Venetia

  CHAPTER V.

  When the breakfast was over, they wandered about the valley, whichCadurcis could not sufficiently admire. Insensibly he drew Venetiafrom the rest of the party, on the pretence of showing her a view atsome little distance. They walked along by the side of a rivulet,which glided through the hills, until they were nearly a mile from thevilla, though still in sight.

  'Venetia,' he at length said, turning the conversation to a moreinteresting topic, 'your father and myself have disburthened our mindsto each, other this morning; I think we know each other now as well asif we were as old acquaintances as myself and his daughter.'

  'Ah! I knew that you and papa must agree,' said Venetia; 'I was sayingso this morning to my mother.'

  'Venetia,' said Cadurcis, with a laughing eye, 'all this is verystrange, is it not?'

  'Very strange, indeed, Plantagenet; I should not be surprised if itappeared to you as yet even incredible.'

  'It is miraculous,' said Cadurcis, 'but not incredible; an angelinterfered, and worked the miracle. I know all.'

  Venetia looked at him with a faint flush upon her cheek; she gathereda flower and plucked it to pieces.

  'What a singular destiny ours has been, Venetia! 'said Cadurcis. 'Doyou know, I can sit for an hour together and muse over it.'

  'Can you, Plantagenet?'

  'I have such an extraordinary memory; I do not think I ever forgotanything. We have had some remarkable conversations in our time,eh, Venetia? Do you remember my visit to Cherbury before I went toCambridge, and the last time I saw you before I left England? And nowit all ends in this! What do you think of it, Venetia?'

  'Think of what, Plantagenet?'

  'Why, of this reconciliation?'

  'Dear Plantagenet, what can I think of it but what I have expressed,that it is a wonderful event, but the happiest in my life.'

  'You are quite happy now?'

  'Quite.'

  'I see you do not care for me the least.'

  'Plantagenet, you are perverse. Are you not here?'

  'Did you ever think of me when I was away?'

  'You know very well, Plantagenet, that it is impossible for me tocease to be interested in you. Could I refrain from thinking of such afriend?'

  'Friend! poh! I am not your friend; and, as for that, you never oncementioned my name to your father, Miss Venetia.'

  'You might easily conceive that there were reasons for such silence,'said Venetia. 'It could not arise on my part from forgetfulness orindifference; for, even if my feelings were changed towards you, youare not a person that one would, or even could, avoid speaking of,especially to papa, who must have felt such interest in you! I amsure, even if I had not known you, there were a thousand occasionswhich would have called your name to my lips, had they beenuncontrolled by other considerations.'

  'Come, Venetia, I am not going to submit to compliments from you,'said Lord Cadurcis; 'no blarney. I wish you only to think of me asyou did ten years ago. I will not have our hearts polluted by thevulgarity of fame. I want you to feel for me as you did when we werechildren. I will not be an object of interest, and admiration, andfiddlestick to you; I will not submit to it.'

  'Well, you shall not,' said Venetia, laughing. 'I will not admire youthe least; I will only think of you as a good little boy.'

  'You do not love me any longer, I see that,' said Cadurcis.

  'Yes I do, Plantagenet.'

  'You do not love me so much as you did the night before I went toEton, and we sat over the fire? Ah! how often I have thought of thatnight when I was at Athens!' he added in a tone of emotion.

  'Dear Plantagenet,' said Venetia, 'do not be silly. I am in thehighest spirits in the world; I am quite gay with happiness, and allbecause you have returned. Do not spoil my pleasure.'

  'Ah, Venetia! I see how it is; you have forgotten me, or worse thanforgotten me.'

  'Well, I am sure I do not know what to say to satisfy you,' saidVenetia. 'I think you very unreasonable, and very ungrateful too, forI have always been your friend, Plantagenet, and I am sure you knowit. You sent me a message before you went abroad.'

  'Darling!' said Lord Cadurcis, seizing her hand, 'I am not ungrateful,I am not unreasonable. I adore you. You were very kind then, when allthe world was against me. You shall see how I will pay them off, thedogs! and worse than dogs, their betters far; dogs are faithful. Doyou remember poor old Marmion? How we were mystified, Venetia! Littledid we think then who was Marmion's godfather.'

  Venetia smiled; but she said, 'I do not like this bitterness of yours,Plantagenet. You have no cause to complain of the world, and youmagnify a petty squabble with a contemptible coterie into a quarrelwith a nation. It is not a wise humour, and, if you indulge it, itwill not be a happy one.'

  'I will do exactly what you wish on every subject, said Cadurcis, 'ifyou will do exactly what I wish on one.'

  'Well!' said Venetia.

  'Once you told me,' said Cadurcis, 'that you would not marry mewithout the consent of your father; then, most unfairly, you added toyour conditions the consent of your mother. Now both your parents arevery opportunely at hand; let us fall down upon our knees, and begtheir blessing.'

  'O! my dear Plantagenet, I think it will be much better for me neverto marry. We are both happy now; let us remain so. You can live here,and I can be your sister. Will not that do?'

  'No, Venetia, it will not.'

  'Dear Plantagenet!' said Venetia with a faltering voice, 'if you knewhow much I had suffered, dear Plantagenet!'

  'I know it; I know all,' said Cadurcis, taking her arm and placing ittenderly in his. 'Now listen to me, sweet girl; I loved you when achild, when I was unknown to the world, and unknown to myself; I lovedyou as a youth not utterly inexperienced in the world, and when myrising passions had taught me to speculate on the character of women;I loved you as a man, Venetia, with that world at my feet, thatworld which I scorn, but which I will command; I have been constant,Venetia; your heart assures you, of that. You are the only being inexistence who exercises over me any influence; and the influence youpossess is irresistible and eternal. It springs from some deep andmysterious sympathy of blood which I cannot penetrate. It can neitherbe increased nor diminished by time. It is entirely independent ofits action. I pretend not to love you more at this moment than whenI first saw you, when you entered the terrace-room at Cherbury andtouched my cheek. From that moment I was yours. I declare to you, mostsolemnly I declare to you, that I know not what love is except to you.The world has called me a libertine; the truth is, no other woman cancommand my spirit for an hour. I see through them at a glance. I readall their weakness, frivolity, vanity, affectation, as if they weretouched by the revealing rod of Asmodeus. You were born to be mybride. Unite yourself with me, control my destiny, and my course shallbe like the sun of yesterday; but reject me, reject me, and I devoteall my energies to the infernal gods; I will pour my lava over theearth until all that remains of my fatal and exhausted nature is ablack and barren cone surrounded by bitter desolation.'

  'Plantagenet; be calm!'

  'I am perfectly calm, Venetia. You talk to me of your sufferings.What has occasioned them? A struggle against nature. Nature has nowtriumphed, and you are happy. What necessity was there for all thismisery that has fallen on your house? Why is your father an exile? Donot you think that if your mother had chosen to exert her influenceshe might have prevented the most fatal part of his career?Undoubtedly despair impelled his actions as much as philosophy, thoughI give him credit for a pure and lofty spirit, to no man more. But nota murmur against your mother from me. She received my overtures ofreconciliation last night with more than cordiality. She is yourmother, Venetia, and she once was mine. Indeed, I love her; indeed,you would find that I would study her happiness. For after all, sweet,is there another woman in existence better qualified to fill theposition of my mother-in-law? I could not behave unkindly to her; Icould not treat her with neglect or harshness; not merely for thesake of her many admirable qualities, but from other c
onsiderations,Venetia, considerations we never can forget. By heavens! I love yourmother; I do, indeed, Venetia! I remember so many things; her lastwords to me when I went to Eton. If she would only behave kindlyto me, you would see what a son-in-law I should make. You would bejealous, that you should, Venetia. I can bear anything from you,Venetia, but, with others, I cannot forget who I am. It makes mebitter to be treated as Lady Annabel treated me last year in London:but a smile and a kind word and I recall all her maternal love; I doindeed, Venetia; last night when she was kind I could have kissedher!'

  Poor Venetia could not answer, her tears were flowing so plenteously.'I have told your father all, sweetest,' said Cadurcis; 'I concealednothing.'

  'And what said he?' murmured Venetia.

  'It rests with your mother. After all that has passed, he willnot attempt to control your fate. And he is right. Perhaps hisinterference in my favour might even injure me. But there is no causefor despair; all I wanted was to come to an understanding with you; tobe sure you loved me as you always have done. I will not be impatient.I will do everything to soothe and conciliate and gratify LadyAnnabel; you will see how I will behave! As you say, too, we are happybecause we are together; and, therefore, it would be unreasonable notto be patient. I never can be sufficiently grateful for this meeting.I concluded you would be in England, though we were on our way toMilan to inquire after you. George has been a great comfort to me inall this affair, Venetia; he loves you, Venetia, almost as much asI do. I think I should have gone mad during that cursed affair inEngland, had it not been for George. I thought you would hate me; but,when George brought me your message, I cared for nothing; and then hisvisit to the lake was so devilish kind! He is a noble fellow and atrue friend. My sweet, sweet Venetia, dry your eyes. Let us rejointhem with a smile. We have not been long away, I will pretend we havebeen violet hunting,' said Cadurcis, stooping down and plucking up ahandful of flowers. 'Do you remember our violets at home, Venetia?Do you know, Venetia, I always fancy every human being is like someobject in nature; and you always put me in mind of a violet so freshand sweet and delicate!'