"You have saved him," said the doctor,
joyfully. " I will answer for his recovery.
Only let that woman come here for the reward;
and leave me to deal with her as she deserves.
In the mean time, my dear, don't go away from
the palace on any account until I give you
permission. I am going to send a message
immediately to Signor Andrea d'Arbino to
come and hear the extraordinary disclosure
that you have made to me. Go back to
read to the count, as usual, until I want you
again; but, remember you must not drop
a word to him yet, of what you have said
to me. He must be carefully prepared
for all that we have to tell him; and must be
kept quite in the dark until those preparations
are made."

D'Arbino answered the doctor's summons
in person; and Nanina repeated her story
to him. He and the doctor remained
closeted together for some time after she had
concluded her narrative, and had retired. A
little before four o'clock they sent for her
again into the study. The doctor was sitting
by the table with a bag of money before him,
and d'Arbino was telling one of the servants
that if a lady called at the palace on the
subject of the handbill which he had circulated, she
was to be admitted into the study immediately.

As the clock struck four, Nanina was
requested to take possession of a window-seat,
and to wait there until she was summoned.
When she had obeyed, the doctor loosened
one of the window-curtains, to hide her from
the view of any one entering the room.

About a quarter of an hour elapsed; and
then the door was thrown open, and Brigida
herself was shown into the study. The doctor
bowed, and d'Arbino placed a chair for her.
She was perfectly collected, and thanked
them for their politeness with her best grace.

"I believe I am addressing confidential
friends of Count Fabio d'Ascoli ? " Brigida
began. "May I ask if you are authorised to act
for the count, in relation to the reward which
this handbill offers?"

The doctor, having examined the handbill,
said that the lady was quite right, and pointed
significantly to the bag of money.

"You are prepared then," pursued Brigida,
smiling, " to give a reward of two hundred
scudi to any one able to tell you who the
woman is who wore the yellow mask at the
Marquis Melani's ball, and how she contrived
to personate the face and figure of the late
Countess d'Ascoli ? "

"Of course we are prepared," answered
d'Arbino, a little irritably. "As men of
honour we are not in the habit of promising
anything that we are not perfectly willing,
under proper conditions, to perform."

"Pardon me, my dear friend," said the
doctor; " I think you speak a little too
warmly to the lady. She is quite right to
take every precaution. We have the two
hundred scudi here, madam," he continued,
patting the money-bag. "And we are
prepared to pay that sum for the information we
want, But " (here the doctor suspiciously
moved the bag of scudi from the table to his
lap) '' we must have proofs that the person
claiming the reward is really entitled to it."

Brigida's eyes followed the money-bag
greedily.

"Proofs!" she exclaimed, taking a small
flat box from under her cloak, and pushing
it across to the doctor. "Proofs! there you
will find one proof that establishes my claim
beyond the possibility of doubt."

The doctor opened the box, and looked at
the wax mask inside it; then handed it to
d'Arbino, and replaced the bag of scudi on
the table.

"The contents of that box seem certainly
to explain a great deal," he said, pushing the
bag gently towards Brigida, but always
keeping his hand over it. " The woman who
wore the yellow domino was, I presume, of
the same height as the late countess?"

"Exactty," said Brigida. " Her eyes were
also of the same colour as the late countess's;
she wore yellow of the same shade as the
hangings in the late countess's room, and
she had on, under her yellow mask, the
colourless wax model of the late countess's
face, now in your friend's hand. So much for
that part of the secret. Nothing remains now
to be cleared up but the mystery of who the
lady was. Have the goodness, sir, to push
that bag an inch or two nearer my way, and
I shall be delighted to tell you."

"Thank you, madam," said the doctor,
with a very perceptible change in his manner.
"We know who the lady was already."

He moved the bag of scudi while he spoke
back to his own side of the table. Brigida's
cheeks reddened, and she rose from her seat.

"Am I to understand, sir," she said,
haughtily, " that you take advantage of my
position here, as a defenceless woman, to
cheat me out of the reward?"

"By no means, madam," rejoined the doc-
tor. " We have covenanted to pay the
reward to the person who could give us the
information we required."

"Well, sir! have I not given you part of
it? And am I not prepared to give you the
whole?"

"Certainly; but the misfortune is, that
another person has been beforehand with
you. We ascertained who the lady in the
yellow domino was, and how she contrived
to personate the face of the late Countess
d'Ascoli, several hours ago, from another
informant. That person has, consequently,
the prior claim; and, on every principle of
justice, that person must also have the
reward. Nanina, this bag belongs to you—
come and take it."

Nanina appeared from the window-seat.
Brigida, thunderstruck, looked at her in
silence for a moment; gasped out, "That
girl! " — then stopped again, breathless.

"That girl was at the back of the summer-