“What you mean is that she would not be here but for the fact that by Henry’s Decree she would be your lawful wife and I powerless to interfere.”

I made no answer.  I was rather anxious for him to pursue the premise to its conclusion.

“You see where that deduction leads,” he went on:  “only Dehra and Lotzen know the Laws of our House.”

“I ask Your Majesty to observe that I have made no deduction,” I said.

He stopped short and looked at me, a moment.

“Quite right,” he said; “and it’s proper you should not to me.  But, I suppose you will concede it was not the Princess.”

“Certainly,” I agreed.

“Ergo—­it must have been——­”

“I stop at the Princess,” said I.

He sat silent, frowning very slightly.

“If I were quite sure that Lotzen were the instigator of this plot, I would remove him utterly from the line of succession and banish him from the Kingdom.”

I thought it a proper time for me to be very quiet.

“In the meantime, however, I shall send that infernal woman packing over the border by the quickest route,” he said vehemently.

“I trust not, Sire,” I said.  “As Governor of Dornlitz, I gave orders, this morning, that she be not permitted to leave the Capital.”

“But, she’s an American subject!” he exclaimed.  “She can’t be held prisoner.”

“If she’s my wife, she’s a subject of Your Majesty.”

“True!  But why do you want to keep her here?”

“To give time to investigate her doings since I became an Archduke,” I said.  “I may not marry Dehra in the face of that certificate and old Henry’s Decree; and, since the Alderman is dead, only through Madeline Spencer herself can the falsity of her claim be shown.  Every moment here she must act her part and be under our constant surveillance.  Sometime, she is sure to make a slip or forget her lines.  But, let her be at large and, with plenty of funds at her command, she will be a will-o-the-wisp, to be followed over the world for years—­and her slips will be few and very far between, and with no one there to note them.”

“Very good,” said Frederick; “keep her or send her, as you see fit—­only, don’t embroil me with America, if you can avoid it.”

“There is no danger,” I assured him.  “Courtney says he will not interfere, so long as she claims to be my wife.”

Frederick laughed.  “Courtney’s a friend,” he said heartily.

“None better lives,” I replied.

He lit a fresh cigar and studied the coal, a bit.

“I wish you would tell me,” he said, “whether you have any evidence connecting Lotzen with this matter.”

“Not a scrap nor a syllable,” I answered promptly.

“Has he ever exhibited any ill will toward you?”

“None, whatever.  On the contrary, he has been uniformly courteous and considerate—­and I have told you of his action, last night, at the supper.”