Her Mother's Secret Part 6

The two men bowed very deferentially.

Odalite received them politely, and at Mr. Copp's invitation, followed them into the building, accompanied by her sisters, their governess and Col. Anglesea, who regarded all these proceedings with a sarcastic smile.

The lawyer led the whole party into a small, old-fas.h.i.+oned, oak-paneled parlor, with a chimney in the angle of the wall, in which a large, wood fire had been kindled, and near which a table and a few chairs had been placed.

On this table lay various books of samples, and patterns, and catalogues of prices.

"Will you sit down and look over these, or will you go through the house first? I have had fires built in all the rooms, but still I think the place is not thoroughly aired and dried yet," said Mr. Copp.

"We will look over these first, and then take them through the house for reference," replied Odalite.

And the whole party sat down around the table, and began to examine patterns, samples and prices.

A great chattering as of many magpies ensued.

There was a difference of opinion. For kalsomine, and for the ground work of wall paper, as well as for window curtains, and chair and sofa colors, Odalite and Miss Meeke preferred olive, sage, lavender and other delicate, neutral tints, while Wynnette and Elva loudly advocated, pink, blue and yellow, or crimson, purple and orange.

At length, without arriving at any mutual understanding, but being rested from their long walk, they all arose to go through the house. Such a rambling house! with stairs going up and stairs going down in such out-of-the-way places; doors opening into rooms in such unexpected quarters; when they thought they were going to look into a small closet they found a large chamber; and when they walked through a side pa.s.sage, which they thought led outdoors on a porch, behold! it led into some wing containing more rooms.

Wynnette and Elva chose at least half a dozen different rooms in succession--this, because it had such a lovely little fireplace and mantelpiece; that, because it had such funny little cupboards; the other, because it had such quaint little windows.

Finally they gave up in despair, saying that they must think it over at home before they could choose among so many.

Odalite, who thought that there was no time to lose if the house was to be ready for Leonidas on his return, selected the wall paper and the suits of furniture for all the rooms from the patterns before her, and having carefully marked them and written her directions, she requested Mr. Copp to set the mechanics to work at once, and to hurry on the repairs as fast as justice to the business would permit.

And Col. Anglesea, watching these proceedings, smiled sarcastically.

Having done their errand at Greenbushes, the little party left the house.

"Mr. Beever! Oh! please, where are the big chincapin thickets we have heard so much about?" inquired Elva, in whose ideas these nuts were, after all, the most immediately important item in their errand to the farm.

"Yes, honey, you'll find 'em all along both sides of the footpath through the woods betwixt here and your place, but 'specially where you cross Chincapin Creek."

"The woods! There! We'll have to go back that way. Ah, Col. Anglesea, how lovely it will be when Odalite and Leonidas live here! There are so many lovely ways of going between the two places. Just listen now while I tell you. We may walk by the sh.o.r.e, as we did this morning, or we may walk through the woods, as we shall this afternoon. We may ride horseback along the sh.o.r.e or through the woods, or we may drive in a carriage along the sh.o.r.e or along the turnpike road through the woods; or, best of all, we may row in a boat from the landing at the foot of our hill to the landing at the foot of this hill. Oh, it will be perfectly delightful!"

Col. Anglesea looked at the child with his sinister smile, but she was too happy to notice anything evil in it.

They took leave of the lawyer and the farmer, and started to walk home through the woods, chattering all the way of the beauty of Greenbushes even now, and the delight of the prospect ahead.

"It is too late this season; but mind, Odalite, next spring you are to have a mansard roof, and bay windows, and--balconies, and--and--towers and things," said Elva.

"Perhaps," quietly replied Odalite.

"Why, there is no 'perhaps' about it! Le said you were to do just as you please with the house," suggested Wynnette.

"But that did not mean I should burn it down," said Odalite.

"Of course it did not. What do----"

"And he did not mean I should tear it down either, as I should have to do to make all the improvements our ambitious little Elva suggests. Why, darling, we might as well talk of putting a mansard on the top of that clump of Scotch firs as on that irregularly built farmhouse."

"The top is about as uneven in height as a set of dinner casters, so we will give up the mansard roof. But do have a bay window and some balconies," said Elva.

"Perhaps," repeated Odalite.

So talking they reached the bridge crossing Chincapin Creek, with its fringe of richly laden bushes, and stopped to gather the nuts.

It took but a little while to fill all their baskets, after which they continued their homeward walk.

They reached Mondreer late in the afternoon.

Their father had returned from the courthouse. Their mother had recovered from her headache. And the delayed dinner was served.

During the meal, which at Mondreer was always a merry one, the talk still ran upon Greenbushes and its present and prospective attractions.

Col. Anglesea took little part in the conversation, but he listened and smiled.

After dinner, and during the long winter evening that followed, he vainly sought an opportunity of speaking alone with Mrs. Force.

He did not fail because she shunned him, but because the little party kept together in the most persistent way, and he certainly could not ask Mrs.

Force in the presence of all her family, to give him a private interview.

He must wait his opportunity.

CHAPTER VI

"IN MY LADY'S CHAMBER"

The next morning Col. Anglesea resolved to have a decisive conversation with Mrs. Force before the day should be over.

After breakfast he seated himself in the family parlor to await events.

Soon Mr. Force came in to him. He was booted and spurred for a ride.

"I am sorry to have to leave you again to-day, but you know a subpoena is a thing not to be defied," he said.

"Oh, don't mind me. Sorry to lose your company, but shall find something to do, no doubt," replied the colonel.

"I fear it would be quite useless to ask you to ride with me?"

"To court? To spend the day there? Yes, quite. I never permit myself to be bored if I can help it."

"Good-day, then."

"Good-day. I wish you a pleasant ride."