If these men
could obtain ingress to Vine's rooms, so could she. She must be there
first and warn him.
She changed her clothes, and after a few minutes' hesitation, set out
to dine at one of the restaurants which she had on her list. It was a
smart and somewhat Bohemian place, but even here women dining alone were
subjected to a good deal of remark, and her cheeks grew hot as she
remembered her first visit there, and the whispered discussion between
the waiters as to whether she should be given a table. She had become a
fairly regular customer there now, though, and to-night she was given a
table near the wall, an excellent vantage ground for her, but exactly
opposite three men, who had apparently been drinking heavily, and whose
whole attention, from the moment of her entrance, seemed fixed upon her.
She ordered her dinner, steadfastly ignoring them, and sat as usual with
her eyes fixed upon the door, but her indifference was not sufficient to
chill the ardour of the younger of the three men. She saw him call a
waiter and write something on the back of a card, and immediately
afterwards the waiter, with some hesitation, and a half-expressed
apology, presented it to her.
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