CHAPTER THE EIGHTH
LITTLE MRS. CULLERTON
For nearly half an hour Oswald De Gex and the Italian doctor, Moroni, sat chatting in the darkness.
De Gex apologized to his visitor for not offering him a cigarette, remarking that the striking of a match might reveal their presence to anyone strolling in the grounds, for guests at dances frequently have that habit.
“Indeed, after you have gone, Moroni, I am meeting the lady whom I mentioned, and shall walk with her outside here. I want to speak with her in private.”
“But surely that is dangerous!” exclaimed the doctor instantly.
“Why?”
“If you intend to act as you say you should not hold any clandestine meeting with her,” Moroni suggested.
“I shall take your advice and preserve this little tube intact,” and he paused, “intact at least for the present,” he added. “Hence there can be no harm in leaving the ballroom and coming out into the fresh air—eh?”