Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1899-12-14
CHAPTER XIV.

CHAPTER XIV.
Five minutes after, the door opens, and
a tall figure strides into the luxurious
little drawing-room and halts.
Then he sees some drops glittering on
the long curled lashes Of the loyellest
eyes in the world.
"Tears! Why, what's the matter"
and Lord Ennisford discerns that even
Nm weeping this woman looks beautiful
and bewitching, for her weeping, like
every other action, is studied.
Drops, like glistening dew, flow slowly
down her cheeks, and the origin is so
artificial, so little genuine emotion brings
them that they leave the skin in their
course as smooth and pink as before
their advent, while the exquisite little
Grecian nose retains it's alabaster white
ness.
Even in his distress at seeing her dis
tress he remembers how fearfully red
Lady Ennisfords little nose grows with
crying, and the memory, trivial and alb
surd as it may seem, draws him an inch
or two closer to this Syren, who seems
above the common infrmities of her sex.
Silly man! but men in these days are
Iproverbially silly about women, so that
If one wise one crops up, he makes a
fuss in the world, to which possibly his
merits don't entitle him.
what is the matter?" Lady Aylmer
murmurs, in a choking, gasping voice, be-
hind her handkerchief, bordered with rich
valenciennes. "Only a trife, you would
think. [ leave town tomorrow
Leave town, Edith! You mustn't
Il must go. 1 have promisedP'
OF course he loses his self-control at
once. Promised!-and the promise can
only be to a man!
He catches her hands and pulls her off
her sofa, making her stand face to face
with him.
Promised, did you? And who dares
ITO make you promise?' he glares angri-
ly, growing white to the very lips.
L cannot tell you'll"
you cannot tell me!' he says, in an
odd, low concentrated, disjointed sort Of
voice. Edith. you have to learn one
thing yet! [ never allow anyone to trihe
with me, neither man nor woman. Leave
town tomorrow; keep your promise to
whomsoever it may be; I care not! But
from that hour you and l are strangers!
I swear it," and he almost filings her
back to her seat.
Whether it is that she realizes by his
face the full extent Of his liking, or
whether she finds him still more adora BILE
in wrath than in peace, or whether she
fancies it will be very bad move after
all to go away and leave him to the
temptations of town; this is point it
would be difficult to solve, for she is an
enigma, a paradox, contradiction; and
her motives, after all, are not worth div
ing for, but she blurts out abruptly some
thing, which, to a certain extent, is not
true.
/ promised your wife!'
My wife!"
s'Your wife,
Just for a second he believes she is
amusing herself at his expense, and he
grows angry; but, looking straight at her,
a conviction suddenly dawns upon him
that there may be some truth in her
words.
Il did not know you were even ac-
quainted with Lady Ennisford," he says.
lightly, crushing down his surprise and
annoyance; for, though he has no prin-
cipie to speak of, he has yet, to an inor-
dinate extent, grand ideas Of what is due
to his wife. simply becaush she is Mar
chioness of Ennisford.
Yes" Lady Aylmer replies, glbly
she has called upon me, you know. It
wasn't very amusing visit She did
not say much, but what she did say was
TO the point-awfully to the point She
left me in no doubt as to her opinion of
me and of my influence over you; but
1t never seemed to enter her head about
your influence over me! The sum of nv
offending is in taking you, as she calls
it, away from her; but you know l don't
,oE ~,
another-that which we lose, we lose
through some lack in ourselves. But YOU
see | cannot, however unwittingly, be
the cause of anguish to anyone, can L?
especially when she did look so interest
ing and pathetic, with child hanging
on to each hand? So as much as prom
User her that l would go away. Tell me,
lEnnisford, are you sorry a little that I
am going?" and she puts hand on his.
and draws him down on a delightfully."-
soft seat on the sofa, as she pleadingly
asks this question.
He is silent, for this sudden blow has
struck below the source of his surface
feelings. She is not disappointed. for.
though he sits like a statue of Apollo
dumb, unresponsive-she knows that the
idea of losing her affects him quite as
deeply as she desires.
But anger and intense modification
mingle in his cup of regret, anger at his
mife's "sneaky" conduct He actually
feels quite murderous as he thinks of it.
and the ridicule to which her folly has
probably subjected her and him through
her. But even now he cannot forget all
that is due to that wife. He will not
speak one word to her disparagement,
but neither can he attempt to hide the
pain he really feels at parting with this
woman. whom he has grown to love with
the wild, impetuous, selfish. ftful. con-
femptible love of which he is alone cap
able.
He had turned to give a faint utter
ance of his regret, and her look, her
attitude. make his heart stand still with
IA sudden rapture.
Z. An impulse, as fast and fierce as i
Sigoeco, rushes through his veins. This
IS not strange, for he has many impulses
and great many bad ones But this