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16
PICTURE-PLAY WEEKLY
from any other woman in the same dress? Nobody will know her when we get her, and when we have had her a little" — he paused — "no one' will care who she is."
Fordyce grasped the edge of the table and bit his lips to keep from crying out on their villainy. So this was the business of his precious pair of workingmen? They were not only blackmailers ■ — they were worse.
"But what does he gain by all this?"
i
asked the man who was apparently learning of the scheme for the first time.
"He thinks he gains the girl, but that is where we surprise him. Once we have her safe, we will laugh at him, and if he does not pay us well, into the bargain, we will threaten to release her so that she may expose him."
"Who is he — exactly?"
"His name is Sigmund, and he was the third violin at the Crescent, but he is no longer. He made love to the actress and she would not have him, and then he would not take 'no' for his
answer, so she complains to the manager, and — poof ! — he is discharged." "Ah !"
"So now he vows that he hates her, and will be revenged, but he cannot fool me. I know. He loves her."
His voice sank suddenly, as footsteps were heard coming down the corridor. A moment later, there came a sharp rap at the door of the room in which the Italians were. The door was opened, and Fordyce heard a third voice, with
a slight German accent, inquire: "Is this the man?"
"Yes, signor, this is my friend Antonio, who is to help me."
"Does he understand the details of our little plan?"
"The way in which the girl is to be "
"Shh! Yes."
"You forget that we have not yet settled on that plan. You were to tell us."
"True; I forgot. Yes, I will tell you. I have thought it all out." He paused and added bitterly : "Heaven knows I
have time enough for thinking now, aI can do nothing else. I have thoug and thought and thought, and now have a plan." "Which is?"
"We will send her word that I ha come to this place in a despondent moc and that I have shot myself becau I have lost my position through h complaint. We will say that I am dyii and that I have, begged her to come me for a few words before all is ovi
She does not love me — how well I kn< that ! But she will not refuse a dyi man. who has lost his means of live hood upon her account."
As he listened to this devilishly ! genious plot, the blood rushed to Fc j dyce's head, and it took all his strens of will to refrain from rushing into t next room and attacking the conspii tors single-handed and unarmed. A tn ment's reflection, however, saved h from being guilty of this folly. To i terfere, unarmed as he was, would si ply result in his speedy removal frc their path, and leave the girl defen:
Sigmund, the musician, had been forcing his attentions upon the leading lady — until things had at last reached a climax.