CHAPTER LXXIV.
THE MEETING OF CHARLES AND FLORA.
Charles Holland followed Jack Pringle for some time in silence fromBannerworth Hall; his mind was too full of thought concerning the pastto allow him to indulge in much of that kind of conversation in whichJack Pringle might be fully considered to be a proficient.
As for Jack, somehow or another, he had felt his dignity offended in thegarden of Bannerworth Hall, and he had made up his mind, as heafterwards stated in his own phraseology, not to speak to nobody tillsomebody spoke to him.
A growing anxiety, however, to ascertain from one who had seen herlately, how Flora had borne his absence, at length induced CharlesHolland to break his self-imposed silence.
"Jack," he said, "you have had the happiness of seeing her lately, tellme, does Flora Bannerworth look as she was wont to look, or have all theroses faded from her cheeks?"
"Why, as for the roses," said Jack, "I'm blowed if I can tell, andseeing as how she don't look at me much, I doesn't know nothing abouther; I can tell you something, though, about the old admiral that willmake you open your eyes."
"Indeed, Jack, and what may that be?"
"Why, he's took to drink, and gets groggy about every day of his life,and the most singular thing is, that when that's the case with the oldman, he says it's me."
"Indeed, Jack! taken to drinking has my poor old uncle, from grief, Isuppose, Jack, at my disappearance."
"No, I don't think it's grief," said Jack; "it strikes me it'srum-and-water."
"Alas, alas, I never could have imagined he could have fallen into thathabit of yours; he always seemed so far from anything of this kind."
"Ay, ay, sir," said Jack, "I know'd you'd be astonished. It will be thedeath of him, that's my opinion; and the idea, you know, Master Charles,of accusing me when he gets drunk himself."
"I believe that is a common delusion of intemperate persons," saidCharles.
"Is it, sir; well, it's a very awkward I thing, because you know, sir,as well as most people, that I'm not the fellow to take a drop toomuch."
"I cannot say, Jack, that I know so much, for I have certainly heard myuncle accuse you of intoxication."
"Lor', sir, that was all just on account of his trying it hisself; hewas a thinking on it then, and wanted to see how I'd take it."
"But tell me of Flora; are you quite certain that she has had no morealarms from Varney?"
"What, that ere vampyre fellow? not a bit of it, your honour. Lor' blessyou, he must have found out by some means or another that I was on thelook out, and that did the business. He'll never come near Miss Floraagain, I'll be bound, though to be sure we moved away from the Hall onaccount of him; but not that I saw the good of cruising out of one's ownlatitude, but somehow or another you see the doctor and the admiral gotit into their heads to establish a sort of blockade, and the idea of thething was to sail away in the night quite quiet, and after that take upa position that would come across the enemy on the larboard tack, if sobe as he made his appearance."
"Oh, you allude to watching the Hall, I presume?"
"Ay, ay, sir, just so; but would you believe it, Master Charlie, theadmiral and the doctor got so blessed drunk that I could do nothing with'em."
"Indeed!"
"Yes, they did indeed, and made all kinds of queer mistakes, so that theend of all that was, that the vampyre did come; but he got away again."
"He did come then; Sir Francis Varney came again after the house waspresumed to be deserted?"
"He did, sir."
"That is very strange; what on earth could have been his object? Thisaffair is most inexplicably mysterious. I hope the distance, Jack, isnot far that you're taking me, for I'm incapable of enduring muchfatigue."
"Not a great way, your honour; keep two points to the westward, and sailstraight on; we'll soon come to port. My eye, won't there be a squallwhen you get in. I expect as Miss Flora will drop down as dead as aherring, for she doesn't think you're above the hatches."
"A good thought, Jack; my sudden appearance may produce alarm. When wereach the place of abode of the Bannerworths, you shall precede me, andprepare them in some measure for my reception."
"Very good, sir; do you see that there little white cottage a-head,there in the offing?"
"Yes, yes; is that the place?"
"Yes, your honour, that's the port to which we are bound."
"Well, then, Jack, you hasten a-head, and see Miss Flora, and be sureyou prepare her gently and by degrees, you know, Jack, for myappearance, so that she shall not be alarmed."
"Ay, ay, sir, I understand; you wait here, and I'll go and do it; therewould be a squall if you were to make your appearance, sir, all at once.She looks upon you as safely lodged in Davy's locker; she minds me, allthe world, of a girl I knew at Portsmouth, called Bet Bumplush. She wasone of your delicate little creatures as don't live long in this hereworld; no, blow me; when I came home from a eighteen months' cruise,once I seed her drinking rum out of a quart pot, so I says, 'Hilloa,what cheer?' And only to think now of the wonderful effect that therehad upon her; with that very pot she gives the fellow as was standingtreat a knobber on the head as lasted him three weeks. She was too goodfor this here world, she was, and too rummantic. 'Go to blazes,' shesays to him, 'here's Jack Pringle come home.'"
"Very romantic indeed," said Charles.
"Yes, I believe you, sir; and that puts me in mind of Miss Flora andyou."
"An extremely flattering comparison. Of course I feel much obliged."
"Oh, don't name it, sir. The British tar as can't oblige a feller-cretoris unworthy to tread the quarter-deck, or to bear a hand to the distressof a woman."
"Very well," said Charles. "Now, as we are here, precede me, if youplease, and let me beg of you to be especially cautious in your mannerof announcing me."
"Ay, ay, sir," said Jack: and away he walked towards the cottage,leaving Charles some distance behind.
Flora and the admiral were sitting together conversing. The old man, wholoved her as if she had been a child of his own, was endeavouring, tothe extent of his ability, to assuage the anguish of her thoughts, whichat that moment chanced to be bent upon Charles Holland.
"Nevermind, my dear," he said; "he'll turn up some of these days, andwhen he does, I sha'n't forget to tell him that it was you who stood outfor his honesty and truth, when every one else was against him,including myself, an old wretch that I was."
"Oh, sir, how could you for one moment believe that those letters couldhave been written by your nephew Charles? They carried, sir, upon theface of them their own refutation; and I'm only surprised that for oneinstant you, or any one who knew him, could have believed him capable ofwriting them."
"Avast, there," said the admiral; "that'll do. I own you got the betterof the old sailor there. I think you and Jack Pringle were the only twopersons who stood out from the first."
"Then I honour Jack for doing so."
"And here he is," said the admiral, "and you'd better tell him. Themutinous rascal! he wants all the honour he can get, as a set-offagainst his drunkenness and other bad habits."
Jack walked into the room, looked about him in silence for a moment,thrust his hands in his breeches pockets, and gave a long whistle.
"What's the matter now?" said the admiral.
"D--me, if Charles Holland ain't outside, and I've come to prepare youfor the blessed shock," said Jack. "Don't faint either of you, becauseI'm only going to let you know it by degrees, you know."
A shriek burst from Flora's lips, and she sprung to the door of theapartment.
"What!" cried the admiral, "my nephew--my nephew Charles! Jack, yourascal, if you're joking, it's the last joke you shall make in thisworld; and if it's true, I--I--I'm an old fool, that's all."
"Ay, ay, sir," said Jack; "didn't you know that afore?"
"Charles--Charles!" cried Flora. He heard the voice. Her name escapedhis lips, and rang with a pleasant echo through the house.
In another
moment he was in the room, and had clasped her to his breast.
"My own--my beautiful--my true!"
"Charles, dear Charles!"
"Oh, Flora, what have I not endured since last we met; but this repaysme--more than repays me for all."
"What is the past now," cried Flora--"what are all its miseries placedagainst this happy, happy moment?"
"D--me, nobody thinks of me," said the admiral.
"My dear uncle," said Charles, looking over Flora's shoulder, as hestill held her in his arms, "is that you?"
"Yes, yes, swab, it is me, and you know it; but give us your five, youmutinous vagabond; and I tell you what, I'll do you the greatest favourI've had an opportunity of doing you some time--I'll leave you alone,you dog. Come along, Jack."
"Ay, ay, sir," said Jack; and away they went out of the apartment.
And now those two loving hearts were alone--they who had been so longseparated by malignant destiny, once again were heart to heart, lookinginto each other's faces with all the beaming tenderness of an affectionof the truest, holiest character.
The admiral had done a favour to them both to leave them alone, althoughwe much doubt whether his presence, or the presence of the whole world,would have had the effect of controlling one generous sentiment of noblefeeling.
They would have forgotten everything but that they were together, andthat once again each looked into the other's eyes with all thetenderness of a love purer and higher than ordinarily belongs to mortalaffections.
Language was weak to give utterance to the full gust of happy feelingsthat now were theirs. It was ecstasy enough to feel, to know that theevil fortune which had so long separated them, depriving each existenceof its sunniest aspect, was over. It was enough for Charles Holland tofeel that she loved him still. It was enough for Flora Bannerworth toknow, as she looked into his beaming countenance, that that love was notmisplaced, but was met by feelings such as she herself would havedictated to be the inhabitants of the heart of him whom she would havechosen from the mass of mankind as her own.
"Flora--dear Flora," said Charles, "and you have never doubted me?"
"I've never doubted, Charles, Heaven or you. To doubt one would havebeen, to doubt both."
"Generous and best of girls, what must you have thought of my enforcedabsence! Oh! Flora, I was unjust enough to your truth to make mygreatest pang the thought that you might doubt me, and cast me from yourheart for ever."
"Ah! Charles, you ought to have known me better. I stood amid soretemptation to do so much. There were those who would have urged me on tothink that you had cast me from your heart for ever. There were thoseready and willing to place the worst construction upon your conduct, andwith a devilish ingenuity to strive to make me participate in such afeeling; but, no, Charles, no--I loved you, and I trusted you, and Icould not so far belie my own judgment as to tell you other than whatyou always seemed to my young fancy."
"And you are right, my Flora, right; and is it not a glorious triumph tosee that love--that sentiment of passion--has enabled you to have soenduring and so noble a confidence in aught human?"
"Ay, Charles, it is the sentiment of passion, for our love has been morea sentiment than a passion. I would fain think that we had loved eachother with an affection not usually known, appreciated, or understood,and so, in the vanity of my best affections, I would strive to thinkthem something exclusive, and beyond the common feelings of humanity."
"And you are right, my Flora; such love as yours is the exception; theremay be preferences, there may be passions, and there may be sentiments,but never, never, surely, was there a heart like yours."
"Nay, Charles, now you speak from a too poetical fancy; but is itpossible that I have had you here so long, with your hand clasped inmine, and asked you not the causes of your absence?"
"Oh, Flora, I have suffered much--much physically, but more mentally. Itwas the thought of you that was at once the bane and the antidote of myexistence."
"Indeed, Charles! Did I present myself in such contradictory colours toyou?"
"Yes, dearest, as thus. When I thought of you, sometimes, in the deepseclusion of a dungeon, that thought almost goaded me to madness,because it brought with it the conviction--a conviction peculiar to alover--that none could so effectually stand between you and all evil asmyself."
"Yes, yes, Charles; most true."
"It seemed to me as if all the world in arms could not have protectedyou so well as this one heart, clad in the triple steel of itsaffections, could have shielded you from evil."
"Ay, Charles; and then I was the bane of your existence, because Ifilled you with apprehension?"
"For a time, dearest; and then came the antidote; for when exhaustedalike in mind and body--when lying helpless, with chains upon mylimbs--when expecting death at every visit of those who had dragged mefrom light and from liberty, and from love; it was but the thought ofthy beauty and thy affection that nerved me, and gave me a hope evenamidst the cruellest disaster."
"And then--and then, Charles?"
"You were my blessing, as you have ever been--as you are, and as youwill ever be--my own Flora, my beautiful--my true!"
We won't go so far as to say it is the fact; but, from a series ofsingular sounds which reached even to the passage of the cottage, wehave our own private opinion to the effect, that Charles began kissingFlora at the top of her forehead, and never stopped, somehow or another,till he got down to her chin--no, not her chin--her sweet lips--he couldnot get past them. Perhaps it was wrong; but we can't help it--we arefaithful chroniclers. Reader, if you be of the sterner sex, what wouldyou have done?--if of the gentler, what would you have permitted?
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