by G. A. Henty
Chapter 7.
"I am so sorry," Bertha Greendale said, "so awfully sorry. I had noidea that you thought of me like that. We were such friends so longago, and it has been so pleasant since you came home last year, andI like you as if you were a big brother; but I have never thoughtof you in any other light, and now it seems dreadful to me to giveyou pain; but I feel sure that I should never come to love you inthat way."
And she burst into tears.
"Do not think anything more about it, dear," Frank Mallett said,gently. "I have felt sometimes when we have been together, that youwere so kindly and frank and pleasant with me that you could feelas I wanted you to. I ought to have known it always. But I supposein such cases a man deceives himself and shuts his eyes to facts.You have certainly nothing to blame yourself about. Of course, itis a hard blow, but no doubt I shall get over it as other fellowsdo. At any rate, I know that we shall always be dear friends, andyou need not fear that I shall mope over my misfortune. I shall runup to town for a bit, and as you are going up for the season nextweek, I shall no doubt often meet you. Don't fret about me. I havebeen hit pretty hard several times, though not in the same way, andI have always gone through it, and no doubt I shall do so now.
"Goodbye," and when Bertha looked up, he had left the room.
"Oh, mamma," she said, when she went into the room where her motherwas sitting, "I am so sorry, so dreadfully sorry. Frank Mallett hasasked me to be his wife. I have never thought of such a thing andof course I had to say no."
"I have thought such a thing likely for some time, Bertha, but Ithought it best to hold my tongue about it. In such matters theinterference of a mother often does more harm than good. I feltsure, by your manner with him, that you had no idea of it; and Imust say that much as I like Frank Mallett, I should have beensorry. I have great hopes of your making a really first-classmatch."
"I could not make a better match," Bertha said, indignantly. "Noone could be kinder or nicer than Major Mallett, and we know howbrave he is and how he has distinguished himself, and he has a goodestate and everything that anyone could wish; only unfortunately Ido not love him--at least not in that way. He has never shown mewhat I should consider any particular attention, and never talkedto me in the way men do when they are making love to a girl.Nothing could be nicer, and it was all the nicer because I neverthought of this. I suppose it is because he is so different fromsome of the men I met in town last season, who always seemed to betrying to get round me. No, I know it is not a nice expression,mamma, but you know what I mean."
"I know, my dear," her mother smiled. "Of course you are a verygood match, and though I do not want to flatter you, you were oneof the belles of the season. Though some of the men you speak ofwere by no means desirable--younger sons and barristers and thatsort of thing--still, there were two or three whom any girl mighthave been pleased to see at her feet, and who, I am sure from whatI saw, only needed but little encouragement from you to be there. Iwas a little vexed, dear, you see, that you did not give any ofthem that encouragement; but I understand, of course, that thenovelty of your first season carried you away altogether; and thatyou liked the dancing and the fetes and the opera for themselves,and not because they brought you in contact with men of excellentclass. So far as I could see, it was a matter of indifference toyou whether the man was a peer with a splendid rent roll, or ayounger son without a farthing, so that he was a good dancer and apleasant companion; but of course after a season or two you willgrow wiser."
"I do hope not, mamma," Bertha said, indignantly. "I don't mean tosay that it might not be better to marry, as you say, a peer with agood rent roll than a younger son without a penny, other thingsbeing equal; that is to say, if one liked them equally; but I hopethat I shall never come to like anyone a bit more for being apeer."
Lady Greendale smiled, indulgently.
"It is a natural sentiment, my dear, for a girl of your age andinexperience; but in time you will come to see things in adifferent light."
Then she changed the subject. "What is Frank going to do? It isfortunate that we are going up to town next week."
"He is going up to town himself tomorrow, and I am sure that youwill never hear from him, or from anyone else, what has happened.We shall meet in town as usual, and I am sure that he will be justthe same as he was before, and that I shall be a great deal moreuncomfortable than he will. It is a very silly affair altogether, Ithink; and I would give anything if it had not happened."
Lady Greendale did not echo the sentiment. She liked Frank Mallettimmensely. He had always been a great favourite of hers, but sinceshe had guessed what Bertha herself had not dreamed of, she hadbeen uncomfortable. It threatened to disturb all the plans she hadformed, and she was well contented to learn that she had refusedhim. Lady Greendale was a thoroughly kind-hearted woman, but shecould not forget that she herself might have made, in a worldlysense, a better match than she had; and her ambition had, sinceBertha was a child, and still more since she had shown promise ofexceptional good looks, been centred on her making a really goodmatch.
Frank went up to town next day, and the Greendales followed him aweek later. They did not often meet him in society, as Frank seldomwent out; but he called occasionally in the old friendly andunceremonious way. It would have required an acute observer to seeany difference in his manner to Bertha, but Lady Greendale noticedit, and the girl herself felt that, although he was no less kindand friendly, there was some impalpable change in his manner,something that she felt, though she could not define it, even toherself.
"Have you had a tiff with Major Mallett, Bertha?" Mrs. Wilson askedone day, when she was alone with her in the drawing room.
Frank had just left, after spending an hour there.
"A tiff, Carrie? No! What put such an idea into your head?"
"My eyes, assisted perhaps by my ears. My dear, do you think thatafter being with you on the yacht last autumn, I should not noticeany change in your manner to each other? I had expected before nowto have heard an interesting piece of news; and now I see thatthings have gone wrong somehow."
"We are just as good friends as we always were," Bertha said,shortly; "every bit."
"You don't mean to say that you have refused him, Bertha?"
"I don't mean to say anything of the sort. I simply say that MajorMallett and I have always been great friends, and we are so now.There is no one that I have a higher regard for."
"Well, Bertha, I do not want to know your secrets, if you do notwish to tell me. All that I can say is that, if you have refusedhim, you have done a very foolish thing. I don't know any man thata woman might be happier with. When we were out last year with you,Amy and I agreed that it was certain to come off, and thought howwell suited you were to each other. Of course, in worldly respects,you might do better; just at present you have the ball at yourfeet; but choose where you may you will not find a finer fellowthan he is. Yes, I told Harry that it was lucky that I had not madethat trip on board the Osprey before I was irrevocably captured,for I should certainly have lost my heart to Major Mallett. Well, Iam sorry, Bertha, more sorry than I can say; and I am sure that Amywill be, too."
"I said nothing whatever, Carrie, that would justify this littleexplosion, which I certainly don't intend to answer. I shouldreally feel very vexed, if I were not perfectly sure that you wouldnever tell anyone else of this notion that you have got in yourhead."
"You may be quite sure of that, Bertha. At least when I say no oneelse, of course I do not include Harry; but you know him wellenough to be certain that it will not go further. I am sure he willbe as disappointed as I am. In fact, he will have a small triumphover me, for after the usual manner of men he saw nothing on boardthe yacht, and has always maintained that it was pure fancy on mypart. However, I won't tell anyone else, not even Amy. She can findit out for herself, which you may be sure she will do when shecomes back from the continent, if indeed her own happiness withJack has not blinded her to all sub-lunary matters.
"Well, goodbye
, dear. You will forgive my saying that I amdisappointed in you, terribly disappointed in you."
"I must try to put up with that, Carrie. I am not aware that youconsulted me before you made your own matrimonial arrangements, andperhaps I may be able to manage my own.''
"Well, don't be cross, Bertha. Remember that I am not advising orcounselling. I am simply regretting, which perhaps you may doyourself, some day or other."
And with this parting shot she left.
The weeks went on, and when May came and Frank told her that theOsprey was fitted out, and that he would join her in a day or two,Bertha heard the news with satisfaction. The season was a gay one,and she was enjoying herself greatly; the one little drop ofbitterness in her cup being that she could no longer enjoy hisvisits as she formerly did. He had been the one man with whom shewas able to talk and laugh quite freely, who was really an oldfriend, a link not only between her and the past, but between herand her country life.
And now, she thought pettishly, he had spoiled all this, and whatannoyed her almost as much was that the change was more in herselfthan in him. She no longer gave him commissions to execute for her,nor made him her general confidant. She knew that he would be asready as before to laugh and to sympathise, that he would stillgladly execute her commissions, and she felt that he tried hard tomake her forget that he had aspired to be something nearer to herthan a brotherly friend. She felt that after what he had said theycould never stand in quite the same relation as before.
Accustomed as Frank was to read her thoughts, he was not deceivedby the expression of regret that she should now see but little ofhim, as he saw the news was really pleasant to her. She was notaware that it was a conversation that he had had the evening beforewith Colonel Severn, which had decided him to go down to the Ospreya fortnight earlier than he had intended.
"You are getting to be almost as regular an attendant here,Mallett, as I am. I think you are altogether too young to takeregularly to club life. It is all very well for an old fogey likeme, but I don't think it a good thing for a young fellow like youto take so early to a bachelor life."
"I don't want to do anything of the sort, Colonel. But I can'tstand these crushes in hot rooms; I cannot for the life of me seewhere the pleasure comes in. I begin to think that I was an ass toleave the army."
"Not at all, lad, not at all. When a man has got a good estate itis much better for him to settle down upon it, and to marry andhave children, and all that sort of thing, than it is to remain inthe army in times of peace. I had Wilson and Hawley dining with mehere yesterday. We had a great chat over the pleasant time we hadlast year on board your yacht. I don't know when I enjoyed myselfso much as I did then. Lady Greendale is a remarkably clever woman,and her daughter is as nice a girl as I have come across for a longtime, and without a scrap of nonsense about her. I wonder that shehas not become engaged by this time. General Matthews, who, as youknow, goes in a good deal for that sort of thing for the sake ofhis daughters, told me recently that he fancied from what he hadheard that Miss Greendale's engagement was likely to be a settledthing before the season was over. He said there were three menmaking the running--Lord Chilson, the eldest son of the Earl ofSommerlay; George Delamore--his father is in the Cabinet, you know,and he is member for Ponberry; and a man named Carthew, who keepsrace horses, and was a neighbour of hers down in the country. Heis, I hear, a good-looking fellow, and just the sort of man a girlis likely to fancy. Matthews thought that the chances were in hisfavour. As you are a neighbour of theirs, too, I suppose you willknow him?"
"I knew him at one time, Colonel, but I have not seen him now for agood many years, beyond meeting him two or three times at dinnersand so on last season. He was away when I was at home before goingout to India, and he had sold his estate before I came back."
"They say he has been very lucky on the turf, and has made a pot ofmoney."
"So I have heard," Frank said; "but, you see, one generally hearsof men's good luck, and not of their bad. Besides, many men do mostof their real betting through commissioners, especially if they ownhorses themselves. He is a fellow I don't much care for, and I hopethat whomever Miss Greendale may marry, he will not be the man."
"I thought, when you first asked me down last year, that you hadgot up the party specially for her, Mallett, and that you weregoing in for the prize yourself. But of course I soon saw that Iwas mistaken, as you were altogether too good chums for that tocome about. I have often noticed that men and girls who are throwna lot together are often capital friends, but, although just thepair you would think would come together, that they hardly ever doso. I have noticed it over and over again. Well, she is anuncommonly nice girl, whoever gets her."
Frank did not return to town until the end of June.
"I have to congratulate you upon the Osprey's victory," Berthasaid, the first time he called to see them. "You may imagine withwhat interest I read the accounts of the yacht races. I saw you wontwo on the Thames, and were first once and second once atSouthampton."
"Yes, the Osprey has shown herself to be, as I thought, anuncommonly fast boat. We should have had two firsts at Southampton,if the pilot had not cut matters too fine and run us aground justopposite Netley; we were a quarter of an hour before we were offagain. We picked up a lot of our lost ground and got a second, butwere beaten eight minutes by the winner."
"Have you entered for the Queen's Cup at Ryde?"
"I have not entered yet, but I am going to do so," he said.
"Mamma and I will be down there. Lord Haverley--he is first cousinto mamma, you know--has taken a house there for the month, and heis going to have a large party, and we are going down for Rydeweek."
"Yes, and there will be the Victoria Yacht Club ball, and all sortsof gaieties. I have not entered yet, but I am going to do so. Theentries do not close till next Saturday."
"You will call and see us, of course, Frank?" Lady Greendale said."Haverley has a big schooner yacht, and I dare say we shall be agood deal on the water."
"I shall certainly do myself the pleasure of calling, LadyGreendale."
"I warn you, Frank, that Bertha and I will be very disappointed ifthe Osprey does not win the cup. We regard ourselves as being, tosome extent, her proprietors; and it will be a grievous blow to usif you don't win."
"I do not feel by any means sure about it," he said. "I fancy therewill be several boats that have not raced yet this season, and astwo of them are new ones, there is no saying what they may turnout."
Frank only stayed two days in town. He learned from Jack Hawleythat it was reported that Lord Chilson and George Delamore had bothbeen refused by Bertha Greendale.
"Chilson went away suddenly," he said. "As to Delamore, of courseas he is a Member he had to stop through the Session, but from whatI hear, and as you know I have some good sources of information, Iam pretty sure that he has got his conge too. I fancy Carthew isthe favourite. As a rule I don't like these men who go in forracing, but he is a deuced-nice fellow. I have seen a good deal ofhim. He put me up to a good thing for the Derby ten days ago. Hegives uncommonly good supper parties, and has asked me severaltimes, but I have not gone to them, for I believe there is a gooddeal of play afterwards, and I cannot stand unlimited loo."
"Is he lucky himself?" Frank asked.
"No, quite the other way, I hear. I know a man who has been tothree or four of his suppers, and he told me that Carthew had lostevery time, once or twice pretty heavily."
"Carthew's horse ran second, didn't it, for the Derby?"
"Yes, the betting was twenty to one against him at starting."
"I wonder he did not give that tip as well as the other."
"Well, he did say that he thought it might run into a place, butthat he was sure that he had no chance with the favourite. As itturned out, he was nearer winning than he expected; for thefavourite went down the day before the race, from 5 to 4 on, to 10to 1 against. There was a report about that he had gone wrong insome way. Some fellows said that there had been an att
empt to getat him, others that he had got a nail in his foot. The generalfeeling had been that he would win in a canter, but as it was heonly beat Carthew's horse by a short head."
"Had Carthew backed his horse to win?"
"He told me that he had only backed it for a hundred, but had putfive hundred on it for a place, and as he got six to one against ithe came uncommonly well out of it."
"And do you think it likely that Miss Greendale will accept him?"
"Ah! that I cannot say. He has certainly been making very strongrunning, and if I were a betting man I should not mind laying twoto one on the event coming off."
Frank joined the Osprey, which was lying off Portsmouth Harbour, onthe following day.
"I am back earlier than I expected, George," he said, as Lechmeremet him at the station. "I have got tired of London, and want to beon board again."
"Nothing gone wrong in town, I hope, Major?" George said next day,as he was removing the breakfast things. "You will excuse myasking, but you don't seem to me to be yourself since you came onboard."
"Well, yes, George. I am upset, I confess. I am sure you will besorry, too, when I tell you that it is more than probable that MissGreendale is going to marry Mr. Carthew."
George put the dish he was holding down on the table with a crash,and stood gazing at Frank in blank dismay.
"Why, sir, I thought," he said, slowly, "that it was going to beyou and Miss Greendale. I had always thought so. Excuse me, sir, Idon't mean any offence, but that is what we have all thought eversince she came down to christen the yacht."
"There is no offence, George. Yes, I don't mind telling you that Ihad hoped so myself, but it was not to be. You see, Miss Greendalehas known me since she was a child, and she has never thought of mein any other way than as a sort of cousin--someone she liked verymuch, but had never thought of for a moment as one she could marry.That is all past and gone, but I should be sorry, most sorry, forher to marry Carthew, knowing what I do of him."
"But it must not be, sir," George said, vehemently. "You can neverlet that sweet young lady marry that black-hearted villain."
"Unfortunately I cannot prevent it, George."
"Why, sir, you would only have to tell her about Martha, and I amsure it would do for his business. Miss Greendale can know nothingabout it. So far as I can remember, she was not more than sixteenat the time. I don't suppose Lady Greendale ever heard of it. Sheknew, of course, of Martha's being missing, because it made quite astir, but I don't suppose that she heard of her coming back. Shewas only at home three weeks before she died. There were not manythat ever saw her, and father told me that he and the others madeit so hot for Carthew one day at Chippenham market that he nevercame down again, and sold the place soon after. I don't suppose thegentry ever heard anything about it. If they had, Lady Greendalewould surely never let her daughter marry him."
"No, I feel sure she would not; but still, George, I don't see thatI can possibly interfere in the matter. The story is three yearsold now, and even if it had only happened yesterday, I, after whathas occurred between us, could not come forward as his accuser. Itwould have the appearance of spite on my side; and besides, I haveno proof whatever. He would, of course, deny the whole thing. I donot mean that he would deny that she said so--he could not dothat--but he might declare that she had spoken falsely, and mighteven say that it was an attempt to put another's sin on hisshoulders. Moreover, as I told you, I have other reasons fordisliking the man, and, on the face of it, it would seem that I hadraked up this old story against him, not only from jealousy, butfrom personal malice.
"No, it is out of the question that I should interfere. I wouldgive everything that I am worth to be able to do so, but it isimpossible. If I had full and unquestionable proofs I would go toLady Greendale and lay the matter before her. But I have no suchproofs. There is nothing whatever except that poor girl's wordagainst his."
George's lips closed, and an expression of grim determination cameover his face.
"I dare say you are right, Major," he said, after a pause; "but itseems to me hard that Miss Greendale should be sacrificed to a manlike that."
Frank did not reply. He had already thought the matter over andover again, and had reached the opinion that he could notinterfere. If he had not himself proposed to her, and been refused,he might have moved. Up to that time he had stood in the positionof an old friend of the family, and as such could well have spokento Lady Greendale on a matter that so vitally concerned Bertha'shappiness. Now his taking that step would have the appearance ofbeing the interference of a disappointed rival, rather than of adisinterested friend. He went up on deck, sat there for a time, andat last arrived at a conclusion.
"It is my duty. There can be no doubt about that," he said tohimself. "If Bertha really loves Carthew, she will believe hisdenial rather than my accusation, unsupported as it is by a scrapof real evidence. In that case, she will put down my story as apiece of malice and meanness. But, after all, that will matterlittle. I had better far lose her liking and esteem than my ownself respect. I will tell Lady Greendale about this. Theresponsibility will be off my hands then. She may not view thematter as an absolute bar to Carthew's marrying Bertha--that is herbusiness and Bertha's--but at any rate I shall have done my duty. Iwill wait, however, until Bertha has accepted him.
"I have made up my mind, George," he said, later on. "If I hearthat Miss Greendale has accepted Carthew, I shall go to her motherand tell her the story. I have little hope that it will do muchgood. It is very hard to make a girl believe anything against theman she loves, until it can be proved beyond doubt, and as Carthewwill of course indignantly deny that he had anything to do with it,I expect that it will have no effect whatever, beyond making herdislike me cordially. Still, that cannot be helped. It is clearlymy duty not only as her friend, but as the friend of her father andmother. But I wish that the task did not fall upon me."
"I am glad to hear you say that, Major," George said, quietly. "Ican see, sir, that, as you say, it would be better if anyone elsecould do it, but Lady Greendale has known you for so many yearsthat she must surely know that you would never have told her unlessyou believed the story to be true."
"No doubt she will, George. I hope Miss Greendale will, too; buteven if she does not see it in that light I cannot help it. Well, Iwill go ashore to the clubhouse and find out whether they haveheard anything about the entries for the cup."
When he returned he said to the captain:
"I hear that the Phantom has entered, Hawkins. I am told that shehas just come off the slips, and that she has had a new suit ofracing canvas made by Lapthorne."
"Well, sir, I think that we ought to have a good chance with her.She has shown herself a very fast boat the few times she has beenraced, but so have we, and taking the line through boats that wehave both sailed against, I think that we ought to be able to beather."
"I have rather a fancy that we shan't do so, Hawkins. We will doour best, but I have met Mr. Carthew a good many times, for we wereat school and college together, and somehow or other he has alwaysmanaged to beat me."
"Ah! well, we will turn the tables on him this time, sir."
"I hope so, but it has gone so often the other way that I have gotto be a little superstitious about it. I would give a good deal tobeat him. I should like to win the Queen's Cup, as you know; buteven if I didn't win it I should be quite satisfied if I but beathim."