The Star-Gazers Part 56

"Yes, I am here," cried Rolph fiercely, for he had come up behind them un.o.bserved with Lucy, who had vainly tried to stop him, following, looking white, and trembling visibly. "What is the meaning of this?

Glynne, why are you here? What has this man been saying?"

There was no reply. Alleyne standing stern and frowning, and Glynne looking wildly from one to the other unable to speak.

"I heard you say something about an insult," cried Rolph hotly; "has the blackguard dared--"

"Take me back home, Robert," said Glynne, in a strangely altered voice.

"Then tell me first," cried Rolph. "How dare he speak to you, what does he mean?"

He took hold of Glynne's arm, and shook it impatiently as he spoke, but she made no reply, only looked wistfully from Rolph to Alleyne and back.

"Take me home," she said again.

"Yes, yes, I will; but if this scoundrel has--"

"How dare you call my brother a scoundrel?" cried Lucy, firing up. "You of all persons in the world."

Rolph turned to her sharply, and she pointed down the path, towards the gate.

"Go!" she said; "go directly, or I shall be tempted to tell Glynne all that I could tell her. Leave our place at once."

Rolph glared at her for a moment, but turned from her directly, as too insignificant for his notice, and once more he exclaimed,--

"I insist on knowing what this man has said to you, Glynne--"

He did not finish his sentence, but, in the brutality of his health and strength, he looked with such lofty contempt upon the man whom he was calling in his heart "grub," "bookworm," that as Alleyne stood there bent and silent, gazing before him, straining every nerve to maintain his composure before Glynne, the struggle seemed too hard.

How mean and contemptible he must look before her, he thought--how degraded; and as he stood there silent and determined not to resent Rolph's greatest indignity, his teeth were pressed firmly together, and his veins gathered and knotted themselves in his brow.

There was something exceedingly animal in Rolph's aspect and manner at this time, so much that it was impossible to help comparing him to an angry combative dog. He snuffed and growled audibly; he showed his teeth; and his eyes literally glared as he appeared ready to dash at his enemy, and engage in a fierce struggle in defence of what he looked upon as his just rights.

Had Alleyne made any sign of resistance, Rolph would have called upon his brute force, and struck him; but the idea of resenting Rolph's violence of word and look did not occur to Alleyne. He had sinned, he felt, socially against Glynne; he had allowed his pa.s.sion to master him, and he told himself he was receiving but his due.

The painful scene was at last brought to an end, when once more Rolph turned to Glynne, saying angrily,--

"Why don't you speak? Why don't you tell me what is wrong?"

He shook her arm violently, and as he spoke Alleyne felt a thrill of pa.s.sionate anger run through him that this man should dare to act thus, and to address the gentle, graceful woman before him in such a tone. It was maddening, and a prophetic instinct made him imagine the treatment Glynne would receive when she had been this man's wife for years.

At last Glynne found words, and said hastily,--

"Mr Alleyne made a private communication to me. He said words that he must now regret. That is all. It was a mistake. Let us leave here.

Take me to my father--at once."

Rolph took Glynne's hand, and drew it beneath his arm, glaring at Alleyne the while like some angry dog; but though Lucy stood there, fierce and excited, and longing to dash into the fray as she looked from Rolph to Glynne and back, her brother did not even raise his eyes. A strange thrill of rage, resentment and despair ran through him, but he could not trust himself to meet Rolph's eye. He stood with his brow knit, motionless, as if stunned by the incidents of the past few minutes, and no words left his lips till he was alone with Lucy, who threw herself sobbing in his arms.

END OF VOLUME TWO.

Volume 3, Chapter I.

GEMINI, WITH MARS IN VIEW.

With his grey hair starting out all over his head in a peculiarly fierce way, Major Day was standing and musing just at the edge of the wood, and a few yards from the path, very busy with one of those tortoise-sh.e.l.l framed lenses so popular with botanists, one of those with its three gla.s.ses of various powers, which, when superposed, form a combination of great magnifying strength.

Major Day had come upon a tree whose beautifully smooth bark was dappled with patches of brilliant amethystine fungus, a portion of which he had carefully slipped off with a penknife, for the purpose of examining the peculiarities of its structure under the gla.s.s.

The old gentleman was so rapt in his pursuit that he did not notice approaching footsteps till Sir John came close up, making holes in the soft earth with his walking-stick, and talking angrily to himself as he hurried along.

The brothers caught sight of each other almost at the same moment, Sir John stopping short and sticking his cane in the ground, as if to anchor himself, and the major slowly lowering his lens.

"Hullo, Jem, what have you found?" cried Sir John; "the potato disease?"

"No," replied the major, smiling, "only a very lovely kind of _Tremella_."

"Oh, have you?" growled Sir John.

"Yes. Would you like to examine it?" said the major.

"Who, I? No thank you, old fellow, I'm busy."

"Where are you going, Jack?" said the major, as a thought just occurred to him.

"Over yonder--'The Firs.'"

"To Fort Science, eh?" said the major, smiling; but only to look serious again directly. "Why, Jack, what for? Why are you going?"

"There, there, don't interfere, Jem; it would not interest you.

Precious unpleasant business, I can tell you. I must go, though."

"What is the matter, Jack?"

"There, there, my dear fellow, what is the use of worrying me about it.

Go on hunting for _pezizas_, or whatever you call them. This is a domestic matter, and doesn't concern you."

"Yes it does concern me, Jack," replied the major. "You are going about that communication which Rolph made to us last night after dinner."

"Well, hang it all, Jem, suppose I am; surely, as Glynne's father, if I want to see the man who insulted her, and talk to him, there's no occasion for you to interfere."

"Jack, you are out of temper," said the major. "You are going to make a--"

"Fool of myself, eh? There, say it, man, say it," cried the baronet hastily.

"I shall not say anything of the kind, Jack," replied the major good-humouredly; "but let's talk sensibly, old fellow."

"Yes, of course, sensibly," cried Sir John sharply. "You are going to turn advocate and speak on that telescopic scoundrel's behalf. What the d.i.c.kens do you mean by sticking yourself here when I'm going out on business!"

"Tchut! tchut, Jack! don't be so confoundedly peppery," cried the major.

"Now, look here, boy, what are you going to do?"