And if these proofs are not enough,
I will send to Paris for two of my men, who will find, somewhere in
the house or the garden, both the count's beard and the cloth with
which he wiped his razor. As to the fact which surprises you,
Doctor, it seems to me very natural; more, it is the necessary
result of the plan he adopted. Monsieur de Tremorel has always worn
his full beard: he cuts it off, and his appearance is so entirely
altered, that if he met anyone in his flight, he would not be
recognized."
The doctor was apparently convinced, for he cried:
"It's clear--it's evident,"
"Once thus disguised, the count hastens to carry out the rest of
his plan, to arrange everything to throw the law off the scent, and
to make it appear that he, as well as his wife, has been murdered.
He hunts up Guespin's vest, tears it out at the pocket, and puts a
piece of it in the countess's hand. Then taking the body in his
arms, crosswise, he goes downstairs. The wounds bleed frightfully--
hence the numerous stains discovered all along his path. Reaching
the foot of the staircase he is obliged to put the countess down,
in order to open the garden-door.
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