unlocked the door and opened
it.

"A woman came in, very quickly, before I realized it. She was not tall,
and rather slight, and I think she had light hair. I couldn't see her
face well because she had twisted a black veil across it, hiding her
eyes and the upper part of her features. She turned as soon as she got
in the room and locked the door.

"I was too surprised for a moment to speak, then I asked her what she
wanted.

"'I want you,' she said in a terrible voice, and I saw that she was
taking a bottle from her handbag.

"I was so frightened that I could not cry out, although I tried. You
see, the warnings I had received had gotten me so worked up that my
nerves were all on edge, and as soon as I saw the bottle, I concluded
that the woman was about to throw vitriol in my face. So I put my hands
to my eyes and ran into the bedroom.

"The woman came behind me, saying that my looks would soon be gone, that
my days as an actress were over, and other things like that which I
scarcely heard I was so frightened. When she got to me she caught hold
of my arm and pulled me around, facing her.

"I couldn't keep my eyes closed now, for I simply _had_ to see what she
was doing. It seemed worse not looking at her, and then I thought I
might take the bottle away from her and save myself in that way. So I
took my hands from my face and rushed toward her.

"Then she raised the bottle and dashed something into my face.

"It seemed hot, stinging, and made my eyes burn frightfully. I was sure
it was vitriol, and the thought was too much for me I guess, for I felt
myself falling and--well, that's all I remember until I woke up and
found the doctor and mother there. It was a terrible experience. I could
scarcely believe them, when they told me, after I came to, that I wasn't
really hurt at all."

Duvall looked at the girl's face. It showed no signs of injury, although
her eyes were red and inflamed.

"Then it wasn't vitriol after all?" he asked, wondering.

"No, it apparently wasn't. The doctor said he thought it must have been
ammonia."

"Remarkable!" Duvall muttered to himself. "Why should she have gone to
all that trouble, just to frighten you?"

"That's apparently all she intended to do from the start. Do you know,
Mr. Duvall, I've been thinking this thing over, and I believe her whole
plan from the beginning was merely to ruin me in my work by _fear_. And
I must say that she very nearly succeeded."

"Very nearly