CHAPTER XIII LUCILE'S DREAM

  That evening on the L train Lucile read a copy of the morning paper, onewhich she had carefully saved for a very definite reason. It was thepaper which was exploiting the Lady of the Christmas Spirit. Lucilealways got a thrill out of reading about the latest doings of thatadventurous person who had managed to be everywhere, to mingle with greatthrongs, and yet to be recognized by no one.

  "Well, I declare!" she whispered to herself as a fresh thrill ran throughher being. "She was to be in our store this very afternoon; in the artroom of the furniture store. That's the very room in which I saw Cordieand the Mystery Lady. This Lady of the Christmas Spirit may have been inthe room at that exact moment. How very, very exciting!"

  Closing her eyes, she tried to see that room again; to call back picturesof ladies who had entered the room while she had been looking down uponit.

  "No," she thought at last, "there isn't one that fits; one was tall andugly, one short, stout and middle aged, and two were quite gray. Not onefits the description of this Christmas Spirit person; unless, unless--"her heart skipped a beat. She had thought of the Mystery Lady.

  "But of course it couldn't be," she reasoned at last. "It doesn't say shewas to be there at that very moment. I was not standing on the stair morethan ten minutes. There are six such periods in an hour and nine and ahalf working hours in a store day. Fine chance! One chance in fifty. Andyet, stranger things have happened. What if it were she! What----"

  Her dreamings were broken short off by the sudden crumpling of paper ather side. Cordie had been glancing over the evening paper. Now the paperhad entirely disappeared, and Cordie's face was crimson to the roots ofher hair.

  "Why Cordie, what's happened?" exclaimed Lucile.

  "Noth--nothing's happened," said Cordie, looking suddenly out of thewindow.

  That was all Lucile could get out of her. One thing seemed strange,however. At the stand by the foot of the elevated station Cordie boughttwo copies of the same paper she had been reading on the train. These shefolded up into a solid bundle and packed tightly under her arm.

  "I wonder why she did that?" Lucile thought to herself.

  As often happens in bachelor ladies' apartments, this night there wasnothing to be found in their larder save sugar, milk and cocoa.

  "You get the cocoa to a boil," said Lucile, "and I'll run over to thedelicatessen for something hot. I'm really hungry to-night." She was downthe stairs and away.

  Somewhat to her annoyance, she found the delicatessen packed withstudents waiting their turn to be supplied with eatables. The term hadended, and those who were too far from home to take the holidays awayfrom the University were boarding themselves.

  After sinking rather wearily into a corner seat, Lucile found her mindslipping back over the days that had just flown.

  "To-morrow," she told herself soberly, "is the day before Christmas. Itis my last day at the store. And then? Oh, bother the 'and then'! There'salways a future, and always it comes out somehow."

  That she might not be depressed by thoughts of the low state of herfinances, she filled her mind with day dreams. In these dreams she sawherself insisting that Cordie reveal to her the secret hiding place ofthe Mystery Lady. Having searched this lady out, she demanded the returnof her well worn, but comfortable, coat. In the dream still she saw thelady throw up her hands to exclaim:

  "That frayed thing? I gave it to the rag man!"

  Then in a rage she, Lucile, stamps her foot and says: "How could you! Ofcourse now I shall keep your cape of fox skin and Siberian squirrel."

  "Ah," she whispered, "that was a beautiful dream!"

  Glancing up, she saw there were still six customers ahead of her and shemust wait for her turn.

  "Time for another," she whispered.

  This time it was the Lady of the Christmas Spirit. She saw her among thethrongs at the store. Feeling sure that this must be the very person,that she might steal a look at her hands, she followed her fromdepartment to department. Upstairs and downstairs they went. More thanonce she caught the lady throwing back a mocking glance at her.

  Then, of a sudden, at the ribbon counter she caught sight of her hands.

  "Such hands!" she whispered. "There never were others like them. It isthe Lady of the Christmas Spirit."

  Putting out her own hand, she grasped one of the marvelous ones as shewhispered: "You are the Lady of the Christmas Spirit."

  At once there came a mighty jingle of gold. A perfect shower of gold wentsparkling and tinkling to the floor.

  "Oh! Oh!--Oh! It will all be lost!" she cried, leaping forward.

  She leaped almost into the delicatessen keeper's arms. To her surpriseshe saw that the store was empty. Her day-dream had ended in a realdream; she had fallen asleep.

  Hastily collecting her scattered senses, she selected a steaming pot ofbeans and a generous cylinder of brown bread, then drawing her scarfabout her, dashed out into the night.