left altogether to her, but Mullinix of the Secret Service, her
unofficial chief, had called her away from a furnishing and finishing
contract at a millionaire's mansion in the country back of Dobb's Ferry
to run up state to Troy, where there had arisen a situation which in the
opinion of the espionage squad a woman was best fitted to handle,
provided only that woman be Miss Mildred Smith. And so on an hour's
notice she had dropped her own work and started.

Now, though, near the more distant end of the car she saw a break in one
line of heads. Perhaps the gap might mean there would be room for her.
She made her way toward the spot, her trim small figure swaying to the
motion as the locomotive picked up speed. Drawing nearer, she saw the
back of one seat had been turned so that its occupants faced rearward
toward her. In this seat, the one farther from her as she went up the
aisle, were a man and a woman; in the nearer seat, facing this pair and
sitting next the window, was a second woman--a girl rather--all three of
them, she deduced from the seating arrangement, being members of the
same party. A suitcase rested upon the cushions alongside the younger
woman.

"I beg your pardon," said the lone passenger, halting here, "but is
this place taken?"

The man's face twisted as though in annoyance. He made an undecided
gesture which might be interpreted either as an affirmative or the other
thing. "I'm sorry if I am disturbing you," added Miss Smith, "but the
car is crowded--every inch of it except this seems to be occupied."

"Oh, I guess it's all right," he said, though in his begrudged consent
was a sort of indirect intimation that it was not altogether all right.
He half rose and swung the suitcase up into the luggage rack overhead,
then tucked in his knees so she might slip into the place opposite him
next the aisle.

"Excuse me," he said a moment later, "but I could change seats with you
if you don't mind."

Her eyebrows went up a trifle.

In her experiences it had not often happened that seemingly without
reason a male fellow traveler had suggested that she give him a place
commonly regarded as preferable to his own.

"I do mind, rather," she answered. "Riding backward makes me carsick
sometimes. Still I will change with you if you insist on it. I'm the
intruder, you know."

"No, no, never mind!" he hastened to say. "I guess it don't make any
difference. And there's no intrusion, miss--honest now, there ai