"Lagardere!" said Cocardasse, and his ruddy face paled.
"Lagardere!" said Passepoil, and his pale face flushed.
As for Lagardere, he laughed heartily at their confusion. "You are like scared children whose nurse hears bogey in the chimney."
Cocardasse strove to seem amused. "Children!" he said, with a forced laugh, and it was with a forced laugh that Passepoil repeated the word "Bogey."
For a moment the good-humor faded from the face of Lagardere, and he spoke grimly enough: "There were nine assassins in the moat at Caylus. How many are left now?"
"Only three," Cocardasse answered.
Passepoil was more precise. "Cocardasse and myself and Æsop."
Lagardere looked at them mockingly. "Doesn’t it strike you that Æsop will soon be alone?"
Cocardasse shuddered. "It’s no laughing matter."
Lagardere still continued to smile. "Vengeance sometimes wears a sprightly face and smiles while she strikes."