Whether he should see the lady again, was now a thought altogether secondary, and postponed to the achievement of her freedom.

He wandered here and there, like an anxious ghost, pale and haggard; gnawed ever at the heart, by the thought of what she might be suffering--all from his fault.
One night, he mingled with a crowd that filled the rooms of one of the most distinguished mansions in the city; for he accepted every invitation, that he might lose no chance, however poor, of obtaining some information that might expedite his discovery.

Here he wandered about, listening to every stray word that he could catch, in the hope of a revelation.

As he approached some ladies who were talking quietly in a corner, one said to another: "Have you heard of the strange illness of the Princess von Hohenweiss ?" "Yes; she has been ill for more than a year now.

It is very sad for so fine a creature to have such a terrible malady.