He had studied the whole street, which was not a long one, from beginning to end, and was convinced that he was the only person in it.

He made up his mind that he would wait until midnight; and if by that time no one appeared, he would feel confident that the Duchess was innocent, and return without any one but Jean having known of his expedition.

From his position he could see that three windows on the second floor of his house were lighted up, and those windows were in his wife's sleeping apartment.

"She is the last woman in the world to permit a lover to visit her," thought he.

"No, no; the whole thing is a hoax." He began to think of the way in which he had treated his wife.