ten o'clock
There was no doubt in my mind that he had put the thing away somewhere in what he considered a safe place pending a reward being offered by Mlle. Mars for the recovery of the bracelet . The more I thought of this the more convinced I was that that was , indeed , his proposed plan of action -- oh , how I loathed the blackleg ! -- and mine henceforth would be to dog his every footstep and never let him out of my sight until I forced him to disgorge his ill-gotten booty . At ten o'clock M. Jean Duval arrived , as was his wont , supercilious and brusque as usual . I was just explaining to him that I hoped to have excellent news for him after the next performance of _ Le Rêve _ when there was a peremptory ring at the bell . I went to open the door , and there stood a police inspector in uniform with a sheaf of papers in his hand . Now , I am not over-fond of our Paris police ; they poke their noses in where they are least wanted .