"You are not shuddering; only smiling and looking very pretty. The Prince thinks you very pretty too, I presume, by the way he was looking at you when you were dancing with him just now."
She laughed again. "What were you going to tell me?"
"They say the Imperial Marriage is in danger because he----" I left the sentence unfinished intentionally.
"Haven’t you noticed anything which would enable you to finish the sentence?"
"You don’t mean--Althea?" Her voice sank to a whisper.
I felt a grip at my heart at this confirmation. "Half the people here were watching them just now as they stood together in the centre of the room."
She burst suddenly into a fit of merry, irresponsible laughter. "Isn’t it fun?" she cried. I suppose it was, to her. I did not see the humour of it, however.
"There may not be much laughter in it when the Kaiser hears," I growled.
"Ah, the Kaiser!" and she shrugged her shapely shoulders petulantly. "What business has he to turn matchmaker? Why should not the Prince marry whom he pleases? Think what an ugly thing is that Princess von Altenvelt!" She appeared to be quite indignant on Althea’s account.
"It would cost the Prince the Emperor’s favour and his position at Court," I replied; "and probably he would be packed off to some fever hole in the Colonies on military service. Nice for Althea, that. The Kaiser can be hard when he likes."
"It is unjust! Infamous!" she exclaimed vehemently. "Poor Althea! But you don’t think that really? The Kaiser likes him too well."
"He has done it before, remember." Jealousy plays odd pranks with a man. Here was I finding a sort of morbid delight in drawing this gloomy picture, when in reality I wished Althea all the happiness in the world. But the smart of my disappointment was so fresh that I felt positively spiteful for the moment.
Chalice cast her eyes down, and in the pause a partner came to look for her. She threw me a little nod and a smile, as if we had had the pleasantest chat, and flitted off prattling to her partner and making eyes at him as I had seen her make them to a hundred other men before.
I sat on and brooded. I had been a self-centred ass not to have seen things, and a fool to dream that such a girl as Althea would ever give me a second thought. And then with a sigh I resolved to get out of Berlin without loss of time. I was walking off to the smoking room when I came on Althea sitting alone.