CHAPTER XVI MRS. LANE'S SURPRISE

 Considering his new and brilliant prospects², Gerald was not particularly disturbed by Abel's words. He didn't take the trouble to reply, but went at once into the sitting-room³, where, with a frowning face, Mrs. Lane awaited him.

 

"This is a fine time to come home," she said, abruptly⁴.

 

"It is rather late, Mrs. Lane," said Gerald, calmly, "but I could not very well reach home earlier."

 

"Did you come from the store as soon as it closed?"

 

"No, madam."

 

"I suppose you went to the billiard-room; I understand that you frequent that disreputable place."

 

"Then you are misinformed. I went there one evening with Mr. Brandon, Mr. Tubbs' clerk."

 

"Where, then, did you go?"

 

"To Mr. Nugent's."

 

"You seem to have struck up quite an intimacy⁵ with Mr. Nugent," said his stepmother, with a sneer⁶.

 

"I hope you don't consider him a disreputable person, Mrs. Lane."

 

"You are impertinent. You have no right to annoy him by late visits."

 

"I don't. He is always glad to see me; to-night, particularly, he had some business which he wished to talk over with me."

 

Abel laughed.

 

"Hear him talk, ma!" he said. "Just as if Mr. Nugent would talk over business with Gerald!"

 

Gerald did not think it necessary to answer this malicious⁷ remark.

 

"I have been over to see Mr. Tubbs to-day," said Mrs. Lane.

 

Gerald looked at her inquiringly.

 

"And he has agreed to keep you. He still thinks that you robbed the money-drawer, but is inclined to think you will not repeat the theft."

 

"I am very much obliged to him, I am sure."

 

"You have reason to be. It is not many employers who would overlook such an offence. You could not, of course, get another position without his recommendation."

 

Gerald did not reply. He waited to see what more Mrs. Lane had to say.

 

"Therefore you will continue to work in the grocery store."

 

"You must excuse me for saying, Mrs. Lane, that I shall not do so."

 

"You dare to say that?" exclaimed his stepmother, flushing with indignation.

 

"Yes, madam."

 

"Do you expect me to support you without work? If so, you will find yourself disappointed. I shall not provide you with a home if you dare to oppose my will."

 

"It will not be necessary, Mrs. Lane. I have obtained another situation."

 

"What?" exclaimed his stepmother, in genuine surprise.

 

"Who are you going to work for?" asked Abel, his curiosity aroused.

 

"For Mr. Nugent."

 

"How much is he goin' to pay you?"

 

"I don't know."

 

"Nor any one else, I reckon. What can he have for you to do?"

 

"I am not at liberty to tell just yet."

 

"It strikes me, Gerald Lane, that I have some voice in the matter. I shall not allow you to give up a place unless you are to get one equally good."

 

"While I don't know how much I am to get, I have no doubt it will be considerably⁸ more than Mr. Tubbs pays me."

 

Gerald could not have said anything better calculated to remove his stepmother's objections to his new plan.

 

"Very well," she said, calming down, "if that's the case I don't know that I shall object. Have you no idea what you are to do?"

 

"Yes, I have some idea."

 

"Tell me, then, all about it."

 

"I am not at liberty to do so. You might call on Mr. Nugent and ask him."

 

"I will do so."

 

Gerald smiled to himself. He knew that Mrs. Lane would get very little information out of the old gentleman.

 

Having no more to say Mrs. Lane suggested that it was high time they all went to bed. Gerald was quite ready to avail himself of the opportunity, for he was tired. Besides, he wanted a chance to think over the new and brilliant prospect¹ before him.

 

The next day Mr. Nugent was surprised by a call from Mrs. Lane.

 

He lifted his eyes a little as she was shown into his presence. He knew her by sight, but had never spoken to her, beyond exchanging formal greetings.

 

"I must apologize for intruding⁹ upon you, Mr. Nugent," she said, "but I am led to do so by some information which Gerald, my stepson, has given me."

 

Mr. Nugent bowed, and waited to hear more.

 

"Gerald informed me last evening that you had offered him employment. I did not know whether to put confidence in his statement."

 

"Why not?" asked the old gentleman, curtly¹⁰.

 

"Because I thought it might be only an excuse for leaving Mr. Tubbs."

 

"Gerald is incapable¹¹ of falsehood."

 

"I am glad you have so good an opinion of him. Then do I understand that you have offered him employment?"

 

"I have."

 

"Of what nature?"

 

"Pardon me, but the business is of a confidential¹² nature."

 

"Surely, as the boy's stepmother, I have a right to information on that point."

 

"You have no right to pry¹³ into my private affairs, Mrs. Lane."

 

His visitor bit her lips from irritation¹⁴.

 

"Gerald didn't even know how much pay he was to receive."

 

"No, he does not know."

 

"He is receiving three dollars a week from Mr. Tubbs."

 

"And you don't care to have him work for less?" said Mr. Nugent, with a smile.

 

"Precisely¹⁵."

 

"You may set your mind at rest, then. While I don't myself know how much I shall pay him, it will be more than that."

 

"That is satisfactory, of course. I presume you know what charge Mr. Tubbs has made against Gerald?"

 

"I do; but no one who knows the boy will for a moment think of crediting it."

 

"I supposed you thought so, or you would not offer him employment. Do you intend to employ him about your house?"

 

"No."

 

"Then I can't see what you can have for him to do."

 

"I may tell you as much as this, Mrs. Lane: I shall send Gerald to a point at some distance to transact¹⁶ some business for me, being unable, from age and infirmity to make the journey myself."

 

Mrs. Lane was greatly surprised. She could see that the commission was a desirable one, and would like to have secured it for her own son.

 

"I don't know whether you have made a wise selection of a messenger, Mr. Nugent. My son Abel is as old as Gerald."

 

"That may be, but I haven't the pleasure of knowing your son. Gerald and his father have been for some time friends of mine."

 

"When did you wish Gerald to start?"

 

"On Monday."

 

"That is short notice. I don't know that I can have his clothes ready."

 

"Never mind about that. I don't want to put you to any trouble in the matter. He can take what is ready, and buy others if he has need."

 

"Will he be likely to be gone long?"

 

"For some time," answered Mr. Nugent, indefinitely.

 

"Well, I trust he will satisfy you," said Mrs. Lane, as she rose to go.

 

"I have great confidence that he will."

 

Meanwhile Mr. Tubbs took occasion to speak to Gerald about staying.

 

"Your mother was in here yesterday to see me, Gerald," he commenced.

 

"My stepmother," corrected Gerald.

 

"Oh, well, it's all the same."

 

"I don't think so."

 

"She's a very sensible woman. I agreed with her to keep you. There are some that wouldn't after what happened this week; but I don't want to be too hard upon you, considerin' you are so young, and I said I would keep you, trustin' that all will be satisfactory here after."

 

"Mr. Tubbs, I have something to say to that. I shall leave you to-night."

 

"But your mother won't allow it. You are only a boy, and——"

 

"I am going to work for Mr. Nugent on Monday, Mr. Tubbs."

 

"What can he have for you to do?" asked the grocer in surprise.

 

"I am to go on a journey for him, and attend to some business."

 

"That's cu'rus. What can a boy like you do?"

 

"You must ask him."

 

"Can't you put him off for a week? I haven't got nobody to fill your place."

 

"You might get Richard Childs, but you would have to pay him more. He is a good, strong boy."

 

"Yes, he might do; but I should like to keep you a week longer."

 

"It will be impossible, Mr. Tubbs."

 

When Gerald left the grocery in the evening with three dollars in his pocket, he felt glad to bid farewell to a place that he had found so disagreeable.

1 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

2 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

3 sitting-room   

n.（BrE）客厅，起居室

参考例句：

• The sitting-room is clean.起居室很清洁。
• Each villa has a separate sitting-room.每栋别墅都有一间独立的起居室。

4 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。

5 intimacy   

n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行

参考例句：

• His claims to an intimacy with the President are somewhat exaggerated.他声称自己与总统关系密切，这有点言过其实。
• I wish there were a rule book for intimacy.我希望能有个关于亲密的规则。

6 sneer   

v.轻蔑；嘲笑；n.嘲笑，讥讽的言语

参考例句：

• He said with a sneer.他的话中带有嘲笑之意。
• You may sneer,but a lot of people like this kind of music.你可以嗤之以鼻，但很多人喜欢这种音乐。

7 malicious   

adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的

参考例句：

• You ought to kick back at such malicious slander. 你应当反击这种恶毒的污蔑。
• Their talk was slightly malicious.他们的谈话有点儿心怀不轨。

8 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

9 intruding   

v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的现在分词)；把…强加于

参考例句：

• Does he find his new celebrity intruding on his private life? 他是否感觉到他最近的成名侵扰了他的私生活？
• After a few hours of fierce fighting,we saw the intruding bandits off. 经过几小时的激烈战斗，我们赶走了入侵的匪徒。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 curtly   

adv.简短地

参考例句：

• He nodded curtly and walked away. 他匆忙点了一下头就走了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The request was curtly refused. 这个请求被毫不客气地拒绝了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 incapable   

adj.无能力的，不能做某事的

参考例句：

• He would be incapable of committing such a cruel deed.他不会做出这么残忍的事。
• Computers are incapable of creative thought.计算机不会创造性地思维。

12 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

13 pry   

vi.窥(刺)探，打听；vt.撬动(开，起)

参考例句：

• He's always ready to pry into other people's business.他总爱探听别人的事。
• We use an iron bar to pry open the box.我们用铁棍撬开箱子。

14 irritation   

n.激怒，恼怒，生气

参考例句：

• He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。
• Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说，但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。

15 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

16 transact   

v.处理；做交易；谈判

参考例句：

• I will transact my business by letter.我会写信去洽谈业务。
• I have been obliged to see him；there was business to transact.我不得不见他，有些事物要处理。