Part 18 (1/2)
”Yes, Miss Mr Selincourt, not knowing, ventured out on aslowly sucked in, when she and her brother cao business then, for she had no planks or hurdles, though luckily she had ropes; but by sending her little brother, eighs next to nothing at all, to slip a noose of rope under Mr Selincourt's shoulders, she was able to haul on the rope, and so drag him out by sheer force of arm She sent her love to you, and hopes he will soon be better,” the man said, with a little flourish of his hands In point of fact Katherine had done nothing of the kind, but it sounded better so, he thought, and gave a consolatory touch to the whole
Mary turned abruptly away Her father's misadventure was so much worse than she had expected that the horror of it broke down her self-control coround seemed to crumble under her feet, and if she had not sunk into the nearest chair shecrouched in a corner, with her hands pressed tightly against her face, striving for the mastery over those unruly emotions of hers, she failed to hear sounds of another arrival, and did not even look up when Jervis Ferrars entered, without any cere
Ato disturb her, nor even to be a witness of her breakdown, for he kne proud she was, and the humiliation it would be to her to be watched under such conditions Then, seeing the door of the bedroom half-open, he passed silently and softly into the rooain It ht have been ten minutes later before he reappeared, and then the anxious look had left his face; he still looked concerned, but that was chiefly on Mary's account
”Miss Selincourt, I aravely, and Mary's head came up with a jerk
”I-I did not know that you had come,” she faltered
”All the eous, until there was someone on whom to shi+ft the responsibility,” he said quietly
Mary reddened, and her tears disappeared as if by er idly
”Yes, I know But in a wild country like this one must always be expected to face a certain amount of risk; and it is never worth while to weep over the ht-have-beens, or how could one be happy at all?” he said lightly
”I knoas foolish, but the horror of it brokewhatever I should do if Father were to be ill, so far away from doctors, nurses, and comforts of any sort,” she replied, with a shi+ver
”I don't think he will be ill He is sleeping as peacefully as an infant, his pulse is steady, and his heart quiet He uid when he wakes, in which case ill keep him in bed for a day or two Remember, I am three parts a doctor, and you can be wholly a nurse”
”I have had no experience,” she faltered
”That is only gained by practice,” he answered Then, looking at the partly-set meal on the table, he asked: ”What have you had to eat to-day?”
”Not much,” she answered in a dreary tone ”There were cold fish and coffee for breakfast I had two biscuits for luncheon, but that was all”
”You are within seeing distance of starving, I should say, and that is why your courage has turned to water,” he said; and, going out to the kitchen, he roused the fire again, refilled the kettle, which had boiled itself dry, and when it boiled againon hera solid meal
”Oh, I feel pounds better now!” she exclaimed, when he came back from another visit to Mr Selincourt, who still lay peacefully sleeping
”Let it be a warning to you in future not to neglect yourself at critical moments,” he replied; then asked: ”What would you like ht? I do not think he needs watching in the least, but if this will be a comfort to you, I will remain with pleasure”
”It is very kind of you, and I accept thankfully,” she said, with such bounding relief at her heart that the whole of her outlook changed at once It was the responsibility she dreaded so much, and when that was lifted froain ”Can you reo back to Seal Cove first?” she asked
”I will stay now if you like, only I must trouble you to let me send one of your boatmen down to Seal Cove, with a letter of instruction for any of the boats which o before I can be there to have the shed opened,” he said
”One of theyour letter o over to the store to say 'Thank you' to Miss Radford and her brother for their goodness to my father? I would not have left hih, and I do want therateful I am”
”Go, by all means I will take care of Mr Selincourt and writea fountain pen and a notebook fro to write forthwith
Mary walked out of the house and down to the river just as she was, for the sun had gone down sufficiently to render a hat unnecessary The two men were busy with their boat still, but one of them left his work and put Mary across the river in one of the other boats which lay drawn up on the bank
The Indians, who had been crowding the store half an hour before, were encamped on the bank now, a little lower down, and were busy cooking fish for their supper There were no other customers visible either inside the store or out Now that the fishi+ng was in full swing the fisherh the work of delivering goods was greater, there were co the store always crowded up withthan buying
Mary walked up the steep bank and across the open space to the store door with a sense of the strangest unreality all about her It was herself alked and moved, yet all the time she seemed to stand aside and let another self think and feel and act A coroceries, bacon, tobacco, and cheap clothes h, homely shed, which was a typical emporium of the backwoods; but she had no ti at once attracted by Katherine, who stood at a tall desk by the , entering itelanced up and saw the visitor entering the door She flushed at the sight, and became suddenly nervous, acutely conscious, too, of her poor, shabby clothes, old-fashi+oned and ill cut, as contrasted with the picturesque house gown in which Mary was garbed, a soft grey woollen, which, though siested London or Paris in every line
”You are Miss Radford, I think,” said Mary in that quiet, cultured voice which soown, ”and I have cooodness to my dear father”