from a dreadful wound, from a severed artery even, the doctor
thought, there was such a quantity of it. It had already dried and
darkened, making its terrifying ugliness the more apparent.

"This is the third murder in two years," said the magistrate in a
low voice.

"And the most mysterious of all of them," added the clerk.

"Yes, it is," said the doctor. "And there is not a trace of the
body, you say?--or a clue as to where they might have taken the
dead--or dying man?"

With these words he looked carefully around the room, but there
was no more blood to be seen anywhere. Any spot would have been
clearly visible on the light-coloured floor. There was nothing
else to tell of the horrible crime that had been committed here,
nothing but the great, hideous, brown-red spot in the middle of
the room.

"Have you made a thorough search for the body?" asked the doctor.

The magistrate shook his head. "No, I have done nothing to speak
of yet. We have been waiting for you. There is a gendarme at the
gate; no one can go in or out without being seen."

"Very well, then, let us begin our search now."

The magistrate and his companion turned towards the door of the
room but the doctor motioned them to come back. "I see you do not