FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97  
98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   >>   >|  
ch more about what had happened from time to time at the Moore house." "And you believed what was told you?" "Believed?" "Believed it well enough to keep a watch on your young mistress to see if she were happy or not?" "Oh, sir!" "It was but natural," the coroner suavely observed. "Every one felt interested in this marriage. You watched her of course. Now what was the result? Did you consider her well and happy?" The girl's voice sank and she cast a glance at her master which he did not lift his head to meet. "I did not think her happy. She laughed and sang and was always in and out of the rooms like a butterfly, but she did not wear a happy look, except now and then when she was seated with Mr. Jeffrey alone. Then I have seen her flush in a way to make the heart ache; it was such a contrast, sir, to other times when she was by herself or--" "Or what?" "Or just with her sister, sir." The defiance with which this was said added point to what otherwise might have been an unimportant admission. Those who had already scrutinized Miss Tuttle with the curiosity of an ill-defined suspicion now scrutinized her with a more palpable one, and those who had hitherto seen nothing in this heavily-veiled woman but the bereaved sister of an irresponsible suicide allowed their looks to dwell piercingly on that concealing veil, as if they would be glad to penetrate its folds and read in those beautiful features the meaning of an allusion uttered with such a sting in the tone. "You refer to Miss Tuttle?" observed the coroner. "Mrs. Jeffrey's sister? Yes, sir." The menace was gone from the voice now, but no one could forget that it had been there. "Miss Tuttle lived in the house with her sister, did she not?" "Yes, sir; till that sister died and was buried; then she went away." The coroner did not pursue this topic, preferring to return to the former one. "So you say that Mrs. Jeffrey showed uneasiness ever since her wedding day. Can you give me any instance of this; mention, I mean, any conversations overheard by you which would show us just what you mean?" "I don't like to repeat things I hear. But if you say that I must, I can remember once passing Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey in the hall, just as he was saying: 'You take it too much to heart! I expected a happy honeymoon. Somehow, we have failed--' That was all I heard, sir. But what made me remember his words was that she was dressed for
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97  
98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

sister

 

Jeffrey

 
Tuttle
 

coroner

 
Believed
 

scrutinized

 
observed
 

remember

 

allusion

 
buried

features

 

beautiful

 
meaning
 

concealing

 

menace

 

penetrate

 

forget

 

uttered

 

instance

 
passing

expected

 
honeymoon
 

dressed

 

Somehow

 

failed

 

things

 

repeat

 

uneasiness

 

wedding

 

showed


preferring

 

return

 

overheard

 
conversations
 
piercingly
 

mention

 

pursue

 

result

 

marriage

 

watched


glance
 

laughed

 

master

 

interested

 

believed

 
happened
 

natural

 

suavely

 

mistress

 

defined