was unruffled by white horses and the wave crests were hardly perceptible except where they creamed upon the rocks along the shore. Behind them lay the Ilex d'Hyeres, now holding the suggestion of romance that always attaches to green islands set at a distance in a sparkling sea. Ahead rose up the indented coast of the mainland, with its rocky foreshore, verdant slopes and background of snow topped mountains.
The twenty miles was soon covered and by half past eight the ex submarine chaser was nosing her way into a small bay with rugged cliffs on either hand. A dinghy was lowered, Sergeant Bouvet and the captain of the vessel were taken leave of with warm thanks for their help, and the shore parties were landed on a flat shelf of rock at the foot of the right hand promontory, from which visitors to the hotel bathed in summer.
Slowly they made their way up the rough, steep path to the hotel. It was a small two storey building, having only a dozen bedrooms and a single salon, the whole length of its ground floor on the seaward side being devoted to a covered terrace which served as its restaurant. It had not yet been opened for the season, but the proprietor and his wife readily agreed to provide breakfast for their unexpected visitors. A small boy was dispatched on a bicycle to buy croissants in the village, `Monsieur' set about his preparations for making a big ham omelette, and `Madame' showed her guests up to five bedrooms that had fixed basins, so that they could freshen themselves up after their night out.
John was still in his shirt sleeves, putting the finishing touches to his hair with a borrowed comb, when there came a gentle knock on the door of the room he had been given. On his calling, `Come in,' Christina limped in and closed the door behind her.
She held out her left hand. The middle of the engagement finger was covered with a thick lather, and she said, `I've come for you to get your ring off. The knuckle is still a bit swollen, but I think you will be able to wriggle it over now I've made it slippery with soap.'
`Why do you want to take it off?' he asked in surprise.
`You said you would this morning. You promised to just after you had had your fight with Jules in the cabin of the yacht.'
`I wasn't speaking seriously. I said that only to pacify you at the time. You know how different you become from your real self at night.'
She coloured, looked quickly away from him, and stammered, `I . . . I'd rather not talk about last night. I mean about . . . about what occurred between us. Although my memory of it is a bit blurred now, I know that I behaved abominably. I feel terribly ashamed.'
`You needn't be.' He smiled, cutting her short. `You were really very sweet once we had settled down in the summer house.'
`It was you who were sweet to me. You said you loved me, and I shall never forget that.' Her words came out in a rush now. `I know you don't really, and that you probably said it only to comfort me, but please don't admit it, or protest that you do, out of kindness. You see, you may have really meant it just for that brief time. Anyhow, I'd like to believe so, because it will be a lovely memory to take away with me.'
`Take away!' he echoed. `What on earth are you talking about?'
She extended her hand again. `That is why I want you to have back your ring. I'll have no more use for it now, even for make believe. I thought it all out while we were dozing early this morning. I have repaid your mother's kindness by causing her a night of desperate anxiety about you, and I brought you into a situation where you might have lost your life, or anyhow have been seriously injured. That isn't right. This horrible affair is a matter for myself and my father. If anyone is responsible for me, it is he; so I have decided that the time has come when I must disobey his orders. I am going back to join him in England.'
13
Prison for One
`You can't do that,' John said quickly. `He brought you out here to keep you out of danger.'
Christina nodded. `I know that was his idea; but it has failed. The danger has caught up with me just the same. As soon as our secret enemies discovered my hiding place his plan broke down; so there is no point in my staying here any longer.'
`Oh, yes there is. For some reason we can't yet guess at, they want to get you back to England. To go there would be to play into their hands.'
`You may be right about that, but there is a chance that when Father knows what has happened he may be able to think of a new plan to foil them. Anyhow, I have caused your mother and you more than enough trouble already. You've both been wonderful to me; but I can't let things go on like this. If Father is in no position to help me I’ll go into hiding somewhere and face what is coming on my own.'
`No you won't ! I won't let you.'
`John, I've made up my mind about this, and I am in my right senses now. Please take off your ring.'
He shook his head. `Nothing doing, my dear. While you were distraught last night you declared that it bound you to me. As far as you are concerned I am on the side of the angels, and if you felt that so strongly even in the dark hours, it is a symbol that you cannot yet afford to do with out. So you are going to stay bound to me until we have seen this business through. Afterwards you can give it back to me if you like.'
`All right then,' she sighed. `I'll keep your ring. But that doesn't alter what I said about going back to England.'
`We'll talk about that over breakfast,' he hedged. Then with a sudden grin he held out his arms. `In the meantime you continue to be my fiancee; so come and give me a kiss.'
Her big brown eyes were full of tears as she put up her hands, took his face between them, and said, `Very well then; but this is good bye.'
`No it isn't, silly,' he smiled. `It is only good morning.'
As they kissed another knock came on the door, and `Madame's' voice called, `Breakfast will be ready in about five minutes, Monsieur.'
'Merci, Madame,' he called back, and they broke their embrace; but, seeing that her left hand had made the right side of his face soapy, Christina picked up a towel and began gently to wipe it. As she did so, she murmured
`What a good thing that I didn't mess up the other side. Your poor eye still looks awfully tender.'
`If it is not too repulsive a sight, a kiss on it might help to make it well,' he suggested.
As soon as he had spoken he regretted his words. Christina went scarlet, exclaimed, `How horrid of you to make me remember!' and throwing down the towel, ran limping from the room.
Down on the terrace he found his mother, C. B. and Malouet already assembled; but it was some time before Christina joined them, and when she did he saw that she had been crying. During the first part of the meal she was very silent; then gradually she seemed to forget the episode that had caused her such distress, and responded more readily to the questions Malouet put to her.
Although the previous afternoon now seemed days away to all of them, it was not yet twenty four hours since C. B. had left London, and so far he had had no opportunity to hear Christina's own version of her story; so when the meal was finished he asked her, for his own benefit as well as Malouet's, to tell them all she could about her life from the beginning.
It took her the best part of an hour, and while there was
nothing new to Molly and John in her account, when she had done both the old Frenchman and C. B. agreed with their view, that she was suffering from possession. As John had expected, none of the others would listen to her when she announced that she had decided to return to England; so he felt that he could leave it to their united firmness to dissuade her. They all pointed out in turn that the worst that was likely to happen to her while she remained in France was that the de Grasses might yet succeed in kidnapping her; whereas a far graver danger would threaten her once she had crossed the channel; so it would be absurd for her to go to meet it voluntarily, when they might be able to save her from it altogether.
As she proved very stubborn, a prolonged wrangle ensued, but eventually their various arguments based on the same theme took effect and she agreed to stay on, at least until after the 6th, which appeared to be the target date for whatever was being hatched against her.
However, out of her wish not to expose her friends to further trouble and danger, one new factor of considerable importance had arisen. Previously she had been adamant in her determination that her father should not be informed of what was happening to her, in case any communication by her should jeopardize his own plans; whereas now she had conceded that he was ultimately responsible for her safety as well as his own, and had
