Jewel: A Chapter in Her Life
Page 4
CHAPTER IV
FATHER AND SON
When later they were alone, the girl looked at her mother, her eyesluminous.
"You see," she began rather breathlessly, "even you must see, he isbeginning to drive us away."
"I do hope, Eloise, you are not going to indulge in any heroics overthis affair," returned Mrs. Evringham, who had braced herself to meet anattack. "Does the unpleasant creature suppose we would stay with him ifwe were not obliged to?"
"If we are obliged to, which I don't admit, need you demand furtherfavors than food and shelter? How could you speak of Essex Maid! How canyou know in your inmost heart, as you do, that we are eating the breadof charity, and then ask for the apple of his eye!" exclaimed Eloisedesperately.
"Go away with your bread and apples," responded Mrs. Evringhamflippantly. "I have a real worry now that that wretched little cousin ofyours is coming."
"She is not my cousin please remember," responded the girl bitterly."Mr. Evringham reminded us of that to-night."
"Now don't you begin calling him Mr. Evringham!" protested her mother."You don't want to take any notice of the man's absurdities. You willonly make matters worse."
"No, I shall go on saying grandfather for the little while we stay.Otherwise, he would know his words were rankling. It _will_ be a littlewhile? Oh mother!"
Mrs. Evringham pushed the pleading hand away. "I can't tell how long itwill be!" she returned impatiently. "We are simply helpless until yourfather's affairs are settled. I thought I had told you that, Eloise.He worshipped you, child, and no matter what that old curmudgeon says,Lawrence would wish us to remain under his protection until we see ourway clear."
"Won't you have a business talk with him, so we can know what we have tolook forward to?" The girl's voice was unsteady.
"I will when the right time comes, Eloise. Can't you trust your mother?Isn't it enough that we have lost our home, our carriages, all ourcomforts and luxuries, through this man's bad judgment--"
"You will cling to that!" despairingly.
"And have had to come out to this Sleepy Hollow of a place, where lifemeans mere existence, and be so poor that the carfare into New York isactually a consideration! I'm quite satisfied with our martyrdom asit is, without pinching and grinding as we should have to do to liveelsewhere."
"Then you don't mean to attempt to escape?" returned Eloise in alarm.
"Hush, hush, Goosie. We will escape all in good time if we don't succeedin taming the bear. As it is, I have to work single handed," droppinginto a tone of reproach. "You are no help at all. You might as well bea simpering wax dummy out of a shop window. I would have been ashamed atyour age if I could not have subjugated any man alive. We might have hadhim at our feet weeks ago if you had made an effort."
"No, no, mother," sadly. "I saw when we first came how effusivenessimpressed him, and I tried to behave so as to strike a balance--thatis, after I found that we were here on sufferance and not as welcomeguests."
"Pshaw! You can't tell what such a hermit is thinking," returned Mrs.Evringham. "It is the best thing that could happen to him to have ushere. Dr. Ballard said so only to-day. What is troubling me now is thischild of Harry's. I was sure by father's tone when he first spoke of herthat he would not even consider such an imposition."
"I think he did feel so," returned Eloise, her manner quiet again. "Thatwas an example of the way you overreach yourself. The word presumptionon your lips applied to uncle Harry determined grandfather to let thechild come."
"You think he really has sent for her then!" exclaimed Mrs. Evringham."You think that is what the telegram meant! I'm sure of it, too." Thenafter a minute's exasperated thought, "I believe you are right. He isjust contrary enough for that. If I had urged him to let the littlebarbarian come, he couldn't have been induced to do so. That wasn'tclever of me!" The speaker made the admission in a tone which impliedthat in general her cleverness was unquestioned. "Well, I hope she willworry him out of his senses, and I don't think there is much doubt ofit. It may turn out all for the best, Eloise, after all, and lead himto appreciate us." Mrs. Evringham cast a glance at the mirror and pattedher waved hair. "And yet I'm anxious, very anxious. He might take afancy to the girl," she added thoughtfully.
"I'm such a poor-spirited creature," remarked Eloise.
"What now?"
"I ought to be strong enough to leave you since you will not come; toleave this roof and earn my own living, some way, any way; but I'm toomuch of a coward."
"I should hope so," returned her mother briefly. "You'd soon become oneif you weren't at starting. Girls bred to luxury, as you have been, mustjust contrive to live well somehow. They can't stand anything else."
"Nonsense, mother," quietly. "They can. They do."
"Yes, in books I know they do."
"No, truth is stranger than fiction. They do. I have been looking forthat sort of stamina in myself for weeks, but I haven't found it. It isa cruel wrong to a girl not to teach her to support herself."
"My dear! You were going to college. You know you would have gone had itnot been for your poor father's misfortunes."
Eloise's eyes filled again at the remembrance of the young, gay man whohad been her boon companion since her babyhood, and at the memory ofthose last sad days, when she knew he had agonized over her future evenmore than over that of his volatile wife.
"My dear, as I've told you before, a girl as pretty as you are shouldknow that fortune cannot be unkind, nor the sea of life too rough. Ineach of the near waves of it you can see a man's head swimming towardyou. You don't know the trouble I have had already in silencing thosewho wished to speak before you were old enough. They could any of thembe summoned now with a word. Let me see. There is Mr. Derwent--Mr.Follansbee--Mr. Weeks--"
"Hush, mother!" ejaculated the girl in disgust.
"Exactly. I knew you would say they were too old, or too bald, or tooshort, or too fat. I've been a girl myself. Of course there is NatBonnell, and a lot more little waves and ripples like him, but theyalways _were_ out of the question, and now they are ten times more so.That is the reason, Eloise," the mother's voice became impressive tothe verge of solemnity, "why I feel that Dr. Ballard is almost aprovidence."
The girl's clear eyes were reflective. "Nat Bonnell is a wave whowouldn't remember a girl who had slipped out of the swim."
"Very wise of him," returned Mrs. Evringham emphatically. "Hecan't afford to. Nat is--is--a--decorative creature, just as youare,--decorative. He must make it pay, poor boy."
Meanwhile Mrs. Forbes had sought her son in the barn. He and she had hadtheir supper in time for her to be ready to wait at dinner.
"Something doing, something doing," murmured Zeke as he heard theimpetuosity of her approaching step.
"That soup _was_ hot!" she exclaimed defiantly.
"Somebody scald you, ma? I can do him up, whoever he is," said Zeke,catching up a whip and executing a threatening dance around the dimlylighted barn.
His mother's snapping eyes looked beyond him. "He said it was cold; butit was only because he was distracted. What do you suppose those peopleare up to now? Trying to get Essex Maid for Mamzell to ride!"
Zeke stopped in his mad career and returned his mother's stare for asilent moment. "And not a dungeon on the place probably!" he exclaimedat last. "Just like some folks' shiftlessness."
"They _asked_ it. They asked Mr. Evringham if that girl couldn't rideEssex Maid while he was in the city!"
'Zekiel lifted his eyebrows politely. "Where are their remains to beinterred?" he inquired with concern.
"Well, not in _this_ family vault, you may be sure. He gave it to themto-night for a fact." Mrs. Forbes smiled triumphantly. "'I didn't knowEloise remembered her father,'" she mimicked. "I'll bet that got undertheir skin!"
"Dear parent, you're excited," remarked Zeke.
She brought her reminiscent gaze back to rest upon her son. "Get yourcoat quick, 'Zekiel. Here's the telegram. Take the car that passes thepark gate, and stop at
the station. That's the nearest place."
Ezekiel obediently struggled into the coat hanging conveniently near."What does the telegram say?--'Run away, little girl, the ogre isn'thungry'?"
"Not much! She's coming. He's sending for the brat."
"Poor brat! How did it happen?"
"Just some more of my lady's doings," answered Mrs. Forbes angrily. "Ofcourse she had to put in her oar and exasperate Mr. Evringham until hedid it to spite her."
"Cutting off his own nose to spite his face, eh?" asked Zeke, taking theslip of paper.
"Yes, and mine. It's going to come heavy on me. I could have shaken thatwoman with her airs and graces. Catch her or Mamzell lifting _their_hands!"
"Yet they want her, do they?"
"No, Stupid! That's why she's coming. Can't you understand?"
"Blessed if I can," returned the boy as he left the barn; "but I knowone thing, I pity the kid."