The Blood-Red Cross | Page 8

with a red light," she said,
"and up to the present the words have not been seen. Unless the young
lady exposes her neck to the blue rays of ordinary light they never will
be. In order to give her a chance to keep her deadly secret Madame has
had a large carbuncle on the deepest red cut and prepared. It is in the
shape of a cross, and is suspended to a fine gold, almost invisible,
thread. This the signora is to wear when in full evening dress. It will
keep in its place, for the back of the cross will be dusted with gum."
"But it cannot be Madame's aim to hide the fateful words," said
Vandeleur. "You are concealing something, nurse."
Her face grew an ugly red. After a pause the following words came out

with great reluctance:--
"The young lady wears the carbuncle as a reward."
"Ah," said Vandeleur, "now we are beginning to see daylight. As a
reward for what?"
"Madame wants something which the signora can give her. It is a case
of exchange; the carbuncle which hides the fatal secret is given in
exchange for that which the signora can transfer to Madame."
"I understand at last," said Vandeleur. "Really, Druce, I feel myself
privileged to say that of all the malevolent----" he broke off abruptly.
"Never mind," he said, "we are keeping nurse. Nurse, you have
answered all my questions with praiseworthy exactitude, but before you
return to your well-earned slumbers I have one more piece of
information to seek from you. Was it entirely by Miss Ripley's desire,
or was it in any respect owing to Madame Sara's instigations, that the
young lady is permitted to wear the pearl necklace on the night of the
dance? You have, of course, nurse, heard of the pearl necklace?"
Rebecca Curt's face showed that she undoubtedly had.
"I see you are acquainted with that most interesting story. Now, answer
my question. The request to wear the necklace to-morrow night was
suggested by Madame, was it not?"
"Ah, yes--yes!" cried the woman, carried out of herself by sudden
excitement. "It was to that point all else tended--all, all!"
"Thank you, that will do. You understand that from this day you are
absolutely in my service. As long as you serve me faithfully you are
safe."
"I will do my best, sir," she replied, in a modest tone, her eyes seeking
the ground.
The moment we were alone Vandeleur turned to me.

"Things are simplifying themselves," he said.
"I fail to understand," was my answer. "I should say that complications,
and alarming ones, abound."
"Nevertheless, I see my way clear. Druce, it is not good for you to be so
long out of bed, but in order that you may repose soundly when you
return to your room I will tell you frankly what my mode of operations
will be to-morrow. The simplest plan would be to tell Rowland
everything, but for various reasons that does not suit me. I take an
interest in the little girl, and if she chooses to conceal her secret (at
present, remember, she does not know it, but the poor child will
certainly be told everything to-morrow) I don't intend to interfere. In
the second place, I am anxious to lay a trap for Madame. Now, two
things are evident. Madame Sara's object in coming here is to steal the
pearls. Her plan is to terrify the little signora into giving them to her in
order that the fiendish words written on the child's neck may not be
seen. As the signora must wear a dress with a low neck to-morrow
night, she can only hide the words by means of the red carbuncle.
Madame will only give her the carbuncle if she, in exchange, gives
Madame the pearls. You see?"
"I do," I answered, slowly.
He drew himself up to his slender height, and his eyes became full of
suppressed laughter.
"The child's neck has been injured with nitrate of silver. Nevertheless,
until it is exposed to the blue rays of light the ominous, fiendish words
will not appear on her white throat. Once they do appear they will be
indelible. Now, listen! Madame, with all her cunning, forgot something.
To the action of nitrate of silver there is an antidote. This is nothing
more or less than our old friend cyanide of potassium. To-morrow
nurse, under my instructions, will take the little patient into a room
carefully prepared with the hateful red light, and will bathe the neck
just where the baleful words are written with a solution of cyanide of
potassium. The nitrate of silver will then become neutralized and the
letters will never come out."

"But the child will not know that. The terror of Madame's cruel story
will