Part 58 (1/2)
”But what do they say?”
”Nothing. Don't read it.”
But she hardly listened to Gerrit, for she now saw Van der Welcke and Paul standing in a corner, in the back-drawing-room. She moved in their direction. She saw that Van der Welcke, with his back turned to the other room, was reading something, screened by a curtain, while Paul was warning him, anxiously:
”Come, give it me, quick ... Van der Welcke....”
Constance was behind them:
”Paul, tell me, that article....”
”The scoundrels, the scoundrels!” Van der Welcke was hissing.
”Henri, have you it? Give it to me.”
”No, Constance!” Paul implored her. ”Don't read it, don't read it.”
”Give it to me, Henri!”
”I want to read it myself first!”
And he cursed as he read:
”The d.a.m.ned scoundrels! And it's not true; it didn't happen like that....”
”But what is it they say?” Constance demanded, furiously.
Paul took her by the arm and led her into the little boudoir, where their father's portrait hung:
”Be quiet, Constance. Please, please don't read it! What good will it do you; all that dirty language, all that vulgarity? It's filthy, it's filthy!”
”And is there nothing we can do?”
”No, no, for G.o.d's sake, no!” Paul begged, as though preferring to hush up, everything. ”Every one will have forgotten it in ten days' time.”
”Is there nothing we can do?”
”What do you want to do?” Paul asked, changing his tone, harshly.
”Surely you wouldn't sue the cad for libel?”
”No, no!” she said, startled and terrified.
”Well, what then? Keep quiet, don't read it don't upset yourself about it....”
But Van der Welcke came up to them. He was purple, there was no restraining him:
”I'm going to the fellow....”
”For G.o.d's sake, Van der Welcke!”