' Yes, _pardieu!_ I am a real dead man!"
The airy indifference which he proclaimed himself to represent one
whose awful body had but that day been removed from a mortuary, and
one whom in his own words he had "had the misfortune to strangle,"
was rather ghastly and at the same time admirable. For "Le Balafre"
had deliberately tried to murder him, and false sentiment should form
no part of the complement of a criminal investigator.
"It is a daring idea," said Stuart, "and relies for its success upon
the chance that 'The Scorpion' remains ignorant of the fate of his
agent and continues to believe that the body found off Hanover Hole
was yours."
"The admirable precautions of my clever colleague," replied Max,
laying his hand upon Dunbar's shoulder, "in closing the mortuary and
publishing particulars of the identification disk, made it perfectly
safe. 'Le Balafre' has been in hiding. He emerges!"
Stuart had secret reasons for knowing that Max's logic was not at
fault, and this brought him to the matter of the sealed paper. He
took up the envelope.
"I have here," he said slowly, "a statement. Examine the seal."
He held it out, and Max and Dunbar looked at it. The latter laughed
shortly.
"Oh, it is a real statement," continued Stuart, "the nature of which
I am not at liberty to divulge. But as to-night we take risks, I
propose to leave it in your charge, Inspector."
He handed the envelope to Dunbar, whose face was blank with
astonishment.
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