the woman.
+
+Mr. Stapleton was on his feet in an instant. The two cars approached
+each other rapidly. It was necessary for him to act with great
+quickness. He shifted the package containing the money from his left
+hand to his right, and a moment later had tossed it lightly into the
+other car.
+
+He saw at once that it landed safely within, and at the same instant he
+pressed his foot down hard upon the rubber bulb. In a moment the car
+with the blue light had swept past, and was disappearing rapidly in the
+direction of Paris.
+
+Mr. Stapleton leaned forward and addressed Francois in a voice which
+quivered with excitement. "Drive home at once," he commanded.
+
+In a moment he was following the first car toward the city.
+
+He did not notice, as he swept down the darkening road, the car which
+had been following him all the way from Paris. It continued on its way
+toward Versailles. In it were two people. At the wheel sat a man who
+bore, in the semi-darkness, a striking resemblance to Francois, Mr.
+Stapleton's chauffeur, while in the rear sat a figure, in dark suit and
+Panama hat, which seemed for all the world like that of the banker
+himself. Had a casual observer not seen Mr. Stapleton turn back toward
+Paris, he would have concluded that he was still on his way toward
+Versailles.
+
+The occupants of this second car also appeared to be keenly watching the
+various automobiles which passed them, as though expecting some signal,
+some recognition; yet, in spite of their eager and expectant glances,
+they seemed doomed to disappointment.
+
+At last Versailles was reached. The elderly man in the tonneau gave a
+short command, his chauffeur turned the car about, and they began to
+return to Paris. Nothing further whatever happened on the Versailles
+road.
+
+Meanwhile, Richard Duvall, at the Porte de Versailles, was carefully
+scrutinizing the various incoming machines that passed the gate and
+entered the city. With a brilliant electric searchlight he examined
+their bodies and wheels, looking always for the telltale red stains
+which would identify the kidnappers' car. Beside him stood Vernet, one
+of the Prefect's assistants, with whom Duvall had become well acquainted
+during his former stay in Paris.
+
+"Well, Monsieur Duvall," remarked the latter, "a most ingenious
+plan--this of yours. I wonder if it will be successful?"
+
+"I feel sure of it."
+
+"I hope you are right." He looked at his watch. "Half past eight. About
+time, I should think, from what you tell me. Here is a big fellow, now.
+A Pasquet, by her looks. Six-cylinder, too."
+
+Duvall glanced at the oncoming car. A wagon which preceded it was just
+passing the gates. The big Pasquet slowed up, and almost stopped.
+
+The detective threw the rays of his searchlight on the body of the car,
+then started back with an exclamation. From one end to the other, the
+dark green finish of the sides and wheels was spattered and streaked
+with bright red paint. Dust had settled in it, in places, especially on
+the wheels; but above, on the doors, it was clear and unmistakable.
+
+"Vernet," he shouted, excitedly, "it is the one! Quick! Don't let them
+get away."
+
+Vernet stepped up to the quivering motor. At the wheel sat a young man,
+quite composed. In the tonneau, a veiled woman reclined at ease. In her
+hands she held a brown paper package.
+
+She leaned toward Vernet, and spoke a single word to him. Duvall did not
+hear what it was; but its effect upon the Prefect's man was
+instantaneous--electrical. He stepped back and raised his hat. "Pardon,
+Madame," he said, and the Pasquet rolled through the gate and into the
+streets of Paris unmolested.
+
+Duvall had sprung forward, and, as he did so, swept the occupants of the
+car with his electric searchlight. Suddenly he drew back in amazement,
+just as Vernet allowed the car to pass on. He could scarcely believe
+that what he saw was a reality. There was the big black car, its body
+and wheels plentifully bespattered with the identifying red stain--and
+there, at the wheel, sat Alphonse Valentin, while the veiled woman in
+the rear was--Grace!
+
+He did not know it was Grace--he did know that it was the woman who had
+been with Valentin in his room, who had brought the message from the
+kidnappers to Mr. Stapleton, who, in some far off and intangible way,
+reminded him of Grace.
+
+There she sat, in her hand the package containing Mr. Stapleton's
+money--and Vernet doffed his cap to her, and permitted her to go on! Was
+this woman, then, hoodwinking even the police?
+
+He sprang to Vernet's side. "Stop them!" he cried, in a hoarse voice.
+"They are the ones I am after."
+
+Vernet shook his head. "Impossible, Monsieur. They are given safe
+conduct by Monsieur the Prefect himself."
+
+"But--they are thieves--kidnappers!"
+
+Vernet shrugged his shoulders. "It may be so, Monsieur Duvall; but my
+orders are to let them pass."
+
+The detective ground his teeth, helpless. His scheme for identifying
+the criminals had worked perfectly. He had found them, only to see both
+them and Mr. Stapleton's hundred thousand dollars as well slip quietly
+through his fingers. He cursed the whole police force of Paris roundly,
+in his anger.
+
+The arrival of another car distracted his attention. It was Mr.
+Stapleton, hurrying home, in the hope of finding his boy. Duvall did not
+stop him. The banker was evidently thinking of nothing but his lost son.
+
+Several other cars passed. Duvall had no interest in them. He was about
+to turn away, with the intention of hunting up Mr. Stapleton and
+learning whether or not the boy had been returned to him, when he heard
+a familiar voice calling him by name. He turned. It was Monsieur
+Lefevre, in a big dark green car.
+
+"Mon Dieu! Duvall!" the Prefect cried, in pretended surprise. "You here!
+In Paris! Or do my eyes deceive me?"
+
+The detective looked a bit sheepish. He realized that in not calling on
+his old friend before now, he had been guilty of an apparent rudeness
+which Monsieur Lefevre might justly resent. "Monsieur," he cried, "it is
+indeed I." He put out his hand, and grasped that of his old chief
+warmly. "A little matter of business brought me to Paris. I have only
+just arrived."
+
+"Indeed." The Prefect's eyes twinkled. "I hope, my dear fellow, that
+your other engagements will permit you to come and see me before long."
+
+"I shall come this very evening, Monsieur. In fact, I have a matter of
+the utmost importance to discuss with you. Shall you be at liberty?"
+
+"In an hour, _mon ami_. Until then I have other things to occupy me.
+Come to the Prefecture in an hour. I shall be waiting for you. For the
+present, adieu." He called an order to his chauffeur, and drove rapidly
+off into the darkness.
+
+Duvall turned on his heel and began to look for a taxicab. "Good night,
+Vernet," he called out, as he went up the street.
+
+In half an hour, he had reached Mr. Stapleton's house. He found the
+unfortunate banker striding up and down his library in a towering rage.
+"The fellows have deceived me!" he cried. "They have not brought back my
+boy. Did you see anything of them? Tell me!" He grasped Duvall nervously
+by the arm.
+
+"The car into which you threw the package of money contained, besides
+the chauffeur, but one occupant, a woman, did it not?"
+
+"Yes--yes! Did you get her?"
+
+"No."
+
+"Why not? Did your scheme to identify the car fail to work?"
+
+"On the contrary, it worked perfectly. I stopped the car at the barrier.
+The woman in it had the package of money in her hand."
+
+"And you did not arrest her! In Heaven's name, why not?"
+
+"The police would not permit me to do so. The woman was the same one who
+brought you the message last night, the supposed agent of the police.
+They allowed her to pass the gates."
+
+"What?" the banker fairly shouted his question. "This is ridiculous! Is
+the woman a criminal, or is she a detective? She cannot be both, and if
+she is the latter why was she in that car, with my money in her hand?"
+
+"I do not know. But I mean to find out very shortly."
+
+"How? I'd like to know!"
+
+"I am going to see the Prefect of Police at once."
+
+Mr. Stapleton sank into a chair, and groaned. "I had hoped to have Jack
+with me by now. His poor mother is distracted. Isn't there anything, Mr.
+Duvall, that you can do?"
+
+"I hope to answer that question better, Mr. Stapleton, after I have seen
+Monsieur Lefevre. If this woman, and her companion, Valentin, are really
+the kidnappers, they are in Paris, and we shall be able to lay our hands
+on them without difficulty. If they are not, your money, at least is
+safe. I must leave you now; but as soon as I learn anything, I will
+report to you at once. Good night."
+
+He left the house, more mystified than he had ever been in his life.
+From the start, this case had apparently been one in which all the clues
+led to absurd contradictions, or else to nothing at all.
+
+In fifteen minutes he was at the Prefecture.
+
+Monsieur Lefevre sent out word that he would be occupied for a few
+moments, and the detective sat down as patiently as possible, to wait.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+
+The events of the Versailles road left Grace Duvall in a high state of
+good humor. The plan she had suggested had been a success--at least so
+far as her own part in it was concerned. How Monsieur Lefevre had fared,
+she did not yet know. She looked down at the brown paper package she
+held in her hand, and ordered Valentin to drive to the Prefecture.
+
+The day had been an eventful one. Immediately after breakfast Grace had
+gone to Mr. Stapleton's house and had a long interview with Mrs.
+Stapleton. That lady, apparently quite prostrated from worry and alarm
+over the fate of her son, received her in her boudoir, where she lay, a
+charming picture, upon a divan.
+
+Grace had no more than entered the room, when she detected the odor of
+cigarette smoke, faint but unmistakable. She glanced at the table which
+stood beside the divan upon which Mrs. Stapleton lay. On it, a tiny
+porcelain ash receiver contained a fluffy mass of gray-white ashes, and
+the half smoked remains of a cigarette. The tip, partly covered by the
+ashes, was of gold.
+
+The girl engaged her hostess in a long conversation, quieting her fears,
+which seemed real enough, and predicting the early recovery of her boy.
+It was quite evident that Mrs. Stapleton was terribly nervous. No doubt
+this accounted for the cigarettes. Although Grace did not use them
+herself, she knew how their quieting effect on the nerves made them
+almost necessities, at times, to their devotees.
+
+Presently she observed that Mrs. Stapleton held within her left hand,
+concealed beneath the folds of her kimono, a small pasteboard box, a box
+of cigarettes. Grace determined upon a bold move.
+
+"May I have one of your cigarettes, Mrs. Stapleton?" she asked, in her
+sweetest manner. "I've forgotten to bring any with me--and--you know how
+it is."
+
+Mrs. Stapleton's features relaxed into something approaching a smile.
+She had been lying there wondering whether she dared offer one to Grace,
+and thus be able to sooth her own overstrained nerves. She brought
+forth the box and extended it toward her visitor. Grace took one of the
+tiny cylinders and lit it. _It was of the same make as the one she had
+secured in Alphonse Valentin's room!_
+
+She took her departure a little later, wondering greatly. The whole
+affair had begun to take on an air of baffling contradiction.
+
+She spent the rest of the morning, and most of the afternoon, searching
+the houses near the point on the road to Versailles indicated by
+Valentin. With her were three men from the Prefect's office--silent,
+able men, in plain clothes, who pretended to be keepers from the _Jardin
+des Plantes_, in search of a dangerous cobra, which was supposed to have
+escaped from its cage the night before.
+
+The terrified householders threw open their doors with unassumed
+alacrity. The suggestion of a deadly reptile lurking in their gardens
+was a veritable open sesame. Yet no traces of the missing boy were
+found, and, more remarkable still, Grace was unable to identify any of
+the many gardens as the one in which she had seen the child playing with
+the spaniel. This disappointed her greatly. She knew well that, if
+Valentin was telling the truth, the garden was here; yet, although they
+visited every house within a quarter of a mile, they were unable to
+locate it. She remembered now that in her agitation, her eager
+examination of the child, she had not fixed upon her mind any salient
+point in the garden itself. All that she remembered was a bit of grass,
+a gravel walk, and the child playing with the dog. A dozen of the little
+enclosures presented similar features. She returned to the prefecture,
+baffled.
+
+"The fellow is undoubtedly lying," had been Monsieur Lefevre's comment.
+"He is trying to throw you off the track, in order to protect the nurse,
+and possibly Mrs. Stapleton as well. I should not be surprised to find
+that the boy's mother is the guilty person."
+
+Grace did not agree with him; so she said nothing. In spite of the fact
+that Mrs. Stapleton used cigarettes similar to those which seemed in
+some queer way to be at the bottom of the mystery, she had an intuitive
+feeling that the grief which the banker's wife showed was entirely real.
+
+At half past seven, Grace left the prefecture in a high-powered car,
+furnished by Monsieur Lefevre. Alphonse Valentin was at the wheel. In
+her hand she held a pocket electric searchlight, across the front of
+which had been affixed a circular bit of blue glass.
+
+At ten minutes to eight she arrived at Versailles. She at once ordered
+Valentin to turn and drive back toward Paris at moderate speed. She did
+not take him into her confidence regarding what she proposed to do, but
+kept a keen watch for the car containing Mr. Stapleton.
+
+Her plan had worked. Mr. Stapleton, seeing her signal, had tossed her
+the package of money--she only hoped that the other part of her plan had
+been carried out with equal success.
+
+The other part of the plan had been this: Monsieur Lefevre, who in build
+and general appearance was not unlike Mr. Stapleton, was to follow the
+latter's car in a machine of the same make and general appearance. He
+was to be driven by a chauffeur made up to resemble Francois
+sufficiently to be mistaken for him in the dim light of early evening.
+He himself was to make such alterations in his appearance and dress as
+would enable him to pass, under a cursory examination, for Stapleton. In
+the bottom of the car two armed men lay concealed.
+
+When the car containing Mr. Stapleton turned back toward Paris, after
+having unwittingly delivered the money to Grace, the Prefect would
+continue on toward Versailles. He would know that the car containing the
+kidnappers was still ahead of him; since, had it not been, it, instead
+of Grace's car, would have signaled Mr. Stapleton.
+
+Grace had started out from Versailles especially early, convinced that
+the kidnappers would not leave there until eight, at least. In this
+assumption she was correct. The car containing the kidnappers was, at
+that moment, creeping toward Paris some two miles in her rear, looking
+everywhere for Mr. Stapleton.
+
+The Prefect pursued his way toward Versailles in anxious expectancy.
+Each moment he thought to see the blue signal flash from the various
+cars which passed him. When it came, his men were to spring up, and at
+once bring the other car to a standstill by firing their guns, heavily
+charged with buckshot, at its wheels. A punctured tire, and the thing
+was done. His men, assisted by the chauffeur, would then overpower the
+occupants of the other car before they could realize what had happened.
+In it they hoped to find the child.
+
+The plan was well conceived; but unfortunately it did not work.
+Whatever the reason, none of the cars which passed the Prefect on his
+way to Versailles displayed the telltale blue light. All seemed but
+peaceable automobilists, intent on reaching Paris and its restaurants as
+quickly as possible. Had his disguise been penetrated? He could not
+believe it. He returned to the Prefecture in great disgust, wondering in
+what way matters had gone wrong.
+
+Grace was waiting for him, an eager smile on her face. "Here is the
+money," she said, placing the package on his desk. "Did you get the
+men?"
+
+"No." The Prefect flung himself into a chair. "They did not signal."
+
+"But why, I wonder?" The failure of her plan was extremely annoying.
+
+"I can think of but one reason. There must have been some way in which
+these fellows knew the Stapleton car when they approached it--some
+signal, perhaps, that I was unable to give."
+
+"But no such signal was mentioned in the instructions I brought to Mr.
+Stapleton. He gave none, as we approached him."
+
+"Did you observe anything peculiar about the appearance of his car,
+anything that might have served as a clue to enable these fellows to
+recognize it, even in the dark, with certainty?"
+
+Grace thought a moment, then her face fell. "There was one thing that I
+noticed as Mr. Stapleton's car came up to us; but I am afraid I failed
+to realize its significance at the time."
+
+"What was it?"
+
+"The electric headlight on the side nearest to me was working very
+badly. In fact, it seemed to be almost out. The other was burning
+brilliantly."
+
+The Prefect sprang to his feet. "Sacre!" he exclaimed. "Of course. The
+thing is as plain as the nose on your face!"
+
+"But who--"
+
+"Francois! The fellow is in this thing up to his neck. _He_ claims to have
+been asleep when the boy was stolen. _He_ drives the car which brings
+you back, after your abduction. _He_, disguised, steals the box of
+cigarettes. _He_ fixes the lights so that the kidnappers are advised,
+not only beyond any doubt that they are signaling the right car, but
+that all is safe--that Monsieur Stapleton has no detectives or members
+of the police hidden in his tonneau. The thing is perfectly clear.
+Believe me, my child, had there been anyone in that car with Mr.
+Stapleton, those lights would have both been burning with equal
+brightness, as mine were. They did not give me the signal, when they
+passed me, because the lights failed to tell them that all was well."
+
+Grace looked up quickly. "Then, if that is true, Francois knew that Mr.
+Stapleton had thrown the money into the wrong car."
+
+"Undoubtedly, and by this time, no doubt, his confederates know it as
+well. Naturally the child has not been delivered. We are just where we
+were before."
+
+"You will arrest Francois at once, I suppose."
+
+"No. It will be useless. By leaving him free, we may learn something. By
+locking him up, with no tangible evidence against him, we accomplish
+nothing at all."
+
+"Then what do you advise?"
+
+"You will return the money to Mr. Stapleton at once. You can tell him,
+if you wish, how it came into your possession. He will be furious, of
+course; but he must understand that the capture of these scoundrels is
+quite as important to the city of Paris as the recovery of his son. We
+have done our best, and failed. We must try again."
+
+"Richard was at the Porte de Versailles," remarked Grace, quietly. "He
+tried to stop my car."
+
+"Yes. I saw him. He is coming here at once."
+
+The girl rose, in nervous haste. "I must go, then. It would be most
+unwise to have him find me here."
+
+There was a quick knock at the door. The Prefect rose, and opened it;
+then turned to Grace with a grim smile. "Your husband is waiting in the
+anteroom," he whispered.
+
+"But--what shall I do?"
+
+"Wait in here." Monsieur Lefevre opened the door which led to his
+private office. "You can hear everything quite plainly. From what you
+tell me, I should not be surprised if he insisted upon your arrest at
+once."
+
+"It isn't fair to him. Poor Richard! I'm afraid he'll never forgive me
+for all this."
+
+"Nonsense! You are engaged in a very laudable attempt to recover Mrs.
+Stapleton's child. So is he. Your interests are identical. Only," he
+paused with a significant smile, "from my standpoint, I should much
+prefer that the credit for the boy's recovery should belong to the
+police of Paris, of which you, for the time being, are one."
+
+Richard Duvall came into the Prefect's office, somewhat ill at ease. The
+room, familiar to him because of the events of the past, reminded him
+forcibly of Grace--who had, indeed been upon his mind constantly for the
+past few days. It was here, in this very room, that she had first told
+him that she loved him--during the exciting pursuit of Victor Girard,
+and the million francs. He gazed about at its familiar aspect, and
+sighed.
+
+"Sit down, my dear Duvall," said the Prefect, shaking hands with him
+warmly. "What, may I ask, brings you to Paris, at the cost of
+interrupting your honeymoon? I had supposed that nothing could be of
+sufficient importance for that. In fact, had I known you would consider
+it for a moment, I should have cabled to you, to give me your assistance
+in a most trying case."
+
+"What case, Monsieur?"
+
+"The mysterious kidnapping of the child of Monsieur Stapleton."
+
+"It is that very case that brings me to Paris. I am in Mr. Stapleton's
+employ."
+
+Monsieur Lefevre affected to be greatly surprised. "Is it possible,
+_mon ami_? That is bad news indeed. This fellow Stapleton no longer has
+confidence in my office. He retains you to do that which he believes I
+shall fail to do. I am sorry, my dear Duvall, that we are on opposite
+sides of the fence."
+
+"But, Monsieur, I did not know that you wanted me. Mr. Stapleton is an
+old friend. I could not refuse to come to his assistance."
+
+Lefevre's eyes twinkled. "Have you made any progress, then, my friend?"
+
+"Yes. Tonight I put in operation a plan whereby I might identify an
+automobile containing the kidnappers, into which Mr. Stapleton had been
+directed to throw a package containing one hundred thousand dollars."
+
+"Indeed. You interest me. And did you succeed in identifying it?"
+
+"I did. I stopped the car, at the Porte de Versailles. I knew it to be
+the one into which the money had been thrown. The car was driven by a
+man named Alphonse Valentin, whom I have every reason to suspect is
+concerned in this affair. Its only other occupant was a woman--whom I
+met last night in Valentin's rooms, and who brought Mr. Stapleton a
+message from the kidnappers. This woman is, I believe, at the bottom of
+the whole thing."
+
+"Indeed. And did you arrest her?"
+
+"No. She claims to be an agent of your office. Vernet, who was at the
+gates at my request, refused to place her and her companion under
+arrest. She got away with Mr. Stapleton's money. I believe, Monsieur
+Lefevre, that you are being made a fool of by a member of your own
+staff."
+
+The Prefect leaned over, and picked up the package containing the money
+which lay upon his desk. "I do not agree with you, my friend. Here is
+Monsieur Stapleton's money."
+
+Duvall started back in his chair, amazed. "Good Lord, Chief, am I losing
+my senses? What is this affair, anyway, a joke?"
+
+"Far from it, Monsieur Duvall. The criminals are still at large. The boy
+is in their hands. We must recover him."
+
+"But--this money--"
+
+"I arranged to get it, in order to prevent Monsieur Stapleton from
+making a fool of himself. I wish to capture these men--not to let them
+blackmail him out of half a million francs."
+
+"Had you not interfered, Monsieur Lefevre, they would have been in my
+hands, by now. I would have had them safely the moment they attempted to
+enter Paris. I knew their car."
+
+The Prefect was filled with curiosity. "How?" he asked.
+
+"My means of a device with which Mr. Stapleton's car was equipped, the
+body of the one into which he threw the money was spattered with red
+paint. I could have identified it anywhere."
+
+"My dear Duvall! I feel that I should beg your pardon. Your plan was
+cleverness itself, and I will admit that, had I not interfered, you
+would in all probability have captured these men. I did not know what
+you had done, of course. Yet in their escape I have one consolation. It
+would have been extremely distasteful to me, to have had Mr. Stapleton
+boast that a private detective in his employ had succeeded, where the
+police of Paris had failed."
+
+"Then it would appear, Monsieur," said Duvall somewhat stiffly, "that we
+are, in this matter at least, in opposition."
+
+"Let us rather say, my friend, in competition." He placed his hand on
+Duvall's shoulder. "You must not blame me, if I feel a pride in my
+office. When you were working for the city of Paris, you, too, felt
+that pride. I am truly sorry that I have not the benefit of your
+services now. However, I think you will admit, _mon ami_, that the young
+woman who is handing this case is no mean adversary." The Prefect
+regarded the detective with a quizzical smile, behind which his eyes
+twinkled merrily.
+
+"Who is this woman?" asked Duvall, quickly.
+
+"Her name is--Goncourt--Estelle Goncourt."
+
+"A Frenchwoman?"
+
+"Partly. I believe her mother was English." The twinkle in his eye
+spread--he smiled upon the detective with expansive good humor. "Why do
+you ask?"
+
+"You will think it strange, perhaps, Monsieur Lefevre, but when I first
+saw Miss Goncourt, she reminded me strongly of my wife."
+
+"Of Grace?"
+
+"Yes. Have you not observed it?"
+
+"Now that you speak of it, perhaps there is something similar in the
+manner--the carriage. But your wife, my dear Duvall, is a blonde, while
+Mademoiselle Goncourt is decidedly a brunette."
+
+"Yes. Of course. But, nevertheless, the resemblance is striking." He
+rose to go. "I hope, Monsieur, that this kidnapped boy may be restored
+to his father very soon. I am anxious to return to America."
+
+"What! Leave Paris so quickly? My dear Duvall, I thought you Americans
+loved our city so well, that you never wanted to leave it."
+
+"Paris is all right, Monsieur; but," he laughed heartily, "I must get
+back to my wife and my farm. I was forced to leave in the very middle of
+my spring plowing."
+
+The Prefect roared. "You--a farmer! Mon Dieu! How droll! Potatoes, I
+suppose, and chickens, and dogs, and pigs--"
+
+"Exactly--and, believe me, Monsieur, they are more to my liking, than
+all the gaieties of Paris. Some day you must make us a visit, and see
+for yourself." He turned toward the door.
+
+"I shall, Duvall, I shall. But first we have to find this boy. What do
+you propose to do next?"
+
+Duvall smiled. "What do you?" he retorted.
+
+"A bottle of champagne, my friend, and a dinner at the Cafe Royale, that
+we find the child before you do!"
+
+"Done! Now I'll be off. Good night."
+
+The Prefect was still laughing when Grace peeped in from the private
+office, to find that Richard had gone. "I think it's a shame to treat
+him so," she said. "The poor fellow! And he _would_ have gotten the
+kidnappers, if we hadn't interfered."
+
+Monsieur Lefevre picked up the package containing Mr. Stapleton's money
+and placed it carefully in his safe. "Tomorrow you must return it to
+him," he said. "And then, I would suggest that you keep a close watch
+upon Mrs. Stapleton. My men have not been keeping her under
+surveillance. We have had no suspicions of her whatever. She may, if she
+is concerned in this matter, be imprudent enough to attempt to visit the
+child."
+
+"And if not?"
+
+"Then watch Francois. If nothing comes of your efforts in either
+direction, I fear that we must wait for the kidnappers to make the next
+move. Of course there is Valentin--"
+
+"Valentin is innocent."
+
+"How do you know that?"
+
+"I have watched him. He did everything in his power, tonight, to assist
+me. Had he been in league with the kidnappers, he could, after he knew
+that I had secured the money, easily have driven the car to some quiet
+spot and taken it from me. I was waiting for some such move; but he, as
+you know, did not attempt it. I am sure that he is doing his best to
+assist us."
+
+"In that event, perhaps you can induce him to tell you the secret of the
+box of cigarettes. I feel sure that this knowledge would go far toward
+solving the entire affair."
+
+"I'll have a talk with him tomorrow."
+
+"Good! And now, if you are ready, we will return home at once."
+
+"Dear old Richard!" said Grace, as the Prefect helped her into his
+automobile. "I wish I were with him tonight."
+
+Lefevre smiled, and patted her hand. "So do I, my dear. But, remember,
+you have only to find Mr. Stapleton's child, and you can return to your
+chickens and your cows with the knowledge that you have done both his
+parents and myself an inestimable service."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+
+It was close to eight o'clock next evening when Grace Duvall arrived at
+Mr. Stapleton's house with the package containing the money.
+
+She was accompanied, for safety, by two men from the Prefecture, who
+escorted her to the door.
+
+She had paid a previous visit to the house, during the forenoon; but Mr.
+Stapleton was not at home, and she was informed that he would not return
+until evening.
+
+Mrs. Stapleton she saw again; but her talk with the latter resulted in
+nothing. The poor lady was in utter despair, after the fiasco of the
+night before, and spent the day in her rooms, weeping.
+
+It was quite clear to Grace that her grief was very real. She made up
+her mind that, whatever the mystery of the gold-tipped cigarettes, Mrs.
+Stapleton had nothing to do with it. Nor had the chauffeur, Valentin,
+been more communicative. He refused pointblank to explain the presence
+of the cigarettes in his room, or the reason why Mary Lanahan had
+written requesting him to destroy them. He said that it was a matter
+which concerned only the nurse and himself, and assured Grace that an
+answer to her questions would not assist in the least in recovering the
+missing child.
+
+Mr. Stapleton was awaiting her in the library when she entered. The
+Prefect had telephoned him, advising him that the money was safe, and
+would be returned to him at once. Beyond that, he knew nothing, except
+what Duvall had told him the night before. Consequently he was in a
+decidedly bad humor.
+
+Grace laid the money on the table. "Here is your hundred thousand
+dollars, Mr. Stapleton," she said.
+
+The irate banker glared at her. "I cannot thank you for bringing it
+back, Miss," he growled. "Did I not particularly request that the police
+take no steps in the matter?"
+
+"You did, Mr. Stapleton; but we acted for what we thought to be your
+best interests."
+
+"Hang your thoughts about my best interests! I can take care of them.
+If you had let things alone, I'd have my boy back by now."
+
+"And these men, these criminals, who stole him, would be at liberty to
+do the same thing over again tomorrow."
+
+Mr. Stapleton was silent for a moment. "How did the thing happen?" he
+presently asked.
+
+Grace told him. "The real cause of our failure, we believe, lies at the
+door of your chauffeur, Francois." She explained the reasons for their
+suspicions.
+
+Mr. Stapleton seemed puzzled. "The fellow seems honest enough."
+
+"Where is he now?" Grace inquired.
+
+"He asked permission to visit his people. As I had no use for him this
+evening, I told him he might go."
+
+"Ah! In that event, we may learn something. He is being closely
+watched."
+
+As Grace spoke, a servant entered the room. "There is a gentleman to see
+you, sir," he said to Mr. Stapleton.
+
+"Who is it?"
+
+"He would not give his name. He said his business was urgent."
+
+"Where is he now?"
+
+"In the reception room, sir."
+
+Mr. Stapleton rose. "Excuse me a moment," he said, and went into the
+adjoining room.
+
+The library was separated from the reception room by a short passageway,
+or alcove, in which hung a pair of heavy curtains. Grace sat quietly,
+waiting for Mr. Stapleton to return. Suddenly she realized that she
+could distinctly hear what was going on in the room adjoining. For a
+moment she thought of going into the hall; then a word or two caught her
+attention, and in a moment she was close to the curtains, listening
+intently to a most remarkable conversation.
+
+The man who had asked to see Mr. Stapleton stood in the reception room,
+near a broad window overlooking the street without. He was tall and
+somewhat heavily built; but what at once attracted Grace's attention was
+his heavy black beard. She recognized him at once as the man who had
+broken into Valentin's room to steal the cigarettes, and had later
+driven the car which brought her back to Paris after her abduction.
+
+He was speaking to Mr. Stapleton in a quiet and assured tone, as though
+discussing a topic of no greater importance than the weather.
+
+"Mr. Stapleton," he said, "I have your son in my possession. He is
+quite safe. I gave you an opportunity to have him returned to you last
+night; but you did not avail yourself of it."
+
+"I did my best," exclaimed the astounded banker, mastering his desire to
+take the fellow by the throat.
+
+"That may be; yet my plans were interfered with. You did not carry out
+my instructions."
+
+"I did--to the letter."
+
+The man frowned. "It is useless to discuss the matter now," he growled.
+"I come to give you one more chance. It will be the last--"
+
+"You damned scoundrel!"
+
+The man with the black beard held up his hand. "It will avail nothing,
+Monsieur," he said, calmly, "to excite yourself. If you want back your
+boy, listen to what I have to say."
+
+"Very well. Go ahead."
+
+"First, I want no interference by the police, or by the man Duvall, who
+is acting for you."
+
+Mr. Stapleton drew back in astonishment. "How do you know that Mr.
+Duvall is acting for me?" he said.
+
+"It is my business to know, Monsieur. Let it suffice that I _do_ know.
+If you hope ever to see your child again, you had better listen to what
+I have to say, and carry out my instructions to the letter." His voice
+was harsh, menacing.
+
+Mr. Stapleton directed him by a gesture, to proceed. He was too angry to
+speak.
+
+"Tomorrow night at this hour--eight o'clock--I shall come here, to this
+house, and ask for you. You will hand me a package containing one
+hundred thousand dollars. I will examine the money here, and satisfy
+myself that the amount is correct.
+
+"I shall then leave the house, and walk to the Arc de Triomphe; which,
+as you know, is but a short distance away. At the Arc de Triomphe, I
+shall wait for an automobile, which will stop for me. In that automobile
+I shall drive away. If I get away safely without interference, there
+will be telephoned to your house, within half an hour, the address of
+the place where your boy is to be found. If I do _not_ get away safely,
+that address will _not_ be telephoned to you, and you will not see your
+child alive again. This is your last chance, Monsieur. It is most
+important, I assure you, that nothing should happen to prevent my safe
+departure tomorrow night."
+
+For a moment Grace was undecided as to how she should act. She feared
+greatly, under the circumstances, to make any move which would endanger
+the safety of Mr. Stapleton's child. Yet her duty, as an agent of the
+police, was clear. She must use every effort to effect this man's
+capture, before he left the house.
+
+She knew that she could not reach the street without passing the door of
+the reception room, in which case both Mr. Stapleton and his caller
+would see her. There was nothing to do but telephone. She flew to a
+small alcove room which opened off the rear of the library, in which she
+knew the telephone instrument was located. Once in this small room, she
+closed the door, for fear the others might overhear her, then called up
+the Prefecture. Monsieur Lefevre was out; but she acquainted one of his
+assistants with the circumstances, and requested him to send a man to
+the house at once.
+
+It would take at least ten minutes, perhaps more, for the man from the
+Prefecture to reach the house even though he came by automobile, as he
+no doubt would. What should she do, to keep the man in the reception
+room from leaving before the police should arrive?
+
+The question was solved for her, quite unexpectedly. In opening the
+door of the small room, to re-enter the library, she accidentally struck
+against a chair. The sound aroused both Mr. Stapleton and his visitor.
+The former, who had, in his excitement, completely forgotten Grace's
+presence, appeared at once in the doorway between the two rooms. "Come
+here, Miss Goncourt," he said sternly.
+
+Grace entered the reception room. The man with the black beard eyed her
+keenly. "Ah--a representative of the police, I believe. Our conversation
+has been overheard, then, Monsieur Stapleton?"
+
+The banker was violently angry. He turned to Grace. "You have heard?" he
+demanded.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Then I insist that you do not interfere in the matter in any way. I
+intend to get my boy back this time, in spite of you all."
+
+Grace made no reply. She saw the man with the black beard eying her
+keenly. "I think, Monsieur, that I had better go," he remarked.
+
+Grace regarded him with a level look. "You cannot leave this house," she
+said. "It is being watched. If you attempt to do so, I will give the
+alarm."
+
+"And for what reason should I stay?" the man inquired calmly.
+
+"I have telephoned to the Prefecture. A man will be here in a few
+minutes, to place you under arrest. I advise you to remain here quietly
+until he arrives."
+
+The kidnapper strolled over to the window which overlooked the Avenue
+Kleber, drew aside the curtain, and looked out. Grace wondered if he was
+making a signal of any sort to confederates outside. He gazed into the
+street intently for a moment, then turned back toward the center of the
+room. "I shall follow your advice, Mademoiselle, and wait," he remarked,
+calmly.
+
+Mr. Stapleton was speechless with rage. He dared not do anything; for he
+knew that he would only lay himself open to a charge of resisting the
+police, and helping a criminal to escape. He sat in his chair, inwardly
+cursing Grace and the entire police force of Paris as well.
+
+None of the three spoke for a considerable time. After what seemed to
+Grace ages, she heard the faint ringing of the doorbell, and presently
+the frightened servant arrived, with the information that a detective
+from the Prefecture was in the hall, and desired to see Mr. Stapleton
+immediately. He had scarcely succeeded in delivering this message, when
+a heavily built man in citizen's clothes shouldered past him into the
+room.
+
+He gazed quickly about. Grace did not remember having ever seen him
+before. "I am from the Prefect of Police," he announced, striding toward
+the kidnapper. "I am here to arrest this man." In a moment the click of
+the handcuffs, as he snapped them upon the wrists of the man with the
+black beard, came to Grace's ears.
+
+The kidnapper smiled pleasantly. "I am quite ready to accompany you, my
+friend," he said.
+
+Mr. Stapleton was regarding the scene in helpless rage. He resented
+bitterly the way in which the police continually interfered with his
+plans to get back his child. In one way, he was glad to feel that the
+guilty man was under arrest; but, if it resulted in the death of the
+missing boy, it would be a tragedy, indeed. He turned to the man with
+the black beard who stood, smiling, near the door. "I hope you will
+understand," he said, "that I have nothing to do with this
+matter--nothing whatever. The presence of this woman here was a pure
+accident. I had forgotten that she was in the next room. I'd be glad
+enough to see you put behind the bars for the rest of your life; but
+not if it is going to prevent me from getting back my child."
+
+The man with the black beard continued to smile pleasantly. "I believe
+you, my friend," he said. "However, there is no harm done. When I return
+tomorrow night--for I shall return, depend upon it, in spite of the
+efforts of this gentleman," he waved his hand lightly toward the man
+from the Prefecture, "I trust that you will have persuaded Monsieur
+Lefevre, and your man Duvall as well, to let me do so in peace. It is
+the only way in which anything can be accomplished--I assure you of
+that." He turned to his captor. "I am ready to accompany you, Monsieur."
+
+The officer started toward the door leading into the hall. He had taken
+but a single step when the servant, with a frightened look upon his
+face, appeared in the doorway. "Mr. Stapleton," he stammered, "there is
+a man here from the office of the Prefect of Police."
+
+Stapleton strode toward the door. "Another?" he exclaimed. "What does
+this mean?"
+
+The man in charge of the kidnapper stepped forward, speaking in a quick,
+low tone. "Leave the matter to me, Monsieur," he whispered. "This
+fellow who has just arrived is an impostor, a confederate. He pretends
+to be an agent of the police, in order to rescue his comrade, who has
+undoubtedly signaled to him from the window. Be good enough to step into
+that room," he pointed to the library, "and let me deal with him."
+
+Mr. Stapleton hesitated. "What do you propose to do?" he asked.
+
+"Quick!" said the other, offering no explanations. "He will be here at
+once." He turned to the astonished servant. "Bring the man in."
+
+The puzzled banker moved toward the adjoining room. "You will accompany
+him, please," the Prefect's man said to Grace. "There may be danger."
+
+"I am not afraid, Monsieur," replied Grace, who did not entirely like
+the way things were going.
+
+The man, however, paid no attention to her remonstrances. "Go--at once,
+I command you, in the name of the law!"
+
+She hesitated no longer, but followed Mr. Stapleton into the library. As
+she did so, the new arrival entered the reception room.
+
+The man with the black beard stood to one side of the doorway. His
+captor advanced toward the newcomer. "I have him here," he exclaimed,
+pointing to the kidnapper, "safely ironed."
+
+"Who are you?" curtly inquired the man who had just entered the room.
+
+"A private detective. Here is your man. Let us get him out of here at
+once."
+
+The official made no reply, but stepped quickly up to the man with the
+black beard. "Come along with me," he said, roughly, and placed his hand
+upon the other's arm.
+
+As he did so, the kidnapper shook his wrists briskly. The handcuffs fell
+clattering to the floor. Without a word he threw his powerful arms about
+the neck of the astonished official, and throttled him into instant
+silence. His companion, no less quick, whipped out a handkerchief, and
+knotted it about the official's mouth. He was unable to utter a sound.
+
+The whole thing was so quickly done that Grace, who was watching the
+room through the curtains in the doorway, had barely time to utter a
+cry, before the newcomer was lying helpless and silent upon the floor,
+choked into insensibility; while the two men, quite evidently
+confederates, made ready to go.
+
+The black-bearded fellow quickly replaced the handcuffs upon his own
+wrists. "Quick, Ramond," he cried. "Let us get out at once."
+
+Grace was by this time in the room. She knew that she must in some way
+prevent these men from escaping. But how--how? They glared at her
+ominously. The younger man drew a revolver. Before any of them could
+speak, the servant appeared in the doorway for the third time. His face
+was pale as death. His knees knocked together from terror as he beheld
+the gleaming revolver, the man lying upon the floor.
+
+"Monsieur Duvall is here!" he gasped, and stood silent.
+
+The man on the floor, recovering his senses, began to struggle to his
+feet. As he did so, Duvall pushed his way past the frightened servant
+and strode into the room.
+
+"Quick, Monsieur Duvall!" the fellow with the revolver cried. "I am from
+the Prefecture. I have one of the kidnappers in irons. The other," he
+pointed to the struggling man on the floor, "is about to escape me. Give
+me your assistance at once!"
+
+Grace was so astounded by the sudden entrance of her husband, as well as
+by the kidnapper's words, that for a moment she remained speechless.
+Duvall bent over the man upon the floor and seized him by the throat.
+
+"Richard! Richard!" Grace screamed, forgetful of Monsieur Lefevre and
+her own disguise. "Look out!"
+
+Almost before the words had left her lips, the man with the revolver
+brought it down with a dull thud upon Duvall's head as he bent over the
+prostrate man; then, grasping his companion by the arm, he rushed from
+the room.
+
+"Richard! Richard!" screamed Grace, throwing her arms about the
+senseless body of her husband.
+
+Mr. Stapleton, who had entered the room, regarded her in amazement.
+"What are you doing?" he exclaimed.
+
+Grace rose, her face white with suffering. "A doctor, quick! He is hurt!
+My God--don't you see? He is hurt!" As she spoke, she fell back,
+fainting, to the floor.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+
+When Richard Duvall returned to consciousness, an hour later, he lay
+upon a couch in Mr. Stapleton's library. A doctor, hastily summoned, was
+bending over him. Mr. Stapleton sat grimly in an arm chair. There was no
+one else in the room.
+
+"My wife! Is she here?" the detective cried, as he tried to rise.
+
+The doctor pushed him gently back. "Compose yourself, Monsieur," he said
+in a soothing voice. "You are not badly hurt. Merely stunned for the
+moment. A slight cut--that is all. You will be quite yourself again in
+half an hour."
+
+"But my wife!" He gazed eagerly about the room.
+
+"What do you mean, Duvall?" inquired Mr. Stapleton, calmly. "Why do you
+think your wife is here?"
+
+"A trace of delirium. He will be all right in a few moments. Very usual
+in such cases," the doctor whispered.
+
+"I heard her voice. She called to me by name, just as that fellow struck
+me."
+
+"My dear sir, your mind is wandering. Compose yourself, I beg." The
+doctor attempted to press his patient back upon the pillows.
+
+Duvall passed his hand over his forehead, completely bewildered. "I
+could have sworn I heard her voice," he cried.
+
+"It was Miss Goncourt, the young woman from the Prefecture, that you
+heard, Duvall," remarked Mr. Stapleton quietly. He did not tell the
+detective that Grace, on recovering from her faint, and learning from
+the doctor that Richard's wound was a superficial one only, and not at
+all serious, had sworn them both to secrecy, on the plea that the matter
+was a purely private one, and likely to cause her great unhappiness if
+divulged. Mr. Stapleton had agreed, but had done so only upon her
+agreeing not to acquaint the police with his plans for the following
+night.
+
+She had suddenly conceived a violent animosity toward these fellows who
+had not only baffled both her husband and herself, but had made the
+former a victim of a dangerous assault. She was determined to go to
+work in desperate earnest, to capture them, or locate the child, before
+the following evening. She had promised Mr. Stapleton not to acquaint
+Monsieur Lefevre with the plan for returning the child which the man
+with the black beard had proposed. The situation put her on her mettle.
+She determined to get at the bottom of the whole affair before another
+twenty-four hours had passed. Upon leaving the house she called a
+taxicab, and at once ordered the chauffeur to drive her to the point on
+the Versailles road where, according to Valentin, she had been placed in
+the automobile after her interview with the kidnappers. Here, she
+believed, lay the starting point of the whole mysterious affair.
+
+Duvall, his consciousness returning, insisted upon getting up from the
+couch, and going to work with equal determination. The way in which he
+had been checkmated, in the whole affair, roused him, as well, to
+desperation. His professional skill, upon which the banker had set such
+great store, seemed to have deserted him. He felt humiliated, ashamed.
+In three days, he had accomplished nothing whatever. It was galling in
+the extreme.
+
+Mr. Stapleton's explanations of his hallucination regarding his wife he
+accepted as true. The resemblance which Miss Goncourt bore to Grace,
+together with his constant thoughts of her, were, he argued, no doubt
+responsible for it. The blow upon the head made his recollections of the
+moments immediately preceding and following the assault extremely hazy.
+He put the matter out of his mind, and set to work with renewed energy.
+
+So far, it seemed, he had met with but a single clue of any
+importance,--the cigarette with the gold tip which he had found in the
+Bois de Boulogne. He determined to follow this clue until he arrived at
+some definite result.
+
+As soon as the doctor had departed after dressing the wound in his head,
+Duvall took a stiff drink of brandy, and, sitting down with Mr.
+Stapleton at the latter's desk, began to reconstruct, as far as he
+could, all the details of the kidnapping. He spoke his thoughts aloud,
+taking Mr. Stapleton into his confidence, since in this way he could
+most readily get his ideas into concrete form.
+
+"Mr. Stapleton, I am, I confess, greatly humiliated at the progress, or
+lack of progress, which I have made in this case so far. I have made up
+my mind, however, to get these fellows, if it takes me the rest of the
+summer."
+
+"You will have to work more quickly than that, Mr. Duvall," observed the
+banker coldly. "I have made arrangements to recover my child by tomorrow
+night."
+
+"You are going to buy these rascals off, then?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"How?"
+
+"I decline to say. I've had enough interference with my plans already.
+Neither you nor the police have accomplished anything. Miss Goncourt
+knows what I propose to do; but she has given me her word not to
+interfere. If you are to accomplish anything, it must be before eight
+o'clock tomorrow night."
+
+"Very well. I will make my plans accordingly."
+
+"What do you propose to do?"
+
+"That I cannot say, at the moment. I think, however, that I shall first
+try to find out who it is that smokes these gold-tipped cigarettes." He
+drew the fragment of cigarette which he had found from his pocket, and
+placing it on the desk before him regarded it critically.
+
+Mr. Stapleton gave a grunt. "What are they, Exquisites?"
+
+"Yes. How did you know?"
+
+The banker laughed. "Easy enough. My wife smokes them."
+
+The detective looked up quickly. "Indeed! Brings them from America with
+her, I suppose."
+
+"Yes."
+
+Duvall began mentally to check off, in his mind, the various persons who
+might have used the cigarette which lay before him. Valentin, he now
+believed, was out of the question. His presence in the automobile, with
+Grace, the night before, indicated that he had nothing to do with the
+kidnappers.
+
+There remained Mrs. Stapleton. Duvall had talked with her--seen her
+grief. He was too shrewd a judge of human nature to think for a moment
+that it was assumed.
+
+Who else? Suddenly an idea flashed into his mind. He wondered that he
+had not thought of it before. The nurse! He recalled vividly the marks
+he had observed on the dresser in the woman's room in New York.
+
+"Is Mary Lanahan in the house?" he inquired of Stapleton.
+
+"Yes. Why?"
+
+"Kindly have her come here."
+
+Mr. Stapleton pressed a button on his desk in silence. In a few moments,
+the nurse had been brought to the room by one of the other servants. She
+was haggard with grief and fear.
+
+Duvall requested her to be seated, and began to ask her a number of
+apparently unimportant questions regarding the kidnapping.
+
+She answered them frankly enough, although it was clear that she was
+very ill at ease.
+
+Presently Duvall got up, and, calling Mr. Stapleton to one side, asked
+him, in a low tone, to detain the nurse in the library for a few
+moments. He wished to search her room.
+
+"But it has already been thoroughly searched by the police."
+
+"I know. But I must search it again. It will require but a few moments."
+
+Stapleton nodded. "I will wait for you here, Mr. Duvall," he said.
+"Mary, you will wait, as well."
+
+The nurse's room was on the third floor, in a rear building. Duvall
+found it, after some slight difficulty, with the assistance of one of
+the other servants.
+
+He seemed, on entering the room, to have but one object in view. He went
+at once to the mantel, and, taking from it the two small bottle-shaped
+vases which stood upon it, shook them both vigorously. A faint rattling
+sound came from the second. He turned it upside down upon the palm of
+his hand, and there tumbled out a quantity of ashes, and the butts of
+several partly smoked cigarettes. With a quiet smile he replaced them in
+the vase, and returned to the library.
+
+"Mary, you may go now," he said.
+
+When the woman had gone, he turned to Mr. Stapleton. "It was Mary
+Lanahan herself who smoked the cigarette which I found in the grass," he
+said.
+
+"Well, what of it?" The matter seemed to the banker to be utterly
+without significance.
+
+"She had, no doubt, stolen them from Mrs. Stapleton."
+
+"Very likely. Not a very serious matter, however."
+
+"No. But the question now arises, Why did she turn the box over to
+Valentin, and subsequently ask him to destroy it?"
+
+"I cannot imagine."
+
+"And why, later, were these cigarettes stolen from Valentin, as I
+understand they were?"
+
+"It's too much for me. What do you make of it?"
+
+"I have a theory, Mr. Stapleton; but I cannot say just what it is--yet.
+By the way, where is your man, Francois, tonight?"
+
+"He is visiting his people, somewhere in the suburbs."
+
+"Ah! Then I would like to search his room, as well."
+
+"Go ahead. You will find nothing, I fear. The police have gone over it
+with a fine-tooth comb." He rose. "Come along, I'll go with you."
+
+The room occupied by the chauffeur was at the very top of the house,
+with two windows opening through the slanting mansard roof. One of
+these, Duvall noted, commanded a view over the houses adjoining toward
+the north, beyond which could be seen the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne. A
+second window, toward the south, commanded an extensive view toward
+Passy.
+
+Mr. Stapleton, puffing because of the unaccustomed stairs, sat down upon
+the bed. "I cannot imagine what you hope to find here, Duvall," he
+grumbled.
+
+The detective made no reply, but began a systematic inspection of the
+room. One of the first objects which attracted his attention was an
+ordinary electric searchlight, of the pocket variety, lying on the man's
+dresser. He picked it up, and examined it carefully.
+
+"I got it for Francois," observed Mr. Stapleton, "so that he could
+examine the car, at night, in case of any accident or repair."
+
+"Of course. Very useful, too. But why, I wonder, does he keep it here in
+his room, instead of in the garage?"
+
+"Possibly to light himself up the stairs, at night," said Stapleton.
+
+"Then I should think he would have it with him," remarked Duvall, dryly.
+"Wouldn't be of much use to him tonight, for instance." He was about to
+put the thing down, when his attention was attracted by two objects,
+hanging one on each side of the dresser, from its two uprights. They
+were apparently Christmas tree ornaments, made of thin glass, and they
+hung from the back of the dresser by means of two bits of ribbon.
+
+They seemed at first glance to be merely souvenirs of some party, some
+entertainment, which the chauffeur had preserved as mementos of the
+occasion. They were shaped like little cups, with a paper fringe about
+the top, to which the gay ribbons were attached. Duvall had seen such
+ornaments often before, at Christmas time. They were intended to be hung
+from the tree by their ribbons, and were filled with small candies or
+bonbons. He had almost passed them by, when something in their colors
+caused him to pause. One was a deep blue, the other an equally deep red.
+He examined the wooden uprights of the dresser with great care. All
+along the top of the dresser at its back was a heavy coating of dust.
+The top of the uprights, over which the loops of ribbon which supported
+the little baskets had been passed, contained no dust whatever.
+
+Evidently the baskets had been taken down, and that too quite recently.
+For what purpose? he wondered. Suddenly he had an inspiration. He took
+down the little blue basket, and quickly placed it over the end of the
+searchlight. It fitted perfectly, the paper collar at its top holding
+the glass hemisphere snugly in place.
+
+Mr. Stapleton was watching Duvall without particular interest. Suddenly
+the detective pointed the searchlight toward him and pressed the button
+which threw on the current. Mr. Stapleton started back, as his face was
+flooded with a beam of brilliant blue light.
+
+Duvall replaced the little basket in the same position in which he had
+found it, and laid the searchlight upon the dresser. "Rather neat, isn't
+it?" he exclaimed.
+
+"What do you make of it?" asked the banker.
+
+"Your man Francois evidently is in the habit of making signals," the
+detective replied, laughing. He was beginning to feel hopeful. The
+search of the two rooms was bearing fruit.
+
+For the next half-hour, Duvall went over the contents of the chauffeur's
+room with the utmost care. He removed and replaced, just as he found
+them, the contents of the dresser drawers. He opened a small wooden
+trunk which stood at one side of the room, and examined its contents
+minutely. He explored the closet, looked behind the pictures, sounded
+the walls. Nothing further of an unusual nature rewarded his efforts.
+Still he seemed unsatisfied.
+
+"What more can you hope to find, Mr. Duvall?" inquired the banker, who
+had begun to find the proceedings tiresome.
+
+The detective stood in the center of the room, and glanced about in some
+perplexity. "I had hoped to find one thing more," he said; "but I am
+afraid it isn't here."
+
+Suddenly he strode over to the mantel, upon which stood a small
+nickel-plated alarm clock of American make.
+
+"This clock doesn't seem to be going," he remarked, then whipped out his
+magnifying glass and carefully studied the brass handle which projected
+from the back, by which it was wound up. "It hasn't been wound for
+several days, either. The back is covered with dust." He picked up the
+clock and tried to wind it; but the handle resisted his efforts.
+
+In an instant he took out his knife, and a moment later was removing the
+screws which held the metal back of the clock in place.
+
+Mr. Stapleton watched him curiously. Duvall's methods savored, to him,
+of the accepted sleuth of fiction. He took little stock in the tiny
+clues upon which the whole modern science of criminology is built.
+
+In a few moments the detective had removed the screws and lifted out the
+rear plate of the clock. As he did so, he gave a grunt of satisfaction.
+A small pasteboard box fell out upon the mantel.
+
+"What is it?" asked Stapleton.
+
+"The box of cigarettes," remarked Duvall, as he opened it. "There are
+three missing. I shall take a fourth." He selected one of the
+paper-covered tubes, placed it within his pocketbook, then thrust the
+box back into the clock, and rapidly replaced the metal plate.
+
+"I don't think there is anything further to be done here, Mr.
+Stapleton," he remarked. "I think I'll be getting along to my room.
+Tomorrow I shall be quite busy."
+
+He stopped for a moment, on his way out, to glance from the window which
+faced toward the north. Between the buildings and trees ran the Avenue
+du Bois de Boulogne, its course illuminated by many street lamps, and
+the flashing lights of passing motor cars. Duvall gazed intently at the
+scene before him for a few moments, then turned to the door, and,
+accompanied by Mr. Stapleton, descended the stairs.
+
+As he was about to leave the house, the banker, who evidently had
+something on his mind, stopped him.
+
+"Mr. Duvall," he said, earnestly, "I would like very much to know what
+you intend to do."
+
+"I'm going to catch these fellows, if I possibly can," the detective
+replied, earnestly.
+
+"What steps do you propose to take?"
+
+"I cannot exactly say--yet. Why do you ask?"
+
+"I'll tell you. The fellow who was here tonight, the one with the black
+beard, is coming to see me tomorrow night, at eight o'clock. I cannot
+tell you more than that. I did not intend to tell you that much--but I
+am obliged to do so."
+
+"Obliged! Why?"
+
+"Because I want your promise that you will make no attempt to stop him.
+If I had said nothing, you might have watched the house, and, upon
+recognizing the fellow as the one who was here tonight, have placed him
+under arrest. I want you to do nothing to interfere with either his
+coming or his going. He will be safe, after he once leaves the Arc de
+Triomphe in his automobile."
+
+"But the police?"
+
+"They know nothing of the matter. Miss Goncourt has given me her word to
+remain silent. She has even agreed to have the men on watch about the
+house withdrawn. Both you and the police may do your best to catch this
+man, after I have carried out my compact with him; but until then I
+want you to keep your hands off."
+
+Duvall was silent for a moment. "Very well, Mr. Stapleton, I shall do as
+you say. In fact, to assure you that I am carrying out your wishes, I
+will agree to remain here with you, at the house, throughout the
+evening."
+
+"Good! I shall expect you. Good night."
+
+"Good night." Duvall left the house, and went at once to his hotel.
+
+Here, a few moments later, he seated himself in an easy chair, and
+taking from his pocket the cigarette which he had secured in the
+chauffeur's room, regarded it critically.
+
+After some little time, he took a match from a box upon a nearby table,
+and, placing the gold tip of the cigarette between his lips, carefully
+lit it.
+
+He drew the smoke into his lungs, inhaling it deeply. Once--twice--three
+times he repeated the operation, then threw himself back into his chair,
+and, closing his eyes, sat buried in thought. In his preoccupation, he
+allowed the end of the cigarette to fall unheeded to the floor.
+
+After many minutes he opened his eyes and started up. "I've got it!" he
+cried, and, picking up the half-burned cigarette from the floor, threw
+it carelessly into the fireplace.
+
+Then he sat down at his table, drew out a sheet of paper and a map of
+the city of Paris, and began to make a series of drawings and
+calculations that occupied him far into the night.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+
+It was nearly ten o'clock when the taxicab containing Grace Duvall
+stopped alongside the road, at a point some four miles beyond the city,
+in the direction of Versailles. She had been unable to give the driver
+the exact location at which she desired to be put down, but had directed
+him to drive on until she told him to stop.
+
+The spot was quite familiar to her, owing to the hours she had spent in
+the vicinity with the searching party the day before.
+
+The taxicab driver seemed rather surprised to see her alight at this
+somewhat lonely spot; but he shrugged his shoulders with true Parisian
+indifference, pocketed the tip she gave him, and drove rapidly off in
+the darkness.
+
+Left to herself by the roadside, Grace began to fear that she had, after
+all, done a rather foolish thing. Now that she was here, she hardly knew
+how to begin.
+
+All about her she saw the dark outlines of cottages among the trees,
+with here and there a straggling light which betokened some household
+late in getting to bed. The country people in this vicinity--growers of
+flowers and vegetables or dairymen for the most part--were asleep with
+their cows about the time that Paris began to dine.
+
+Occasionally the silence about her was broken by the mournful howling of
+a dog; but otherwise all was still.
+
+The night was cloudless, and the lightening of the sky toward the east
+told her that before long a moon would rise above the trees.
+
+Near the road she found a little rustic bench, and upon this she sat
+down to think.
+
+The howling of the dog had suggested to her mind a possible clue to the
+house within which Mr. Stapleton's boy had been, for a time at least,
+confined. She could remember nothing of the garden, and but little of
+the room in which she had been confined; but the dog, playing upon the
+grass with the child, had fixed itself in her memory. She recollected
+distinctly that he was a poodle, mostly black, with fine curling hair,
+like astrakhan fur, and a pointed nose.
+
+There were many dogs of this sort, she well knew, and yet there was one
+peculiarity which had impressed itself upon her memory, which would
+inevitably serve to identify this particular dog, should she ever see
+him again. His long and bushy tail, black for the most part like the
+rest of his body, terminated in a plume of white hair.
+
+It was a most unusual marking in a French poodle. She had never seen it
+before, and she was a great lover of dogs, and knew them thoroughly. It
+was this fact, no doubt, which had caused her to notice the animal, at a
+time when her mind was filled with matters of vastly greater importance.
+
+She had sought carefully for such a dog, on the occasion of the previous
+search, but had not found him. The tale about the escaped cobra had
+caused the country folk to lock up their pets without loss of time.
+
+Now she hoped to find this dog, and through him discover the location of
+the house in which she had been confined. After that--well, she would do
+the best she could.
+
+It occurred to her that she was not at all likely to discover the
+whereabouts of the black poodle by sitting here on a bench; yet she
+dared not start out until the moon had risen sufficiently high to light
+up her way.
+
+In about an hour, the rim of the golden disk showed itself above the
+treetops, and a little later the black shadows about her began to grow
+luminous, and resolve themselves into white-walled cottages, hedges, and
+outbuildings of various sorts.
+
+A narrow lane ran off from the main road, bordered on each side by
+lindens and poplars.
+
+Along this lane the houses of the little hamlet were set, some near the
+road, others quite a distance back. She rose, and began to walk slowly
+along the lane.
+
+As she had expected, dogs of various sorts and sizes, to judge by their
+voices, began barking as soon as she came opposite the first house. A
+small fox terrier ran through the gateway of a garden, yelping sharply.
+The deep-toned baying of a hound sounded farther up the street. A small
+white poodle, and a black one of the same size, ran after her, as she
+went along, making friendly attempts to play. The one she sought,
+however, seemed nowhere in evidence.
+
+The lane ascended a gently sloping hill, at the top of which stood a
+house, somewhat larger than the others, whose outbuildings and pastures
+proclaimed it to be a dairy farm. There was a hedge of roses along the
+roadside, and a little wooden gate.
+
+Grace heard a sharp bark on the other side of the gate as she passed it,
+and, stopping, glanced over. In the shadow stood a black poodle; but
+whether his tail showed the markings for which she sought she was unable
+to tell on account of the darkness. She gave the gate a gentle push, and
+it slowly opened. The dog ran out into the road. As he crossed a patch
+of moonlight, she saw that her search was ended. This, she was
+convinced, was the dog--and the house!
+
+Her next problem was how to get inside. Try as she would, she could
+think of no excuse which would adequately account for her presence in
+this little frequented locality at such a time of night. That the
+occupants of the house had long ago retired was evidenced by the
+blackness of the windows, the silence which brooded over the whole
+place.
+
+She looked about her. Just across the lane from the little gate a
+building loomed formless against a shadowy clump of trees. She went
+over to it, and found that it was a small shed. The door stood open.
+Inside stood a tumbledown old wagon, dust covered, and quite evidently
+unused for a long time. The shelter of the shed seemed grateful--as
+though she had arrived somewhere, instead of being a wanderer in the
+night.
+
+There seemed nothing to do, now, but wait for daylight. She climbed into
+the creaking wagon and sat upon the seat. There was a back to it, which,
+like the seat, was covered with old and torn velveteen. She leaned back
+in the shadow and closed her eyes. Her walk, the night air, had made her
+tired. In the distance she heard, after a long time, the faint booming
+of a bell. She looked at her watch. It was midnight.
+
+The next thing that Grace remembered was the loud barking of a dog. She
+sat up, feeling stiff and cold. Her neck and left shoulder ached
+painfully. A glance through the open door of the shed told her that it
+was still night; but there was a gray radiance in the air, a soft pale
+light, that betokened the coming of dawn.
+
+She crept stiffly down from the wagon, and again consulted her watch. It
+marked the hour of four. Through a dusty window in the side of the shed
+she saw the eastern sky, rose streaked and bright, heralding the sun.
+
+As the light increased, she saw the dog that had disturbed her sleep
+running about on the grass in front of the house opposite. The house
+seemed much nearer, in the daylight, than it had appeared at night. She
+examined the dog closely. The white tip of his tail, waving gaily in the
+morning light, showed her that it was the one she had sought.
+
+She crouched in the dim shadow of the half-open door and watched the
+scene before her. There was a man, moving about among the small
+buildings to the right. She heard him performing some task--she could
+not at first make out what. Presently the lowing of cattle, the rattle
+of a bucket, as it was drawn up by a creaking windlass, told her that
+the man was tending his cows.
+
+Quite half an hour later she saw him going toward the house, a pail,
+evidently well filled, in each hand.
+
+Then ensued another long silence. The curling wisp of smoke from the
+chimney of the cottage indicated breakfast, and Grace suddenly realized
+that she felt cold, and hungry. For the first time in her life she
+realized how important one's breakfast is, in beginning the day.
+
+Presently the man reappeared and went toward a small building which
+Grace took to be the barn. She could see him clearly now; for the sun
+had risen above the trees and lit up the whole scene brilliantly. He was
+a small, wizened man, with gray hair and a slight stoop. She was quite
+certain that she had never seen him before.
+
+He went to the barn, and she saw that he was engaged in harnessing a
+horse, which he presently attached to a farm wagon. She noted the wagon
+particularly. It was a low two-wheeled affair, with a dingy canvas top.
+A large patch in the canvas showed yellow-white in the sunlight. The
+horse was white.
+
+In a little while the man began to put in the cart a variety of objects
+which he brought from the barn. They appeared to be baskets of
+vegetables or fruit, and cans of milk. Presently he stopped, and went
+toward the house. In a few minutes he returned. This time a woman was
+with him. They carried between them a large wicker basket, which
+appeared to be quite heavy. There was a top on the basket. Grace
+wondered if it could be filled with laundry.
+
+The couple placed the basket in the wagon, putting it in from the front,
+so that it occupied a position close beside the driver. In getting it up
+over the wheel the woman let her end of it slip, and the man cursed her
+with such sudden sharpness that Grace was startled and crouched back
+into the shed. She wondered what the basket could contain, that made the
+man so careful, and the thought came to her, might it not be Mr.
+Stapleton's boy?
+
+The idea possessed her completely. As the man drove out into the lane,
+and rattled down the hill toward the main road, she suddenly realized
+that she must follow; yet how could she hope to do so, on foot? The
+woman had gone back into the house. Regardless of consequences, Grace
+ran out into the lane, and after the wagon at full speed.
+
+When she reached the main road the vehicle had already turned into it
+and was some distance away, headed for Paris, at a speed which, slow for
+a horse, was still much faster than she could possibly walk.
+
+She looked up and down the road helplessly. There were several other
+wagons approaching, all going in the same direction--cityward. She
+realized that they were country people, farmers, taking their vegetables
+and flowers to the markets.
+
+The first one to reach her was driven by a buxom-looking young woman,
+wearing a plaid shawl. Grace hailed her. "Will you be so good, Madame,
+as to take me to Paris?"
+
+The woman glanced at her shrewdly. "I have a heavy load, Mademoiselle,"
+she replied. Her voice was cold, uninterested.
+
+"I will pay you five francs--"
+
+The words had barely left Grace's lips, before the woman had pulled up
+her horse. "Five francs, Mademoiselle? That is another matter. Get in."
+
+Grace clambered up beside the woman and glanced down the road ahead. The
+canvas-covered wagon was still in sight--mounting a hill some three or
+four hundred yards ahead.
+
+The woman looked at her curiously, noting her dress, her hands, her
+shoes. "You are not of the country, Mademoiselle," she remarked,
+pleasantly.
+
+"No. I belong in Paris." She turned to her companion. "I should like to
+return there as quickly as possible."
+
+"My Susette does not care to go above a walk," the woman remarked,
+gazing at her horse, plodding along with mechanical steps, as though
+utterly unconcerned as to whether or not they ever reached Paris. The
+wagon ahead was now out of sight, over the brow of the hill.
+
+"Would you like to make a louis?" Grace took a gold piece from her purse
+and held it in the sunlight. It glistened brightly.
+
+The woman drew back, regarding her companion suspiciously. "A louis? Who
+would not? What do you mean, Mademoiselle?"
+
+"There is a wagon ahead of us, a canvas-covered wagon, with a white
+horse. I am following it. If you will keep that wagon in sight until we
+get to Paris, I will give you this louis."
+
+She turned the gold piece about, making it sparkle in the sun. The woman
+glanced first at her face, then more carefully at the coin, then,
+reaching over, took it in her fingers, and raised it to her mouth. Grace
+wondered what she was about to do. In a moment she had sunk her teeth
+into it, then returned it to her companion. "It shall be as you say,
+Mademoiselle," she exclaimed as she pulled in the reins. "Allons,
+Susette!"
+
+The horse, evidently awakened from his morning dreams, started forward
+with a suddenness which almost precipitated Grace from her seat. The
+trees along the roadside began to fly past them. In ten minutes they
+were close behind the canvas-covered wagon, now moving along at a brisk
+pace.
+
+When they reached the fortifications, the two wagons were separated by
+not more than a dozen feet. Grace's companion glanced at her sharply.
+"From here I go to Grennelle, Mademoiselle," she exclaimed.
+
+Grace looked at the wagon ahead. "Follow it, please," she said. "I will
+give you another five francs."
+
+The woman obeyed in silence. The wagon in front of them headed off
+toward the northwest, going in the direction of Passy. Before a great
+while it crossed the Pont de Passy, turned into the Rue Nicolo, and came
+to a stop before a small brick house, standing in a little garden.
+
+Grace jumped down at the corner, after giving the woman the louis and
+the additional five francs. "Thank you," she said, and started slowly up
+the street.
+
+The wagon with the canvas cover stood quietly alongside the curb. The
+old man who drove it had approached the door of the house, and was
+ringing the bell.
+
+Presently one of the windows on the top floor was thrown open, and a
+man's head was thrust out. Grace could not see his face clearly. He
+looked down at the man at the door, who at the same time looked up. The
+window was instantly closed, and a few moments later the door of the
+house opened and the man came out.
+
+He stood talking with the driver in low tones for a few moments. Grace
+had walked on up the street, fearing to attract attention. Looking back,
+she saw that the two men were gazing after her. She dared not turn her
+head again, but at the next corner turned into a cross street. Then she
+stopped, and cautiously peered around the corner. The two men had gone
+to the wagon and were lifting out the large basket. A few moments later
+they disappeared with it into the house.
+
+After a time, the old man returned with the basket in his hands. From
+the way he carried it Grace could see that it was empty. He tossed it
+carelessly into the wagon, mounted the seat, and drove off.
+
+Grace looked at her watch. It was half past seven. She felt cold and
+hungry, and determined to get something to eat at once. A little pastry
+cook's shop and restaurant on the opposite side of the street attracted
+her attention, and she crossed over, entered, and ordered rolls and
+coffee. She could see the windows of the house into which the two men
+had carried the basket, from where she sat.
+
+She scarcely knew what to do next. It seemed almost certain that Mr.
+Stapleton's child was in the house across the way, and yet--it was
+merely an intuition, a guess, which might turn out to be entirely wrong.
+Yet she feared to go away, not knowing at what moment the child, if he
+was indeed there, might be taken elsewhere, and the clue hopelessly
+lost.
+
+She finished her rolls and coffee, taking as much time to consume them
+as she could. She had just made up her mind to go, when the door of the
+house across the street opened, and a man came out. He was dark, and
+heavily built, and dressed in the costume affected by artists. He headed
+directly for the pastry shop, and Grace realized that he was about to
+enter it.
+
+She turned her face away, fearing lest he might have noticed her, as she
+walked up the street. He did not even glance in her direction, however,
+but went at once to a counter at the rear of the place.
+
+The proprietor came up to him with a smile, rubbing his hands together
+cheerily. "Ah! Monsieur Durand. Up early this morning, I see. What can I
+do for you?"
+
+She did not catch the other's reply, nor did she dare to glance at his
+face. She shrank back into her corner, and, picking up a newspaper which
+lay in the window sill, began to read.
+
+The new customer remained but a few moments. When he left, Grace saw
+that he carried a large paper bag with him, which appeared to contain
+rolls or bread.
+
+He again entered the house, but this time remained inside but a few
+moments. A little later she left the shop, and watched him as he
+disappeared down the street.
+
+For half an hour she walked about, wondering whether she should
+telephone Monsieur Lefevre now, or wait until she had made certain that
+the whole affair was, after all, not a wild goose chase. Suddenly she
+was seized with a new determination. She went boldly up to the house,
+and rang the bell.
+
+In a few moments a sleepy-looking maid opened the door, eying Grace with
+lazy indifference.
+
+"I wish to see Monsieur Durand," the latter said.
+
+"He's out."
+
+"Then I must wait. I am a model. He instructed me to come at eight
+o'clock, and to wait until he returned."
+
+The girl shrugged her shoulders, and pointed to the stairs. "Top floor
+front," she grumbled, and turned away.
+
+Grace lost no time in getting up the stairs. To her surprise, the door
+of the studio, upon which was a card bearing Monsieur Durand's name, was
+unlocked. She pushed her way boldly in, and looked about. The room was
+scantily furnished, and contained little besides a couple of modeling
+stands, several large plaster figures and casts, two chairs, and a
+couch, evidently used as a bed. At the rear of the room was a closet.
+She turned to it and threw it open. It contained only an assortment of
+clothes.
+
+She felt completely baffled. There was no possible place, here, in which
+the child she was seeking could be hidden. Evidently she had been on
+the wrong track. And yet--what had the wicker basket contained?
+
+Suddenly she stopped, quivering with excitement. From somewhere in the
+room--she could not tell where--there came a low sobbing sound, as of a
+child, crying to itself. It vibrated throughout the room, at one moment
+close to her ears, the next far off, intangible, like a whispered echo.
+She stood, listening, every nerve tense with excitement, and still that
+low sobbing went on, coming from nowhere, evanescent as a dream.
+
+The thing seemed unreal, horrifying. She gazed about helpless. Then she
+heard the front door of the house suddenly slam, followed by the sound
+of heavy footsteps on the stairs.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+
+Richard Duvall rose, the following day, with a less troubled mind than
+at any time since his arrival in Paris.
+
+His calculations of the night before had brought him to a definite
+conclusion.
+
+After breakfasting in the cafe of the hotel he returned to his room, and
+rang up Monsieur Lefevre.
+
+"I want the assistance of one of your men, Monsieur," he said.
+
+"Ah!" laughed the Prefect. "You are--what you Americans call--up a tree,
+is it not?"
+
+"Not at all. You have said that there existed between us a competition,
+to recover Mr. Stapleton's child. I think I am going to win. But since I
+am not in a position to make the necessary arrests, myself, I am going
+to share the glory with you, my dear friend, by allowing one of your men
+to do so for me."
+
+"So you are confident?"
+
+"Reasonably so. Can you spare Vernet for the day? He is a good man."
+
+"One of my best. You shall have him. And if you succeed, I shall still
+regard myself the loser, and will buy the champagne, and the dinner at
+the Cafe Royale, as I agreed."
+
+"And I shall be most happy to do the same should I fail. Oblige me by
+requesting Vernet to come to my rooms at the hotel at once. Good by."
+
+Duvall hung up the receiver, and sat down with the drawings he had made
+before him. He awaited the coming of Vernet with impatience.
+
+The latter appeared in some twenty minutes.
+
+"What can I do for you, Monsieur Duvall?" he asked.
+
+"Good morning, Vernet. Sit down, and have a cigar. I have a little
+matter I wish to talk over with you."
+
+"Concerning the missing child of Monsieur Stapleton, I understand,"
+remarked Vernet, as he lit a cigar and drew his chair up to the table.
+He glanced at the drawings before him. "What are these, may I ask?"
+
+Duvall took up his pencil. "This, Vernet, is a map of a small part of
+Paris. Here, as you see, is the Avenue Kleber, terminating at the
+Champs Elysees just in front of the Arc de Triomphe."
+
+"I see. It is quite plain."
+
+"Here--this black square--is Mr. Stapleton's house. From there to the
+arch is a matter of some six hundred yards."
+
+"About that, I should say. What of it?"
+
+"Wait. The black-bearded fellow--the kidnapper--who visited Mr.
+Stapleton last night, and escaped by the ruse of being arrested by one
+of his confederates, will arrive at Mr. Stapleton's house at eight
+o'clock tonight."
+
+"Mon Dieu! If that is so, we have him!"
+
+"Not so fast. We shall not interfere with him--then."
+
+"But, Monsieur, would you let this fellow escape? It is my duty to
+arrest him, as soon as he puts in an appearance."
+
+"You are mistaken, Vernet. Your duty is to do as I instruct you.
+Monsieur Lefevre has placed you under my orders for the day."
+
+Vernet laughed. "That is so," he said. "What do you wish me to do?"
+
+"The man will come to Mr. Stapleton's house at eight o'clock, and will
+be given a large sum of money. He has agreed, if he is not interfered
+with, to have the address where the boy may be found telephoned to Mr.
+Stapleton within half an hour."
+
+"Ah! Then we shall follow, and get him after he has telephoned."
+
+Duvall laughed. "We are dealing with a far shrewder man than that,
+Vernet. This fellow will do no telephoning."
+
+"Then how will he let Monsieur Stapleton know?"
+
+"That is just what I am trying to find out. Put yourself in his place.
+He is known--he dare not remain in Paris--he gets five hundred thousand
+francs to give up the child. Is it not natural to suppose that he will
+leave the city at once?"
+
+"Yes. That is what I should do, in his place."
+
+"Of course. Now I understand that the fellow will walk from Mr.
+Stapleton's house to the Arc de Triomphe, a distance of six hundred
+yards. He can do that easily in ten minutes."
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Once at the arch, he will stand awaiting a fast automobile, which will
+come along the Champs Elysees. This automobile will stop for an instant
+and pick him up, then proceed at high speed along the Avenue du Bois de
+Boulogne."
+
+"Why do you think that?"
+
+"Because it will afford him the quickest and safest road out of Paris.
+From the arch to the Porte Dauphine is less than a mile. He can make it
+in five minutes. In fifteen minutes altogether then, he is outside the
+walls. In another fifteen minutes, he is beyond pursuit, in the
+country."
+
+"But you forget, Monsieur Duvall, that he has not yet advised his
+confederates that all is well, and that the address of the place where
+the boy is hidden is to be telephoned to Mr. Stapleton."
+
+"No, Vernet, I haven't forgotten that. In fact, I am coming to it now.
+Suppose you were in this fellow's place--how would you do it?"
+
+Vernet scratched his head thoughtfully. "He might fire a pistol from the
+car."
+
+"Too dangerous. The noise of the explosion would attract attention. He
+must work silently."
+
+"A wave of the hand, perhaps, to someone along the street."
+
+"Also dangerous. This fellow realizes that every possible step will be
+taken to capture not only himself, but his confederates. He anticipates,
+no doubt, that the road will be carefully watched. Why take chances,
+and run the risk of his confederates, at least, being arrested, when
+there are simpler, easier ways?"
+
+"Such as what?"
+
+"Do you not remember the signal, used on the Versailles road, the blue
+light?"
+
+"Ah! Exactly. He will signal to some one in a house along the way."
+
+"That would be easier and safer; but you will remember that there are no
+houses along the way--none, at least, in which a man of this sort could
+have a confederate hidden. But I should not say none. There is one,
+perhaps."
+
+"Indeed, Monsieur. And what house is that?"
+
+"Mr. Stapleton's. Look!" He drew toward him the sheet of paper. "Here,"
+he placed the point of his pencil upon the black square which indicated
+the location of the banker's residence, "is the house. The north window
+of a room on the top floor commands a view of the Avenue du Bois de
+Boulogne, from a point some 500 feet west of the Arc de Triomphe, to
+where it intersects the Avenue Malakoff. Beyond there, the view is
+interrupted. In fact, the trees along the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne are
+to some extent an obstruction; but at the crossing with the Avenue
+Malakoff there is a wide and uninterrupted view."
+
+"But a confederate in Monsieur Stapleton's own house?"
+
+"Yes. The chauffeur, Francois."
+
+"You astonish me, Monsieur. We have suspected the fellow, it is true.
+The very room of which you speak has been searched. We found nothing.
+How do you know that what you say is true?"
+
+"Never mind how I know it--now. The point is this--Francois, I fully
+believe, will be in that room, tonight, at eight o'clock, watching
+carefully the automobiles which pass the intersection of the Avenue
+Malakoff--"
+
+"Not necessarily, Monsieur. We can easily prevent it, by placing him
+under arrest."
+
+"That is exactly what we must _not_ do. Don't you see, it is absolutely
+necessary, for the recovery of Mr. Stapleton's child, that the signals
+go through uninterrupted?"
+
+"Of course, I had forgotten that. And these signals?"
+
+"Naturally I cannot tell--yet. I think, however, that the automobile for
+which Francois will be looking will show a brilliant blue light, while
+crossing the Avenue Malakoff. That is, of course, if our friend the
+kidnapper gets safely away, without being pursued."
+
+"And otherwise?"
+
+"I think the light would be red. He can make either, very simply, by
+means of a powerful electric searchlight--one of these pocket affairs,
+you know, fitted with colored glasses."
+
+"You interest me wonderfully, Monsieur Duvall. What next?"
+
+"It is, of course, most important that the signal given shall be the
+correct one. There must be no interference whatever with this fellow's
+escape--_up to that point_."
+
+"Ah--I begin to see. And what after that?"
+
+"First, let us continue with Francois. He will, I think, return a blue
+signal to the man in the automobile, to show that he has seen, and
+understood. He has the means to do so all ready, in his room."
+
+"And then?"
+
+"He will make, I think, a similar signal from his south window to some
+one who is on watch, in the direction of Passy. This second person, who
+no doubt has the child in his care, will then go to a telephone,
+transmit the address of the house where the child is hidden, to
+Mr. Stapleton, and quietly depart, to join his confederate
+in--say--Brussels. He will run not the slightest risk of capture. If, on
+the other hand, that message fails to go through, the address will _not_
+be telephoned, and the child will probably be killed."
+
+Vernet frowned grimly. "It is a remarkable plan, Monsieur. These fellows
+are no bunglers. I think, however, that we shall be able to stop them."
+
+"How?"
+
+"I will station myself at the Porte Dauphine with a fast automobile, a
+racer. When these fellows pass, I will follow them, and overtake them."
+
+"An excellent idea, Vernet; but how, may I ask, will you know the car,
+when it passes you? There are hundreds of cars on the Avenue du Bois de
+Boulogne, at eight o'clock in the evening."
+
+Vernet laughed. "I confess, Monsieur, you have me there."
+
+"Of course you might station a man at the intersection of the Avenue
+Malakoff and the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne; but I do not think he
+would be able to see the signal. By placing on the end of the
+searchlight a paper tube, the light would be invisible except in the
+direction in which it is pointed--and that, you will remember, is
+diagonally upward. A man on the sidewalk would not see it at all."
+
+"Then, Monsieur, I fail to see that there is anything we can do."
+
+"There is one thing, Vernet. You forget the answering signal, from the
+window."
+
+The Frenchman looked at his companion with undisguised admiration.
+"Sacre!" he exclaimed. "You have a mind, Monsieur Duvall, in a
+thousand."
+
+"Thanks," answered Duvall, dryly. "Now, my idea is, to have you select
+some point near the intersection of the two avenues, from which the
+window in the rear of Mr. Stapleton's house can be clearly seen. Station
+yourself there, tonight, with the fastest automobile you can secure. Let
+one man watch the window, another the vehicles passing in the Avenue du
+Bois de Boulogne. The moment you see the blue light, start after your
+man. He should be just across the intersection, on his way down the
+Avenue du Bois de Boulogne."
+
+Vernet rubbed his hands together with satisfaction. "We shall get
+him--never fear."
+
+"Of course," said Duvall, slowly, "all this is pure assumption on my
+part, based upon what I have discovered in the chauffeur's room. It may
+not turn out as I say, but the chances are fifty to one that it will."
+
+"And you, Monsieur? Where will you be?"
+
+"I shall be in the room, with Francois. I do not propose that _he_ shall
+escape. And further--I do not know that I am correct, in my assumption
+regarding his signals to Passy. He may go out, and send the telephone
+message himself. In that case, I shall follow. Or he may, through some
+unforeseen accident, get the wrong signal, in which case I propose to
+overpower him, and give the right one. Suppose we go, now, and take a
+look at the intersection of the Avenue Malakoff and the Avenue du Bois
+de Boulogne, and see what arrangements can best be made. Also, if Mr.
+Stapleton is out in his car, we may be able to take a few observations
+from his chauffeur's window." He took up his hat, lighted a cigar, and
+led the way to the door.
+
+They drove to the Arc de Triomphe in a cab, and, after dismissing it,
+walked slowly down the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne. At the intersection
+with the Avenue Malakoff they stopped and gazed about carefully,
+although in such a way as not to attract attention. A brief inspection
+served to confirm all that Duvall had said. It took them some little
+time to locate the window in the rear of Mr. Stapleton's house; but
+after a time they managed to do so, and saw that it commanded an
+uninterrupted view of the point where they stood.
+
+Vernet was highly satisfied, as they parted. It was deemed unnecessary
+for him to visit the chauffeur's room, and thereby run the risk of their
+being seen entering the banker's house together. Vernet departed to make
+his arrangements for the evening, strictly cautioned by his companion
+not to let Monsieur Lefevre into his secret. "It is a bet," he told
+Vernet. "I hope we shall succeed in winning it."
+
+After his companion had departed, Duvall dropped in to see Mr.
+Stapleton. He learned that the banker was out, driving in the Bois with
+Mrs. Stapleton, who, overcome by anxiety and grief, had great need of
+the fresh air to retain her health. She was fast breaking down under the
+strain.
+
+Duvall went up to have another look at the chauffeur's room. He had been
+unable to get a thoroughly clear idea of the view from the window, the
+night before, owing to the darkness.
+
+He found everything as he had left it,--the searchlight on the dresser,
+the colored glass ornaments hanging from their gay ribbons. The north
+window overlooked with perfect clearness the intersection of the two
+avenues, as he and Vernet had seen them from below. The other window
+presented a more distant view. Nearby roofs and chimneys obstructed it
+in part; but between them could be seen the villas and buildings in
+Passy, smiling in the sunlight. The sight impressed Duvall the more
+strongly with the cleverness of the men he sought to arrest. Somewhere
+in all that maze of buildings, that wide vista of houses and trees and
+distant fields, Mr. Stapleton's child lay concealed, and it needed but a
+flash of light from this window to set him free. Passing his fingers
+idly along the window sill, Duvall suddenly observed two parallel
+scratches in the white paint, which had apparently been made with the
+point of a knife. He knelt down, and sighted between them. His line of
+vision swept clear of the nearby roofs and chimneys, toward Passy.
+
+The detective turned from the window, a smile of satisfaction on his
+face, and proceeded to make a careful examination of the chauffeur's
+closet. It was here that he intended to lie hidden. He felt certain
+that, in order the better to perceive and send his signals, as well as
+to escape detection from below, the chauffeur would allow his room to
+remain unlighted.
+
+This, Duvall reasoned, would render it easy for him to lie concealed
+until the signal which would insure the safe return of the lost child
+had been given, after which he would call upon Francois with precision
+and despatch. Should anything occur to prevent the chauffeur from giving
+the favorable signal, he proposed to give it himself.
+
+The closet was close to the north window, and its door opened in such a
+way that Duvall saw at once that in the darkened room he could readily
+open it sufficiently to see all that Francois did, without running any
+serious risk of detection.
+
+He left the house at a little after noon and stopped in at a well known
+restaurant on the Boulevard des Italiens for lunch. He felt very well
+satisfied with the course that events were taking. If only he could get
+through with this thing, and get back to Grace, and the farm, he would
+be supremely happy. He became so absorbed in his thoughts that he failed
+to notice a gentleman who slipped quietly into the chair opposite him,
+until the latter leaned over and touched his arm.
+
+He looked up suddenly. It was Monsieur Lefevre!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+
+The few seconds that elapsed while Grace Duvall stood in the deserted
+studio in Passy, waiting for the arrival of the person who was ascending
+the stairs, seemed like eternities, so crowded were they with terror.
+
+What should she do--what, indeed, could she do? A dozen plans raced
+madly through her brain, confusing her, baffling her with their
+futility.
+
+That the missing boy was within the sound of her voice, she knew; for
+even as she stood trembling at the ominous footsteps on the creaking
+stairs, she could hear the low troubled childish moaning, coming
+apparently from the very air in front of her, yet affording not the
+slightest clue as to the boy's whereabouts.
+
+She glanced about the room in desperation. Nearer and nearer came the
+creaking footfalls on the stairs. She dared not leave the room now, and
+thereby meet the approaching man face to face on the landing; yet to
+remain where she was would result only in her being obliged to make some
+lame and halting excuse for her presence, and go, as soon as the man
+entered the room.
+
+Even this she could not count upon. The fellow, no doubt a desperate and
+unscrupulous ruffian, might attack her, might detain her a prisoner
+until the child had been safely removed to another place, beyond all
+hope of discovery. All the work of the past twelve hours would come to
+nothing. And even should he let her go, in safety, he could not fail to
+suspect the reasons for her presence and warn his companions.
+
+Clearly the only thing to do was to remain in the room, in hiding. There
+was but one place in which she could hope to escape instant
+detection--the closet. Yet even this promised but temporary safety; the
+man would be almost certain to open it, for some reason or other, and
+discover her presence.
+
+It was her only chance, however, and she took it. Even as the footsteps
+of the approaching man sounded upon the landing outside, Grace flew
+across the room and into the closet, closing the door softly behind her.
+In her haste, one arm of a velveteen coat which hung upon a hook,
+became jammed in the door, with the result that it would not entirely
+close. She realized that it was too late to remedy the trouble now, and
+crouched back trembling with excitement.
+
+The jamming of the door had caused it to remain slightly open, with a
+space half an inch broad between it and the casing. Through this, Grace
+could see a part of the room before her. She watched the door to the
+hallway intently, as it was thrown open.
+
+The man she had seen in the pastry shop came in, several packages in his
+hands. These he placed upon a table, and at once began to prepare
+breakfast. A small alcohol lamp served for coffee, and butter, rolls,
+and fruit he produced from the paper bags before him. There was also a
+bottle of milk. Grace wondered if this was intended for the child.
+
+The man went about his preparations silently. Grace occasionally
+obtained a good view of his face. He was apparently about thirty years
+of age, dark and swarthy. There was something familiar about his manner,
+his general appearance; although what it was, she could not tell. She
+was certain, however, that she had seen him before.
+
+Once or twice he made a move, as though to approach the closet; but
+each time it was something else that claimed his attention. Once it was
+to get a package of cigarettes that lay upon one of the modeling stands.
+Grace wondered what she would have done, had he kept on toward her, and
+opened the closet door.
+
+She fell to thinking, in momentary snatches, about home, and Richard.
+How curious it seemed for them both to be here in Paris, separated for
+all these days, yet so near each other! She wondered if Richard had
+written to her, and what he would think, not to have heard from her.
+Then she remembered that after all he had been in Paris but a few
+days--there was scarcely time for a letter to have reached him. She
+thought of Uncle Abe, pottering about among the flower beds, of Aunt
+Lucy grumbling good naturedly over her wash tubs, of Rose, singing her
+queer camp meeting songs in the spring twilight, of Don, and the other
+dogs, the chickens, and her beloved flowers, and wondered how all of
+them were getting along with Richard and herself both away.
+
+Her reveries were interrupted by a sudden sound which made her start
+forward, tense with excitement. The man in the studio had gone for a
+moment beyond the line of her vision, into a corner of the room to her
+left. She could not see what he was doing there, and it was while
+waiting for him to reappear that she had fallen into her day dream.
+
+The sound which startled her was the voice of a child, not crying, this
+time, but speaking clearly and distinctly. "I want to go home!" it said,
+in a high nervous voice. "I want to see my mamma!"
+
+The man answered roughly, impatiently. "You can't go now. Be quiet and
+come and eat your breakfast."
+
+He appeared suddenly in the line of view commanded by the crack in the
+door, and Grace saw that he held a small boy by one hand, and was
+leading him to the table. Here he placed him in a chair and set before
+him a glass of milk and a roll. "Hurry up now!" the man growled. "Eat
+your breakfast. I've got to go out."
+
+The man's words set Grace's heart to beating with renewed quickness. If
+the man was going out, she would be able to escape, and take the boy
+with her.
+
+She did not doubt that he was Mr. Stapleton's child. The girl's dress
+which he had worn on the former occasion had been removed, and in place
+of it he wore a suit of dark blue, somewhat dirty and worn. His face
+still appeared to be very dark, and his hair, which had formerly been
+long and curly, was cropped close to his head. He appeared to be well,
+but very nervous. Grace watched him eagerly as he devoured the roll and
+milk.
+
+When he had finished, the man took him by the hand and again led him to
+the corner of the room beyond Grace's sight. She strained her face
+against the opening in the door, striving in vain to see what he was
+doing; but it was useless.
+
+She heard the boy begin to object, begging the man in a querulous voice
+to let him go out and play. His captor, however, silenced him with a
+sharp word, accompanied by a blow. "Get in there, and keep quiet!" Grace
+heard him say, and after that all was silent. A moment later the man
+reappeared, put on his hat, and, going out, locked the door carefully
+behind him. Grace wondered if the maid had told him of her call, and
+thereby roused his suspicions.
+
+She waited until she heard the front door close, and then, emerging
+quickly from the closet, went toward the side of the room to which the
+man had gone with the child.
+
+At first sight, there appeared to be no place where the latter could
+have been hidden. The two walls were of gray-tinted plaster, cracked and
+stained with age. There was a rickety chair and a battered plaster
+figure of a centaur, against which leaned an easel and a mass of
+sketches, covered with cobwebs and dust.
+
+With extreme care, she examined the walls and floor. It seemed most
+likely that some trapdoor existed, affording an entrance to a secret
+closet in which the boy had been placed. A few moments' effort showed no
+traces whatever of such a hiding place. The floor was of planks, covered
+with dust, and the cracks between the boards were filled with dirt and
+showed nowhere evidences of having been recently moved. The walls she
+sounded gently with the handle of a modeling tool which she snatched up
+from the table; but they gave forth a uniformly solid sound.
+
+She stood, surveying the place in perplexity. Then a sudden thought
+occurred to her. The ceiling! It swept low down, at the corner of the
+room, and above it she knew there must be an attic. She went over and
+began to examine the dusty plaster surface with minute care.
+
+A sound of footsteps upon the stairs sent her scurrying back into the
+closet. She wondered why the man had returned so soon. Greatly to her
+surprise, she saw, as soon as the door opened, that the newcomer was not
+the one who had left her a short time before, but an older man, more
+heavily built. As he turned and glanced toward the side of the room
+where she was hidden, she saw that he wore a heavy black beard. It was
+the kidnapper himself--the man whom she had seen at Mr. Stapleton's
+house the night before!
+
+He appeared to be annoyed, at not finding anyone in the studio, and
+after a moment sat down and lighting a cigar, began to read a newspaper
+which he drew from his pocket.
+
+Grace watched him intently, hardly daring to breathe for fear he might
+hear her. An hour passed, and the air in the closet became close and
+hot. She felt so nervous that she could have screamed, when the door of
+the room suddenly opened and Durand appeared.
+
+The two greeted each other with a nod. "Where have you been?" the older
+man demanded, somewhat angrily.
+
+"I had to get a new battery." He took a short black cylinder from his
+pocket and laid it on the table.
+
+"Is the boy here?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Good! Now listen to your instructions." He lowered his voice, glancing
+swiftly toward the closed door of the room. "At eight o'clock I shall go
+to the banker's house and get the money. At eight fifteen, or a little
+before, Francois will get his signal and repeat to you. If he flashes
+the blue light, you will release the boy, leave the room, lock the door,
+and go at once to the Place du Trocadero. From the little tobacco shop
+you will telephone the address of this place--No. 42, isn't it?--to
+Monsieur Stapleton. That will be about half past eight. Do not telephone
+before that. Then wait for me in front of the shop. Do you understand?"
+
+"Perfectly. And if I get the red signal?"
+
+"In that event, do not release the boy, but lock the door and come to
+the tobacco shop, as before. I will communicate with you there. Old
+Martelle is perfectly safe. But I do not think there will be any
+trouble. You will get the blue light."
+
+"You seem sure."
+
+"I am. This man Stapleton is not going to take any more chances. Once I
+am in the automobile, I am safe."
+
+"They could arrest you while you are walking to the Arc de Triomphe,
+after leaving the house."
+
+"That is true; but what would they gain. They would not get the boy,
+would they? And they have no evidence to show that I stole him. Further,
+Francois reports this morning that he overheard Stapleton and his wife
+talking. There is to be no interference--at least not until I get away
+in the machine. They will follow me, of course. I fully expect it. But
+you know the steps I have taken to take care of _that_ game." He laughed
+grimly. "No--no--the thing is absolutely safe. We will get away without
+the least trouble."
+
+"Nevertheless, if anything goes wrong, and I do not get the red signal,
+what shall we do then?"
+
+"We'll talk that over, when the time comes. You meet me at Martelle's."
+
+"But suppose you can't be there? They might get you, you know."
+
+The man with the beard frowned darkly, and an evil expression came over
+his face. "If you get the red signal, and I do not meet you at
+Martelle's at half past eight, come back here, get the boy, and take him
+to Lavillac. And before you do so, cut off his left hand, and send it to
+Stapleton with a letter telling him that if I am not set free at once,
+you will send his head. That will bring them to terms."
+
+Grace shuddered as she heard the man's words.
+
+His companion nodded. "I understand," he said. "But I hope it won't be
+necessary."
+
+"It won't. They can't get me. I've planned too carefully. That American
+detective, Duvall, is a joke. He was out on the Boulevard du Bois de
+Boulogne this morning with one of the Prefect's men. They are figuring
+to have an automobile at the Avenue Malakoff and follow me." He laughed
+loudly. "Much good that will do them!"
+
+"How about Francois?"
+
+"Oh--in a week or two, after we are safely away, Francois will sprain
+his wrist, and be forced to give up his position as Monsieur Stapleton's
+chauffeur. He will join us in New York."
+
+The younger man puffed meditatively at his cigarette. "What's become of
+that woman Lefevre had snooping around? Seen anything of her, since
+last night?"
+
+"No. She hasn't been about. Not much danger of _her_ finding out
+anything."
+
+The other rubbed his chin, in deep thought. "She nearly got you, last
+night," he presently remarked.
+
+"Oh, no. Not a chance. I knew she was in the house, and I figured she
+would telephone to headquarters as soon as she learned who I was. All I
+had to do was to signal you, through the window, and the thing was done.
+Of course I didn't expect the Prefect's man to get there quite as soon
+as he did; but you handled him all right." As he spoke, the man rose,
+went to a small mirror that hung on the wall, and carefully removed the
+black beard which was so distinguishing a feature of his appearance.
+
+"Pretty hot, this thing," he announced, as he threw it on the table.
+"Got anything to drink about? I'm thirsty."
+
+Grace saw, as he turned toward her, that he bore a striking resemblance
+to the masked man who had given her the first message to Mr. Stapleton,
+in the room of the house on the road to Versailles. She trembled as she
+heard him ask for the drink. Suppose the bottle should be in the
+closet? She shrunk back in terror as the younger man rose and started
+toward her.
+
+Her alarm was needless, however. The fellow drew open one of the drawers
+of a small dresser that stood on the opposite side of the room, and took
+out a light green bottle. "Absinthe?" he inquired.
+
+"All right. One won't do any harm. Don't take any more, though." He
+began to pour out the drink into a glass which stood upon the table.
+"When you get the signal from Francois," he went on, "you are to answer
+it, as usual, so he'll know you've seen him. He doesn't want to stay in
+his room very long--for fear he might be missed."
+
+"They suspect him, of course."
+
+"Yes. He's being watched right along; when he's out of the house, that
+is. They've searched his room, and all that; but they haven't found
+anything." He chuckled, and began to sip his drink. "Nothing to find."
+
+The other man sat down at the table, and the two began talking over
+their plans of escape. Grace could not hear all they said; but, as
+nearly as she could gather, they intended, as soon as the younger man
+had joined the other, to run for Brussels in the automobile. Near the
+frontier they would leave the machine, change their disguises, and cross
+the frontier on foot. Once in Belgium, they seemed to think they would
+be quite safe.
+
+It was along toward noon when the older man readjusted his disguise and
+left the house. "I'm going to get something to eat," he announced. "I
+won't be back. You'd better not leave the place again. I'll send you in
+something, if you like." He glanced at the rolls and milk on the table.
+
+"It won't be necessary. I've got all I need. Guess I'll take a nap this
+afternoon. Well, good luck," he concluded, as the other started toward
+the door. "See you later."
+
+"All right." The black-bearded man passed noiselessly into the hall.
+"Don't sleep too long. Eight o'clock, remember." In a moment he was
+gone.
+
+Grace watched the other as he finished drinking his absinthe and lit a
+cigarette. Presently he went over to the cot and, throwing himself upon
+it, was soon snoring loudly.
+
+The long hot afternoon wore itself on. Grace leaned back against the
+wall of the closet, weak from the nervous tension of the situation. The
+place was hot and close. She felt faint from lack of air, from hunger.
+At times she dozed off, then recovered herself with a start, and stood
+trembling, fearful lest she had made some noise which might attract the
+attention of the sleeping man.
+
+After a time, the low complaining of the child began again, at first
+faint and seemingly far off, then growing in volume, until the tearful
+cries of "Let me out--let me out!" seemed to come from a point scarcely
+beyond the reach of her hand.
+
+The child's complaints at last awoke the sleeping man. With a muttered
+curse he rose, crossed the room, and disappeared from sight. Grace heard
+a low scraping sound, as of a panel being drawn back, and presently the
+man again appeared with the child, and again supplied him with bread and
+milk.
+
+After he had eaten, the man gave him a magazine with bright-colored
+pictures in it, to amuse him, and lay on the bed, smoking. The boy sat
+on the floor, looking at the book.
+
+Once or twice he tried to speak, but the man sharply bade him be quiet.
+About sundown, a step was heard on the stairs, and once again the boy
+was hastily placed in his hiding place, with threats of punishment if he
+cried.
+
+The new arrival was only a model, in search of work. The man spoke to
+her gruffly, and informed her that he had all the models he needed.
+After she left, he did not again release the child, but sat, reading,
+for a long time.
+
+At last he rose, took up the short black cylinder, which Grace saw was
+an electric searchlight, from the table, and went over and sat in the
+sill of the large double window which faced to the north. The window was
+open, and the room in darkness.
+
+Grace pushed the door of her closet open slightly, so as to get a better
+view. The window was directly opposite the closet, at the other end of
+the room. She could see the silent figure of the watcher, silhouetted
+blackly against the night sky without. Off to the north were many
+lights--the lights of the houses toward the Champs Elysees, and the Arc
+de Triomphe.
+
+For many minutes she watched, over the man's shoulder, waiting for the
+signal which would set both herself and Mr. Stapleton's boy free from
+their long confinement.
+
+Presently she heard the man utter a quick oath, and saw him peer out of
+the window, his figure tense and rigid, a pair of field glasses held to
+his eyes. In another moment he had dropped the glasses, picked up his
+electric searchlight, and flashed a signal into the darkness.
+
+It took him but a moment. In another he had rushed to the door, and
+Grace heard him turn the key in the lock and clatter down the stairs.
+
+She crept swiftly to the window and looked out. At first she could see
+nothing, but a confused maze of lights. In a moment she had seized the
+field glasses and was nervously sweeping the horizon. Suddenly she held
+them still for a moment, then drew back with a cry of dismay. Far off
+toward the Avenue Kleber there gleamed a light, high in the upper room
+of a house. It shone for a few moments, steady, baleful, full of unknown
+terror, then winked suddenly out and was gone. She dropped the field
+glasses upon the floor and staggered back against the table. _The light
+was red!_ She was locked in. The two men would undoubtedly be back in
+fifteen or twenty minutes. And then--she shuddered as she thought of
+what they intended to do to the kidnapped child. To herself she gave
+scarcely a thought. Then Richard's face came before her eyes, and she
+fell upon the window seat, sobbing bitterly.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+
+When Monsieur Lefevre touched Richard Duvall on the shoulder, in the
+restaurant in the Boulevard des Italiens, he was filled with a very
+great feeling of anxiety, although he concealed it behind a mask of
+pleased surprise at the unexpected meeting.
+
+Since early the evening before he had had no word from Grace. He knew
+from Mr. Stapleton that she had left his house a short while after nine;
+but since then she had completely disappeared.
+
+The Prefect at first thought that she had been unable to keep her
+identity from her husband any longer, and had joined him. He later
+learned from Vernet that this was not the case. Now the old gentleman
+began to feel seriously alarmed at her continued absence.
+
+"How goes everything, my friend?" he asked, with an elaborate show of
+carelessness. "Have you found the kidnappers yet?"
+
+Duvall smiled. "Not yet. But I expect to have them, before the evening
+is over."
+
+"Indeed! I congratulate you. Have you seen anything of Mademoiselle
+Goncourt?"
+
+"No. Why?"
+
+"I thought perhaps you might have met her. You two are after the same
+game, you know."
+
+Duvall smiled grimly. "I don't believe she's following the same trail
+that I am," he said. "I expect to win that bet, Monsieur."
+
+The Prefect seemed a trifle uneasy. "The evening is not yet over,
+Monsieur," he replied. "But, in any event, I hope that Monsieur
+Stapleton's son will be returned to him without further delay, whoever
+brings about the result."
+
+"Come to his house tonight, Monsieur. I have arranged a little matter
+with Vernet which may surprise you. And then, too, we shall have to go
+and get the boy." He rose, and took up his hat. "We shall want you with
+us."
+
+"By all means. I shall be there, my friend. What hour would you
+suggest?"
+
+"Half past eight, at the latest."
+
+"Good! I shall be there at that time. Good day, _mon ami_."
+
+"Au revoir. Give my respects to Mademoiselle Goncourt." He left the
+restaurant and, going to his room at the hotel, proceeded to write a
+long letter to Grace. He reproached her for not having written to him.
+Here he had been in Paris four days, and had not heard a word from her!
+A letter, he felt, should have come by the very next steamer--several,
+in fact. He told her how greatly he missed her, how deeply he loved her,
+and how soon he hoped to return to her arms. And even as he wrote,
+Grace, half dead from fatigue, stood hidden in the closet at Passy, a
+mile away, watching with frightened eyes the kidnapper asleep on the
+pallet bed.
+
+Duvall had arranged to be at Mr. Stapleton's house a little before eight
+that night, and it still lacked twenty minutes of the hour when he
+ascended the steps of the banker's residence and was ushered into the
+library.
+
+Mr. Stapleton sat in grim silence, awaiting the coming of his visitor.
+He did not seem particularly glad to see Duvall. The latter's apparent
+failure to make any headway in the matter of recovering his missing boy
+had caused the banker to lose confidence in his abilities.
+
+"Good evening, Duvall," he remarked, indifferently.
+
+"Good evening, Mr. Stapleton. You are ready for your man, I see." He
+glanced at the package of banknotes which lay at the banker's elbow.
+
+"Quite. You have done nothing to interfere with his coming or going, I
+trust."
+
+"Nothing."
+
+Stapleton glanced at the clock. "He will be here very soon, now. May I
+ask you to wait in my study, upstairs? It would never do for you to be
+here. The man might be afraid to enter."
+
+"No--you are right. I must not be here. But I prefer not to wait in the
+study. I have another plan."
+
+"What is it?" inquired the banker, uneasily.
+
+"Where is Francois, your chauffeur?"
+
+"At his dinner, I believe. Why?"
+
+"Will you kindly find out for sure? I want to go to his room."
+
+Mr. Stapleton summoned a servant, who told him that the chauffeur was
+just finishing his dinner. "You will be very careful, Duvall," he said,
+anxiously. "I don't want anything done which will alarm these fellows."
+
+"Oh, Francois won't see me. I shall keep out of his sight. Perhaps I had
+better go up now." He nodded to the banker, and at once ascended the
+stairs which lead to the servants' quarters.
+
+At the door of the chauffeur's room he paused. It was closed. He pushed
+it gently open, and in a moment was in the room. The place was quite
+dark; but by means of a pocket light Duvall soon found the closet, and a
+moment later was safely ensconced within. He left the door ajar, and to
+his satisfaction found that he could see through the north window
+without difficulty. Here he waited, until the chauffeur should arrive.
+
+Mr. Stapleton, meanwhile, sat grimly in the library below, waiting for
+the coming of the kidnapper. Promptly at eight o'clock, his butler
+announced that the man had arrived.
+
+"Show him in at once," exclaimed the banker, as he rose and began to
+walk up and down the room.
+
+In a moment the man came into the library. His powerful figure, his
+black beard, his assured manner, rendered him an easily recognized
+figure.
+
+"I have come, Monsieur, as I said I would," he remarked, calmly. "I
+trust you have the money in readiness."
+
+Stapleton stepped over to the desk and picked up the package of
+banknotes. "Here it is," he growled. "I understand that you will, in
+return for this money, send me word at once as to where my son is to be
+found."
+
+"Within half an hour, Monsieur, at the latest; provided, of course, I am
+not interfered with in my escape."
+
+"There will be no interference, until I get back my boy. After that, I
+shall spend another hundred thousand dollars, if need be, to bring you
+to justice."
+
+"That, Monsieur, is quite within the terms of our agreement. The moment
+you receive the address, you are free from any obligation to me. May I
+see the money?" He extended his hand.
+
+Mr. Stapleton placed the banknotes in it. "Count them," he growled, "and
+assure yourself that you have received the amount you demand."
+
+The kidnapper sat down with the utmost coolness and began to count over
+the notes. They were all of large denomination, and the operation
+consumed but a few moments. As soon as he had finished, the man placed
+the bundle of notes carefully in an inside pocket and rose. "The amount
+is correct, Monsieur," he said. "Permit me to bid you a very good
+evening." Without further delay, he bowed, took up his hat, and left
+the room.
+
+At the door he glanced quickly at his watch, then strode off up the
+street at a rapid pace, toward the Arc de Triomphe.
+
+For some eight or ten minutes he walked, at the expiration of which time
+he arrived at the Place de l'Etoile, and at once crossed to the pavement
+surrounding the great triumphal arch.
+
+Up and down the twelve great avenues which radiate from the Place of the
+Star flashed innumerable automobiles, coming and going like huge jeweled
+fireflies.
+
+The kidnapper paused at a point on the very outer edge of the circular
+pavement which surrounds the arch, and waited, expectant, his eyes fixed
+upon the broad sweep of the Champs Elysees.
+
+For some moments he stood thus, rigid, motionless. Suddenly a big black
+racing car swept from the line of traffic and approached the curb. The
+man on the sidewalk raised his hand, and made a momentary gesture. The
+car quivered to the side of the street, pausing but the fraction of a
+second as the tall figure of the kidnapper stepped in. Another moment,
+and it had swept around the great arch and was flying down the Avenue du
+Bois de Boulogne.
+
+Close behind it came a second car, which, like the first, contained but
+a single occupant in addition to the chauffeur. With scarcely fifty feet
+between them, the two machines swept down the broad street toward the
+intersection with the Avenue Malakoff.
+
+In a few moments, both had reached it. But here their ways parted. The
+first car, turning in a quick and dangerous quadrant, swept into the
+Avenue Malakoff and sped southward like the wind. The second car
+continued on toward the Porte Dauphine. As it passed the intersection
+with the Avenue Malakoff, the chauffeur, unobserved by his passenger,
+directed a cylindrical black object toward the southern sky and held it
+there, motionless, until his car had disappeared in the shadow of the
+trees to the west.
+
+Just inside the Avenue Malakoff lay a third car, its powerful engine
+shaking it from end to end with its rapid pulsations. Two men sat in the
+tonneau. One of them was occupied in watching a distant window in the
+rear of a house on the Avenue Kleber with a pair of field glasses. The
+other kept his gaze fixed upon the road before him.
+
+Suddenly the man with the field glasses turned, and pointed toward the
+car which was just passing from sight along the Avenue du Bois de
+Boulogne. "Quick!" he muttered. "After him!"
+
+The automobile shot forward like a racehorse under the whip, and in a
+moment was flying down the avenue in hot pursuit.
+
+The foremost car was making high speed; but the one which pursued it was
+clearly the faster of the two. Slowly the space which separated them
+began to decrease. The man in the first car spoke quietly to his
+chauffeur, and the great car jumped forward with renewed speed.
+
+Vernet, in charge of the pursuing car, swore softly to himself as he saw
+his quarry pull away from him. He had confidence, however, in the speed
+of his own machine, and urged his driver to greater efforts.
+
+For several miles the two swept on, the rear car gaining slowly, in
+spite of the other's best efforts. They had passed the fortifications
+and were now in the Bois de Boulogne, and with clearer roads ahead the
+chase seemed likely to be a long one.
+
+Suddenly, to Vernet's astonishment, the forward car began to slow up. In
+a moment the Prefect's men ranged alongside, and covered the solitary
+passenger with their revolvers.
+
+"Surrender!" Vernet cried. "You are my prisoner."
+
+The man in the other car looked up, and calmly began to light a
+cigarette. "Are you a bandit, my friend?" he inquired, calmly.
+
+The detective was taken aback. The two cars had now come to a standstill
+at one side of the road. "Search him!" he said quickly to his companion.
+
+The second man climbed into the car. Its occupant made no protest. "What
+do you wish with me, gentlemen?" he asked, with a sarcastic smile. "My
+watch--my money?"
+
+"The searchlight, first of all," replied the detective, "with which you
+signaled."
+
+The man looked at him in astonishment. "What are you talking about,
+Monsieur?" he inquired. "Is this then a joke?"
+
+Vernet began to feel a trifle uneasy. This man certainly did not appear
+to resemble in any way the prisoner he had sought. He was a clean-shaven
+young man, elegantly dressed, and quite evidently a gentleman. "Do you
+deny," asked the detective, "that on passing the Avenue Malakoff a few
+moments ago you flashed a blue light toward the Avenue Kleber?"
+
+The young man laughed. "Of course I deny it," he said. "Why the devil
+should I be flashing blue lights at the Avenue Kleber? And who are you,
+to ask me any such nonsensical questions?"
+
+"I am an agent of the police, Monsieur. Who are you?"
+
+"I am Anton Lemaitre, stock broker, of the firm of Lemaitre and
+Bossard." He handed a card to the dumbfounded Vernet. "I am trying a new
+automobile, which I think of purchasing. My chauffeur proposed that we
+try it out in the Bois, where there is more opportunity to speed than in
+the city."
+
+"Why did you then run away?"
+
+"My dear sir, I saw you following me. I wish to own a fast car--the
+fastest car in Paris, if possible. I directed my driver to see what he
+could do. I do not believe, however, that I shall now buy the car, since
+yours is faster. What make is it, Monsieur, if I may ask?"
+
+Vernet smothered an oath. Clearly this man was telling the truth. He
+directed his companion to get in with Monsieur Lemaitre. "Drive to the
+Prefecture," he said, "and let the gentleman tell his story to Monsieur
+Lefevre." He himself ordered his chauffeur to proceed with all despatch
+to Mr. Stapleton's house. The affair had ended in a fiasco. He felt that
+he must see Duvall at once.
+
+In fifteen minutes he was at the house. Mr. Stapleton was waiting
+patiently in the library for the telephone call which would announce the
+hiding place of his boy. With him were Mrs. Stapleton and Monsieur
+Lefevre.
+
+The poor man and his wife were in a pitiable state, their eyes glued to
+the clock which stood on the mantel. It was marked twenty-six minutes
+past eight. "Only four minutes more!" gasped Mrs. Stapleton, through her
+tears. "My God! why don't they hurry?"
+
+Her husband endeavored to console her. "They may be a few moments late,
+my dear. Don't excite yourself. I am sure they will keep their word."
+
+Vernet went over to Monsieur Lefevre and explained the events of the
+evening in a few words. The Prefect smiled grimly. "So Monsieur Duvall
+has failed again!" he remarked, in a low voice. "Mon Dieu! If we do not
+soon hear from Mademoiselle Goncourt, I shall begin to feel nervous
+myself."
+
+Slowly the hands of the clock crept around. As the half hour was
+reached, and the telephone bell remained silent, Mrs. Stapleton uttered
+a groan of despair, and sank upon the couch, weeping pitifully. Mr.
+Stapleton, watch in hand, paced up and down the room. "They have been
+interfered with," he stormed, "or they would have communicated with me
+before now!" He turned to Monsieur Lefevre. "You have done nothing, I
+hope, to again prevent me from recovering my son?"
+
+"Nothing, Monsieur."
+
+Mr. Stapleton waited another five minutes. It now wanted twenty minutes
+to nine. The telephone bell remained persistently silent. The banker
+closed his watch with a snap and thrust it into his pocket. His face was
+pale with rage and suffering. Drops of perspiration collected on his
+forehead. "The scoundrels!" he cried. "They have broken their word, and
+robbed me of a hundred thousand dollars in the bargain. I will give
+another hundred thousand to the man who will capture them, dead or
+alive, and find my boy!"
+
+There was a profound silence, broken only by the quick sobbing of Mrs.
+Stapleton. Neither Lefevre nor Vernet ventured to speak.
+
+Suddenly there arose sounds of a commotion among the servants gathered
+in the hall without. In their devotion to their employer they had
+collected there to welcome the lost boy. There were exclamations, cries
+of astonishment--and dismay.
+
+The occupants of the room turned in surprise toward the door. As they
+did so, Richard Duvall appeared in the doorway. He staggered, and with
+difficulty supported himself by clutching the side of the door. His face
+was covered with blood, his clothes torn and disheveled.
+
+He swayed a moment, unsteadily in the door.
+
+"What is it--what is wrong?" cried Stapleton, starting toward him.
+
+"The child is at 42 Rue Nicolo, Passy," gasped the detective, then fell
+heavily upon the library floor.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+
+Richard Duvall, waiting with nervous impatience in the closet in
+Francois' room, at last heard a soft and guarded step upon the stairs.
+He drew back, his muscles tense, and gazed fixedly at the door.
+
+Although the room was dark, the glow of the street lamps from without,
+the faint light of the evening sky, sufficed, now that his eyes had
+become accustomed to the darkness, to enable him not only to recognize
+the chauffeur as he entered the room, but to follow his movements with
+little or no difficulty.
+
+The man seemed hurried. He groped his way to the dresser at the opposite
+side of the room, and felt about for the searchlight which Duvall knew
+lay within easy reach.
+
+Having secured it, he directed it for a brief moment upon his watch,
+noted the time, then, going to the door, opened it, and began to listen
+intently.
+
+The detective at once surmised that he was listening for the departure
+of his confederate, the man with the black beard.
+
+Presently the chauffeur drew back, closing the door with a grunt of
+satisfaction, and once more approached the dresser. Duvall concluded
+that he had gone to get the colored glasses by which he would be able to
+make the required signals.
+
+In a moment he returned to the window, and Duvall saw him place the two
+glass cups upon the sill, and lean out expectantly.
+
+It seemed a long time before he stirred. The detective, looking over his
+shoulder, found that his line of vision was interrupted so that he could
+not see the lights which flashed past the entrance of the Avenue
+Malakoff. He was forced to content himself with keeping a close watch
+upon the chauffeur.
+
+Suddenly the man, by an almost instantaneous movement, clapped one of
+the little glass cups over the end of the tube which formed the
+searchlight, and directed it toward the street. Duvall could not tell
+whether the signal was blue, or red. He had every reason to believe,
+however, that it was the former.
+
+The chauffeur held the tube upon the window sill for a few seconds
+only, then withdrew it, and started to cross the room toward the south
+window. As he did so, he swept the light into the room, and for an
+instant it fell upon the crack in the closet door through which Duvall
+was peering. He was conscious of a blinding blue radiance, close to his
+eyes, and the sudden flash caused him to draw back with a quick and
+involuntary movement. He realized that the chauffeur had not seen him,
+and that, in a few moments more, the signal would be given which would
+bring untold happiness to both Mr. Stapleton and his wife.
+
+The momentary recoil, however, was fatal to his plans. Although he moved
+his head but a fraction of an inch, the suddenness of the movement was
+sufficient to cause a metal coat hanger, which hung, empty, from a hook,
+to click sharply against its neighbor.
+
+The chauffeur spun around with the quickness of a cat, and, grasping the
+knob of the closet door, threw it open. In his hand he still clutched
+the tube of the searchlight.
+
+Duvall at the same moment reached for the revolver which lay in a side
+pocket of his coat. He realized instantly that, now that his presence
+had been discovered, the chauffeur would of course not send the signal
+to his confederates in Passy which would result in the telephoning of
+the address to Mr. Stapleton, but would on the contrary flash a red
+signal, which the detective fully believed would result in the child's
+death.
+
+It was imperative that this should be prevented. Duvall had determined
+to be present in the chauffeur's room for two reasons,--first, to send
+the favorable signal to Passy himself, should things go wrong, and the
+chauffeur receive a red flash from the street; secondly, to arrest
+Francois in the act of receiving and sending the signals.
+
+He now realized that he must do both, and that, too, without a moment's
+delay.
+
+As the chauffeur threw open the door he flashed the blue light full upon
+the crouching figure of the detective.
+
+The latter, revolver in hand, commanded him sharply to throw up his
+hands.
+
+The chauffeur did so--thereby directing the light of the electric lamp
+toward the ceiling. The sudden change from the glare which an instant
+before had been in his eyes, to almost total darkness, left Duvall
+momentarily blind. His eyes could not instantaneously respond to the
+withdrawal of the light. The figure of the chauffeur appeared but a dark
+and formless shadow.
+
+The latter, however, not having faced the glare of the light, was able
+to see without difficulty. With lightning like quickness he spun around
+on one foot, until his back instead of his face was toward the
+detective. Then his right foot rose, in the famous and deadly blow of
+the _savate_.
+
+It has been said that this backward kick, so dear to the heart of the
+Parisian crook, is more to be feared than any possible onslaught in good
+old Anglo-Saxon style with the fists. Certainly in this instance it was
+too much for Richard Duvall. The unexpected blow, coming during the
+moment when the sudden darkness had left him blinded and confused, sent
+him crashing back into the depths of the closet, buried beneath a mass
+of clothing. His arms, entangled in falling coats and waistcoats, were
+helpless. The revolver flew from his hand, and lay useless on the floor.
+
+The chauffeur went about his business calmly. His first move was to
+direct the searchlight carefully into the interior of the closet,
+slipping the blue cup from the end of it as he did so and allowing it
+to fall unheeded to the floor. His second was to draw a long and
+peculiarly deadly looking knife.
+
+His quick eye saw at once that the revolver was no longer in the
+detective's grasp. His searchlight enabled him to discern it, lying on
+the floor to one side of the closet. Before Duvall could extricate
+himself from the articles of clothing in which he was entangled,
+Francois had stooped quickly, picked up the revolver, and slammed the
+door of the closet upon him. As he struggled to his feet, the detective
+heard the click of the key as it turned in the lock. He was a prisoner.
+
+Without losing a moment, the chauffeur tossed the revolver upon the
+table, took up the cup-shaped bit of red glass, fitted it to the tube of
+the searchlight, and, going to the south window, placed it upon the sill
+in such a way that its crimson glare was directed almost due south. It
+was evident that the position in which the light was placed was marked
+by the two tiny scratches cut in the woodwork of the window sill. In a
+moment he had turned back toward the closet door.
+
+Duvall, meanwhile, realized that only by instant and superhuman effort
+could he hope to remedy the frightful situation which his unlucky
+movement had precipitated.
+
+He braced his shoulders and back against the rear wall of the closet,
+put his two feet against the door, and with every atom of strength in
+his body strove to force it open.
+
+His movements had been quick. Just as the chauffeur turned back from the
+window toward the room, Duvall, his muscles knotted with effort, drove
+the full force of his body against the closet door.
+
+The lock, a cheap affair, was torn loose in a twinkling, and an instant
+later the two men had grappled in the center of the room.
+
+The detective's one desire was to get to the window, remove the red
+light which he knew was flashing its fateful message across the
+housetops, and substitute for it a blue light, which he hoped even now
+might shine forth in time to redeem the situation.
+
+This, however, the chauffeur was equally determined to prevent. He
+realized that he was caught, that his complicity in the affair was
+known, and that he must warn his comrades of his danger, so that, by
+refusing to give up the boy, they might effect his release. He was
+fighting for his liberty as desperately as Duvall was fighting for that
+of Mr. Stapleton's child.
+
+The two men were evenly matched. The chauffeur was perhaps the stronger,
+in shoulders and arms, due to his profession. The constant grip upon the
+steering wheel had given to his upper body muscles like steel.
+
+The detective, though somewhat less powerful in this direction, was
+stronger in the back and legs. He had been an athlete, at college, and
+his recent life upon the farm at home had toughened and hardened him
+from head to foot.
+
+He rushed at his opponent, threw his arms around the latter's waist, and
+strove to lift him and throw him to the floor.
+
+The chauffeur at the same time got his right arm about Duvall's throat,
+and with his left did his best to gouge out one of the latter's eyes.
+His was the style of fighting that considers not means, but results.
+
+For a moment they swayed heavily about the room, the detective burying
+his face in his opponent's side to protect his eyes, and at the same
+time striving with all his might to force him back toward the bed.
+
+Francois, however, fought well. He began to compress his adversary's
+throat in a choking grip of wrist and forearm which threatened to put an
+end to the struggle in short order. At the same time his left thumb
+continually sought the detective's eyes.
+
+Suddenly it reached one of them. Duvall felt a blinding sense of pain as
+the thumb nail sank into the soft and tender muscles about the eye. The
+shock was fatal to the plans of the chauffeur; for it raised up in his
+opponent a great and deadly rage, that for an instant gave him the
+strength of a madman. He raised his opponent from the floor as though
+the latter had been a child, broke the grip upon his throat by
+straightening his head, and with a mighty heave hurled him to the floor.
+
+The fellow struck upon his side, his temple crashing loudly against the
+wooden floor. Duvall stood over him for an instant, breathing heavily,
+convulsively, then turned and snatched the searchlight from the window
+sill and threw it upon the bed.
+
+There was a trunk against the wall of the room, near the window, and
+about it a broad leather strap. Duvall tore the strap from its place,
+and in a few moments had fastened it about the chauffeur's arms and
+body.
+
+A towel, knotted about his ankles, rendered him helpless. Then the
+detective began to search upon the floor for the bit of blue glass.
+
+In his heart there was no joy at the victory he had just won. He had
+captured one of the kidnappers, it was true; but on the other hand he
+had, by his own carelessness, prevented the safe return of the kidnapped
+boy to his parents.
+
+He pictured the father and mother, patiently waiting below for the
+telephone message which would never come, and wondered how he would dare
+to tell them the truth.
+
+At last his nervous fingers closed upon the little glass cup, where it
+had rolled under the edge of the dresser when Francois had thrown it
+down. Trembling with haste, he fixed it to the searchlight which he took
+from the bed, and, with a hopeless feeling, approached the window, and
+began to wave the light frantically in the direction of Passy.
+
+For several moments there was no response. As a matter of fact, he
+scarcely expected any. Then all of a sudden he saw a faint red gleam,
+like a star, flash from the distant night, and then go out.
+
+He stood, helpless, waiting for it to reappear, hardly daring to hope
+that it would do so. Suddenly it shone again, this time for a longer
+period, and then disappeared. He wondered what it meant, and was
+scarcely surprised when the light again flashed, this time making five
+quick flashes, which he instantly recognized as Morse code for the
+letter "P." There was a brief interval, then once more the signals began
+to flash. This time he read them without difficulty. There were four
+letters, spelling the word "Help."
+
+For an instant he leveled the tube of the searchlight toward the point
+from which the flashes came, guiding it by the scratches on the sill,
+and began pressing the button which turned the light on and off. "Where
+are you?" he spelled out, then waited fearfully for the reply. He dared
+send no other message. The person at the other end, the one who sent
+this ominous word, "help," must be one of the kidnappers; yet why should
+he signal for assistance? He could make nothing of the matter, but he
+reasoned that anyone calling for help would be sure to give their
+location, otherwise how could they expect to receive it.
+
+For a moment the red flashes began again, and this time he began to get
+the numbers. There were four quick flashes and a long dash, then others
+in rapid succession: "4-2-R-u-e-N-i-c-o-l-o, P-a-s-s-y," the message
+read. "C-o-m-e q-u-i-c-k."
+
+Duvall's head reeled, as he spelled out the words. He had not realized
+until now that he was wounded. The blood, pouring down his face from the
+great gash in his cheek, spattered thickly upon the window sill. He
+turned from the window, then realized that he must send some answer, to
+let this mysterious person at the other end of the line know that his
+message had been safely received.
+
+"Will come at once. Who are you?" he spelled out, laboriously, his head
+spinning, his fingers trembling from weakness as he tried to stop the
+flow of blood from his wound.
+
+"G-R-A-C-E D-U-V-A-L-L" came back the flashes, quick, clear cut,
+unmistakable.
+
+Duvall dropped the searchlight to the floor with a harsh laugh. His
+brain was reeling--the whole thing became a foolish, senseless
+nightmare. He wondered if he was delirious, and had dreamed it all.
+Again he flashed a signal into the darkness. "Who are you?" he spelled
+out again. He did not believe that he had read the former answer aright.
+Evidently his imagination was playing him tricks--Grace had been on his
+mind so constantly, throughout the day. He wiped the blood from his eyes
+and stared eagerly out into the darkness. There was no response.
+
+Then he remembered the words of the message, "Come quick." There was no
+time for idle speculations as to the identity of the person who had sent
+him the message.
+
+He rushed to the stairs, and with tottering footsteps descended to the
+library below. Francois, the chauffeur, still lay, bound and
+unconscious, upon the floor.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+
+For a few moments after being left alone in the studio at Passy, Grace
+almost lost her courage. She knew that the man who had remained on guard
+in the room had received the danger signal--the red light--which told
+him that the plans of his confederates had miscarried. She remembered
+the instructions which the black-bearded man had given him. "If I do not
+meet you at Martelle's, take the boy to Lavillac. And before you do so,
+cut off his left hand and send it to Mr. Stapleton."
+
+The very thought of the thing made her sick. She rushed to the door, and
+tore frantically at the knob; but it resisted all her efforts. She
+glanced at the windows, knowing that to escape by means of them from her
+position on the top floor of the house was impossible. And then--should
+she escape, she would be obliged to leave the child, and this she by no
+means wanted to do.
+
+Suddenly she heard again the faint moaning. The sound almost drove her
+frantic. She rushed to the window and looked out, praying for guidance,
+for some ray of hope in the frightful situation in which she found
+herself.
+
+Already several minutes had passed since the departure of the man. It
+would not be long, she felt, before he returned, and, for all she knew,
+the black-bearded man with him. Would they attack her, if they found her
+there? She could hide again, of course; but that would not accomplish
+anything, except perhaps, to save herself. And she had set out to rescue
+the child.
+
+In a whirl of indecision, she glanced out of the window, toward the
+point in the north where she had seen the red light. She wondered where
+it was, from what place it had been sent. Then suddenly, as she swept
+the horizon with eager eyes, she saw, where a few moments before the red
+light had flashed, a gleam of blue. Unlike the red signal, however,
+which had been steady, as though fixed in place, this one moved about
+restlessly, now pointing full at her, now almost disappearing to the
+right or left.
+
+She seized the field glasses and gazed at the light in wonder. Did this
+mean that the kidnappers had been successful, after all, and that the
+former signal had been a mistake, or did it indicate that the person
+giving the first signal had been overpowered, and that the light was in
+the hands of friends?
+
+She had no means of knowing; but here was someone who was trying to send
+her word that all was well. She determined to reply.
+
+Her one thought was to get to Mr. Stapleton her present address. She
+knew that the man who had been intrusted with the task of telephoning it
+to the banker, would not now do so. She would try to send the address
+herself.
+
+Then came to her a great feeling of joy, that she was familiar with the
+Morse code. Richard had taught it to her, during their trip from Paris
+to New York the year before. She remembered how she had been interested
+in the wireless, and Richard had offered to teach her the alphabet.
+
+She picked up the searchlight and examined it. It was an ordinary pocket
+lamp, with a dry battery, such as are sold at stores dealing in
+electrical goods, and she saw, from its size, that it was an unusually
+powerful one.
+
+Midway along one side was a tiny button, by pressing which the circuit
+was completed, and the light made to flash. By pressing this button
+momentarily, she could get a quick flash, comparable to a dot. By
+holding it down longer, she could produce a dash.
+
+She did not stop to remove the red glass which was fixed over the front
+of the light; in fact, she concluded that it would be better to let it
+remain. There were many white lights all about--among them, her own
+would have but a small chance of being seen. But red was significant,
+conspicuous, indicative of danger, and that she was in grave danger she
+very well knew.
+
+She decided to first send the word "help." She knew that if the person
+receiving the message was a friend, he would at once ask where she was,
+since that would be to Mr. Stapleton and his party the most essential
+and important news she could give.
+
+On the other hand, were it to be received by one of the kidnappers, he
+would ask her, not where she was, but what was the matter.
+
+Painfully, fearful of mistakes, she deciphered the message which slowly
+flashed across the mile of night. "Where are you."
+
+Illustration: With trembling fingers she spelled out her reply, giving
+the address and adding, "Come quick!"
+
+With trembling fingers, she spelled out her reply, giving the address
+and adding, "Come quick." When she got the answer, "Will come at once,"
+she felt that there was still a chance that the boy might be saved. Then
+came the request for her name. She gave this impatiently. What
+difference did it matter, so long as they came quickly.
+
+She hastily lighted a candle which stood upon the table, then cast about
+her for some means whereby she might prevent the black-bearded man and
+his companion from entering the room, in case they should return before
+help arrived. There was one thing, of course, that she could do,
+barricade the door.
+
+But, with the exception of the table and the light iron bed, there was
+nothing with which she could hope to secure it. Suddenly her eyes fell
+upon the great plaster centaur. It was a figure such as one might see in
+any art gallery or museum. It stood upon a plaster slab some six inches
+thick, which in turn rested upon a low wooden base. The figure was at
+least five feet high--a horse with a human torso and head. She knew that
+if she could jam this in front of the door, securing it in place with
+the bed and table, she might prevent the kidnappers from entering for
+some little time; long enough, she hoped, to insure the arrival of the
+police before they had succeeded in breaking in.
+
+She wondered if she could manage to move the thing. At first sight, it
+seemed impossible, and yet the base might by chance be fitted with
+rollers or casters. She rushed over to the figure and began to tug at it
+with all her strength.
+
+She needed but a moment to discover that she could not possibly move it;
+but as she bent over it, her head close to its side, she heard something
+which made her start with sudden joy.
+
+It was the low sobbing of a child--the same moaning sound which she had
+heard from time to time ever since she had first entered the room.
+
+At times the sound had appeared to come from afar off; at others, it had
+seemed to be close at hand, as though originating at some point in the
+very air about her.
+
+All of a sudden the truth came to her like a flash. The child was
+concealed within the hollow body of the statue. The thing seemed so
+simple, so apparent, that she wondered that it had not occurred to her
+before.
+
+She gave up her attempt to barricade the door, and began feverishly to
+look for the opening in the plaster cast through which the child must
+have entered.
+
+It took but a few moments to find it. The whole side of the horse's body
+had been sawed free, by two longitudinal cuts, one along the back, the
+other along the belly, and two similar cuts, at the shoulder, and the
+flank. Heavy strips of canvas, glued across the lower cut, on the under
+side of the horse's belly, served as hinges, and were not visible from
+above.
+
+She inserted the blade of a modeling tool which she caught up from the
+table, in the upper longitudinal cut, and pried the plaster side of the
+horse free. It fell heavily toward her, disclosing a long narrow
+opening; the interior, in fact, of the statue, where lay, upon a sort of
+bed made of an old comfort, the missing son of Mr. Stapleton.
+
+The boy, who had evidently until a moment before been asleep, gazed up
+at her in surprised alarm. For over two weeks, now, he had been kept
+from his parents, made to move about from place to place, frightened by
+strange men. He had come to expect the unusual, the terrifying, and it
+was a scared little face that looked appealingly up at the girl as she
+bent over him.
+
+For the time being she forgot the dangers which surrounded them, in her
+joy at the discovery of the boy. It had come so suddenly, so
+unexpectedly. If she could only escape, now, with the child, nothing
+else would matter in the least. And between her and freedom there lay
+but the thickness of a single door, and yet it seemed that she could not
+pass it.
+
+She lifted the child from his hiding place and stood him upon the floor,
+then quickly swung the heavy slab of plaster back into position. At
+least, she reasoned, the kidnappers, when they returned, should not at
+once learn that their captive had escaped.
+
+She knew that the hiding place had been but a temporary one, a means
+whereby the child might be kept out of sight during the day in case
+strangers should happen to enter the room. As soon as the kidnappers
+returned, they would, she realized, spirit the child away to some more
+secure retreat.
+
+She went to the door and again shook it frantically, pulling at the knob
+with all her strength, without producing the slightest result. The lock
+was evidently a strong one--the door held firm and unyielding, though
+she threw against it her entire weight.
+
+Evidently there was no hope of escape here. Then she again bethought
+herself of the window. For a moment she gazed out into the darkness. The
+pavement was thirty feet below. No one was in sight. How could she ever
+reach the ground, with the child as well, even if she had possessed a
+rope? The thing was impossible.
+
+Clearly there was nothing to do but wait. Possibly the assistance she
+expected from her friends, or the police, would arrive very soon--surely
+she could in some way keep the kidnappers occupied until then!
+
+And suddenly she realized that the time had come. She heard the door of
+the house close softly, and upon the stair the sound of mounting
+footsteps.
+
+Which was it, the police, or the kidnappers? The latter, she felt
+morally certain, since the former, in their haste to rescue the child,
+would beyond any question have arrived in an automobile, and at top
+speed.
+
+The newcomers were mounting the stairs in a leisurely manner, as though
+free from any anxiety. Grace heard them pause for a moment on the first
+landing, then start up the second flight of stairs. It seemed to her out
+of the question, to stand in the middle of the room and await their
+entrance. At least she could postpone the fatal moment a little while,
+by hiding, with the boy, in the closet. She stepped into it, the child's
+hand in hers, and drew the door shut, just as the two men entered the
+room. On her way, she hastily blew out the candle.
+
+They were the same two men that she had seen before,--the black-bearded
+man, now without his beard, and the artist, Durand. She saw this, as
+soon as the latter had relit the candle. She wondered if he would notice
+that the wick was still warm. Evidently he did not; for they threw
+themselves into chairs, lit cigarettes, and began to talk.
+
+"Now we can speak freely," said Durand. "How did things go?"
+
+"I got the money--gave the blue signal, and expected to be halfway to
+Brussels by now. What nonsense is this about a red light?"
+
+"It is no nonsense, I assure you. I saw it with my own eyes, as plain as
+day."
+
+"Then Francois must have made a mistake, or else he has been placed
+under arrest--the latter, no doubt. Now the question is, What shall we
+do? I think we ought to get out of Paris as soon as possible. It isn't
+safe to stay here." He looked about him nervously.
+
+"Why not? You didn't telephone Monsieur Stapleton this address, did
+you?"
+
+"No, naturally not."
+
+"Then I don't see but what we are quite safe. No one knows the child is
+here."
+
+"Then you don't intend to give him up?"
+
+"Not yet. I must first find out whether or not Francois is in trouble."
+
+"Let him look out for himself."
+
+The older man frowned. "Since when, my friend," he asked, "have I been
+in the habit of deserting my comrades? Francois must go free, or Mr.
+Stapleton does not get his boy. That's flat. The first thing is to send
+his father something that will let him see that we mean business."
+
+"We've got to be sure about Francois, first."
+
+"I'll find that out, tonight. My plan is this. We must first get the
+child away to Lavillac's place. This is too unsafe, here. Anyone might
+come in."
+
+"They'd have difficulty in finding the hiding place." The younger man
+grinned.
+
+"That's all very well; but the other place is safer. And
+then--Lavillac's woman can look after the brat while we are away. What a
+pity Francois had to get into a mess at the last moment! I hoped to be
+rid of the boy, by now." The older man rose and began striding up and
+down the room.
+
+"Well," he said at length, sharply, "we might as well get along. I move
+that we wrap the boy in a coat, take him down to the car, run quickly
+out to Lavillac's place, leave him there, and start for Brussels at
+once. The rest we can do by 'phone. Francois set free--the boy the same.
+Meanwhile, we've got to show this man Stapleton we mean business; so
+we'd better arrange to send him one of the kid's hands at once. If we
+don't, he'll have the whole Paris police force after us."
+
+"All right. I'll get him out." He strode quickly over to the statue,
+pulled out the side, and gazed blankly into the empty space before him.
+
+"Sacre! The child's gone!" he exclaimed, excitedly. "Somebody has been
+here--in this room--since I left it, half an hour ago."
+
+"The door was locked."
+
+"I know; but somebody's been here, nevertheless, for the child is
+gone."
+
+"He may not be gone, Durand. It is true that he is no longer in the
+house; but he may be in the room, for all that. Search the closet."
+
+The man named Durand stepped quickly to the closet door. "Not much
+chance," he grumbled. "And if the police knew that he was here, and have
+spirited him away, they may even now be waiting to spring a trap of
+which you and I are the rats. For all we know the place is surrounded at
+this very moment."
+
+"Then the sooner we get away from it the better. Search the closet. If
+he's not there, we'd better make tracks for the frontier as quickly as
+possible. We can do nothing more without the child. Francois will have
+to look out for himself."
+
+Durand went impatiently up to the closet door and flung it open, then
+both he and his companion recoiled in surprise as Grace stepped out,
+holding the child by the hand.
+
+"Mon Dieu!" gasped the two men in unison.
+
+The one who had worn the black beard was the first to recover himself.
+"Quick!" he cried, motioning toward Grace. "The woman is a detective.
+Tie her up, and let's get away at once. No doubt she has sent word to
+her friends. We can't afford to stay here another minute." He seemed
+greatly excited and, rushing to the window, inspected the silent street
+below.
+
+Durand, meanwhile, had thrown himself upon the girl, seized her hands,
+and with a quick motion had secured them with a bit of cord he snatched
+from within the closet.
+
+She offered no resistance, made no outcry. Both seemed equally useless.
+The boy stood by, watching the scene in childish wonder. So many queer
+things had happened to him, however, during the past few days, that he,
+too, remained silent.
+
+In a moment the older man withdrew his head from the window, rushed to
+the closet, and drawing out a long gray coat, wrapped it about the
+child. "You will come along with us, Mademoiselle," he said sternly.
+"Make no attempt to escape, if you value your life."
+
+"But what do we want with her?" the younger man asked, impatiently.
+
+"You fool! Would you leave her here, to give our description to the
+police? It would mean certain capture in a few hours. This woman has got
+to be put where she can do no harm until we are safely over the
+frontier. It may be wiser to silence her altogether. We'll decide about
+that when we reach Lavillac's. The first thing is to get out of this
+house without losing a moment's time. Come!" He started for the door.
+
+As he did so, Grace heard, far off, the steady throbbing of an
+automobile. She felt a wave of hope sweep over her. It might be her
+friends, coming to her assistance. If so, they might yet arrive in time.
+
+The two men evidently also heard the sound. "Hurry--hurry!" the older
+one urged, as they began to descend the stairs. "They may be on us at
+any moment. Go out the rear way."
+
+Grace heard the sounds of the approaching automobile growing more and
+more distinct. In another minute it would stop before the door of the
+house. But in that minute her captors would not only have been able to
+descend the stairs, but would already be making good their escape
+through the garden at the rear of the building.
+
+She must do something, she knew, to prevent this; but what--what? Bound
+as she was, how could she hope to prevent the escape of these men. She
+looked ahead of her, to where, a step or two in advance, the man of the
+black beard was hastily descending the stairs, the boy firmly held in
+his arms. Behind her came his companion, candle in hand, close at her
+heels.
+
+They were within half a dozen steps of the lower hall. From this she
+could see a dark passageway, leading to the rear of the house. Already
+the noise of the automobile without told her that it was stopping at the
+door. She heard the sound of rapid footsteps on the sidewalk; yet
+realized that, before her friends could break in, their quarry would
+have flown.
+
+Without a moment's hesitation she sprang forward, throwing her whole
+weight upon the man in front of her.
+
+The sudden shock, as she precipitated herself upon his shoulders, threw
+him off his balance, and he pitched forward headlong into the hallway
+below. The two of them, together with the child, rolled in a tangled
+heap to the floor. The second man, candle in hand, stopped on the stairs
+and gazed helplessly down, not realizing for a moment what had happened.
+
+"Help! Help!" Grace screamed at the top of her voice, as she struggled
+to regain her feet, and at the same moment there came the sound of heavy
+blows upon the front door.
+
+The man who had been carrying the child rose to his feet with an oath,
+just as his companion joined him. He turned on Grace with a howl of
+fury, and struck her a quick blow in the face. She had a confused vision
+of fleeing men, the dancing light of a candle, a rush of fresh air, and
+then all was blotted out in a wave of oblivion.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+
+The startling and dramatic entrance of Richard Duvall into Mr.
+Stapleton's library, ending with his announcement of the whereabouts of
+the kidnapped child, and his subsequent collapse, threw the entire party
+into confusion.
+
+Mrs. Stapleton started up with a scream, her overwrought nerves no
+longer able to resist the frightful strain under which she had for so
+many days been laboring.
+
+Her husband, who had completely forgotten the detective's presence in
+the house, in his anxious vigil at the telephone, called out instantly
+to one of the servants, ordering him to tell Francois to bring his
+automobile to the door.
+
+Monsieur Lefevre, accompanied by Vernet, sprang quickly to Duvall's
+assistance. The Prefect felt that, if the latter's statement was
+correct, he had won out in the long duel for the honor of recovering the
+kidnapped child; but no consideration of this nature could make him any
+less concerned for the detective's welfare, or any the less thankful
+that, no matter by whose efforts, the missing child had at last been
+located. He had hoped that to Grace Duvall would ultimately fall the
+prize of success; but these things were, after all, of no serious
+weight, compared with the great fact, that the success had at last come.
+
+Assisted by Vernet, he placed Duvall upon a couch, and called for
+brandy, and a basin of cold water.
+
+In a few moments, under Vernet's skilful ministrations, the detective's
+wound had been washed and temporarily bound up, and he had been restored
+to consciousness. A little of the brandy soon served to dispel his
+faintness. He declared himself ready to accompany the expedition to
+Passy.
+
+The Prefect endeavored to dissuade him; but to no purpose. The message
+which he had received in the chauffeur's room, to the effect that the
+person calling for help was Grace Duvall, his own wife, seemed so
+mysterious, so utterly inexplicable to him, that he could conceive no
+reasonable explanation for it. There was but one thing to do,--to go
+himself and sift the matter to the bottom. He did not expect to find
+Grace there, and yet--what else could the message mean?
+
+Just as he staggered to his feet, with the announcement that he would
+accompany the party to Passy, two of the servants rushed into the
+library, and with scared faces announced that Francois lay, bound and
+unconscious, on the floor of his room. Mr. Stapleton looked quickly at
+Duvall.
+
+"It's all right, Mr. Stapleton," exclaimed the detective. "The fellow is
+one of the gang." He turned to Monsieur Lefevre. "You'd better have him
+placed under arrest at once. And if your car is here, we'll use that,
+instead of Mr. Stapleton's. There's not a moment to be lost."
+
+"By all means. My automobile is at the door. Vernet," he turned to his
+assistant, "have one of your men take charge of this fellow Francois at
+once. We must set out immediately."
+
+Mr. Stapleton took his wife in his arms, and embraced her tenderly.
+"Don't worry, dear," he said. "I'll be back with the boy, inside of half
+an hour. Come along!" he shouted to the others, as he made for the door.
+"No time to waste now."
+
+In a few moments the entire party, consisting of Mr. Stapleton, Duvall,
+Monsieur Lefevre, Vernet, and the Prefect's chauffeur, were driving
+toward Passy at a rate which set at naught all speed regulations and
+sent the few pedestrians who happened to cross their path scampering to
+the sidewalk for safety.
+
+Duvall explained, as they went along, the mysterious messages which he
+had received by flashlight. No one understood them but Monsieur Lefevre.
+He gave a great sigh of relief. The continued and unexplained absence of
+Grace had alarmed him greatly. Now he began to understand the reasons
+for it. That part of Duvall's story which spoke of haste, the appeal for
+prompt assistance, made him look grave. He leaned over to his chauffeur
+and urged him to even greater speed.
+
+The trees and houses along the Avenue Kleber, and later the Rue
+Franklin, swept by the speeding machine in a whirl of dust. In what
+seemed an incredibly short time the automobile dashed into the Rue
+Nicolo, and thundered up to No. 42.
+
+Vernet was the first to ascend the steps of the house, closely followed
+by Duvall and the others of the party. As they reached the front door,
+and rapped loudly, they all heard a sudden commotion within, followed by
+cries and shouts and a fall. Instantly all four threw their combined
+weight against the door, shattering the lock and bursting it in.
+
+The semidarkness showed a terrifying spectacle. On the floor lay a
+woman, unconscious, clutching in her arms a child, trapped in a long
+gray coat. Down the dark hallway leading to the rear of the house dashed
+the figures of two men. One of them turned, as the attacking party
+entered, and hurled the lighted candle which he bore full into their
+faces. The entire scene was instantly plunged into darkness.
+
+The momentary light of the candle, however, had been sufficient to send
+a thrill of joy through at least one of the entering party. Mr.
+Stapleton recognized, in the white and tearful face of the child, his
+kidnapped boy, and, stooping, raised him tenderly in his arms.
+
+Duvall, not knowing whether the unconscious woman was the supposed agent
+of the police, Mademoiselle Goncourt, or Grace, his wife, lifted her in
+his arms and carried her out into the air.
+
+Vernet, followed by the Prefect, and the chauffeur, who had at once
+joined them, dashed fearlessly along the dark passage by which the two
+men were attempting to escape.
+
+There was a crash, as the rear door was burst out, followed by a volley
+of shots as Vernet opened upon the fleeing men with his automatic
+revolver.
+
+In a moment the affair was over. The foremost of the two men crumpled up
+before he had taken half a dozen strides through the garden, and his
+companion raised his hands and surrendered, begging for mercy. Within a
+few moments he was handcuffed, and Vernet, bending over his wounded
+companion, was directing the chauffeur to summon an ambulance at once.
+
+Monsieur Lefevre returned hastily to the street. His sole concern now
+was for Grace. He prayed fervently that no serious harm had befallen
+her, and realized that Duvall was likely to resent bitterly the
+deception which has been practised upon him.
+
+The latter, however, was in no mood for recriminations. No sooner had he
+carried his unconscious burden to the street, when Grace opened her
+eyes, threw her arms about his neck, and kissed him.
+
+"Richard--Richard!" she cried, happily. "I'm so glad--so glad!" then
+rested content in his arms.
+
+The detective's brain was in a whirl. In no possible way could he
+account for the presence here, in Paris, under such tragic and
+inexplicable circumstances, of the wife whom he had left, so short a
+time before, peacefully sitting on the rosecovered porch of their home
+in Maryland. The thing seemed incredible, unbelievable; yet here was
+Grace, with her soft arms about his neck, her kisses on his lips, to
+prove its reality.
+
+He looked at Monsieur Lefevre dully as the latter joined them upon the
+sidewalk, but could say nothing.
+
+"It seems," remarked the Prefect, with a grave smile, "that not only has
+Mr. Stapleton found his boy, but you have found your wife."
+
+Duvall frowned. "What is she doing here?" he asked.
+
+"We will speak of that later, my friend," observed Lefevre, quietly.
+"Just at present I propose that we return to Mr. Stapleton's without a
+moment's delay. Her heart is breaking with anxiety." He took Grace's arm
+and assisted her to enter the automobile, where Mr. Stapleton had
+already preceded them with his son. "It is to you, my dear child," he
+said to Grace, as she sunk weakly back upon the cushioned seat, "that
+Mrs. Stapleton will owe all her happiness."
+
+It was a cheerful party that broke in upon the banker's wife a short
+time later. Duvall, under the stimulus of Grace's presence, had
+completely forgotten his wound; while Grace, who had been but
+momentarily stunned by the blow which the kidnapper had given her, was
+radiant with joy at once more feeling her husband's arms about her.
+
+Monsieur Lefevre carried them both off to his house, as soon as the boy
+had been restored to his mother. The happiness of the banker's reunited
+family was too great to permit them to be even mildly interested in the
+affairs of Richard Duvall and his wife, and they, too, wished to be
+alone. It seemed to them both as though ages had passed since they had
+seen each other; they could scarcely realize that it had been but a
+little over two weeks. Richard especially seemed unable to grasp the
+truth of the situation. He plied Grace with numberless questions, and
+could scarcely believe that he had actually been within arm's length of
+her on at least four different occasions during the past week without
+knowing it.
+
+Monsieur Lefevre advised him to leave the whole matter until the next
+day. "You should be proud of your wife, Monsieur," he said, gravely.
+"But for her, I doubt if Monsieur Stapleton would ever have seen his boy
+again. And that reminds me," he smiled mischievously, "that I have won
+that little bet. It was Mademoiselle Goncourt, of my office, that
+recovered the lost child."
+
+"I think the honors are pretty evenly divided, Monsieur," laughed Grace,
+happily, as she pressed her husband's hand. "Don't forget that if
+Richard hadn't gotten my message, all my work would have gone for
+nothing."
+
+"Suppose we call it a draw, then," said the Prefect. "All in the family,
+as you Americans say. And to show that I am not prejudiced, one way or
+the other, I suggest that you both, with Mr. and Mrs. Stapleton, dine
+with me tomorrow evening. There are many points connected with this case
+which are by no means cleared up, and we should talk them over. Although
+we have secured the missing child, and three of the kidnappers, we do
+not yet know how the child was stolen, or whether the nurse, Mary
+Lanahan, is innocent or guilty of any part in his mysterious
+disappearance in the Bois de Boulogne. I confess that I have all along
+considered her guilty, and am inclined to order her arrest at once."
+
+"It will be useless, Monsieur," remarked Duvall, quietly. "She is
+entirely innocent."
+
+"You mean that she knows nothing of how the boy was spirited away?"
+
+"Nothing!"
+
+"Mon Dieu! Then the thing may forever remain a mystery."
+
+"Not at all. It is simple enough."
+
+Monsieur Lefevre turned to him with a look of inquiry. "You mean, then,
+that you have solved it?"
+
+"I do."
+
+"Then may I ask that you will be good enough to explain it at once?"
+
+Duvall laughed. "Monsieur Lefevre," he said, "I have a splitting
+headache, a bad wound in my cheek, and a burning desire to spend the
+next two hours talking to my wife." He drew Grace toward him, and put
+his arm through hers. "I am very much afraid that the explanation of
+the disappearance of Mr. Stapleton's boy will have to be put off until
+tomorrow."
+
+Monsieur Lefevre watched the two as they went, arm in arm, up the
+stairs.
+
+"Mon Dieu!" he said softly to himself. "They are just as much in love
+with each other as ever."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+
+"I must confess," remarked Monsieur Lefevre, as he sat with Mr.
+Stapleton and Duvall over their after dinner cigars the following
+evening, "that while the case as a whole appears simple enough to me,
+there are one or two points that I fail to understand."
+
+"There are a great many that _I_ fail to understand," exclaimed the
+banker, chewing reflectively on his cigar. "However, now that the boy is
+safe at home, it really makes very little difference."
+
+"On the contrary, Mr. Stapleton," remarked Duvall, "it makes a great
+deal of difference. For instance, I understand that you have discharged
+the nurse, Mary Lanahan."
+
+"Yes. You say that she is quite innocent of any part in the kidnapping
+of my boy; but the fact remains that I don't trust her. I am informed
+that she was married to that fellow, Valentin, this afternoon."
+
+Duvall smiled. "That was quite to be expected."
+
+"At one time," said Mr. Stapleton, "you believed this fellow Valentin to
+have been concerned in the plot."
+
+"Yes. That is true. My early investigations of the matter showed me at
+once that there was some understanding between these two, something
+which they were endeavoring to conceal. I did not at first understand
+the motive which actuated them. I thought it was guilt. In reality, it
+was love. Therefore I am not surprised to learn of their marriage." He
+gazed critically at his cigar for a time, in silence.
+
+"As matters have turned out, gentlemen," he resumed, after a few
+moments, "there is no cause for anything but congratulation on all
+hands. The child is recovered, the criminals are under arrest, the
+money--the hundred thousand dollars you paid out, Mr. Stapleton--was
+found on the kidnapper's person and returned to you."
+
+"Exactly. Nothing could be more satisfactory all around."
+
+"And yet," went on the detective, "I have never before taken part in a
+case in which I have done so little, in which I have been so uniformly
+unsuccessful."
+
+Mr. Stapleton raised his hand. "My dear Duvall," he began, "but for you,
+we should have been nowhere."
+
+"You are wrong, my friend. Had I kept out of the case altogether, your
+son would have been returned to you just the same. It is true that the
+men who kidnapped him would not have been caught, and your money would
+not have been returned to you; but the prime object which you sought,
+the recovery of your child, would have been realized in any event."
+
+"That is true," remarked the Prefect; "but, from the standpoint of the
+police, it is the detection and capture of the criminal that is desired,
+not the buying of him off. By insisting on that, Mr. Stapleton, you
+rendered our work extremely difficult."
+
+"So difficult, indeed," said Duvall, earnestly, "that but for the
+energy, the courage, the wit of a woman, all our plans would have
+failed. I refer to my wife. It is to her that all the credit in this
+affair is due."
+
+"By all means!" said Mr. Stapleton. "I could not fail to realize, when
+she told her story at dinner tonight, how much Mrs. Stapleton and
+myself owe her. I shall have something to say on the subject of our
+debt, as soon as the ladies rejoin us. But tell us, Mr. Duvall, a little
+more about the case, as you now understand it. I confess that I am
+becoming more and more interested. What, for instance, was the mystery,
+if indeed there was any, connected with the box of gold-tipped
+cigarettes?"
+
+Duvall smiled. "That, my dear sir, is in fact the crux, the starting
+point, of the whole affair." He settled back in his chair comfortably.
+"Otherwise the case was simple enough. Certain scoundrels steal a child,
+hold it for ransom, and frighten the parents into paying over a large
+sum. Nothing unusual in that. A clever scheme or two for turning the
+money over, and returning the child--simple, yet perfect enough to defy
+all attempts to foil them.
+
+"The real mystery lay in the utter absence of any clues which would
+throw light on the actual stealing of the child. In this respect the
+case was unique. A trusted nurse swears that the child has disappeared
+in broad daylight, without the slightest knowledge of how it was
+accomplished. Here we have a case so simple, so devoid of incident of
+any sort, that we are baffled at the very start by the impossibility of
+the thing. Yet the nurse is a woman of good reputation, honest, clearly
+telling what she believes to be the truth.
+
+"But a single clue existed upon which I could build the least semblance
+of a case. I refer to the half-smoked cigarette with the gold tip, which
+I discovered in the grass at the scene of the crime. Without that
+apparently trivial clue, the criminals would in all probability never
+have been captured at all."
+
+"But," exclaimed Mr. Stapleton, "I don't see how you make that out."
+
+"Nor I," observed the Prefect.
+
+"No. I suppose not. And yet, it is simple enough. That half-smoked
+cigarette and nothing else is the basic reason for the arrest of the
+three men now in your hands."
+
+Monsieur Lefevre smiled. "Be good enough," he said, "to explain."
+
+"Very well, I will. But first, let me indicate to you my course of
+reasoning. When I originally found the cigarette, I regarded it as of
+very small value, from the standpoint of evidence. It happened to be
+lying in the grass at the point where the crime occurred; but during
+the week or more which had elapsed between the stealing of the boy and
+my examination of the ground, a hundred people might have walked over
+the spot. I took it, because I realized that it _might_ have a bearing
+on the case, and I have learned to discard no clue, however trifling it
+may appear, until it has been proven valueless.
+
+"Now to go back to the cigarette, I observed at once that it was of
+American make, yet of such small size as to have been either used by a
+woman, or by a man of rather effeminate taste.
+
+"Now if the cigarette had been used by a woman, it meant one of two
+things. Either it was used by Mary Lanahan herself, in which case it
+apparently proved nothing, or by some other woman who was there with
+her, and who might have had a hand in the kidnapping.
+
+"On the other hand, if used by a man, it pointed clearly to the
+chauffeur, Valentin, for several reasons. He was a friend, a former
+lover, of the nurse. He had been discharged by Mr. Stapleton for
+dishonesty. He was, I had reason to know, of rather a weak and
+effeminate type. The cigarette was of American make, and he had but
+recently come from America. These things pointed to Valentin. The fact
+that the nurse was in love with him would cause her to shield him. I
+determined to try the matter out at once.
+
+"As soon as I returned to the house, therefore, I confronted her, and
+asked her if Valentin smoked gold-tipped cigarettes. I did this, not
+because I expected to get any reply of value, but because I wished to
+observe her manner, her face, when I flung the question at her.
+
+"She was greatly startled. She denied that Valentin smoked. Fifteen
+minutes later, she sent him a message to destroy the cigarettes.
+
+"I at once concluded that they were working together, and were both
+guilty, a conclusion in which, however much I was justified by the
+evidence, I was quite wrong.
+
+"Then came the attempt on the part of someone--the man with the black
+beard, I am told--to steal the cigarettes from Valentin. I learned that
+the man was followed to Mr. Stapleton's house.
+
+"This at once threw a new light upon the matter, although I will admit a
+confusing one. Someone else, besides the nurse, desired the box of
+cigarettes removed as evidence; someone, in fact, who belonged to, or
+had friends in, the house. Who could this be? I could think of no one,
+outside of Mary Lanahan herself, but the chauffeur, Francois."
+
+"Why did you first suspect him?" asked Mr. Stapleton.
+
+"Because he was the only person, besides the nurse, who was present at
+the time of the kidnapping. I did not abandon my suspicions of either
+the nurse or Valentin. I fully believed that they knew a great deal more
+about the affair than they admitted. But I became convinced that
+Francois, too, was in the thing. He had testified that he was asleep
+when the affair occurred. I concluded at once that he was lying.
+
+"At the first opportunity, therefore, I made a thorough search of his
+room, and found the box of cigarettes hidden in a clock on his mantel."
+
+"Ha! I did not know that," exclaimed the Prefect. "What were they doing
+there?"
+
+"I concluded that the fellow with the black beard who stole them from
+Valentin, in order to prevent their use as evidence against him, turned
+them over to Francois for a definite purpose."
+
+"And that purpose was?"
+
+"Their use in subsequent crimes of a similar nature."
+
+Mr. Stapleton and the Prefect gazed at Duvall in bewilderment. "Explain
+yourself, my friend," exclaimed the latter. "I confess I do not
+understand what you are talking about. Who, may I ask, really smoked the
+cigarette, the remains of which you found in the grass?"
+
+"Mary Lanahan," said the detective, with a smile.
+
+"The nurse! Name of a dog! Then I fail to see that the matter is of the
+slightest importance one way or the other."
+
+"On the contrary, Monsieur, it is of the greatest importance. May I ask
+whether you are, by any chance, familiar with the properties of an
+Eastern drug, made from hemp, and generally known as hashish?"
+
+The Prefect sat up suddenly, and clapped his hands to his knees. "Mon
+Dieu!" he exclaimed. "Now I begin to understand."
+
+"More than I do," said Mr. Stapleton.
+
+"The cigarettes were drugged, that is all," went on Duvall. "The men who
+planned this thing went to work very carefully. They ascertained,
+through Francois, that Mary Lanahan was in the habit, no doubt on the
+sly, of using cigarettes. I discovered the fact, myself, before I left
+New York. They also learned that she smoked the same brand as Mrs.
+Stapleton herself used. No doubt she helped herself from Mrs.
+Stapleton's supply. They therefore secured, also through Francois, a box
+of these cigarettes, and had them heavily drugged with hashish. The box
+of drugged cigarettes was substituted, later on, for her own."
+
+"But," exclaimed Mr. Stapleton, "how could Mary Lanahan swear that she
+turned away but a moment--that no one came near her?"
+
+"When Mary Lanahan testified that, she believed that she was telling the
+truth. The hashish had simply destroyed her conception of the passage of
+time."
+
+"Is that its effect?"
+
+"Yes. It produces a delightful languor, a stupor in which all
+realization of the passage of time ceases. Sometimes, to those who use
+the drug, it may apparently require hours to walk a few yards. To make a
+momentary movement of the hand may seem to take many minutes. On the
+other hand, in the stupor which the drug induces, hours may be spent in
+the contemplation of a flower, a bit of scenery, the page of a book,
+without any realization on the part of the user that more than a few
+seconds have elapsed. That is what happened to Mary Lanahan. She inhaled
+a few puffs of the cigarette, heavily charged with the drug; without
+knowing, of course, of its presence. She probably passed at once into a
+state of stupor which may have extended over fifteen minutes or more.
+She was not unconscious. She sat upon the grass, looking off toward the
+distant sky, in a waking dream, not unlike a trance, in which all the
+world about her--the world of sound, of movement--had simply ceased to
+exist. She was to all intents and purposes unconscious of what was going
+on about her. The kidnapper, whom I strongly suspect to be Francois,
+merely strolled up behind her, picked up the boy, and walked off with
+him."
+
+The detective's listeners looked at him in astonishment. Presently Mr.
+Stapleton spoke. "Why do you think it was Francois?" he asked.
+
+"Oh, for many reasons. Had he, on approaching, found the nurse not
+sufficiently under the influence of the drug, he could have pretended to
+wish to speak to her, on some trivial matter. Again, the child would go
+away with him of course without making an outcry, which he would
+probably not have done, with a stranger. There are other reasons. He no
+doubt took the boy to the road, and handed him to his confederates,
+passing in another car. The affair occurred, you will remember, in a
+little frequented part of the Bois.
+
+"The subsequent actions of Mary Lanahan are a trifle difficult to
+account for; but I suppose them to have been as follows: On slowly
+coming out of her stupor, and realizing that the boy was gone, she was
+terribly frightened. It had seemed to her but a moment since she turned
+away. She fears that the cigarette has made her drowsy--she has heard
+that they sometimes contain opium. She thinks she may have dozed off;
+but is not willing to admit it. Especially does she not want her
+employers to know that she uses cigarettes. She fears that such
+knowledge would cost her her place. It is not until later that she
+begins to suspect the cigarettes."
+
+"When is that?" inquired Lefevre.
+
+"Several days later, when she is supposed to have been poisoned. She was
+with Valentin at the time; although, on account of Mr. Stapleton's
+dislike for him, she feared to admit it. She smokes another of the
+cigarettes, while sitting on a bench with him, in the Champs Elysees.
+Suddenly she is taken ill--a frequent result of hashish, when taken in
+excessive doses, or by one otherwise nervously upset. Valentin takes the
+box, puts her into a cab, and goes to his room, where he leaves the
+cigarettes. No doubt, as she begins to feel ill, she discusses with him
+the possibility of the cigarettes having been poisoned. It is for that
+reason that she gives them to him.
+
+"Her sudden message to Valentin to destroy them arose from a fear that I
+would discover the part which they had played in the boy's loss. This
+would, she knew, not only cost her her place, but would make her, in a
+way, responsible for the entire affair. She feared Mr. Stapleton's
+wrath, and therefore both she and Valentin remained dumb, so far as the
+cigarettes were concerned.
+
+"They both, however, were all this time doing their best to find the
+child. Her message to Valentin, that she was suspicious of Francois,
+telling Valentin to watch him, arose no doubt from a realization that
+the box of drugged cigarettes had been substituted for her own by the
+chauffeur.
+
+"Valentin, acting on her advice, does watch Francois, as his presence
+clinging to the rear of the latter's car the other night has proved. He
+tells me, today, that Francois did not take his car to the garage that
+night at all. The men there who so testified lied, at his request,
+supposing it merely an excuse to cover a joy ride.
+
+"Francois, not wishing that the drugged cigarettes should remain in the
+nurse's hands as evidence against him, evidently made an attempt to
+recover them, discovered that she had turned them over to Valentin, and,
+being watched himself, sent word of the matter to his confederate, the
+fellow who went about in the black beard. He must have been admitted to
+Mr. Stapleton's house that night by Francois himself.
+
+"I came to the conclusion, early in the course of my investigations,
+that the cigarette, the end of which I had found in the Bois, had been
+smoked by Mary Lanahan, and I so told Mr. Stapleton."
+
+The banker nodded. "Yes," he said; "but you did not then say anything
+about the hashish."
+
+"I was not certain of it. I intended to have the fragment I had found
+analyzed. When I discovered the cigarettes in Francois' room, you will
+remember that I took one of them. I smoked that cigarette, before going
+to bed that night. It produced exactly the sensations that Mary Lanahan
+must have felt. I floated away in the land of dreams for over half an
+hour, and came to with no recollection whatever of the passage of time.
+It is a remarkable drug, but an extremely dangerous one.
+
+"After that, the case became simple enough. I knew at once, beyond any
+question, that Francois was one of the kidnappers. My plans last night
+would have worked perfectly, but for the chauffeur's accidental
+discovery of me, hiding in the closet. Had that not happened, the boy
+would have been returned, according to program, and Francois I had
+safely in my hands."
+
+"But we wouldn't have got the others," laughed the Prefect. "You must
+thank your wife for that. Vernet has told me how the kidnappers
+outwitted you at the Avenue Malakoff. The car from which the signal
+apparently was made contained a well known stockbroker, who knew nothing
+of the matter at all. He merely happened to be passing the Avenue
+Malakoff at the precise moment when the signal was given to Francois."
+
+"You are mistaken, Monsieur," observed the detective, quietly. "The
+signal was undoubtedly made from that car; not by Monsieur Lemaitre, I
+will admit, but by his chauffeur. He has admitted to Vernet that a
+stranger paid him fifty francs to do so, on the plea that it was some
+signal to a woman. The man knows nothing of the affair, beyond that."
+
+As he finished speaking, there was a ripple of laughter from the hall,
+and Mrs. Stapleton, Madame Lefevre, and Grace came in.
+
+"We have been debating a most important question," said Mrs. Stapleton,
+with an assumption of extreme gravity, "and we beg that you, Monsieur
+Lefevre, will be so good as to decide it."
+
+"What is this question so grave, Madame," inquired the Prefect, rising,
+with a smile. "I am all impatience to hear it."
+
+"The question is this, Monsieur Lefevre: Which deserves the greater
+credit for the recovery of my boy--Mr. Duvall, or his charming wife?"
+
+The Prefect stepped forward, placed one hand affectionately upon
+Duvall's shoulder, and with the other grasped Grace by the arm.
+
+"The question you propound, Madame," he said, looking from the detective
+to his wife with a smile, "is easily answered. The credit belongs
+equally to both. And that, my children, is as it should be. This affair,
+so happily terminated, has taught me one important lesson. It is this:
+The husband and the wife should never be in opposition to each other.
+They must work together always, not only in matters of this sort, but in
+all the affairs of life. I attempted a risky experiment in allowing
+these two dear friends of mine to attack this case from opposite sides.
+But for some very excellent strokes of luck, it might have resulted most
+unhappily for all concerned. Hereafter, should Monsieur Duvall and his
+wife serve me, it must be together, or not at all." He turned to Grace.
+"I feel that I owe you both a great debt, my child, for having once
+again so rudely interrupted the course of your honeymoon. What
+reparation can I make? Ask of me what you will."
+
+"Anything?" inquired Grace, laughing.
+
+"Anything." The Prefect bowed gallantly.
+
+"Then I demand your promise, Monsieur, to visit us at our place in
+Maryland, before the end of the year."
+
+"That," exclaimed the Prefect, as he bent and kissed her hand, "would be
+the most delightful way of paying a debt that I could possibly
+imagine."
+
+
+
+
+    STORIES OF RARE CHARM BY
+
+    GENE STRATTON-PORTER
+
+    May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset and Dunlap's
+    list.
+
+    THE HARVESTER
+
+    Illustrated by W. L. Jacobs
+
+    Illustration: Cover of Harvester
+
+    "The Harvester," David Langston, is a man of the woods and fields,
+    who draws his living from the prodigal hand of Mother Nature
+    herself. If the book had nothing in it but the splendid figure of
+    this man, with his sure grip on life, his superb optimism, and his
+    almost miraculous knowledge of nature secrets, it would be notable.
+    But when the Girl comes to his "Medicine Woods," and the
+    Harvester's whole sound, healthy, large outdoor being realizes that
+    this is the highest point of life which has come to him--there
+    begins a romance, troubled and interrupted, yet of the rarest
+    idyllic quality.
+
+
+    FRECKLES. Decorations by E. Stetson Crawford
+
+    Freckles is a nameless waif when the tale opens, but the way in
+    which he takes hold of life; the nature of the friendships he forms
+    in the great Limberlost swamp; the manner in which everyone who
+    meets him succumbs to the charm of his engaging personality; and
+    his love-story with "The Angel" are full of real sentiment.
+
+
+    A GIRL OF THE LIMBERLOST.
+
+    Illustrated by Wladyslaw T. Brenda.
+
+    The story of a girl of the Michigan woods; a buoyant, lovable type
+    of the self-reliant American. Her philosophy is one of love and
+    kindness towards all things; her hope is never dimmed. And by the
+    sheer beauty of her soul, and the purity of her vision, she wins
+    from barren and unpromising surroundings those rewards of high
+    courage.
+
+    It is an inspiring story of a life worth while and the rich
+    beauties of the out-of-doors are strewn through all its pages.
+
+
+    AT THE FOOT OF THE RAINBOW.
+
+    Illustrations in colors by Oliver Kemp. Design and decorations by
+    Ralph Fletcher Seymour.
+
+    The scene of this charming, idyllic love story is laid in Central
+    Indiana. The story is one of devoted friendship, and tender
+    self-sacrificing love; the friendship that gives freely without
+    return, and the love that seeks first the happiness of the object.
+    The novel is brimful of the most beautiful word painting of nature,
+    and its pathos and tender sentiment will endear it to all.
+
+
+    _Ask for complete free list of G. & D. Popular Copyrighted Fiction_
+
+    GROSSET & DUNLAP, 526 WEST 26TH ST., NEW YORK
+
+
+    GROSSET & DUNLAP'S
+
+    DRAMATIZED NOVELS
+
+    THE KIND THAT ARE MAKING THEATRICAL HISTORY
+
+    May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap's list
+
+
+    WITHIN THE LAW. By Bayard Veiller & Marvin Dana. Illustrated by Wm.
+    Charles Cooke.
+
+    This is a novelization of the immensely successful play which ran
+    for two years in New York and Chicago.
+
+    The plot of this powerful novel is of a young woman's revenge
+    directed against her employer who allowed her to be sent to prison
+    for three years on a charge of theft, of which she was innocent.
+
+
+    WHAT HAPPENED TO MARY. By Robert Carlton Brown. Illustrated with
+    scenes from the play.
+
+    This is a narrative of a young and innocent country girl who is
+    suddenly thrown into the very heart of New York, "the land of her
+    dreams," where she is exposed to all sorts of temptations and
+    dangers.
+
+    The story of Mary is being told in moving pictures and played in
+    theatres all over the world.
+
+
+    THE RETURN OF PETER GRIMM. By David Belasco. Illustrated by John
+    Rae.
+
+    This is a novelization of the popular play in which David Warfield,
+    as Old Peter Grimm, scored such a remarkable success.
+
+    The story is spectacular and extremely pathetic but withal,
+    powerful, both as a book and as a play.
+
+
+    THE GARDEN OF ALLAH. By Robert Hichens.
+
+    This novel is an intense, glowing epic of the great desert, sunlit
+    barbaric, with its marvelous atmosphere of vastness and loneliness.
+
+    It is a book of rapturous beauty, vivid in word painting. The play
+    has been staged with magnificent cast and gorgeous properties.
+
+
+    BEN HUR. A Tale of the Christ. By General Lew Wallace.
+
+    The whole world has placed this famous Religious-Historical Romance
+    on a height of pre-eminence which no other novel of its time has
+    reached. The clashing of rivalry and the deepest human passions,
+    the perfect reproduction of brilliant Roman life, and the tense,
+    fierce atmosphere of the arena have kept their deep fascination. A
+    tremendous dramatic success.
+
+
+    BOUGHT AND PAID FOR. By George Broadhurst and Arthur Hornblow.
+    Illustrated with scenes from the play.
+
+    A stupendous arraignment of modern marriage which has created an
+    interest on the stage that is almost unparalleled. The scenes are
+    laid in New York, and deal with conditions among both the rich and
+    poor.
+
+    The interest of the story turns on the day-by-day developments
+    which show the young wife the price she has paid.
+
+
+    _Ask for complete free list of G. & D. Popular Copyrighted Fiction_
+
+    GROSSET & DUNLAP, 526 WEST 26TH ST., NEW YORK
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+    Transcriber Notes
+
+    Obvious punctuation and spelling errors have been corrected.
+
+    page 291 Original: he is no longer in the horse; but he may be in
+
+    Replaced: he is no longer in the house; but he may be in
+
+    page 256 Original: The man seemed hurried. He grouped his way
+
+    Replaced: The man seemed hurried. He groped his way
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Blue Lights, by Arnold Fredericks
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BLUE LIGHTS ***
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