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Messengers of Evil

<h2>XX</h2> <h3>UNDER THE HOODED MASK</h3> What had happened? By way of what mysterious adventures had the corpse of sugar refiner Thomery reached that empty room in rue Lecourbe, where Jérôme Fandor had come across it? Two days previous, on the afternoon of Elizabeth Dollon's arrest, Monsieur Thomery was working in his study, when a servant came to tell him that a lady wished to speak to him. "Did she give you her name?" asked Thomery. "No, monsieur, this person said her name would tell you nothing; but she was sure monsieur would see her, for she would only detain him a minute or two...." Piles of papers were stacked on the great sugar refiner's study table: typists were laying numerous letters before him, which awaited his signature. Thomery thought to himself: "I have still a good half-hour's work before me ... deuce take this importunate visitor!" He was on the point of saying he could not see any one, when the servant added: "This person declares she comes with reference to Madame the Princess Danidoff." Though he was a man of business, Thomery was a gallant man also; and very much in love; his approaching marriage with the Princess, which had been kept secret, was now known. The name of Princess Danidoff settled the question. "Very well, let her come in!" The manservant disappeared a minute, then ushered into the study a very unassuming woman of uncertain age and quite ordinary looking. Thomery rose to meet her, pointing pleasantly to one of the large arm-chairs in the room. The visitor was profusely apologetic. "I am so exceedingly sorry, Monsieur Thomery, to disturb you at such an hour, when you must certainly have a great deal to occupy your attention; but the matter I have come about will not wait, and I am sure it will interest you...." This little person seemed very intelligent, and Thomery was favourably impressed by her manner, which was both simple and decided. "Madame, I am listening to you. In what way can I be of service to you?" "I am not here, monsieur," she protested, "to pester you with any wants and wishes for myself. I am a diamond broker and ..." She had not finished her sentence when Thomery, smiling but firm, rose, and said sharply: "In that case, madame, I can guess the motive of your call...." "But, monsieur ..." "Yes!... That is so!... Ever since my approaching marriage has been announced, I have received, every day, a dozen visits from jewellers, goldsmiths, upholsterers, and so on ... I regret to have to tell you that you will not be able to persuade me to buy ... that my betrothed has received so many wedding presents that there is no room for more.... I do not require one single thing...." Although Thomery had spoken in a tone which did not admit of any reply, although he had risen the better to mark his intention of cutting short the call, the diamond broker had remained seated, leaning back in her arm-chair.... She gave no sign of being ready to go away. "Consequently, madame," continued Thomery.... His visitor laughed. "Monsieur, you have very quickly made up your mind that I have nothing interesting to offer you! I have not come to offer you ordinary jewels...." It was Thomery's turn to smile slightly. "I quite understand, madame, that you should think your merchandise exceptional.... But once more ..." The broker interrupted the sugar refiner with a movement of her hand. "Do listen to me a moment, monsieur!... Though I am a diamond broker, diamonds are not what I have come to ask you to purchase ... it is a question of something quite different...." She paused deliberately: Thomery gazed at her without saying a word. "You know, monsieur," continued the broker, "that in such a business as mine, one is obliged to see a great many jewellers every day; well, in the course of my peregrinations, I found at a jeweller's—you must allow me to withhold his name—some pearls, which I am certain you will find are a wonderful bargain...." "For the last time, madame, I do not want a wonderful bargain!" The agent smiled curiously. "There are some things which simply do not allow themselves to be refused," she declared.... She now drew from her pocket a little jewel-case; and, notwithstanding Thomery's unconcealed impatience, opened it, and selected two pearls which she held out to him. "Do examine these jewels! You are going to tell me that they are perfectly beautiful, are you not, Monsieur Thomery?" The diamond broker offered them so naturally that Thomery gave way. He examined the pearls: he was a connoisseur. "In truth, madame, these pearls are superb; unfortunately I am not enough of an expert to buy them without taking competent advice, that is if I thought of acquiring them eventually, but I repeat, I have no wish to acquire such things!" "Deuce take it!" thought Thomery. "This broker won't take 'no' for an answer! Since I cannot rid myself of her by being pleasant, I shall make myself disagreeable!" But the would-be seller still insisted. "Monsieur, you really cannot be a connoisseur, otherwise I am sure you would not return these pearls to me." "But, madame!..." "And I am convinced that if Princess Sonia Danidoff had had them in her hand instead of you, she would have been greatly taken with them!" The broker had emphasised her words so strangely that, suddenly, Thomery hesitated. What did this mysterious visitor mean? What was it she considered so "extraordinary" about the jewels she had just submitted to him?... A suspicion flashed across his mind. "Whence come these pearls, madame?" But, at this question, the broker got up. "Monsieur Thomery," declared she, "I should be very vexed with myself were I to make you lose your evening ... your time is precious; besides, in order to give you a proper answer to your question, I should have to make certain of facts I only now guess at.... Still, I think that without having told you anything definite, I have made you sufficiently understand what is in my mind,... you will not now doubt the interest that the Princess Sonia Danidoff would have, were she able to examine these jewels...." "Is that so?" "Consequently, Monsieur Thomery, I am going to ask you if you will kindly show these pearls to the Princess; and then if you will be good enough to let me know what decision you come to, jointly with her.... If you were a buyer, I fancy I might let you have these jewels on quite exceptional terms." Thomery visibly hesitated.... He was looking at the pearls, which he was still holding in his hand, and he thought. "One might swear that these are two of the pearls stolen from Sonia at my ball!" Thomery did not reply at once. The broker was looking at him with a smile; she seemed to guess his thoughts. Thomery, on his side, was examining the woman. "Is she simply a police informer?" he asked himself. "One of these women who apparently are dealers, but are really in the pay of the police, and frequent jewellers for the purpose of tracing stolen jewels?" He was on the verge of asking her who she was, but he refrained. If this woman had not presented herself under her true colours, evidently she wished to pass for an ordinary dealer. It was possible that she was really a receiver of stolen goods! Thomery came to a decision. "I shall have the privilege of seeing the Princess Danidoff to-morrow afternoon; will you therefore leave the pearls with me?... I will show them to her. Should she express the slightest wish to possess them, I might possibly come to terms with you...." <hr style='width: 45%;' /> "Dearest, it is sweet of you to make no objection to the way in which I obtained this jewel for you to see, and to choose for your own, if you will.... The correct thing would have been to ask you to accompany me to some well-known jeweller, instead of which, I frankly confess, that these pearls were offered to me on very advantageous terms. If they please you, it will give me the greatest pleasure to see them adorning your graceful neck." Princess Sonia laughed. "My dear, for Heaven's sake, don't worry about such a thing as that!... A pearl is not less beautiful because it comes from some unpretentious jeweller's shop. I am too fond of jewels for their own sake, to trouble about the casket that enshrines them!" Thomery bowed, well pleased. "Here then, dear Sonia, are the two pearls entrusted to me as samples ... please, dearest, examine them carefully, very carefully ... and if you like them, tell me so frankly...." The Princess took the two pearls from the betrothed, and, crossing the great drawing-room, she approached one of the bay windows, lifting the thin hangings that she might the better examine the pearls. "They are marvellous!" she cried. "Dear Sonia, you think these gems rarely beautiful?" "Indeed I do! Their lustre is superb; their quality, their shape, perfect!... Why, my dear, these are the most splendid pearls I have ever seen—with one exception—the only pearls to equal them are those that were stolen from me!... The loss of them has been a bitter grief ... they came to me, you know, from my dear mother!... I never thought to find pearls of such quality again...." "You consider these to be of as pure a quality then, dear?" Sonia Danidoff continued to examine the two pearls. "It is really extraordinary," she cried suddenly. "Do you know, my dear, there are certain peculiarities about their lustre,... yes ... I could swear that these very pearls you are offering me are two of those stolen from me!..." Thomery appeared to have been impatiently awaiting these very words. "You really, truly believe, Sonia, that they resemble the pearls stolen from you that unlucky evening?" "I repeat—they are identical!" Thomery looked smilingly at Sonia. "Well, then, my dear one, I do not think you are mistaken!... I have all sorts of reasons for supposing that they really are two of your own pearls you are now holding in your hand...." And, then and there, Thomery told his fiancée all about the strange visit he had received the evening before, as well as his hope that he would be able to recover the stolen triple collar in its entirety. "That intriguing dealer," said he finally, "must be a police informer.... In any case, I am persuaded that, before long, she will take me to some receiver or other who is in possession of your pearl collar." "Oh, tell me you are not going among such people, all alone?" cried Sonia, with a note of sharp anxiety in her voice. "But, why not?" "If they are, as you think, thieves?" "Well?" "Well! Don't you see, my dear, that if you go to buy the pearls, they will count on your bringing a large sum of money with you!... Why, it would be a most imprudent thing to do!..." Thomery shrugged his shoulders. "Really, that's nonsense, Sonia! If these assassins meant to set a trap for me, they have a thousand other means of doing so ... besides, it would be remarkably daring of them to advise me to show you these pearls, and draw my attention to the question of their being stolen ones!... No, Sonia, this dealer is not the emissary of a band of robbers and assassins: she is a police informer, who has taken precautions. I run no dangerous risks by accompanying her! Reassure yourself on that point!..." But Sonia Danidoff was not reassured by Thomery's arguments. "All that only frightens me!" said she.... "If you do not really think you are running any risk, will you let me go with you?... My dear, we will go together to identify those pearls, will we not?" Thomery rose to take his leave, laughing and protesting. "Why, dear Sonia, it would be in the highest degree improper on my part, were I to agree to such a proposition!... One of two things: either there is no danger, and I should be very sorry that I had let you go out in such shocking weather; or, if there is danger, I should be still more distressed were I to drag you into it with me.... I do beg of you, Sonia, do not insist on it.... I am not a child!... And I will be very careful—very wary!..." <hr style='width: 45%;' /> Shortly after this, Thomery took leave of Sonia Danidoff. He went straight to the Café de la Paix, where he had arranged to meet the diamond broker.... She was punctual. She greeted Thomery with her most winning smile. "I am persuaded, monsieur, that Madame Sonia Danidoff was interested by the offer you made her?" "Quite so," replied Thomery.... "Should we go to your jeweller's, without further loss of time?" "If you really wish to do so, monsieur! Indeed it would be the best thing to do...." Thomery hailed a cab. He and the diamond agent entered it together, and she gave the driver an address. Twenty minutes later they left the cab and were standing before the house where the present possessor of the pearls was to be found. Thomery knew no more now about the person he had come to interview, than he did when he started: that is to say, practically nothing. The diamond broker had cleverly evaded giving any direct answers to the sugar refiner's questions: she had confined herself to stating what would be the probable price demanded for the pearl collar—which question interested Thomery least of all! They mounted, in single file, a rather poor sort of staircase: on the second floor the woman stopped. A narrow door faced them.... The woman rang.... They waited.... "Someone is coming!" said the woman. "I hear footsteps." The door was opened half-way. "Who is it?" asked a man's voice. "I, dear friend," answered the woman. The door opened wide: the same voice said: "Come in, monsieur." Thomery had barely stepped inside the room, when the diamond broker, who was close behind, flung a long silk scarf round his neck, and, pushing his knee into his victim's back for a support, he attempted to give, with Herculean force, the famous stroke of Father Francis Vigozous; energetic, Thomery did not lose his presence of mind.... He knew that to resist such a pull by simple force was impossible.... Quickly he threw himself backwards, thus giving to the strangling pull and falling on top of the woman, who had played this dastardly trick on him. From his constricted throat came a hoarse "Ah!" like a death rattle. As he was falling, for one flashing second, it seemed as though he were going to escape from the vise which was crushing in his throat... then, out of the shadow, there had appeared the fantastic vision of a man in a tight fitting sort of black jersey, which covered him from head to foot.... His face was concealed by a hooded mask.... This man had leapt out of the shadow. He held a dagger in his hand. Before Thomery had time to make a movement, the masked man had pierced his chest with a single stroke!... The sugar refiner was naught but a convulsive corpse. "Ah, well!" declared the so-called diamond broker, who had got to his feet and was kicking Thomery's body aside. "Ah, well, he is a dead weight this fellow!... By Jove, master, I fancied he was going to crush me, and that I should have to let him free!... You did well to come to the rescue!" The masked man remarked in an indifferent tone: "It really does not matter in the slightest!... Tell me, does anyone suspect?" "No one, master. He came like a sheep to the slaughter." "Princess Danidoff?" "Ah, as for her—she must be waiting for the return of her beloved friend.... I do not advise you to pay her a visit!" "Be silent, chatter-box!" ordered the masked assassin sharply. "Get rid of your clothes.... We must hurry!... We have work to do!" "This evening?" "This evening!" And, whilst the diamond broker rid himself rapidly of skirt and bodice and regained his masculine appearance—for this diamond broker was a man—the masked assassin added: "Nibet, you have played your part perfectly, and I will pay you to-morrow the sum we agreed on; but, I repeat, we have work before us this evening—so, be quick!" There was a short silence, then the bandit asked: "You have arranged to put among this fool's papers the rent receipts, which will enable the police to find this flat?" "Yes, master!" "Good! Now all we have to do, is to get away from this room, which we shall not see again ... until this evening at any rate!" <hr style="width: 65%;" /> <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

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