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Jane hesitated, paused, looked at
her aunt's guests as if almost surprised to find them there. Then
the slow smile dawned in her eyes and passed to her lips. She stood
in the centre of the platform for a moment, awkwardly, almost shyly;
then moved on as men's voices began to shout "Encore! 'core!" and
left the platform by the side staircase.
But there, behind the scenes, in the semi-darkness of screens and
curtains, a fresh surprise awaited Jane, more startling than the
enthusiastic tumult of her audience.
At the foot of the staircase stood Garth Dalmain. His face was
absolutely colourless, and his eyes shone out from it like burning
stars. He remained motionless until she stepped from the last stair
and stood close to him. Then with a sudden movement he caught her by
the shoulders and turned her round.
"Go back!" he said, and the overmastering need quivering in his
voice drew Jane's eyes to his in mute astonishment. "Go back at once
and sing it all over again, note for note, word for word, just as
before.


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