atter that the falling tool had made.

"Don't be a fool," I muttered, low, but sharply. "I know where you and
mademoiselle come from; I know she is upstairs now; if I wished you any
harm I could have had the mayor and the gendarmes here an hour ago! Keep
your head--we are being watched. Have a good look at me first if you
feel you want to. Then take your hand off that revolver and pretend to
go to work."

Throwing my head back, I began blowing clouds of smoke, wondering every
instant whether a bullet would whiz through my brain. I could feel
Georges' gaze upon me; I knew it was a critical moment. But as his kind
are quick, shrewd judges of caste and character, I had my hopes.

They were justified; for presently I heard him draw a breath of relief.
His hand came out of his pocket.

"Pardon, Monsieur," he whispered, and began a vigorous pretense of
polishing the car.

Again I leaned forward to hide the fact that my lips were moving.

"When you speak to me, keep your head bent as I do."

"Monsieur, yes."

"Now listen. Men of the French army are here, with powers from the
police. They accuse mademoiselle of serious things, of acts of treason,
of being on her way to secure papers for the foes of France. They are
watching. To-morrow, if she departs, they mean to follow and to arrest
her when they have gained proof of what she is hunting."

"_Mon Dieu, Monsieur!_ What shall I do?"

There was appeal in his voice. Convinced of my good faith, he was
quite simply shifting the business to my shoulders--the French peasant
trusting the man he ranked as of his master's class. And oddly enough
I found myself responding as if to a trusted person. I smoked a little,
wondering whether Van Blarcom could catch the faint mutter of our
voices. Then I gave my orders in the same muffled tones:

"You will tell the servants that you wish to sleep here to-night, to
watch the car. You will stay here very quietly until it is nearly dawn.
Then you will creep to mademoiselle's door and whisper what I have told
you and say that I beg her to meet me before those others have awakened
at five o'clock in--"

Pondering a rendezvous, I hesitated. The room where I had dined, with
its stone floor, its beamed ceiling, and dark panels, came first to
my mind. I fancied, though, that some outdoor spot might be safer. I
remembered opportunely that a passage led past this room, and that at
its end I had glimpsed a little garden behind the inn.

"In t