A silence and then the quiet tones that were so dangerous.
"It will not pay you to be stubborn, Madame. It is my habit always to find out what I want to know----"
"But if I am ignorant----?" she appealed.
"Who is this Herr Markov who occupies this room? Markov! A name not unfamiliar. Markov!"
She was silent.
"Who is he? Speak!"
"He is--my husband, Excellency."
Rowland heard the thin raucous laugh.
"You lose a lover only to find a husband! A real husband? The long arm of coincidence? Or another lie?"
"The truth----" in a lowered voice. "I had not seen him for years."