André drew the curtains behind him, threw off his cloak, and advanced into the centre of the room.
“You killed the Chevalier?” he demanded briefly.
“Certainly. Shall I tell you why? Because he had betrayed me; because, rather, he was the lover of the woman who betrayed me. That woman is the ‘No. 101’ you have sought for so long, who has baffled you before and has baffled you again to-night. She is a liar as well as a wanton.”
André quietly shrugged his shoulders.
“Let us come to business,” Onslow said coolly. “The secret despatch, I regret to say, is not in my possession. It would have been in ten minutes, but it is still in the keeping of the charming spy, who is probably now on her way to the frontier. Madame de Pompadour will hear more of it before long, but that does not concern you. What does,” he held out a paper, “is this letter in the handwriting of the Comte de Mont Rouge.”
Onslow’s tone had the calmness of conviction, and if he spoke the truth André knew he had failed miserably. It was more than probable that “No. 101” had again baffled him. For the despatch was more important to her than to Onslow.
“Well?” André said, to gain time for his mind to work.
“If you have this letter, Vicomte, you can ruin your enemies to-morrow. Let me tell you that Mademoiselle Denise was by loaded dice, the device of another beautiful wanton and her accomplice, the writer of this letter,” he held it out, “yes, Mademoiselle Denise was chosen to steal the despatch in order that she, as well as you, might be destroyed. I see you did not know that. It is worth having, that letter.”
Onslow recognised at once he had struck the right chord. André’s face would have terrified the Comtesse des Forges, and it surprised himself as he caught a glimpse of it in the glass. Men in the white heat of wrath and baffled revenge so seldom see what their faces express.
“You can kill me, of course,” Onslow went on easily. “I am an English spy. But you will not get the letter nor the despatch in that way. Why? Because I haven’t the one, and before you can run me through the letter will be in the fire.”