FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161  
162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   184   185   186   >>   >|  
emulous, and her expression was that of a woman who feels herself sadly abused and who is about to indulge in luxurious weeping. "But, Horace, to sell this house over my head--what will p-people say?" "I don't care two whoops what people say," Mr. Gower replied unfeelingly. "This is simp-ply outrageous! How is Betty going to m-meet p-people?" "You mean," her husband retorted, "how are you going to contrive the proper background against which Betty shall display her charms to the different varieties of saphead which you hit upon as being eligible to marry her? Don't worry. With the carefully conserved means at your disposal you will still be able to maintain yourself in the station in which it has pleased God to place you. You will be able to see that Betty has the proper advantages." This straw broke the camel's back, if it is proper so to speak of a middle-aged, delicate-featured lady, delightfully gowned and coiffed and manicured. Mrs. Gower's grief waxed crescendo. Whereupon her husband, with no manifest change of expression beyond an unpleasant narrowing of his eyes, heaved his short, flesh-burdened body out of the chair and left the room. Betty had sat silent through this conversation, a look of profound distaste slowly gathering on her fresh young face. She gazed after her father. When the door closed upon him Betty's gray eyes came to rest on her mother's bowed head and shaking shoulders. There was nothing in Betty Gower's expression which remotely suggested sympathy. She said nothing. She leaned her elbows on the table and rested her pretty chin in her cupped palms. Mrs. Gower presently became aware of this detached, observing, almost critical attitude. "Your f-father is p-positively b-brutal," she found voice to declare. "There are various sorts of brutality," Betty observed enigmatically. "I don't think daddy has a corner on the visible supply. Are you going to let him have that money?" "No. Never," Mrs. Gower snapped. "You may lose a great deal more than the house by that," Betty murmured. But if Mrs. Gower heard the words they conveyed no meaning to her agitated mind. She was rapidly approaching that incomprehensible state in which a woman laughs and cries in the same breath, and Betty got up with a faintly contemptuous curl to her red lips. She went out into the hall and pressed a button. A maid materialized. "Go into the dining room and attend to mamma, if you please, Mary," B
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161  
162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   184   185   186   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

expression

 

people

 

proper

 

husband

 

father

 
observing
 

critical

 

attitude

 

brutal

 
positively

enigmatically

 
corner
 

visible

 

observed

 

brutality

 

detached

 

declare

 

mother

 

shaking

 

shoulders


remotely

 

closed

 

suggested

 

sympathy

 

cupped

 

supply

 

presently

 

pretty

 

rested

 

leaned


elbows

 
emulous
 

contemptuous

 

faintly

 

breath

 
pressed
 

attend

 

dining

 

button

 

materialized


laughs

 

snapped

 

agitated

 

rapidly

 

approaching

 

incomprehensible

 
meaning
 

conveyed

 

murmured

 

disposal