They have their House of Lords, they own the land, and will
own it for many years to come, their position is unassailable. It
is the worst country in Europe for us to work in. The very climate
and the dispositions of the people are inimical to intrigue. It is
Muriel Carey who brought the Society here. It was a mistake. The
country is in no need of it. There is no scope for it."
"If only one could get beyond Saxe Leinitzer," Mr. Sabin said.
She shook her head.
"Behind him," she said, "there is only the one to whom all reference
is forbidden. And there is no man in the world who would be less
likely to listen to an appeal from you--or from me."
"After all," Mr. Sabin said, "though Saxe Leinitzer is our enemy,
I am not sure that he can do us any harm. If he declines to
release you--well, when the twelve months are up you are free
whether he wishes it or not. He has put me outside the pale. But
this is not, or never was, a vindictive Society. They do not deal
in assassinations. In this country at least anything of the sort
is rarely attempted. If I were a young man with my life to live in
the capitals of Europe I should be more or less a social outcast, I
suppose. But I am proof against that sort of thing."
Lucille looked a little doubtful.
"The Prince," she said, "is an intriguer of the old school.
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