"And it shall cost you dear!" hissed the youth with the dark face.
Quickly he leaned forward and struck Frank's cheek with his open hand.
Then something else happened.
Like a bolt, Frank's fist shot out and caught the other under the chin, hurling him backward into the arms of a man behind him, where he lay gasping and dazed.
Frank would have rushed toward the carriage, but he saw it move swiftly away, carrying the mysterious Queen of Flowers, and, with deep regret, he realized he was too late.
The man with the bristling white mustache and imperial did not depart in the carriage, but he again forced his way through the crowd, and found his companion slowly recovering from the stunning blow he had received.
"Mistah Raymon', sah, what does this mean?" he cried, in amazement.
"It means that I have been insulted and struck!" hissed the one questioned, quivering with unutterable anger.
"Struck, sah!" cried the man, in unbounded amazement. "You were struck! Impossible, sah—impossible!"
"It is true!"