A Fluttered Dovecote by George Manville Fenn
weight, and I saw the unhappy sufferer fall rightupon the dog; when there was a scuffle and noise of contention, and thecowardly animal ran yelping and limping off upon three legs; whileAchille, looking pale and furious, stood straightening and brushing hisclothes, and trying to put himself in a fit state to pay his visit.
That was the last I saw; for the next thing I remember is Mrs Bluntcalling me a foolish, excitable girl; and they were sopping my face withcold water, making my hair all in such a wet mess, and the salts theyheld close to my nose were so strong that they nearly choked me.
"There, leave her now, young ladies, she is getting better," said MrsBlunt; for the horrible sick sensation was certainly going off, and Ibegan to awaken to the feeling that Achille was safe. Then it struck meall at once that I must have fainted away from what I had seen, and thethoughts of those around being suspicious nerved me to rouse myself upand hide my confusion.
They wanted me to give up my French lesson that morning, but I declaredthat I was so much better that they let me go in, and I really didexpect just a glance; but, no, he was like a piece of marble, and tooknot the slightest notice either of Clara or poor me. Then, too, he wasas cross and snappish as could be, and found great fault, sayingeverything was disgracefully done, and that every one had been goingback with the French ever since he had been away. But I did not mindthat a bit; for I saw how it was making Miss Furness's ears tingle,which was some consolation, seeing how hard she had been working us, andwhat a fuss she had been making, as if she were Monsieur Achille'sdeputy; and really I was getting jealous of the tiresome old thing.
I took my snubbing very patiently; but I could not help feeling terriblyangry when he rose to go, and, with an affectation of bashfulness, MissFurness followed, simpering, looking, or rather trying to look, in oureyes, as if she were engaged. But I followed too, almost as soon as thedoor was closed; and to my rage and disgust I found the hall empty, withAchille's hat still standing upon the table, so that he could not havegone.
"They must have gone into the drawing-room," I muttered.
And then once more my head began to swim, for I felt raging--jealous;and it did seem a thing that, after all I had suffered and done for hissake, I was to be given up for a dreadful screwy thing, old enough to bemy mother at the very least. But I would not faint this time, I was tooangry; and stepping across the hall, I opened the drawing-room door,softly and quickly, and walked in just in time to see that basedeceiver, Achille, kissing the hand of the old hypocrite. And how theydid both flinch and cower before my indignant glance!
Miss Furness was, of course, the first to recover herself, and stepforward in a vixenish manner, just as if she would have liked to bite.
"And pray, Miss Bozerne, what may be your business?" she exclaimed.
"Oh, I merely came for my wool-work," I replied, in a tone of the mostprofound contempt; and, sweeping across the room, I fetched a piece ofwork that I knew to be under one of the chair cushions, and then Imarched off, leaving Achille the very image of confusion, while as forMiss Furness, she was ready to fly at me with spite and anger.
I kept it up till I was outside the room, and had given the door a smartbang, when I rushed upstairs, and past Mrs Blunt, who called to me invain to stop, and then to my bedroom, where I locked myself in, and hadsuch a cry, as I dashed down the wool-work, and threw myself upon thebed, to lie with my burning cheek upon my pillow, and water it with mytears.
Rage, vexation, disappointment, love--I'm sure they were all mingledtogether, and sending me half wild. Only to think of his turning out adeceiver!--to leave me and go and pay court to a woman of forty, with ayellow skin, scraggy neck, and a temper of the most shrewish! I was sopassionate then, that I jumped off the bed and ran to the glass, and ifit too was not a deceiver, and did not tell me a story, I was handsome.But I vowed that I would be revenged for it all; and I stamped up anddown the room, thinking of what would be the best way; but, somehow, Icould not think of a plan then, so I lay down once more, and had anothergood cry.
"Never mind," I said.
Then I raised myself upon my elbow, and just at that moment some oneknocked.
"What is it?" I cried, after whoever it was had knocked four times, andwould not go away.
"Mrs de Blount says that she requests you to descend directly," saidone of the younger pupils.
"Tell her I have a very bad headache," I said, which really was a fact;and then I would not answer any more questions, for I was determined notto go down until all the marks of my crying had faded away, which I knewwould not be for some time.
"Miss Furness won't make me afraid of her any more," I said to myself."I've mastered her secret; and Achille dare not tell of me, for fear ofbetraying himself. I'll serve them both out."
I lay nursing up my wrath, till I felt obliged to cry again; and then,when I had done crying, I again picked up my wrath and nursed it; and soon, backwards and forwards, till all at once I started up, for there wasone of those hideous German brass bands. A set of towy-headed,sleepy-faced boys were blaring out "Partant pour la Syrie" in the mosthorribly discordant manner, till James was sent to order them out of thegrounds, when, to get the dreadful discords out of my head, and my mindmore in tune, I took advantage of a permission lately given me by MrsBlunt, and slipped quietly down into the drawing-room, which was nowempty. Sitting down to the piano, I rattled away at "La Pluie dePerles" until my fingers ached again, when I took up something ofTalexy's, and I suppose it was all emotional, for I'm sure I neverplayed so brilliantly before in my life--the notes seemed quite tosparkle under my fingers, and I kept on rattling away till I was tired,and dashed off the great finishing chords at the end.
Then I slammed down the piano, spun myself round upon the stool, andjumping up, I was about to make a pirouette, and what we girls, inhappy, innocent, thoughtless days, used to call a cheese, when I gave astart, for Mrs Blunt was standing there with a lady in walking costume,who was smilingly inspecting me through a great gold eyeglass, just asif I were some curiosity; and, of course, instead of the pirouette, Imade one of the spun-out, graceful obeisances so popular at the Cedars.
"One of our pupils," said Mrs Blunt, in her most polite tones. "MrsCampanelle Brassey--Miss Bozerne. Young and high-spirited, you see,"she continued, smiling benignantly upon me, just in the way that she haddone when mamma was with me, and never since. "Young, happy, andlight-hearted. Just at that age when life has no cares,"--couldn't Ihave pinched her. "She adores melody--quite a daughter of the Muses."
"Charming gyirl," said the lady, smiling. "Sweetly featured--sogazelle-eyed. Most unaccountably like my Euphemia."
"Indeed!" said Mrs Blunt. "How singular! They will, no doubt, be likesisters."
"Charming for Euphemia, to be sure," said Mrs Campanelle Brassey. "Itwill make the change from home so pleasant, and she will not pine."
"No fear of that," said Mrs Blunt--"ours is too home-like an abode."
"No doubt," said Mrs Campanelle Brassey. "And then there is that othercharming gyirl--the one with the sweet, high-spirited features--the oneyou just now showed me. Lady--Lady--Lady Somebody's daughter."
"Lady Fitzacre's," said Mrs Blunt.
"To be sure," said Mrs Campanelle Brassey. "Why, your establishmentwill be most enviable, Mrs Fortesquieu de Blount; for I'm sure that youwill have the Three Graces within your walls."
"Oh, fie!" exclaimed Mrs Blunt, playfully; "you are bringing quite ablush to the face of our young friend."
My cheeks certainly were tingling, but it was only to hear them talksuch twaddle; and I knew well enough now that they must have beenlooking on for some time, while Mrs Blunt only let me keep on strummingto show off before the visitor; for if it had been one of the girls whoplayed badly, she would have been snubbed and sent off in a hurry forpractising out of her turn.
For a moment, though, I felt a pang shoot through me--a jealous pang--asI thought that, if this new pupil came, she might bear off from me myAchille; while the next moment I was ready to
laugh scornfully from therecollection that I had no Achille, that he was already another's, thatmen were all false and deceivers, and that I could now turn satirical,and sympathise with Clara.
However, I showed none of the painful emotions sweeping through mybreast, but took all in good part, and allowed Mrs Campanelle Brasseyto tap me with her eyeglass, and kiss me on the cheek, which kiss was,after all, only a peck with her hooky nose; and then she must take whatshe called a fancy to me, and march me about with them all over theplace, and call me "My love," and "My sweet child," and all that sort ofstuff, when she was seeing me now for the first time; but, if I had beenthe most amiable of girls, but plain, like Grace Murray, instead ofshowy and dashing,
That was the last I saw; for the next thing I remember is Mrs Bluntcalling me a foolish, excitable girl; and they were sopping my face withcold water, making my hair all in such a wet mess, and the salts theyheld close to my nose were so strong that they nearly choked me.
"There, leave her now, young ladies, she is getting better," said MrsBlunt; for the horrible sick sensation was certainly going off, and Ibegan to awaken to the feeling that Achille was safe. Then it struck meall at once that I must have fainted away from what I had seen, and thethoughts of those around being suspicious nerved me to rouse myself upand hide my confusion.
They wanted me to give up my French lesson that morning, but I declaredthat I was so much better that they let me go in, and I really didexpect just a glance; but, no, he was like a piece of marble, and tooknot the slightest notice either of Clara or poor me. Then, too, he wasas cross and snappish as could be, and found great fault, sayingeverything was disgracefully done, and that every one had been goingback with the French ever since he had been away. But I did not mindthat a bit; for I saw how it was making Miss Furness's ears tingle,which was some consolation, seeing how hard she had been working us, andwhat a fuss she had been making, as if she were Monsieur Achille'sdeputy; and really I was getting jealous of the tiresome old thing.
I took my snubbing very patiently; but I could not help feeling terriblyangry when he rose to go, and, with an affectation of bashfulness, MissFurness followed, simpering, looking, or rather trying to look, in oureyes, as if she were engaged. But I followed too, almost as soon as thedoor was closed; and to my rage and disgust I found the hall empty, withAchille's hat still standing upon the table, so that he could not havegone.
"They must have gone into the drawing-room," I muttered.
And then once more my head began to swim, for I felt raging--jealous;and it did seem a thing that, after all I had suffered and done for hissake, I was to be given up for a dreadful screwy thing, old enough to bemy mother at the very least. But I would not faint this time, I was tooangry; and stepping across the hall, I opened the drawing-room door,softly and quickly, and walked in just in time to see that basedeceiver, Achille, kissing the hand of the old hypocrite. And how theydid both flinch and cower before my indignant glance!
Miss Furness was, of course, the first to recover herself, and stepforward in a vixenish manner, just as if she would have liked to bite.
"And pray, Miss Bozerne, what may be your business?" she exclaimed.
"Oh, I merely came for my wool-work," I replied, in a tone of the mostprofound contempt; and, sweeping across the room, I fetched a piece ofwork that I knew to be under one of the chair cushions, and then Imarched off, leaving Achille the very image of confusion, while as forMiss Furness, she was ready to fly at me with spite and anger.
I kept it up till I was outside the room, and had given the door a smartbang, when I rushed upstairs, and past Mrs Blunt, who called to me invain to stop, and then to my bedroom, where I locked myself in, and hadsuch a cry, as I dashed down the wool-work, and threw myself upon thebed, to lie with my burning cheek upon my pillow, and water it with mytears.
Rage, vexation, disappointment, love--I'm sure they were all mingledtogether, and sending me half wild. Only to think of his turning out adeceiver!--to leave me and go and pay court to a woman of forty, with ayellow skin, scraggy neck, and a temper of the most shrewish! I was sopassionate then, that I jumped off the bed and ran to the glass, and ifit too was not a deceiver, and did not tell me a story, I was handsome.But I vowed that I would be revenged for it all; and I stamped up anddown the room, thinking of what would be the best way; but, somehow, Icould not think of a plan then, so I lay down once more, and had anothergood cry.
"Never mind," I said.
Then I raised myself upon my elbow, and just at that moment some oneknocked.
"What is it?" I cried, after whoever it was had knocked four times, andwould not go away.
"Mrs de Blount says that she requests you to descend directly," saidone of the younger pupils.
"Tell her I have a very bad headache," I said, which really was a fact;and then I would not answer any more questions, for I was determined notto go down until all the marks of my crying had faded away, which I knewwould not be for some time.
"Miss Furness won't make me afraid of her any more," I said to myself."I've mastered her secret; and Achille dare not tell of me, for fear ofbetraying himself. I'll serve them both out."
I lay nursing up my wrath, till I felt obliged to cry again; and then,when I had done crying, I again picked up my wrath and nursed it; and soon, backwards and forwards, till all at once I started up, for there wasone of those hideous German brass bands. A set of towy-headed,sleepy-faced boys were blaring out "Partant pour la Syrie" in the mosthorribly discordant manner, till James was sent to order them out of thegrounds, when, to get the dreadful discords out of my head, and my mindmore in tune, I took advantage of a permission lately given me by MrsBlunt, and slipped quietly down into the drawing-room, which was nowempty. Sitting down to the piano, I rattled away at "La Pluie dePerles" until my fingers ached again, when I took up something ofTalexy's, and I suppose it was all emotional, for I'm sure I neverplayed so brilliantly before in my life--the notes seemed quite tosparkle under my fingers, and I kept on rattling away till I was tired,and dashed off the great finishing chords at the end.
Then I slammed down the piano, spun myself round upon the stool, andjumping up, I was about to make a pirouette, and what we girls, inhappy, innocent, thoughtless days, used to call a cheese, when I gave astart, for Mrs Blunt was standing there with a lady in walking costume,who was smilingly inspecting me through a great gold eyeglass, just asif I were some curiosity; and, of course, instead of the pirouette, Imade one of the spun-out, graceful obeisances so popular at the Cedars.
"One of our pupils," said Mrs Blunt, in her most polite tones. "MrsCampanelle Brassey--Miss Bozerne. Young and high-spirited, you see,"she continued, smiling benignantly upon me, just in the way that she haddone when mamma was with me, and never since. "Young, happy, andlight-hearted. Just at that age when life has no cares,"--couldn't Ihave pinched her. "She adores melody--quite a daughter of the Muses."
"Charming gyirl," said the lady, smiling. "Sweetly featured--sogazelle-eyed. Most unaccountably like my Euphemia."
"Indeed!" said Mrs Blunt. "How singular! They will, no doubt, be likesisters."
"Charming for Euphemia, to be sure," said Mrs Campanelle Brassey. "Itwill make the change from home so pleasant, and she will not pine."
"No fear of that," said Mrs Blunt--"ours is too home-like an abode."
"No doubt," said Mrs Campanelle Brassey. "And then there is that othercharming gyirl--the one with the sweet, high-spirited features--the oneyou just now showed me. Lady--Lady--Lady Somebody's daughter."
"Lady Fitzacre's," said Mrs Blunt.
"To be sure," said Mrs Campanelle Brassey. "Why, your establishmentwill be most enviable, Mrs Fortesquieu de Blount; for I'm sure that youwill have the Three Graces within your walls."
"Oh, fie!" exclaimed Mrs Blunt, playfully; "you are bringing quite ablush to the face of our young friend."
My cheeks certainly were tingling, but it was only to hear them talksuch twaddle; and I knew well enough now that they must have beenlooking on for some time, while Mrs Blunt only let me keep on strummingto show off before the visitor; for if it had been one of the girls whoplayed badly, she would have been snubbed and sent off in a hurry forpractising out of her turn.
For a moment, though, I felt a pang shoot through me--a jealous pang--asI thought that, if this new pupil came, she might bear off from me myAchille; while the next moment I was ready to
However, I showed none of the painful emotions sweeping through mybreast, but took all in good part, and allowed Mrs Campanelle Brasseyto tap me with her eyeglass, and kiss me on the cheek, which kiss was,after all, only a peck with her hooky nose; and then she must take whatshe called a fancy to me, and march me about with them all over theplace, and call me "My love," and "My sweet child," and all that sort ofstuff, when she was seeing me now for the first time; but, if I had beenthe most amiable of girls, but plain, like Grace Murray, instead ofshowy and dashing,