He noted, as a curious circumstance, that throughout the report there was no reference to the absence of Mrs. Leroux; therefore—­a primitive reasoner—­he assumed that she was back again at Palace Mansions.  He was mentally incapable of fitting Mrs. Leroux into the secret machine engineered by Mr. King through the visible agency of Ho-Pin.  On the whole, he was disposed to believe that her several absences—­ostensibly on visits to Paris—­had nothing to do with the catacombs of Ho-Pin, but were to be traced to the amours of the radiant Gianapolis.  Taking into consideration his reception by the Chinaman in the cave of the golden dragon, he determined, to his own satisfaction, that this had been dictated by prudence, and by Mr. Gianapolis.  In short he believed that the untimely murder of Mrs. Vernon had threatened to direct attention to the commercial enterprise of the Greek, and that he, Soames, had become incorporated in the latter in this accidental fashion.  He believed himself to have been employed in a private intrigue during the time that he was at Palace Mansions, and counted it a freak of fate that Mr. Gianapolis’ affairs of the pocket had intruded upon his affairs of the heart.

It was all very confusing, and entirely beyond Soames’ mental capacity to unravel.

He treated himself to a third scotch whisky, and sallied out into the rain.  A brilliantly lighted music hall upon the opposite side of the road attracted his attention.  The novelty of freedom having worn off, he felt no disposition to spend the remainder of the evening in the street, for the rain was now falling heavily, but determined to sample the remainder of the program offered by the “first house,” and presently was reclining in a plush-covered, tip-up seat in the back row of the stalls.

The program was not of sufficient interest wholly to distract his mind, and during the performance of a very tragic comedian, Soames found his thoughts wandering far from the stage.  His seat was at the extreme end of the back row, and, quite unintentionally, he began to listen to the conversation of two men, who, standing just inside the entrance door and immediately behind him to the right, were talking in subdued voices.

“There are thousands of Kings in London,” said one...

Soames slowly lowered his hands to the chair-arms on either side of him and clutched them tightly.  Every nerve in his body seemed to be strung up to the ultimate pitch of tensity.  He was listening, now, as a man arraigned might listen for the pronouncement of a judgment.

“That’s the trouble,” replied a second voice; “but you know Max’s ideas on the subject?  He has his own way of going to work; but my idea, Sowerby, is that if we can find the one Mr. Soames—­and I am open to bet he hasn’t left London—­we shall find the right Mr. King.”

The comedian finished, and the orchestra noisily chorded him off.  Soames, his forehead wet with perspiration, began to turn his head, inch by inch.  The lights in the auditorium were partially lowered, and he prayed, devoutly, that they would remain so; for now, glancing out of the corner of his right eye, he saw the speakers.