FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   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   >>   >|  
nt young man ran off, I found myself alone with Flora. It was all I could do to hold her in the hall while I called to the servants to come and shut the door." As is my habit, or my weakness, or my gift, I don't know which, I visualized the story for myself. I really can't help it. And the vision of Mrs. Fyne dressed for a rather special afternoon function, engaged in wrestling with a wild-eyed, white-faced girl had a certain dramatic fascination. "Really!" I murmured. "Oh! There's no doubt that she struggled," said Mrs. Fyne. She compressed her lips for a moment and then added: "As to her being a comedian that's another question." Mrs. Fyne had returned to her attitude of folded arms. I saw before me the daughter of the refined poet accepting life whole with its unavoidable conditions of which one of the first is the instinct of self- preservation and the egoism of every living creature. "The fact remains nevertheless that you--yourself--have, in your own words, pulled her in," I insisted in a jocular tone, with a serious intention. "What was one to do," exclaimed Mrs. Fyne with almost comic exasperation. "Are you reproaching me with being too impulsive?" And she went on telling me that she was not that in the least. One of the recommendations she always insisted on (to the girl-friends, I imagine) was to be on guard against impulse. Always! But I had not been there to see the face of Flora at the time. If I had it would be haunting me to this day. Nobody unless made of iron would have allowed a human being with a face like that to rush out alone into the streets. "And doesn't it haunt you, Mrs. Fyne?" I asked. "No, not now," she said implacably. "Perhaps if I had let her go it might have done . . . Don't conclude, though, that I think she was playing a comedy then, because after struggling at first she ended by remaining. She gave up very suddenly. She collapsed in our arms, mine and the maid's who came running up in response to my calls, and . . . " "And the door was then shut," I completed the phrase in my own way. "Yes, the door was shut," Mrs. Fyne lowered and raised her head slowly. I did not ask her for details. Of one thing I am certain, and that is that Mrs. Fyne did not go out to the musical function that afternoon. She was no doubt considerably annoyed at missing the privilege of hearing privately an interesting young pianist (a girl) who, since, had become one of the
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   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   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
afternoon
 

function

 

insisted

 

streets

 

Perhaps

 
implacably
 
Always
 

impulse

 
friends
 

imagine


allowed

 

haunting

 
Nobody
 

details

 
slowly
 

lowered

 
raised
 
musical
 

considerably

 

interesting


pianist

 

privately

 

annoyed

 

missing

 

privilege

 

hearing

 

phrase

 

struggling

 

remaining

 

playing


comedy

 
running
 

response

 

completed

 

suddenly

 
collapsed
 

conclude

 
exasperation
 

murmured

 
Really

dramatic
 

fascination

 
struggled
 
question
 

returned

 

attitude

 
folded
 

comedian

 
compressed
 

moment