IN THE CRIMSON OF SUNSET.
Edward left the house without any definite idea of how he would carry on
the search for the truth of his own history, but his determination was
complete. He did not enter the dining-room, but called for his buggy and
drove direct to the city. He wished to see neither Rita nor Gerald until
the tumult within him had been stilled. His mind was yet in a whirl when
without previous resolution he turned his horse in the direction of "The
Hall" and let it choose its gait. The sun was low when he drew up before
the white-columned house and entered the yard. Mary stood in the doorway
and smiled a welcome, but as he approached she looked into his face in
alarm.
"You have been ill?" she said, with quick sympathy.
"Do I look it?" he asked; "I have not slept well. Perhaps that shows
upon me. It is rather dreary work this getting acquainted." He tried to
deceive her with a smile.
"How ungallant!" she exclaimed, "to say that to me, and so soon after we
have become acquainted."
"We are old acquaintances, Miss Montjoy," he replied with more
earnestness than the occasion justified. "I knew you in Paris, in Rome,
even in India--I have known you always." She blushed slightly and turned
her face away as a lady appeared leading a little girl.
"Here is Mr. Morgan, Annie; you met him for a moment only, I believe."
The newcomer extended her hand languidly.
"Any one whom Norton is so enthusiastic about," she said, without
warmth, "must be worth meeting a second time."
Her small eyes rested upon the visitor an instant. Stunned as he had
been by large misfortunes, he felt again the unpleasant impression of
their first meeting. Whether it was the manner, the tone of voice, the
glance or languid hand that slipped limply from his own, or all
combined, he did not know; he did not care much at that time. The young
woman placed the freed hand over the mouth of the child begging for a
biscuit, and without looking down said:
"Mary, get this brat a biscuit, please. She will drive me distracted."
Mary stooped and the Duchess leaped into her arms, happy at once. Edward
followed them with his eyes until they reached the end of the porch and
Mary turned a moment to receive additional directions from the young
mother. He knew, then, where he had first seen her. She was a little
madonna in a roadside shrine in Sicily, distinct and different from all
the madonnas of his acquaintance, in that she seemed to have stepped up
direct from among the people who knelt there; a motherly little woman in
touch with every home nestling in those hills. The young mother by him
was watching him with curiosity.
"I have to thank you for a beautiful picture," he said.
"You are an artist, I suppose?"
"Yes; a dilletante. But the picture of a woman with her child in her
arms appeals to most men; to none more than those who never knew a
mother nor had a home." He stopped suddenly, the blood rushed to his
face and brain, and he came near staggering. He had forgotten for the
moment.
He recovered, to find the keen eyes of the woman studying him intently.
Did she know, did she suspect? How this question would recur to him in
all the years! He turned from her, pale and angry. Fortunately, Mary
returned at this moment, the little one contentedly munching upon its
biscuit. The elder Mrs. Montjoy welcomed him with her motherly way,
inquiring closely into his arrangements for comfort out at Ilexhurst.
Who was caring for him? Rita! Well, that was fortunate; Rita was a good
cook and good housekeeper, and a good nurse. He affected a careless
interest and she continued:
"Yes, Rita lived for years near here. She was a free woman and as a
professional nurse accumulated quite a sum of money, and then her
husband dying, John Morgan had taken her to his house to look after a
young relative who had been left to his care. What has become of this
young person?" she asked. "I have not heard of him for many years."
"He is still there," said Edward, briefly.
And then, as they were silent, he continued: "This woman Rita had a
husband; how did they manage in old times? Was he free also? You see,
since I have become a citizen your institutions have a deal of interest
for me. It must have been inconvenient to be free and have someone else
owning the husband."
He was not satisfied with the effort; he could not restrain an
inclination to look toward the younger Mrs. Montjoy. She was leaning
back in her chair, with eyes half-closed, and smiling upon him. He could
have strangled her cheerfully. The elder lady's voice recalled him.
"Her husband was free also; that is, it was thought that she had bought
him," and she smiled over the idea.
A slanting sunbeam came through the window; they were now in the
sitting-room and Mary quickly adjusted the shade to shield her mother's
face.
"Mamma is still having trouble with her eyes," she said; "we cannot
afford to let her strain the sound one."
"My eyes do pain me a great deal," the elder Mrs. Montjoy said. "Did you
ever have neuralgia, Mr. Morgan? Sometimes I think it is neuralgia. I
must have Dr. Campbell down to look at my eyes. I am afraid----" she did
not complete the sentence, but the quick sympathy of the man helped him
to read her silence aright. Mary caught her breath nervously.
"Mary, take me to my room; I think I will lie down until tea. Mr. Morgan
will be glad to walk some, I am sure; take him down to the mill." She
gave that gentleman her hand again; a hand that seemed to him eloquent
with gentleness. "Good-night, if I do not see you again," she said. "I
do not go to the table now on account of the lamp." He felt a lump in
his throat and an almost irresistible desire to throw himself upon her
sympathy. She would understand. But the next instant the idea of such a
thing filled him with horror. It would banish him forever from the
portals of that proud home.
And ought he not to banish himself? He trembled over the mental
question. No! His courage returned. There had been some horrible
mistake! Not until the light of day shone on the indisputable fact, not
until proof irresistible had said: "You are base-born! Depart!" When
that hour came he would depart! He saw Mary waiting for him at the door;
the young mother was still watching him, he thought. He bowed and strode
from the room.
"What is it?" said the girl, quickly; "you seem excited." She was
already learning to read him.
"Do I? Well, let me see; I am not accustomed to ladies' society," he
said, lightly; "so much beauty and graciousness have overwhelmed me." He
was outside now and the fresh breeze steadied him instantly.
There was a sun-setting before them that lent a glow to the girl's face
and a new light to her eyes. He saw it there first and then in the
skies. Across a gentle slope of land that came down from a mile away on
the opposite side into their valley the sun had gone behind a shower.
Out on one side a fiery cloud floated like a ship afire, and behind it
were the lilac highlands of the sky. The scene brought with it a strange
solemnity. It held the last breath of the dying day.
The man and girl stood silent for a moment, contemplating the wonderful
vision. She looked into his face presently to find him sadly and
intently watching her. Wondering, she led the way downhill to where a
little boat lay with its bow upon the grassy sward which ran into the
water. Taking one seat, she motioned him to the other.
"We have given you a Venetian water-color sunset," she said, smiling
away her embarrassment, "and now for a gondola ride." Lightly and
skillfully plying the paddle the little craft glided out upon the lake,
and presently, poising the blade she said, gayly:
"Look down into the reflection, and then look up! Tell me, do you float
upon the lake or in the cloudy regions of heaven?" He followed her
directions. Then, looking steadily at her, he said, gently:
"In heaven!" She bent over the boat side until her face was concealed,
letting her hand cool in the crimson water.
"Mr. Morgan," she said after awhile, looking up from under her lashes,
"are you a very earnest man? I do not think I know just how to take you.
I am afraid I am too matter-of-fact."
He was feverish and still weighed down by his terrible memory. "I am
earnest now, whatever I may have been," he said, softly, "and believe
me, Miss Montjoy, something tells me that I will never be less than
earnest with you."
She did not reply at once, but looked off into the cloudlands.
"You have traveled much?" she said at length, to break the awkward
silence.
"I suppose so. I have never had what I could call a home and I have
moved about a great deal. Men of my acquaintance," he continued,
musingly, "have been ambitious in every line; I have watched them in
wonder. Most of them sacrifice what would have been my greatest pleasure
to possess--mother and sister and home. I cannot understand that phase
of life; I suppose I never will."
"Then you have never known a mother?"
"Never." There was something in his voice that touched her deeply.
"To miss a mother's affection," she said, with a holy light in her brown
eyes, "is to miss the greatest gift heaven can bestow here. I suppose a
wife somehow takes a mother's place, finally, with every man, but she
cannot fill it. No woman that ever lived can fill my mother's place."
Loyal little Mary! He fancied that as she thought upon her own remark
her sensitive lips curved slightly. His mind reverted to the sinister
face that they had left in the parlor.
"Your mother!" he exclaimed, fervently; "would to heaven I had such a
mother!" He paused, overcome with emotion. She looked upon him with
swimming eyes.
"You must come often, then," she said, softly, "and be much with us. I
will share her with you. Poor mamma! I am afraid--I am afraid for her!"
She covered her face with her hands suddenly and bowed her head.
"Is she ill, so ill as all that?" he asked, greatly concerned.
"Oh, no! That is, her eyesight is failing; she does not realize it, but
Dr. Campbell has warned us to be careful."
"What is the trouble?" He was now deeply distressed.
"Glaucoma. The little nerve that leads from the cornea to the brain
finally dies away; there is no connection, and then----" she could not
conclude the sentence.
Edward had never before been brought within the influence of such a
circle. Her words thrilled him beyond expression. He waited a little
while and said:
"I cannot tell you how much my short experience here has been to me. The
little touch of motherly interest, of home, has brought me more genuine
pleasure than I thought the world held for me. You said just now that
you would share the dear little mamma with me. I accept the generous
offer. And now you must share the care of the little mamma with me. Do
not be offended, but I know that the war has upset your revenues here in
the south, and that the new order of business has not reached a paying
basis. By no act of mine I am independent; I have few responsibilities.
Why may not I, why may not you and I take the little mamma to Paris and
let the best skill in the world be invoked to save her from sorrow?" He,
too, would not, after her failure, say "blindness."
She looked at him through tears that threatened to get beyond control,
afraid to trust her voice.
"You have not answered me," he said, gently. She shook her head.
"I cannot. I can never answer you as I would. But it cannot be, it
cannot be! If that course were necessary, we would have gone long ago,
for, while we are poor, Norton could have arranged it--he can can
arrange anything. But Dr. Campbell, you know, is famous for his skill.
He has even been called to Europe in consultation. He says there is no
cure, but care of the general health may avert the blow all her life.
And so we watch and wait."
"Still," he urged, "there may be a mistake. And the sea voyage----"
She shook her head. "You are very, very kind, but it cannot be."
It flashed over Edward then what that journey would have been. He, with
that sweet-faced girl, the little madonna of his memory, and the patient
mother! In his mind came back all the old familiar places; by his side
stood this girl, her hand upon his arm, her eyes upturned to his.
And why not! A thrill ran through his heart: he could take his wife and
her mother to Paris! He started violently and leaned forward in the
boat, his glowing face turned full upon her, with an expression in it
that startled her.
Then from it the color died away; a ghastly look overspread it. He
murmured aloud:
"God be merciful! It cannot be." She smiled pitifully.
"No," she said, "it cannot be. But God is merciful. We trust Him. He
will order all things for the best!" Seeing his agitation she continued:
"Don't let it distress you so, Mr. Morgan. It may all come out happily.
See, the skies are quite clear now; the clouds all gone! I take it as a
happy augury!"
Ashamed to profit by her reading of his feelings, he made a desperate
effort to respond to her new mood. She saw the struggle and aided him.
But in that hour the heart of Mary Montjoy went out for all eternity to
the man before her. Change, disaster, calumny, misfortune, would never
shake her faith and belief in him. He had lost in the struggle of the
preceding night, but here he had won that which death only could end,
and perhaps not death.
Slowly they ascended the hill together, both silent and thoughtful. He
took her little hand to help her up the terraces, and, forgetting, held
it until, at the gate, she suddenly withdrew it in confusion and gazed
at him with startled eyes.
The tall, soldierly form of the colonel, her father, stood at the top of
the steps.
"See," said Edward, to relieve her confusion, "one of the old knights
guarding the castle!"
And then she called out, gayly:
"Sir knight, I bring you a prisoner." The old gentleman laughed and
entered into the pleasantry.
"Well, he might have surrendered to a less fair captor! Enter, prisoner,
and proclaim your colors," Edward started, but recovered, and, looking
up boldly, said:
"An honorable knight errant, but unknown until his vow is fulfilled."
They both applauded and the supper bell rang.