It had been quite
clear to him from the first that the cardinal was prejudiced
against Faustina, owing, no doubt, to the representations of the
prefect of police. Giovanni had carried the evidence against her
clearly in his mind, and as soon as he thought of the expedient he
saw how it would have been quite possible for himself, or for any
other man who knew the house, to commit the murder. As for the
detail concerning the doors being open, there was nothing
improbable in it, seeing that there were many servants in the
establishment, and that each one would suspect and accuse one of
his companions of the carelessness. Nothing was easier than to
construct the story, and he had supposed that nothing would be
simpler than to make the cardinal believe it. He had been
surprised to find himself mistaken upon this point, but he felt a
thrill of triumph that more than repaid him for what he had done,
when he saw the messenger leave the room with the order to
liberate Faustina. Corona had spoken, had asked him to do a hard
thing for her sake, and her caprice was satisfied, it mattered
little at what cost. She had given him an opportunity of showing
what he would do for her, and that opportunity had not been thrown
away.
But as he sat alone in the little room the cardinal had assigned
to him, he began to realise the magnitude of what he had been
doing, and to see how his actions would be judged by others.
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