"They got nothing but the trouble of getting nothing," he replied.
"Where is the letter now, Mr. Harleston--is it safe from them?"
There was a note of concern in her voice, and it puzzled him. What else
did she know--or didn't she know anything? Was it only his habit in
diplomatic affairs to doubt everything that was not undoubtable.
"The letter," he replied, "is with the expert of the State Department
for translation."
"What language is it in?" she demanded.
"Cipher language--and a particularly difficult cipher it is. Can you
help us out, Mrs. Clephane?"
"I can't, Mr. Harleston; I don't know anything about ciphers. And I told
you the whole truth when I said that I neither knew what the envelope
contained nor its purpose. What disturbs me is how to explain to the
French Ambassador the loss of the letter."
"Tell him the exact truth," said Harleston. "It would have been better
possibly had you told him this morning."
"I thought you would return the letter to me," she replied.
"I likely should, had I seen you before I turned it over to the State
Department. Now that it has passed out of my hands, it is a matter for
the Secretary to decide."
"But he will be advised by you!" she exclaimed.
"Advised, yes,--dominated, no.
Pages:
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99