Overman rose hastily.
“Sorry the weather was so threatening I couldn’t persuade your wife to go to the Temple, Frank.”
“Yes, the rain is pouring in torrents2 and it’s getting colder,” he answered, rubbing his hands before the fire.
“I’ll not stay to dinner; I’ve an engagement at my club,” the banker said, briskly.
The one eye ran from the man to the woman in embarrassment3 at the threatening silence. Kate walked with him to the door.
“You will return at seven o’clock,” she said, in even tones.
“If you command it,” he coolly answered.
“I do. We will have our parting this afternoon. He can remove to his old quarters at the hotel. I will receive you alone, and we will arrange for the divorce and our marriage.”
“Promptly at seven,” he said, crushing her hand in his parting grasp.
Gordon ate his dinner in obstinate4 quiet, now and then looking at his wife’s dazzling beauty with fevered yearning5 in his eyes.
When she rose from the table he said:
“I wish to speak with you in the library, my dear.”
“Very well, I’ll be down directly,” she carelessly replied.
He paced the floor for half an hour, and rang for the maid.
“Tell your mistress I am waiting,” he said, abruptly6.
The maid did not return, and his anger grew with each lengthening7 minute.
At the end of an hour, Kate appeared.
He fixed8 her with a look of angry amazement9.
“Well, what is it?” she asked, impatiently.
“Why did you keep your maid and send no answer to me?”
“I was writing a letter. Are you a king? What is it?” she repeated, coldly.
“I wish to say something of the utmost importance both to you and to me, and to another man,” he said slowly, in a voice pulsing with a storm of emotion.
The violet eyes danced and laughed in his face.
“So tragic10?” she asked, mockingly.
He locked his big hands nervously11 behind him, stood before the fire, and a scowl12 settled over his face.
“Yes,” he said, with quiet force. “More than you understand, I fear. I have had enough of Mark Overman in this house.”
The fair face flushed with excitement. She walked quickly up to him, paused, and slowly pointed13 to the door.
“Very well. This is my house. You know the way to the hotel, or shall I ring for my maid to show you?”
He stared at her in a stupor14, and a sense of sickening terror choked him.
“Kate, are you crazy?” he stammered15.
“Never was more myself than in this moment of perfect freedom,” she replied, defiantly17.
His great jaws18 snapped in silent ferocity, and his hairy hands closed slowly like the claws of a bear. He planted his big feet apart, and the sparks flew from the gray eyes that seemed to crouch19 now behind his brows.
“What do you mean?” he sullenly20 asked.
The woman drew back with uncertainty21, chilled by the tone of his voice.
“Just what I said,” she answered, with returning courage. “This is my house. I am a free woman. I mean to do what I please. Permit me to repeat your own words from the ceremony of Emancipation22, and lest I shock you later, announce that I love Mr. Overman—”
“Kate!” he cried, in bitter reproach.
“Yes, and he loves me. I announce to you this unity23 of our Eves. For months it has made us one. May I repeat your ceremony? I have memorised it perfectly24. ‘Human life incarnates25 God. Words can add nothing to the sublime26 fact of the union of two souls. This is the supreme27 sacrament of human experience. It proclaims its inherent divinity. There is no yesterday or to-day in the harmony and rhythm of two such souls. Love holds all the years that have been and are to be.’”
She paused, smiled, and went on:
“‘This is a day of joy—overflowing, unsullied, serene28; a day of hope, a day of faith. It is a day of courage and of cheer, and to the world it speaks a gospel of freedom and fellowship. It proclaims the dawn of a higher life for all, the sanctity and omnipotence29 of love. It asserts the elemental rights of man,’ With joy I announce to you my approaching marriage to your friend and schoolmate, Mark Overman, a man in whose strength I glory, whom I shall delight to call my lord and master.”
Trembling from head to foot, the veins30 on his neck and hands standing31 out like steel cords, Gordon said in a hoarse32 whisper:
“Kate, darling, this is a cruel joke! You are teasing me.”
Again she laughed, sat down lazily, and threw her arms behind her head.
“I never was more serious in my life,” she quietly replied.
He hesitated a moment, his eyes devouring33 her beauty, stepped quickly to her side, knelt and took her hand.
She snatched it roughly, pushed him from her, and cried angrily:
“Don’t touch me!”
He attempted to take her hand and place his arm about her.
She sprang up, repulsing34 him with rage.
“It is all over between us. You are not my husband. I love another.”
He arose, walked back to the fireplace and leaned his elbow on the mantel. A wave of agony and blind rage swept him. And then the memory of the hour he spent in such a scene with Ruth caught him by the throat. He could feel the soft touch of her tapering35 fingers on his big foot as she lay prostrate36 on the floor before him.
He turned with a shiver toward Kate, who was still gazing at him with insolent languor37.
Again his eyes swept the lines of her superb form with the wild thirst for possession that means murder. Two bright red spots appeared on his cheeks.
With slow vehemence38 he said:
“And do you think the man lives who will dare to take you from me?”
“Dare? I will dare to turn you out of this house. I have chosen the man, and made love to him as his equal. His scruples39 as your friend bound him. They do not bind40 me. Thank yourself if this means a tragedy. You challenged the world in your strength. You proclaimed freedom in comradeship. Under the old laws of life, this man would have cut his right arm off rather than betray you. You invited him here. Has he no rights—have I no rights you must respect under such conditions?”
He ignored her question and continued to look at her in stubborn, curious silence.
“Do you know what you are saying?” he asked, brusquely.
“Certainly. Repeating to you the secrets you have taught me.”
“Well, I’ll teach you something more before this drama has ended, young woman,” he said, with a touch of ice in his tones.
She gave an angry toss of her head and cried with sneering41 emphasis:
“Indeed!”
“Yes. I’ll show you, if you push me to it, what a return to the freedom of nature really means. I, too, have had some illuminations in the past months.”
She laughed again.
“Ah, Frank, you are a born preacher, and your threats are scarcely melodramatic; they are merely idiotic42.”
The gray eyes grew somber43. He drew his right arm up until its muscles stood a huge twisted knot, fairly bursting through his sleeve, seized her hand roughly and held it with iron violence on his arm.
“It’s worth your while to take note of that,” he said, steadily44 disregarding her angry effort to withdraw her hand. “It’s made out of threads of steel—that muscle. Few men are my equal. I am talking to you in the insolence45 of physical strength that proclaims me a king—a savage46 viking, if you like, but none the less a king.”
She attempted again to free her arm from his brutal47 grip.
“Be still,” he growled48. “I feel throbbing50 in my veins to-day the blood of a thousand savage ancestors who made love to their women with a club and dragged them to their caves by the hair—yes, and more, the beat of impulses that surged there with wild power before man became a man.”
With a sob51 of rage, she tore herself from his grasp.
“Oh, you brute52!” she cried, stiffening53 her figure to its full height, her dark-red hair falling in ruffling54 ringlets about her ears and neck, as she rubbed her arm where his hand had left the blue finger-prints.
“I warn you,” he said, his voice sinking lower and lower into a mere16 growl49. “I am your husband. You are my wife. Whatever may have been my dreams, I’m awake now. Man once aroused is an animal with teeth and claws and Titanic55 impulses, huge and fateful forces that crush and kill all that comes between him and his two fierce elemental desires, hunger and love.”
The splendid form of the woman shook with anger. Her eyes ablaze56, her cheeks scarlet57, her voice sobbing58 and breaking with wrath59, she said:
“And did you call it that when you threw your little wife into the street for me? Is this your boasted freedom—freedom for man’s desires alone?”
“I warn you,” he repeated, ignoring her question. “You will bring that man into this house again at the peril60 of his life and yours.”
“Yes, you are talking to a woman now,” she hissed61. “Babbler, preacher, parson, coward! Why did you not say this to him?”
“I’ll say it in due time,” he answered, deliberately62 folding his arms. “In the meantime, I will inform you, as you are in search of a master, that I am your master and the master of this house.”
With a stamp of her foot, she swept from the room, throwing over her shoulder the challenge:
“We shall see!”
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
insolent
|
|
| adj.傲慢的，无理的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
torrents
|
|
| n.倾注；奔流( torrent的名词复数 )；急流；爆发；连续不断 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
embarrassment
|
|
| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
obstinate
|
|
| adj.顽固的，倔强的，不易屈服的，较难治愈的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
yearning
|
|
| a.渴望的；向往的；怀念的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
abruptly
|
|
| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
lengthening
|
|
| （时间或空间）延长，伸长( lengthen的现在分词 )； 加长 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
fixed
|
|
| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
amazement
|
|
| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
tragic
|
|
| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
nervously
|
|
| adv.神情激动地，不安地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
scowl
|
|
| vi.(at)生气地皱眉，沉下脸，怒视；n.怒容 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
pointed
|
|
| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
stupor
|
|
| v.昏迷；不省人事 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
stammered
|
|
| v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
mere
|
|
| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
defiantly
|
|
| adv.挑战地，大胆对抗地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
jaws
|
|
| n.口部；嘴 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
crouch
|
|
| v.蹲伏，蜷缩，低头弯腰；n.蹲伏 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
sullenly
|
|
| 不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
uncertainty
|
|
| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
emancipation
|
|
| n.（从束缚、支配下）解放 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
unity
|
|
| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
perfectly
|
|
| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
incarnates
|
|
| v.赋予（思想、精神等）以人的形体( incarnate的第三人称单数 )；使人格化；体现；使具体化 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
sublime
|
|
| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
supreme
|
|
| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
serene
|
|
| adj. 安详的，宁静的，平静的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
omnipotence
|
|
| n.全能，万能，无限威力 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
veins
|
|
| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
standing
|
|
| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
hoarse
|
|
| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
devouring
|
|
| 吞没( devour的现在分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
repulsing
|
|
| v.击退( repulse的现在分词 )；驳斥；拒绝 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
|
35
tapering
|
|
| adj.尖端细的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
prostrate
|
|
| v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
languor
|
|
| n.无精力，倦怠 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
vehemence
|
|
| n.热切；激烈；愤怒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
scruples
|
|
| n.良心上的不安( scruple的名词复数 )；顾虑，顾忌v.感到于心不安，有顾忌( scruple的第三人称单数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
bind
|
|
| vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
sneering
|
|
| 嘲笑的，轻蔑的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
idiotic
|
|
| adj.白痴的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
somber
|
|
| adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
steadily
|
|
| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
insolence
|
|
| n.傲慢；无礼；厚颜；傲慢的态度 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
savage
|
|
| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
brutal
|
|
| adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
growled
|
|
| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
growl
|
|
| v.（狗等）嗥叫，（炮等）轰鸣；n.嗥叫，轰鸣 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
throbbing
|
|
| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
sob
|
|
| n.空间轨道的轰炸机；呜咽，哭泣 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
brute
|
|
| n.野兽，兽性 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
stiffening
|
|
| n. (使衣服等)变硬的材料, 硬化 动词stiffen的现在分词形式 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
ruffling
|
|
| 弄皱( ruffle的现在分词 )； 弄乱； 激怒； 扰乱 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
titanic
|
|
| adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
ablaze
|
|
| adj.着火的，燃烧的；闪耀的，灯火辉煌的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
scarlet
|
|
| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
sobbing
|
|
| <主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
wrath
|
|
| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
peril
|
|
| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
hissed
|
|
| 发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
deliberately
|
|
| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |