"Miss Verney is—was—a professional scene-painter. She was making a brief tour in Provence to collect material for a Roman drama for which she was commissioned to design the scenery."
"How old is she?"
"I don't know—what does it matter?"
"I want to know."
"About twenty-five, I should say."
"And what were you doing at Arles?"
Matheson found it very difficult to frame his reasons under this remorseless cross-examination. He felt as though he were in the witness-box at a divorce trial, replying to hostile counsel.
"When I left Paris," he answered, "it was to take a quiet holiday for a couple of months before settling down to my new work."
"What new work?"
"I'll explain in detail later. Scientific research, in brief."