But this method was a dangerous one, only to be employed when everything else had failed.

A word from Passepartout to his master would ruin all.

The detective was therefore in a sore strait.

But suddenly a new idea struck him.

The presence of Aouda on the Rangoon, in company with Phileas Fogg, gave him new material for reflection.
Who was this woman?
What combination of events had made her Fogg's travelling companion?
They had evidently met somewhere between Bombay and Calcutta; but where?
Had they met accidentally, or had Fogg gone into the interior purposely in quest of this charming damsel?
Fix was fairly puzzled.