The servant received Emily,on her return from the library,with a sly smile."Here he is again,miss,waiting to see you."She opened the parlor door,and revealed Alban Morris,as restless as ever,walking up and down the room.
"When I missed you at the Museum,I was afraid you might be ill,"he said."Ought I to have gone away,when my anxiety was relieved?Shall I go away now?""You must take a chair,Mr.Morris,and hear what I have to say for myself.When you left me after your last visit,I suppose Ifelt the force of example.At any rate I,like you,had my suspicions.I have been trying to confirm them--and I have failed."He paused,with the chair in his hand."Suspicions of Me?"he asked.
"Certainly!Can you guess how I have been employed for the last two days?No--not even your ingenuity can do that.I have been hard at work,in another reading-room,consulting the same back numbers of the same newspaper,which you have been examining at the British Museum.There is my confession--and now we will have some tea."She moved to the fireplace,to ring the bell,and failed to see the effect produced on Alban by those lightly-uttered words.The common phrase is the only phrase that can describe it.He was thunderstruck.
"Yes,"she resumed,"I have read the report of the inquest.If Iknow nothing else,I know that the murder at Zeeland can't be the discovery which you are bent on keeping from me.Don't be alarmed for the preservation of your secret!I am too much discouraged to try again."The servant interrupted them by answering the bell;Alban once more escaped detection.Emily gave her orders with an approach to the old gayety of her school days."Tea,as soon as possible--and let us have the new cake.Are you too much of a man,Mr.Morris,to like cake?"In this state of agitation,he was unreasonably irritated by that playful question."There is one thing I like better than cake,"he said;"and that one thing is a plain explanation."His tone puzzled her."Have I said anything to offend you?"she asked."Surely you can make allowance for a girl's curiosity?Oh,you shall have your explanation--and,what is more,you shall have it without reserve!"She was as good as her word.What she had thought,and what she had planned,when he left her after his last visit,was frankly and fully told."If you wonder how I discovered the library,"she went on,"I must refer you to my aunt's lawyer.He lives in the City--and I wrote to him to help me.I don't consider that my time has been wasted.Mr.M orris,we owe an apology to Mrs.
Rook."
Alban's astonishment,when he heard this,forced its way to expression in words."What can you possibly mean?"he asked.
The tea was brought in before Emily could reply.She filled the cups,and sighed as she looked at the cake."If Cecilia was here,how she would enjoy it!"With that complimentary tribute to her friend,she handed a slice to Alban.He never even noticed it.
"We have both of us behaved most unkindly to Mrs.Rook,"she resumed."I can excuse your not seeing it;for I should not have seen it either,but for the newspaper.While I was reading,I had an opportunity of thinking over what we said and did,when the poor woman's behavior so needlessly offended us.I was too excited to think,at the time--and,besides,I had been upset,only the night before,by what Miss Jethro said to me."Alban started."What has Miss Jethro to do with it?"he asked.
"Nothing at all,"Emily answered."She spoke to me of her own private affairs.A long story--and you wouldn't be interested in it.Let me finish what I had to say.Mrs.Rook was naturally reminded of the murder,when she heard that my name was Brown;and she must certainly have been struck--as I was--by the coincidence of my father's death taking place at the same time when his unfortunate namesake was killed.Doesn't this sufficiently account for her agitation when she looked at the locket?We first took her by surprise:and then we suspected her of Heaven knows what,because the poor creature didn't happen to have her wits about her,and to remember at the right moment what a very common name 'James Brown'is.Don't you see it as I do?""I see that you have arrived at a remarkable change of opinion,since we spoke of the subject in the garden at school.""In my place,you would have changed your opinion too.I shall write to Mrs.Rook by tomorrow's post."Alban heard her with dismay."Pray be guided by my advice!"he said earnestly."Pray don't write that letter!""Why not?"
It was too late to recall the words which he had rashly allowed to escape him.How could he reply?
To own that he had not only read what Emily had read,but had carefully copied the whole narrative and considered it at his leisure,appeared to be simply impossible after what he had now heard.Her peace of mind depended absolutely on his discretion.
In this serious emergency,silence was a mercy,and silence was a lie.If he remained silent,might the mercy be trusted to atone for the lie?He was too fond of Emily to decide that question fairly,on its own merits.In other words,he shrank from the terrible responsibility of telling her the truth.
"Isn't the imprudence of writing to such a person as Mrs.Rook plain enough to speak for itself?"he suggested cautiously.
"Not to me."
She made that reply rather obstinately.Alban seemed (in her view)to be trying to prevent her from atoning for an act of injustice.Besides,he despised her cake."I want to know why you object,"she said;taking back the neglected slice,and eating it herself.
"I object,"Alban answered,"because Mrs.Rook is a coarse presuming woman.She may pervert your letter to some use of her own,which you may have reason to regret.""Is that all?"
"Isn't it enough?"
