The Lady of Loyalty House: A Novel

by Justin H. McCarthy

  XXI

  A PUZZLING PURITAN

  So deep was Evander in his book that he did not hear a lady'sfootfalls on the grass. When the discomfited Sir Blaise had quittedthe arena Brilliana held herself unseen and then swiftly sped back tothe pleasaunce. She stood for some seconds on the threshold of a yewarch watching the reading man and wondering why it had pleasedProvidence to make a Puritan so personable and skilful, wondering whyshe of all women should take any interest either in his person or inhis skill, wondering how long he would remain buried in his tiresomebook unconscious of her presence. She decided that she would slipaway and leave him ignorant of her coming, and having decided that,she coughed loudly, at which sound, of course, he turned round, sawher, and rose respectfully to his feet.

  "I fear I trespass in your paradise," he said, wistfully.

  "My honor, no!" Brilliana cried, pretending to look about heranxiously. "But where is Sir Blaise? I hope you two did not quarrel."

  "No, no," Evander protested; "we parted on clasped hands. Somepressing matter called him to his quarters."

  "Did you pay him apology for your equivocal wit?" Brilliana asked,demurely.

  Evander answered gravely: "He professed himself satisfied."

  Brilliana feigned a cry of horror.

  "I trust you did not eat your words."

  Evander shook his head.

  "I am not so hungry. Have I your leave to go?"

  He made as if to depart; Brilliana met his motion with a littlefrown.

  "Are you so eager?" she asked, in a voice in which regret andpetulance were dexterously commingled.

  Evander answered her gravely. "Yesterday you said that a Puritanpresence was hateful."

  Brilliana laughed blithely and her curls quivered in the sunshine.

  "You must not harp on a mad maid's anger. Yesterday you were myenemy, a thing of threats and treason. To-day all's different; to-dayyou are my guest. Soon you will ride hence, and we will, ifProvidence please, never meet again. But for a span of hours let usmake believe to be friend and friend, till Colonel Cromwell send mycousin and your liberty."

  Evander was tempted to quarrel with himself for being so ready towelcome this overture. But yesterday this woman had spattered himwith insults, snared him on a strained plea, bargained away his lifefor the body of a spy. Yesterday she had shuddered at the thought ofany link of kinship between them, as she might have shuddered atkinship with a wronger of women, a killer of children, a coward. Yetto-day, as she stood there, sunshine on her hair, sunshine in hereyes, a fairy lady standing in that circle of solemn yews, he couldfind in his heart no regret for anything that had brought him to herpresence. He would take gladly what she offered gayly, two days offriendship with so radiant a maid--and then? He left that thoughtunanswered to reply to Brilliana.

  "Madam," he said, with a very ceremonious bow, "I will pretend thatwe are going to be friends till the end of my life."

  Brilliana clapped her hands like a child that has been promised somecoveted comfit.

  "You are brave at make-believe. In the mean time let us keep eachother company a little. Surely it is dull for a man of action to bea prisoner, and for my own part I mope sadly now that my little waris well over."

  She had seated herself as she spoke, and she motioned to Evander totake his place by her side. When she paused he asked:

  "Are you so strenuous an amazon?"

  She answered him very earnestly:

  "I miss the splendid music of the siege, the stir of arms, the bustleof giving order, the alertness of expectation. I did not think awoman's life could be tuned to so high a diapason. Just think of it!Yesterday, and for many yesterdays, I was a leaguered lady, apriestess of battles; I stood for the King; existence was one fierceecstasy. To drop from that brisk spin and whetted edge of life intothis housewife's twilight is all one with being some sea-old admiraland drowning in a canal."

  The daughters of Israel could not have thrown more sadness into theirvoice, Evander thought, as they sang by the waters of Babylon. If herface was fair in animation, it seemed still more fair in sadness.

  "Has the Lady of Harby no employment," he asked, gently, "to spur thetrudging time?"

  Brilliana laughed rather cheerlessly.

  "Oh, mercy, yes! Can she not overwatch the gardener to see that heplanteth the right sort of herbs and flowers at the new of the moon,at moon full, and at moon old? She can chat with Mistress Cook ofsallets and fricassees and fritters; she can count the linen; she canpreserve quinces; she can distil you aqua composita or imperialwater, or water of Bettony, against she grow old; she can bedairy-wise, cellar-wise, laundry-wise--oh, there are a thousandthousand things she can do if she want to do them, but the plague ofit is, since I have burned powder, these decent drudgeries no longerdivert me."

  She gave a little sigh as she ended her enumeration of a housewife'stasks, and then banished the sigh with a smile. Evander found himselfthinking that a man might count himself happy for whom this ladyshould sigh so at parting and smile so in welcome. But what he saidwas:

  "Against your next distillation I can give you a very praisablerecipe for a cordial. It is a Swedish fancy and much favored by theladies of the North."

  Brilliana looked him full in the face and laughed very merrily, andhe felt his cheeks redden at her gaze and her mirth.

  "Was there ever such a man-marvel?" she asked. "All my people praiseyou for some different accomplishment. A horseman, a gardener, thebest at fence, the best, too, with a cudgel--"

  "Ah, madam," Evander interrupted, apologetically, "pray how has thatcome to your ears?"

  "Never mind how it came," Brilliana answered, "so that it has comeand that I owe you no ill-will for teaching a foolish gentleman alesson. But you can shoot, it seems, and play games, and are apt inout-door arts and wise in out-of-doors wisdom--for all the world likea country gentleman."

  "Madam, I am, as I hope, a gentleman, and as for the countryknowledge, I have lived its life in many lands and learned somethingby the way."

  "And now," Brilliana bantered on, "you boast some science of thestill-room, and Mistress Satchell speaks of a Spanish manner ofgrilling capons. Are you, perhaps, a herald as well as a master cook,and do you know something of the gentle and joyous craft of thehuntsman?"

  Evander took her in her humor and bandied back the ball ofqualification.

  "I can prick a coat indifferently well," he responded, solemnly, "andif such trifles delight you, I can blaze arms by the days of the weekor the ages of man or the flowers of the field, though I hold that atrue herald will never stray beyond colors."

  Brilliana nodded her head with an air of profound approval. "Betterand better," she murmured. Evander went on with his catalogue ofself-compliment.

  "And as for my woodcraft, I can name you all the names of a maledeer, from hind calf, year by year, through brocket and spayed, andstaggard and stag, till his sixth year, when he is truly a hart andhas his rights of brow, bay, and tray antlers. I am skilled in theuses of falcon-gentle, gerfalcon, saker, lanner, merlin, hobby,goshawk, sparrow-hawk, and musket--"

  Brilliana interrupted him with an impetuous gesture of command, andEvander made an end of his display.

  "Enough, enough!" she cried. "I feel like Balkis when she came to sipwisdom from Solomon's goblet. If I question you further I may findthat, like my Lord Verulam, you have taken all knowledge for yourprovince. This is something uncanny in a Puritan."

  Evander protested.

  "Why should a man deny the arts of life because he finds strength inthe faith of the Puritans?"

  "I know not why," Brilliana answered, "but so it is generallybelieved among us who are not Puritans."

  "There are fanatic fellows with us as in all causes," Evanderadmitted, "and some, it may be, who wear moroseness to gain favor.But these are no more than the fringe of a stout cloak. I am noexceptional Puritan, I promise you. Colonel Cromwell himself--"

  Brilliana interrupted him with a frowning imperiousness.

  "L
et us not talk of Colonel Cromwell," she commanded.

  "I wish you would let me speak of Colonel Cromwell," Evander pleaded."He has long been my dear friend, and--"

  "Let us not talk of Colonel Cromwell," Brilliana repeated, with aperemptory stamp of the foot. "I want to talk of you and your curiousPuritanism. I thought you were all too hypocritically devout to haveany care for the toys and colors of life."

  "To be devout is not to be hypocritical," Evander urged, gently."And, to speak for myself, I hope I am devout, but I do not find myfaith weakened by honorable enjoyment of honorable pleasures. Yet,indeed, what poor accomplishments I can lay claim to--and to affordyou diversion, I have somewhat exaggerated their scope andnumber--are due directly to my being a Puritan--"

  "You are pleased to be paradoxical," Brilliana asserted. Evander putthe suggestion aside with a head shake.

  "To my being a Puritan and to my being of your kin. When I was a boyI learned of that kinship, learned how her marriage with a Puritanhad earned for a woman of your race the scorn, indeed the hatred ofher family, or those who should most and best have loved her."

  "You do not understand how strongly those who think as we think feelon such a matter," Brilliana urged, one-half of her spirit angry thatshe was speaking almost apologetically, the other half vexed that thefirst half was not more angry.

  "Forgive me," said Evander, "but I do understand; I understand verywell; I made it my business to understand. And, therefore, I resolvedthat so far as in me lay I would show those who scorned my people andmy creed that a Puritan might compete with his enemies in all thearts and graces they held most dear, and not come off the worst inall encounters."

  "That was a brave resolve!" Brilliana's eyes and voice applaudedhim. He flushed a little as he went on.

  "It was a kind of oath of Hannibal. God was gracious in the gift of astrong will, and I stuck to my purpose. I mastered arts, acquiredtongues, forced myself to dexterity in all manly exercises. I had amodest patrimony which allowed me to travel after I left Cambridge,and so gain that knowledge of the world which is so dear to Englishgentlemen. And always in my thoughts it was: some day I may meet someson of the house that cast us out and show him that a Puritan mightfear God and yet ride a horse, fly a hawk, and use a sword with thebest of his enemies."

  "Instead of which," said Brilliana, as he paused, "you meet adaughter of the house and play your well-practised part to her." Hervoice was stern now and her eyes shone fiercely as she leaned forwardand continued in a low voice, "Was this the cause of your coming toHarby?"

  "No," Evander answered. "I should never have come to Harby of my ownaccord. But news came to Cambridge of your flying the King's flag.The example was dangerous; Harby was a good house for either side tohold. Colonel Cromwell commanded me to march with the volunteers Ihad raised at Cambridge to secure Harby in the name of theParliament."

  "And you were very glad to obey," Brilliana said, bitterly, and againEvander shook his head.

  "I was very sorry to obey. But I had no choice. Colonel Cromwell wasmy father's friend; he knew the story of my people; he set it upon meas a special seal for righteousness that I should do this thing. 'Kinshall be set against kin in this strife,' he said, 'father againstson, and brother against brother. Go forth in the name of the Lordand pluck the banner of Baal from the wall of Harby.' And I went."

  Brilliana, lifting her head, looked over the green wall of yews towhere, in the cool, gray-blue of the October sky, the royal standardfluttered its gaudy folds in the wind. She said nothing, but hersmile spoke whole volumes of victories; the panegyrics of a thousandtriumphs gleamed in her eyes. Evander read smile and gleam rightly.

  "True, I failed," he admitted. "Yet I may not say that I am sorry,for if I had not failed I should have lost a friend."

  He looked admiringly at her, but Brilliana drew herself up stifflyand regarded him coldly.

  "You may be my kinsman without being my friend," she said, with asourness which had the effect of making Evander laugh like a boy.

  "Why, lady," he protested, "it is not ten minutes since that youproffered me your friendship."

  "Did I so?" Brilliana asked, puckering her brows as if in doubt,though she had not the least doubt upon the matter.

  "Indeed, madam," said Evander, very earnestly, "friends for alifetime." Brilliana snapped contradiction.

  "No, no; it was you who said that. I admit the friendship for threedays."

  "And I assert the friendship of a lifetime," Evander persisted. Hisvoice and his eyes were very merry, but there came an unconquerablegnawing at his heart that, in spite of the fair place and the fairface and the sweet discourse, life for him meant no more than a spaceof three days. Well, then, he would live his three days bravely,brightly. He lifted his eyes to the lady.

  "Are you of Master Amiens' school?" he asked--

  "'Most friendship is feigning, most love is mere folly.'"

  She made no reply to his question, but its matter surprised her andprompted her to another.

  "Do you go to Master Shakespeare's school?" she asked; and even asshe spoke she leaned forward to look at the book he had laid down andto which, till that moment, she had paid no heed. She drew it towardsher and saw what it was.

  "Why, here are his plays. Can you affect him when 'tis known that theKing loves him?"

  "I would the King had no worse counsellors," Evander said, gravely.

  Brilliana had lifted the big book onto her lap and was turning thepages tenderly, pausing here and there with loving murmurs.

  "Had I been a man," she said, softly, "I should have turned playerfor the pleasure to speak such golden words."

  Evander, watching her fair, lowered face under its crown of darkhair, thought of all that Imogen might mean, or Rosalind or Juliet,did each of these dear ones show on the stage like this lady. He gavethe odd thought form in speech.

  "It is strange," he said, almost to himself, "that a Cavalier worldis content without women players."

  Brilliana lifted her face from the book, and there was a look ofastonishment and even of pain upon it.

  "Oh, that is quite another matter," she said, quickly. "That couldnever come to pass."

  Evander's Puritanism, recalled to recollection of itself, feltcompelled to assent.

  "I trust not," he said, gravely. He was looking at Brilliana witheyes that were honestly admiring. She rose from her seat.

  "I must dismiss you now," she said, "for I have much to do eredinner. You will dine with me, I pray."

  Evander made her a not uncourtly bow.

  "If I be not unwelcome," he suggested.

  Brilliana shook her head very positively.

  "We are pledged friends for the time, and friends love to break breadtogether."

  There was no countering this argument. Evander took up the folio andmade its owner another bow.

  "I will attend you at the dinner-hour," he said. "This treasure Irestore to its home."

  As the Parliament man moved away across the grass, his image verydark against its green, Brilliana looked after him, nursing her chinin her palm and her elbow on her knee. As he entered the house withthe big book under his arm she took out her pretty handkerchief, andwith much deliberation tied a small knot in one corner of it.

  "Master Puritan, Master Puritan," she murmured, "I must tie a knot inmy handkerchief to remind me that you and I are enemies."