But when she had finished, he was almost humble in his supreme gratitude to whatever fate had sent her to his lone garret. With boyish fervor and earnestness he told her the whole world lay at her feet if only he could find a way to teach her.
“I can show you only the first steps of the way, and your voice is so glorious now, so perfect. Who taught you how to use it?”
“Every one sings in Italy,” Carlota said evasively. “Even the girls at the fountains and the boys when they go out in the fishing fleet. I took only a few lessons there.”
Inwardly, she felt overjoyed at the success of her ruse, and agreed to come to him twice a week for lessons if he would accept in payment whatever she was able to give. But he would not listen to this.
“It’s enough to have you as my pupil. When other people hear you sing and know that I have taught you, it will bring me all sorts of other work. I know. Besides, you inspire me. Yes, you do. I don’t know what it is.” He drew in a deep breath, watching her. “Guess we were just a couple of old lazy dubs here, weren’t we, Ptolemy? I’ve wanted to work. It’s all been here in my head, till I couldn’t sleep nights with the themes rampant, but I couldn’t catch them. They were like fireflies. Ever try to get them at night? I did when I was a little chap out West. I always wanted to train them. Must you go so soon? I didn’t get your full name the other night. Carlota, the Marchese called you, didn’t he?”
“Just call me that,” she told him gravely. “I would not be allowed to come here if my people knew. They are very conservative.”
“It doesn’t matter, anyway,” he said confidently. “You’ll never use it in your work. I don’t care just so long as you come. Dmitri said you never would. He walked down here last night with me. Queer chap, isn’t he? Did you like him?”
“I didn’t notice him,” Carlota spoke thoughtfully, not realizing the purport of her own words as she looked up at him on the threshold of the stairs. “I only remembered you.”
CHAPTER VI
The weeks following were filled with a romantic glamour for them both. Ames never realized how much his pupil was teaching him. After he had given her the benefit of what little knowledge he possessed, Carlota would coax him from the piano, and letting her own fingers stray over the keys, would suggest carelessly: