"He cheated you to some purpose in the end," I remarked.
"But he did not cheat me at all; I had nothing to do with him. Listen, and judge for yourself. I discovered that the lawyer had bargained with four men, one of whom was this very Casimir, to take your life. The murder was to be done in such a manner that no suspicion should attach to him, and the first thing was to get you away from Le Blanc."
"In that at least," said I laughing, "they succeeded."
"I wrote a letter warning you of this, and describing the four men, and despatched it by the hand of a trusty messenger."
"He was worthy of your trust," I said.
"The second letter asking you to meet me at Poictiers was not written by me."
"Then who was the writer?" I asked.
"It would be difficult to prove, but I should say it was Etienne Cordel. Several little matters convinced me he had heard of my flying visit to Le Blanc. That put him on his guard, and unfortunately my messenger was known to Casimir and his companions."
"Do you think they tracked him?"
"Waylaid him in the wood, abstracted the letter, and carried it to the lawyer. It was easy for him to imitate my writing, and the signature of D'Angely would disarm suspicion."