"Yes."
Monsieur Dupont smoked composedly for a minute.
"My friend," he said—"are you inclined for an adventure?"
"I am rather busy," Tranter replied. "What is it?"
"Suppose ... I were to declare to you positively that James Layton is innocent—that he did not commit that crime in the crooked garden to-night—and that I do not intend to allow him to be hanged for a crime that he did not commit—would you give a certain amount of your time to help me to save him?"
"Certainly. I will do anything I can."
"Then," said Monsieur Dupont, "I answer the question you asked a moment ago. He did not kill her."
"Who did?" Tranter demanded, looking at him in astonishment.
"That is another matter. It is one thing to say who did not—but quite another to say who did. That is for us to discover. There will be very little time. I think I can promise you excitement. Possibly there will be danger. You do not object to that?"
"I have faced a certain amount of danger in my time," Tranter replied.