God forbid that I should say that I suspected the Conte
Lombardoni of having done this foul deed. But I cannot avoid seeing
that it is a great deal more likely that he should have done it than
Paolina," returned the Marchese.
"The accusation against the Conte Lombardoni has been abandoned, and
he has been set at liberty," replied the lawyer; "there was, in
fact, nothing against him, except the singular circumstance of his
having gone out of the city towards the Pineta, at a very unusual
hour on the morning of that same unlucky Ash Wednesday; and that he
has at last thought fit to explain."
"At last?" said Ludovico.
"Yes; for a long time he utterly refused to give any explanation of
the fact whatsoever; and his manner was altogether such as to
strengthen the notion that it was possible that he might have been
the criminal. He has told the truth at last. And it is no wonder
that he was loth to tell it, for it is not much calculated to
increase his popularity in the city."
"Why, what is it? I never used to think anything worse of him than
that he was a fool," rejoined the Marchese.
"A fool, and a very mischievous and malicious one, as fools mostly
are. What do you think took him out of the city that morning of the
first day in Lent? Simply the desire to play the spy on you and the
poor woman who has been killed.
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