o well the attacks on
the coaches, the bands of brigands who disappeared suddenly, and
remained undiscoverable, that the detective gave free rein to his
imagination. He persuaded himself that d'Ache was there, buried in some
hollow wall of which even Soyer had not the secret, and as the only
hope, in this event, was to starve him out, Licquet sent all of Mme. de
Combray's servants away, and left a handful of soldiers in the chateau,
the keys of which, as well as the administration of the property, he
left in the hands of the mayor of Aubevoye.

His first thought on returning to Rouen was for his prisoners. They had
continued to correspond during his absence, and copies of all their
letters were faithfully delivered to him; but they seemed to have told
each other all they had that was interesting to tell, and the
correspondence threatened to become monotonous. The imagination of the
detective found a way of reawakening the interest. One evening, when
every one was asleep in the prison, Licquet gave the gaoler orders to
open several doors hastily, to push bolts, and walk about noisily in the
corridors, and when, next day, Mme. de Combray enquired the cause of
all this hubbub, she was easily induced to believe that Lefebre had been
arrested at Falaise and imprisoned during the night. An hour later the
concierge, with a great show of secrecy, gave the Marquise a note
written by Licquet, in which "Lefebre" informed her of his arrest, and
said that he had disguised his writing as an act of prudence. The
stratagem was entirely successful. Mme. de Combray answered, and her
letter was immediately given to Licquet, who, awaiting some definite
information, was astonished to find himself confronted with a fresh
mystery. "Let me know," said the Marquise, "how the horse went back;
that no one saw it anywhere."

What horse? What answer should he give? If Lefebre had been really in
prison, it would have been possible to give a sensible reply, but
without his help how could Licquet avoid awakening her suspicions as to
the personality of her correspondent? In the role of the lawyer he wrote
a few lines, avoiding any mention of the horse, and asking how the
examinations went off. To this the Marquise replied: "The prefect and a
bad fellow examined us. But you do not tell me if the horse has been
sent back, and by whom. If they asked me, what should I say?"

The "bad fellow" was Licquet himself, and he knew it; but this time he
must ans