10
I Consent to My Arrest
I CANNOT clearly remember what I did at that moment. I seem to see myself, a man of stone, with the receiver to my ear, listening vainly for some further sound, all my faculties strained towards that unknown room where Beatrice had suddenly ceased to speak. So intense was the effort that it left me weak and trembling. The first concrete thing to break in upon that awful moment was the voice of the concierge.
"What is it. Monsieur?" he asked in astonishment. " Are you ill?"
I pushed past him, and dashed up the stairs, repeating mechanically, " Beatrice ! My God, Beatrice!"
Half-way up, I encountered de Blanchegarde and Rehmy descending. I must have been looking quite ghastly, for, before I could speak, Gaston cried,
"My poor friend ! What has happened?"
"The
