Had monsieur any choice?
Decidedly. He desired a quiet table in a corner, not too near the
music.
Such a table was immediately secured, and as Covington crossed the room
with Marjory by his side he was conscious of being more observed than
ever he had been when entering the Riche alone. His bandaged arm lent
him a touch of distinction, to be sure; but this served only to turn
eyes back again to Marjory, as if seeking in her the cause for it. She
moved like a princess, with her head well up and her dark eyes
brilliant.
"All eyes are upon you," he smiled, when he had given his order.
"If they are it's very absurd," she returned.
Also, if they were, it did not matter. That was the fact she most
appreciated. Ever since she had been old enough to observe that men
had eyes, it had been her duty to avoid those eyes. That had been
especially true in Paris, and still more especially true in the few
weeks she had been there alone.
Now, with Monte opposite her, she was at liberty to meet men's eyes and
Book 27 Daniel
001:001 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to Jerusalem, and besieged it.
001:002 The Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand,
with part of the vessels of the house of God; and he carried
them into the land of Shinar to the house of his god:
and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god.
001:003 The king spoke to Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs,
that he should bring in [certain] of the children of Israel,
even of the seed royal and of the nobles;
001:004 youths in whom was no blemish, but well-favored, and skillful in
all wisdom, and endowed with knowledge, and understanding science,
and such as had ability to stand in the king's palace;
and that he should teach them the learning and the language
of the Chaldeans.
001:005 The king appointed for them a daily portion of the king's dainties,
and of the wine which he drank, and that they should be
nourished three years; that at the end of it they should stand
before the king.
001:006 Now among these were, of the children of Judah, Daniel,
Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
study them with interest. There was no danger. It was they who turned
away from her--after a glance at Monte. It amused her to watch them
turn away; it gave her a new sense of power. But of one thing she was
certain: there was not a man in the lot with whom she would have felt
comfortable to be here as she felt comfortable with Monte.
Monte was having a very pleasant time of it. The thing that surprised
him was the way Marjory quickened his zest in old things that had
become stale. Here, for instance, she took him back to the days when
he had responded with a piquant tingle to the lights and the music and
the gay Parisian chatter, to the quick glance of smiling eyes where
adventure lurked. He had been content to observe without accepting the
challenges, principally because he lived mostly in the sunshine.
To-night, in a clean, decent way, he felt again the old tingle. But
this time it came from a different source. When Marjory raised her
eyes to his, the lights blazed as brilliantly as if a hundred new ones
had been lighted; the music mixed with his blood until his thoughts
danced.
With the coffee he lighted a cigarette and leaned back contentedly
until it was time to go.
As they went out of the room, he was aware that once again all eyes
were turned toward her, so that he threw back his shoulders a little
farther than usual and looked about with some scorn at those who had
with them only ordinary women.