“Over in that corner,” replied Anne, taking off her collar and unfastening her white shirt waist.  “Don’t you remember, I labeled them and you laughed at me for doing so?”

“Of course we do,” said Nora, making a dive for the corner where Anne had piled her costumes the previous night.  “They’re not here,” she announced after a brief but thorough search.  “Miss Tebbs must have had them moved to the other room.  She opened it last night after we left.  Grace, you help Anne, and Jessica and Mabel and I will run across and look for them.”  With these words, Nora was off, the other two girls at her heels.

“Tell me what kept you, Anne,” said Grace, as the latter began arranging her hair for the first act.

“Grace,” said Anne rather tremulously, “I won’t wait until the others come back to tell you why I came so late.  Just after I had finished my supper and was putting on my wraps a boy came to the door with this note.”  Anne went over to where her coat hung and took out an envelope.  Drawing a note from it, she silently handed it to Grace, who read: 

“My dear Anne: 

“Will you come up to my house before going to the
hall?  I wish to give you something to wear in the
play.

“Yours affectionately,
“Rose R. Gray.”

“Why, how unlike Mrs. Gray to send for you at the eleventh hour,” said Grace in a puzzled tone.  “No wonder you were late.  What did she give you?”

“Nothing,” replied Anne.  “It was a trick.  She never wrote the note, although the writing looks like hers, and so does the paper.  She was very indignant over it and sent me back in the carriage, telling the coachman to return for her, for of course she will be here to-night.  I would have arrived much later if I had been obliged to walk.  I ran almost all the way up there.  You know Chapel Hill is quite a distance from my house.”

“I should say so,” replied Grace.  “Who could have been so mean?  Anne, why do you suppose——­” Grace stopped suddenly and stared at Anne.  “Anne do you think that Eleanor could have written it?” she said slowly, as though reluctant to give voice to her suspicion.

“I am afraid so,” replied Anne.  “She is the only one who could profit by my being late.  Yet if she did write the note, she should have realized that going to Mrs. Gray’s would scarcely keep me away long enough to miss my first entrance.  You know I don’t come on until the second scene.”

“There is something more behind this,” said Grace, “and I’m going to find out, too.”  She darted to the door and opened it upon Nora and Jessica, who were on the threshold.

“We can’t find them,” they cried in alarm, “but we told Miss Tebbs and she’ll be here in a minute.”

“We didn’t say a word to any one else,” said Nora, “because they must be somewhere about, and there is no use in stirring up a lot of unnecessary excitement.”