On this occasion I fell swiftly and hopelessly out of love with the
prospect I had so gratuitously embraced. It was not only my
repugnance to enter that house in that way, which grew upon my
better judgment as the artificial enthusiasm of the evening
evaporated from my veins. Strong as that repugnance became, I had
an even stronger feeling that we were embarking on an important
enterprise far too much upon the spur of the moment. The latter
qualm I had the temerity to confess to Raffles; nor have I often
loved him more than when he freely admitted it to be the most natural
feeling in the world. He assured me, however, that he had had my
Lady Lochmaben and her jewels in his mind for several months; he had
sat behind them at first nights; and long ago determined what to
take or to reject; in fine, he had only been waiting for those
topographical details which it had been my chance privilege to
supply. I now learned that he had numerous houses in a similar
state upon his list; something or other was wanting in each case in
order to complete his plans. In that of the Bond Street jeweller
it was a trusty accomplice; in the present instance, a more intimate
knowledge of the house.
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