FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   >>  
light began to blaze. "Who are these, Rudolph?" He cleared his throat, but the process seemed to take some time, and in the meanwhile he felt the grip of his deliverers relax. "Who is that lady?" demanded Eleanor. "His wife," replied the Baroness. The Baron felt his arms freed now; but still his Alicia waited an answer. It came at last, but not from the Baron's lips. "Well, here you all are!" said a cheerful voice behind them. CHAPTER XXXVII They turned as though they expected to see an apparition. Nor was the appearance of the speaker calculated to disappoint such expectations. Their startled eyes beheld indeed the most remarkable figure that had ever wheeled a bicycle down the platform of Torrydhulish Station. Hatless, in evening clothes with blue lapels upon the coat, splashed liberally with mud, his feet equipped only with embroidered socks and saturated pumps, his shirt-front bestarred with souvenirs of all the soils for thirty miles, Count Bunker made a picture that lived long in their memories. Yet no foolish consciousness of his plight disturbed him as he addressed the Baron. "Thank you, Baron, for escorting my fair friends so far. I shall now take them off your hands." He smiled with pleasant familiarity upon the two astonished girls, and then started as though for the first time he recognized the Baroness. "Baroness!" he cried, bowing profoundly, "this is a very unexpected pleasure! You came by the early train, I presume? A tiresome journey, isn't it?" But bewilderment and suspicion were all that he could read in reply. "What--what are YOU doing here?" He was not in the least disconcerted. "Meeting my cousins" (he indicated the Misses Gallosh and Maddison with an amiable glance), "whom the Baron has been kind enough to look after till my arrival." Audaciously approaching more closely, he added, in a voice intended for her ear and the Baron's alone-- "I must throw myself, I see, upon your mercy, and ask you not to tell any tales out of school. Cousins, you know, don't always want their meetings advertised--do they, Baron?" Alicia's eyes softened a little. "Then, they are really your----" "Call 'em cousins, please! I have your pledge that you won't tell? Ah, Baron, your charming wife and I understand one another." Then raising his voice for the benefit of the company generally-- "Well, you two will want to have a little talk in the waiting-room, I've no dou
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   >>  



Top keywords:
Baroness
 

Alicia

 

cousins

 

astonished

 

disconcerted

 
familiarity
 
Maddison
 

amiable

 
glance
 

Gallosh


Misses

 

Meeting

 
suspicion
 

bewilderment

 
tiresome
 

profoundly

 
journey
 
bowing
 

presume

 

unexpected


started

 

recognized

 

pleasure

 

pledge

 

meetings

 

advertised

 

softened

 

charming

 

understand

 

waiting


generally

 
raising
 

benefit

 

company

 

approaching

 
Audaciously
 

closely

 
arrival
 

intended

 
school

Cousins
 

pleasant

 
XXXVII
 
turned
 

expected

 

apparition

 
CHAPTER
 

cheerful

 
appearance
 

beheld