Love's Shadow Part 37

'What! _"Ah, Miss Vavasour, how charming you look--a true Queen of Night!"_ Why, do you remember the lines, Edith? Don't you recollect how they refer to our costumes? How could I say them if we weren't in fancy dress?'

'Still, if the whole plot hinges on your scene--'

'Well! all I know is, out it goes--and out I go. The second act will be an utter frost now. They're making a terrible mistake, mind you. But that's Mitch.e.l.l's business, not mine. It's no kind of deprivation to _me_--you know that. What possible gratification can it be for a man like me--a man of the world--to paint my face and put on a ridiculous dress and make a general a.s.s of myself, just to help Mitch.e.l.l's rotten performance to go off all right!'

'I don't know. I daresay it would have amused you. I'm sorry, anyhow.'

'I'm sorry enough, too--sorry for them. But if you really want to know the root of the matter, I shrewdly suspect it's really jealousy! Yes, jealousy! It's very odd, when people get keen on this sort of thing, how vain they begin to get! Perfectly childis.h.!.+ Yes, he didn't want me to make a hit. Old Mitch.e.l.l didn't want to be cut out! Natural enough, in a way, when one comes to think it over; but a bit thick when one remembers the hours I've worked for that man--isn't it?'

'What did you say to him, Bruce, when he first told you?'

'Say? Oh, nothing. I took it very coolly--as a man of the world. I merely said, "Well, upon my word, Mitch.e.l.l, this is pretty rough," or something of that sort. I didn't show I was hurt or offended in any way.

I said, of course, it was like his beastly ingrat.i.tude--or words to that effect.'

'Oh! Was he angry?'

'Yes. He was very angry--furious.'

'Then you've had a quarrel with Mitch.e.l.l?'

'Not a quarrel, Edith, because I wouldn't quarrel. I merely rubbed in his ingrat.i.tude, and he didn't like it. He said, "Well, let's hope if you're no longer wasting your valuable life on my theatricals you'll now be able to arrive at the office in fairly decent time," or something nasty like that. Disgusting--wasn't it?'

Edith looked at the clock.

'Too bad,' she said. 'Well, you must tell me all about it--a long account of the whole thing--this afternoon. I won't go out. I'll be at home when you come--to hear all about it. And now--'

'But that wasn't nearly all,' continued Bruce, without moving; 'you'd hardly believe it, but Mitch.e.l.l actually said that he didn't think I had the smallest talent for the stage! He said I made much too much of my part--over-acted--exaggerated! When I made a point of keeping my rendering of the little scene _particularly_ restrained! The fact is, Mitch.e.l.l's a conceited a.s.s. He knows no more of acting than that chair, and he thinks he knows everything.'

'It's fortunate you hadn't ordered your costume.'

'Yes, indeed. As I told him, the whole thing might have cost me a tremendous lot--far more than I could afford--put me to tremendous expense; and all for nothing! But he said no doubt the costumier would take it back. Take it back, indeed! And that if he wouldn't I could send the costume to him--Mitch.e.l.l--_and_ the bill--it would be sure to come in useful some time or other--the costume, I mean. As though I'd dream of letting him pay for it! I told him at once there could be no question of such a thing.'

'Well, there won't, as you haven't ordered it.'

'Now, Edith, let me beg you not to argue. Isn't it bad enough that I'm slighted by my so-called friends, and treated with the basest ingrat.i.tude, without being argued with and nagged at in my own home?'

'I didn't know I was arguing. I beg your pardon. You mustn't worry about this, dear. After all, I suppose if they found at the rehearsals that they didn't really _need_ a mandarin--I mean, that the fancy-ball scene wasn't necessary--perhaps from their point of view they were right to cut it out. Don't have a lasting feud with Mitch.e.l.l--isn't he rather an important friend for you--at the office?'

'Edith, Mitch.e.l.l shall never set foot under my roof--never darken these doors again!'

'I wonder why, when people are angry, they talk about their roofs and doors? If you were pleased with Mitch.e.l.l again, you wouldn't _ask_ him to set foot under your roof--nor to darken the door. You'd ask him to come and see us. Anyhow, he won't feel it so very much--because he'll not notice it. He's never been here yet.'

'I know; but Mrs Mitch.e.l.l was going to call. You will be out to her now, remember.'

'I can safely promise, I think, never to receive her, Bruce.'

'Good heavens!' cried Bruce, looking at the clock. 'Do you know what the time is? I told you so! I knew it! You've made me late at the office!'

CHAPTER x.x.x

Mitch.e.l.l Behaves Decently

For the last few days Bruce had been greatly depressed, his temper more variable than ever, and he had managed to collect a quite extraordinary number of entirely new imaginary illnesses. He was very capricious about them and never carried one completely through, but abandoned it almost as soon as he had proved to Edith that he really had the symptoms. Until she was convinced he never gave it up; but the moment she appeared suitably anxious about one disease he adopted another. She had no doubt that he would continue to ring the changes on varieties of ill-health until he had to some extent recovered from the black ingrat.i.tude, as he considered it, of Mitch.e.l.l, in (what he called) hounding him out of the amateur theatricals, and not letting him play the part of one line at which he had slaved night and day.

One evening he came home in quite a different mood, bright and cheerful.

He played with Archie, and looked in the gla.s.s a good deal; both of which signs Edith recognised as hopeful.

'How is your temperature tonight, do you think?' she asked tentatively.

'Oh, I don't know. I can't worry about that. A rather gratifying thing has happened today, in fact, very gratifying.' He smiled.

'Really? You must tell me about it.'

'However badly a chap behaves--still, when he's really sorry--I mean to say when he climbs down and begs your pardon, positively crawls at your feet, you can't hold out, Edith!'

'Of course not. Then did Mitch.e.l.l--'

'And when you have known a fellow a good many years, and he has always been fairly decent to you except in the one instance--and when he is in a real difficulty--Oh, hang it! One is glad to do what one can.'

'Do I gather that there has been a touching scene between you and Mitch.e.l.l at the office?'

He glanced at her suspiciously. 'May I ask if you are laughing?'

'Oh, no, no! I was smiling with pleasure, hoping you had made it up.'

'Well, yes, it may be weak of me, but I couldn't see the poor fellow's scheme absolutely ruined without lending a helping hand. I have got my share of proper pride, as you know, Edith, but, after all, one has a heart.'

'What did he do?'

'Do!' exclaimed Bruce triumphantly. 'Do! Only apologised--only begged me to act with them again--only said that the piece was nothing without me, that's all! So I forgave him, and he was jolly grateful, I can tell you.'

'Fancy! Is it the same part?'

'Of course not. Didn't I tell you that the fancy ball in the second act has been cut out, so of course they don't want a mandarin. No; but Frank Lus...o...b.. has given up his part--chucked it, and they have asked me to take it.'

'Is it as long as the other one?'

'Longer! I appear twice. Mind you, in a way it's not such an important part as the other would have been; but the play wouldn't hold together without it, and, as Mitch.e.l.l said, Frank Lus...o...b.. is such a conceited chap he thought himself too grand to play a footman. He didn't have the proper artistic feeling for the whole effect; it appears that he was grumbling all the time and at last gave it up. Then it occurred to Mitch.e.l.l that perhaps I would help him out, and I said I would. It is a bit of a triumph, isn't it, Edith?'

'A great triumph. Then you will be going back to the rehearsals again?'

'Of course I shall; they begin tomorrow. Mitch.e.l.l thinks that I shall make the hit of the evening. Some of these comparatively unimportant parts, when they are really well played, are more effective than the chief characters. Mitch.e.l.l says he saw before, by the rehearsals, what a tremendous lot of talent I had. But it isn't merely talent, as he said; what they all noticed was my Personal Magnetism--and I expect that's it.

Fancy a man like Mitch.e.l.l coming cringing to me, after all that has pa.s.sed between us! Mind you, it's a distinct score, Edith!'