The Glenwood post., 1925-01-08
Chapter vi
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The telegram was brought In to
Lady Mary as she sat alone In her lit
tie sltting-room. in the hours between
tea and the dressing bell-hours
which, so far as possible especially
during the last few months, she tried
to keep to herself. 1t had been hand
ed in at branch office in the north
of London and contained the news for
which she had been waiting:
Effected majority two thousand
heartiest thanks for good wishes.
CHRISTOPHER"
Her first impulse was one Of genu-
ine pleasure. She started to her feet,
meaning to take 1t to her father, who
was with MYRTLE in the library Then
she stopped short and slowly resumed
her seat. That little orange-colored
form might have meant so much more,
90 much food for her ambitions. her
natural and proper ambitions for the
man she loved. 1t might have been
such pledge for the interest Of thei,
life together, such wonderful life
brimful of movement and color in
WhiNA DIG, wv WCii hOpo "
take a part. In her quiet way. she
had for years looked upon her mar
riage with Christopher. sooner or
later. as certainty. Without the
slightest desire In any way to misiead
her, Christopher had subconsciously
encouraged the idea. She knew per-
fectly well that, as soon as his position
was little more assured. he had in
tended to ask her to be his wife. It
was one of those pleasant yet wonder
full arrangements which seemed to de-
velop automatically. Christopher was
well born, his friends were her friends,
his disposition accorded with hers.
She could never have married an idle
man. Christopher had many a worthy
ambition. She was precisely the
wife to further them. Her money and
her social influence would save him
years Of fruitless labor. He could
leave the bar whenever he liked, and
turn his whole attention to politics.
And now the dream had crumbled.
This slip of paper was nothing but q
friendly message, telling her Of the
success Of friend with whose career
she had no intimate concern. Her
disposition was too kindly not to feel
q certain amount of pleasure at his
success. but that very pleasure
brought its shadow Of personal grief.
She sat looking into the fire, twisting
the little slip of paper In her hands.
She knew very well that she was
cursed with that one terrible and self
mortifying virtue, the unalterable
fidelity of the woman who permits In
her mind the thought Of one man only
and who can never replace him. The
very thought of marriage with any one
but Christopher was revolving. 1t
seemed to her. as she sat there. that
she was doomed to a career Of love
lessness and inutility. She might
labor In good works till her hair was
streaked with gray and her face lined.
and she knew very well the fruitless-
ness of all that she would accomplish.
The best work of q woman, as she
well knew, Is the work done for the
man she loves.
It was perhaps natural that her
thoughts should turn to MYRTLE. She
wondered for a moment. slowly and
painfully, at the instinct which had
warned her of coming trouble when
the two young men had told her of
their adventure. She had felt 1t when
first she had seen the frightened child.
whose unspoken appeal for protection
had met with SO cold response from
nf a
cruelty wholly foreign to her nature,
In those days at Monte Carlo. when
ever the name of MYRTLE was mem
toned She hnd puzzled Christopher
and her brother alike by her lack OF
sympathy. Well. she was punished
now. The child had justified all that
she had felt She had robbed her, un,
consciously and unwIlllngly, of the
greatest thing in life AS she sat
there, the telegram crumplcd up In
her fingers. all that old hardness came
back to her It seemed to her bit
ter thing that this unknown child
should have been brought into the
august household In which her own
serene days had been spent. to rob her
the benefnctress, of the crown OF her
life, to draw the sunshine from her
days and send her down to joyless
grave. For a moment she was on the
verge of passion. She hated MYRTLE
hated the sight Of her gentle move
ments, the thought Of her and all to
do with her. She rose to her feet with
an unaccustomed fire In her eyes and
swung round-to find that the slight
noise which had disturbed her medi-
tations had been caused by the en-
trance OF MYRTLE herself.
There are moments when revelation
Is self-illuminative. This was one OF
tRem. MYRTLE. gazing almost In ter
ror into the face Of her benefactress
knew that she was hnted. and, with
an extraordinary insight. she knew