s,
added to the whole effect of nervousness still further exaggerated by
the restless white hands. Over all, like a black veil, was an
expression as of one haunted by a great fear. The man both repelled
and interested Donaldson. There was a shiftiness about the eyes that
excited suspicion, and yet there was in them a silent plea that asked
for sympathy. Save for the eyes, the face had a certain poetic beauty
due to its fine modeling and its savage intensity. The longer
Donaldson studied it, the more sympathy he had for it. He had the
feeling that the fellow had gone through some such crisis as his own.

But it was difficult to define the girl's relationship to him. There
was not the slightest trace of family resemblance between them, and yet
the man was hardly of a type that she would choose for so intimate a
friend as her presence here with him suggested. She did not talk much,
but seemed rather to be on the alert to protect him as from some unseen
danger which appeared to hang over him. She followed his eyes wherever
they wandered, and clearly took but little pleasure in being here.

Donaldson found the oddly matched couple absorbing his interest not
only in the other guests but also in his dinner. He finished in almost
the undue haste with which ordinarily he devoured his daily lunch and
with scarcely more appreciation of the superior quality of these richer
dishes. With his black coffee he rolled a cigarette. The familiar old
tobacco brought him back to himself again so that for a few minutes he
was able to give himself up to the swirling strains of the Hungarian
orchestra. But even through the delicious intoxication of the waltz,
the personality of this girl asserted itself to him. He got the
impression now that she herself was in some danger. He wished that he
had asked Barstow more about her. She had not noticed him as yet. He
had watched closely to see if she turned. As he studied her it seemed
certain that she was by no means enjoying herself in her present
company. If given half an opportunity he would go over and speak to
her.

[Illustration: _As he studied her it seemed certain that she was by no
means enjoying herself in her present company_]

He wished to see her eyes again. He remembered them distinctly. They
were not black--not gray, but black with the faintest trace of silver,
like starlight on a deep pool. The whites were very clear and blue
tinted. Just then she raised her h