places; oh, places you would never dream of, the opera,
for instance."

"You surprise me!" Hayden was prepared for anything now, and his voice
was carefully indifferent, almost drawling; but his mind was working like
lightning. What on earth could this mean? Was it a possibility that it
might be Marcia,--Marcia Oldham herself, thus cleverly disguising her
voice? No, no, a thousand times, no. He hastily rejected the thought.
Even if she possessed the skill--nevertheless the very tones themselves
revealed a woman of a totally different type and temperament.

"I am so anxious to see your collection," continued the rich,
warmly-colored voice. "I am wondering if you have been able to secure a
specimen of a very rare butterfly indeed, one which some naturalists
believe is quite extinct. It is called 'The Veiled Mariposa.'"

Hayden felt as if in some peculiar, intuitive sort of way, he had
expected this from the first. For a moment or two, he could not control
his excitement. His mouth felt curiously dry, and he noticed that his
hand was trembling.

"I--I think I have heard of it," he said at last, and objurgated himself
for his stammering banality.

"But," and the word seemed to express a pout, "I understood that it was
in your collection."

"Ah, one must not trust too much to report and rumor," Hayden reminded
her.

"Then it is not in your collection?" she persisted.

"Senorita, my collection is a large one." He smiled amusedly at the
thought of this hypothetical collection, and the grandiloquent tone in
which he referred to it. "I can not say, offhand, just what varieties it
contains."

"True," assented the voice reasonably, and Hayden felt that its possessor
was probably a person who was reasonable when one would naturally expect
her to be capricious, and capricious when one would naturally expect her
to be reasonable. "True," she repeated thoughtfully, "I only wanted to
say, senor, that should you find that you have that particular butterfly,
I am in touch with certain collectors who would be willing to pay a large
price for it."

"I have no desire to sell outright, senorita, please understand that,"
Hayden spoke quickly, taking a high tone. "But should I care to consider
your proposition, how am I to communicate with you? Shall I ring up
Central and say: 'Please give me the delicious voice?'"

"Ah, senor, you are of an absurdity! Never fear, you will hear from me
again, and soon. Good-by." Her voice died aw