A mortal pallor covered those features, which he had known so
charming and so gentle, and sorrow had furrowed them with pitiless
lines and traced dark and unspeakably sad shadows under her eyes.
"My dearest! My dearest!" he moaned, holding out his arms.
"You promised to forgive me..."
"Perhaps!...Some day, perhaps!" she said, resuming her mask;
and she went away, forbidding him, with a gesture, to follow her.
He tried to disobey her; but she turned round and repeated her gesture
of farewell with such authority that he dared not move a step.
He watched her till she was out of sight. Then he also went down among
the crowd, hardly knowing what he was doing, with throbbing temples
and an aching heart; and, as he crossed the dancing-floor, he asked
if anybody had seen Red Death. Yes, every one had seen Red Death;
but Raoul could not find him; and, at two o'clock in the morning,
he turned down the passage, behind the scenes, that led to
Christine Daae's dressing-room.
His footsteps took him to that room where he had first known suffering.
He tapped at the door. There was no answer. He entered, as he
had entered when he looked everywhere for "the man's voice.
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