EXPLANATIONS.
"And she really is not hurt, Uncle John?"
"Not so much as an eyelash! You were so quick, child! How did you manage
it? She had only time to scream and put her hands to her face, before
you were upon her. The thing that flared up so was a lace shawl she had
on her arm,--switched it into the candle, of course!--and that she
dropped. It is not of her I am thinking, but of you, my dear, brave
Margaret!" He bent over her tenderly and anxiously; but she smiled
brightly in his face.
"Truly, they hardly hurt at all! As you say, I must have been very
quick, and the flames were only little ones. Elizabeth has bandaged them
so beautifully; the pain is almost gone already."
They were in Margaret's room; she on her sofa, with her hands swathed in
bandages, but otherwise looking quite her own self, only a little paler
than usual; her uncle sitting by her, his hand on her arm. Peggy
fluttered in and out of the room, entirely recovered from the effect of
her fall the day before, and proud beyond measure of having charge of
Margaret, who last night had been watching and tending her. Peggy's
nursing was of doubtful quality; already she had baptised Margaret
twice,--once with gruel, again with cologne, when the cork with which
she had been struggling came out suddenly, deluging her patient with
fragrance.
But her good will was so hearty, her affection so ardent and so anxious
to prove itself, that Margaret had not the heart to deny her anything,
and submitted to having her hair brushed in a style that was entirely
new to her, and that made her wink at each vigorous stroke of the brush.
Rita had not been seen since the night before, save by Elizabeth, who
pronounced her well, but "a little upset, Miss!" and Elizabeth's face
was a study in repression as she spoke.
"And the boys, Uncle?" Margaret asked, when she was assured of Rita's
safety. "What have you done with them?"
Mr. Montfort laughed.
"Poor boys!" he said. "Poor lads! they have had a hard time of it."
"Oh, do tell me!" cried Margaret.
"Why, they are all right; the boys are all right!" said Mr. Montfort.
"It is that little monkey over there," nodding toward Rita's room, "who
has made all the trouble. They have been fighting, it is true, and have
been in the mountains with the insurgents. Very interesting their
account of it is, too. If I were thirty years younger--but that is not
the point. They were sent to New York by their chief on private
business; something of importance, but perfectly legitimate,--nothing to
do with arms or anything of the kind. Well, Carlos did not tell Rita the
object of his coming, and she instantly saw fire and gunpowder, treason
and plot,--in short, cooked up a whole melodrama to suit herself,--and
believed it, I have no doubt, an hour after she invented it. She wrote
Carlos mysterious letters, imploring him to come to her secretly; that
her fate and that of her country depended upon his faithfulness and
silence; that she was surrounded by spies--"
"Poor Peggy and me!" cried Margaret. "And you, too, Uncle John! She has
really had painful suspicions of you."
"No doubt, no doubt! but in my case she had a right to suspicions. We
will come to that presently. In short, the boy got the impression that
his sister was immured in a kind of dungeon, surrounded by people who
were unkind to her, and unable to get away or to call for help openly.
He says he ought to have known better, for apparently she has been
acting plays ever since she was short-coated; but this time he was
really taken in, and came here last night, with his friend and cousin,
meaning to rescue his sister and take her home to Cuba. Found her not
desiring in the least to be rescued, but bent on hiding them both in the
garret, and keeping them there till a cargo of arms and a vessel could
be brought from New York. You know the rest. Carlos was in the library
when I came up, waiting for an interview with Rita. I think it may be a
lively one."
"And the other; the cousin? I hardly saw him. They were both so
embarrassed, poor dears!"
"Seems a good little fellow; good little fellow enough! Gentlemanly
boys, both of them. Carlos is much more of a person than the other.
He--Fernando Sanchez--admires Rita a good deal, I should say, and tries
to find her conduct admirable; but her brother--hark!"
Something like a silken whirlwind came rushing up the stairs and across
the hall; something that sobbed with fury, and stamped with feet that
were too small to make much noise; then a door on the other side of the
hall shut with a bang that made the solid walls quiver. Margaret and her
uncle looked at each other. Presently Peggy came in, with round,
frightened eyes.
"What is the matter with Rita?" she asked. "Has she been in here? She
came flying across the hall just now--oh, dear! I was just coming out of
my room, and she took me and shook me, just as hard as she could shake.
Why, my teeth chattered, Margaret! and then she flung off into her room,
and slammed the door. My! she was in a tantrum! Oh, I--I--beg your
pardon!" She faltered at the sight of her uncle, and hung back. She had
only learned this morning of the astonishing transformation of her
friend the gardener into the unknown and formidable relative.
Mr. Montfort held out his hand, with the smile that always went to
Peggy's heart.
"Well, Miss Peggy," he said, "and what roses will you have to-day? My
dear child," he added, seeing that she was really distressed, "you are
not really troubled at my little masquerade? I am going to tell you all
about it soon,--as soon as I can see my three Margarets together. I feel
that I owe you all an explanation. Margaret has already heard part of my
story, and when Rita comes in, as I hope she will do soon,--I sent word
to her that I should be glad to see her here when she had had her talk
with her brother,--we will go over the whole matter, and find out what
John Strong and John Montfort have to say for themselves."
He turned the subject, and began to talk of the garden and the flowers,
in his usual quiet, cheerful way, till Peggy began to steal shy glances
at him under her eyelashes, and finally to hold her head up and smile
without looking as if she had stolen a sheep.
They had not long to wait. Before they had settled the position of the
new rose-bed, Rita's door was heard to open softly; then came the sound
of trailing garments in slow and stately motion, and the next moment
Rita entered the room.
She was dressed in deep black from head to foot. A black veil covered
her hair, and hung gracefully from her shoulders, and in her hand she
carried a black fan.
There were dark circles under her eyes, and she looked pale but lovely.
Mr. Montfort rose and came forward, holding out his hand. "My dear
niece," he said with some formality, "let us shake hands in all
friendliness."
But Rita did not take the outstretched hand. Instead, she folded her
hands, and sank down in the deepest and most beautiful courtesy that
ever was seen. Her eyes remained downcast, the long lashes resting on
her clear, white cheek.
[Illustration: RITA'S APOLOGY.]
"My uncle," she said, and her tone was dignified, pathetic, and
resentful, all in one, "I come to make my submission to you, and to ask
your pardon for my offences. My brother demands it, and I obey the head
of my house, the representative of my father. I pray you to forgive me!"
Mr. Montfort subdued an unruly twinkle in his eyes, and answered
gravely:
"I pardon you, my niece, freely. I beg you to consider the matter as if
it had never existed. My house is yours, and all that it contains; pray
be seated."
Rita looked up, startled at hearing in English the phrase of Spanish
courtesy so familiar to her ears; but Mr. Montfort's face was
inscrutable, as he brought forward a chair, and handed her to it as if
she were a duchess.
But Rita was not ready to sit down yet; she had arranged her scene, and
must go through with it. She advanced, and knelt down by Margaret's
couch. "Marguerite," she said sadly, "you saved my life. It was
valueless, I have learned; it was not worth the saving; nevertheless I
thank you from my heart of hearts. I--" Here she caught sight of the
bandaged hands, which Margaret had been trying to conceal beneath the
afghan. Instantly the tragic mask fell from Rita's face, and left a real
human countenance, full of pity and anxiety. "My dear!" she cried. "My
angel, my poor suffering Marguerite. Ah! you sent me word it was
nothing. You are injured, terribly injured, and by my fault. Ah! now
Carlos _must_ let me die, as I desire. Life is no longer possible!"
The words were extravagant, but there was real grief and distress in the
tone. She laid her head on Margaret's shoulder and sobbed aloud; and
Peggy was heartily glad to hear her cry, and cried in sympathy. Margaret
could not stroke the dark head, but she moved her own near it, and
whispered little comforting words, and kissed the soft hair. And
presently, finding that the sobs only increased in violence, she
whispered to Rita that she was distressing her uncle, and that she
really must try to be quiet on his account. At the sound of his name,
Rita froze again, though not to her former degree of rigour; with a
fervent kiss on Margaret's brow, she rose, and finally took the chair
that had been placed for her. Mr. Montfort sat down opposite, and a
brief silence followed. He seemed to be thinking what he should say. At
length he spoke.
"My dear nieces, this is a day of explanations, and I feel that I owe
you all an explanation of my conduct, which, doubtless, must appear
strange to you. I--well, I suppose I am an eccentric man. I have always
been considered so, and I confess not without apparent reason. I have
often been able to justify to myself conduct which has seemed strange to
others; and it has been my misfortune to live so much alone, that
perhaps I may rely too much on this practice of self-justification.
"It is now five years since my friend and cousin, Mrs. Cheriton, came to
live with me. I have been made sensible, by her sweet and gracious
presence, that my life before had been very grim and solitary, and I
determined that it should be so no more. I also felt that while she was
spared to me it would be a happiness and a benefit to her to have some
young life about the house; to have, in short, some young and sweet
woman, who could be her companion in a hundred ways that would not be
possible for a solitary bachelor like myself.
"With these thoughts in my mind, I naturally turned to the young women
directly connected with me,--to the daughters of my brothers. I had
never seen any of them; troubles into which it is not necessary for me
to enter had made me withdraw until lately from all society, and I had
not felt able to respond to the kind invitations sent me from time to
time to visit one brother or another. I conceived the plan of sending
for you three cousins to spend the summer with me, with the idea that at
the end of the time I might ask one of you--the one who should seem most
contented, and who should be best suited to a quiet, country
life--to--a--to remain longer. This was my first plan. Perhaps it might
have been better if I had adhered to it; but I subsequently modified it,
not without a good deal of thought. It would be dull for you, I
reflected--_triste_, as Rita would say,--here with me. A strange uncle,
an elderly man, unused to young people, could not fail to be a constant
check, a constant restraint upon gay and youthful spirits. I wanted you
to be happy, so I decided to efface myself for a time, to let you have
the home of your fathers for your own, unhampered by the presence of
its owner."
Margaret made a motion of eager remonstrance, but her uncle checked her
with raised hand.
"One moment, my dear! I now come to John Strong."
Rita raised her eyes to his, full of proud defiance.
"I deceived you!" he went on, answering her look. "I now think it was
wrong, and Mrs. Cheriton, I ought to add, was opposed to the plan. But
in the first place my presence here was necessary for many reasons; and
in the second place I wanted to see you. I wanted to see you as you
really were, not constrained or on good behaviour, or in any way changed
from your own true selves. I think I succeeded."
There was a moment's silence, which none of the girls dared to break.
"My name is John Strong Montfort. I have been in the habit of spending a
part of every day among my plants and flowers, for reasons of health and
pleasure. It was simple enough for me to go from my private rooms to the
garden, to use the private staircase which--a--with which you are
familiar,"--Peggy winced and Margaret blushed, but Rita continued her
direct gaze at her uncle and gave no sign,--"and to pass (by a way that
has not yet been discovered) to and from the White Rooms. I intended to
keep up this little farce for a few weeks only, but somehow the time has
slipped by, and each day has brought you some new occupation which I was
loath to interrupt. Lately, I confess, there has been a new incentive to
secrecy, and perhaps--Rita--perhaps I may have been boy enough, old as I
am, to enjoy my own little conspiracy. It is over; the play is played
out. I have already made my peace with Margaret, and I think Peggy is
prepared to accept my explanation. What do you say?"
Rita had followed every word with breathless attention, her colour
coming and going, her eyes growing momently brighter. Now, at this
direct appeal, she rose and flung out her arms with the dramatic gesture
so familiar to two of her hearers.
"I say?" she repeated. "I say it was magnificent! It was superb!
Marguerite, do I exaggerate? It was _inspired_! My uncle, I am prepared
to adore you!"
Mr. Montfort looked alarmed, but pleased. Rita went on, glowing with
enthusiasm.
"It was perfectly conceived, perfectly carried out! Ah, why were you not
on my side? Together, you and I, we could have done--everything!"
"You did not ask me, my dear!" said Mr. Montfort dryly. There was that
in his look that made Rita blush at last. But in her present mood she
could bear anything.
"I beg again your pardon!" she cried. "Uncle, this time I beg for my own
self pardon, of my own will. I was bad, wicked, abominable! Marguerite
was right; she is always right! I kneel to you in penitence!"
And she would have knelt down, then and there, if her uncle had not
stopped her hastily and positively.
"Give me a kiss instead, my dear!" he said. "We have had heroics enough
for one day, and we must come down to plain common sense. Rita, Peggy,
Margaret,--my three Margaret Montforts,--I wish and mean to love you
all." He stooped and kissed each girl on the forehead; but he lingered
by Margaret's side, and laid his hand on her hair with a silent gesture
which held a blessing in it.
"Margaret, you must rest now!" he said with kind authority. "Rita, we
have left your brother and cousin too long alone. Come with me, and let
us see what we can do to make them forget their untoward introduction to
Fernley House."