power
straight at Don Luis himself.

Don Luis, on his part, seemed fascinated.

He rose, and, for a moment, I thought that he was going over to speak to
her, as if drawn by that intangible attraction which Poe has so cleverly
expressed in his "Imp of the Perverse." Instead, in the midst of the
number which the orchestra was playing, he turned and, as though by a
superhuman effort, moved away among the guests out into the brighter
lights and gayety of the lobby.

I glanced up in time to see the anxious look on the Senorita's face
change momentarily into a flash of hatred toward the woman in the
window.

The young man turned just about that time, and there was no mistaking
the ardent glance he directed toward the fair Peruvian. I fancied that
her face softened a bit, too.

She resumed her normal composure as she said to Lockwood, "You will
excuse me, I know. Father is tired of the music. I think I will take him
for a turn down the boardwalk. If you can join us in our rooms in an
hour or so, may we see you!" she asked, with another significant glance
at Kennedy.

Craig had barely time to reply that we should be delighted before she
was gone. Evidently she did not dare let her father get very far out of
her sight.

We sat for a few moments smoking and chatting with Lockwood.

"What is the curse of Mansiche?" asked Kennedy at length.

"Oh, I don't know," returned Lockwood, impatiently flicking the ashes
from his cigar, as though such stories had no interest for the practical
mind of an engineer. "Some old superstition. I don't know much about the
story; but I do know that there is treasure in that great old Chimu
mound near Truxillo, and that Don Luis has got us the government
concession to bore into it, if we can only raise the capital to carry it
out."

Kennedy showed no disposition to leave the academic and become
interested in the thing from the financial standpoint, and the
conversation dragged.

"I beg pardon," apologized Lockwood at length, "but I have some very
important letters that I must get off before the mail closes. I'll see
you, I presume, when the Senorita and Don Luis come back?"

Kennedy nodded. In fact, I think he was rather glad of the opportunity
to look things over unhampered.

CHAPTER XXXV

THE BURIED TREASURE

Senora de Moche--for I had no doubt now that this was the Peruvian
Indian woman of whom Senorita Inez had spoken--seemed to lose interest
in us and in the concert t