Mike Fletcher by George Moore (ebook pc reader .txt) 📕

Up In His Arms,  But He Did Not Move,  And She Did Not See Him Until

The Last Flight.

"Here You Are At Last!"

"I Am Afraid I Have Kept You Waiting. I Was Not Certain Whether I

Should Come."

"And You Stopped To Look At The View Instead?"

"Yes,  But How Did You Know That?"

"Ah! That's Telling; Come In."

The Girl Went In Shyly.

"So This Is Where You Live? How Nicely You Have Arranged The Room.

I Never Saw A Room Like This Before. How Different From The Convent!

What Would The Nuns Think If They Saw Me Here? What Strange

Pictures!--Those Ballet-Girls; They Remind Me Of The Pantomime.

Did You Buy Those Pictures?"

"No; They Are Wonderful,  Aren't They? A Friend Of Mine Bought Them

In France."

"Mr. Escott?"

"Yes; I Forgot You Knew Him--How Stupid Of Me! Had It Not Been For

Him I Shouldn't Have Known You--I Was Thinking Of Something Else."

"Where Is He Now? I Hope He Will Not Return While I Am Here. You Did

Not Tell Him I Was Coming?"

"Of Course Not; He Is Away In France."

"And Those Portraits--It Is Always The Same Face."

"They Are Portraits Of A Girl He Is In Love With."

"Do You Believe He Is In Love?"

"Yes,  Rather; Head Over Heels. What Do You Think Of The Painting?"

Lily Did Not Answer. She Stood Puzzled,  Striving To Separate The

Confused Notions The Room Conveyed To Her. She Wore On Her Shoulders

A Small Black Lace Shawl And Held A Black Silk Parasol. She Was Very

Slender,  And Her Features Were Small And Regular,  And So White Was

Her Face That The Blue Eyes Seemed The Only Colour. There Was,

However,  About The Cheek-Bones Just Such Tint As Mellow As A White

Rose.

"How Beautiful You Are To-Day. I Knew You Would Be Beautiful When You

Discarded That Shocking Habit; But You Are Far More Beautiful Than I

Thought. Let Me Kiss You."

"No,  You Will Make Me Regret That I Came Here. I Wanted To See Where

You Lived,  So That When I Was Away I Could Imagine You Writing Your

Poems. Have You Nothing More To Show Me? I Want To See Everything."

"Yes,  Come,  I Will Show You Our Dining-Room. Mr. Escott Often Gives

Dinner-Parties. You Must Get Your Mother To Bring You."

"I Should Like To. But What A Good Idea To Have Book-Cases In The

Passages,  They Furnish The Walls So Well. And What Are Those Rooms?"

"Those Belong To Escott. Here Is Where I Sleep."

"What A Strange Room!" Discountenanced By The Great Christ. She

Turned Her Head.

"That Crucifix Is A Present From Frank. He Bought It In Paris. It Is

Superb Expression Of The Faith Of The Middle Ages."

"Old Ages,  I Should Think; It Is All Worm-Eaten. And That Virgin? I

Did Not Know You Were So Religious."

"I Do Not Believe In Christianity,  But I Think Christ Is

Picturesque."

"Christ Is Very Beautiful. When I Prayed To Him An Hour Passed Like

A Little Minute. It Always Seemed To Me More Natural To Pray To Him

Than To The Virgin Mary. But Is That Your Bed?"

Upon A Trellis Supported By Lion's Claws A Feather Bed Was Laid. The

Sheets And Pillows Were Covered With Embroidered Cloth,  The Gift Of

Some Unhappy Lady,  And About The Twisted Columns Heavy Draperies Hung

In Apparent Disorder. Lily Sat Down On The Pouff Ottoman. Mike Took

Two Venetian Glasses,  Poured Out Some Champagne,  And Sat At Her Feet.

She Sipped The Wine And Nibbled A Biscuit.

"Tell Me About The Convent," He Said. "That Is Now A Thing Over And

Done."

"Fortunately I Was Not Professed; Had I Taken Vows I Could Not Have

Broken Them."

"Why Not? A Nun Cannot Be Kept Imprisoned Nowadays."

"I Should Not Have Broken My Vows."

"It Was I Who Saved You From Them--If You Had Not Fallen In Love With

Me ..."

"I Never Said I Had Fallen In Love With You; I Liked You,  That Was

All."

"But It Was For Me You Left The Convent?"

"No; I Had Made Up My Mind To Leave The Convent Long Before I Saw

You. So You Thought It Was Love At First Sight."

"On My Part,  At Least,  It Was Love At First Sight. How Happy I Am!--I

Can Scarcely Believe I Have Got You. To Have You Here By Me Seems So

Unreal,  So Impossible. I Always Loved You. I Want To Tell You About

Myself. You Were My Ideal When I Was A Boy; I Had Already Imagined

You; My Poems Were All Addressed To You. My Own Sweet Ideal That None

Knew Of But Myself. You Shall Come And See Me All The Summer Through,

In This Room--Our Room. When Will You Come Again?"

"I Shall Never Come Again--It Is Time To Go."

"To Go! Why,  You Haven't Kissed Me Yet!"

"I Do Not Intend To Kiss You."

"How Cruel Of You! You Say You Will Never Come And See Me Again; You

Break And Destroy My Dream."

"How Did You Dream Of Me?"

"I Dreamed The World Was Buried In Snow,  Barred With Frost--That I

Never Went Out,  But Sat Here Waiting For You To Come. I Dreamed That

You Came To See Me On Regular Days. I Saw Myself Writing Poems To

You,  Looking Up To See The Clock From Time To Time. Tea And Wine Were

Ready,  And The Room Was Scented With Your Favourite Perfume. Ting!

How The Bell Thrilled Me,  And With What Precipitation I Rushed To The

Door! There I Found You. What Pleasure To Lead You To The Great Fire,

To Help You To Take Off Your Pelisse!"

The Girl Looked At Him,  Her Eyes Full Of Innocent Wonderment.

"How Can You Think Of Such Things? It Sounds Like A Fairy Tale. And

If It Were Summer-Time?"

"Oh! If It Were Summer We Should Have Roses In The Room,  And Only A

Falling Rose-Leaf Should Remind Us Of The Imperceptible Passing Of

The Hours. We Should Want No Books,  The Picturesqueness Of The River

Would Be Enough. And Holding Your Little Palm In Mine,  So Silken And

Delicately Moist,  I Would Draw Close To You."

Knowing His Skin Was Delicate To The Touch,  He Took Her Arm In His

Hand,  But She Drew Her Arm Away,  And There Was Incipient Denial In

The Withdrawal. His Face Clouded. But He Had Not Yet Made Up His Mind

How He Should Act,  And To Gain Time To Think,  He Said--

"Tell Me Why You Thought Of Entering A Convent?"

"I Was Not Happy At Home,  And The Convent,  With Its Prayers And

Duties,  Seemed Preferable. But It Was Not Quite The Same As I Had

Imagined,  And I Couldn't Learn To Forget That There Was A World Of

Beauty,  Colour,  And Love."

"You Could Not But Think Of The World Of Men That Awaited You."

"I Only Thought Of Him."

"And Who Was He?"

"Ah! He Was A Very Great Saint,  A Greater Saint Than You'll Ever Be.

I Fell In Love With Him When I Was Quite A Little Girl."

"What Was His Name?"

"I Am Not Going To Tell You. It Was For Him I Went Into The Convent;

I Was Determined To Be His Bride In Heaven. I Used To Read His Life,

And Think Of Him All Day Long. I Had A Friend Who Was Also In Love,

But The Reverend Mother Heard Of Our Conversations,  And We Were

Forbidden To Speak Any More Of Our Saints."

"Tell Me His Name? Was He Anything Like Me?"

"Well,  Perhaps There Is A Something In The Eyes."

The Conversation Dropped,  And He Laid His Hand Gently Upon Her Foot.

Drawing It Back She Spilt The Wine.

"I Must Go."

"No,  Dearest,  You Must Not."

She Looked Round,  Taking The Room In One Swift Circular Glance,  Her

Eyes Resting One Moment On The Crucifix.

"This Is Cruel Of You," He Said. "I Dreamed Of You Madly,  And Why Do

You Destroy My Dream? What Shall I Do?--Where Shall I Go?--How Shall

I Live If I Don't Get You?"

"Men Do Not Mind Whom They Love; Even In The Convent We Knew That."

"You Seem To Have Known A Good Deal In That Convent; I Am Not

Astonished That You Left It."

"What Do You Mean?" She Settled Her Shawl On Her Shoulders.

"Merely This; You Are In A Young Man's Room Alone,  And I Love You."

"Love! You Profane The Word; Loose Me,  I Am Going."

"No,  You Are Not Going,  You Must Remain." There Was An Occasional

Nature In Him,  That Of The Vicious Dog,  And Now It Snarled. "If You

Did Not Love Me,  You Should Not Have Come Here," He Said Interposing,

Getting Between Her And The Door.

Then She Entreated Him To Let Her Go. He Laughed At Her; Then

Suddenly Her Face Flamed With A Passion He Was Unprepared For,  And

Her Eyes Danced With Strange Lights. Few Words Were Spoken,  Only A

Few Ejaculatory Phrases Such As "How Dare You?" "Let Me Go!" She

Said,  As She Strove To Wrench Her Arms From His Grasp. She Caught Up

One Of The Glasses; But Before She Could Throw It Mike Seized Her

Hand; He Could Not Take It From Her,  And Unconscious Of Danger (For

If The Glass Broke Both Would Be Cut To The Bone),  She Clenched It

With A Force That Seemed Impossible In One So Frail. Her Rage Was

Like Wildfire. Mike Grew Afraid,  And Preferring That The Glass Should

Be Thrown Than It Should Break In His Hand,  He Loosed His Fingers. It

Smashed Against The Opposite Wall. He Hoped That Frank Had Not Heard;

That He Had Left The Chambers. He Seized The Second Glass. When She

Raised Her Arm,  Mike Saw And Heard The Shattered Window Falling Into

The Court Below. He Anticipated The Porter's Steps On The Staircase

And His Knock At The Door,  And It Was With An Intense Relief And

Triumph That He Saw The Bottle Strike The Curtain And Fall Harmless.

He Would Win Yet. Lily Screamed Piercingly.

"No One Will Hear," He Said,  Laughing Hoarsely.

She Escaped Him And She Screamed Three Times. And Now Quite Like A

Mad Woman,  She Snatched A Light Chair And Rushed To The Window. Her

Frail Frame Shook,  Her Thin Face Was Swollen,  And She Seemed To Have

Lost Control Over Her Eyes. If She Should Die! If She Should Go Mad!

Now Really Terrified,  Mike Prayed For Forgiveness. She Did Not

Answer; She Stood Clenching