Page:Fidelia, (IA fidelia00balm).pdf/333

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ILLUSION AND THE TRUTH
321

dined alone and afterwards had gone to a picture theater, so he arrived at the hotel about eleven o'clock.

Every evening there was dancing and he had the habit of looking in at the floor of the main restaurant before going up to his lonely room. Thus he watched from the door to-night and suddenly recognized Alice among the dancers.

She was in the arms of a tall, young man and her lovely head with its beautiful, dark hair was tilted a little as she looked up at him. She was in blue and silver; her dancing dress was blue, and silver slippers with small shining buckles were on her little feet. She was as she had been at the Tau Gamma dance four years ago when he had last danced with her; and as he saw her here at the hotel for the first time in three years, and saw her in blue and silver, he knew that she had come because she had learned that Fidelia had left him.

Then she saw him, and for the instant, she lost step; she confused her partner. She nodded to David; she flushed and looked up at her partner again, smiling and begging pardon. She danced on and David did not see her look at him again.

When the music stopped, she stood with her back turned to him while she clapped with her partner for an encore; and she danced it; but when this was done, she avoided rejoining the group of her party. Indeed, David did not know that she was with a group. He waited for a few moments after she was seated and then he approached her; and although she gave no sign that she noticed him, he saw her suddenly ask