m the note.

"Now, good night."

"You are going!"

He smiled slightly.

"I don't sleep at Claridge's as you and Miss Cronin do."

"No, of course not. Thank you so very, very much! But I can never thank
you properly."

She paused. Then she said with sudden bitterness:

"And I used to pride myself on my independence!"

"Ah--independence! A word!" said Sir Seymour.

He turned away to go, but when he was near the door he stopped and
seemed hesitating.

"What is it?" said Miss Van Tuyn anxiously.

"Even men sometimes have instincts," he said, turning round.

"Yes?"

"May I use your telephone?"

"Of course! But--do--you--"

"Where--Oh, there it is!"

He went to it and called up the bureau. Then he said: "Sir Seymour
Portman is speaking from Miss Van Tuyn's sitting-room . . . is that Mr.
Henriques? Please tell me, has that man, Arabian, of whom we spoke just
now, called again?"

There was a silence in which Miss Van Tuyn, watching, saw a frown
wrinkle deeply Sir Seymour's forehead.

"Ah! Has he gone? Did you get rid of him? . . . How long ago? . . . Only
two or three minutes! . . . Do you think he knows I am here? . . . Thank
you. I'll be down in a moment."

He put the receiver back.

"Oh, but don't leave me!" said Miss Van Tuyn distractedly. "You see, in
spite of what you told him he _has_ come!"

"Yes. He has been. He's a determined fellow."

"He'll never give it up! What can I do?"

"All you can do at present is to remain quietly up here in your
comfortable rooms. Leave the rest to me."

"But if he gets in?"

"He won't. Even if he came upstairs--and he won't be allowed to--he has
no key of your outer door. Now I'll go down and leave this note at the
bureau. If he comes back and receives it, that will probably decide him
to give the thing up. He is counting on the weakness of your will. This
note will show him you have made up your mind. By the way"--he fixed his
dark eyes on her--"you _have_ made up your mind?"

She blushed up to her hair.

"Oh, yes--yes!"

"Very well. To-morrow I shall go to Scotland Yard. We'll get him out of
the country one way or another."

She accompanied him to the outer door of the apartment. When he had
gone out she shut it behind him, and he heard the click of a bolt being
pushed home.

Before leaving the hotel Sir Seymour again sought his discreet friend
Henriques, to whom he gave Miss Van Tuyn's note.

"So the fellow has been?" he said.

"Yes, Sir Sey