are many other things to do that should have been done last week," she apologized.
"I understand," he said, "but I would be most unhappy to leave without seeing you again."
"I think of you as one of the best friends I ever have had, and I will miss you. It's hard to explain but that is how I feel. I know hundreds of people but I can count on one hand those I care whether I ever see again."
"I am honored," he said gravely. "What you have said has made the day bright. Whenever you are free and feel like saying to yourself 'I would like to see Nino,' you have but to let me know."
"Do you know," she confided, "no one has ever said that to me and sometimes I wish if only someone had. When I think of your going to Europe I could cry, and that's something I never do."
"We will make an agreement. Whenever you wish you will call Nino—but you must not wait too long," he said, and asked for the bill to release her.
At noon on Wednesday Lucy arrived home to find Vida in one of her recurrent floods of tears.
"For goodness sake, what now?" she asked curtly, for there were pressing matters requiring attention.
"Don't pay any attention to me, I don't seem able to control myself. It's probably only a reaction," Vida said apologetically, trying to smile, unwilling to admit that the periodic fits of despondency were precipitated by Vermillion's failure to call as he had promised. "What did Judock say?"
Lucy sighed and sat down.
"Oh, a lot. I called for Ranna so we would be on time. For once he was ready. All the way he kept telling me what an important concert manager Judock is and how wonderful it was he had asked us to come and see him. As it turned out Ranna was right, which was a big surprise to me as he is always getting steamed up about what important people, rich women mostly, are going to do for plans he has which couldn't work out in a million years. Well, Judock offered us a good contract, a guarantee, for a tour next season. October to May first. Not Ilona. Ranna and myself, and my ballet which he is crazy about. He said it had a freshness and style that the Russian ballet seemed to be losing, but maybe that was a line because he was trying to talk me into signing up. I asked him
