CHAPTER XIX
"IT'S DICKIE!"
Fanny went straight to her own room. "What a nasty time I have livedthrough!" she thought as she was about to enter. Then she opened thedoor and started back.
The whole room had undergone a metamorphosis. There was a shaded lightin one corner, and the door between Fanny's room and Betty's was thrownopen. A grave, kind-looking nurse was seated by a table, on which was ashaded lamp; and on seeing Fanny enter she held up her hand with awarning gesture. The next minute she had beckoned the girl out on thelanding.
"What is the meaning of this?" asked Fanny. "What are you doing in myroom?"
"The doctor wished the door to be opened and the room to be given up tome," replied the nurse. "My name is Sister Helen, and I am looking afterdear little Miss Vivian. We couldn't find you to tell you about thenecessary alterations, which were made in a hurry. Ah, I mustn't leavemy patient! I hear her calling out again. She is terribly troubled aboutsomething she has lost. Do you hear her?"
"I won't give it up! I won't give it up!" called poor Betty's voice.
"I was asked to tell you," said Sister Helen, "to go straight to MissSymes, who has arranged another room for you to sleep in--that is, ifyou _are_ Miss Crawford."
"Yes, that is my name. Have my things been removed?"
"I suppose so, but I don't know. I am going back to my patient."
The nurse re-entered the room, closing the door on Fanny, who stood byherself in the corridor. She heard Betty's voice, and Betty's voicesounded so high and piercing and full of pain that her first feeling wasone of intense thankfulness that she had been moved from close proximityto the girl. The next minute she was speeding down the corridor in thedirection of Miss Symes's room. Half-way there she met St. Cecilia comingto meet her.
"Ah, Fanny, dear," said Miss Symes, "I thought your little meeting wouldhave been over by now. Do you greatly mind sharing my room with meto-night? I cannot get another ready for you in time. Dr. Ashley wishesthe nurse who is looking after Betty to have your room for the present.There was no time to tell you, dear; but I have collected the few thingsI think you will want till the morning. To-morrow we will arrangeanother room for you. In the meantime I hope you will put up with me. Ihave had a bed put into a corner of my room and a screen around it, soyou will be quite comfortable."
"Thank you," said Fanny. She wondered what further unpleasantness wasabout to happen to her on that inauspicious night.
"You would like to go to bed, dear, wouldn't you?" said Miss Symes.
"Yes, thank you."
"Well, you shall do so. I cannot go for a couple of hours, as Mrs. Haddowants me to sit up with her until the specialist arrives from London."
"The specialist from London!" exclaimed Fanny, turning first red andthen white. "Do you mean that Mrs. Haddo has sent for a London doctor?"
"Indeed she has. My dear, poor little Betty is dangerously ill. Dr.Ashley is by no means satisfied about her."
By this time the two had reached Miss Symes's beautiful room. Fanny gavea quick sigh. Then, like a flash, a horrible thought occurred to her.Her room had to be given up to-morrow. Her things would be removed.Among her possessions--put safely away, it is true, but still not _too_safely--was the little sealed packet. If that packet were found, Fannyfelt that the world would be at an end as far as she was concerned.
"You don't look well yourself, Fanny," said Miss Symes, glancing kindlyat the girl. "Of course you are sorry about Betty; we are all sorry, forwe all love her. If you had been at prayers to-night you would have beenastonished at the gloom which was felt in our beautiful little chapelwhen Mr. Fairfax prayed for her."
"But she can't be as ill as all that?" said Fanny.
"She is--very, very ill, dear. The child has evidently got a bad chill,together with a most severe mental shock. We none of us can make outwhat is the matter; but it is highly probable that the specialist--Dr.Jephson of Harley Street--will insist on the Specialities beingquestioned as to the reason why Betty was expelled from the club. It isabsolutely essential that the girl's mind should be relieved, and thatas soon as possible. She is under the influence now of a composingdraught, and, we greatly trust, may be more like herself in the morning.Don't look too sad, dear Fanny! I can quite understand that you mustfeel this very deeply, for Betty is your cousin; and somehow,dear--forgive me for saying it--but you do not act quite the cousin'spart to that poor, sweet child. Now I must leave you. Go to bed, dear.Pray for Betty, and then sleep all you can."
"Where are the twins?" suddenly asked Fanny.
"They are sleeping to-night in the lower school. It was necessary to putthe poor darlings as far from Betty as possible, for they are in afearful state about her. Now I will leave you, Fanny. I am wantedelsewhere. When I do come to bed I will be as quiet as possible, so asnot to disturb you."
Fanny made no answer, and the next minute Miss Symes had left her.
Fanny now went over to the corner of the room where a snug little whitebed had been put up, a washhand-stand was placed and where a small chestof drawers stood--empty at present, for only a few of Fanny's things hadbeen taken out of her own room. The girl looked round her in abewildered way. The packet!--the sealed packet! To-morrow all herpossessions would be removed into a room which would be got ready forher. There were always one or two rooms to spare at Haddo Court, andFanny would be given a room to herself again. She was far too importanta member of that little community not to have the best possible done forher. Deft and skillful servants would take her things out of the variousdrawers and move them to another room. They would find the packet. Fannyknew quite well where she had placed it. She had put it under a pile oflinen which she herself took charge of, and which was always kept in thebottom drawer of her wardrobe. Fanny had put the packet there in amoment of excitement and hurry. She had not yet decided what to do withit; she had to make a plan in her own mind, and in the meantime it wassafe enough among Fanny's various and pretty articles of toilet. For itwas one of the rules of Haddo Court that each girl, be she rich or poor,should take care of her own underclothing. All that the servants had todo was to see that the things were properly aired; but the girls had tomend their own clothes and keep them tidy.
Absolute horror filled Fanny's mind now. What was she to do? She was sobewildered that for a time she could scarcely think coherently. Then shemade up her mind that, come what would, she must get that packet out ofher own bedroom before the servants came in on the following day. Shewas so absorbed with the thought of her own danger that she had no timeto think of the very grave danger which assailed poor little BettyVivian. If she had disliked Betty before, she hated her now. Oh, howright she had been when, in her heart of hearts, she had opposed Betty'sentrance into the school! What trouble those three tiresome, wild,uncontrollable girls had brought in their wake! And now Betty--Betty,who was so adored--Betty, who, in Fanny's opinion, was both a thief anda liar--was dangerously ill; and she (Fanny) would in all probabilityhave to appear in a most sorry position. For, whatever Betty's sin,Fanny knew well that nothing could excuse her own conduct. She had spiedon Betty; she had employed Sibyl Ray as a tool; she had got Sibyl totake the packet from under the piece of heather; and that very night shehad excited the astonishment of her companions in the Speciality Club byproposing a ridiculously unsuitable person for membership as poor Sibyl.
"Things look as black as night," thought Fanny to herself. "I don't wantto go to bed. I wish I could get out of this. How odious things are!"
Just then she heard footsteps outside her door--footsteps that came upclose and waited. Then, all of a sudden, the door was flung violentlyopen, and Sylvia and Hester entered. They had been crying so hard thattheir poor little faces were disfigured almost beyond recognition.Sylvia held a small tin box in her hand.
"What are you doing, girls? You had better go to bed," said Fanny.
Neither girl took the slightest notice of this injunction. They lookedround the room, noting the position of the different articles offu
rniture. Then Sylvia walked straight up to the screen behind whichFanny's bed was placed. With a sudden movement she pulled down thebedclothes, opened the little tin box, and put something into Fanny'sbed.
"It's Dickie!" said Sylvia. "I hope you will like his company. Come,Hetty."
Before Fanny could find words the girls had vanished. But the look ofhatred on Sylvia's face, the look of defiance and horror on Hetty's,Fanny was not likely to forget. They shut the door somewhat noisilybehind them. Then, all of a sudden, Hetty opened it again, pushed in hersmall face, and said, "You had better be careful. His bite isdangerous!"
The next instant quick feet were heard running away from Miss Symes'sroom, in the center of which Fanny stood stunned and really frightened.What had those awful children put into her bed? She had heard vaguerumors of a pet of theirs called Dickie, but had never been interestedenough even to inquire about him. Who was Dickie? What was Dickie? Whywas his bite dangerous? Why was he put into her bed? Fanny, for all hercareful training, for all her airs and graces, was by no meansremarkable for physical courage. She approached the bed once or twice,and went back again. She was really afraid to pull down the bedclothes.At last, summoning up courage, she did so. To her horror, she saw anenormous spider, the largest she had ever beheld, in the center of thebed! This, then, was Dickie! He was curled up as though he were asleep.But as Fanny ventured to approach a step nearer it seemed to her thatone wicked, protruding eye fastened itself on her face. The next instantDickie began to run, and when Dickie ran he ran towards her. Fannyuttered a shriek. It was the culmination of all she had lived throughduring that miserable evening. One shriek followed another, and in aminute Susie Rushworth and Olive Repton ran into the room.
"Oh, save me! Save me!" said Fanny. "Those little horrors have done it!I don't know where it is! Oh, it is such an odious, dangerous, awfulkind of reptile! It's the biggest spider I ever saw in all my life, andthose horrible twins came and put it into my bed! Oh, girls, what I amsuffering! Do have pity on me! Do help me to find it! Do help me to killit!"
"To kill Dickie!" said Susie. "Why, the poor little twins wereheartbroken for two or three days because they thought he was lost. Ifor one certainly won't kill Dickie."
"Nor I," said Olive.
"Oh, dear! what shall I do?" said poor Fanny. "I really never was insuch miserable confusion and wretchedness in my life."
"Do, Fanny, cease to be such a coward!" said Susie. "I must say I amsurprised at you. The poor little twins are almost besidethemselves--that is, on account of darling Betty. Betty is so ill; andthey think--the twins do----I mean, they have got it into their headsthat you--you don't like Betty, although she is your cousin and the verysweetest girl in all the world. But as to your being afraid of a spider!We'll have a good hunt for him, and find him. Fanny, I never thought youcould scream out as you did. What a mercy that Miss Symes's room is agood way off from poor darling Betty's!"
"Do try to think of some one besides Betty for a minute!" said Fanny;"and you find that horror and put him into his box, or put him intoanything, only don't have him loose in the room."
"Well, we'll have a good search," said both the girls, "and we may findhim."
But this was a thing easier said than done; for if there was a knowingspider anywhere in the world, that spider was Dickie of Scotland. Dickiewas not going to be easily caught. Perhaps Dickie had a secret sense ofhumor and enjoyed the situation--the terror of the one girl, the effortsof the others to put him back into captivity. In vain Susie laid baitsfor Dickie all over the room--bits of raw meat, even one or two deadflies which she found in a corner. But Dickie had secured a hiding-placefor himself, and would not come out at present.
"I can't sleep in the room--that's all!" said Fanny. "I reallycan't--that's flat."
"Oh, stop talking for a minute!" said Olive suddenly. "There! didn't youhear it? Yes, that is the sound of the carriage coming back from thestation. Dr. Jephson has come. Oh, I wonder what he will say about her!"
"Don't leave me, girls, please!" said Fanny. "I never was so utterlyknocked to bits in my whole life!"
"Well, we must go to bed or we'll be punished," said Susie.
"Susie, you are not a bit afraid of reptiles; won't you change roomswith me?" asked Fanny.
"I would, only it's against the rules," said Susie at once.
Olive also shook her head. "It's against the rules, Fanny; and, really,if I were you I'd pull myself together, and on a night like this, whenthe whole house is in such a state of turmoil, I'd try to show a sparkof courage and not be afraid of a poor little spider."
"A _little_ spider! You haven't seen him," said Fanny. "Why, he's nearlyas big as an egg! I tell you he is most dangerous."
"That's the doctor! Oh, I wonder what he is going to say!" exclaimedOlive. "Come, Susie," she continued, turning to her companion, "we mustgo to bed. Good-night, Fanny; good-night."