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 they will do things is one of the secrets of their power."

"Their power? What power?" he broke in with irrepressible contempt. "Who are these bogeys whose machinations are going to arrest the course of justice in a—comparatively—civilized country? You've told me yourself that Monsieur de Malrive is the least likely to give you trouble; and the others are his uncle the abbé his mother and sister. That kind of a syndicate does n't scare me much. A priest and two women contra mundum!"

She shook her head. "Not contra mundum, but with it, their whole world is behind them. It's that mysterious solidarity that you can't understand. One does n't know how far they may reach, or in how many directions. I have never known. They have always cropped up where I