here did you go afterwards?"

It was all prepared on her tongue. She did not hesitate.

"To the Palace," she replied.

"To the Palace?" He repeated it. His eyes burnt into her. Then she
knew that he had seen her in the theatre; but only in the theatre
where she could still swear to him that he was mistaken. Every
instinct she possessed forced her to deny it until the last; beyond
that if breath were left her.

"Did you see it out? Did you see the performance out?" he continued.

"Yes--we waited till the end."

A note of warning despatched to Devenish would ensure his
confirmation of all she had said. He had told her that if ever she
needed a friend--now indeed she wanted one.

"What did you do then if you only came in half an hour ago? It's just
one o'clock."

A thought rushed exultingly to her mind that he was jealous--jealous
of Devenish. He had not seen her at all. This was jealousy. Her heart
cried out in thankfulness. She crossed the room to him, all the whole
wealth of her love alive and bright in her eyes.

"Jack"--she whispered--"you're not jealous of Devenish, are you?"

A laugh broke out from his lips, striking her with the sting of its
harshness.

"Where did you go afterwards?" he repeated.

"To supper--we went to supper--the same place where we had dined.
Why wouldn't you tell me if you were jealous? Do you think I should
mind?"

"Jealous?" He took her arm and led her nearer to the light of the
solitary candle. There he faced her, looking down into the weary
pupils of her eyes. "All these things you've been saying," he said
brutally--"are lies--the whole--blessed--pack of them. You never
went to the Palace Theatre, you went to the Duke of York's. You sat
in the third row of the pit and covered your face with a programme
whenever you thought we were looking in your direction. You never
went to supper afterwards. You tracked Dolly's car into the
Strand--running in the gutter to keep pace with it. Jealous? Great
God! No! What have I to be jealous about? What did you think you were
doing--eh? What did you think you were going to gain by it?"

Up to a moment, she met his eyes; but when he railed at her thoughts
of his jealousy, then all courage fell from her. "Jealous? Great God!
No!" She knew it was finished when he had said that and, beneath the
weight of his contempt, she crumbled into the dust of pitiful
obsession.

"Did you imagine," he went on mercilessly--"that I undertook the
arrangem