She stopped short and bit her lip. Isobel was very pale, but she pointed to the door. The orchestra had commenced to play.
"Madame," she said, "Monsieur Feurgéres loved my mother. I shall keep my word to him."
There was a soft knock at the door. Captain Milton stood on the threshold.
"Your Highness," he said, bowing low, "the curtain will rise in thirty seconds."
The Archduchess left us without a word.
CHAPTER XII
It was not often we permitted ourselves such luxuries, but as we left the theatre I caught a glimpse of Isobel's white face, more clearly visible now than in the dimly lit box, and I knew that, bravely though she had carried herself through the whole of that trying evening, she was not far from breaking down. So I called a hansom, and she sank back in a corner with a little sigh of relief. I lit a cigarette, and suddenly I felt a cold little hand steal into mine. I set my teeth and held it firmly.
"Arnold," she whispered, and her voice was none too steady, "I hate that woman. I do not care if she is my aunt; and—Arnold——"
"Yes."