I leaned forward eagerly. “Can you take me with you?” I urged. “I assure you, you will save my life if you do!”
“Hardly that,” he laughed, shaking his head. “But of course I can take you, if you have the—er—price, as I think you call it. The admission fee is 200 dollars.”
“Phew!” I whistled. “Is that a season ticket?”
“No, that is for one evening. And I think you will find,” he added, turning away to the tray, “that one evening will go a long way. Everything else will seem tame to you afterwards.”
I thought that the conversation was taking a distinctly gruesome tone; but of course I did not tell him so. “I must go home and dress then,” I told him. “What time do we start and where do I meet you?”
He laughed again. “Come, come, there is no need to dress, I am going as I am. We have a long drive ahead of us, and we shall have to start in an hour at the latest. Besides that, I am not going to let you leave again, now that you have come at last!”
I swallowed that too. “All right. If you’re sure it’s all right to go like this. But I have not that much money on me. I’ll have to go and cash a check.”
“Give me your check and I shall pay for your admission. That will be all right, my friend. And now let us talk about Europe. I am sick to death of the crudity of this country and it is a real pleasure to talk with one who has traveled and knows other countries also. Do you not find your country crude?”
I assured him heartily that my country bored me to death, lacking as it did any really artistic preception of the refined possibilities of vice. And we went on like that for some time. But presently it began to get dark outside. I got up, went to his desk and drew him a personal check for 200 dollars. He took it, rose and rang for his servant.
“Get the car ready, Niko,” he told the Jap, “and see that it has plenty of gas. I shall drive it myself to-night. This gentleman is going with me.”