Complete Works of Wilkie Collins (1711 page)

“Don’t let me keep you from dancing, Mr. Aldersley.”

He seats himself by her side, and feasts his eyes on the lovely downcast face that dares not turn toward him. He whispers to her:

“Call me Frank.”

She longs to call him Frank — she loves him with all her heart. But Mrs. Crayford’s warning words are still in her mind. She never opens her lips. Her lover moves a little closer, and asks another favor. Men are all alike on these occasions. Silence invariably encourages them to try again.

“Clara! have you forgotten what I said at the concert yesterday? May I say it again?”

“No!”

“We sail to-morrow for the Arctic seas. I may not return for years. Don’t send me away without hope! Think of the long, lonely time in the dark North! Make it a happy time for
me
.”

Though he speaks with the fervor of a man, he is little more than a lad: he is only twenty years old, and he is going to risk his young life on the frozen deep! Clara pities him as she never pitied any human creature before. He gently takes her hand. She tries to release it.

“What! not even that little favor on the last night?”

Her faithful heart takes his part, in spite of her. Her hand remains in his, and feels its soft persuasive pressure. She is a lost woman. It is only a question of time now!

“Clara! do you love me?”

There is a pause. She shrinks from looking at him — she trembles with strange contradictory sensations of pleasure and pain. His arm steals round her; he repeats his question in a whisper; his lips almost touch her little rosy ear as he says it again:

“Do you love me?”

She closes her eyes faintly — she hears nothing but those words — feels nothing but his arm round her — forgets Mrs. Crayford’s warning — forgets Richard Wardour himself — turns suddenly, with a loving woman’s desperate disregard of everything but her love — nestles her head on his bosom, and answers him in that way, at last!

He lifts the beautiful drooping head — their lips meet in their first kiss — they are both in heaven: it is Clara who brings them back to earth again with a start — it is Clara who says, “Oh! what have I done?” — as usual, when it is too late.

Frank answers the question.

“You have made me happy, my angel. Now, when I come back, I come back to make you my wife.”

She shudders. She remembers Richard Wardour again at those words.

“Mind!” she says, “nobody is to know we are engaged till I permit you to mention it. Remember that!”

He promises to remember it. His arm tries to wind round her once more. No! She is mistress of herself; she can positively dismiss him now — after she has let him kiss her!

“Go!” she says. “I want to see Mrs. Crayford. Find her! Say I am here, waiting to speak to her. Go at once, Frank — for my sake!”

There is no alternative but to obey her. His eyes drink a last draught of her beauty. He hurries away on his errand — the happiest man in the room. Five minutes since she was only his partner in the dance. He has spoken — and she has pledged herself to be his partner for life!

Chapter 4.

It was not easy to find Mrs. Crayford in the crowd. Searching here, and searching there, Frank became conscious of a stranger, who appeared to be looking for somebody, on his side. He was a dark, heavy-browed, strongly-built man, dressed in a shabby old naval officer’s uniform. His manner — strikingly resolute and self-contained — was unmistakably the manner of a gentleman. He wound his way slowly through the crowd; stopping to look at every lady whom he passed, and then looking away again with a frown. Little by little he approached the conservatory — entered it, after a moment’s reflection — detected the glimmer of a white dress in the distance, through the shrubs and flowers — advanced to get a nearer view of the lady — and burst into Clara’s presence with a cry of delight.

She sprang to her feet. She stood before him speechless, motionless, struck to stone. All her life was in her eyes — the eyes which told her she was looking at Richard Wardour.

He was the first to speak.

“I am sorry I startled you, my darling. I forgot everything but the happiness of seeing you again. We only reached our moorings two hours since. I was some time inquiring after you, and some time getting my ticket when they told me you were at the ball. Wish me joy, Clara! I am promoted. I have come back to make you my wife.”

A momentary change passed over the blank terror of her face. Her colour rose faintly, her lips moved. She abruptly put a question to him.

“Did you get my letter?”

He started. “A letter from you? I never received it.”

The momentary animation died out of her face again. She drew back from him and dropped into a chair. He advanced toward her, astonished and alarmed. She shrank in the chair — shrank, as if she was frightened of him.

“Clara, you have not even shaken hands with me! What does it mean?”

He paused; waiting and watching her. She made no reply. A flash of the quick temper in him leaped up in his eyes. He repeated his last words in louder and sterner tones:

“What does it mean?”

She replied this time. His tone had hurt her — his tone had roused her sinking courage.

“It means, Mr. Wardour, that you have been mistaken from the first.”

“How have I been mistaken?”

“You have been under a wrong impression, and you have given me no opportunity of setting you right.”

“In what way have I been wrong?”

“You have been too hasty and too confident about yourself and about me. You have entirely misunderstood me. I am grieved to distress you, but for your sake I must speak plainly. I am your friend always, Mr. Wardour. I can never be your wife.”

He mechanically repeated the last words. He seemed to doubt whether he had heard her aright.

“You can never be my wife?”

“Never!”

“Why?”

There was no answer. She was incapable of telling him a falsehood. She was ashamed to tell him the truth.

He stooped over her, and suddenly possessed himself of her hand. Holding her hand firmly, he stooped a little lower; searching for the signs which might answer him in her face. His own face darkened slowly while he looked. He was beginning to suspect her; and he acknowledged it in his next words.

“Something has changed you toward me, Clara. Somebody has influenced you against me. Is it — you force me to ask the question — is it some other man?”

“You have no right to ask me that.”

He went on without noticing what she had said to him.

“Has that other man come between you and me? I speak plainly on my side. Speak plainly on yours.”

“I
have
spoken. I have nothing more to say.”

There was a pause. She saw the warning light which told of the fire within him, growing brighter and brighter in his eyes. She felt his grasp strengthening on her hand. He appealed to her for the last time.

“Reflect,” he said, “reflect before it is too late. Your silence will not serve you. If you persist in not answering me, I shall take your silence as a confession. Do you hear me?”

“I hear you.”

“Clara Burnham! I am not to be trifled with. Clara Burnham! I insist on the truth. Are you false to me?”

She resented that searching question with a woman’s keen sense of the insult that is implied in doubting her to her face.

“Mr. Wardour! you forget yourself when you call me to account in that way. I never encouraged you. I never gave you promise or pledge — ”

He passionately interrupted her before she could say more.

“You have engaged yourself in my absence. Your words own it; your looks own it! You have engaged yourself to another man!”

“If I
have
engaged myself, what right have you to complain of it?” she answered firmly. “What right have you to control my actions — ?”

The next words died away on her lips. He suddenly dropped her hand. A marked change appeared in the expression of his eyes — a change which told her of the terrible passions that she had let loose in him. She read, dimly read, something in his face which made her tremble — not for herself, but for Frank.

Little by little the dark colour faded out of his face. His deep voice dropped suddenly to a low and quiet tone as he spoke the parting words.

“Say no more, Miss Burnham — you have said enough. I am answered; I am dismissed.” He paused, and, stepping close up to her, laid his hand on her arm.

“The time may come,” he said, “when I shall forgive you. But the man who has robbed me of you shall rue the day when you and he first met.”

He turned and left her.

A few minutes later, Mrs. Crayford, entering the conservatory, was met by one of the attendants at the ball. The man stopped as if he wished to speak to her.

“What do you want?” she asked.

“I beg your pardon, ma’am. Do you happen to have a smelling-bottle about you? There is a young lady in the conservatory who is taken faint.”

Between the Scenes — The Landing Stage

Chapter 5.

The morning of the next day — the morning on which the ships were to sail — came bright and breezy. Mrs. Crayford, having arranged to follow her husband to the water-side, and see the last of him before he embarked, entered Clara’s room on her way out of the house, anxious to hear how her young friend passed the night. To her astonishment she found Clara had risen, and was dressed, like herself, to go out.

“What does this mean, my dear? After what you suffered last night — after the shock of seeing that man — why don’t you take my advice and rest in your bed?”

“I can’t rest. I have not slept all night. Have you been out yet?”

“No.”

“Have you seen or heard anything of Richard Wardour?”

“What an extraordinary question!”

“Answer my question! Don’t trifle with me!”

“Compose yourself, Clara. I have neither seen nor heard anything of Richard Wardour. Take my word for it, he is far enough away by this time.”

“No! He is here! He is near us! All night long the presentiment has pursued me — Frank and Richard Wardour will meet.”

“My dear child! what are you thinking of? They are total strangers to each other.”

“Something will happen to bring them together. I feel it! I know it! They will meet — there will be a mortal quarrel between them — and I shall be to blame. Oh, Lucy! why didn’t I take your advice? Why was I mad enough to let Frank know that I loved him? Are you going to the landing-stage? I am all ready — I must go with you.”

“You must not think of it, Clara. There will be crowding and confusion at the water-side. You are not strong enough to bear it. Wait — I won’t be long away — wait till I come back.”

“I must and will go with you! Crowd?
He
will be among the crowd! Confusion? In that confusion
he
will find his way to Frank! Don’t ask me to wait. I shall go mad if I wait. I shall not know a moment’s ease until I have seen Frank, with my own eyes, safe in the boat which takes him to his ship! You have got your bonnet on; what are we stopping here for? Come! or I shall go without you. Look at the clock; we have not a moment to lose!”