GEORGE SHAW - The Complete Works

She passed on disdainfully, as if she had not heard him.

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Three days later Lord Carbury came to luncheon with a letter in his hand. Marian had not yet come in; and the Rev. George was absent, his place being filled by Marmaduke.

“Good news for you and Constance, mother.”

“Indeed?” said the Countess, smiling.

“Yes. Conolly is coming down this afternoon to collect his traps and leave you forever.”

“Really, Jasper, you exaggerate Mr. Conolly’s importance. Intelligence of his movements can hardly be news — good or bad — either to me or to Constance.”

“I am glad he is going,” said Constance, “for Jasper’s sake.”

“Thank you,” replied Jasper. “I thought you would be. He will be a great loss to me.”

“Nonsense!” said the Countess. “If another workman is needed, another can easily be had.”

“If I can be of any assistance to you, old man,” said Marmaduke, “make what use of me you like. I picked up something about the business yesterday.”

“Yes,” said Elinor. “While you were away, Jasper, he went to the laboratory with Constance, and fired off a brass cannon with your new pile until he had used up all the gunpowder and spoiled the panels of the door. That is what he calls picking up something about the business.”

“Nothing like experiment for convincing you of the power of electricity,” said Marmaduke. “Is there, Conny?”

“It’s very wonderful; but I hate shots.”

“Where is Marian?” said Lady Carbury.

“I left her in the summer-house in the fruit garden,” said Elinor. “She was reading.”

“She must have forgotten the hour,” said the Countess. “She has been moping, I think, for the last few days. I hope she is not unwell. But she would never stay away from luncheon intentionally. I shall send for her.”

“I’ll go,” said Marmaduke, eagerly.

“No, no, Duke. You must not leave the table. I will send a servant.”

“I will fetch her here in half the time that any servant will. Poor

Marian, why shouldnt she have her lunch? I shall be back in a jiffy.”

“What a restless, extraordinary creature he is!” said Lady Carbury, displeased, as Marmaduke hastily left the room. “The idea of a man leaving the table in that way!”

“I suspect he has his reasons,” said Elinor.

“I think it is a perfectly natural thing for him to do,” said Constance, pettishly. “I see nothing extraordinary in it.”

Marmaduke found Marian reading in the summer-house in the fruit garden. She looked at him in lazy surprise as he seated himself opposite to her at the table.

“This is the first chance I’ve had of talking to you privately since I came down,” he said. “I believe you have been keeping out of my way on purpose.”

“Well, I concluded that you wanted as many chances as possible of talking to some one else in private; so I gave you as many as I could.”

“Yes, you and the rest have been uncommonly considerate in that respect: thank you all awfully. But I mean to have it out with you, Miss Marian, now that I have caught you alone.”

“With me! Oh, dear! What have I done?”

“What have you done? I’ll tell you what youve done. Why did you send Conolly, of all men in the world, to tell me that I was in disgrace here?”

“There was no one else, Marmaduke.”

“Well, suppose there wasn’t! Suppose there had been no one else alive on the earth except you, and I, and he, and Constance, and Su — and Constance! how could you have offered him such a job?”

“Why not? Was there any special reason—”

“Any special reason! Didnt your common sense tell you that a meeting between him and me must be particularly awkward for both of us?”

“No. At least I — . Marmaduke: I think you must fancy that I told him more than I did. I did not know where you were; and as he was going to London, and I thought you knew him well, and I had no other means of warning you, I had to make use of him. Jasper will tell you how thoroughly trustworthy he is. But all I said — and I really could not say less — was that I was afraid you were in bad company, or under bad influence, or something like that; and that I only wanted you to come down here at once.”

“Oh! Indeed! That was all, was it? Merely that I was in bad company.”

“I think I said under bad influence. I was told so; and I believed it at the time. I hope it’s not true, Marmaduke. If it is not, I beg your pardon with all my heart.”

Marmaduke stared very hard at her for a while, and then said, with the emphasis of a man baffled by utter unreason: “Well, I am damned!” at which breach of good manners she winced. “Hang me if I understand you, Marian,” he continued, more mildly. “Of course it’s not true. Bad influence is all bosh. But it was a queer thing to say to his face. He knew very well you meant his sister. Hallo! what’s the matter? Are you going to faint?”

“No, I — Never mind me.”

“Never mind you!” said Marmaduke. “What are you looking like that for?”

“Because — it is nothing: I only blushed. Dont be stupid, Duke.”

“Blushed! Why dont you blush red, like other people, and not green?

Shall I get you something?”

“No, no. Oh, Duke, why did you not tell me? How could you be so heartless as to leave us all in the dark when we were talking about you before him every day! Oh, are you in earnest, Duke? Pray dont jest about it. What do you mean by his sister? I never knew he had one. Who is she? What happened? I mean when you saw him?”

“Nothing happened. I was mowing in the garden. He just walked in; bade me good morning; admired the place; and told me he came with a message from you that things were getting hot here. Then he went off, as cool as you please. He didnt seem to mind.”

“And he warned you, in spite of all.”

“More for your sake than for mine, I suspect. He’s rather sweet on you, isnt he?”

“Oh, Duke, Duke, are you not ashamed of yourself?”

“Deuce a bit. But I’m in trouble; and I want you to stand by me. Look here, Marian, you have no nonsense about you, I know. I may tell you frankly how I am situated, maynt I?”

Marian looked at him apprehensively, and said nothing.

“You see you will only mix up matters worse than before unless you know the truth. Besides, I offered to marry her: upon my soul I did; but she refused. Her real name is Susanna Conolly: his sister, worse luck.”

“Dont tell me any more of this, Duke. It is not right.”

“I suppose it’s not right, as you say. But what am I to do? I must tell you; or you will go on making mischief with Constance.”

“As if I would tell her! I promise that she shall never know from me. Is that enough?”

“No: its too much. The plain truth is that I dont care whether she finds me out or not. I want her to understand thoroughly, once and for ever, that I wont marry her.”

“Marmaduke!”

“Not if I were fifty Marmadukes!”

“Then you will break her heart.”

“Never fear! Her heart is pretty tough, if she has one. Whether or no, I

am not going to have her forced on me by the Countess or any one else.

The truth is, Marian, they have all tried to bully me into this match.

Constance can’t complain.”

“No, not aloud.”

“Neither aloud or alow. I never proposed to her.”

“Very well, Marmaduke: there is no use now in blaming Auntie or excusing yourself. If you have made up your mind, there is an end.”

“But you cant make out that I am acting meanly, Marian. Why, I have everything to lose by giving her up. There is her money, and I suppose I must prepare for a row with the family; unless the match could be dropped quietly. Eh?”