CHAPTER XXV.
UNDER A CLOUD.
When Vava had arrived at school, Miss Briggs, who really had nothing todo with her, although she had taken it upon her to write to Stella abouther friendship with Doreen Hackney, told her to report herself to thehead-mistress for being late.
The girls rather resented Miss Briggs's interference. She was not one ofthe form-mistresses, but taught certain subjects throughout the school,and had passed very high examinations; and, in her zeal for thewell-being of the school and its pupils, she was apt to be meddlesome,as she was this morning, when, having nothing to do, she was walkingabout the corridors, and met Vava hurrying in late. Vava went by herorders to the head-mistress's room, but found it empty. As she wascoming away she met Miss Briggs, and thought it her duty to tell herthat the head-mistress was not there, and was then going to pass on toher classroom.
But Miss Briggs stopped her. 'Then you had better wait here for her,'she observed.
'I shall miss my exam.!' protested Vava.
'Where is your written excuse for being late?' demanded Miss Briggs.
'I have none. I went with my sister to her City office, as she did notlike going alone,' explained Vava.
This explanation sounded very lame and unsatisfactory, Miss Briggsthought. Moreover, this same sister had written her a very stiff letterin answer to her warning against Doreen as a friend for Vava; and it isto be feared there was a certain amount of spite mingled with a desirefor discipline when she replied, 'That is no excuse. You are too late togo into the examination, and you will disturb all the others. Yoursister should have consideration for them, and you will stay here untilthe bell rings for recreation.' And Miss Briggs marched away.
'Here' was a corridor without any seats; but Vava took this command asmeaning to stay out of the classroom, and she wandered off to theplayground, where she sat down on a garden-seat, and looked over thesubject for the next examination, feeling very irritated at MissBriggs's dictatorial manner.
Everything 'happened' wrong that morning. Miss Briggs, as she went backto her room, chanced to pass Miss Courteney, who had come to the door ofthe classroom to speak to some one, and Miss Briggs detained her, ratheragainst her will, saying, 'Oh Miss Courteney, I met Vava Whartonstrolling in just now. She had been to her sister's office instead ofcoming to school, so I told her it was not worth while coming in now anddisturbing the others, and that she must wait till the bell rings.'
Miss Courteney looked vexed. 'It is her best subject. I am very sorry.Where is she?' she asked.
'In the corridor. Shall I say you will excuse her this time, and sendher to you?' inquired Miss Briggs, who saw that, though Miss Courteneywas too polite to say so, she had done wrong.
'I shall be much obliged if you will. I will speak to her about beinglate,' replied Miss Courteney, much relieved. She did not want tocontradict Miss Briggs's orders; but she did not want Vava to miss herexamination.
Miss Briggs hurried down to the corridor; but of course saw no Vava. Shesearched in all the empty rooms and in the large assembly room, and inher eagerness to find Vava she actually toiled up to the studio at thetop of the building, but in vain. Then, feeling rather annoyed with Vavafor her disobedience, Miss Briggs searched the cloak-rooms; and, notseeing the girl there, looked for her hat and coat under the name ofWharton. They were not there, and Miss Briggs came to the conclusionthat Vava had gone off to tell her sister, her ideas of schooldiscipline being elementary, in Miss Briggs's opinion. There was noopportunity of telling Miss Courteney, who was in charge of theexamination, so she waited until the bell rung; for it never occurred toher that on this cold March morning Vava would be sitting in theplayground.
But so it was. When the bell rung Vava joined the other girls atrecreation.
'Where have you been, Vava Wharton?' demanded Miss Briggs, who was incharge of the playground.
'Here, Miss Briggs,' replied Vava.
Miss Briggs unfortunately took her to mean on the premises. 'Do Iunderstand you to say that you never left the school premises?' shedemanded.
'Yes, I stayed here all the time till the bell rung,' said Vava.
'Strange. I searched everywhere, but could not find you,' commented MissBriggs.
'I was here all the time,' repeated Vava, rather nettled at the youngteacher's tone.
Miss Briggs went to report the matter to Miss Upjohn, who listened witha rather abstracted air.
'I will see the girl afterwards; at present I am worried about someexamination papers which I put on the top of my desk and cannot find,'she replied.
'What papers are they?' inquired Miss Briggs.
'The Scripture papers for the Fourth Form; it is the next examinationafter recreation,' explained the head-mistress, who took this subjectherself throughout the school.
'The Fourth Form! That is Vava Wharton's form,' observed Miss Briggs.
'Yes, she is in the Fourth Form,' agreed Miss Upjohn absent-mindedly.And then she exclaimed, 'Why, what are those papers on that shelf nearthe door?'
Miss Briggs went to look. 'They are the Fourth Form Scripture papers,'she informed her.
'I am glad. But how on earth did they get on to that shelf? I am sure Iput them on this table; I never put them anywhere else, and that shelfwould be the last place I should put them. Any one passing the doorcould easily see and read them without even meaning to do so,' remarkedMiss Upjohn, looking puzzled.
'It looks as if some one had looked at them,' observed Miss Briggs withmeaning.
'How? What do you mean?' inquired Miss Upjohn in surprise.
'I mean, if you did not put them there yourself some one must havemeddled with them, and it looks to me as if that some one had taken themaway to look at, and then hurriedly put them back as near the door asshe could get,' explained Miss Briggs.
'Oh I don't think it at all likely! I hope not; I should be sorry tothink there was a girl in my school who would do such a thing!' shecried.
'Then how do you account for them being removed?' demanded Miss Briggs.
'I can't account for it; but I would rather think that I put them theremyself in an absent-minded moment than that they had been tamperedwith.'
'But you are never absent-minded, and you do not forget things,'objected Miss Briggs.
'I may have forgotten this; let us hope so,' said the head-mistress in atone which showed Miss Briggs she wished to change the conversation.
Miss Briggs took the hint and said no more, and it is just possible thatthe matter might have dropped, and that a suspicion which had arisen inher mind might have died out, but for another unfortunate coincidence,which was as follows.
Vava, as has been said, had not learned to be subject to discipline, andconstantly talked when going to and from class; and now, after the bellwas rung, she observed to Doreen, 'I don't care if I have missed thehistory. I shall be first in the Scripture examination--you see if I amnot. I can answer any of the questions they put.'
Vava took no heed of where she was when she spoke, and never noticedthat she was passing Miss Upjohn's room, until Doreen said, 'Hush!'
Miss Briggs, who was at the door with the head-mistress, overheard theremark, and she looked to see what Miss Upjohn thought of it; but thelatter only looked grave at the breach of discipline.
'You heard that?' questioned Miss Briggs.
'Yes. I will have to speak to her,' replied Miss Upjohn.
But Miss Briggs did not let the matter rest there. She said nothing moreat the time; but after school was over she went to the head-mistress'sroom, meaning to talk the matter over.
As it happened ('all wrong,' as Vava declared about all the happeningsof this day), Miss Upjohn had the Scripture papers of the Fourth Formbefore her, and was correcting them.
'Miss Upjohn, excuse me,' began Miss Briggs.
Miss Upjohn patiently put her pen down. She occasionally found MissBriggs and her zeal trying; but there was a spirit of comradeship amongthe members of the staff which is not often to be seen as strongly a
s atthe City School for Girls. 'You wish to speak to me?' she questioned.
'Yes. Have you corrected Vava Wharton's Scripture paper?' she inquired.
Miss Upjohn was surprised at the question, but replied, 'As it happens,I have, and a very excellent paper it is; she has answered everyquestion.'
'She said she should, on her way into the classroom, if you remember,'Miss Briggs remarked.
Miss Upjohn looked at the young teacher inquiringly, and then themeaning of Miss Briggs's words dawned upon her, and she said hastily,'She is very well up in Scripture.'
'I would not have spoken of it but for this, Miss Upjohn, and it leavesno doubt in my mind as to the person who moved your papers,' said MissBriggs; and she told the story of Vava's morning as far as she knew it,adding, 'She says she stayed in the building the whole time; but I knowthat to be false, for I searched it from top to bottom.'
Miss Upjohn looked very grave, 'I believe her to be the soul of honour.Surely you would not suspect a girl with such an open countenance as shehas of such a dishonest act, and in a Scripture examination too?'objected the head-mistress.
'I am very sorry to do so, but appearances are often deceptive, or howshould we be so often taken in? I must say it looks to me very like it,taking into consideration her speech before the examination, herexcellent paper, the fact that she was alone hiding somewhere for partof the morning, and that your papers had undoubtedly been moved,' arguedMiss Briggs.
Miss Upjohn could not help thinking what an excellent detective theyoung teacher would have made; but she was not convinced by herarguments, all the same. 'I think you are mistaken; I sincerely hope so,and I shall be obliged if you will not mention the matter to any one,'was all she said, and she did not thank Miss Briggs for reporting thematter to her; but long after the young mistress had gone she satlooking thoughtfully before her, while the ink dried on her pen and thepapers remained uncorrected. Then, as if she dismissed an unpleasantthought, she continued her corrections.
And that probably would have been the end of that matter if Miss Briggshad not met Vava outside the school, talking eagerly to Doreen. 'I knowI have done well in this exam, and the algebra. Mr. Jones helped me withthe algebra, and in this exam. I knew quite well what questions weregoing to be asked, and looked them up while you were doing your historyexam.; so it's all for the best, after all.'
'Vava Wharton,' said Miss Briggs sharply, 'how did you know whatquestions were to be asked?'
Vava was by no means a nervous girl, nor given to starting when spokento; but perhaps the events of the past few days, or more likely theexaminations, had excited her. At all events, she started at MissBriggs's sharp voice, and stammering slightly, said, 'I guessed it, MissBriggs.'
'That is nonsense. How could you guess such a thing?' said Miss Briggs,unbelieving.
'Indeed she did, Miss Briggs, for she told me one question she knewwould be asked as we were going up the stairs, before we saw the papersat all; and it was great luck, for she reminded me of the answer, and itwas the first question on the paper!' cried Doreen, whose idea was toprove to the mistress that Vava was not boasting, which was what sheimagined her friend was being suspected of doing.
But it was, as it happened, a most unfortunate remark. Little thoughMiss Upjohn had encouraged her, Miss Briggs felt that she must go backand tell the head-mistress this latest information. So she did, thoughshe was received very coldly.
Miss Upjohn heard her to the end without making any comment, and thenshe said, 'I am sure you only wished to perform an unpleasant duty inrepeating this conversation, and I am obliged to you for telling me, asI will speak to Vava Wharton to-morrow and hear her explanation, which Iam sure will be satisfactory. Good-evening, Miss Briggs.' And MissUpjohn held out her hand with a kind smile.
Miss Briggs went away far from satisfied. She thought Miss Upjohn verycredulous and prejudiced in Vava's favour, and the unworthy thought cameinto her head that it was because she was a protegee of the chairman oftheir board of governors. 'And because of that she won't believe a wordagainst her,' said the young mistress to herself. Then, being, as hasalready been seen, a most meddlesome person, she had no sooner arrivedat her lodgings than she sat down and wrote a letter to no less a personthan Mr. Montague Jones, who read it aloud at breakfast to his wife.
'I'm going right to the City school to get to the bottom of this, andgive that "meddlesome Mattie" a piece of my mind,' he said in an annoyedtone.
'But the letter is marked "Private and confidential," Monty,' protestedhis wife.
'I'll "private and confidential" her. You haven't any right to libel anyone confidentially, and I'll make her eat her words, daring to accuse mylittle Vava of looking at examination papers, and Scripture examinationpapers too! The woman must be an idiot!' cried the irate man.
'Pray be moderate in your expressions, Monty, and don't go up therestorming at every one because they don't believe in Vava as much as youdo,' remonstrated his wife.
Mr. Jones turned on her indignantly. 'You don't believe this humbug, Ishould hope?' he inquired.
'No, of course not, because I know the child; but I must own it lookssuspicious, and if you take my advice you'll have a talk with Vava, and,without betraying Miss Briggs, get her to explain it all to you; there'ssome explanation, I have no doubt,' suggested Mrs. Montague Jones.
This was very sensible advice, and Mr. Jones was in the habit ofblustering first, and then calming down and listening to his wife'sshrewd suggestions; and this was what he did in the present case, thoughhe went off in the car, which he had ordered round at once, mutteringall sorts of threats against Miss Briggs for daring to malign hisfavourite.