He detected a peculiar look of irony in the banker’s eye.
The only persons who noticed this sudden change in the marquis’s matter were Madeleine and her aunt. They saw him turn pale, and exchange a meaning look with Raoul.
“Then I suppose this new marquis is a merchant,” said Clameran after a moment’s pause.
“That I don’t know. All that I know is, that four hundred thousand francs are to be deposited to his account by some ship-owners at Havre, after the sale of the cargo of a Brazilian ship.”
“Then he comes from Brazil?”
“I do not know, but I can give you his Christian name.”
“I would be obliged.”
M. Fauvel arose from the table, and brought from the next room a memorandum-book, and began to read over the names written in it.
“Wait a moment,” he said, “let me see—the 22nd, no, it was later than that. Ah, here it is: Clameran, Gaston. His name is Gaston, monsieur.”
But this time Louis betrayed no emotion or alarm; he had had sufficient time to recover his self-possession, and nothing could not throw him off his guard.