Leaving the tea room she hailed a taxi, and ordered the chauffeur to
take her to the Hotel Minnert. Jack followed in another cab. When he
saw that the hotel was only around the corner, he began to suspect a
ruse. She entered by the Ladies' door, and he was less than half a
minute behind her. She was not visible inside. From the doorman he
learned that she had walked upstairs. He followed.
On the next floor there were no public rooms but only endless corridors
with bedrooms opening off. There was not a soul in sight and he
hesitated which way to turn. Finally a chambermaid appeared around a
corner, and a piece of silver procured him information.
"Yes, sir, she just went down the corridor on the right. She asked me
if there was another stairs, and I told her yes, at the end of that
corridor."
Jack hastened in the direction named. At the foot of the rear stairs
he found a door giving on a quiet back street. The door-keeper
supplied the next link of information.
"Yes, sir, there was a taxi waiting for her. She just drove away."
"Hm!" thought Jack ruefully, "that's a good one on me! Either she
knows this place of old, or else she fixed it up on the way with the
taxi-driver."
He was not greatly concerned by this mishap, for he knew the time the
Southern train was due to arrive in Baltimore, and he expected to meet
her again there. The time was six-thirty. He spent the interim in
buying himself an overcoat of striking cut, and a tweed hat that would
pull down low on his head. These articles changed his appearance not a
little. On the way uptown he stopped in at the Warwick, but Miriam had
not returned there.
When he got to the station Miriam was not to be seen among the crowd.
The train was forty-five minutes late. Informing himself as to which
gate the passengers would be discharged through, he took a seat
commanding it, and affected to busy himself with a magazine.
As the time for the coming of the train drew near, and no Miriam showed
up, a sharp anxiety attacked him. He wondered if he could have erred
in his calculations. He knew she had not had time since he lost her,
to telegraph down the line for Bobo to get off at Washington.
The train drew in, and the passengers began mounting the steps. Still
no sign of Miriam. But suddenly Jack caught sight of Bobo among the
passengers and his spirits rebounded.
"Is she going to let me carry him off?" he wondered.
The wireless operator accompanied Bobo, and Bobo was clad in one of his
uniforms. As there was about thirty pounds difference in weight
between the two--in Bobo's favor, the plump youth cut rather a comic
figure, and was acutely conscious of the fact.