The girl shrugged her shoulders contemptuously, and took no other notice of the speech.
But Alpine's curiosity was awakened, and she whispered, eagerly:
"Where is he, then? Point him out to me."
"I can not. He has gone off. Wait till he returns," answered Kathleen, sitting up straight in her chair again. The color was coming back into her face again, her eyes flashed radiantly. Mrs. Carew regarded her with suppressed displeasure.
Some gentlemen acquaintances came into the box, and the subject of Kathleen's discovery was dropped. They chatted gayly until the time for the curtain to rise, then returned to their seats.
The curtain rose upon the second act of the play, and Alpine was so interested that she leaned eagerly forward, quite forgetting, in her keen admiration of Prince Karl, her step-sister's interesting disclosure just now.
But suddenly Kathleen's taper fingers closed in a gentle pinch upon her plump arm.
"Look—now—don't you recognize him?" she murmured, triumphantly.
"Who? Where? Oh, for goodness' sake, Kathleen, don't bother me now! I don't want to lose a word of glorious Prince Karl!"
"But, Alpine, it is he, Prince Karl—my hero!"