[Illustration: LOLA IS HAPPY IN DOCTOR FENWAY'S ROOMS.]
"Go where? Do you suppose that if I could have found out where they have taken her that I would be here now?" demanded John. "I went to this Mrs. Harlan's apartment as fast as a taxicab could get me there. Her maid said that Mrs. Harlan had not returned, and was not expected before late in the following day. The hall boys absolutely denied having seen her since noon. What was I to do? While I stood there at the door she may have been standing within six feet of me, laughing at me, as she did once before to-night. How was I to know? I left there, and rode downtown to Fenway's rooms, on the chance that he had left her. They let me go upstairs to his apartment. At the door a servant tried to stop me, but I threw him aside, and went in. There was a crowd of half-drunken men and girls there. I asked for him, and they told me that they hardly expected him to return as he had gone away with a regular peach! Damn them! They wouldn't tell me where I could hope to find him, and when I grew excited they laughed at me. By God, Doctor, I've been laughed at too often to-night. Someone is going to pay me for it."
"My dear boy," said the Doctor gently, "surely we have enough to bear now; bringing another tragedy into our lives is not going to do any good."
"What's the use of talking?" John was quite unnerved by all the experiences and shocks of the last few hours. "I came here because it was useless to search any more until daylight. But I am going to find that man. He can't hide himself from me forever. He may take her away. He probably will, but I'll go after them. Not to bring her back; I can't do that. I can't ever, ever think of her again with anything but pity, but, by God, I can take him out of her life; yes, and I am going to do it!"
"My dear boy!" Dr. Crossett would have given much to be able to comfort him, but as he had said, "it wasn't any use to talk, suppose we sleep over this. We can't do anything for several hours yet, and we are both tired out. Come!"
"Sleep! Do you expect me to sleep with the thought of Lola and that mean being together, driving me almost insane? Oh, I was a fool to come here. I should have kept on hunting for them. I must have known you wouldn't understand. You don't know what it is to love a girl, and to lose her; to think of her and some other man living, laughing, loving one another, without a thought of you."