第12章

"Mrs. Porter," I said when I had finished reading the letter, "I am deeply humiliated that Blakely should have done this.""Still, I suppose you would marry him if I gave my consent.""I would not," I replied hotly. "I might marry him without your consent, for I love him dearly; but I would never consider you had given your consent if it were forced from you by trickery.""You wouldn't?"

"I would not."

"But if he doesn't bring the duke back my dinner will be ruined.""I will telegraph him myself," I said.

"Supposing he won't come?"

"Blakely will come if I ask him to."

"And you will do this for me?"

"No; I am not doing it for you."

"Then why--"

"Because I cannot bear to have Blakely act so ungenerously toward his mother.""He has but used my own weapons against me," she remarked thoughtfully.

"Your weapons are quite unworthy of him, Mrs. Porter." "The telegram must be dispatched at once," she announced, glancing impatiently at her watch.

"If you will call the office and ask them to send up a boy with some forms, I will think over what I wish to say," I said.

When the boy arrived I had decided upon my message. It was:

"BLAKELY PORTER, Ventura."

"If you do not return at once with your captive I shall consider that we have never met.""ELIZABETH."

I wrote it out on a form and handed it to Mrs. Porter. "Will that do?" I asked.

She read it at a glance. "Yes," she said, "it will do. Here, boy, see that this is rushed.""I'm glad it was satisfactory," I said. "Good afternoon, Mrs.

Porter."

"My dear girl . . ."

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Porter."

Still she did not go. I realized her predicament, and was childish enough to enjoy it, for Blakely's mother could not bear to accept a favor from a social inferior. Had I been a child, she would have patted me on the head and presented me with a sugar plum. As matters stood she was quite at sea; she wished to do something gracious--she didn't know how.

To make her position more impossible, who should come stalking into the room but Dad,--dear, unsuspecting Dad. When he saw Mrs. Porter he immediately jumped at a whole row of conclusions.

"Well, well well!" he said. "This is a sight that does me good. I'm very glad indeed to see you, Mrs. Porter. Your son has had an idea that you were opposed to meeting Elizabeth; but I knew he couldn't be right. And here you are; calling on her? Well, well, well!

Elizabeth, haven't you any tea to offer Blakely's mother!""Mrs. Porter was just leaving" I managed to say. "She has been here some time."Dad beamed on us both.

"I told Blakely, Elizabeth couldn't marry him until you consented,"he blundered on, "but now I suppose it is all arranged. These children of ours are wonderfully impatient. I'm as fond of Blakely as if he were my own son, and you'll feel the same about Elizabeth when you've known her longer.""Don't let Dad keep you, Mrs. Porter," I said. "I'm sure you have many things to attend to."Blakely's mother who had been standing like one in a dream, now woke up.

"Yes," she said, "I must be going. I called informally on Elizabeth to beg you both to come to my dinner to-night.""I told her we couldn't possibly come," I began. "Nonsense! Of course we can come," Dad declared. "It will quite upset Blakely if you don't come, and I shall be so disappointed.""There, there," said Dad, "you're not going to disappoint Blakely's mother by refusing.""No," I replied. "If Mrs. Porter really wants us we shall be delighted to come.""If either of you fails me it will make me most unhappy" she said, and there was a note of sincerity, in her voice that was unmistakable.

"Thank you," I murmured. "We shall not fail you."