May
and maid." She had been certain of finding them there, for she knew only
too well that all three, with a "black cat for luck," had left San
Francisco together.
Every day since Theo Dene had told her of Angela May's existence she had
"cut the cards," and had invariably come upon a "fair woman" close to the
King of Hearts. Madame Vestris also had seen the "fair woman" in the
crystal, and had described her. "She is beautiful and young, and stands in
the sunshine," said the seeress, in whose visions Carmen had implicit
faith; "but suddenly she is blotted out of my sight, as if by a dark
cloud that swallows her up."
"Does she come back into the crystal?" Carmen had asked, eagerly.
"No. I can see you now. But she doesn't come back."
"And Nick? Do you find him?"
Madame Vestris knew very well who "Nick" was.
During the last three or four years she had replied to a great many
questions about Nick Hilliard, and her answers had brought her a goodly
number of ten-dollar bills. For crystal-gazing her charge was ten dollars:
with a trance in addition, twenty-five.
"I see a man standing beside you. But he is in deep shadow. I can't make
out who it is."
Carmen revived. "It must be Nick. There's no other man I can think of I
would let come near me.
Pages:
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378