'Well?' asked the officer, holding the whistle ready near his mouth.
'You give me your word of honour that no accusation whatever shall be brought against me?'
'None on the ground of complicity with the brigands,' answered the lieutenant. 'I give you my word as an officer.'
'There is no other to bring.' Tebaldo was white.
'None that concerns me,' replied the other, coolly. 'There is a good deal of diversity of opinion about your brother's death, as you must know.'
'This is an insult—'
'Oh no! I do not accuse you at all. I only wish to limit my own promise to the matter in hand. I have done so, and I understand that you agree, do you not?'
'By force, for I suppose I must,' replied Tebaldo, in a sullen tone. 'You must further engage to protect me from the mafia, when you have caught the fellows,' he added.
'You shall have an escort wherever you go and as long as you please to remain in the country.'
'That will not be long,' said Tebaldo, almost to himself.