ocre to bad.
At the fifth rehearsal after the break with the stage-director, Mildred
saw Crossley seated far back in the dusk of the empty theater. It was
his first appearance at rehearsals since the middle of the first week.
As soon as he had satisfied himself that all was going well, he had
given his attention to other matters where things were not going well.
Mildred knew why he was there--and she acted and sang atrociously.
Ransdell aggravated her nervousness by ostentatiously trying to help
her, by making seemingly adroit attempts to cover her
mistakes--attempts apparently thwarted and exposed only because she was
hopelessly bad.

In the pause between the second and third acts Ransdell went down and
sat with Crossley, and they engaged in earnest conversation. The
while, the members of the company wandered restlessly about the stage,
making feeble attempts to lift the gloom with affected cheerfulness.
Ransdell returned to the stage, went up to Mildred, who was sitting
idly turning the leaves of a part-book.

"Miss Gower," said he, and never had his voice been so friendly as in
these regretful accents, "don't try to go on to-day. You're evidently
not yourself. Go home and rest for a few days. We'll get along with
your understudy, Miss Esmond. When Mr. Crossley wants to put you in
again, he'll send for you. You mustn't be discouraged. I know how
beginners take these things to heart. Don't fret about it. You can't
fail to succeed."

Mildred rose and, how she never knew, crossed the stage. She stumbled
into the flats, fumbled her way to the passageway, to her
dressing-room. She felt that she must escape from that theater
quickly, or she would give way to some sort of wild attack of nerves.
She fairly ran through the streets to Mrs. Belloc's, shut herself in
her room. But instead of the relief of a storm of tears, there came a
black, hideous depression. Hour after hour she sat, almost without
motion. The afternoon waned; the early darkness came. Still she did
not move--could not move. At eight o'clock Mrs. Belloc knocked.
Mildred did not answer. Her door opened--she had forgotten to lock it.
In came Mrs. Belloc.

"Isn't that you, sitting by the window?" she said.

"Yes," replied Mildred.

"I recognized the outline of your hat. Besides, who else could it be
but you? I've saved some dinner for you. I thought you were still
out."

Mildred did not answer.

"What's the matter?" said Agnes? "I