“Mrs. Van Ness!” The agitated stage manager pounced upon her. “I feared you hadn’t come.”
“We worked late at the State Department——” but what else she said was lost to Maynard, who had gone to Evelyn’s assistance.
“Mrs. Van Ness will be in the next tableau,” he said, as Marian, stopping but a second to congratulate Evelyn, followed the stage manager to the center of the stage. “We can’t see it very well from the wings, suppose we slip out in the audience; we can come back again,” he added, as Evelyn made no move to accompany him.
“Won’t we be seen?” she asked.
“No, we can stand in the aisle. Come this way,” and his familiarity with the playhouse enabled him to guide her to the door opening into the auditorium. They stopped just beyond the entrance in the aisle and from there had an excellent view of the tableau. Marian’s pose was striking and something of the fire and mysticism of the heroic Frenchwoman whom she impersonated lighted her beautiful face.
“She is wonderful!” whispered Evelyn, enthralled, as spontaneous applause filled the theater. In the semi-darkness a man, hurrying to the stage door, bumped into Maynard and at his muttered apology the latter recognized Detective Mitchell. His expression caught his attention and he checked him.
“What’s up, Mitchell?” he asked, lowering his voice to a whisper so that his words would not reach Evelyn who, absorbed in the tableau being shown again, had slipped into a vacant aisle seat.
“Mr. Maynard!” Mitchell halted. “Beg pardon, I didn’t recognize you. Can you slip out here just a minute?” observing Maynard’s backward glance at Evelyn.
Maynard tiptoed to Evelyn’s side and whispered in her ear. “Come out through that door when you are ready; I’ll wait for you on the stage.” She nodded her comprehension and Maynard stole out after Mitchell. He found the detective impatiently waiting at the foot of the circular iron steps leading to the stage.
“Headquarters has just been notified that Captain La Montagne is to sing here to-night,” he said, taking care to keep his voice low. “I’ve got to see him.”