Cornelius laughed and glanced at the barmaid. "You can't tell me anything," he said.
"No," answered Kenly. "Half the bachelors to-day know more than the married people, and that's a fact, ain't it, miss?"
The barmaid giggled again. "You're a caution," she said. The conversation progressed swimmingly, and ten minutes later Cornelius embarked on a dingey, having graciously allowed Kenly to put him aboard Mr. Flurscheim's yacht. He lounged in the stern, assuming his most important air, while Kenly pulled away at the oars. He was fully alive to the fact that he would create a much better impression going aboard thus than if he had been compelled to borrow a boat and pull himself out to the yacht.
Kenly ran him up alongside, steadied the boat by the side of the ladder, and then let his dingey drop astern to a sufficient distance to allow him to observe Cornelius introduce himself to Flurscheim. He saw that the two men were strangers, and he gathered that the connoisseur was annoyed at Jessel's invasion of his privacy. He saw the connoisseur jump up suddenly at something which was said and begin to pace the deck in manifest agitation. He saw Jessel standing unmoved, and then after a brief conference both men went down the companion into the saloon.
The detective immediately realised that there was a chance of his learning what errand had taken Jessel to the yacht. Half a dozen strokes took him alongside again, and, making his painter fast to the yacht's anchor chain, he stood up in the dingey as it drifted level with an open port. As he had suspected the porthole gave upon the saloon, and as the dingey came opposite he could hear two voices in excited colloquy. One was easily recognised as Jessel's, and the other Kenly had just as little difficulty in recognising as Flurscheim's.
"Is that anything like the face on one of your miniatures?" said Jessel.
"I could swear to it," said Flurscheim.
"And the portrait—is it like anyone you know?" asked the valet.
"You've seen it," cried the Jew eagerly. "You must have done, for the miniature is so like Miss Challys that she might have sat for the portrait."
"I have seen it and I can tell you where it is at the present moment," answered the valet.