Part 26 (2/2)
”You came out of the shadow of St. George, after the reading of the will by Davenport, and at the polite little doctor's introduction, I was ungallant enough to indulge in unseemly laughter, and to exclaim: 'Ye G.o.ds! What a Medusa!' at which--shall I ever forget your superb indignation!--you gathered your skirts and swept like a queen from the room. My dear madam, do I describe the scene accurately? It is not every woman who would have had the nerve to call up such a scene as that from the vast depths of memory; I must perforce admire your courage and--shall I say? your incredulity!”
He bowed sardonically. The ugly seams, so suggestive of crime and cunning, had come back upon his brow, and he doffed his hat; the twitching face bore a smile of triumph, which revealed how sure he felt of victory.
”_Trap the third has signally failed_,” thought Margaret; ”this part at least of St. Udo's history has been well studied. Ah, he will be too clever for me!”
She dropped her hands from the leaves of the door and stood aside, while a slight increase of palor stole up to her face.
”You have satisfied me, Colonel Brand. Come in if you please.”
He silently entered, and with one accord, these two people, who were tacitly drawing together their forces for a deadly conflict, turned and eyed each other; she with stern-unflinching defiance; he with a quailing, yet impudent look of confident success.
In that dumb scrutiny, they seemed to be measuring each other's capabilities.
”Miss Walsingham?” said the colonel, after this strange pause, ”I can see that you have taken a deep animosity against me, probably because of my treatment of my grandmother's will; we shall suppose it is. Now, my dear young lady, I shall try to explain myself and to set myself right with you, so that in the future we may perfectly understand each other.
I have come back to my native land determined to obey, if possible, that part of the will which refers to me--determined to try my best to win Miss Walsingham's regard--determined to make it no fault of mine if the name of Brand is forgotten. Knowing these three things to be my set purposes, are you willing to forgive generously what the meaner-minded of your s.e.x could not forgive, and to drop the past between us? Are you willing that we should be friends?”
With his head on one side, and his eyes watchfully taking note of his listener's face, he bent forward with a certain vailed significance and clasped her hand.
”Away!” cried Margaret, shaking him off as she would have shaken off a reptile, and regarding him in a perfect pa.s.sion of horror, ”do you dare to expect that I could enter into a compact with _you_?”
Something crept into his eyes which made her shudder.
”I have asked you to forgive my former insults, and you have refused,”
he said; ”but remember, I asked you to enter into no compact with me.
All the world is at liberty to know that St. Udo Brand repented of his foolishness, and came home to carry out his grandmother's will. If the world believes anything else of me, I shall know that Margaret Walsingham not only refused to be my friend, but cast off all obligations to the dead and became my enemy. The Brands of Brand Castle have ever been famous for their ferocity. I shall be sorry if a woman should fall a prey to it.”
”I will never wrong St. Udo Brand,” said the meek woman, suddenly withstanding him with blazing eyes, ”but I will guard Ethel Brand's dying wishes from being fraudulently represented, whoever dares to fraudulently represent them.”
”And I, deeply impressed with the conviction that Seven-Oak Waaste will fall ultimately into the possession of its rightful heir--that is myself--intend to permit no fair lady's frown to turn me from my ancestor's doors.”
Again they gazed at each other--deeper horror and pa.s.sionate determination in her eyes, darker folds of sin and cunning on his brow, while a smile played round his wicked mouth, fatal as the blasting lightning.
”You shall have to weather the frowns of more than me before you are master of this castle,” said Margaret.
”Is that a declaration of war?”
He tried in his wrath and apprehension to catch her hand again, but she slid with a gasp out of his reach and pa.s.sed through the door.
”You ask if I have made a declaration of war,” said Margaret, turning when the length of the hall was between them; ”and I am not afraid to say--yes. If there be a hidden page in your life which you would keep from me, tremble for your chances of Brand Castle.”
She vanished from his gaze, and the fitful wind swept from door to door of the library with the howl of a hundred furies.
Mrs. Chetwode, who was busy in the gla.s.s pantry which faced the library, thought to herself that she had never seen such an evil looking face as that which looked out of the half-closed door for full five minutes.
The eyes became small and crafty; the forehead receded and narrowed to a Mongolian size; the mouth drooped with a fang-like ferocity; infinitesimal wrinkles, not often seen there, dawned into view like the folds of the deadly cobra before its spring.
<script>