"We shall probably have another interesting conversation," I thought, as my eyes followed the form of the artist as he mounted upward and disappeared; "but not now."
The fact was that in the course of the last half hour, certain ideas, which earlier had begun to dawn in my mind, now assumed a more solid form, and fitted together, so that they formed a chain.
I thought I had hold of one end of the chain, and I was determined to fumble my way to the other end; or perhaps it would be better with a resolute pull to try and grasp it without fumbling at all.
The chain had, however, begun to link itself in this way, and when I left Mrs. Reierson's parlour, I felt convinced that Evelina knew something about the diamond, and very likely her mother also.
As I had passed through the little kitchen my elbow knocked against a dirty coffee-service which stood there,—a pot and two cups with dried-up grounds at the bottom. This accident was sufficient to set going a train of thoughts which, no doubt, had already been unconsciously developing in my mind; but which would never have been started into active life if Mrs. Reierson's objectionable coffee-cups had not been standing there.
They brought to my mind an expression in Evelina's explanation the other day:—
"I went home to my mother as soon us I had served the coffee in the museum."
She had served the coffee in the museum; she had seen that the diamond had been shown about; had seen Jurgens's imbecile greediness to become possessed of it; she had heard him bid ten thousand kroners for it! Later on she had passed the museum, when all were gone, and seeing the door standing open, knew she had only to stretch out her hand to become possessed of a large sum of money.
Perhaps she had some use or another for the latter, of which I, as yet, had no certain knowledge,—but of which I had a suspicion.
If this train of thought was correct, then Mr. Jurgens had now the diamond in his possession.