*CHAPTER XXII.*
*FAILURE.*
A few select guests were expected at Aldersfield for an early dinnerparty before the concert. Lady Dove was radiant. She was giving agrand party at which all the honour and none of the expense was going tofall on her. Even Miss Grossman had come in for smiles as she read anovel whilst her ladyship's hair was arranged, and for once punctualitywas rewarded, for Lady Southbourne arrived very early with manyapologies, which she hoped dear Lady Dove would accept. Her husband andson had gone to town on business and might be a little late, so she hadcome on first and they would come later in a dog-cart. Lady Dove wascharmed.
"It is so kind of you, Lady Southbourne, to come at all this foggyevening. I am always ready early in case a guest does come. My husbandand Antonia are usually late, but of course to-day there has been a gooddeal to arrange. We have turned the barn into a concert-room, and it isreally very pretty. I wanted all our friends of North Downshire tocome. The country has been a little dull lately."
"Miss Whitburn has told me your party would be a great success. Thestar's name is a secret, I hear."
"Yes, one of Antonia's little secrets! Of course I never interfere withher plans now she is of age, but I must say I feel rewarded when I lookback on the training of the wild colt she was when we first took her,little dreaming of the result."
"It must be an immense pleasure for you--though a girl with money is aresponsibility, isn't she?"
"Ah! no one knows how many anxious thoughts I have had on that subject."
"And that was what I really wanted to ask you about, dear Lady Dove. Iwant your--help and sympathy."
For the great Lady Southbourne to be asking her help and sympathy madeLady Dove happy.
"You can always rely on my help, indeed you can! Mutual help is ourgreatest duty."
"I need not say that if you have a niece, I have a son to have anxiousthoughts about--and I want you to know a little secret."
"Indeed!"
"Yes, but I don't doubt Miss Whitburn has already confided in you.Edward has proposed to her, but----"
"Oh, what an honour for Antonia, but, indeed, Lady Southbourne, yours isa family any girl might be proud to enter! Of course much above her inrank."
"Edward has no foolish ideas about birth, almost a Republican on thatsubject, but--I see that you do not know Miss Whitburn refused him andEdward is heart-broken."
"Antonia refused the----" Lady Dove gasped.
"She is young, she was startled, but with your help and advice shemight--reconsider it. Edward is more bent on it than ever."
If Lady Southbourne had been sitting in the palace of truth she wouldhave said her dear boy had just lost a large sum on the turf.
"Trust me, Lady Southbourne, you shall have my influence, and Antoniaowes us so much. I hardly think she will reject so much happiness."
"Thank you a thousand times."
At this moment other guests began to arrive, but where was Antonia andthe great man, and where were the Hamiltons? Happily Sir Evas wasworking hard and making everybody welcome regardless of their place inthe peerage.
Edward Lang and his father came in time, belying the fears of LadySouthbourne, and Lady Carew and her correct husband followed. AnHonourable or two, and a Colonel and his wife, made up the party ofpeople worthy of meeting each other. Toney had only begged for theHamiltons, Mr. Hales and Lewis Waycott, but this latter Lady Dove hadrefused as "that tiresome Miss Waycott would have to be included." Forthe concert everybody was coming, and a supper was to end this grandparty.
But Toney was too much occupied to give a thought to the countymagnates. Rose, who came to help her to put on her white dress, was notallowed to stay long.
"I'm all right, Rose; I want you to go to the Miss Hamiltons' room andbeg them to come here before going down. I've got them some lovelyflowers."
"There's some come for you too, Miss Toney," said Rose, holding out alovely bunch of white lilies. "It was left at the back door, and wasspecially to be given to you."
"Oh!" exclaimed Toney. "How lovely; I wonder who sent them. You see, Ihaven't a young man, Rose."
"Cook said as how you ought to have one, Miss Toney; specially you beingso rich now."
Toney paused as she held the flowers lovingly; she always had reverencedflowers. Oh, dear! even the servants associated money with love. Itwas dreadful! Then she resolutely thrust away thoughts of self, andlooked at her two bunches of roses. Then, pinning in her lilies, shewaited a little anxiously. Time was flying. She had arranged with thefootman to call Mr. Weston at the last moment, and she must get theHamiltons down before he came. There was a knock at the door, andJeanie Hamilton stood in the doorway, a vision of beauty in a soft cloudof pale blue silk and chiffon, whilst Maud looked nearly as muchtransformed in rose.
"Oh!" exclaimed Toney, "how just awfully beautiful you look, Jeanie!May I say it? and here are some flowers I got uncle to steal for you!Let me pin them on."
Jeanie could not help admiring herself, and her spirits rose. Never hadshe had such a dress.
"Wasn't it generous of Aunt Honoria? It's the most beautiful dress Ihave ever seen; and, look at Maud, isn't hers pretty too? They musthave cost a small fortune."
"You both look perfect."
"We must tell you about the gentleman who took our measure," exclaimedMaud, trying to hide her nervousness by talking. "But, oh, Toney, lookat the time; we ought to go down."
"Yes. We'll all go together, and if you go in first Aunt Dove'sbig-wigs will be so struck of a heap with you that they'll forget me.They do seem so very extra civil to me now, all because I've got so muchtin. Oh! they don't know the trouble of it; but in any case I don'tstick bank-notes on my clothes, so I can't see why I'm more interestingthan I was before. Come, let's run! No, you can't with those clo'."
But all the same, the three girls did run, seeing an anxious look on thebutler's face as they entered the hall.
The door was thrown open for them, and, as Toney had predicted, the twoHamiltons made a sensation, especially Jeanie, whose face was so full ofpathos, and who looked especially beautiful. Toney crept in behind them,but was seen by her aunt.
"Toney, how dreadfully late you are! The musician--what's his name--hasnot come down yet. Tell Thomas to fetch him at once." Toney nodded.
"It's all right, Aunt Dove; I've done it. You know musical people arenot like others."
Sir Evas knew he had to obey orders, and got hold of Jeanie. He heldthe list of the other pairs in his hand, but several gentlemen came upto talk to this vision of beauty. Maud kept close to Toney; she couldnot talk, she could hardly see. What would Jeanie do? and what would hedo? Why had Toney done this? How terrible; suppose there was a scene;suppose----
The door flew open and Mr. Frank Weston was announced, but Jeanie was atthe other end of the room and did not hear the name.
Toney flew up to the genius and introduced him right and left tilldinner was announced; then she paused.
"You remember about--my friend, Mr. Weston?" The genius had bowed rightand left in rather a formal manner. He was so often introduced that hebarely listened to the names of the people introduced. He was thinkingof Miss Whitburn. The big-wigs were pairing off, and solemnly marchedaway like a regiment of newly-trained recruits, when Sir Evas suddenlyintroduced him to a lady whose name he did not hear. He held out hisarm mechanically; ladies were nothing to him, and he only saw abeautiful dress. A symphony was floating through his brain, he was onlyacting in a dream, till suddenly he felt the arm he held tremble. He wasrecalled to earth. They were crossing the hall, and the noise of voiceswas great Various scraps of conversation about hunting and the weatherreached him, and his own name--the great Frank Weston; what a surprise,no one expected him! He looked down and exclaimed--he knew not what.
"Let me go away," she murmured, "you----"
"Impossible! Miss Hamilton, pray remember we are both
guests--no oneknows. If my presence is so--distasteful to you----"
"I did not know."
"Neither did I--but this chance meeting might have happened anywhere."
"Yes----" Jeanie straightened herself, and they both walked on insilence. They were shown their places, and Frank Weston glanced at thename on his other side; Mrs. Arbuthnot. Jeanie had Colonel Arbuthnot onher other side. They need not speak to each other. How terrible!Jeanie searched for Maud, but she was on the same side and could not beseen. Her heart beat so fast she could hardly speak. She looked forToney, someone to appeal to. Was she near Frank? Yes, Frank was here,sitting beside her; but of course he hated her. Of course, he waswishing himself miles away; of course, he would _never_ forgive her,never, never love her again. Never--never, she repeated to herself.
Toney's eyes, which saw so much, were looking at them; she could seethey were silent, and she noticed they each turned to their otherneighbours. Oh! her plan was failing, had failed, and she had riskedeverything on this dinner. Maud was looking deadly pale, but in spiteof all this the talk was loud, drowning nearly everything. Mr. Hales ather side broke the spell.
"You are very preoccupied this evening, and yet you have secured the oneman everyone wants to hear," he said. "Are you not satisfied?" Hisvoice had a new tone in it, which made Toney look up wonderingly.
"Oh, yes, I am preoccupied; so would you be if you had conspiredtremendously and your conspiracy was no good."
"Indeed!"
"Mr. Hales, help me! Mr. Frank Weston isn't talking one scrap to JeanieHamilton."
"He has come to play the violin, and I daresay he is not a goodconversationalist."
"It's not that, you don't know her story; he was in love with Jeanieonce, and she loved him really, but she sent him away because his fatherhad a shop and sold something, and now she's just frightfully sorry shedid it, and--but he doesn't look as if he was forgiving her. What wouldyou do?"
Mr. Hales smiled.
"I should never have hazarded the meeting--never."
"Was I wrong? Oh, but of course she _is_ sorry, and--but I wish theywould notice each other. If I were her I should just say I knew I was aborn fool when I said no." Mr. Hales laughed.
"I don't think _you_ would ever have said no for that reason!"
"I couldn't, because my father sort of kept a shop; we were alwaysselling drugs. Oh look, Mr. Hales, just out of the corner of your eye,I see Jeanie looking up into his face, and she has just refused oysterpatties."
"But do I understand you did all this to--bring them together?"
"Yes. I did so want them to be happy, besides it would make Maud andMr. Waycott happy."
Mr. Hales was silent. He was considering whether Toney would everconsent herself to say yes to somebody. A dream of a larger sphere ofwork floated before his mental vision, a dream of a young wife who woulddevote her money to their work, for in every mission-field money wasneeded, money and workers. But love seemed very far removed fromToney's ideas at this moment, and so he was silent. Then he asked afterthe work at the Haven.
"Miss Phipps is doing wonders, and some of my first friends cometo-morrow. Two of the _avant garde_ and the deaf man. He has no one totake care of him."
"You will indeed have the blind and the deaf," said Mr. Hales smiling.
"Yes, but I do wish we lived in the days of St. Clare and SisterOrtolana. For when St. Francis sent them to sick people they made thesign of the Cross, and immediately restored them all to health."
"And by their prayers, Toney, I think."
"Yes," answered Toney, "I suppose that's where we fail; but oh, Mr.Hales, I did pray ever so hard about Jeanie and the genius! Do youthink--they will make it up? We have come to the cheese and they havesaid nothing!" Mr. Hales hid a smile.
"Perhaps the music will work the miracle. Don't despair."
"Perhaps it will, though that is a mystery to me. Mr. Hales, you willkeep near me, won't you, as I see the Honourable Edward looking at mesideways. I'm so afraid he'll want to talk to me privately."
"But perhaps----"
"Oh no! I couldn't possibly think of it! Besides, I'm afraid it's truewhat Aunt Dove said. He wants the--money, and you see it would be adreadful disappointment to hear that it--was not to be had. I thoughtmoney might make two people happy, and here are the ices and theyhaven't yet melted!"
Everyone soon rose to proceed to the barn, and in that interval Toneyflew to find the genius.