An hour or two previous to that, Fandor, on returning to his flat, had found a black-edged envelope: the address in Elizabeth Dollon's handwriting. Fandor had opened it with fast beating heart and trembling hand!
For these past days, an evil Fate seemed relentlessly pursuing them. Now he feared to read of some fresh catastrophe.
He was reassured by the opening lines; but as he read on, and took in the meaning of Elizabeth's words, Fandor felt as though his heart were bursting with grief.
Elizabeth Dollon had written:
"I seem to be going mad ... yes, I love you!... Yesterday, I should have been glad to become your wife; but there came by the same post as your letter, another, which contained terrible revelations, proofs of their truth were given me!... I have not the right to curse you—or rather I have not the strength to do it; but never will I marry you, Jérôme Fandor, you, Charles Rambert!..."[11]
It seemed to Fandor that everything was turning round about him.... He took a few steps, staggering. The weight of this terrible past, a past in which he was the innocent victim, but of which he could not clear himself, overwhelmed him!
Fandor cried, in a voice of despair:
"Fantômas! Fantômas has taken his revenge!"
And before the astounded portress, the unhappy young man turned about and fell in a heap on the ground.
On the other hand, shortly after the extraordinary flight of the banker—Nanteuil to the world in general—but Fantômas to him and Fandor—Juve had received from Monsieur Annion, the supreme head of the police detective department, who only manifested himself on sensational occasions, a note sent by pneumatic post: