The Provincial leant forward in his chair and took a pen in his right hand, while he extended his left across the table towards his companion.
“I burnt it,” said René gently.
“Ah! That is a pity. Why did you do that?”
“I had discretion!” replied the young priest, with quiet determination.
The Provincial examined the point of his pen critically, his perfectly formed lips slightly apart.
“Yes,” he murmured reflectively. “Yes, of course, you had discretion. What was in the letter?”
“A few words in English, telling his friends to have no anxiety, and asking them particularly to institute no search, as he would return home as soon as he desired to do so.”
“Ah! He said that, did he? And the letter was addressed to—”
“Mr. Carew.”
“Thank you.”