XXIII
"STATES EVIDENCE"
"Juve, I've been fooled." The journalist was resting on the great couchin his friend's study, Rue Bonaparte, and wound up with this assertionthe long account of the fruitless inquiry he had made at Dixon's.
"I'm played out! For two days I haven't stopped a minute. After thenight at the "Crocodile," which I spent for the most part, as I toldyou, in search of Loupart, yesterday my day went in fruitless trips; mymind is made up; to-night I shall do no more!"
"A cigarette, Fandor?"
"Thanks."
From the crystal vase where Juve, an inveterate smoker, always kept anample stock of tobacco, he chose an Egyptian cigarette.
"My dear Juve, it is absolutely necessary to go again to Sevres and drawa close net round Dixon. He needs watching. Isn't that your opinion?"
"I'm not sure."
Juve thought for a few moments, then:
"After all, what grounds have you for thinking that Dixon should bewatched?"
"Why, any number of reasons."
"What are they?"
It was Fandor's turn to be surprised. He had given Juve the account ofhis visit, supposing that would bring him to his way of thinking, andnow Juve doubted Dixon being a suspect.
"You ask me for particulars. I am going to reply with generalisations.Taking it all in all, what do we know of Dixon? That he was in a certainplace and carried off Josephine under our very eyes. Hence he is afriend of Josephine's, which in itself looks compromising."
"Oh!" protested Juve. "You arrive at your conclusions very quickly,Fandor. Josephine is not an honest woman. She may know the type ofpeople that haunt the night resorts, yet who, for all that, need not bemurderers."
"Then, Juve, how do you account for it that during my visit Dixontricked me and kept me from meeting Josephine while making believe tolook for her? Is not that again a sign of complicity? Does not that showclearly that Josephine, realising that she is suspected in our eyes,has decided to evade us?"
Juve smiled.
"Fandor, my lad, you are endowed with a prodigious imagination. Youimpute to Dixon the worst intentions without any proof. He got Josephineaway, you say? What makes you think so? If you did not see her it wasdue to collusion between them both. Why? As far as I can see, Josephinesimply picked up an old lover of hers at the 'Crocodile' and went offwith him as naturally as possible, preferring not to see the arrest ofLoupart or of Chaleck. I admit that next day she simply took Frenchleave of the worthy American, and you may be sure he knew nothing abouther going."
Fandor was silent and Juve resumed:
"That being so, what can we bring against Dixon? Merely that he knowsJosephine."
"You are right, Juve; perhaps I went too far with my deductions, but tospeak frankly, I don't see clearly what we are to do now. All our trailsare crossed. Loupart is in flight, Chaleck vanished, and as forJosephine, I doubt our finding her again for ever so long."
All the while the journalist was speaking, Juve had remained leaningagainst the window, watching the passers-by.
"Fandor, come and see! By the omnibus, there. The person who is going tocross."
The journalist burst out:
"Well, I'm damned!"
"You see, Fandor, you must never swear to anything."
"Well, ain't we going to catch and arrest her?"
"Why? Do you think her being in this street is due to chance? Look, sheis crossing; she is coming straight here. She is entering the house. Itell you in a few moments Josephine will have climbed my stairs and willbe seated cosily in this armchair, which I get ready and set full in thelight."
Fandor could not get over his astonishment.
"Did you make an appointment with her?"
"Not at all."
Jean, the detective's servant, came into the room and announced:
"There is a lady waiting in the sitting-room. She would not give hername."
"Show her in, Jean."
A few moments later Josephine entered.
"Good day, Mademoiselle," cried Juve in a cordial tone. "What fresh newshave you to tell us?"
Loupart's mistress stood in the middle of the room, somewhat takenaback. But Juve set her at ease.
"Sit down, Josephine. You mustn't mind my friend Fandor. He has justbeen telling me about your friend Dixon."
"You know him, sir?"
"A little," said Fandor. "And you, Mademoiselle, have been seeingsomething of him lately?"
"I happened to meet him at the 'Crocodile.'"
"And took a liking to him?"
"We took a liking to each other." She turned to Juve. "I suppose youdistrust me for giving you the slip with another man?"
Juve smiled. "You found a good companion and forgot us. There is reallynothing to be angry about. Now, won't you tell us what brings you here?"
"Yes, but M. Juve, you must swear to me that you will never repeat whatI am going to tell you."
"It is very serious then?"
"M. Juve, I am going to put you in the way of arresting Loupart."
"You are very kind, my dear Josephine, but if the attempt is to succeedno better than that we made at the 'Crocodile'----"
"No, no, this time you'll be sure to nab him. Day after to-morrow at 2o'clock, Loupart is going with some of his gang to Nogent, 7 Rue desCharmilles. He has a job there under way."
Juve laughed. "They've been fooling you, Josephine. Isn't that yourview, Fandor? Do you think that Loupart would try a stroke in broaddaylight?"
Josephine gave more details, eager to persuade him.
"There will be fifteen of them outside a little house whose tenants areaway. Some of them will make a crowd to help their mates in case ofdanger. The Beard is to be in it, too."
"And Loupart?"
"Yes, Loupart, I tell you. He will wear a black mask by which you canidentify him."
"Very well, if we have nothing better to do we will take a trip toNogent day after to-morrow; eh, Fandor?"
"As you like, Juve."
"Only, remember this, my dear Josephine, if you are putting up a game onus you'll be sorry for it. There is a way, to be sure, in which you canprove your good faith. Be at Nogent Station at half-past one. If we findLoupart where you say he will be, we shall arrest him; if we don't findhim----"
The detective paused, significantly.
"You will nab him. Only we mustn't look as if we met by appointment. Noone must suspect that I gave you the tip."
Hereupon, Josephine started to go. Her manoeuvre had succeeded, andLoupart's business would go ahead safely. She turned at the door andnodded, looking at Fandor.
"Another thing; Loupart doesn't love you; you had better be on yourguard."
Juve turned thoughtfully to Fandor:
"Strange! Is this woman playing with us, or is she in earnest, and howshe looked at you when telling us to be on our guard!"