Hearts and Masks

Blang! Rumpity-bumpity-blang-blang!

I have heard many stage thunders in my time, but that racket beat

anything and everything this side of siege-guns.

Instantly the door opened and a policeman poked his head in. Before I

had time to move, he grabbed me by the arm and yanked me--into the

ballroom! The girl and I had made a complete circuit of the cellars,

and had stumbled into the ball-room again by the flight opposite to

that by which we left it. Cheerful prospect, wasn't it? The adventure

had ceased to have any droll side to it.

"Aha!" cried the base minion of the law. "Here you are, then!

Hello, everybody! Hello!" he bawled.

Caught! Here we were, the Blue Domino and myself, the Grey Capuchin,

both of us in a fine fix. Discovery and ejection I could have stood

with fortitude and equanimity; but there was bad business afoot. There

wasn't any doubt in my mind what was going to happen. As the girl

said, there would be flaring head-lines and horrid pictures. We were

like to be the newspaper sensation of the day. Arrested and lodged in

jail! What would my rich, doting old uncle say to that, who had

threatened to disinherit me for lesser things! I felt terribly sorry

for the girl, but it was now utterly impossible to help her, for I

couldn't help myself.

And behold! The mysterious stranger I had met in the curio-shop, the

fellow who had virtually haunted me for six hours, the fellow who had

masqueraded as Caesar, suddenly loomed up before me, still wearing his

sardonic smile. At his side were two more policemen. He had thrown

aside his toga and was in evening dress. His keen glance rested on me.

"Here he is, Mr. Haggerty!" cried the policeman cheerfully, swinging me

around.

A detective! And Heaven help me, he believed me to be the thief! Oh,

for Aladdin's lamp!