s, he meant
herself. His whole scheme was dependent on her having the traitorous
letter in her possession. He was quite sure Snodgrass had received it by
mail at the Rataplan; and why had he put the unopened envelope in his
pocket unless to give it to her on their way to the Chateau. And as he
(Harleston) had caught her as she alighted from the taxi, and had
hurried her off to the State Department, she must still have it. Of
course, there was the possibility that Snodgrass had not yet delivered
it; so Snodgrass was being looked after by others.

"Won't you give me a line on his Excellency, Guy?" she asked. "Is he
easy, or difficult, or neither?"

"I may not betray the weak points of my chief!" Harleston smiled.
"Moreover, here we are," as the taxi came to a stop on the Seventeenth
Street side of an atrociously ugly, and miserably inadequate building
that partially houses three Departments of the great American
Government.

"Am I to be left alone with the great one?" she asked, as they went up
the steps from the sidewalk.

"What do you wish me to do?" he inquired.

"Wait until I signal!"

"And if his Excellency signals first?"

"It will be for me to influence that signal," she replied.

They took the private elevator to the next floor. The old negro
messenger was waiting at the door of the reception room and he bowed to
the floor--a portion of the bow was for Harleston, but by far the
larger portion was for Madeline Spencer.

"De Sec'eta'y, seh, am waiting for you all at onct, Mars Ha'lison," he
said; and ushering them across the big room to the Secretary's private
office he swung back the heavy door and bowed them into the Presence.

As she passed the threshold, Mrs. Spencer caught her breath sharply, and
straightened her shoulders just a trifle. She saw where she stood, and
what was coming. Very well--she would defeat them yet.

XXIV

THE CANDLE FLAME

The Secretary was standing by the window; with him were Mrs. Clephane
and Carpenter.

"How do you do, Mrs. Spencer!" he said, without waiting for the formal
presentation.

She dropped him--Continental fashion--a bit of curtsy and offered him
her slender fingers; which, as well as the rest of her hand, he took and
held. Its shapeliness together with her beauty of face and figure were
instantly swept up by his appraising glance.

"Your Excellency is very gracious!" she murmured bestowing on him a look
that fairly dizzied him.

Small wonder,