Paradise Court by J.S. Fletcher

Author:J.S. Fletcher
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781448213238
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 2019-11-23T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter II

Mole’s Work

On Hearing this declaration of opinion from Miss Maxwell, Rivington was conscious of a sudden sinking of the heart. He half rose from the table.

“What are you going to do?” inquired his companion, stretching out a hand. “Sit down again, Mr. Rivington.”

“Yes,” said Rivington mechanically, “I suppose that is all I can do. But I felt as if I must go to her help at once. My God! Miss Maxwell, think of what that means!—a decoy!”

Miss Maxwell nodded her head, with a grave appreciation of Rivington’s feeling.

“Yes,” she said, “it sounds dreadful, I know. But that is the theory which we have worked out—Simond, Dequis, and myself. There are many things in favor of it—I will tell you of them presently, when Mr. Wells joins us. But just let me say this, Mr. Rivington, do not be alarmed about Miss de St. Evreux at present. She is safe up to now, and it will be in our interest to keep her safe. We have her and Dubarle under close observation. I may tell you that, as a matter of fact, we have one of our most skillful agents in Dubarle’s household, and that we shall receive constant reports. We are taking every precaution. What we really want is to let matters develop until we are certain of our theories and our plans, and then—”

“Yes, and then?” asked Rivington, noticing that she paused and hesitated.

“Then—well, we want to get this man red-handed if we can, and at the same time to save Miss de St. Evreux.”

Rivington looked at her anxiously and doubtfully.

“That is to say you want things to go on until she is at the very edge of the abyss?” he said.

“We will see that she does not go over,” interrupted Miss Maxwell quickly. Rivington shook his head. A new look had come into his face, and Miss Maxwell was quick to see it.

“You will not mind if I speak very plainly,” he said slowly and in low tones. “It seems to me that not only Dubarle but yourselves—your secret agents—wish to make Miss de St. Evreux a means toward an end. Why not rescue her now, instead of letting things go on until it may be—too late? If this man Dubarle is nothing to her, why should she remain one hour longer under his roof? If he is meditating the assassination of the eminent personage who is coming to Paris, incognito, why permit Miss de St. Evreux to remain in ignorance of the fact that she is living with a would-be murderer—”

Miss Maxwell interrupted him with a significant lifting of her hand.

“Mr. Rivington,” she said, “I want you to try to recognize that in this matter I not only know more than you know, but am better able to do the right thing, to adopt the wisest course. It would be utterly useless for you, for me, for anybody, to approach Miss de St. Evreux at present, because she is under the influence—how exerted and in what special form I cannot yet say—of Monsieur Dubarle.

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