"I'm going to tell you about things, Jack. You've taken my word so far that it's all right——"
"Naturally," said Stormont simply.
The two men, who had been brother officers in the Great War, glanced at each other, slightly smiling.
"Here it is then," said Darragh. "When I was on duty in Riga for the Intelligence Department, I met two ladies in dire distress, whose mansion had been burned and looted, supposedly by the Bolsheviki.
"They were actually hungry an penniless; the only clothing they possessed they were wearing. These ladies were the Countess Orloff-Strelwitz, and a young girl, Theodorica, Grand Duchess of Esthonia. … I did what I could for them. After a while, in the course of other duty, I found out that the Bolsheviki had had nothing to do with the arson and robbery, but that the crime had been perpetrated by Jose Quintana's gang of international crooks masquerading as Bolsheviki."
Stormont nodded: "I also came across similar cases," he remarked.
"Well, this was a flagrant example. Quintana had burnt the chateau and
made off with over two million dollars worth of the little Grand
Duchess's jewels — among them the famous Erosite gem known as The
Flaming Jewel."
"I've heard of it."
"There are only two others known. … Well, I did what I could with the
Esthonian police, who didn't believe me.
"But after a short time ago the Countess Orloff sent me word that
Quintana really was the guilty one, and that he had started for America.