News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1916-10-11
Continued
CHAPTER vi.
The Late Extra.

low Max then hesitated and sank bacl
in doubt, his head awhirl. He was TO
the time being shocked out of all ca
pacity for clear reasoning or RICH
thinking. Uppermost in his conscious
ness he had half-formed notion tina
it wouldn't help matters if he were tt
force himself in upon the crisis behint
the scenes.
Beyond all question his wife haC
recognized in him the man whom she
had been given every reason to believe
dead: a discovery so unnerving as to
render her temporarily unable to con-
tinue.
q This, then, explained Drummonds
reluctance to have him hidden to the
supper party; whatever ultimate
course Of action he planned to pursue,
Drunmond had been unwilling, per-
haps pardonably SO, to have his TO-
nance overthrown apd altogether shat.
tered in a single day. He had lied,
lied desperately, doubtless meaning to
encompass a marriage before Whitaker
could find his wife, and so furnish him
with every reason t at could influence
an honorable man to disappear Sec
ond time
On the other hand, Max to a certain
ty was ignorant Of the relationship be-
tween his star and his Old time friend,
just as he must have been ignorant of
her identity with the one time Mary
LadSlS For that NATTER Whitaker
had e. admit that, damning as was the
evidence to controvcrt the theory,
Drummond might be just as much in
the dark as Max was. 1t was only fair
tC suspend judgment. In the mean
time
The audience was getting beyond
control. In the gallery the gods were
beginning to testify to their normal in
tolerance with shrill whistles, cat-calls,
sporadic bursts OF hand-clapping and
steady, sinister rumble of stamping
feet. In the orchestra and dress circle |
people were moving about restlessly !
and talking at the top of their voices
in order to make themselves heard |
above the growing din.
Abruptly Max himself appeared at |
one side of the proscenium arch. 1t
was plain to those nearest the stage
that he was seriously disturbed. There
was noticeable hesitancy in his man
ner, pathetic frenzy in his habitually
mild and lustrous eyes. Advancing
halfway to the middle of the apron, he
paused, begging attention with pudgy
/ a II hpfprn |
gallery would let him be heard.
Ladies and gentlemen" he an
nounced plaintively, II much regret to
inform you that Miss Law has suf-
fered a severe nervous shock'-his
gaze wandered in perplexed inquiry to-
ward the right-hand stageboX, then
was hastily averted-"and will not be
able to continue"
Wave upon wave of sound swept
through the auditorium to break, roar
ing, against the obdurate curtain. Max
with difficulty contrived to make him
self dsconnectedly audible.
ladies and :" he shouted,
sweat beading his perturbed forehead
!. regret impossible to
continue money :. box
office -
An angry howl drowned him out He
lretreated at accelerated discretion.
Whitaker, slipping through the stage
door behind the boxes, ran into the
stage manager standing beside the first
entrance, heatedly explaining to any
one who would listen the utter futility
of offering box-office prices in return
for seat checks which in the majority
of instances had cost their holders top
notch Spectator prices.
They'll wreck the theater," he
shouted excitedly, hopping his brow
with his coat sleeve, what t'elld she
wana pull a raw one like this for?"
Whitaker caught his arm in a grasp
compelling attention.
r where's Miss Law?" he asked.
Il dunnO-gO ask Max"
"Where is he?"
You can search me; last / saw of
him he was tearing the star dressin'
room up by the roots"
Whitaker hurried on just in time to {
see Max disappearing in the direction
III the stage door, at which point he
caught up with him, and from the
disjointed catechism of the
doorkeeper garnered the information
that the star had hurried out of the
building while Max was making his
before the curtain.
Max swung angrily upon Whitaker.
"Oh It's you, is 1t? Perhaps you can
explain what this means? She was ]
looking straight at you when she dried
upi | saw her"
Perhaps you'd better ind Miss Law
and ask her" Whitaker interrupted.
"Have you any idea where she's ]
goneT' {
"Home, probably" Max snapped in
return.
"Come on, then" Passing his arm
through the managers. Whitaker drew :