ankle-deep before the banking-house of godolphin, crosse, and godolphin, and for some distance on either side; ankle-deep down crosse street as far as you could see, lay masses of straw. as carriages came up to traverse it, their drivers checked their horses and drove them at a foot-pace, raising their own heads to look up at the windows of the dwelling; for they knew that one was lying there hovering between life and death.
it was george godolphin. imprudent george! healthy and strong as he might be, sound as his constitution was, that little episode of the fête-day had told upon him. few men can do such things with impunity, and come out of them unscathed. “what was a bit of a ducking; and that only a partial one? nothing.” as george himself said to some remonstrator on the following day. it is not much, certainly, to those who are used to it: but taken in conjunction with a white heat, and with an hour or two’s cooling upon the grass afterwards, in the airy undress of shirt-sleeves, it is a great deal.
it had proved a great deal for george godolphin. an attack of rheumatic fever supervened, dangerous and violent, and neither dr. beale nor mr. snow could give a guess as to whether he would live or[120] die. miss godolphin had removed to the bank to share with margery the task of nursing him. knockers were muffled; bells were tied up; straw, as you hear, was laid in the streets; people passed in and out, even at the swing doors, when they went to transact business, with a softened tread: and as they counted the cash for their cheques, leaned over the counter, and asked the clerks in a whisper whether mr. george was yet alive. yes, he was alive, the clerks could always answer, but it was as much as they could say.
it continued to be “as much as they could say” for nearly a month, and then george godolphin began to improve. but so slowly! day after day seemed to pass without visible sign.
how bore up maria hastings? none could know the dread, the grief, that was at work within her, or the deep love she felt for george godolphin. her nights were sleepless, her days were restless; she lost her appetite, her energy, almost her health. mrs. hastings wondered what was wrong with her, and hoped maria was not going to be one of those sickly ones who always seem to fade in the spring.
maria could speak out her sorrow to none. grace would not have sympathized with any feeling so strong, whose object was george godolphin. and had grace sympathized ever so, maria would not have spoken it. she possessed that shrinking reticence of feeling, that refined sensitiveness, to which betraying its own emotions to another would be little less than death. maria could not trust her voice to ask after him: when mr. hastings or her brothers would come in and say (as they had more than once), “there’s a report in the town that george godolphin’s dead,” she could not press upon them her eager questions, and ask, “is it likely to be true? are there any signs that it is true?” once, when this rumour came in, maria made an excuse to go out: some trifle to be purchased in the town, she said to mrs. hastings: and went down the street inwardly shivering, too agitated to notice acquaintances whom she met. opposite the bank, she stole glances up at its private windows, and saw that the blinds were down. in point of fact, this told nothing, for the blinds had been kept down much since george’s illness, the servants not troubling themselves to draw them up: but to the fears of maria hastings, it spoke volumes. sick, trembling, she continued her way mechanically: she did not dare to stop, even for a moment, or to show, in her timidity, as much as the anxiety of an indifferent friend. at that moment mr. snow came out of the house, and crossed over.
maria stopped then. surely she might halt to speak to the surgeon without being suspected of undue interest in mr. george godolphin. she even brought out the words, as mr. snow shook hands with her: “you have been to the bank?”
“yes, poor fellow; he is in a critical state,” was mr. snow’s answer. “but i think there’s a faint indication of improvement, this afternoon.”
in the revulsion of feeling which the words gave, maria forgot her caution. “he is not dead, then?” she exclaimed, all too eagerly, her face turning to a glowing crimson, her lips apart with emotion.
mr. snow gathered in the signs, and a grave expression stole over his lips. but the next minute he was smiling openly. “no, he is not dead yet, miss maria; and we must see what we can do towards[121] keeping him alive.” maria turned home again with a beating and a thankful heart.
a weary, weary summer for george godolphin—a weary, weary illness. it was more than two months before he rose from his bed at all, and it was nearly two more before he went down the stairs of the dwelling-house. a fine, balmy day it was, that one in june, when george left his bed for the first time, and was put in the easy-chair, wrapped up in blankets. the sky was blue, the sun was warm, and bees and butterflies sported in the summer air. george turned his weary eyes, weary with pain and weakness, towards the cheering signs of outdoor life, and wondered whether he should ever be abroad again.
it was august before that time came. early in that month the close carriage of ashlydyat waited at the door, to give mr. george his first airing. a shadowy object he looked, mr. snow on one side of him, margery on the other; janet, who would be his companion in the drive, following. they got him downstairs between them, and into the carriage. from that time his recovery, though slow, was progressive, and in another week he was removed for change to ashlydyat. he could walk abroad then with two sticks, or with a stick and somebody’s arm. george, who was getting up his spirits wonderfully, declared that he and his sticks should be made into a picture and sent to the next exhibition of native artists.
one morning, he and his sticks were sunning themselves in the porch at ashlydyat, when a stranger approached and accosted him. a gentlemanly-looking man, in a straw hat, with a light travelling overcoat thrown upon his arm. george looked a gentleman also, in spite of his dilapidated health and his sticks, and the stranger raised his hat with something of foreign urbanity.
“does mr. verrall reside here?”
“no,” replied george.
a hard, defiant sort of expression rose immediately to the stranger’s face. it almost seemed to imply that george was deceiving him: and his next words bore out the impression. “i have been informed that he does reside here,” he said, with a stress upon the “does.”
“he did reside here,” replied george godolphin: “but he does so no longer. that is where mr. verrall lives,” he added, pointing one of his sticks at the white walls of lady godolphin’s folly.
the stranger wheeled round on his heel, took a survey of it, and then lifted his hat again, apparently satisfied. “thank you, sir,” he said. “the mistake was mine. good morning.”
george watched him away as he strode with a firm, quick, elastic step towards the folly. george wondered when he should walk again with the same step. perhaps the idea, or the desire to do so, impelled him to try it then. he rose from his seat and went tottering out, drawing his sticks with him. it was a tempting morning, and george strolled on in its brightness, resting now on one bench, now on another, and then bearing on again.
“i might get as far as the folly, if i took my time,” he said to himself. “would it not be a surprise to them!”
so he bore onwards to the folly, as the stranger had done. he was[122] drawing very near to it, was seated, in fact, on the last bench that he intended to rest on, when mr. verrall passed him.
“have you had a gentleman inquiring for you?” george asked him.
“what gentleman?” demanded mr. verrall.
“a stranger. he came to ashlydyat, supposing you lived there. i sent him to the folly.”
“describe him, will you?” said mr. verrall.
“i noticed nothing much to describe,” replied george. “he wore a straw hat, and had a thin tweed coat over his arm. i should fancy he had just come off a journey.”
mr. verrall left george where he was, and went back to the folly. george rose and followed more slowly. but when he got beyond the trees, he saw that mr. verrall must have plunged into them: as if he would go into the folly by the servants’ entrance. george crossed the lawn, and made straight for the drawing-room windows, which stood open.
scarcely had he entered, and flung himself into the first easy-chair, when he saw the same stranger approach the house. where had he been, not to have found it before? but george immediately divined that he had taken the wrong turning near the ash-trees, and so had had the pleasure of a round to prior’s ash and back again. the room was empty, and george sat recovering breath and enjoying the luxury of a rest, when the stranger’s knock resounded at the hall-door.
a servant, as he could hear, came forth to open it; but, before that was effected, flying footsteps followed the man across the hall, and he was called, in the voice of charlotte pain.
“james,” said she, in a half-whisper, which came distinctly to the ear of george godolphin, “should that be any one for mr. verrall, say nothing, but show him in here.”
a second room, a smaller one, stood between the one george had entered, and the hall. it opened both to the drawing-room and the hall; in fact, it served as a sort of anteroom to the drawing-room. it was into this room that the stranger was shown.
charlotte, who had taken a seat, and was toying with some embroidery-work, making believe to be busy over it, rose at his entrance, with the prettiest air of surprise imaginable. he could have staked his life, had he been required to do it, that she knew nothing whatever of his approach until that identical moment, when james threw open the door, and announced, “a gentleman, ma’am.” james had been unable to announce him in more definite terms. upon his asking the stranger for a name, the curt answer had been, “never mind the name. mr. verrall knows me.”
charlotte rose. and the gentleman’s abruptness changed to courtesy at the sight of her. “i wish to see mr. verrall,” he said.
“mr. verrall is in town,” replied charlotte.
“in town!” was the answer, delivered in an accent of excessive surprise. “do you mean in london, madam?”
“certainly,” rejoined charlotte. “in london.”
“but he only left london last night to come here!” was the stranger’s answer.
it brought charlotte to a pause. self-possessed as she was, she had[123] to think a moment before hazarding another assertion. “may i inquire how you know that he left london last night for this?” she asked.
“because, madam, i had business yesterday of the very last importance with mr. verrall. he made the appointment himself, for three o’clock. i went at three: and could not find him. i went at four, and waited an hour, with a like result. i went again at seven, and then i was told that mr. verrall had been telegraphed for to his country seat, and had started. i had some difficulty in finding out where his country seat was situated, but i succeeded in doing that: and i followed him in the course of the night.”
“how very unfortunate!” exclaimed charlotte, who had obtained her clue. “he was telegraphed for yesterday, and arrived in answer to it, getting here very late last night. but he could not stay. he said he had business to attend to in london, and he left here this morning by an early train. will you oblige me with your name?” she added.
“my name, madam, is appleby. it is possible that you may have heard mr. verrall mention it, if, as i presume, i have the honour of speaking to mrs. verrall.”
charlotte did not undeceive him. “when did you see mr. verrall last?” she suddenly inquired, as if the thought had just struck her.
“the day before yesterday. i saw him three times that day, and he made the appointment for the following one.”
“i am so sorry you should have had a useless journey,” said charlotte, with much sympathy.
“i am sorry also,” said the stranger. “sorry for the delay this causes in certain arrangements; a delay i can ill afford. i will wish you good morning, madam, and start back by the first train.”
charlotte touched the bell, and curtsied her adieu. the stranger had the door open, when he turned round, and spoke again.
“i presume i may entirely rely upon what you tell me—that verrall has gone back?”
“oh, certainly,” answered charlotte.
now, every syllable of this colloquy had reached the ears of george godolphin. it puzzled him not a little. were there two verralls? the verrall of the folly, with whom he had so recently exchanged words, had certainly not been in london for a fortnight past, or anywhere else but in that neighbourhood. and what did charlotte mean, by saying he had gone to town that morning?
charlotte came in, singing a scrap of a song. she started when she saw george, and then flew to him in a glow of delight, holding out her hands.
what could he do, but take them? what could he do, but draw charlotte down beside him on the sofa, holding them still? “how pleased i am to see you!” exclaimed charlotte. “i shall think the dear old times are coming round again.”
“charlotte mia, do you know what i have been obliged to hear? that interesting colloquy you have been taking part in in the next room.”
charlotte burst into a laugh. from the moment when she first caught a glimpse of george, seated there, she had felt sure that he must have heard it. “did i do it well?” she cried, triumphantly.
[124]“how could you invent such fibs?”
“verrall came upstairs to me and kate,” said charlotte, laughing more merrily than before. “he said there was somebody going to call here, he thought with a begging petition, and he did not care to see him. would i go and put the man off? i asked him how i should put him off, and he answered, ‘any way. say he had gone to london, if i liked.’”
was charlotte telling truth or falsehood? that there was more in all this than met the eye was evident. it was no business, however, of george godolphin’s, neither did he make it his.
“and you have really walked here all the way by yourself!” she resumed. “i am so glad! you will get well now all one way.”
“i don’t know about getting well ‘all one way,’ charlotte. the doctors have been ordering me away for the winter.”
“for the winter!” repeated charlotte, her tone growing sober. “what for? where to?”
“to some place where the skies are more genial than in this cold climate of ours,” replied george. “if i wish to get thoroughly well, they say, i must start off next month, september, and not return until april.”
“but—should you go alone?”
“there’s the worst of it. we poor bachelors are like stray sheep—nobody owning us, nobody caring for us.”
“take somebody with you,” suggested charlotte.
“that’s easier said than done,” said george.
charlotte threw one of her brilliant glances at him. she had risen, and was standing before him, all her attractions in full play. “there’s an old saying, mr. george godolphin, that where there’s a will, there’s a way,” quoth she.
george made a gallant answer, and they were progressing in each other’s good graces to their own content, when an interruption came to it. the same servant who had opened the door to the stranger entered.
“miss pain, if you please, my master says will you go up to him.”
“i declare you make me forget everything,” cried charlotte to george, as she left the room. and picking up her king charley, she threw it at him. “there! take care of him, mr. george godolphin, until i come back again.”
a few minutes after, george saw mr. verrall leave the house and cross the lawn. a servant behind him was bearing a small portmanteau and an overcoat, similar to the one the stranger had carried on his arm. was mr. verrall also going to london?
