AT LAST!
Meanwhile the spring was going on to summer--and in the strict order of
precedence that conversation of Miss Deb's with Jan ought to have been
related before the departure of John Massingbird and the Roys from
Deerham. But it does not signify. The Misses West made their
arrangements and sent out their prospectuses, and the others left: it
all happened in the spring-time. That time was giving place to summer
when the father of Lucy Tempest, now Colonel Sir Henry Tempest, landed
in England.
In some degree his arrival was sudden. He had been looked for so long,
that Lucy had almost given over looking for him. She did believe he was
on his road home, by the sea passage, but precisely when he might be
expected, she did not know.
Since the marriage of Decima, Lucy had lived on alone with Lady Verner.
Alone, and very quietly; quite uneventfully. She and Lionel met
occasionally, but nothing further had passed between them. Lionel was
silent; possibly he deemed it too soon after his wife's death to speak
of love to another, although the speaking of it would have been news to
neither. Lucy was a great deal at Lady Hautley's. Decima would have had
her there permanently; but Lady Verner negatived it.
They were sitting at breakfast one morning, Lady Verner and Lucy, when
the letter arrived. It was the only one by the post that morning.
Catherine laid it by Lady Verner's side, to whom it was addressed; but
the quick eyes of Lucy caught the superscription.
"Lady Verner! It is papa's handwriting."
Lady Verner turned her head to look at it. "It is not an Indian letter,"
she remarked.
"No. Papa must have landed."
Opening the letter, they found it to be so. Sir Henry had arrived at
Southampton, Lucy turned pale with agitation. It seemed a formidable
thing, now it had come so close, to meet her father, whom she had not
seen for so many years.
"When is he coming here?" she breathlessly asked.
"To-morrow," replied Lady Verner; not speaking until she had glanced
over the whole contents of the letter. "He purposes to remain a day and
a night with us, and then he will take you with him to London."
"But a day and a night! Go away then to London! Shall I never come
back?" reiterated Lucy, more breathlessly than before.
Lady Verner looked at her with calm surprise. "One would think, child,
you wanted to remain in Deerham. Were I a young lady, I should be glad
to get away from it. The London season is at its height."
Lucy laughed and blushed somewhat consciously. She thought she should
not care about the London season; but she did not say so to Lady Verner.
Lady Verner resumed.
"Sir Henry wishes me to accompany you, Lucy. I suppose I must do so.
What a vast deal we shall have to think of to-day! We shall be able to
do nothing to-morrow when Sir Henry is here."
Lucy toyed with her tea-spoon, toyed with her breakfast; but the
capability of eating more had left her. The suddenness of the
announcement had taken away her appetite, and a hundred doubts were
tormenting her. Should she never again return to Deerham?--never again
see Li----
"We must make a call or two to-day, Lucy."
The interruption, breaking in upon her busy thoughts, caused her to
start. Lady Verner resumed.
"This morning must be devoted to business; to the giving directions as
to clothes, packing, and such like. I can tell you, Lucy, that you will
have a great deal of it to do yourself; Catherine's so incapable since
she got that rheumatism in her hand. Therese will have enough to see to
with my things."
"I can do it all," answered Lucy. "I can----"
"What next, my dear? _You_ pack! Though Catherine's hand is painful, she
can do something."
"Oh, yes, we shall manage very well," cheerfully answered Lucy. "Did you
say we should have to go out, Lady Verner?"
"This afternoon. For one place, we must go to the Bitterworths. You
cannot go away without seeing them, and Mrs. Bitterworth is too ill just
now to call upon you. I wonder whether Lionel will be here to-day?"
It was a "wonder" which had been crossing Lucy's own heart. She went to
her room after breakfast, and soon became deep in her preparations with
old Catherine; Lucy doing the chief part of the work, in spite of
Catherine's remonstrances. But her thoughts were not with her hands;
they remained buried in that speculation of Lady Verner's--would Lionel
be there that day?
The time went on to the afternoon, and he had not come. They stepped
into the carriage (for Lady Verner could indulge in the luxury of horses
again now) to make their calls, and he had not come. Lucy's heart
palpitated strangely at the doubt of whether she should really depart
without seeing him. A very improbable doubt, considering the
contemplated arrival at Deerham Court of Sir Henry Tempest.
As they passed Dr. West's old house, Lady Verner ordered the carriage
to turn the corner and stop at the door. "Mr. Jan Verner" was on the
plate now, where "West and Verner" used to be. Master Cheese unwillingly
disturbed himself to come out, for he was seated over a washhand-basin
of gooseberry fool, which he had got surreptitiously made for him in the
kitchen. Mr. Jan was out, he said.
So Lady Verner ordered the carriage on, leaving a message for Jan that
she wanted some more "drops" made up.
They paid the visit to Mrs. Bitterworth. Mr. Bitterworth was not at
home. He had gone to see Mr. Verner. A sudden beating of the heart, a
rising flush in the cheeks, a mist for a moment before her eyes, and
Lucy was being whirled to Verner's Pride. Lady Verner had ordered the
carriage thither, as they left Mrs. Bitterworth's.
They found them both in the drawing-room. Mr. Bitterworth had just risen
to leave, and was shaking hands with Lionel. Lady Verner interrupted
them with the news of Lucy's departure; of her own.
"Sir Henry will be here to-morrow," she said to Lionel. "He takes Lucy
to London with him the following day, and I accompany them."
Lionel, startled, looked round at Lucy. She was not looking at him. Her
eyes were averted--her face was flushed.
"But you are not going for good, Miss Lucy!" cried Mr. Bitterworth.
"She is," replied Lady Verner. "And glad enough, I am sure, she must be,
to get away from stupid Deerham. She little thought, when she came to
it, that her sojourn in it would be so long as this. I have seen the
rebellion, at her having to stop in it, rising often."
Mr. Bitterworth went out on the terrace. Lady Verner, talking to him,
went also. Lionel, his face pale, his breath coming in gasps, turned to
Lucy.
"_Need_ you go for good, Lucy?"
She raised her eyes to him with a shy glance, and Lionel, with a
half-uttered exclamation of emotion, caught her to his breast, and took
his first long silent kiss of love from her lips. It was not like those
snatched kisses of years ago.
"My darling! my darling! God alone knows what my love for you has
been."
Another shy glance at him through her raining tears. Her heart was
beating against his. Did the glance seem to ask why, then, had he not
spoken? His next words would imply that he understood it so.
"I am still a poor man, Lucy. I was waiting for Sir Henry's return, to
lay the case before him. He may refuse you to me!"
"If he should--I will tell him--that I shall never have further interest
in life," was her agitated answer.
And Lionel's own face was working with emotion, as he kissed those tears
away.
At last! at last!