CHAPTER FOURTEEN.
MOLLIE DEFENDS HER UNCLE.
Mr Farrell walked to the door, and shut it behind him. Everyone stoodstill, staring at Mollie, and Mollie stared ruefully back.
"Oh!" she cried breathlessly, "oh!" and pressed both palms to her nowscorching cheeks. "I've never been snubbed like that in all my life."Then suddenly she laughed a bright, sweet-hearted laugh, utterly freefrom envy. "I'm nowhere, Ruth, when you are concerned; but there's onecomfort, I can do as I like, and no one will interfere! If it is to bea choice between the two, I prefer freedom to riches."
She left the room to make her way upstairs, and Jack crossed the hall byher side. He looked intently at her as he walked, and when their eyesmet he said simply--
"You took that well--very well indeed! I congratulate you on your self-control. I could not have kept my temper as you did."
"Oh, I don't know!" returned Mollie easily. "I brought it on my ownhead. It was stupid to speak of myself at all; but just for the momentI couldn't help feeling aggrieved, because, really and truly, I was ingreater danger than she. Uncle Bernard is old, poor thing, and thatmakes him querulous."
"It ought not to. I call that a very poor excuse. When a man gets tohis age he ought surely to have learnt to be patient, even if heimagines himself provoked."
"But he is ill as well. You say nothing about that. Should that makehim patient too?"
"Certainly it should. Suffering has often a most ennobling effect."
Mollie stood on the first step of the staircase, her arm on thebanister, looking with a challenging smile into the proud self-confidentface on a level with her own.
"Have you ever been ill, Mr Melland?"
"I am thankful to say I have not."
"But you have surely had a pain, or an ache, for a few hours at a time?Ear-ache, when you were a child, or toothache later on?"
"Oh, certainly! I've had my share of toothache, and the smallerailments."
"And when the spasms were on,--were _you_ gentle and patient? Did youfeel your character being ennobled, or did you rage and champ about likea mad bull?"
Jack laughed. It was impossible to resist it, at the sight of themischievous face, and the sound of the exaggerated, school-girl simile.
"Well," he conceded magnanimously, "perhaps the champing was the more inevidence. I was not citing myself as a model, Miss Mollie. I knowquite well that--that I might be more patient than I am."
"More patient! More! You are not patient at all. You are the mostimpatient person I ever met. If anyone dares even to have a differentopinion from you, you can hardly contain yourself. I wish you could seeyour face! You look like this."
Mollie drew herself up, making a valiant attempt to draw her eyebrowstogether, send out lightning sparks from her eyes, inflate her nostrils,and tug the ends of an imaginary moustache at one and the same time; andsucceeded in looking at once so pretty and so comical that, instead ofbeing convicted, Jack laughed more heartily than before.
"As bad as that? Really? I must be ferocious! It's rather unkind ofyou to pitch into me like this, Miss Mollie, when I have just beenpaying you compliments. It's a good thing I am going away so soon, as Iam such a desperate character. There is no saying to what lengths MrFarrell and I might get if we were long together."
"Oh!" Mollie's face sobered, and a little chill came over her spirits."You are still determined, then? Nothing has happened to make youchange your mind?"
"What should have happened?" replied Jack the ungallant. "There hasbeen nothing behind the scenes, Miss Mollie--nothing that you do notknow of. Only I prefer to go back to my work--that's all. I consentedto remain for a week to please Mr Farrell, but I don't see that I amcalled upon to make any further sacrifice. I have my life's work beforeme, and just now it needs all the attention I can give it. Besides, MrFarrell and I would never get on; I should be a disturbing element whichwould not improve matters for any of you. Between ourselves, I thinkthere is little doubt who will be the Chosen, as you express it. Yoursister is evidently first in favour. Witness your experience a fewminutes ago."
Mollie stared before her, thoughtful and absent-minded. One word inJack's speech had detached itself from the rest and printed itself onher brain. Sacrifice! He had stayed at the Court for a week as amatter of necessity, and did not feel called upon to sacrifice hisinclinations any further. Sacrifice, indeed! The word rankled the moreas she realised how differently she herself had described the past fivedays, and how high Jack Melland's presence had ranked among thepleasures of the new life. When she projected her thoughts into thefuture, and imagined living through the same scenes without hiscompanionship, it was extraordinary how flat and dull they suddenlybecame. But he called it a "sacrifice" to stay away from a dingy,dreary office, and preferred the society of his partner to all theMollie Farrells in the world! He liked her, of course--she could notpretend to doubt that; but just as a grown man might care for an amusingchild who served to while away an idle hour, but who was not worth thetrouble of a serious thought.
"He thinks I am shallow," thought Mollie sorrowfully, and then suddenlyinverted the sentence. "Am I shallow?" she asked herself, with anuneasy doubt creeping over her self-complacency. "I expect I am, for Iam content with the surface of things, and like to laugh better than tothink. But I'm twenty; I don't want to be treated as a child all mylife. It's horrid of him to talk of sacrifices!"
Thoughts fly quickly, but, even so, the pause was long enough to beunusual. Jack looked inquiringly at the thoughtful face, and saidsmilingly--
"Why, Miss Mollie, you look quite sober! I never saw you so seriousbefore. Is that because I said that your sister was preferred beforeyou?"
That aroused Mollie to a flash of indignation.
"No, indeed; I am not so mean. I'd almost sooner Ruth had things thanmyself, for I'd have all the fun and none of the trouble. Besides, shewants it more than I do, and would be a hundred times more disappointedto do without. And then you must not blame Uncle Bernard too much. Hehad a good reason for saying what he did. I deserved it.--You willnever guess what I did."
Jack looked amused and curious.
"Nothing very dreadful, I feel sure. You are too hard on yourself, MissMollie."
"I asked him for heaps of money to buy heaps of new clothes--"
Jack's whistle of amazement was too involuntary to be controlled. Hetried his best to retrieve himself by an expression of unconcern, butthe pretence was so apparent that Mollie laughed at the sight, albeit atrifle ruefully.
"Do you mean to tell me seriously that you asked Mr Farrell for money?"
"Yes, I did. I asked him on Wednesday. It seemed the only thing to do,as he wants us to entertain his friends, and go out whenever we areasked, and we hadn't enough clothes to go in. Ruth wouldn't ask, so Ihad to do it. We have no evening-dresses in the world except thoseblack things that you see every night, and we can't live in them forthree months like a man in his dress suit."
"They are very pretty dresses. I am sure you always look charming."
"Oh, don't feel bound to be flattering, I hate obvious compliments!"cried Mollie irritably. She was surprised to realise how irritable shefelt. "I only told you because it was mean to let poor Uncle Bernardget the blame." She paused, and over her face flashed one of thosesudden radiant changes of expression which were so fascinating tobehold. Her eyes shone, her lips curled, a dimple dipped in her cheek."But he _did_ give it to me--he gave me more than I asked--carteblanche, to spend as much as I liked! Next Tuesday morning as ever is,we are going up to town to shop with Mrs Thornton as assistant. Thinkof it! Think of it! Oxford Street, Regent Street, Bond Street--just tolook in at all the windows in turn, and buy what one likes best.Hats,"--two eager hands went up to her head--"dresses"--they waveddescriptively in the air--"coats; fripperies of all descriptions,delicious blouses for every occasion, and evening-dresses!--oh, chiffonand lace and sequins, and everything that is fascinating! I've
neverhad anything but the most useful and long-suffering garments, though Ihave yearned to be fluffy, and now I shall be as fluffy as I can bemade! Think of me, all in tulle and silver gauze, with a train yardslong, all lined with frills and _frills_ of chiffon!" cried Mollieecstatically, tilting her head over her shoulder, and pushing out hershort skirt with a little slippered foot as if it were already the trainof which she spoke.
"Indeed, I will think of you! I wish I could do more than think; Ishould like to see you into the bargain. It is hard lines that I haveto leave before the exhibition opens."
"Oh, pray don't pose as an object of pity! Whose fault is it that youare leaving at all?" retorted Mollie quickly. "You have made up yourmind to go, and it's a matter of pride with you that nothing or nobodyshall prevent you. My poor fineries would be a very weak inducement;but you will have to reckon with Uncle Bernard before you get away, andI don't think he will be easy to oppose."
Jack Melland straightened himself, and his nostrils dilated incharacteristic, high-spirited fashion.
"When I make up my mind I never give way," he said slowly.
Mollie tossed her head defiantly.
"So you say; but there is something even stronger than will, MrMelland."
"And that is--"
"Fate!" cried Mollie dramatically.
The blue eyes and the brown met in a flashing glance; then the girldropped a demure curtsey, and ran lightly upstairs.
The Fortunes of the Farrells Page 14