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"But that would have been ridiculous!" exclaimed the jewel expert, and felt sincere in making his protest. Nevertheless, he had glanced at Annesley's face while talking of the Malindore diamond to Lady Cartwright. It had been on the edge of his mind that, if she looked self-conscious, it would be a point against her and her husband.

Ruthven Smith accepted the invitation here, which I was so sure he would refuse. He has come because he thinks the Malindore diamond is in this house. That must be it! But how can he have found out that I am wearing it?"

"Also I handed to him the Malindore diamond. His firm lost it. His firm has by this time been paid the insurance. It's up to him how to dispose of the property. "That's all I have to say about Van Vreck. I thought in fairness you ought to know that I didn't keep the diamond. And I thought I might tell you that my call at Van Vreck's didn't mean entering any new deal."

If some honest person, recognizing it from a description in the papers, for instance " "The Malindore diamond!" exclaimed Lady Cartwright, forgetting politeness in her interest, and cutting short a sentence which began dully. "Isn't that the wonderful blue diamond that the British Museum refused to buy three years ago, because it hadn't enough money to spend, or something?"

Allowing that he had certain faults seemed to chase away a dreadful thought which had pressed near, out of sight, yet close as if it stood behind her chair, leaning over her shoulder. For a moment she felt happy again. She would tell Knight what she had heard about the Malindore diamond, and how like its description was to hers.

If anything could be worse than what is, it would be that." "Very well, you can rid yourself of me in another way," the man answered. "You can denounce me give me up to 'justice. If you hand over the Malindore diamond to Ruthven Smith and tell him how you got it " "You must know I wouldn't do that!" "Why not?" "Because I couldn't." "It needn't spoil your life. No one could blame you.

Yet she felt that it might be read, if her soul and body had not been wrenched apart, and hastily flung together again, upside down, it seemed, with her brain where her heart had been, and vice versa. Why had Ruthven Smith looked at her, as he spoke in his loud voice of the stolen Malindore diamond a blue diamond set with small brilliants, in a ring?

No more "business" would have been done on those or any premises; this party of Easter guests would not have been invited to Valley House; and the Malindore diamond, sleeping away its secret on Annesley's breast, would still be guarding his secret, too. It had been a blow to open the box brought to his room by the maid without a word of explanation no lighter because it was deserved.

"Quite so," replied Ruthven Smith, adding with pride: "But the Van Vrecks had enough money. They always have when a unique thing is for sale; and they are rich enough to wait for years, with their money locked up, till somebody comes along who wants the thing. That happened in the case of the Malindore diamond. The Van Vrecks hoped to sell it to Mr. Pierpont Morgan.

"The newspapers did not publish a description of the jewels stolen on the Monarchic," he went on, brushing the Countess de Santiago aside. "It was thought best at the time not to give the reporters a list. To me, that seemed a mistake. Who knows, for instance, through how many hands the Malindore diamond may have passed?