"Mrs. Rantzau!" he exclaimed, flushing as he spoke; his voice was unsteady.
"Why, how serious you are all of a sudden! You quite frightened me," she said, with a laugh, looking up at him innocently.
"Mrs. Rantzau," he began again, "do you know that poem of Byronson, that—that begins:
"'When blushing blood,
In humble mood
Turns to the man whose mind is proved,
When timid, shy
She seeks....'"
"Lord bless me, old boy, spouting poetry so early in the morning! Did you think it was Constitution Day—or the day after?"
Old Nick looked round anything but amiably at Nachmann's unbeautiful face smiling in the doorway; Mrs. Rantzau left the room without a word.
A long and earnest conference ensued between the two men, after which they went out for a long walk together.
Emilie Rantzau felt now that her position was secure; it was only a question of time before she could appear as Mrs. Nickelsen. And inwardly she vowed vengeance on the women who had systematically excluded her from the Peace Festival; she pondered how best to get even with Mrs. Heidt and the rest.
It took a deal of thinking out, but at last she hit upon a way. Quickly she put on her things, and hurried round to her faithful supporter, Consul Jansen.
On Saturday evening, the Strandvik News appeared, and created an indescribable sensation throughout the town by printing immediately under the big announcement of the festival in the park, the following lines: