Abruptly he moved to the couch on which Josephine was sitting and sat down beside her as if he wished to cut short his declaiming and demanded in imperious accents: “And what has your rôle been in this adventure, Josine? What is your contribution to it? Have you any special information from Cagliostro?” “Only a few words,” she said. “On the list of the four enigmas which he left and which is in my possession, he has written against this one and against The Fortune of The Kings of France this note: ‘_Between Rouen, le Havre, and Dieppe._ (_So Marie Antoinette declared._)’.” “Yes--yes--the Caux country ... the estuary of the ancient river on the banks of which the Kings of France and the monks so prospered,” Ralph murmured thoughtfully. “It is undoubtedly there that they have hidden the savings of ten centuries of rule and ten centuries of religion.... The two coffers are there--not far from one another naturally--and it is there that I shall find them.” Then, turning towards Josine, he added: “So you were hunting for them, too?” “Yes, but without any precise data.” “And another woman was looking for them as well as you?” he said, looking into the depths of her eyes. “The woman who murdered Beaumagnan’s two confederates.” “Yes. The Marquise de Belmonte, who is, I suppose, another descendant of Cagliostro,” she said. “And you found nothing?” “Nothing till the day on which I met Beaumagnan.” “Who wished to avenge the murder of his two friends, what?” “Yes.” “And little by little Beaumagnan told you everything he knew?” he continued. “Yes.” “Of his own accord?” “Of his own accord.” “That is to say, you guessed he was aiming at the same goal as you, and you took advantage of the love with which you inspired him to lead him on to confide in you?” “Yes,” she said frankly. “It was a big game you were playing.” “As it turned out, I was staking my life. In making up his mind to kill me he was undoubtedly actuated by the desire to rid himself of the love which was a torture to him, since I did not respond to it. And over and above that he was terrified at having revealed these secrets to me. I had suddenly become the enemy who might reach the goal before he did. The day he saw the mistake he had made I was doomed.” “Yet his revelations were, after all, nothing but some historical data, and vague at that,” he objected. “That’s all they were,” she admitted. “And the branch of the candlestick which I got out of the little pillar was the first piece of definite evidence that came to light?” “The very first.” “At least I suppose it was. For there is nothing to show that, after your rupture, he did not advance a step or two himself,” suggested Ralph. “A step or two?” she exclaimed in a tone of dismay.