The Two Sides of the Shield Part 24

Dolores could not deny this, but she was hurt by the word trumpeted; and besides, her own slippery behaviour was weakening her trust in other people's sincerity, and she only gave a kind of grunt; but Gillian, recovering herself a little, and remembering her mother's words, proceeded to argue. 'Besides, it was me whom Jasper meant to tease, not you.'

'I don't care which it was. He is as bad as the rest of them!'

Gillian attempted no more conciliation, and they arrived in silence at the Cas.e.m.e.nt Cottages, where Constance was awaiting her friend in the greatest excitement; for she had despatched 'The Waif of the Moorland'

to Mr. Flinders in the course of the week, and had received a letter from him in return, saying that a personal interview with the gifted auth.o.r.ess would be desirable.

'And I do long to see him; don't you, darling?

'It is very hard that he should be kept away from me,' said Dolores, trying to stir up some tender feelings.

'That it is, my poor sweet! I thought whether he could come to me for a merely literary consultation without Mary's knowing anything further about it, and then we could contrive for you to come down and meet him; but there are so many horrid prejudices that I suppose it would not be safe.'

'I don't see how I could come down here without the others. Aunt Lily won't let me come alone, and though it is holiday time, that is no good, for those horrid boys are always about, and I see that Jasper is going to be worse even than Wilfred.

Various ways and means were discussed, but no excuse seemed available for either Constance's going to Darminster, or for Mr. Flinders coming to Silverton, without exciting suspicion.

CHAPTER XI. -- SECRET EXPEDITION

'The Christmas-tree! Oh, mamma, do let it be the Christmas-tree. It is quite well. We've been to look at it.'

'Christmas-trees have got so stale, Val,' said Gillian.

'Rot!' put in Jasper.

'Oh, please, please, mamma,' implored Valetta, 'please let it be the dear old Christmas-tree! You said I should choose because it will be my birthday.'

'There is no need to whine, Val; you shall have your tree.'

'I'm so glad!' cried Mysie. 'The dear old tree is best of all. I could never get tired of it if I lived to be a hundred years old.'

'Such are inst.i.tutions,' said their mother. 'I never heard of a Christmas-tree till I was twice your age.'

'Oh, mamma! How dreadful! What did you do?'

'I suppose it is all very well for you kids,' said Jasper, loftily, putting his hands in his pockets.

'Perhaps something may be found interesting eve: to the high and mighty elders,' observed Lady Merrifield.

'Oh! What, mamma?'

Mamma, of course, only looked mysterious.

'And,' added Val, 'mayn't we all go on a secret expedition and buy things for it?'

'We've all been saving up,' added Mysie; 'and everybody knows every single thing in all the shop at Silverton.'

'Besides,' added Gillian, 'the sconces will none of them hold, and almost all the golden globes got smashed in coming from Dublin, and one of the birds has its head off, and another has lost its spun-gla.s.s tail, and another its legs.'

'A bird of Paradise,' said Lady Merrifield, laughing; 'but wasn't there a tree at Malta decked with no apparatus at all?'

'Yes, but Alley and Phyl can do anything!'

'I think we must ask Aunt Jane---'

There was a howl. 'Oh, please, mamma, don't let Aunt Jane get all the things! We do so want to choose.'

'You impatient monsters! You haven't heard me out, and you don't deserve it.'

'Oh, mamma, I beg your pardon!' 'Oh, mamma, please!' 'Oh, mamma, pray!'

cried the most impatient howlers, dancing round her.

'What I was about to observe, before the interruption by the honourable members, was, that we might perhaps ask Aunt Jane and Aunt Ada to receive at luncheon a party of caterers for this same tree.'

'Oh! oh! oh!' 'How delicious!' 'Hooray!' 'That's what I call jolly fun!'

'And, mamma,' added Gillian, 'perhaps we might let Miss Hacket join.

I know she wants to get up something for a G.F.S. cla.s.s; but mamma was attending to Primrose, and the brothers burst in.

'There goes Gill, spoiling it all!' exclaimed Wilfred.

'That's always the way,' said Jasper. 'Girls must puzzle everything up with some philanthropic Great Fuss Society dodge.'

'I am sure, Jasper,' said Gillian, 'I don't see why it should spoil anything to make other people happy. I thought we were told to make feasts not only for our own friends--'

'Gill's getting just like old Miss Hacket,' said Wilfred.

'Or sweet Constance,' put in Jasper. 'She'll be writing poems next.'

'Hus.h.!.+ hus.h.!.+ boys,' said Lady Merrifield. 'I do not mean to interfere with your pleasure, 'but I had rather our discussions were not entirely selfish. Suppose, Gillian, we walked down to Cas.e.m.e.nt Cottages, and consulted Miss Hacket.'

This was done, in the company of all the little girls, for Miss Hacket's cats, doves, and gingerbread were highly popular; moreover, Dolores was glad of a chance sight of Constance.

'My dear,' said Lady Merrifield, as Gillian walked beside her, 'you must be satisfied with giving Miss Hacket the reversion of our tree, and you and Mysie can go and help her. It will not do to make these kind of works a nuisance to your brothers.'

'I did not think Jasper would have been so selfish as to object,' said Gillian, almost tearfully.

'Remember that boys have a very short time at home, and cannot be expected to care for these things like those who work in them,' said Lady Merrifield. 'It will not make them do so, to bore them, and take away their sense of home and liberty. At the same time, they must not expect to have everything sacrificed to them, and so I shall make Jasper understand.'

'You won't scold him, mamma?'

'Can't you, any of you, trust me, Gill?'

'Oh! mamma! Only I didn't want him to think. I wouldn't do everything he liked, except that I don't want him to be unkind about those poor girls.'