I replied in the negative, whereupon she said: "Tell him not to come to-night. The Emperor has quarrelled with Alix, and it will be best for him to be absent. The boy [meaning the little Tsarevitch] will be taken ill in the night, and then he can come to-morrow and heal him." I understood. The woman Vyrubova, so trusted by the Tsaritza, was about to administer another dose of that baneful drug to the poor invalid boy--a drug which would produce partial paralysis, combined with symptoms which puzzled every physician called to see him. It was not until nearly half an hour later that Rasputin opened the door of his room, and, crossing himself piously, laid his hands upon his breast and dismissed his petitioner. "Your desire shall be granted," he said in final farewell. "But you must write me the reason you desire my assistance. I always insist upon that in every case." "But--well, it is not nice to confess," declared the desperate man, pausing on the threshold of the room. "Probably not. But you do confess to me, and surely you can trust me, a servant of Heaven, with your secret? If not, please do not rely upon Gregory Rasputin," he added proudly. For a second the victim hesitated. Then he said in a low, hard voice: "I will do as you wish--well knowing that you will keep the truth a secret." Rasputin, his hands still crossed upon his breast, bowed stiffly, and the banker, recognising us standing at the end of the passage, walked towards us. As soon as he had left the house, Rasputin called us, and throwing himself into a chair became unduly hilarious. "Really, Peter, you are extremely clever!" he declared. "Where you find these people I do not know. You said you had done a good stroke of business, but I did not believe you. Yet now I see that the banker's millions of roubles are entirely at our disposal. We must be diplomatic--that is all!" "Why does he require your influence?" inquired the prince. "In order to extricate himself from a very dangerous position. At any moment he may be arrested for murder!" "For murder!" Gorianoff echoed. "Is he guilty of murder?" "Yes. He has confessed the truth to me as a father confessor. Now he has promised to put his confession down in black and white." In an instant I saw the trend of Rasputin's evil thoughts. By the written confession he would, through his princely friend, be able to extort money without limit. "Of what is he in fear?" asked the prince eagerly.