Caught in the Net

by Emile Gaboriau

  CHAPTER III.

  THE OPINION OF DR. HORTEBISE.

  Dr. Hortebise, who had addressed Mascarin so familiarly by his Christianname of Baptiste, was about fifty-six years of age, but he carried hisyears so well, that he always passed for forty-nine. He had a heavy pairof red, sensual-looking lips, his hair was untinted by gray, and hiseyes still lustrous. A man who moved in the best society, eloquent inmanner, a brilliant conversationalist, and vivid in his perceptions, heconcealed under the veil of good-humored sarcasm the utmost cynicism ofmind. He was very popular and much sought after. He had but few faults,but quite a catalogue of appalling vices. Under this Epicurean exteriorlurked, it was reported, the man of talent and the celebrated physician.He was not a hard-working man, simply because he achieved the sameresults without toil or labor. He had recently taken to homoeopathy, andstarted a medical journal, which he named _The Globule_, which died atits fifth number. His conversation made all society laugh, and he joinedin the ridicule, thus showing the sincerity of his views, for hewas never able to take the round of life seriously. To-day, however,Mascarin, well as he knew his friend, seemed piqued at his air oflevity.

  "When I asked you to come here to-day," said he, "and when I begged youto conceal yourself in my bedroom--"

  "Where I was half frozen," broke in Hortebise.

  "It was," went on Mascarin, "because I desired your advice. We havestarted on a serious undertaking,--an undertaking full of peril both toyou and to myself."

  "Pooh! I have perfect confidence in you,--whatever you do is done well,and you are not the man to fling away your trump cards."

  "True; but I may lose the game, after all, and then----"

  The doctor merely shook a large gold locket that depended from his watchchain.

  This movement seemed to annoy Mascarin a great deal. "Why do you flashthat trinket at me?" asked he. "We have known each other for five andtwenty years,--what do you mean to imply? Do you mean that the locketcontains the likeness of some one that you intend to make use of lateron? I think that you might render such a step unnecessary by giving meyour present advice and attention."

  Hortebise threw himself back in his chair with an expression ofresignation. "If you want advice," remarked he, "why not apply to ourworthy friend Catenac?--he knows something of business, as he is alawyer."

  The name of Catenac seemed to irritate Mascarin so much, that calm, andself-contained as he usually was, he pulled off his cap and dashed it onhis desk.

  "Are you speaking seriously?" said he angrily.

  "Why should I not be in earnest?"

  Mascarin removed his glasses, as though without them he could the moreeasily peer into the depths of the soul of the man before him.

  "Because," replied he slowly, "both you and I distrust Catenac. When didyou see him last?"

  "More than three months ago."

  "True, and I allow that he seems to be acting fairly toward his oldassociates; but you will admit that, in keeping away thus, his conductis without excuse, for he has made his fortune; and though he pretendsto be poor, he is certainly a man of wealth."

  "Do you really think so?"

  "Were he here, I would force him to acknowledge that he is worth amillion, at least."

  "A million!" exclaimed the doctor, with sudden animation.

  "Yes, certainly. You and I, Hortebise, have indulged our every whim, andhave spent gold like water, while our friend garnered his harvest andstored it away. But poor Catenac has no expensive tastes, nor does hecare for women or the pleasures of the table. While we indulged in everypleasure, he lent out his money at usurious interest. But, stop,--howmuch do you spend per annum?"

  "That is a hard question to answer; but, say, forty thousand francs."

  "More, a great deal more; but calculate what a capital sum that wouldamount to during the twenty years we have done business together."

  The doctor was not clever at figures; he made several vain attempts tosolve the problem, and at last gave it up in despair. "Forty and forty,"muttered he, tapping the tips of his fingers, "are eighty, then forty--"

  "Call it eight hundred thousand francs," broke in Mascarin. "Say I drewthe same amount as you did. We have spent ours, and Catenac has savedhis, and grown rich; hence my distrust. Our interests are no longeridentical. He certainly comes here every month, but it is only to claimhis share; he consents to take his share of the profits, but shirks therisks. It is fully ten years since he brought in any business. I don'ttrust him at all. He always declines to join in any scheme that wepropose, and sees danger in everything."

  "He would not betray us, however."

  Mascarin took a few moments for reflection. "I think," said he, "thatCatenac is afraid of us. He knows that the ruin of me would entail thedestruction of the other two. This is our only safeguard; but if hedare not injure us openly, he is quite capable of working against us insecret. Do you remember what he said the last time he was here? That weought to close our business and retire. How should _we_ live? for he isrich and we are poor. What on earth are you doing, Hortebise?" he added,for the physician, who had the reputation of being worth an enormousamount, had taken out his purse, and was going over the contents.

  "I have scarcely three hundred and twenty-seven francs!" answered hewith a laugh. "What is the state of your finances?"

  Mascarin made a grimace. "I am not so well off as you; and besides," hecontinued in a low voice, as though speaking to himself, "I have certainties which you do not possess."

  For the first time during this interview a cloud spread over thedoctor's countenance.

  "Great Heavens!" said he, "and I was depending on you for three thousandfrancs, which I require urgently."

  Mascarin smiled slyly at the doctor's uneasiness. "Don't worry," heanswered. "You can have that; there ought to be some six or eightthousand francs in the safe. But that is all, and that is the lastof our common capital,--this after twenty years of toil, danger, andanxiety, and we have not twenty years before us to make a fresh fortunein."

  "Yes," continued Mascarin, "we are getting old, and therefore have thegreater reason for making one grand stroke to assure our fortune. Were Ito fall ill to-morrow, all would go to smash."

  "Quite true," returned the doctor, with a slight shudder.

  "We must, and that is certain, venture on a bold stroke. I have saidthis for years, and woven a web of gigantic proportions. Do you nowknow why at this last moment I appeal to you, and not to Catenacfor assistance? If only one out of two operations that I have fullyexplained to you succeeds, our fortune is made."

  "I follow you exactly."

  "The question now is whether the chance of success is sufficiently greatto warrant our going on with these undertakings. Think it over and letme have your opinion."

  An acute observer could easily have seen that the doctor was a man ofresource, and a thoroughly competent adviser, for the reason that hiscoolness never deserted him. Compelled to choose between the use of thecontents of his locket, or the continuance of a life of luxurious ease,the smile vanished from the doctor's face, and he began to reflectprofoundly. Leaning back in his chair, with his feet resting on thefender, he carefully studied every combination in the undertaking, asa general inspects the position taken up by the enemy, when a battleis impending, upon which the fate of an empire may hinge. That thisanalysis took a favorable turn, was evident, for Mascarin soon saw asmile appear upon the doctor's lips. "We must make the attack atonce," said he; "but make no mistake; the projects you propose are mostdangerous, and a single error upon our side would entail destruction;but we must take some risk. The odds are against us, but still we maywin. Under these circumstances, and as necessity cheers us on, I say,_Forward!_" As he said this, he rose to his feet, and extending his handtoward his friend, exclaimed, "I am entirely at your disposal."

  Mascarin seemed relieved by the doctor's decision, for he was inthat frame of mind when, however self-reliant a man may be, he has adisinclination to be left alone, and the aid of a stout ally
is of theutmost service.

  "Have you considered every point carefully?" asked he. "You know thatwe can only act at present upon one of the undertakings, and that is theone of which the Marquis de Croisenois----"

  "I know that."

  "With reference to the affair of the Duke de Champdoce, I have still togather together certain things necessary for the ultimate success ofthe scheme. There is a mystery in the lives of the Duke and Duchess,--ofthis there is no doubt,--but what is this secret? I would lay my lifethat I have hit upon the correct solution; but I want no suspicions,no probabilities; I want absolute certainties. And now," continued he,"this brings us back to the first question. What do you think of PaulViolaine?"

  Hortebise walked up and down the room two or three times, and finallystopped opposite to his friend. "I think," said he, "that the lad hasmany of the qualities we want, and we might find it hard to discover onebetter suited for our purpose. Besides, he is a bastard, knows nothingof his father, and therefore leaves a wide field for conjecture; forevery natural son has the right to consider himself, if he likes, theoffspring of a monarch. He has no family or any one to look after him,which assures us that whatever may happen, there is no one to call us toaccount. He is not overwise, but has a certain amount of talent, and anyquantity of ridiculous self-conceit. He is wonderfully handsome, whichwill make matters easier, but--"

  "Ah, there is a 'but' then?"

  "More than one," answered the doctor, "for there are three for certain.First, there is Rose Pigoreau, whose beauty has so captivated our oldfriend Tantaine,--she certainly appears to be a danger in the future."

  "Be easy," returned Mascarin; "we will quickly remove this young womanfrom our road."

  "Good; but do not be too confident," answered Hortebise, in his usualtone. "The danger from her is not the one you think, and which you aretrying to avoid. You think Paul loves her. You are wrong. He would dropher to-morrow, so that he could please his self-indulgence. But thewoman who thinks that she hates her lover often deceives herself; andRose is simply tired of poverty. Give her a little amount of comfort,good living, and luxury, and you will see her give them all up to comeback to Paul. Yes, I tell you, she will harass and annoy him, as womenof her class who have nothing to love always do. She will even go toFlavia to claim him."

  "She had better not," retorted Mascarin, in threatening accents.

  "Why, how could you prevent it? She has known Paul from his infancy. Sheknew his mother; she was perhaps brought up by her, perhaps even livedin the same street. Look out, I say, for danger from that quarter."

  "You may be right, and I will take my precautions."

  It was sufficient for Mascarin to be assured of a danger to find meansof warding it off.

  "My second 'but,'" continued Hortebise, "is the idea of the mysteriousprotector of whom the young man spoke. His mother, he says, has reasonto know that his father is dead, and I believe in the truth of thestatement. In this case, what has become of the person who paid MadameViolaine her allowance?"

  "You are right, quite right; these are the crevices in our armor; but Ikeep my eyes open, and nothing escapes me."

  The doctor was growing rather weary, but he still went on courageously."My third 'but'" said he, "is perhaps the strongest. We must see theyoung fellow at once. It may be to-morrow, without even having preparedhim or taught him his part. Suppose we found that he was honest!Imagine--if he returned a firm negative to all your dazzling offers!"

  Mascarin rose to his feet in his turn. "I do not think that there is anychance of that," said he.

  "Why not, pray?"

  "Because when Tantaine brought him to me, he had studied him carefully.He is as weak as a woman, and as vain as a journalist. Besides, he isashamed at being poor. No; I can mould him like wax into any shape Ilike. He will be just what we wish."

  "Are you sure," asked Hortebise, "that Flavia will have nothing to sayin this matter?"

  "I had rather, with your permission, say nothing on that head," returnedMascarin. He broke off his speech and listened eagerly. "There is someone listening," said he. "Hark!"

  The sound was repeated, and the doctor was about to seek refuge in theinner room, when Mascarin laid a detaining hand upon his arm.

  "Stay," observed he, "it is only Beaumarchef;" and as he spoke,he struck a gilded bell that stood on his desk. In another instantBeaumarchef appeared, and with an air in which familiarity was mingledwith respect, he saluted in military fashion.

  "Ah," said the doctor pleasantly, "do you take your nips of brandyregularly?"

  "Only occasionally, sir," stammered the man.

  "Too often, too often, my good fellow. Do you think that your nose andeyelids are not real telltales?"

  "But I assure you, sir--"

  "Do you not remember I told you that you had asthmatic symptoms?Why, the movement of your pectoral muscles shows that your lungs areaffected."

  "But I have been running, sir."

  Mascarin broke in upon this conversation, which he considered frivolous."If he is out of breath," remarked he, "it is because he has beenendeavoring to repair a great act of carelessness that he has committed.Well, Beaumarchef, how did you get on?"

  "All right, sir," returned he, with a look of triumph. "Good!"

  "What are you talking about?" asked the doctor.

  Mascarin gave his friend a meaning glance, and then, in a carelessmanner, replied, "Caroline Schimmel, a former servant of the Champdocefamily, also patronizes our office. How did you find her, Beaumarchef?"

  "Well, an idea occurred to me."

  "Pooh! do you have ideas at your time of life?"

  Beaumarchef put on an air of importance. "My idea was this," he wenton: "as I left the office with Toto Chupin, I said to myself, the womanwould certainly drop in at some pub before she reached the boulevard."

  "A sound argument," remarked the doctor.

  "Therefore Toto and I took a squint into every one we passed, and beforewe got to the Rue Carreau we saw her in one, sure enough."

  "And Toto is after her now?"

  "Yes, sir; he said he would follow her like her shadow, and will bringin a report every day."

  "I am very pleased with you, Beaumarchef," said Mascarin, rubbing hishands joyously.

  Beaumarchef seemed highly flattered, but continued,--

  "This is not all."

  "What else is there to tell?"

  "I met La Candele on his way from the Place de Petit Pont, and hehas just seen that young girl--you know whom I mean--driving off in atwo-horse Victoria. He followed it, of course. She has been placed in agorgeous apartment in the Rue Douai; and from what the porter says, shemust be a rare beauty; and La Candele raved about her, and says that shehas the most magnificent eyes in the world."

  "Ah," remarked Hortebise, "then Tantaine was right in his description ofher."

  "Of course he was," answered Mascarin with a slight frown, "and thisproves the justice of the objection you made a little time back. A girlpossessed of such dazzling beauty may even influence the fool who hascarried her off to become dangerous."

  Beaumarchef touched his master's arm kindly. "If you wish to get rid ofthe masher," said he, "I can show you a way;" and throwing himselfinto the position of a fencer, he made a lunge with his right arm,exclaiming, "One, two!"

  "A Prussian quarrel," remarked Mascarin. "No; a duel would do us nogood. We should still have the girl on our hands, and violent measuresare always to be avoided." He took off his glasses, wiped them, andlooking at the doctor intently, said, "Suppose we take an epidemic asour ally. If the girl had the smallpox, she would lose her beauty."

  Cynical and hardened as the doctor was, he drew back in horror at thisproposal. "Under certain circumstances," remarked he, "science might aidus; but Rose, even without her beauty, would be just as dangerous as sheis now. It is _her_ affection for Paul that we have to check, and not_his_ for her; and the uglier a woman is, the more she clings to herlover."

  "All this is worthy of consideratio
n," returned Mascarin; "meanwhile wemust take steps to guard ourselves from the impending danger. Have youfinished that report on Gandelu, Beaumarchef? What is his position?"

  "Head over ears in debt, sir, but not harassed by his creditors becauseof his future prospects."

  "Surely among these creditors there are some that we could influence?"said Mascarin. "Find this out, and report to me this evening; andfarewell for the present."

  When again alone, the two confederates remained silent for some time.The decisive moment had arrived. As yet they were not compromised; butif they intended to carry out their plans, they must no longer remaininactive; and both of these men had sufficient experience to know thatthey must look at the position boldly, and make up their minds at once.The pleasant smile upon the doctor's face faded away, and his fingersplayed nervously with his locket. Mascarin was the first to break thesilence.

  "Let us no longer hesitate," said he; "let us shut our eyes to thedanger and advance steadily. You heard the promises made by the Marquisde Croisenois. He will do as we wish, but under certain conditions.Mademoiselle de Mussidan must be his bride."

  "That will be impossible."

  "Not so, if we desire it: and the proof of this is, that before twoo'clock the engagement between Mademoiselle Sabine and the Baron deBreulh-Faverlay will be broken off."

  The doctor heaved a deep sigh. "I can understand Catenac's scruples. Ah!if, like him, I had a million!"

  During this brief conversation Mascarin had gone into his sleeping roomand was busily engaged in changing his dress.

  "If you are ready," remarked the doctor, "we will make a start."

  In reply, Mascarin opened the door leading into the office. "Get a cab,Beaumarchef," said he.