第9章

Eugene turned towards her, wearing the sharp edge of a smile.Not removing his eyes from her face, he produced with deliberation a flat silver box from a pocket, took therefrom a cigarette, replaced the box, extracted a smaller silver box from another pocket, shook out of it a fusee, slowly lit the cigarette--this in a splendid silence, which he finally broke to say, languidly, but with particular distinctness:

"Ariel Tabor, go home!"

The girl's teeth stopped chattering, her lips remaining parted; she shook the hair out of her eyes and stared at him as if she did not understand, but Joe Louden, who had picked up the banjo-case obediently, burst into cheerful laughter.

"That's it, 'Gene," he cried, gayly."That's the way to talk to her!""Stow it, you young cub," replied Eugene, not turning to him."Do you think I'm trying to be amusing?""I don't know what you mean by `stow it,' " Joe began, "but if--""I mean," interrupted the other, not relaxing his faintly smiling stare at the girl--" I mean that Ariel Tabor is to go home.Really, we can't have this kind of thing occurring upon our front lawn!"The flush upon her wet cheeks deepened and became dark; even her arm grew redder as she gazed back at him.In his eyes was patent his complete realization of the figure she cut, of this bare arm, of the strewn hair, of the fallen stocking, of the ragged shoulder of her blouse, of her patched short skirt, of the whole dishevelled little figure.He was the master of the house, and he was sending her home as ill-behaved children are sent home by neighbors.

The immobile, amused superiority of this proprietor of silver boxes, this wearer of strange and brilliant garments, became slightly intensified as he pointed to the fallen sleeve, a rag of red and snow, lying near her feet.

"You might take that with you?" he said, interrogatively.

Her gaze had not wavered in meeting his, but at this her eyelashes began to wink uncontrollably, her chin to tremble.She bent over the sleeve and picked it up, before Joe Louden, who had started towards her, could do it for her.Then turning, her head still bent so that her face was hidden from both of them, she ran out of the gate.

"DO go!" Joe called after her, vehemently."Go!

Just to show what a fool you are to think 'Gene's in earnest."He would have followed, but his step-brother caught him by the arm."Don't stop her," said Eugene."Can't you tell when I AM in earnest, you bally muff!""I know you are," returned the other, in a low voice."I didn't want her to think so for your sake.""Thousands of thanks," said Eugene, airily.

"You are a wise young judge.She couldn't stay--in THAT state, could she? I sent her for her own good.""She could have gone in the house and your mother might have loaned her a jacket," returned Joe, swallowing."You had no business to make her go out in the street like that."Eugene laughed."There isn't a soul in sight --and there, she's all right now.She's home."Ariel had run along the fence until she came to the next gate, which opened upon a walk leading to a shabby, meandering old house of one story, with a very long, low porch, once painted white, running the full length of the front.Ariel sprang upon the porch and disappeared within the house.

Joe stood looking after her, his eyelashes winking as had hers."You oughtn't to have treated her that way," he said, huskily.

Eugene laughed again."How were YOU treating her when I came up? You bully her all you want to yourself, but nobody else must say even a fatherly word to her!""That wasn't bullying," explained Joe."We fight all the time.""Mais oui!" assented Eugene."I fancy!""What?" said the other, blankly.

"Pick up that banjo-case again and come on,"commanded Mr.Bantry, tartly."Where's the mater?"Joe stared at him."Where's what?""The mater!" was the frowning reply.

"Oh yes, I know!" said Joe, looking at his step-brother curiously."I've seen it in stories.She's up-stairs.You'll be a surprise.You're wearing lots of clothes, 'Gene.""I suppose it will seem so to Canaan," returned the other, weariedly."Governor feeling fit?""I never saw him," Joe replied; then caught himself."Oh, I see what you mean! Yes, he's all right."They had come into the hall, and Eugene was removing the long coat, while his step-brother looked at him thoughtfully.

"'Gene," asked the latter, in a softened voice, "have you seen Mamie Pike yet?""You will find, my young friend," responded Mr.Bantry, "if you ever go about much outside of Canaan, that ladies' names are not supposed to be mentioned indiscriminately.""It's only," said Joe, "that I wanted to say that there's a dance at their house to-night.I suppose you'll be going?""Certainly.Are you?"Both knew that the question was needless; but Joe answered, gently:

"Oh no, of course not." He leaned over and fumbled with one foot as if to fasten a loose shoe-string."She wouldn't be very likely to ask me.""Well, what about it?""Only that--that Arie Tabor's going."

"Indeed!" Eugene paused on the stairs, which he had begun to ascend."Very interesting.""I thought," continued Joe, hopefully, straightening up to look at him, "that maybe you'd dance with her.I don't believe many will ask her--I'm afraid they won't--and if you would, even only once, it would kind of make up for"--he faltered --"for out there," he finished, nodding his head in the direction of the gate.

If Eugene vouchsafed any reply, it was lost in a loud, shrill cry from above, as a small, intensely nervous-looking woman in blue silk ran half-way down the stairs to meet him and caught him tearfully in her arms.

"Dear old mater!" said Eugene.

Joe went out of the front-door quickly.