He returned to his trysting place and listened while the serenaders sang their first song. Unable to endure the delay longer he started to the house just as his father hastily left by the front door, and quickly passing the men at the gate, hurried down town.
The coast was clear and he moved cautiously to fathom1, if possible, the mystery of Helen's disappearance2. Finding no trace of her in Minerva's room, he entered the house and, seeing nothing of her in the halls, thrust his head in the library and found it empty. He walked in, peeping around with a boyish smile expecting her to leap out and surprise him. He opened the French window and looked for her on the porch. He hurried back into the room with a look of surprised disappointment and started to the door opening on the hall of the stairway. He heard distinctly the rustle3 of[Pg 389] a dress and the echo on the stairs of the footstep he knew so well.
He gave a boyish laugh, tiptoed quickly to the old-fashioned settee, dropped behind its high back and waited her coming.
Helen had hastily packed a travelling bag and thrown a coat over her arm. She slowly entered the library to replace the portrait she had taken, kissed it and started with feet of lead and set, staring eyes to slip through the lawn and avoid Tom as she had promised.
As she approached the corner of the settee the boy leaped up with a laugh:
"Where have you been?"
With a quick movement of surprise she threw the bag and coat behind her back. Luckily he had leaped so close he could not see.
"Where've you been?" he repeated.
"Why, I've just come from my room," she replied with an attempt at composure.
"What have you got your hat for?"
She flushed the slightest bit:
"Why, I was going for a walk."
"With a veil—at night—what have you got that veil for?"
The boyish banter4 in his tones began to yield to a touch of wonder.
Helen hesitated:
"Why, the crowds of singing and shouting men on the streets. I didn't wish to be recognized, and I wanted to hear what the speakers said."
"You were going to leave me and go alone to the speaker's stand?"
"Yes. Your father is going to see you and I was[Pg 390] nervous and frightened and wanted to pass the time until you were free again"—she paused, looked at him intently and spoke5 in a queer monotone—"the negroes who can't read and write have been disfranchised, haven't they?"
"Yes," he answered mechanically, "the ballot6 should never have been given them."
"Yet there's something pitiful about it after all, isn't there, Tom?" She asked the question with a strained wistfulness that startled the boy.
He answered automatically, but his keen, young eyes were studying with growing anxiety every movement of her face and form and every tone of her voice:
"I don't see it," he said carelessly.
She laid her left hand on his arm, the right hand still holding her bag and coat out of sight.
"Suppose," she whispered, "that you should wake up to-morrow morning and suddenly discover that a strain of negro blood poisoned your veins—what would you do?"
Tom frowned and watched her with a puzzled look:
"Never thought of such a thing!"
She pressed his arm eagerly:
"Think—what would you do?"
"What would I do?" he repeated in blank amazement7.
"Yes."
His eyes were holding hers now with a steady stare of alarm. The questions she asked didn't interest him. Her glittering eyes and trembling hand did. Studying her intently he said lightly:
"To be perfectly8 honest, I'd blow my brains out."[Pg 391]
With a cry she staggered back and threw her hand instinctively9 up as if to ward10 a blow:
"Yes—yes, you would—wouldn't you?"
He was staring at her now with blanched11 face and she was vainly trying to hide her bag and coat.
He seized her arms:
"Why are you so excited? Why do you tremble so?"—he drew the arm around that she was holding back—"What is it? What's the matter?"
His eye rested on the bag, he turned deadly pale and she dropped it with a sigh.
"What—what—does this mean?" he gasped12. "You are trying to leave me without a word?"
She staggered and fell limp into a seat:
"Oh, Tom, the end has come, and I must go!"
"Go!" he cried indignantly, "then I go, too!"
"But you can't, dear!"
"And why not?"
"Your father has just told me the whole hideous13 secret of my birth—and it's hopeless!"
"What sort of man do you think I am? What sort of love do you think I've given you? Separate us after the solemn vows14 we've given to each other! Neither man nor the devil can come between us now!"
She looked at him wistfully:
"It's sweet to hear such words—though I know you can't make them good."
"I'll make them good," he broke in, "with every drop of blood in my veins—and no coward has ever borne my father's name—it's good blood!"
"That's just it—and blood will tell. It's the law of life and I've given up."
"Well, I haven't given up," he protested, "remember[Pg 392] that! Try me with your secret—I laugh before I hear it!"
With a gleam of hope in her deep blue eyes she rose trembling:
"You really mean that? If I go an outcast you would go with me?"
"Yes—yes."
"And if a curse is branded on my forehead you'll take its shame as yours?"
"Yes."
She laid her hand on his arm, looked long and yearningly15 into his eyes, and said:
"Your father has just told me that I am a negress—my mother is an octoroon!"
The boy flinched16 involuntarily, stared in silence an instant, and his form suddenly stiffened17:
"I don't believe a word of it! My father has been deceived. It's preposterous18!"
Helen drew closer as if for shelter and clung to his hand wistfully:
"It does seem a horrible joke, doesn't it? I can't realize it. But it's true. The major gave me his solemn word in tears of sympathy. He knew both my father and mother. I am a negress!"
The boy's arm unconsciously shrank the slightest bit from her touch while he stared at her with wildly dilated19 eyes and spoke in a hoarse20 whisper:
"It's impossible! It's impossible—I tell you!"
He attempted to lift his hand to place it on his throbbing21 forehead. Helen clung to him in frantic22 grief and terror:
"Please, please—don't shrink from me! Have pity on me! If you feel that way, for God's sake don't let[Pg 393] me see it—don't let me know it—I—I—can't endure it! I can't——"
The tense figure collapsed23 in his arms and the brown head sank on his breast with a sob24 of despair. The boy pressed her to his heart and held her close. He felt her body shiver as he pushed the tangled25 ringlets back from her high, fair forehead and felt the cold beads26 of perspiration27. The serenaders at the gate were singing again—a negro folk-song. The absurd childish words which he knew so well rang through the house, a chanting mockery.
"There, there," he whispered tenderly, "I didn't shrink from you, dear. I couldn't shrink from you—you only imagined it. I was just stunned28 for a moment. The blow blinded me. But it's all right now, I see things clearly. I love you—that's all—and love is from God, or it's not love, it's a sham——"
A low sob and she clung to him with desperate tenderness.
He bent29 his head close until the blonde hair mingled30 with the rich brown:
"Hush31, my own! If a single nerve of my body shrank from your little hand, find it and I'll tear it out!"
She withdrew herself slowly from his embrace, and brushed the tears from her eyes with a little movement of quiet resignation:
"It's all right. I'm calm again and it's all over. I won't mind now if you shrink a little. I'm really glad that you did. It needed just that to convince me that your father was right. Our love would end in the ruin of your life. I see it clearly now. It would become to you at last a conscious degradation32. That I couldn't endure."[Pg 394]
"I have your solemn vow," he interrupted impatiently, "you're mine! I'll not give you up!"
She looked at him sadly:
"But I'm going, dear, in a few minutes. You can't hold me—now that I know it's for the best."
"You can't mean this?"
She clung to his hand and pressed it with cruel force:
"Don't think it isn't hard. All my life I've been a wistful beggar, eager and hungry for love. In your arms I had forgotten the long days of misery33. I've been happy—perfectly, divinely happy! It will be hard, the darkness and the loneliness again. But I can't drag you down, my sweetheart, my hero! Your life must be big and brilliant. I've dreamed it thus. You shall be a man among men, the world's great men—and so I am going out of your life!"
"You shall not!" the boy cried fiercely. "I tell you I don't believe this hideous thing—it's a lie, I tell you—it's a lie, and I don't care who says it! Nothing shall separate us now. I'll go with you to the ends of the earth and if you sink into hell, I'll follow you there, lift you in my arms and fight my way back through its flames!"
She smiled at him tenderly:
"It's beautiful to hear you say that, dearest, but our dream has ended!"
She stooped, took up the bag and coat, paused and looked into his face with the hunger and longing34 of a life burning in her eyes:
"But I shall keep the memory of every sweet and foolish word you have spoken, every tone of your voice, every line of your face, every smile and trick of your lips and eyes! I know them all. The old darkness will[Pg 395] not be the same. I have loved and I have lived. A divine fire has been kindled35 in my soul. I can go into no world so far I shall not feel the warmth of your love, your kisses on my lips, your strong arms pressing me to your heart—the one true, manly36 heart that has loved me. I shall see your face forever though I see it through a mist of tears—good-by!"
The last word was the merest whisper.
The boy sprang toward her:
"I won't say it—I won't—I won't!"
"But you must!"
He opened his arms and called in tones of compelling anguish37:
"Helen!"
The girl's lips trembled, her eyes grew dim, her fingers were locked in a cruel grip trying to hold the bag which slipped to the floor. And then with a cry she threw herself madly into his arms:
"Oh, I can't give you up, dearest! I can't—I've tried—but I can't!"
He held her clasped without a word, stroking her hair, kissing it tenderly and murmuring little inarticulate cries of love.
Norton suddenly appeared in the door, his face blanched with horror. With a rush of his tall figure he was by their side and hurled38 them apart:
"My God! Do you know what you're doing?"
He turned on Tom, his face white with pain:
"I forbid you to ever see or speak to this girl again!"
Tom sprang back and confronted his father:
"Forbid!"
Helen lifted her head:
"He's right, Tom."[Pg 396]
"Yes," the father said with bated breath, "in the name of the law—by all that's pure and holy, by the memory of the mother who bore you and the angels who guard the sanctity of every home, I forbid you!"
The boy squared himself and drew his figure to its full height:
"You're my father! But I want you to remember that I'm of age. I'm twenty-two years old and I'm a man! Forbid? How dare you use such words to me in the presence of the woman I love?"
Norton's voice dropped to pitiful tenderness:
"You—you—don't understand, my boy. Helen knows that—I'm right. We have talked it over. She has agreed to go at once. The carriage will be at the door in a moment. She can never see you again"—he paused and lifted his hand solemnly above Tom's head—"and in the name of Almighty39 God I warn you not to attempt to follow her——"
He turned quickly, picked up the fallen bag and coat and added:
"I'll explain all to you at last if I must."
"Well, I won't hear it!" Tom cried in rage. "I'm a free agent! I won't take such orders from you or any other man!"
The sound of the carriage wheels were heard on the graveled drive at the door.
Norton turned to Helen and took her arm:
"Come, Helen, the carriage is waiting."
With a sudden leap Tom was by his side, tore the bag and coat from his hand, hurled them to the floor and turned on his father with blazing eyes:
"Now, look here, Dad, this thing's going too far![Pg 397] You can't bulldoze me. There's one right no American man ever yields without the loss of his self-respect—the right to choose the woman he loves. When Helen leaves this house, I go with her! I'm running this thing now—your carriage needn't wait."
With sudden decision he rushed to the porch and and called:
"Driver!"
"Yassah."
"Go back to your stable—you're not wanted."
"Yassah."
"I'll send for you if I want you—wait a minute till I tell you."
Norton's head drooped40 and he blindly grasped a chair.
Helen watched him with growing pity, drew near and said softly:
"I'm sorry, major, to have brought you this pain——"
"You promised to go without seeing him!" he exclaimed bitterly.
"I tried. I only gave up for a moment. I fought bravely. Remember now in all you say to Tom that I am going—that I know I must go——"
"Yes, I understand, child," he replied brokenly, "and my heart goes out to you. Mine is heavy to-night with a burden greater than I can bear. You're a brave little girl. The fault isn't yours—it's mine. I've got to face it now"—he paused and looked at her tenderly. "You say that you've been lonely—well, remember that in all your orphan41 life you never saw an hour as lonely as the one my soul is passing through now! The loneliest road across this earth is the way of sin."[Pg 398]
Helen watched him in amazement:
"The way of sin—why——"
Tom's brusque entrance interrupted her. With quick, firm decision he took her arm and led her to the door opening on the hall:
"Wait for me in your room, dear," he said quietly. "I have something to say to my father."
She looked at him timidly:
"You won't forget that he is your father, and loves you better than his own life?"
"I'll not forget."
She started with sudden alarm and whispered:
"You haven't got the pistol that you brought home to-day from the campaign, have you?"
"Surely, dear——"
"Give it to me!" she demanded.
"No."
"Why?" she asked pleadingly.
"I've too much self-respect."
She looked into his clear eyes:
"Forgive me, dear, but I was so frightened just now. You were so violent. I never saw you like that before. I was afraid something might happen in a moment of blind passion, and I could never lift my head again——"
"I'll not forget," he broke in, "if my father does. Run now, dear, I'll join you in a few minutes."
A pressure of the hand, a look of love, and she was gone. The boy closed the door, quickly turned and faced his father.
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收听单词发音
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1
fathom
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| v.领悟，彻底了解 | |
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2
disappearance
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| n.消失，消散，失踪 | |
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rustle
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| v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声 | |
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banter
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| n.嘲弄，戏谑；v.取笑，逗弄，开玩笑 | |
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5
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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ballot
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| n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票 | |
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7
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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8
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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9
instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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10
ward
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| n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开 | |
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11
blanched
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| v.使变白( blanch的过去式 )；使（植物）不见阳光而变白；酸洗（金属）使有光泽；用沸水烫（杏仁等）以便去皮 | |
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12
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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13
hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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14
vows
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| 誓言( vow的名词复数 )； 郑重宣布，许愿 | |
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yearningly
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| 怀念地，思慕地，同情地； 渴 | |
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16
flinched
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| v.（因危险和痛苦）退缩，畏惧( flinch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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17
stiffened
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| 加强的 | |
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preposterous
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| adj.荒谬的，可笑的 | |
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19
dilated
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| adj.加宽的，扩大的v.（使某物）扩大，膨胀，张大( dilate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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20
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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throbbing
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| a. 跳动的,悸动的 | |
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frantic
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| adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的 | |
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collapsed
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| adj.倒塌的 | |
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sob
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| n.空间轨道的轰炸机；呜咽，哭泣 | |
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tangled
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| adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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26
beads
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| n.（空心）小珠子( bead的名词复数 )；水珠；珠子项链 | |
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27
perspiration
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| n.汗水；出汗 | |
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stunned
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| adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词 | |
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29
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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30
mingled
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| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
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31
hush
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| int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静 | |
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32
degradation
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| n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变 | |
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33
misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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34
longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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35
kindled
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| （使某物）燃烧，着火( kindle的过去式和过去分词 )； 激起（感情等）； 发亮，放光 | |
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manly
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| adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地 | |
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anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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38
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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39
almighty
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| adj.全能的，万能的；很大的，很强的 | |
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40
drooped
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| 弯曲或下垂，发蔫( droop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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orphan
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| n.孤儿；adj.无父母的 | |
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