and forth, till my eyes were clear and my
voice was steady.

"You're awfully good," I said, looking up at him as he stood by me.
"You're the best fellow I ever knew. I didn't know men could be so
good to women... But you'd better go--please. It'll be bad enough
when the papers get hold of this, without having them lump you in with
a bad lot like me."

He put his hand on my shoulder and gave it a quick little shake.

"Don't say that about yourself. You're not a bad lot."

"But--you saw the purse."

"Yes, I saw it. But it hasn't proved anything to me but this: you're
innocent, Nance, or you're crazy. If it's the first, I want to stand
by you, little girl. If it's the second--good God! I've got to stand
by you harder than ever."

Can you see me sitting there, Mag, in the bright, bare little room,
with its electric lights, still in my white dress and big white hat, my
pretty jacket fallen on the floor beside me? I could feel the sharp
blue eyes of that detective Morris feeding on my miserable face. But I
could feel, too, a warmth like wine poured into me from that big
fellow's voice.

I put my hand up to him and he took it.

"If I'm innocent and can prove it, Fred Obermuller, I'll get even with
you for--for this."

"Do you want to do something for me now?"

"Do I?"

"Well, if you want to help me, don't sit there looking like the
criminal ghost of the girl I know."

The blood rushed to my face. Nance Olden, a sniveling coward! Me,
showing the white feather--me, whimpering like a whipped
puppy--me--Nance Olden!

"You know," I smiled up at him, "I never did enjoy getting caught."

"Hush! But that's better.... Tell me now--"

A buzzer sounded. The blue-eyed detective got up and came over to me.

"Chief's ready," he said. "This way."

They stopped Obermuller at the door. But he pushed past them.

"I want to say just a word to you, Chief," he said. "You remember me.
I'm Obermuller, of the Vaudeville. If you'll send those fellows out
and let me speak to you just a moment, I'll leave you alone with Miss
Olden."

The Chief nodded to the blue-eyed detective, and he and the other
fellow went out and shut the door behind them.

"I want simply to call your attention to the absurdity and
unreasonableness of this thing," Obermuller said, leaning up against
the Chief's desk, while he threw out his left hand with that big open
gesture of his, "and to ask you to bear in mind, no matter what
appea