第6章

But，withoutwarning，arevulsionseizedonthegirl。Ofasudden，sheshrankagain，andturnedherheadaway，andherbodytrembled。 \"Ican\'ttakeit，\"shestammered。\"Ican\'t!Ican\'t!\" Marystoodsilentforamomentfromsheeramazementoverthechange。Whenshespoke，hervoicehadhardenedalittle。Itisnotagreeabletohaveone\'sbeneficenceflouted。 \"Didn\'tyoucomehereforhelp？\"shedemanded。 \"Yes，\"wasthefalteringreply，\"but——but——Ididn\'tknow——itwasyou!\"Thewordscamewitharushofdesperation。 \"Then，youhavemetmebefore？\"Marysaid，quietly。 \"No，no!\"Thegirl\'svoiceroseshrill。 Aggiespokehermindwithcommendablefrankness。 \"She\'slying。\" And，onceagain，Garsonagreed。Hisyeswasspokeninatoneofcompletecertainty。ThatMary，too，wasoftheiropinionwasshowninhernextwords。 \"So，youhavemetmebefore？Where？\" Thegirlunwittinglymadeconfessioninherhaltingwords。 \"I——Ican\'ttellyou。\"Therewasdespairinhervoice。 \"Youmust。\"Maryspokewithseverity。Shefeltthatthismysteryheldinitsomethingsinistertoherself。\"Youmust，\"sherepeatedimperiously。 Thegirlonlycrouchedlower。 \"Ican\'t!\"shecriedagain。Shewaspantingasifinexhaustion。 \"Whycan\'tyou？\"Maryinsisted。Shehadnosympathynowforthegirl\'sdistress，merelyagreatsuspiciouscuriosity。 \"Because——because——\"Thegirlcouldnotgoon。 Mary\'susualshrewdnesscametoheraid，andsheputhernextquestioninadifferentdirection。 \"Whatwereyousentupfor？\"sheaskedbriskly。\"Tellme。\" ItwasGarsonwhobrokethesilencethatfollowed。 \"Comeon，now!\"heordered。Therewasasavagenoteinhisvoiceunderwhichthegirlvisiblywinced。Marymadeagesturetowardhimthatheshouldnotinterfere。Nevertheless，theman\'scommandhadinitathreatwhichthegirlcouldnotresistandsheanswered，thoughwithareluctancethatmadethewordsseemdraggedfromherbysomeoutsideforce——asindeedtheywere。 \"Forstealing。\" \"Stealingwhat？\"Marysaid。 \"Goods。\" \"Wherefrom？\" Areplycameinabreathsolowthatitwasbarelyaudible。 \"TheEmporium。\" Inaflashofintuition，thewholetruthwasrevealedtothewomanwhostoodlookingdownatthecoweringcreaturebeforeher。 \"TheEmporium!\"sherepeated。Therewasatragedyinthesingleword。Hervoicegrewcoldwithhate，thehatebornofinnocencelongtortured。\"Thenyouaretheonewho——\" Theaccusationwascutshortbythegirl\'sshriek。 \"Iamnot!Iamnot，Itellyou。\" Foramoment，Marylostherpoise。Hervoiceroseinaflareofrage。 \"Youare!Youare!\" Thecravenspiritofthegirlcouldstrugglenomore。Shecouldonlysitinahuddled，shakingheapofdread。Thewomanbeforeherhadbeendisciplinedbysorrowtosternestself-control。 Thoughrackedbyemotionsmostintolerable，Marysoonmasteredtheirexpressiontosuchanextentthatwhenshespokeagain，asifinself-communion，herwordscamequietly，yetwithovertonesofasupremewo。 \"Shedidit!\"Then，afteralittle，sheaddressedthegirlwithacertainwonderingbeforethismysteryofhorror。\"Whydidyouthrowtheblameonme？\" Thegirlmadeseveraleffortsbeforehermumblingbecameintelligible，andthenherspeechwasgasping，brokenwithfear。 \"Ifoundouttheywerewatchingme，andIwasafraidtheywouldcatchme。So，Itookthemandranintothecloak-room，andputtheminalockerthatwasn\'tclosetomine，andsomeinthepocketofacoatthatwashangingthere。GodknowsIdidn\'tknowwhoseitwas。Ijustputthemthere——Iwasfrightened——\" \"Andyouletmegotoprisonforthreeyears!\"TherewasamenaceinMary\'svoiceunderwhichthegirlcringedagain。 \"Iwasscared，\"shewhined。\"Ididn\'tdaretotell。\" \"Buttheycaughtyoulater，\"Marywentoninexorably。\"Whydidn\'tyoutellthen？\" \"Iwasafraid，\"cametheanswerfromtheshudderinggirl。\"I toldthemitwasthefirsttimeIhadtakenanythingandtheyletmeoffwithayear。\" Oncemore，thewrathofthevictimflamedhigh。 \"You!\"Marycried。\"Youcriedandlied，andtheyletyouoffwithayear。Iwouldn\'tcry。Itoldthetruth——and——\"Hervoicebrokeinatearlesssob。Thecolorhadgoneoutofherface，andshestoodrigid，lookingdownatthegirlwhosecrimehadruinedherlifewithanexpressionofinfiniteloathinginhereyes。Garsonrosefromhischairasiftogotoher，andhisfacepassedswiftlyfromcompassiontoferocityashisgazewentfromthewomanhehadsavedfromtherivertothegirlwhohadbeenthefirstcauseofherseekingagraveinthewaters。Yet，thoughhelongedwitheveryfiberofhimtocomfortthestrickenwoman，hedidnotdareintrudeuponherinthistimeofheranguish，butquietlydroppedbackintohisseatandsatwatchingwitheyesnowtender，nowbaleful，astheyshiftedtheirdirection。 Aggietookadvantageofthepause。Hervoicewasacid。 \"Somepeoplearesneaks——justsneaks!\" Somehow，thespeechwaswelcometothegirl，gaveheratouchofcouragesufficientforcowardlyprotestations。Itseemedtorelievethetensiondrawnbytheotherwoman\'storment。Itwasmoreliketheabusethatwasfamiliartoher。Agushoftearscame。 \"I\'llneverforgivemyself，never!\"shemoaned。 ContemptmountedinMary\'sbreast。 \"Oh，yes，youwill，\"shesaid，malevolently。\"Peopleforgivethemselvesprettyeasily。\"Thecontemptcheckedforalittletheravagesofhergrief。\"Stopcrying，\"shecommandedharshly。 \"Nobodyisgoingtohurtyou。\"Shethrustthemoneyagaintowardthegirl，andcrowdeditintothehalf-reluctant，half-greedyhand。 \"Takeit，andgetout。\"Thecontemptinhervoicerangstillsharper，mordant。 EventhepulingcreaturewrithedunderthelashofMary\'stones。 Shesprangup，slinkingbackastep。 \"Ican\'ttakeit!\"shecried，whimpering。Butshedidnotdropthemoney。 \"Takethechancewhileyouhaveit，\"Marycounseled，stillwiththecontemptthatpiercedeventhehardenedgirl\'ssenseofselfishness。Shepointedtowardthedoor。\"Go!——beforeIchangemymind。\" Thegirlneeded，indeed，nosecondbidding。Withthemoneystillclutchedinherhand，shewentforthswiftly，stumblingalittleinherhaste，fearfullest，atthelastmoment，thewomanshehadsowrongedshouldinfactchangeinmood，takebackthemoney——ay，evengiveherovertothatterriblemanwiththeeyesofhate，toputhertodeathasshedeserved。 Freedfromthemiasmaofthatpresence，Maryremainedmotionlessforalongminute，thensighedfromhertorturedheart。Sheturnedandwentslowlytoherchairatthedesk，andseatedherselflanguidly，weakenedbytheordealthroughwhichshehadpassed。 \"AgirlIdidn\'tknow!\"shesaid，bewilderedly；\"perhapshadneverspokento——whosmashedmylifelikethat!Oh，ifitwasn\'tsoawful，itwouldbe——funny!Itwouldbefunny!\"Agustofhystericallaughterburstfromher。\"Why，itisfunny!\"shecried，wildly。\"Itisfunny!\" \"Mary!\"Garsonexclaimedsharply。Heleapedacrosstheroomtofaceher。\"That\'snogood!\"hesaidseverely。 Aggie，too，rushedforward。 \"Nogoodatall!\"shedeclaredloudly。 Theinterferencerecalledthedistressedwomantoherself。Shemadeadesperateeffortforself-command。Littlebylittle，theunmeaninglookdieddown，andpresentlyshesatsilentandmoveless，staringatthetwowithstormyeyesoutofawanface。 \"Youwereright，\"shesaidatlast，inalifelessvoice。\"It\'sdone，andcan\'tbeundone。Iwasafooltoletitaffectmelikethat。IreallythoughtIhadlostallfeelingaboutit，butthesightofthatgirl——theknowledgethatshehaddoneit——broughtitallbacktome。Well，youunderstand，don\'tyou？\" \"Weunderstand，\"Garsonsaid，grimly。Buttherewasmorethangrimness，infinitelymore，intheexpressionofhisclear，glowingeyes。 Aggiethoughtthatitwasherturntovoiceherself，whichshedidwithoutunduerestraint。 \"Perhaps，wedo，butIdunno!I\'lltellyouonething，though。 Ifanydamesentmeupforthreeyearsandthenwantedmoneyfromme，doyouthinkshe\'dgetit？Wakemeupanytimeinthenightandaskme。Notmuch——notalittlebitmuch!I\'dhangontoitlikeanoldwomantoherlasttooth。\"AndthatwasAggie\'sfinalsummingupofherimpressionsconcerningthesceneshehadjustwitnessed。 CHAPTERXII。ABRIDEGROOMSPURNED。 AfterAggie\'svigorouscommenttherefollowedalongsilence。 Thatvolatileyoungperson，littletroubledasshewasbysensitiveness，guessedthefactthatjustnowfurtherdiscussionoftheeventwouldbedistastefultoMary，andsoshebetookherselfdiscreetlytoacigaretteandtheillustrationsofapopularmagazinedevotedtothestage。Asfortheman，hisreticencewasreallyfromafearlestinspeakingatallhemightspeaktoofreely，mightbetraythepervasiveviolenceofhisfeeling。So，hesatmotionlessandwordless，hiseyescarefullyavoidingMaryinorderthatshemightnotbedisturbedbytheinvisiblevibrationsthussentfromonetoanother。Maryherselfwasshakentothedepths。Agreatweariness，awearinessthatcriedtheworthlessnessofallthings，hadfallenuponher。Itrestedleadenonhersoul。Itweigheddownherbodyaswell，thoughthatmatteredlittleindeed。Yet，sinceshecouldministertothatreadily，sheroseandwenttoasetteeontheoppositesideoftheroomwhereshearrangedherselfamongthecushionsinaposturemoreluxuriousthanherratherpreciseearlytrainingusuallypermittedhertoassumeinthepresenceofothers。Theresherested，andsoonfeltthetidesofenergyagainflowinginherblood，andthatsamevitality，too，wroughthealingevenforheragonizedsoul，thoughmoreslowly。Theperfecthealthofhergaveherstrengthtorecoverspeedilyfromtheshockshehadsustained。Itwasthishealththatmadethegloryoftheflawlessskin，whitewithalivingwhitethatrevealedthecoursingbloodbeneath，andthecrimsonlipsthatbentinsmilessotender，orsowistful，andthelimpideyesinwhichalwayslurkedfiresthatsometimesburstintoflame，thelustrousmassofundulatinghairthatsparkledinthesunlightlikeanaureoletoherfaceorframeditinheavysplendorswithitsshadows，andthesuppleerectnessofhergracefulcarriage，thelithedignityofhereverymovement。 But，atlast，shestirreduneasilyandsatup。Garsonacceptedthisasasufficientwarrantforspeech。 \"Youknow——Aggietoldyou——thatCassidywasupherefromHeadquarters。Hedidn\'tputanametoit，butI\'mon。\"Maryregardedhiminquiringly，andhecontinued，puttingthefactwithacertainbrutalbluntnessafterthehabitofhisclass。\"I guessyou\'llhavetoquitseeingyoungGilder。Thebullsarewise。Hisfatherhasmadeaholler。 \"Don\'tletthatworryyou，Joe，\"shesaidtranquilly。Sheallowedafewsecondsgoby，thenaddedasifquiteindifferent:\"IwasmarriedtoDickGilderthismorning。\"TherecameasquealofamazementfromAggie，astartofincredulityfromGarson。 \"Yes，\"Maryrepeatedevenly，\"Iwasmarriedtohimthismorning。 Thatwasmyimportantengagement，\"sheaddedwithasmiletowardAggie。Forsomeintuitivereason，mysterioustoherself，shedidnotcaretomeettheman\'seyesatthatmoment。 Aggiesaterect，herbabyfacealivewithworldlyglee。 \"MyGawd，whatluck!\"sheexclaimednoisily。\"Why，he\'sakingfish，heis。Gee!ButI\'mgladyoulandedhim!\" \"Thankyou，\"Marysaidwithasmilethatwastheresultofhersenseofhumorratherthanfromanytenderness。 ItwasthenthatGarsonspoke。Hewasadelicatemaninhissensibilitiesattimes，inspiteofthefactthathefolloweddeviousmethodsinhismannerofgainingalivelihood。So，now，heputaquestionofvitalsignificance。 \"Doyoulovehim？\" ThequestioncaughtMaryallunprepared，butsheretainedherself-controlsufficientlytomakeheranswerinavoicethattotheordinaryearwouldhaverevealednoleasttremor。 \"No，\"shesaid。Sheofferednoexplanation，noexcuse，merelystatedthefactinallitsfinality。 Aggiewasreallyshocked，thoughforareasonaltogethersordid，notonewhitromantic。 \"Ain\'theyoung？\"shedemandedaggressively。\"Ain\'thegood-looking，andloosewithhismoneysomethingscandalous？IfImetupwithafellowasliberalashim，ifhewasthreetimeshisage，Icouldsimplyadorehim!\" ItwasGarsonwhopressedthetopicwithaninexorablecuriositybornofhisunselfishinterestinthewomanconcerned。 \"Then，whydidyoumarryhim？\"heasked。Thesincerityofhimwasexcuseenoughfortheseemingindelicacyofthequestion。 Besides，hefelthimselfsomehowresponsible。Hehadgivenbacktoherthegiftoflife，whichshehadrejected。Surely，hehadtherighttoknowthetruth。 ItseemedthatMarybelievedherconfidencehisdue，forshetoldhimthefact。 \"Ihavebeenworkingandschemingfornearlyayeartodoit，\" shesaid，withahardeningofherfacethatspokeofindomitableresolve。\"Now，it\'sdone。\"Avindictivegleamshotfromhervioleteyesassheadded:\"It\'sonlythebeginning，too。\" Garson，withthekeenperspicacitythathadmadehimasuccessfulcriminalwithoutasingleconvictiontomarhisrecord，hadseizedtheimplicationinherstatement，andnowputitinwords。 \"Then，youwon\'tleaveus？We\'regoingonaswewerebefore？\" Thehintofdejectioninhismannerhadvanished。\"Andyouwon\'tlivewithhim？\" \"Livewithhim？\"Maryexclaimedemphatically。\"Certainlynot!\" Aggie\'sneatlyroundedjawdroppedinagapeofsurprisethatwasmostunladylike。 \"Youaregoingtoliveoninthisjointwithus？\"shequestioned，aghast。 \"Ofcourse。\"Thereplywasgivenwiththeutmostofcertainty。 Aggiepresentedthecruxofthematter。 \"Wherewillhubbylive？\" Therewasnolesseningofthebride\'scomposureasshereplied，withalittleshrug。 \"Anywherebuthere。\" Aggiesuddenlygiggled。Tohersenseofhumortherewassomethingvastlydivertinginthisnewschemeofgivingblisstoafondhusband。 \"Anywherebuthere，\"sherepeatedgaily。\"Oh，won\'tthatbenice——forhim？Oh，yes!Oh，quiteso!Oh，yes，indeed——quiteso——so!\" Garson，however，wasstillpatientinhisdeterminationtoapprehendjustwhathadcometopass。 \"Doesheunderstandthearrangement？\"washisquestion。 \"No，notyet，\"Maryadmitted，withoutsignofembarrassment。 \"Well，\"Aggiesaid，withanothergiggle，\"whenyoudogetaroundtotellhim，breakittohimgently。\" Garsonwasintentlyconsideringanotherphaseofthesituation，onesuggestedperhapsoutofhisowndeepersentiments。 \"Hemustthinkalotofyou!\"hesaid，gravely。\"Don\'the？\" Forthefirsttime，Marywasmovedtothedisplayofaslightconfusion。Shehesitatedalittlebeforeheranswer，andwhenshespokeitwasinalowerkey，alittlemoreslowly。 \"I——Isupposeso。\" Aggiepresentedthetruthmoresubtlythancouldhavebeenexpectedfromher。 \"Thinkalotofyou？Ofcoursehedoes!Thinksenoughtomarryyou!Andbelieveme，kid，whenamanthinksenoughofyoutomarryyou，well，that\'ssomethinking!\" Somehow，thecrudeexpressionofthisprofessionaladventuresspenetratedtoMary\'sconscience，thoughitheldinitthetruthtowhichherconscienceborewitness，towhichshehadtriedtoshutherears……Andnowfromthemancamesomethinglikeadraughtofelixirtoherconscience——likethetrumpofdoomtoherschemeofvengeance。 Garsonspokeverysoftly，butwithanintensitythatleftnodoubtastothehonestyofhispurpose。 \"I\'dsay，throwupthewholegameandgotohim，ifyoureallycare。\" Therefellatensesilence。ItwasbrokenbyMaryherself。Shespokewithatouchofhaste，asifbattlingagainstsomehindrancewithin。 \"Imarriedhimtogetevenwithhisfather，\"shesaid。\"That\'sallthereistoit……Bytheway，IexpectDickwillbehereinaminuteortwo。Whenhecomes，justremembernotto——enlightenhim。\" Aggiesniffedindignantly。 \"Don\'tworryaboutme，notamite。Wheneverit\'sreallywanted，I\'malwaystherewithafulllineofthatladystuff。\" Thereupon，shesprangup，andproceededtogiveherconceptionoftheproperwelcomingofthehappybridegroom。Theperformancewasamusingenoughinitself，butforsomereasonitmovedneitherofthetwoforwhomitwasrenderedtomorethanperfunctoryapproval。Thefacthadnodepressingeffectontheperformer，however，anditwasonlythecomingofthemaidthatputherlivelysalliestoanend。 \"Mr。Gilder，\"Fannieannounced。 MaryputaquestionwithsomuchofenergythatGarsonbeganfinallytounderstandthedepthofhervindictivefeeling。 \"Anyonewithhim？\" \"No，MissTurner，\"themaidanswered。 \"Havehimcomein，\"Maryordered。 Garsonfeltthathewouldbebetterawayforthesakeofthenewlymarriedpairatleast，ifnotforhisown。Hemadehastyexcusesandwentoutontheheelsofthemaid。Aggie，however，consultingonlyherownwishesinthematter，hadnothoughtofflight，and，ifthetruthbetold，Marywasgladofthesustainingpresenceofanotherwoman。 Shegotupslowly，andstoodsilent，whileAggieregardedhercuriously。Eventotheinsensitiveobserver，therewassomethingstrangeintheatmosphere……Amomentlaterthebridegroomentered。 Hewasstillclean-cutandwholesome。Somesonsofwealthyfathersarenot，afterfouryearsexperienceofthewhitelightsoftown。Andthelinesofhisfacewerefirmer，betterineveryway。Itseemed，indeed，thatherewassomeoneofaresolutecharacter，nottobewastedonthetrivialandgrossthings。Inaninstant，hehadgonetoher，hadcaughtherinhisarmswith，\"Hello，dear!\"smotheredinthekissheimplantedonherlips。 Marystrovevainlytofreeherself。 \"Don\'t，oh，don\'t!\"shegasped。 DickGilderreleasedhiswifefromhisarmsandsmiledthebeatificsmileofthenewly-wed。 \"Whynot？\"hedemanded，withasmile，asmilecalm，triumphant，masterful。 \"Agnes!\"……ItwasthesolepretexttowhichMarycouldturnforamomentaryrelief。 Thebridegroomfacedabout，andperceivedAgnes，whostoodcloselywatchingthemeetingbetweenhusbandandwife。Hemadeanexcellentformalbowofthesortthatonelearnsonlyabroad，andspokequietly。 \"Ibegyourpardon，MissLynch，but\"——asmileofperfecthappinessshoneonhisface——\"youcouldhardlyexpectmetoseeanyonebutMaryunderthecircumstances。Couldyou？\" Aggiestrovetorisetothisemergency，andagaintookonherbestmanner，speakingrathercoldly。 \"Underwhatcircumstances？\"sheinquired。 Theyoungmanexclaimedjoyously。 \"Why，weweremarriedthismorning。\" Aggieacceptedthenewswithfittingexcitement。 \"Goodnessgracious!Howperfectlylovely!\" Thebridegroomregardedherwithafacethatwasluminousofdelight。 \"Youbet，it\'slovely!\"hedeclaredwithentireconviction。HeturnedtoMary，hisfaceglowingwithsatisfaction。 \"Mary，\"hesaid，\"Ihavethehoneymoontripallfixed。TheMauretaniasailsatfiveinthemorning，sowewill——\" Acoldvoicestrucksuddenlythroughthisrhapsodizing。Itwasthatofthebride。 \"Whereisyourfather？\"sheasked，withoutanytraceofemotion。 Thebridegroomstoppedshort，andadeepblushspreaditselfoverhisboyishface。Histonewasfilledfulltooverflowingwithcompunctionasheanswered。 \"Oh，Lord!IhadforgottenallaboutDad。\"HebeamedonMarywithasmilehalf-ashamed，half-happy。\"I\'mawfullysorry，\"hesaidearnestly。\"I\'lltellyouwhatwe\'lldo。We\'llsendDadawirelessfromtheship，thenwritehimfromParis。\" ButtheconfidenttonebroughtnoresponseofagreementfromMary。Onthecontrary，hervoicewas，ifanything，evencolderassherepliedtohissuggestion。Shespokewithanemphasisthatbrookednoevasion。 \"Whatwasyourpromise？ItoldyouthatIwouldn\'tgowithyouuntilyouhadbroughtyourfathertome，andhehadwishedushappiness。\"Dickplacedhishandsgentlyonhiswife\'sshouldersandregardedherwithatouchofindignationinhisgaze。 \"Mary，\"hesaidreproachfully，\"youarenotgoingtoholdmetothatpromise？\" Theanswerwasgivenwithadecisivenessthatadmittedofnoquestion，andtherewasahardnessinherfacethatemphasizedthewords。 \"Iamgoingtoholdyoutothatpromise，Dick。\" Forafewseconds，theyoungmanstaredatherwithtroubledeyes。Thenhemovedimpatiently，anddroppedhishandsfromhershoulders。Buthisusualcheerysmilecameagain，andheshruggedresignedly。 \"Allright，Mrs。Gilder，\"hesaid，gaily。Thesoundofthenameprovokedhimtonewpleasure。\"Soundsfine，doesn\'tit？\"hedemanded，withanuxoriousair。 \"Yes，\"Marysaid，buttherewasnoenthusiasminhertone。 Thehusbandwentonspeakingwithnoapparentheedofhiswife\'sindifference。 \"Youpackupwhatthingsyouneed，girlie，\"hedirected。\"Justafew——becausetheysellclothesinParis。Andtheyaresomeclass，believeme!Andmeantime，I\'llrundowntoDad\'soffice，andhavehimbackhereinhalfanhour。Youwillbeallready，won\'tyou？\" Maryansweredquickly，withalittlecatchingofherbreath，butstillcoldly。 \"Yes，yes，I\'llbeready。Goandbringyourfather。\" \"YoubetIwill，\"Dickcriedheartily。Hewouldhavetakenherinhisarmsagain，butsheevadedthecaress。\"What\'sthematter？\"hedemanded，plainlyatalosstounderstandthisrepulse。 \"Nothing!\"wastheambiguousanswer。 \"Justone!\"Dickpleaded。 \"No，\"thebridereplied，andtherewasdeterminationinthemonosyllable。 ItwasevidentthatDickperceivedthefutilityofargument。 \"Foramarriedwomanyoucertainlyareshy，\"hereplied，withaslyglancetowardAggie，whobeamedbacksympathy。\"You\'llexcuseme，won\'tyou，MissLynch，……Good-by，Mrs。Gilder。\"Hemadeaformalbowtohiswife。Ashehurriedtothedoor，heexpressedagainhisadmirationforthename。\"Mrs。Gilder! Doesn\'tthatsoundimmense？\"Andwiththathewasgone。 Therewassilenceinthedrawing-roomuntilthetwowomenheardtheclosingoftheouterdooroftheapartment。Then，atlast，Aggierelievedherpent-upemotionsinahugesighthatwasnearagroan。 \"OhGawd!\"shegasped。\"Thepoorsimp!\" CHAPTERXIII。THEADVENTOFGRIGGS。 Lateron，Garson，learningfromthemaidthatDickGilderhadleft，returned，justasMarywasglancingovertherelease，withwhichGeneralHastingswastobecompensated，alongwiththereturnofhisletters，forhispaymentoftenthousanddollarstoMissAgnesLynch。 \"Hello，Joe，\"Marysaidgraciouslyastheforgerentered。ThenshespokecrisplytoAgnes。\"Andnowyoumustgetready。YouaretobeatHarris\'sofficewiththisdocumentatfouro\'clock，andrememberthatyouaretoletthelawyermanageeverything。\" Aggietwistedherdoll-likefaceintoagrimace。 \"ItgetsmyangorathatI\'llhavetomissPaGilder\'sbeingledlikealambtotheslaughter-house。\"AndthatwasthenearestthelittleadventuressevercametomakingaBiblicalquotation。 \"Anyhow，\"sheprotested，\"Idon\'tseetheuseofallthismonkeybusinesshere。AllIwantisthecoin。\"Butshehurriedobediently，nevertheless，togetreadyforthestart。 GarsonregardedMaryquizzically。 \"It\'sluckyforherthatshemetyou，\"hesaid。\"She\'sgotnomorebrainsthanagnat。\" \"Andbrainsaremightyusefulthings，eveninourbusiness，\"Maryrepliedseriously；\"particularlyinourbusiness。\" \"Ishouldsaytheywere，\"Garsonagreed。\"Youhaveprovedthat。\" Aggiecameback，puttingonhergloves，andcockinghersmallheadveryprimlyundertheenormoushatthatwasgarnishedwithcostliestplumes。Itwasthusthatsheconsoledherselfinameasureforthebusinessoftheoccasion——inlieuofcrackedicefromTiffany\'satonehundredandfiftyacarat。Marygaveovertherelease，andAggie，stillgrumbling，depositeditinherhandbag。 \"Itseemstomewe\'regoingthroughalotofredtape，\"shesaidspitefully。 Mary，fromherchairatthedesk，regardedthemalcontentwithasmile，buthertonewascrispassheanswered。 \"Listen，Agnes。Thelasttimeyoutriedtomakeamangiveuppartofhismoneyitresultedinyourgoingtoprisonfortwoyears。\" Aggiesniffed，asifsuchanoutcomewerethemerestbagatelle。 \"Butthatwaywassoexciting，\"sheurged，notatallconvinced。 \"Andthiswayissosafe，\"Maryrejoined，sharply。\"Besides，mydear，youwouldnotgetthemoney。Mywaywill。Yourwaywasblackmail；mineisnot。Understand？\" \"Oh，sure，\"Aggiereplied，grimly，onherwaytothedoor。\"It\'sclearasPittsburgh。\"Withthatsarcasmdirectedagainstlegalsubtleties，shetrippeddaintilyout，anentirelyravishingvision，ifsomewhatgarishastoraiment，andsoonintheglancesofadmirationthateverymancastonherguileless-seemingbeauty，sheforgotthatshehadeverbeenannoyed。 Garson\'scommentasshedepartedwasutteredwithhisaccustomedbluntness。 \"Solidivory!\" \"She\'sadarling，anyway!\"Marydeclared，smiling。\"Youreallydon\'thalf-appreciateher，Joe!\" \"Anyhow，Iappreciatethathat，\"wasthereply，withadrychuckle。 \"Mr。Griggs，\"Fannieannounced。Therewasasmileonthefaceofthemaid，whichwasexplainedaminutelaterwhen，inaccordancewithhermistress\'sorder，thevisitorwasshownintothedrawing-room，forhispresencewasofanelegancesoextraordinaryastoattractattentionanywhere——andmirthaswellfromribaldobservers。 Meantime，GarsonhadexplainedtoMary。 \"It\'sEnglishEddie——youmethimonce。Iwonderwhathewants？ Probablygotatrickforme。Weoftenusedtoworktogether。\" \"Nothingwithoutmyconsent，\"Marywarned。 \"Oh，no，no，surenot!\"Garsonagreed。 FurtherdiscussionwascutshortbytheappearanceofEnglishEddiehimself，atall，handsomemanintheearlythirties，whopausedjustwithinthedoorway，anddeliveredtoMaryabowthatwastheperfectionofelegance。MarymadenoefforttorestrainthesmilecausedbythecostumeofMr。Griggs。Yet，therewasnoviolationofthecanonsofgoodtaste，exceptintheaggregate。 Fromspatstohat，fromwalkingcoattogloves，everythingwasperfectofitskind。Only，therewasanover-elaboration，sothattheensemblewasflamboyant。Andtheman\'smannerspreciselyharmonizedwithhisclothes，wherebythewholeeffectwasemphasizedandrenderedbizarre。Garsontookoneamazedlook，andthenrockedwithlaughter。 Griggsregardedhisformerassociatereproachfullyforamoment，andthengrinnedinfranksympathy。 \"Really，Mr。Griggs，youquiteovercomeme，\"Marysaid，half-apologetically。 Thevisitorcastaself-satisfiedglanceoverhisgarb。 \"Ithinkit\'sratherneat，myself。\"Hehadsomereputationintheunder-worldforhismannerofdressing，andheregardedthislatestachievementashismasterpiece。 \"Suresomeduds!\"Garsonadmitted，checkinghismerriment。 \"Fromyourcostume，\"Marysuggested，\"onemightjudgethatthisispurelyasocialcall。Isit？\" \"Well，notexactly，\"Griggsansweredwithasmile。 \"SoIfancied，\"hishostessreplied。\"So，sitdown，please，andtellusallaboutit。\" Whileshewasspeaking，Garsonwenttothevariousdoors，andmadesurethatallwereshut，thenhetookaseatinachairnearthatwhichGriggsoccupiedbythedesk，sothatthethreewereclosetogether，andcouldspeaksoftly。 EnglishEddiewastednotimeingettingtothepoint。 \"Now，lookhere，\"hesaid，rapidly。\"I\'vegotthegreatestgameintheworld……Twoyearsago，asetofGothictapestries，worththreehundredthousanddollarsandasetofFragonardpanels，worthnearlyasmuchmore，werepluckedfromachateauinFranceandsmuggledintothiscountry。\" \"Ihaveneverheardofthat，\"Marysaid，withsomeinterest。 \"No，\"Griggsreplied。\"Younaturallywouldn\'t，forthesimplereasonthatit\'sbeenkeptonthedeadquiet。\" \"Arethemthingsreallyworththatmuch？\"Garsonexclaimed。 \"Sometimesmore，\"Maryanswered。\"MorganhasasetofGothictapestriesworthhalfamilliondollars。\" Garsonutteredanejaculationofdisgust。 \"Hepayshalfamilliondollarsforasetofrugs!\"Therewasanoteoffiercestbitternesscomeintohisvoiceashesarcasticallyconcluded:\"Andtheywonderatcrime!\" Griggswentonwithhisaccount。 \"Aboutamonthago，thethingsIwastellingyouofwerehunginthelibraryofamillionaireinthiscity。\"Hehitchedhischairalittleclosertothedesk，andleanedforward，loweringhisvoicealmosttoawhisperashestatedhisplan。 \"Let\'sgoafterthem。Theyweresmuggled，mindyou，andnomatterwhathappens，hecan\'tsqueal。Whatdoyousay？\" GarsonshotapiercingglanceatMary。 \"It\'suptoher，\"hesaid。GriggsregardedMaryeagerly，asshesatwitheyesdowncast。Then，afteralittleintervalhadelapsedinsilence，hespokeinterrogatively: \"Well？\" Maryshookherheaddecisively。\"It\'soutofourline，\"shedeclared。