CHAPTER XX. THE CERTIFICATE OF SAFETY

"You can leave de Batz and his gang alone, citizen Heron," said Chauvelin, as soon as he had closed the door behind him; "he had nothing to do with the escape of the Dauphin."

Heron growled out a few words of incredulity. But Chauvelin shrugged his shoulders and looked with unutterable contempt on his colleague. Armand, who was watching him closely, saw that in his hand he held a small piece of paper, which he had crushed into a shapeless mass.

"Do not waste your time, citizen," he said, "in raging against an empty wind-bag. Arrest de Batz if you like, or leave him alone an you please--we have nothing to fear from that braggart."

With nervous, slightly shaking fingers he set to work to smooth out the scrap of paper which he held. His hot hands had soiled it and pounded it until it was a mere rag and the writing on it illegible. But, such as it was, he threw it down with a blasphemous oath on the desk in front of Heron's eyes.

"It is that accursed Englishman who has been at work again," he said more calmly; "I guessed it the moment I heard your story. Set your whole army of sleuth-hounds on his track, citizen; you'll need them all."

Heron picked up the scrap of torn paper and tried to decipher the writing on it by the light from the lamp. He seemed almost dazed now with the awful catastrophe that had befallen him, and the fear that his own wretched life would have to pay the penalty for the disappearance of the child.

Answer this series of questions:

1. What did Heron pick up?
2. Why?
3. What was his mood?
4. Who was he talking to?
5. About what?
6. How did he escape?
7. How old is he?
8. What did it say?
9. Any response?
10. Was anyone watching?
1. A scrap of torn paper
2. to decipher the writing on it
3. Nervous
4. Chauvelin
5. The escape of the Dauphin
6. unknown
7. unknown
8. "You can leave de Batz and his gang alone, citizen Heron
9. Heron growled
10. Armand