he said. "But--"

He stopped, said nothing more.

"Let us believe in the opera," she exclaimed--"your own child. Then
others will believe in it, too. Alston does."

She looked up at him with the tears still shining in her eyes.

"And Jacob Crayford shall."

After a moment she added:

"If only you leave him to me and don't spoil things."

"How could I spoil my own music?" he asked.

But she only answered:

"Oh, Claude, there are things you don't understand!"

CHAPTER XXVIII

"So the darned rester's come back, has he?"

Crayford was the speaker. Dressed in a very thin suit, with a yellow
linen coat on his arm, a pair of goggles in one hand, and a huge silver
cigar-case, "suitably inscribed," in the other, he had just come into
the smoking-room of the Excelsior Hotel.

"They gave you the note, then?" said Alston.

"Yaw."

Crayford laid the coat down, opened the cigar-case, and took out a huge
Havana.

"I guess we'll let the car wait a bit, Alston," he said, lighting up.
"Of course she telegraphed him to come."

"I'm quite sure she didn't," said Alston emphatically.

"Think I can't see?" observed Crayford drily.

He sat down and crossed his legs.

"No. But even you can't see what isn't."

"There's not much that is this eye don't light on. The little lady up at
Djen-anne-whatever you may call it is following up a spoor; and I'm the
big game at the end of it. She's out to bring me down, my boy. Well,
that's all right, only don't you two take me for too much of an innocent
little thing, that's all."

Alston said nothing, and maintained a cheerful and imperturbable
expression.

"She's brought the rester back so as not to miss the opportunity of his
life. Now I'll tell you what I'm going to do. I'm going right up to
Djen-anne. I'm going to take the rester by myself, and I'm just going to
hear that darned opera; and neither the little lady nor you's going to
get a look in. This is up to me, and you'll just keep right out of it.
See?"

He turned the cigar in his mouth, and his tic suddenly became very
apparent.

"And what am I to do?" asked Alston.

"When I get to Djen-anne, I'll open out at once, come right to business.
You stop here. As likely as not the little lady'll come back in the car
to take you for a spin. If she does, keep her out till late. You can
tell her a good bit depends on it."

"Very well."

"Happen she'll dine with you?" threw out Crayford, always with the same
hal