The wind made more noise than ever at the top of the house, and when
Wemyss tried to open the door to Vera's sitting-room it blew back on
him.
'Well I'm damned,' he said, giving it a great shove.
'Why?' asked Lucy nervously.
'Come in, come in,' he said impatiently, pressing the door open and
pulling her through.
There was a great flapping of blinds and rattling of blind cords, a
whirl of sheets of notepaper, an extra wild shriek of the wind, and then
Wemyss, hanging on to the door, shut it and the room quieted down.
'That slattern Lizzie!' he exclaimed, striding across to the fireplace
and putting his finger on the bell-button and keeping it there.
'What has she done?' asked Lucy, standing where he had left her just
inside the door.
'Done? Can't you see?'
'You mean'--she could hardly get herself to mention the fatal
thing--'you mean--the window?'
'On a day like this!'
He continued to press the bell. It was a very loud bell, for it rang
upstairs as well as down in order to be sure of catching Lizzie's ear in
whatever part of the house she might be endeavouring to evade it, and
Lucy, as she listened to its strident, persistent summons of a Lizzie
who didn't appear, felt more and more on edge, felt at last that to
listen and wait any longer was unbearable.
'Won't you wear it out?' she asked, after some moments of nothing
happening and Wemyss still ringing.
He didn't answer. He didn't look at her. His finger remained steadily on
the button. His face was extraordinarily like the old man's in the
enlarged photograph downstairs. Lucy wished for only two things at that
moment, one was that Lizzie shouldn't come, and the other was that if
she did she herself might be allowed to go and be somewhere else.
'Hadn't--hadn't the window better be shut?' she suggested timidly
presently, while he still went on ringing and saying nothing--'else when
Lizzie opens the door won't all the things blow about again?'
He didn't answer, and went on ringing.
Of all the objects in the world that she could think of, Lucy most
dreaded and shrank from that window; nevertheless she began to feel that
as Everard was engaged with the bell and apparently wouldn't leave it,
it behoved her to put into practice her resolution not to be a fool but
to be direct and wholesome, and go and shut it herself. There it was,
the fatal window, huge as the one in the bedroom below and the one in
the library below that, yawning wide open above its murderous low sill,
with the rain flying in on every fresh gust of wind and wetting the
floor and the cushions of the sofa and even, as she could see, those
sheets of notepaper off the writing-table that had flown in her face
when she came in and were now lying scattered at her feet. Surely the
right thing to do was to shut the window before Lizzie opened the door
and caused a second convulsion? Everard couldn't, because he was ringing
the bell. She could and she would; yes, she would do the right thing,
and at the same time be both simple and courageous.
'I'll shut it,' she said, taking a step forward.
She was arrested by Wemyss's voice. 'Confound it!' he cried. 'Can't you
leave it alone?'
She stopped dead. He had never spoken to her like that before. She had
never heard that voice before. It seemed to hit her straight on the
heart.
'Don't interfere,' he said, very loud.
She was frozen where she stood.
'Tiresome woman,' he said, still ringing.
She looked at him. He was looking at her.
'Who?' she breathed.
'You.'
Her heart seemed to stop beating. She gave a little gasp, and turned her
head to right and left like something trapped, something searching for
escape. Everard--where was her Everard? Why didn't he come and take care
of her? Come and take her away--out of that room--out of that room----
There were sounds of steps hurrying along the passage, and then there
was a great scream of the wind and a great whirl of the notepaper and a
great blowing up on end off her forehead of her short hair, and Lizzie
was there panting on the threshold.
'I'm sorry, sir,' she panted, her hand on her chest, 'I was changing my
dress----'
'Shut the door, can't you?' cried Wemyss, about whose ears, too,
notepaper was flying. 'Hold on to it--don't let it go, damn you!'
'Oh--oh----' gasped Lucy, stretching out her hands as though to keep
something off, 'I think I--I think I'll go downstairs----'
And before Wemyss realised what she was doing, she had turned and
slipped through the door Lizzie was struggling with and was gone.
'Lucy!' he shouted, 'Lucy! Come back at once!' But the wind was too much
for Lizzie, and the door dragged itself out of her hands and crashed to.
As though the devil were after her Lucy ran along the passage. Down the
stairs she flew, down past the bedroom landing, down past the gong
landing, down into the hall and across it to the front door, and tried
to pull it open, and found it was bolted, and tugged and tugged at the
bolts, tugged frantically, getting them undone at last, and rushing out
on to the steps.
There an immense gust of rain caught her full in the face.
Splash--bang--she was sobered. The rain splashed on her as though a
bucket were being emptied at her, and the door had banged behind her
shutting her out. Suddenly horrified at herself she turned quickly, as
frantic to get in again as she had been to get out. What was she doing?
Where was she running to? She must get in, get in--before Everard could
come after her, before he could find her standing there like a drenched
dog outside his front door. The wind whipped her wet hair across her
eyes. Where was the handle? She couldn't find it. Her hair wouldn't keep
out of her eyes; her thin serge skirt blew up like a balloon and got in
the way of her trembling fingers searching along the door. She must get
in--before he came--what had possessed her? Everard--he couldn't have
meant--he didn't mean--what would he think--what _would_ he think--oh,
where was that handle?
Then she heard heavy footsteps on the other side of the door, and
Wemyss's voice, still very loud, saying to somebody he had got with
him, 'Haven't I given strict orders that this door is to be kept
bolted?'--and then the sound of bolts being shot.
'Everard! Everard!' Lucy cried, beating on the door with both hands,
'I'm here--out here--let me in--Everard! Everard!'
But he evidently heard nothing, for his footsteps went away again.
Snatching her hair out of her eyes, she looked about for the bell and
reached up to it and pulled it violently. What she had done was
terrible. She must get in at once, face the parlourmaid's astonishment,
run to Everard. She couldn't imagine his thoughts. Where did he suppose
she was? He must be searching the house for her. He would be dreadfully
upset. Why didn't the parlourmaid come? Was she changing her dress too?
No--she had waited at lunch all ready in her black afternoon clothes.
Then why didn't she come?
Lucy pulled the bell again and again, at last keeping it down, using up
its electricity as squanderously as Wemyss had used it upstairs. She was
wet to the skin by this time, and you wouldn't have recognised her
pretty hair, all dark now and sticking together in lank strands.
Everard--why, of course--Everard had only spoken like that out of
fear--fear and love. The window--of course he would be terrified lest
she too, trying to shut that fatal window, that great heavy fatal
window, should slip.... Oh, of course, of course--how could she have
misunderstood--in moments of danger, of dreadful anxiety for one's
heart's beloved, one did speak sharply, one did rap out commands. It was
because he loved her so _much_.... Oh, how lunatic of her to have
misunderstood!
At last she heard some one coming, and she let go of the bell and braced
herself to meet the astonished gaze of the parlourmaid with as much
dignity as was possible in one who only too well knew she must be
looking like a drowning cat, but the footsteps grew heavy as they got
nearer, and it was Wemyss who, after pulling back the bolts, opened the
door.
'Oh Everard!' Lucy exclaimed, running in, pursued to the last by the
pelting rain, 'I'm so glad it's you--oh I'm so sorry I----'
Her voice died away; she had seen his face.
He stooped to bolt the lower bolt.
'Don't be angry, darling Everard,' she whispered, laying her arm on his
stooping shoulder.
Having finished with the bolt Wemyss straightened himself, and then,
putting up his hand to the arm still round his shoulder, he removed it.
'You'll make my coat wet,' he said; and walked away to the library door
and went in and shut it.
For a moment she stood where he had left her, collecting her scattered
senses; then she went after him. Wet or not wet, soaked and dripping as
she was, ridiculous scarecrow with her clinging clothes, her lank hair,
she must go after him, must instantly get the horror of misunderstanding
straight, tell him how she had meant only to help over that window, tell
him how she had thought he was saying dreadful things to her when he was
really only afraid for her safety, tell him how silly she had been,
silly, silly, not to have followed his thoughts quicker, tell him he
must forgive her, be patient with her, help her, because she loved him
so much and she knew--oh, she knew--how much he loved her....
Across the hall ran Lucy, the whole of her one welter of anxious
penitence and longing and love, and when she got to the door and turned
the handle it was locked.
He had locked her out.