instructions to Captain Mason, and later on
caught the afternoon express for Paris. The clocks of the French
capital were striking eleven as he reached his hotel that night. He
was worn out, and retired almost immediately to bed, though it would
have required but little persuasion to have taken him off to the Rue
Jacquarie. As it was, however, he had to content himself with the
reflection, that he was to see her the very first thing in the morning.

CHAPTER XVIII

Nine o'clock on the following day, punctual almost to the minute, found
Browne exchanging greetings with the _concierge_ at the foot of the
stairs, who, by this time, had come to know his face intimately. The
latter informed him that Mademoiselle Petrovitch was at home, but that
Madame Bernstein had gone out some few minutes before. Browne
congratulated himself upon the latter fact, and ran upstairs three
steps at a time. Within four minutes from entering the building
Katherine was in his arms.

"Are you pleased to see me again, darling?" he inquired, after the
first excitement of their meeting had passed away.

"More pleased than I can tell you," she answered; and as she spoke
Browne could see the love-light in her eyes. "Ever since your telegram
arrived yesterday, I have been counting the minutes until I should see
you. It seems like years since you went away, and such long years too!"

What Browne said in reply to this pretty speech, it does not behove me
to set down here. Whatever it was, however, it seemed to give great
satisfaction to the person to whom it was addressed. At length they
sat down together upon the sofa, and Browne told her of the
arrangements he had made. "I did not write to you about them, dear,"
he said, "for the reason that, in a case like this, the less that is
put on paper the better for all parties concerned. Letters may go
astray, and there is no knowing what may happen to them. Therefore I
thought I would keep all my news until I could tell it to you face to
face. Are you ready for your long journey?"

"Yes, we are quite ready," said Katherine. "We are only waiting for
you. Madame has been very busy for the last few days, and so have I."
She mentioned Madame's name with some little trepidation, for she
feared lest the old subject, which had caused them both so much pain on
the last occasion that they had met, might be revived. Browne,
however, was careful, as she was, not to broach it.

"And when wil