Instantly, in the window room, the clicking keys were hushed. Hiram
heard the squeak of a swivel chair. He heard the swish and caught the
gleam of a white skirt. The next moment she was standing before him.

His breathing checked itself, and his knees began that sickening
tattoo. He was instantly so miserable that he longed to die. Yet he
faced her big eyes, brown and good-natured and smiling with
recognition, and dumbly pushed the check and the dollar across the
counter.

"Why, hello!" she said lightly.

"Hello," came a quavering echo.

The drawer of the cash register shot out with a metallic clang.
Hiram's dollar jingled in among its kind. The girl's slim fingers were
suspending a quarter to be dropped into his palm, suggesting to Hiram's
abnormal mind the fear of contamination. He feebly put out his hand,
and she dropped the coin.

"Thank you," she acknowledged in a light, professional tone, raising
her voice on the "you."

She was turning away, when Tweet looked up from the cigars.

"Since when, Lucy?" came his rollicking voice. She turned back,
smiling. "Oh, since just this morning," she replied. "The boss fired
the cashier just before I went off watch last night. He said he was
going to call up the employment agency and get another the first thing
this morning.

"'What's the matter with giving some one here a chance?' I says.
'That's the way with you fellows,' I says. 'A girl can work her
fingers off for you for years, then when the chance comes for something
better, why, you telephone an employment agency and give it to a
perfect stranger. You give me a pain!' I says.

"'But you ain't a cashier--you're a waitress,' he says.

"'I'm not speaking about myself in particular,' I says. 'I'm speaking
about all of us who are working for you. Then,' I says, 'how do you
know I can't make change? When there's an opening for better pay and
easier work,' I says, 'why don't you come to us and see if any of us
think we can hold it down? You know us and can trust us, and instead
of giving us a look-in, you go and hire an outsider.'"

"Good stuff!" commented Tweet. "And he fell for it, did he?"

She flipped out her palms in a little gesture. "I'm here, ain't I?
Waited table from seven to three last night, and came behind the
counter here at five-thirty this morning. The boss'll relieve me at
twelve o'clock. Guess I'll sleep some to-night!"

"Fine business! Makin' good, eh?"

"I'm not fi