It was six years after his departure from home when Miles Trevor sailed
again for his native land. There had been some talk of his return
during the previous winter, and bitter indeed had been the
disappointment when it was again postponed, and postponed on account of
that ubiquitous person "my chum Gerard." The prospecting expedition of
Will Gerard and his partner had at last been blessed with success;--if
reports could be believed, with extraordinary success, for the opinion
of the experts who had visited the claim predicted for it an even
greater future than the Aladdin itself. Between the partners in the
venture a sufficient sum had been raised to enable the mine to be
"proved" by several shafts and cross-cuts, and the analyses of samples
produced were so abundantly satisfactory, that there could be no
difficulty in obtaining all the money necessary to thoroughly develop
the mine. Miles was intensely interested in his chum's prospects, which
to a certain extent were coincident with his own, for, according to
promise, he had been allowed to buy a share in the land, which, small as
it was, might turn out a more profitable investment than engineering.
It was decided that while one partner stayed on the spot, Miles should
fit in his holiday so as to be able to help Gerard with the work of
floating a company in England, an arrangement which it was believed
would necessitate but a short delay. As is invariably the case in these
affairs, however, matters took much longer to set in train than had been
originally expected, and it was a good six months later before the
welcome cablegram was received stating that the travellers were really
on their way.
Six years! Miles was a man of twenty-six, matured by a life of
enterprise and adventure. Betty admitted with horror to being "twenty-
four next birthday," and shivered at the remembrance that six more years
would bring her to that dreaded thirty which she had once considered the
"finis" of life. Jack and Jill were twenty, and if he were still a lad,
she was a very finished product indeed, the acknowledged belle of her
set, with a transparent satisfaction in her own success which would have
been called vanity in a less popular person, but which in her case was
indulgently voted as yet another charm. Pam was fourteen, a lanky
schoolgirl, who had outgrown her kitten-like graces, and entered the
world of school, where everything (including the return of a half-
forgotten brother!) was secondary in interest to the strictures of
"Maddie" on the subject of French verbs, the ambition of some day
becoming "head girl," and the daily meetings with her bosom friend
Nellie Banks.
Everyone had grown older; even little Jerry Vanburgh, who six years
before had been by his own account "a baby angel up in heaven," was now
a sturdy rascal of four, in man-of-war suits, whose love of fun and
frolic was worthy of his mother's son.
What would Miles think of them all? Betty asked herself as she donned
her prettiest dress, in preparation for the long-expected hour. Would
he be prepared for the changes which had taken place, or feel surprised
and chilled, perhaps even disappointed, to find his old companions
turned into comparative strangers? He had never had much imagination,
dear old lad!--it would be just like him to come home expecting to find
everything looking as if he had left it but a month before.
Betty leant her arms on the dressing-table and stared scrutinisingly at
her reflection in the mirror. She had always been a severe judge of her
own charms, and now the remembrance of Jill's sparkling little face made
her own appear unnaturally grave and staid; still, when all was said and
done, she looked very _nice_!--the old schoolgirl word came in as ever
to fill an awkward place.
Twenty-four though she undoubtedly was, it was certain that she was
prettier than she had been at eighteen, and pink was Miles' favourite
colour--she had remembered that in buying her new dress, and had chosen
it especially for his benefit. "Oh, I hope he'll like me! He _must_
like me!" she cried to herself, with a rush of love and longing swelling
at her heart. How was it that as one grew older, home ceased to be the
absolutely complete and satisfying world which it had been in early
days? Why was it that, surrounded with father and mother, and sisters
and brothers, all dear and kind and loving, the heart would yet
experience a feeling of loneliness, a longing for something too
intangible to be put into words?
"I want something--_badly_! What can it be?" Betty had questioned of
herself times and again during the last few years, and the invariable
answer had been--"Miles! It must be the loss of Miles which I feel more
and more, instead of less and less. When Miles comes home there will be
nothing left to wish for in all the world!" And now in an hour,--in
half an hour, Miles would be with her once more! Dr Trevor and Jack
had gone to the station to meet him, but his mother and the girls had
preferred to wait at home. "So that you can all howl, and hang round
his neck at once--I know you!" Jack had cried teasingly. "Take my
advice, and cut short the huggings. When fellows have roughed it
abroad, they don't like being mauled!"--at which a chorus of feminine
indignation had buzzed about his ears.
"Mauled, indeed! Howl, indeed! They trusted they knew how to behave
without his advice! Would it not be well if he allowed Miles himself to
say what he did and did not like? Had he not better rehearse his own
conduct, before troubling himself about other people's?" So on, and so
on, until Jack fled in dismay, fingers in ears. That was the worst of
chaffing girls--they would always insist upon having the last word!
Downstairs in the sitting-rooms all was _en fete_, the best mats and
covers and cushions being exhibited for the benefit of one who would
probably never notice their existence, or might even be misguided enough
to imagine that chiffon-draped cushions were meant for use, not
ornament. Flowers were tastefully arrayed in every available position;
the tea-table lacked only the presence of pot and kettle; Jill had
arranged the little curl on her forehead at its most artless and
captivating angle--in a word, preparation was complete!
"Sit down, dears--sit down! You make me nervous fidgeting about, and--
I'm nervous enough already!" said Mrs Trevor tremulously, and her three
big daughters obediently sank down on chairs and stared at each other
across the room.
"I'm very sorry to say so--but I'm _ill_!" cried Betty tragically. "I
feel awful. A kind of crawly, creepy--all--overish--sick-swimming-kind-
of-feeling--I think I'm going to faint! I'm sorry to alarm you--"
But no one was in the least alarmed. Mrs Trevor only smiled feebly,
while the other girls expatiated upon even more alarming symptoms.
"My heart is going like a sledge-hammer," sighed Jill. "I feel every
moment as if it might _burst_!--I can't see you. The air is full of
spots--"
"I'm as dizzy as dizzy," declared Pam eloquently. "I feel exactly as I
did that Wednesday Nellie and I ate chocolates all the afternoon in a
hot room. If he doesn't come soon we'd better all lie down. We could
get up again when we heard the bell."
"The bell, indeed! Miles shall not have to ring the bell when he
arrives home after six years' absence, if his mother is alive to open
the door for him!" cried Mrs Trevor indignantly, and then suddenly she
gave a cry, and rushed across the room. A cab laden with luggage had
drawn up before the door. Miles had arrived!
Well, after all Jack was right! They _did_ all hang round him at once.
Mrs Trevor was folded in his arms, but Betty and Jill each hung on to a
side, while Pam stroked the back of his head, and if they did not
exactly "howl," they were certainly by no means dry-eyed.
"My boy! My boy!" cried the mother. "Miles, oh, Miles!" sobbed the
girls; and Miles mumbled incoherent answers in his big man's voice, and
quietly but surely pushed his way into the drawing-room. _His_ eyes
were shining too, but he had no intention that the passers-by should
witness his emotion. He looked enormously big and broad, and tanned and
important. Handsome Miles would never be, but his was a good strong
face, with the firmly-set lips and clear, level gaze which speak so
eloquently of a man's character, and his mother thanked God with a full
heart as she welcomed him back.
As for Miles himself, the sight of his mother brought with it a pang of
sadness, for though outsiders might exclaim at her youthful appearance,
six years on the wrong side of forty can never fail to leave behind them
heavy traces, and to the unaccustomed eyes she looked greatly changed.
He kept his arm round her as they moved forward, and his eyes grew very
tender. The little mother was growing old! Her hair was quite grey,
her pretty cheeks had lost their roundness--he must take more care of
her than ever. She enjoyed being cared for, as all nice women did. And
then Miles sat down and drank tea, and they all settled themselves to
the difficult task of making conversation after a long absence. It
seems sad that it should be difficult, but it is invariably the case,
for when there is so much to tell, and to ask, it is difficult to know
where to begin, and a certain strangeness follows hard on the first
excitement. Were these smart young ladies truly and actually Betty and
Jill; this young man with the Oxford drawl the once unkempt and noisy
Jack? And who was this shy and awkward maypole, who had taken the place
of dear, cuddlesome, wee Pam?
If it had not been for Dr Trevor, conversation would have halted sadly
during the first difficult quarter of an hour, but that gentleman was
fortunately free from sentimental embarrassment, and kept the ball
rolling by his practical questions and remarks.
The voyage, it appeared, had been unusually calm and agreeable, and the
partners had thoroughly enjoyed the rest after the somewhat worrying
work of the last six months. Yes, everything was working out splendidly
as regards the new mine, and Miles was convinced that only time was
necessary to turn it into a huge success. Will Gerard would be a
millionaire some fine day, or something very like a millionaire, and he
would deserve all he got. The best fellow and the smartest, and the
hardest working, and the truest chum--
In the background saucy Jill dumbly echoed these well-worn sentiments,
rolling her eyes ceilingwards, and declaiming with outstretched hands,
till Miles, turning suddenly, caught sight of her, and burst into one of
his old hearty laughs.
"Well, what does that mean, Jill? What have I said to amuse you?"
Jill sparkled at him in her most captivating manner.
"_Toujours le bon_ Gerard! We have heard so much of this marvel that we
are dying to behold him. Snap-shots, we know, are not the most
flattering medium, so we ought not to judge by the likenesses we have
already seen, but he hardly appeals to me as a miracle of beauty! When
does he propose to dazzle our eyes by appearing before us in the flesh?"
Miles laughed once more.
"Not till next week, so you must exercise your patience, my dear. He
has his own people to see, and besides that he has too much tact to
intrude upon a fellow's first days at home. Gerard always knows what is
the right--" He broke off hastily as Jill resumed her silent pantomime
of admiration. "Oh, all right! I won't praise him any more. You can
find out his good points for yourself. If the truth were known, I
daresay he is anxious to get a new rig-out before he pays calls on
fascinating young ladies. We have neither of us a decent coat to our
backs, and must go tailor-hunting the first thing to-morrow morning. We
have not had much ladies' society abroad. I expect Gerard will fall
headlong in love when he sees you in that blouse, Jill!"
"I expect he will. They generally do! But it's no use. I don't care
for Colonials!" drawled Miss Jill, chin in air, and Miles' heated
repudiation of the term as applied to either his partner or himself
failed to move her from her front.
"Jill is waiting for Prince Edward of Wales. There's no other unmarried
male who comes up to her standpoint," said her father, laughing; and
once more Miles marvelled at the changes of the years!
When bedtime came, Betty looked shyly at the new Miles, who seemed still
more than half a stranger, and felt her heart throb with pleasure as his
grasp tightened on her arm, and he said affectionately--
"Come into my room for a chat, old girl, before you turn in! It won't
seem like home unless I see you perched on my bed nursing your knees and
your grievances at the same time. Got any grievances nowadays, eh? You
used generally to have a good stock on hand. We'll have to lay them
together while I'm at home. That's what I want to do--give you all a
rattling good time! It's what I have looked forward to most in coming
home. How are things going, really? Quite well? No bothers and
worries that you have been keeping to yourselves, for fear of making me
anxious?"
"Nothing big, dear--only the little worries which one must grin and put
up with."
Betty perched herself on the bed, and fell into the old position, while
Miles sat down on the chair by the dressing-table, and began unlacing
his shoes with the same, oh, the very same gestures which he had used
every night during the many long years when this evening conference had
been the brightest spot in the day! It was as if time had flashed back
for a moment, and they were boy and girl together once more! Betty's
eyes melted in tender rejoicing, and Miles cried heartily--
"Bet, my dear, you've grown rattling pretty! You beat Jill into fits
when you look like that. You must wear that frock when Gerard comes
next week. It suits you splendidly."
"I got it for your sake--not Mr Gerard's. You always liked pink,
Miles. Oh, I shan't have any grievances now that you are home. I am
really and truly far less grumbly than I used to be. I have tried hard
to make it a duty to be happy, since I discovered--you know how!--how
imaginary my troubles really were--but sometimes I have felt very
lonely. I think one does, as one grows older, for there seem so many
things that one can't talk about to the best of friends. Of course you
may not understand the feeling--you are so devoted to Mr Gerard."
Miles kicked his shoes in opposite directions--another old trick!--and
stroked his chin silently. The offending beard had disappeared, but the
skin was dark with constant shaving, and there were new lines in his
face. This was a man indeed. The boy had disappeared for ever.
"I don't think I should advertise my loneliness even to Gerard," he said
slowly. Then, leaning forward and opening a drawer in the dressing-
table, "How is Cynthia?" he queried abruptly.
"Better!" replied Betty, so quietly that no one would have guessed the
leap of excitement which her heart had given at the sound of her
friend's name uttered in this connection. "Very delicate still, but
certainly better. They live entirely in the country for her sake, and
the doctors think that in a year or two she will probably be quite well
again. Meantime she is treated like an invalid, and we can seldom meet.
It isn't good for her to chatter, and it isn't supposed to be good for
my health to be there. I _ache_ for her, Miles! No one will ever know
what it has meant for me to be separated like this."
Miles sat silently staring at his stockinged feet. His eyes were
hidden, the heavy moustache covered the lines of his mouth, yet as Betty
looked at him she felt a stab of reproach, as if, while pitying herself,
she had inadvertently probed a deeper wound. Had Miles also ached for
Cynthia? Had the separation from her been the hardest part of his long
exile? She longed to question him on the subject, but the stern, set
face gave no encouragement to curiosity, however affectionate.
"We are to go down to see her some day soon. She was almost as much
excited about your coming home as we were ourselves, and we can run down
to Franton and back quite easily in the day. You won't be occupied with
business every day while you are at home, will you, Miles? You will be
able to give up some of your time to us?"
"Oh dear, yes. This is by way of being a holiday, and I mean to take
you girls about, and the mater too, if she will come. We must see the
mining business in train first, and then we'll go off somewhere and have
a good time. I haven't worked for nothing all these years, and the best
chance of enjoying myself is to see your enjoyment. Things don't always
work out as we expect--but we must make the best of what remains--"
He sighed, and rose from his chair with a gesture which somehow made
Betty conscious that he wished to be alone. It had been a very short
chat, and the impression left was rather sad than cheerful. She put her
arms round Miles' neck, kissed him fervently, but in silence, and stole
away to her own room.