He said to his friends, in a trembling voice:
"I beg your pardon....the revelations of the chevalier were so
unexpected....I should never have thought...."
His wife questioned him, eagerly:
"Speak....what is it?"
He stammered: "The hole is there, at the very spot, at the side of
the window---"
He seized the chevalier's arm, and said to him in an imperious
tone:
"Now, monsieur, proceed. I admit that you are right so far, but
now....that is not all....go on....tell us the rest of it."
Floriani disengaged his arm gently, and, after a moment, continued:
"Well, in my opinion, this is what happened. The thief, knowing
that the countess was going to wear the necklace that evening, had
prepared his gangway or bridge during your absence. He watched you
through the window and saw you hide the necklace. Afterward, he
cut the glass and pulled the ring."
"Ah! but the distance was so great that it would be impossible for
him to reach the window-fastening through the transom."
"Well, then, if he could not open the window by reaching through
the transom, he must have crawled through the transom."
"Impossible; it is too small. No man could crawl through it.
Pages:
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134