Part 12 (1/2)

Helene shuddered and covered her face spasmodically with her hands.

Hanaud drew her hands gently down.

”Courage! You are safe now, mademoiselle. Calm yourself!”

She lay back with her eyes closed.

”Yes, yes; it is true. I am safe now. But oh! I feel I shall never dare to sleep again!” And the tears swam in her eyes. ”I woke up with a feeling of being suffocated. Mon Dieu! There was the light burning in the room, and a woman, the strange woman with the strong hands, was holding me down by the shoulders, while a man with his cap drawn over his eyes and a little black moustache pressed over my lips a pad from which a horribly sweet and sickly taste filled my mouth. Oh, I was terrified! I could not scream. I struggled. The woman told me roughly to keep quiet. But I could not. I must struggle. And then with a brutality unheard of she dragged me up on to my knees while the man kept the pad right over my mouth. The man, with the arm which was free, held me close to him, and she bound my hands with a cord behind me.

Look!”

She held out her wrists. They were terribly bruised. Red and angry lines showed where the cord had cut deeply into her flesh.

”Then they flung me down again upon my back, and the next thing I remember is the doctor standing over me and this kind nurse supporting me.”

She sank back exhausted in her chair and wiped her forehead with her handkerchief. The sweat stood upon it in beads.

”Thank you, mademoiselle,” said Hanaud gravely. ”This has been a trying ordeal for you. I understand that. But we are coming to the end. I want you to read this description of Mlle. Celie through again to make sure that nothing is omitted.” He gave the paper into the maid's hands. ”It will be advertised, so it is important that it should be complete. See that you have left out nothing.”

Helene Vauquier bent her head over the paper.

”No,” said Helene at last. ”I do not think I have omitted anything.”

And she handed the paper back.

”I asked you,” Hanaud continued suavely, ”because I understand that Mlle. Celie usually wore a pair of diamond ear-drops, and they are not mentioned here.”

A faint colour came into the maid's face.

”That is true, monsieur. I had forgotten. It is quite true.”

”Any one might forget,” said Hanaud, with a rea.s.suring smile. ”But you will remember now. Think! think! Did Mlle. Celie wear them last night?”

He leaned forward, waiting for her reply. Wethermill too, made a movement. Both men evidently thought the point of great importance. The maid looked at Hanaud for a few moments without speaking.

”It is not from me, mademoiselle, that you will get the answer,” said Hanaud quietly.

”No, monsieur. I was thinking,” said the maid, her face flus.h.i.+ng at the rebuke.

”Did she wear them when she went down the stairs last night?” he insisted.

”I think she wore them,” she said doubtfully. ”Ye-es--yes,” and the words came now firm and clear. ”I remember well. Mlle. Celie had taken them off before her bath, and they lay on the dressing-table. She put them into her ears while I dressed her hair and arranged the bow of ribbon in it.”

”Then we will add the earrings to your description,” said Hanaud, as he rose from his chair with the paper in his hand, ”and for the moment we need not trouble you any more about Mademoiselle Celie.” He folded the paper up, slipped it into his letter-case, and put it away in his pocket. ”Let us consider that poor Madame Dauvray! Did she keep much money in the house?”

”No, monsieur; very little. She was well known in Aix and her cheques were everywhere accepted without question. It was a high pleasure to serve madame, her credit was so good,” said Helene Vauquier, raising her head as though she herself had a share in the pride of that good credit.

”No doubt,” Hanaud agreed. ”There are many fine households where the banking account is overdrawn, and it cannot be pleasant for the servants.”

”They are put to so many s.h.i.+fts to hide it from the servants of their neighbours,” said Helene. ”Besides,” and she made a little grimace of contempt, ”a fine household and an overdrawn banking account--it is like a ragged petticoat under a satin dress. That was never the case with Madame Dauvray.”

”So that she was under no necessity to have ready money always in her pocket,” said Hanaud. ”I understand that. But at times perhaps she won at the Villa des Fleurs?”