After an embrace, the girl suddenly became aware of a striking gong. One, two— The prince held her close. Three, four— The girl tried to pull away. The gong kept striking! Eleven—twelve!

Cinderella swung toward the platform where the carriage had been. But alas, the sides of the gorgeous carriage and the white horses had tumbled off and dropped into a net below. Now, instead, merely a pumpkin, drawn by mice, remained. The aerialist in a barely perceptible motion had slipped out of her white satin spangled tights and now stood in a ragged black costume.

"Oh!" shrieked Teddy, to whom all this was very real. "Poor Cinderella! Nancy, when will the prince—" The little boy stopped abruptly.

Lolita, about to climb into the pumpkin, suddenly swayed, then seemed to lose her footing. She plunged downward toward the net.

There was a momentary hush as the audience wondered if this was part of the act. But the silence was followed by cries of alarm when Lolita lay still.

"Oh," murmured Teddy. "Is she—"

"Lolita must have fainted," Nancy told him, and in her heart she hoped it was nothing more serious than this.

From the shadowy stage entrances rushed many willing hands to help the stricken aerialist, among them Pietro. Ringmaster Kroon waved them all aside. Walking under the net, he hissed at Lolita, loud enough for Nancy to hear:

"Get up! You're making fools of all of us! The show will be ruined! Climb out of there and take a bow!"

Nancy leaned across to Bess, who seemed frozen with fear, and picked up a pair of field glasses which lay on her friend's lap. Through them she could see Lolita, her face chalk-white, slowly open her eyes. Pietro reached up and tenderly patted her cheek.