“What have you done with the gem?” questioned Palermo quietly.
“I hid it!” whispered Chatham, in a tense tone. “I hid it, where no one could find it!
“Then I was afraid. Afraid that some one might capture me, and demand the purple sapphire. So I carried it with me, and my fear has been tenfold!”
“Where is it now?”
Horace Chatham hesitated. He stared fixedly at the physician. For a moment two wills were at odds; then Chatham yielded. The friendly, urging influence of Doctor Palermo seemed to overcome his fears and suspicions.
With a gasp of relief, Chatham reached into a pocket of his coat, and brought out a small jewel case, which he held in his tightly clenched fist.
“Let me see it.”
Gently, as though dealing with a child, Doctor Palermo removed the jewel case from Horace Chatham’s clutch. He opened it, and the purple sapphire, a huge, exquisite gem, glowed with weird beauty in the soft light of the room.
“Shall I keep it for you?” questioned Palermo, in subtle, alluring tones.
“No! No!”