“But I can’t go on being your guest indefinitely,” Kitty was saying from her seat at the open window.
Hilda, stretched on the couch, smiled and then yawned. She had had a hard morning’s work, and the heat was oppressive.
“You have been here for about thirty hours,” she returned in a lazy voice. “Don’t say it seems like years.”
“Oh, you know what I mean, Miss Risk—”
“I think you might call me by my pretty name.”
p. 118“I’d like to,” said Kitty diffidently, “but—”
“I believe you’re afraid of me, Kitty!”
“I’m not really, but—”
“If you say ‘but’ again, I’ll go to sleep! Now listen, Kitty! You have told me a good many things about yourself, so you can no longer argue that I know nothing about you. I know far more about you than you know about me. Isn’t that so?”
“Perhaps it is, Miss—Hilda.”
“Well, then, if you keep talking about leaving me, the only conclusion I can draw is that you don’t like staying with me—”
“Oh, no, no!”
“—or that you are absurdly proud.”
Kitty hung her head.
Hilda gave a little nod of understanding.
“Kitty,” she said kindly2, “won’t you trust me and let me protect you? I’ve never had any one to protect except myself. Come and sit beside me.”
The younger girl came slowly over to the couch, faltered4, and fell on her knees, crying—“And no one has ever protected me, or wanted to do it, before.”
Hilda took her in her arms—strong shapely arms they were.
p. 119“Poor little soul!” she whispered; “can’t you see not only that I want you to stay here but that for your own safety’s sake you must stay here until, at least, you know something of London, and have found employment and made friends? When all that has happened, you shall be free to choose as you think best, but till then you’re my prisoner, whether you like it or not!” After a little while Kitty said tremulously, “Don’t be offended, Hilda, but—but if only you would allow me to—to pay my share.”
“Well,” answered Miss Risk in a most business-like tone, assumed mainly to satisfy the other, “we may come to terms later on—if you promise now to be my guest for a month.”
“I never knew there was a girl like you in the world!”
“No more there is!” said Hilda cheerfully.
“I never dreamed I was such a coward till that night—”
“You mislaid your courage—that was all—but you’ll find it again presently, and look here, Kitty! Until my brother finds something for you to do—”
“Oh, is he going to try?”
“John never tries—at least he never seems to; he just does. But never mind about that p. 120now. I was going to say that you can help me a bit, if you feel so disposed.”
“How? Tell me quick!”
“You used to type for your father, didn’t you?”
“Yes, yes! I must show you the work I did for him. I believe I was fairly smart, but after five years, I’m afraid—”
“You’ll knock off the rust3 in no time. You can work away on my old machine most mornings, and when you feel it coming easy I’ll give you plenty of manuscript, my own and other people’s, too, if you want it. How’s that?”
“All the difference in the world, for it means I shan’t be entirely5 useless. Oh, you have made me so happy!”
“Go on!” laughed Hilda. “I like being cuddled!” But there were tears in her eyes. “Goodness!” she exclaimed next moment, “there’s somebody coming up Jacob’s Ladder!”—as she designated the steep and narrow wooden staircase leading to the flat. “A man, I should say, from the tread. Shall we flee and tidy ourselves, or simply draw down the sun blind?” She rose and went to the window. “It must be the blind, I’m afraid. Matilda is unusually alert in answering the door to-day. Don’t be alarmed, p. 121Kitty. I’ve no friends who aren’t nice, and I want you to meet them all sooner or later. Now let’s arrange ourselves at our ease, and hope it may be a particularly nice one to begin with.”
Kitty was smiling despite her nervousness when the elderly servant, whom Hilda’s brother insisted on her retaining, announced “Mr. West.”
It was at once evident to Kitty that he and Hilda were the best of friends. Next moment he was introduced to her, and there was something in his handshake as well as in his eyes that took away half her shyness.
“Miss Carstairs has come from Scotland to spend a little time with me,” Hilda said presently, “so you must give her as good an impression of the journalistic life as you can.”
“You are not in the trade, I hope, Miss Carstairs?” he said, with a faint smile; then, suddenly—“But pardon me, perhaps you are a friend of Hugh Carstairs, of Glasgow, who wrote so brilliantly some years ago. I met him once in a friend’s house just before I came to London.”
“He was my father,” Kitty said softly, with a flush of pleasure.
“Then you and I shall have at least one big subject in common,” he said warmly.
“This is splendid!” said Hilda, smiling.
p. 122“Mr. Carstairs was my ideal journalist,” Anthony went on. “I’ve often wondered why he never wrote books. Perhaps he hadn’t the time—”
“Miss Carstairs has just been telling me,” said the hostess, “that she has in her possession several unfinished works of her father’s—”
“Not here? not in London?” he cried eagerly.
“Yes,” said Kitty timidly, “I have them with me. There are several—one a play.”
“Would it be too much,” Anthony began and halted.
“Mr. West means that he would like to read them,” Hilda remarked. “I think you might trust him,” she added, with a glint of amusement. “Really, Anthony, I never saw you so enthusiastic before!”
“Wait, Hilda, until I give you some cuttings of Hugh Carstairs’ articles to read. And you, Miss Carstairs, perhaps, when you know me better, you will allow me to look at the unfinished works.”
At this point Matilda brought in tea, and the conversation became less personal. Kitty was well content to listen. She was more than interested. The five years of barren drudgery6 in Dunford were forgotten. She was living in a p. 123new world, the world of her girlish dreams during the last year of her father’s life, the world he had promised he would show her—some day—when his ship came home. . . . And Hilda Risk, guessing what it meant to the girl, kept West talking of people and things in his profession, till with a start he noticed the hour, and rose to go.
Hilda went with him to the door. She had a question to ask.
“Honestly, Hilda. Why, the man was a genius, though I’m afraid he didn’t make the most of himself. Possibly your brother has not mentioned that he knew Carstairs well.”
“John! He never told me!” she exclaimed.
“As a matter of fact,” he added. “John requested me to call on you this afternoon.”
“Oh!”
“You’re not annoyed, Hilda?”, he asked rather anxiously.
“Of course not!” she smiled. “And I ought not to be surprised at this time of day at anything John does. I suppose he wanted your impression of Kitty?”
p. 124“I think he wanted to be made absolutely certain that she is the daughter of Hugh Carstairs. I was not to make any other inquiries8 of her. But, as you know, there isn’t much profit in asking John his reasons.”
“I do know—and we’ll leave it at that. And I’ll not ask you what you think of Kitty—yet. Come soon again and make her better acquaintance. She is very sweet, and she will be bright, too, once she gets a chance. . . . Working as hard as ever, I suppose?” she said, as he took her hand for a moment.
He smiled a little sadly. “Will you allow me to take you and Miss Carstairs to the theatre one night soon?” he said.
“Thank you; that will be a treat for us both, Anthony.”
“I’d like to introduce a friend of mine who has just turned up in London—Colin Hayward. Your brother—”
“Why, John mentioned him yesterday!”
“Then may I bring him?”
“Surely.”
“Till then, good-bye.”
Hilda returned to the sitting-room to find a new Kitty, all delight and eagerness.
“Please tell me what he writes?” she asked, p. 125almost sure that Mr. West was her friend’s lover.
“He writes beautiful things that don’t sell,” Hilda replied a trifle bitterly, “and he makes a poor but decent living from a wretched provincial9 paper. And,” she continued with a change of tone, “there isn’t a better man on this earth—nor a prouder. I’m telling you this, Kitty, because you are likely to meet him pretty often. He has refused a post worth ￡1,500 a year offered him by my brother.”
“Oh, why?”
“Because at Cromer, four years ago, he saved me from drowning, and he refuses to be paid for that. There’s pride for you!”
“Isn’t it more than pride?” Kitty softly ventured.
Miss Risk passed to the window and drew up the blind, remarking: “He is going to take us to the theatre one night soon.”
The other laughed. “By the way, he has a great friend who hails from your part of the world, Kitty. Mr. Colin Hayward—”
“Oh!” cried Kitty.
“You know him?”
p. 126“Yes.”
“Oh, no.”
“You would not mind if Mr. West brought him here?”
“Indeed, no,” said Kitty, angry with herself for blushing. It was so silly, especially as she was not in love with Colin.
Hilda did not pursue the subject. Their friendship, she felt, was still far too new for the taking of liberties, however kindly. After a pause—
“Have you decided,” she inquired, “ about letting your aunt know your address? I wish I could advise you, but I simply don’t know what to say about it.”
Kitty sighed. “I think I’ll wait for another day. If I could only let her know without my uncle learning it.”
“He can’t hurt you now.”
“I wonder,” murmured Kitty, with another sigh.
“Oh, this won’t do! Mustn’t get into the dumps again! Leave it till to-morrow, as you say. How do you feel about a walk before dinner?”
“I’d love it! And please, Hilda?”
“Go on, Kitty.”
p. 127“Will you—will you help me to buy some decent clothes?”
“Hooray!” cried Miss Risk, “that’s the proper spirit!”
Matilda came in with a telegram for her mistress.
“Reply paid, Miss,” she said retiring; “boy’s waiting.”
Hilda read the following:—
“Has your guest any recollection of hearing her father use the word zenith not in an astronomical12 sense?—John.”
“My brother asks an extraordinary question,” said Hilda, and handed the message to Kitty.
Kitty gazed at it, frowned and shook her head. Then—“Oh, wait! The answer to the question is ‘No,’ but once, quite recently, I heard my uncle speak of Zeniths—not zenith. But why should Mr. Risk—”
“Don’t ask me! I’ll just reply, ‘Not father but uncle,’” said Hilda, going to the writing-table.
And just then Matilda came in with another telegram.
“Goodness!” exclaimed Hilda, and with her pencil slit13 it open. Her gay expression faded p. 128out. She paled slightly, muttering, “Another matter,” and tore it into little pieces. Then she went on with writing the reply.
The torn telegram, which had been “handed in” at the same hour as its precursor14, was also from her brother. It said—“Take very good care of your guest. No going out alone. But don’t alarm her.”
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1
sitting-room
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| n.（BrE）客厅，起居室 | |
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kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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rust
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| n.锈；v.生锈；(脑子)衰退 | |
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4
faltered
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| （嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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drudgery
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| n.苦工，重活，单调乏味的工作 | |
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gush
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| v.喷，涌；滔滔不绝(说话)；n.喷，涌流；迸发 | |
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inquiries
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| n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听 | |
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provincial
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| adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人 | |
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rapture
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| n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜 | |
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villain
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| n.反派演员，反面人物；恶棍；问题的起因 | |
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astronomical
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| adj.天文学的，（数字）极大的 | |
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slit
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| n.狭长的切口；裂缝；vt.切开，撕裂 | |
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precursor
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| n.先驱者；前辈；前任；预兆；先兆 | |
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