her; and she had to
dazzle them all! And soar above them all! To a hurricane of applause from
"her favorite audience," the Astrarium audience, on a first night!

And she felt so gay that she was not angry when Glass-Eye asked her, now
that _she_ was an artiste, too, to teach her her stage-smile.

"Why, of course, Glass-Eye! I owe you that, to say nothing of the rest!
But you won't lose by waiting! Take my word for it: among friends, you
know!..."

And she kissed her maid, felt inclined to cry, became quite sentimental at
her going....

She was less amiable to Nunkie, who was prowling around near her. Oh, how
angry she felt with that old rogue! Because of Thea, first of all; and
then it was he who gave her away, not Jimmy! Tom had told her. Nunkie
mumbled something to her: his dear girls; ungrateful creatures who were
leaving him! His poor life shattered! His pigeons, he had his pigeons
left; yes, and his home; but what was that compared with loving hearts?
And, as she was on such good terms with Jimmy and everybody, couldn't she
use her influence? Oh, if he could have the Bambinis, be appointed their
guardian! "He would bring together such a nice little family troupe: all
the joys of home!

"You old wretch!" cried Lily, in a threatening voice. "Just go and look,
at the corner of Oxford Street and Newman Street, if you can see me! You
old snaky! You old bromide merchant! Hiding letters, too, you
nigger-driving humbug! Oh, you're sure to get the Bambinis, I _don't_
think!"

"_Ver-r-rdammt_!"

Nunkie turned on his heel, shaking the passage with tremendous oaths.

"I thought," Lily shot at him from behind sarcastically, "I thought one
ought never to swear! It's wicked to swear, Mr. Fuchs!"

In her dressing-room, she went on laughing at Nunkie and his
"_Donner-r-r-wetter-r-r_!" and his "_S-s-satan_! _S-s-satan_!" It made her
comb her hair all awry and apply the grease-paint to her cheeks with a
trembling hand. She felt a buzzing in her head: that confounded music
which seemed to come from everywhere and hissed in her ears! But, when her
turn came, she'd show them! Never had she felt so light. She was sure of
herself, strangely sure. It seemed to her that, if need be, she'd have
shot up to the stars, damn it!

As soon as she was ready, she went down to the stage. She didn't know why.
It was her wish to be everywhere, her craving for movement. The aerobike
had been taken from its cage, behind the back-drop; the sta