Ralph could not help feeling shocked. His pretty traveling companion a thief! He had indeed been deceived; and his deception had been the greater since he could not protest against an accusation justified by so many details and which explained so completely the insight of the English girl with regard to himself. A member of a gang of international crooks, she possessed such a knowledge of the world of crime that she had been able to see the figure of Arsène Lupin behind the mask of Ralph de Limézy; and he was forced to believe that the words which she had forced herself so vainly to utter, were a confession and a prayer, addressed directly to Arsène Lupin himself. “Defend my memory—Let my father know nothing—Destroy my papers.”
“Then this means a terrible scandal for the noble family of Bakersfield, Monsieur Commissary?” said Ralph gravely.
“Of course it does,” Marescal replied.
“Isn’t the idea a bit painful to you? And the idea [[72]]too of handing over to justice a young girl like the one who has just escaped you. Isn’t that a bit painful to you? For she is quite young, isn’t she?” said Ralph even more gravely.
“Quite young and very pretty.”
“But in spite of that——”
“In spite of that and in spite of any consideration whatever, nothing shall ever prevent me from doing my duty,” said Marescal firmly.
He uttered these words in the tone of a man who manifestly desires his worth to be recognized, a man whose professional conscience governs his every thought.
“Well said, Monsieur Commissary,” said Ralph in approving accents, considering the while that Marescal appeared to mix up his duty with a good many other things among which in particular were rancor and ambition.
Marescal looked at his watch, then seeing that he had plenty of time to get some rest before the coming of the examining magistrate and his clerk, he drew his legs up on to the seat and scribbled a few notes in a little note-book. Presently the note-book came to rest on his knee; his hand loosed its hold on it; the Commissary yielded to his weariness and slept.