centre of bad news and miserable disillusionment. In
this first shock of the tidings, it was the disillusionment that hurt
most. She had always been so fond of Elsa, and Elsa had always seemed
so fond of her. She remembered that letter of Elsa's with all its
protestations of gratitude... It wasn't straight. It was horrible.
Callous, selfish, altogether horrible...

"It's..." She choked, as a rush of indignation brought the tears to her
eyes. "It's... beastly! I'm... I'm not thinking about my money. That's
just bad luck. But Elsa..."

Mrs. Fillmore shrugged her square shoulders.

"Well, it's happening all the time in the show business," she said. "And
in every other business, too, I guess, if one only knew enough about
them to be able to say. Of course, it hits you hard because Elsa was a
pal of yours, and you're thinking she might have considered you after
all you've done for her. I can't say I'm much surprised myself." Mrs.
Fillmore was talking rapidly, and dimly Sally understood that she was
talking so that talk would carry her over this bad moment. Silence now
would have been unendurable. "I was in the company with her, and it
sometimes seems to me as if you can't get to know a person right through
till you've been in the same company with them. Elsa's all right, but
she's two people really, like these dual identity cases you read about.
She's awfully fond of you. I know she is. She was always saying so,
and it was quite genuine. If it didn't interfere with business there's
nothing she wouldn't do for you. But when it's a case of her career you
don't count. Nobody counts. Not even her husband. Now that's funny.
If you think that sort of thing funny. Personally, it gives me the
willies."

"What's funny?" asked Sally, dully.

"Well, you weren't there, so you didn't see it, but I was on the spot
all the time, and I know as well as I know anything that he simply
married her because he thought she could get him on in the game. He
hardly paid any attention to her at all till she was such a riot in
Chicago, and then he was all over her. And now he's got stung. She
throws down his show and goes off to another fellow's. It's like
marrying for money and finding the girl hasn't any. And she's got stung,
too, in a way, because I'm pretty sure she married him mostly because
she thought he was going to be the next big man in the play-writing
business and could boost her up the ladder. And now it doesn't look as
though he ha