It was a hard trial to her to have to wait So it was
to Paul, who could see nothing but the glaring heat of the footlights,
and in the looking-glass at the side the reflection of part of the
house, stalls, dress-circle, boxes, rows of faces, pretty dresses,
bonnets, all as it were drowned in a blue haze, and presenting the
colourless ghostly appearance of things dimly seen under water. During
the _entr'acte_ came the usual infliction of indiscriminate praise.

'Monsieur Paul! Di' y' see Reichemberg's dress? Di' y' see the pink-bead
apron? and the ribbon ruching? Di' y' see? This is the only place where
they know how to dress, that it is!'

Visitors began to come, and the mother was able to get hold of her son
and carry him off to the sofa. There, in the midst of wraps and the
bustle of people going out, they spoke in low voices with their heads
close together.

'Answer me quickly and clearly,' began Paul 'Is Sammy going to be
married?'

'Yes, the Duchess heard yesterday. But she has come here to-night all
the same. Corsican pride!'

'And whom has he caught? Can you tell me now?'

'Why, Colette, of course! You must have had a suspicion.'

'Not the least,' said Paul. 'And what shall you get for it?'

She murmured triumphantly, 'Eight thousand pounds!'

[Illustration: Well, by your schemes I have lost a million 192]

'Well, by your schemes I have lost a million!--a million, and a wife!'
He grasped her by the wrists in his anger, and hissed into her face,
'You selfish marplot!'

The news took away her breath and her senses. It was Paul then, Paul,
from whom proceeded the force which acted, as she had occasionally
perceived, against her influence; it was Paul whom the little fool was
thinking of when she said, sobbing in her arms, 'If you only knew!' And
now, just at the end of the mines which with so much cunning and skilful
patience they had each been driving towards the treasure, one last
stroke of the axe had brought them face to face, empty-handed! They sat
silent, looking at each other, with corresponding crooks in their noses
and the same fierce gleam in both pairs of grey eyes, while all
around them were the stir of people coming and going and the buzz of
conversation. Rigid indeed is the discipline of society, seeing that it
could repress in these two creatures all the cries and groans, all the
desire to roar and slay, which filled and shook their hearts. Madame
Astier was the first to express her thou