She shrank back with a great dread in her heart. Marlanx, of all men!

Why was he in the park at this hour of the night? There could be but one

answer, and the very thought of it almost suffocated her. He was drawing

the net with his own hands, he was spying with his own eyes. For a full

minute it seemed to her that her heart would stop beating. How long had

he been standing there? What had he seen or heard? Involuntarily she

peered over the rail for a glimpse of Baldos. He had gone out into the

darkness, missing the men at the lamp-post either by choice or through

pure good fortune. A throb of thankfulness assailed her heart. She was

not thinking of her position, but of his.

Again she drew stealthily away from the rail, possessed of a ridiculous

feeling that her form was as plain to the vision as if it were broad

daylight. The tread of a man impelled her to glance below once more

before fleeing to her room. Marlanx was coming toward the verandah. She

fled swiftly, pausing at the window to lower the friendly but forgotten

umbrella. From below came the sibilant hiss of a man seeking to attract

her attention. Once more she stopped to listen. The "hist" was repeated,

and then her own name was called softly but imperatively. It was beyond

the power of woman to keep from laughing. It struck her as irresistibly

funny that the Iron Count should be standing out there in the rain,

signaling to her like a love-sick boy. Once she was inside, however, it

did not seem so amusing. Still, it gave her an immense amount of

satisfaction to slam the windows loudly, as if in pure defiance. Then

she closed the blinds, shutting out the night completely.

Turning up the light at her dressing-table, she sat down in a state of

sudden collapse. For a long time she stared at her face in the

mirror. She saw the red of shame and embarrassment mount to her cheeks

and then she covered her eyes with her hands.

"Oh, what a fool you've been," she half sobbed, shrinking from the

mirror as if it were an accuser.

She prepared for bed with frantic haste. Just as she was about to

scramble in and hide her face in the pillows, a shocking thought came to

her. The next she was at the windows and the slats were closed with a

rattle like a volley of firearms. Then she jumped into bed. She wondered

if the windows were locked. Out she sprang again like a flash, and her

little bare feet scurried across the room, first to the windows and then

to the door.

"Now, I reckon I'm safe," she murmured a moment later, again getting

into bed. "I love to go to sleep with the rain pattering outside like

that. Oh, dear, I'm so sorry he has to walk all night In this rain.

Poor fellow! I wonder where he is now. Goodness, it's raining cats and

dogs!"




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