I
could not remember where I had heard it. And now what can I do for you?"

The young woman hesitated. "We have got up a little mystification," she
said after a pause, "and I am sure I can trust you; besides, you don't
know the parties. There is a gentleman here who is supposed to be with
his regiment at Moscow; but there is a sweetheart in the case, and you
know when there are sweethearts people do foolish things."

"I have heard so," Godfrey laughed, "though I don't know anything about
it myself, for I sha'n't begin to think of such luxuries as sweethearts
for years to come."

"Well, he is here masked," the girl went on, "and unfortunately the
colonel of his regiment is here, and some ill-natured person--we fancy
it is a rival of his--has told the colonel. He is furious about it, and
declares that he will catch him and have him tried by court-martial for
being absent without leave. The only thing is, he is not certain as to
his information."

"Well, what can I do?" Godfrey asked. "How can I help him?"

"You can help if you like, and that without much trouble to yourself.
He is at present in the back of that empty box on the third tier. I was
with him when I saw you down here, so I left him to say good-bye to his
sweetheart alone, and ran down to fetch you, for I felt sure you would
oblige me. What I thought was this: if you put his mask and cloak
on--you are about the same height--it would be supposed that you are he.
The colonel is waiting down by the entrance. He will come up to you and
say, 'Captain Presnovich?' You will naturally say, 'By no means.' He
will insist on your taking your mask off. This you will do, and he will,
of course, make profuse apologies, and will believe that he has been
altogether misinformed. In the meantime Presnovich will manage to slip
out, and will go down by the early train to Moscow. It is not likely
that the colonel will ever make any more inquiries about it, but if he
does, some of Presnovich's friends will be ready to declare that he
never left Moscow."

"But can't he manage to leave his mask and cloak in the box and to slip
away without them?"

"No, that would never do. It is necessary that the colonel should see
for himself that the man in the cloak, with the white and red bow pinned
to it, is not the captain."

"Very well, then, I will do it," Godfrey said. "It will be fun to see
the colonel's face when he finds out his mistake; but mind I am doing it
to oblige you."