he room, talking amiable nothings, as men of the world will when they
meet. Both were in evening dress, and the Frenchman held in his hand a
splendid bunch of American Beauty roses.

Voisin greeted me with _empressement_, and Lossing carelessly
acknowledged 'having met me before.'

Miss Jenrys, her aunt informed me, as she had before informed the
others, was engaged upon a letter of some importance, which must be
sent in the early mail. She would join us soon; and then I learned
from our desultory talk that it was Voisin for whose accommodation I
had been pacing the block, and that Lossing had been the first
arrival.

These two were still seated at the rear of the inner room, with Miss
Ross at a little table near its centre and myself opposite her, and
with my back to the archway, when there came a sudden sound at the
outer door. It opened and closed quickly, and Miss Jenrys' voice
exclaimed:

'Oh, Mr. Masters! I have had such a letter! One of those wretches has
written that he will ransom poor lost Gerald Trent for----'

'June, my dear, come and receive thy visitors before thee tells thy
news.'

There was just a second of embarrassed silence, and then Miss Jenrys
came forward and greeted her guests, with precisely the same courteous
welcome extended to us each and all.

But she only referred to her exclamatory first words in reply to
Monsieur Voisin's question:

'You greeted us with some rather startling words, Miss Jenrys. Pardon
me, but is it true that you have a friend lost in this wonderful
city?'

But Miss Jenrys was not to be made to commit herself a second time.

'Not at all; it is simply some news just given me by a correspondent,
who has told me in a former letter about the disappearance of a young
man whom I do not know.'

'A disappearance! Is it possible? I am interested.' He turned quickly
toward me. 'May I ask from you the details?'

'You can learn from the daily papers as much as I can tell you,' I
replied, with my most candid smile. 'I read some time since of such a
disappearance, and speaking of it casually to Miss Jenrys, learned
from her that she had the news direct from a young lady correspondent
who chanced to know the young man and his family. Is that reported
correctly, Miss Jenrys?'

She nodded.

'And he has been ransomed, you say? That is well indeed,' persisted
Voisin.

There was a brief moment of silence, during which I knew that her eyes
were fixed upon my face; but othe