"
"It is very strange.'
"It is uncanny."
"Were you personally acquainted with the late Van Rembold?" I asked.
"I knew him intimately--a man of unusual charm, M. Max; and I have
particular reason to remember his death, for I actually met him and
spoke to him less than an hour before he died. We only exchanged a
few words--we met on the street; but I shall never forget the subject
of our chat."
"How is that?" I asked.
"Well, I presume Van Rembold's question was prompted by his knowledge
of the fact that I had studied such subjects at one time; but he
asked me if I knew of any race or sect in Africa or Asia who
worshipped scorpions."
"_Scorpions!_" I cried. "_Ah, mon Dieu!_ monsieur say it again--
_scorpions?_"
"But yes, certainly. Does it surprise you?"
"Did it not surprise _you_?"
"Undoubtedly. I could not imagine what had occurred to account for
his asking so strange a question. I replied that I knew of no such
sect, and Van Rembold immediately changed the subject, nor did he
revert to it. So that I never learned why he had made that singular
inquiry."
You can imagine that this conversation afforded me much food for
reflection. Whilst I could think of no reason why anyone should plot
to assassinate Grand Dukes, admirals and mining engineers, the
circumstances of the several cases were undoubtedly similar in a
number of respects. But it was the remarkable question asked by Van
Rembold which particularly aroused my interest.
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