Lorelei nodded silently. "Don't tell him who—spoke to us out there.
Not yet, at least. I—can't see HIM go to jail."
"Jail? There won't be any jail to this—there never is. Jarvis will have to settle for the sake of the rest of us."
Hammon's limousine rolled in under the porte-cochere, and a moment later the owner appeared with Lilas.
Lorelei stared at her friend in genuine surprise, for it was obvious that Lilas was deeply agitated. Her face was swollen with weeping; she verged upon hysteria. No sooner were the four in the car and under way than she broke down, sobbing wretchedly.
"It's all my fault. I might have known he was up to something; but I didn't think he'd dare—" she managed to say.
"He? Who?" Merkle asked her.
"Max Melcher. This is his doing."
"What makes you think so?"
"He as much as told me. If I hadn't been a fool I'd have guessed, but he—Oh, I could kill myself!" She burst into strangling sobs and hysteric laughter.
"Why did you let him come to the dressing-room?" Lorelei inquired.