"It would be quite safe," Kate Charlock had said to herself. John was so foolish about the boy. He always took the gloomiest view of everything. She would retire to her bedroom and would pretend to be asleep. She could dress herself and slip across to Mrs. Bromley-Martin's and pass the night in the fascinating pursuit of bridge. Nobody would know. She would be back by daylight. And then she could take her husband's place by the boy's bedside.
She had forgotten everything in the excitement of the moment. She leant forward as the game finished.
She rose reluctantly and another gambler eagerly took her place. The subdued2 lights of the shaded candles touched drawn3 faces. Now and again came a cry of annoyance4 from some plunger whose luck was past bearing. Outside, the silence of the night was coming to an end. The trees murmured with the first touch of the morning breeze. As Kate Charlock crossed the room towards one of the French windows a man followed her. One of the card-players elevated his eyebrows5 and smiled significantly at his partner, who happened also to be his hostess. Her eyes twinkled in reply.
"Who is the man?" he asked.
"Arnold Rent," was the reply. "They say he is going to be President of the Royal Society. He is a man of various attainments6. He is writing a series of essays on the follies7 of Society. I believe electricity is his specialty8. But he says he came here to-night to gain experience."
"That was ingenious of him," the questioner said sarcastically9. "He couldn't have come to a better house. All the follies and frivolities worth seeing can be found here."
"That is right enough," Mrs. Bromley-Martin said placidly10. "I thought it was awfully11 sweet of him to choose me out of so many others. I am living in hopes that perhaps he will mention my name in one of his essays, and then how furiously jealous all the rest will be! Still, I like Arnold Rent. He is so terribly cynical12. In the old days he would have made an ideal libertine13."
The man under discussion crossed the room and stood by Kate Charlock's side. She turned her beautiful face to him, her eyes smiled a welcome. It was by no means the first time the two had met under Mrs. Bromley-Martin's roof.
"There is a seat on the balcony," Rent said. "Shall we sit there and chat for five minutes? The atmosphere of that room is positively14 poison to me. It seems incredible that civilised men and women, endowed with all the blessings15 of life, can sit down and deliberately16 pass their nights like this."
A gentle sigh escaped Kate Charlock's lips. Her face glowed with sympathy; there was a sad expression on the lovely features.
"Is it as bad as you expected, then?" she asked.
"Oh, worse, infinitely17 worse. In their way these people are just as heathenish as the Romans of the Empire were. What a strange thing fashion is! Your friends come down here ostensibly from the Cowes Regatta, but they have played nothing but bridge all day since Monday. It disgusts me to see young girls given over to the vice18 of gambling19, heedless of aught else. Forgive me if I wonder why you come here. It cannot be out of sympathy with women like Mrs. Bromley-Martin and her class."
"Perhaps not," Kate Charlock murmured. She sighed again in the same gentle fashion. Her eyes had a far-away look in them. "Perhaps I am like the man who is on the verge20 of a breakdown21 from overwork, or the man who falls back upon brandy to drown some overwhelming sorrow."
The words came slowly and sadly. In the first flush of the dawn Rent did not fail to see the look of patient unhappiness on the face of his companion. Many fair women Arnold Rent had seen in his time, but never one who appealed to him as Kate Charlock did then. He had been too seriously engaged in study to think of women in the abstract. This tall, fair creature in silver grey appeared to be asking mutely for his sympathy. It was such a perfect face, too, a face that seemed to be out of place here. There was a suggestion of sadness in the glorious eyes, as if the woman nursed some secret sorrow and hid it bravely from the world. Nine men out of ten would have picked out Kate Charlock as a perfect confidante in the hour of trouble or affliction. And Arnold Rent had heard whispers of the story of her life. He turned to her quickly, forgetting his cynicism.
"Do you speak from experience?" he asked.
A wave of colour swept over her face.
"You have no right to ask that question," she said.
"That is true, but I am not speaking out of vulgar curiosity. It was yourself who hinted that you came here to escape your own thoughts."
"Did I say as much as that?" Kate Charlock asked absently. "You must make allowance for us poor women who have seen enough of the world to know that it is the woman who always pays."
"So you are one of the women who pay, are you? Do you know, I guessed that the first time I saw you. There is something sad and pathetic about you. And yet I am sure you are brave and strong. But, tell me, is the trouble likely to last?"
"I am afraid so," Kate Charlock murmured. "It is such a terrible thing for a woman to be tied to a man who has no sympathy with her. But I am speaking disloyally of my husband."
Arnold Rent pursued the subject no further. He had heard something of the kind of man that John Charlock, the famous artist, was. Despite his brilliant genius, despite the position which he had attained22 from the ranks of the people, he was spoken of as a boor23 and a savage24 brute25 where his beautiful wife was concerned. Strange, Rent thought cynically26, how frequently men like these win the pearls among womanhood. He was about to say something of this kind when the hostess darted27 suddenly out and pounced28 upon Kate Charlock. With a sigh of protest the latter rose.
"You must come and take my hand," Mrs. Bromley-Martin shrieked29. "I am called away for the moment."
With a self-sacrificing smile Kate Charlock returned to the drawing-room, followed by Rent. After the sweetness of the morning air, the atmosphere of the room was close and repellent. The gamblers sat jaded30 and weary, their faces ghastly where the light fell upon them, but the greedy light in their eyes was still as keen as ever. Rent could hear the swish of the cards as they slid over the green baize tables. He could hear the click of gold and the rustle31 of bank paper. His heart beat faster as he stood watching. What chance could there be for the common people, he asked himself, when the rich amused themselves like this? It was so demoralising, too. It seemed almost impossible to believe that the keen-eyed, eager woman sorting her cards dexterously32 could be the same sweet creature who had been seated by his side a few moments ago. If ever woman was in need of spiritual support, that woman was Kate Charlock. What a glorious thing it would be to play the game of platonic33 friend, to show her how to suffer her misfortunes calmly. She was the sort of woman, too, who in happier auspices34 might be a maker35 of history. Rent could understand men going mad for the sake of a face like that, or travelling to the end of the world to obey her lightest wish. He wondered what manner of man it was that treated so beautiful a creature with cruel indifference36.
He was still wondering when the open French window was flung back and an intruder entered. The intruder was not in evening dress. He was attired37 in a shabby flannel38 suit, his hair was dishevelled, his short brown beard in disorder39. The man's face was a strong one, and there was an almost sinister40 suggestion of power about the short, blunt nose and deep-set, gleaming eyes. There was anger as well as bitter contempt written on the features as he strode across the room towards the table where Kate Charlock was seated. By instinct Arnold Rent knew that he was face to face with Mrs. Charlock's husband.
The stranger strode up to her and laid his hand on her arm. Her features turned a shade paler as she glanced up.
"John," she faltered41. Just for a moment it occurred to Rent that the woman's face had a guilty air. "What are you doing here like this? Is anything wrong?"
"Oh, I know I am out of place," the stranger said grimly. "Mrs. Bromley-Martin has asked me more than once to call, and now I am here. I have come for you."
The speaker's stern, clear tones rang through the room, and cards were dropped for the moment. The hostess laughed.
"Oh, don't mention it," she said. "I love originality42. You can't think how tired one gets sometimes of bridge in a drawing-room."
All eyes were turned upon Charlock, and he seemed to have become master of the situation. He walked to the windows and jerked up the blinds. The clear glow of the morning fell on tired eyes and painted faces that looked ghastly white and drawn. There was no sign of a smile on Charlock's face.
"Take the tables and play outside," he said. "That will be something new, something for the papers to chatter43 about. But I am intruding44 here, and I want my wife. You will come at once. I beg your pardon, I am sure I did not mean to hurt you, but I am a little beside myself to-night. You will know why presently. I will go outside and wait for you."
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1
dealer
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| n.商人，贩子 | |
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2
subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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3
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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annoyance
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| n.恼怒，生气，烦恼 | |
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eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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6
attainments
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| 成就，造诣； 获得( attainment的名词复数 )； 达到； 造诣； 成就 | |
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7
follies
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| 罪恶，时事讽刺剧； 愚蠢，蠢笨，愚蠢的行为、思想或做法( folly的名词复数 ) | |
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8
specialty
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| n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长 | |
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9
sarcastically
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| adv.挖苦地，讽刺地 | |
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10
placidly
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| adv.平稳地，平静地 | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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12
cynical
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| adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的 | |
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libertine
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| n.淫荡者；adj.放荡的，自由思想的 | |
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14
positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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15
blessings
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| n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福 | |
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16
deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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infinitely
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| adv.无限地，无穷地 | |
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vice
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| n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的 | |
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19
gambling
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| n.赌博；投机 | |
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verge
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| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 | |
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breakdown
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| n.垮，衰竭；损坏，故障，倒塌 | |
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22
attained
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| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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23
boor
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| n.举止粗野的人；乡下佬 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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brute
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| n.野兽，兽性 | |
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cynically
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| adv.爱嘲笑地，冷笑地 | |
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27
darted
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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28
pounced
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| v.突然袭击( pounce的过去式和过去分词 )；猛扑；一眼看出；抓住机会（进行抨击） | |
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29
shrieked
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| v.尖叫( shriek的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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30
jaded
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| adj.精疲力竭的；厌倦的；（因过饱或过多而）腻烦的；迟钝的 | |
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31
rustle
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| v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声 | |
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32
dexterously
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| adv.巧妙地，敏捷地 | |
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platonic
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| adj.精神的；柏拉图（哲学）的 | |
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auspices
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| n.资助，赞助 | |
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35
maker
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| n.制造者，制造商 | |
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indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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attired
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| adj.穿着整齐的v.使穿上衣服，使穿上盛装( attire的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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38
flannel
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| n.法兰绒；法兰绒衣服 | |
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39
disorder
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| n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调 | |
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40
sinister
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| adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的 | |
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41
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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42
originality
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| n.创造力，独创性；新颖 | |
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43
chatter
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| vi.／n.喋喋不休；短促尖叫；(牙齿)打战 | |
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44
intruding
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| v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的现在分词)；把…强加于 | |
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