“I was in an absurdly hysterical condition,” he said, holding her hand. “You’ve been quite angelic. I knew that nothing could be done, and yet I was tormented with the desire to do something. Now I’ve got myself in hand once more. I think my common sense was deserting me, and I was on the point of believing in the farrago of nonsense which they call magic. After all, it’s absurd to think that Haddo is going to do any harm to Margaret. As soon at I get back to London, I’ll see my lawyers, and I daresay something can be done. If he’s really mad, we’ll have to put him under restraint, and Margaret will be free. I shall never forget your kindness.” Susie smiled and shrugged her shoulders. She was convinced that he would forget everything if Margaret came back to him. But she chid herself for the bitterness of the thought. She loved him, and she was glad to be able to do anything for him. She returned to the hotel, changed her frock, and walked slowly to the Chien Noir. It always exhilarated her to come back to Paris; and she looked with happy, affectionate eyes at the plane trees, the yellow trams that rumbled along incessantly, and the lounging people. When she arrived, Dr Porhoët was waiting, and his delight at seeing her again was flattering and pleasant. They talked of Arthur. They wondered why he was late. In a moment he came in. They saw at once that something quite extraordinary had taken place. “Thank God, I’ve found you at last!” he cried. His face was moving strangely. They had never seen him so discomposed. “I’ve been round to your hotel, but I just missed you. Oh, why did you insist on my going away?” “What on earth’s the matter?” cried Susie. “Something awful has happened to Margaret.” Susie started to her feet with a sudden cry of dismay. “How do you know?” she asked quickly. He looked at them for a moment and flushed. He kept his eyes upon them, as though actually to force his listeners into believing what he was about to say. “I feel it,” he answered hoarsely. “What do you mean?” “It came upon me quite suddenly, I can’t explain why or how. I only know that something has happened.” He began again to walk up and down, prey to an agitation that was frightful to behold. Susie and Dr Porhoët stared at him helplessly. They tried to think of something to say that would calm him. “Surely if anything had occurred, we should have been informed.” He turned to Susie angrily. “How do you suppose we could know anything? She was quite helpless. She was imprisoned like a rat in a trap.” “But, my dear friend, you mustn’t give way in this fashion,” said the doctor. “What would you say of a patient who came to you with such a story?” Arthur answered the question with a shrug of the shoulders. “I should say he was absurdly hysterical.” “Well?”