"
"So far as the papyrus goes, it is utterly useless to any one," broke
in von Kerber suddenly.
Mr. Fenshawe was stirred out of his studied calm by the seeming
absurdity of the interruption.
"Useless!" he exclaimed, and his brow seamed with anger, "that is a
strange word to apply to the only evidence of your story that you have
ever produced."
"I always feared Alfieri," said the other, throwing his hands out as if
he were pushing away a threatening phantom. "He was spiteful, and
jealous, and he knew enough to drive him mad with desire. But I would
allow no one to interfere with me, yes? When I was sure of my ground,
when I had secured translations of each piece of the papyrus, I altered
it."
"Altered it!"
Incredulity and hope were oddly mixed in the cry which came
simultaneously from the lips of two of his hearers. Even Irene and
Dick, less wrapped up in the dream of finding the Sabaean hoard,
awaited von Kerber's next utterance with bated breath. The man was too
unnerved to feel any triumph at the sensation he had created.
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