Lady Marjorie's Love

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 1 February 1913, Page 2

Lady Marjorie's Love

(OUR SERIAL

I By Carl Swerdna | j Author of "To the Uttermost Fartliing," "A Mere Ceremony," "A Fight * for Honour," Etc.

'1 (JHAPTKR 11. (Continued.)

i The countess was well used to her j .step dnugiiu r's girlish sarcasms, and Jnever heeded them in tho least n<v\, 1 t.iiey 'did not even amuse her, i'or stie • hint u ) sen 5 A of humor. Handsome j and stately ladies, wJi-o never make a joke any more than t.hoy .sea one, who 1 'never lot.e their tampers, but possess lan exquisite faculty for putting other • people out of theirs, never do possess anv, pei .iaps.. The countess did not, and she was totally unaware of it. '•Your father h as usual," she said composedly. ''lie is a little tired.no doubt, but he feels exertion so quickly. It is rather a pity, as I have told him. that he should have appointed this evening to see Mr Petherick. "Air Pefcheriek?" Marjorie echoed. Air Petrerick was the Castlo .Marling lawyer, and, if there was any one u'hain its sotnewluit ur.sociable master could be said !•» regard as a eonfido.nt friend, Petherick was the man. "It'would have been no doubt bottei' to pot pone it until to-morrow msriiiiij;," the countess pursued. "But the appointment is made, and he do'\s not wish me to send to alter it. You had better not disturb him this afternoon, Marjorie; it will he hitter for him to he qi.'iet —lie may sleep." Tl: 1 f'Ue mrde the words sound ivkveSv like a suggestion; in ireftEty they were a command, and a prettv ■severe oranmand, too. Tt was Lady Marlingford's. habit to speak to all her lunisehel-J ii> much t'v- •••• • not a man or woman of them all would have dared t> disregard or disobey her faintest 'hint , as bhey valued their situations. Her stepdaughter understood as thoroughly as ,her maid did, and nodded. I "All right, Fenella. T won't disturb | him. T hate to see 11i r;I joking dreadfullv nervous fiid tiled, no:' 'dear!" She mounted half the steps j a,n.d turned IkiHe, .'-truck witli a. sudden I thought, and loaning her arms on the lu'oad balustrade. "Oh, Fenella, f quite forgot! Loft us is here!"

sslic over allowed herself to frown as she looked at. her. "Dear mo, Marjorie—that dress again Y Ooulcl you not ha vo found another P What is Alice thinking about ? She does not turn you out at all well!" "Turn me out? My goodness, I'Ynella, 0110 would think 1 was a jelly!" The girl's brown eyes brightened mirthfully as she glanced down at heriscslf. "There is nothing the matter witli it, is therer" she said. *'i didn't tell Alice 1 wanted another freekwhy should I? I wore this 'one last night." "Frock!" repeated the countessit was a. word to which she had a great objection. l 'l should have tuought, she said, with some slight impatience, "that you would have liked to make rather si, special toilet to-night for Mr Bligh." "Loftus? Ot, 1 didn't think of it!" said Marjorie carelessly. She opened the big scarlet-feather fan at- hor side, the only touch of color about the simple little dress —a fan which had been used so mvieh and so vigorously thatit presented a decidedly moulting appearance. "I'll apologise to him if you like-, Fenolla —toll him that I would have got myself up in a perfectly lovely maimer if I had only thought of it! He'll pay mo a charming compliment on the spot, you'll see." "Possibly." The countess smiled very much as- she had smiled before. "I must confess that I have hoard but (few of Uiis efforts. But when you are married, my dear. I think you will find it worth your while to dress for him." "Shall IP Then when I am married"—echoing the stress with which the countess had spoken the words — "it will bo quite time t-o bother myself about it. At 'present I don't believe that Loftus oven knows one of my frocks from another. Will the earl eomo in to dinner, Fenella?" ' ''Xo; he prefers to keep quiet until Mr Pefcherick comes. Very wisely so, too, for lie seems highly nervous, quite flushed and feverish," Lady Marlingford answered, idly playing with the bracelet that clasped her large, firm white arm. "Do pray keep that dog down, child! Your dress will look only the worse for its crumpling." Marjorie pushed Jack away with such unusual decision and severity tlwit he ■stared at her in remonstratory amazennent, and sat quietly down with a. suddenly grave and l anxious face. It scarcely changed or lightened when presently Mr Bligh wi>; announced and entered. She did not watch him with hor usual admiration and satisfaction as he crossed- to greet Lady Morlingfotd. The clciud of her father's failing health was a cloud that' deepened and* darkened over the affectionate little creature day by day. "If " she sometimes thought to herself with a thrill of terror that chilled her, and then drew back, frightened by a. dread | something that she dared not face. I She never got beyond that "if" ; from I the misery that it conjured up she shrank away, shuddering.

"Loftus?" The countess echoing tho na-me. not unnaturally looked round for its owner. Mar] one laughed and stood leaning on tho baluv, while she explained.

hot here —that is. not in the house!" she said. "Ho found me. in the wood, hut he couldn't stay. He ljacl come down from the town with Frank Peniberton, and had promised to go hack and lunch with him. He'll be here to dinner, though."

"Unless, 1 presume, Mr Pemberton should chance to meet him ?'' supplemented the countess, with a. faint questioning inflection. She stniled a slight, odd smile. "Does lie intend to remain here, my dear, ar is it one of his Hying visits?"

"llomain? Oh, 110! Ho means to go to the hotel at Upton Wafers toabsurd, as if lie couldn't just as well stop hero! —and to go hack by the first train in tho morhing." "To be Sure —it is scarcely likolv that he would oa.ro to give up even the. fag-end -of the .season," assented her ladyship placidly. "No —why should her"' agreed tho girl readily. ' 1 Ho loyes that sort of thing—T ha to it! And it is dull far him hero with nobody in the house, 1 said to him that I wondered he took the journey to stay such a very little while, but he said ho had nothing particular to do, and thought he might as well. Bue ho has an engagement for to-morrow —the last ball of the season that will bo worth going to, he says, so, of course, he can't stay!"

I "Of course not!" said the countess. M.a.rjorie did not see the curious .sniilo with which the /hie blue eyes rested upon her, or notice the satirically amused inflection of tho clear, cold voice, for she was used .to both. It had long been a settled article of belief with her that her stepmother did not like her lover, and she never expected her to "bo nice," as she childishly phrased it, when talking of hi in; Now she stood a iid watched the countess walk majectically across the iall to .the stairs and slowly tmouht them, and she fan off to get her iunoh in the dining room' -untroubled 1 in mind. "

If Mr Bligh supported his a-bscitco from her very coolly, she bore hers from him with a pliilosophy that was eq-uaJly untroubled. Indeed she was Hot thinking of Loftus at all as she ate her lunch and fed Jack, and possibly had not .remembered his coming appearance at dinner when she in due time came down arrayed' for that meal arid found her stepmother also ready 111 a costume as becoming as it was elaborate. Lady Marl nig ford did not believe in simplicity of attire for herself by any means, although most of Marjorie's little gowns deserved the | title that she gave them, and were I mere ."frocks." "Young girls really [need nothing more," the countess Raid.. But on the present occasion isbo did not approve of the severe ptraightness and plainness of the white garment* which robed the '.slight

young figure, and frowned as ;mucb as