"I may or I may not-tonight. It depends upon his condition. Why?"
"Well, if we're going to pull off anything like a kidnapping, I think he ought to know."
I said, sharply: "McCann, I told you Ricori's message was that you were to obey orders from me as
though they were from him. I have given you your orders. I accept all the responsibility."
"Okay," he answered, but I could see that his doubt still lingered.
Now, assuming Ricori had sufficiently recovered, there was no real reason why I should not tell him what
had happened during my encounter with Madame Mandilip. It was different with Braile. More than
suspecting, as I did, the attachment between him and Walters, I could not tell him of the crucified
doll-and even now I thought of it not as a doll crucified, but as Walters crucified. If I told him, I knew
well that there would be no holding him back from instant attack upon the doll-maker. I did not want