"
Her smile grew wistful, with a tenderness he had the grace not to
recognise. Abashed, incredulous, he turned aside his gaze. Then without
warning he found her hand at rest in his. "More than a little,
monsieur, more than a little friendship only!"
He closed the hand in both his own.
"Then be kind to me, madame, be still more kind; give me this chance to
find and restore your jewels. It is the only way, this plan of mine. If
we adopt it no one will suffer, only an old alias that is no longer
useful. If we do not adopt it, I may not succeed, for the true authors
of this crime may prove too wary for me; and the end will be that my
best friends will believe the worst of me; even you, madame, even you
will not be sure your faith was not misplaced."
"Enough!" the woman begged in a stifled voice. "It shall be as you
wish--if you will have it so."
She sought to take away her hand; but Lanyard kissed it before he let
it go. And immediately she rose with a murmured, half articulate
excuse, and went from the room, leaving him to struggle with himself
and that which was in him which was stronger than himself, his hunger
for her love, to deny stubbornly the evidence of his senses and end by
persuading himself against his will that he was nothing to her more
than an object of common kindness such as she would extend to anyone in
similar plight.
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