For Woman's Love Part- 2 by Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth (i love reading books txt) 📕

Wooded Hill To The River Road Leading To Rockhold.

The Three Left Behind Spent The Remainder Of The Evening On The Front

Porch,  Watching The Deep River,  The Hoary Mountains,  The Starry Sky,  And

Listening To The Hum Of Insects,  The Whirl Of Waters And The Singing Of

The Summer Breeze Through The Pines That Clothed The Precipice,  And

Talking Very Little.

They Retired To Rest At A Late Hour.

Yet On The Next Morning They Met At An Early Breakfast,  For Mr. Fabian

Had To Go To The Works To Make Up For Much Lost Time While Affairs Were

Left Under The Sole Management Of Mr. Clarence.

Cora Remained With Violet,  Who Took Her Into A More Interior Confidence,

And Exhibited With Equal Pride And Delight Sundry Dainty Little Garments

Of Fine Cambric And Linen Richly Trimmed With Lace Or Embroidery,  All

The Work Of Her Own Delicate Fingers.

"They Tell Me,  Cora,  That I Could Buy All These Things As Cheap And As

Good As I Can Make Them. But I Do Take Such Pleasure In Making Them With

My Own Hands."

Cora Kissed Her Tenderly For All Reply.

Then The Little Lady Began To Ask Questions About Her New

Step-Mother-In-Law.

"You Know,  Cora,  That I Could Not Ask You Yesterday While Sylvan Was

With Us. He Is In Your Full Confidence,  No Doubt,  And I Have Perfect

Faith In Him; But For All That We Cannot Speak Freely On All Subjects

Before A Third Person,  However Near And Dear. At Least I Could Not Ask

Searching Questions About Mr. Rockharrt's Marriage,  Before Sylvan. Such

A Strange Marriage,  With Such A Disparity In Years Between A Man Of Mr.

Rockharrt's Venerable Age And Mrs. Stillwater's Blooming Youth! I Saw

Her Once By Chance. She Looked A Perfect Hebe Of Radiant Health And

Beauty."

Cora Rothsay Smiled. She Might Have Told This Little Lady That There Was

Not Much More Difference Between The Ages Of Rose Stillwater At

Thirty-Seven And Aaron Rockharrt At Seventy-Seven Than There Was Between

Violet Wood At Seventeen And Fabian Rockharrt At Fifty-Two. But As The

Young Wife Did Not See This Fact,  Cora Refrained From Showing It To Her.

Then Violet Wanted To Know What Cora Herself Thought Of The Marriage.

Cora Said She Thought It Concerned Only The Parties In Question,  And

Only Time Could Tell How It Would Turn Out.

In Such Confidential Talk Passed The Long Summer Day.

In The Cool Of The Evening Mr. Fabian Came Home To Dinner.

He Joined His Wife In Trying To Persuade Cora To Remain With Them Yet

Another Day; But Cora Explained That There Were Many Reasons For Her

Return To Rockhold.

Finding Her Obdurate,  Mr. Fabian Ordered Mrs. Rothsay's Landau To Be At

The Door At A Certain Hour.

And As Soon As Dinner Was Over And Cora Had Put On Her Bonnet And Taken

Leave Of Violet,  With A Promise To Return Within A Few Days,  Mr. Fabian

Placed Her In The Carriage,  Took His Seat Beside Her,  And Drove Down

The Wooded Hill To The River Road Below.

"It Is Not Altogether For Pleasure That I Pressed You To Stay Till

To-Night,  Cora,  Although Your Presence Gave Great Pleasure To My Wife

And Self. I Wished To Have A Private Talk With You. Cora,  You Ought Not

To Stay At Rockhold. You Should Come To Us," Said Mr. Fabian,  As They

Bowled Along The Wooded Road Between The Foot Of The Hills And The Banks

Of The River.

"Why?" Inquired The Lady.

He Did Not Answer At Once,  But Drove Slowly On As If To Gain Time For

Thought. At Length,  However,  He Said:

"I Think That A Home With Violet And Myself At The Banks Would Be Much

More Congenial To You Than One With Your Grandfather And His New Wife At

Rockhold."

"But,  My Dear Uncle Fabian,  Under Present Circumstances My Grandfather

Is My Natural Protector And Rockhold My Proper Home Until My Brother Has

One To Offer Me."

"Cora,  You Are Not Frank With Me. I Know How You Feel About Staying At

Rockhold,  And Also Why You Feel As You Do; Though I Do Not See By What

Agency Or Intuition You Could Have Gained The Knowledge You Seem To

Possess."

"Uncle Fabian,  I Have No Positive Knowledge Of Any Cause Why I Should

Shrink From Continuing In My Natural Home. I Have Only Suspicions,  Which

Perhaps You Could Clear Up Or Confirm,  If You Would Be Frank With Me."

He Drove On Slowly In Silence Without Answering Her. She Continued:

"I Wrote To You While You Were In Europe,  Informing You That Mrs.

Stillwater Had Been Invited By My Grandfather To Come To Rockhold To

Remain As Long As Should Be Convenient To Herself. You Never Replied To

My Letter."

"I Never Got Such A Letter,  Cora. It Must Have Been Lost With Others

That Miscarried Among The Continental Mails,  When They Were Following Me

From One Office To Another. But Even If I Had Received Such A Letter,  It

Could Have Made No Difference. I Could Not Have Prevented Mrs.

Stillwater's Visit,  Nor The Event That Resulted From The Visit. I Could

Not Have Written Or Returned In Time."

"Should You Have Prevented The Visit Or The Marriage That Followed If

You Could Have Done So?"

"Most Certainly I Should."

"Why?"

"For The Same Reason That You,  Or Clarence,  Or Sylvan Would Have Done

So. For The Reason Of Its Total Unfitness. But,  Cora,  My Dear,  I Repeat

That You Have Not Been Frank With Me. You Are Hiding Something From Me."

"And I Repeat,  Uncle Fabian,  That I Have No Positive Knowledge Of Any--"

"Yes; So You Said Before," He Exclaimed,  Interrupting Her. "You Have No

Positive Knowledge,  But You Have Very Strong Suspicions Founded Upon

Very Solid Grounds! Now,  What Are These Grounds,  My Dear? I Am Your

Uncle. You Should Give Me Your Confidence."

If Mr. Fabian Had Not Put The Matter In This Way,  And If They Had Not

Been Driving Along The Dark And Over-Shadowed Road Where The Meeting

Branches Of The Trees Above Almost Hid The Light Of The Stars,  So That

Only One Or Two Occasionally Gleamed Through The Foliage,  Cora Would

Never Have Been Able To Reply To Her Uncle As She Did.

"Uncle Fabian,  Do You Remember A Certain Warm Night In September Some

Five Years Ago,  When We Stopped At The Wirt House In Baltimore?"

"On Our Way Home From Canada--Yes,  I Do."

"My Room Was Close That Night And I Could Not Sleep. A Little After

Midnight I Got Up And Put Oil My Dressing-Gown And Went Into The

Adjoining Room,  Which Was Our Private Parlor,  And I Sat Down In A Cool

Corner In The Shadow Of The Curtain And In The Draught Of The Window. I

Fell Asleep,  But Was Soon Awakened By The Sound Of A Door Opening And

Some One Whispering. I Was About To Call Out When I Recognized Your

Voice. The Room Was Pitch Dark. I Could Not See You; But Then I Was

About To Speak,  When I Recognized Another Voice--Mrs. Stillwater's. You

Had Let Yourself In By Your Own Key,  Through The Door Leading From The

Hall. She Had Come In Through The Door Leading From Her Room,  Which Was

On The Opposite Side Of The Parlor From Mine."

Cora Paused To Wait For The Effect Of Her Words.

Mr. Fabian Drove On Slowly In Silence.

"I Sat There Quite Still,  Too Much Surprised To Speak Or Move."

"And So You Overheard That Interview," Said Mr. Fabian,  With A Dash Of

Anger In His Usually Pleasant Voice.

"I Could Not Escape. I Was Amazed,  Spellbound,  Too Confused To Know What

To Do."

"Well?"

"I Gathered From Your Words That You And She Were Either Secretly

Married Or Secretly Engaged To Be Married."

"That Was Your Opinion."

"What Other Opinion Could I Form? You Were Providing Her With A House

And An Income. She Was Speaking Of Herself As A Daughter-In-Law Sure To

Be Acceptable To Your Father And Mother. Of Course,  I Judged From That

That You Were Either Wedded Or Betrothed,  Which Was An Incomprehensible

Thing To Me,  Who Had Been Led To Believe That The Lady Was The Wife Of

Captain Stillwater,  Remaining In Baltimore To Meet Her Husband,  Whose

Ship Was Then Daily Expected To Arrive."

"You Were Wrong,  Cora," Said Mr. Fabian,  Now Speaking In His Natural

Tone Without A Shade Of Anger--Quite Wrong,  My Dear; There Was Nothing

Of The Sort. I Was Never Engaged To Mrs. Stillwater."

"Then She Subsequently Refused You. I Am Telling You What I Thought

Then,  Not What I Think Now. I Have Heard From Her Own Lips That After

Her Husband's Death You Proposed To Her And She Refused You."

Mr. Fabian Shook With Silent Laughter. When He Recovered He Asked:

"And You Believed Her?"

"I Do Not Know. I Was In A Maze. There Were So Many Contradictory And

Inconsistent Circumstances Surrounding The Woman That Seemed To Live And

Move In A Web Of Deception Woven By Herself," Said Cora,  Wearily,  As If

Tired Of The Subject.

"And,  After All,  She Is A Very Shallow Creature,  Incapable Of Any Deep

Scheming; There Is No Great Harm. She Knows That She Is Beautiful--Still

Beautiful--And Her Only Art Is Subtle Flattery. She Flattered Your

Grandfather 'To The Bent Of His Humor,' With No Deeper Design Than To

Marry Him And Gain A Luxurious Home And An Ample Dower,  As Well As An

Adoring Husband. You See She Has Succeeded In Marrying Him,  Poor Little

Devil! But She