779 6 C ir c le

R T O NE — CH A P T ER

m
a st or y nigh t in N ovember ; out o f
T w as
doo rs the w ind sw ung through the street in a
,

rocking gale but in the parlou r behind the

,

curio sh 0 p li fe seemed at its ebb Old Solny

,
.

pored o ver a musty book and A nna stood with her ,

head thrown back her hands clas ped behind her her
, ,

eyes seeing drea ms ; abo ve them on the dun coloured ,

-

wall the Du t ch clock ticked methodically but other

, ,

wi se the room was bere f t ofsound .

It w as long be fore either mo v ed ; then Solny stirred

automatically all his ac tions were jerky and indi
rect — and Anna unclasped her hands She watched .

him fumble for his handkerchief and the corners o f ,

her mouth sti ffened unconsciously as he opened the

knotted corner and drew out his worn snu ffbox -
,

opening the lid with a little snap Youth is all raw .

edges to the foibles o f age and Anna w as not yet ,

sixteen She mo v ed impatiently and the dreamy

.
,

look dri fte d from her eyes like a shadow be fore the
sun .

Father h e said it 5 long past eight

,
”
s ,
“ ”
.
”

He turned and a tiny cloud li ke fine brown sand

, , ,

scattered from h is fi ngers along his sleeve .

2 THE CI R CL E
It after eight she said again
’
s ,
”
.

“
So ? He shut his book reluctantly
” “
A nd .

the supper ? ”

“
The supper has been ready for half an hour .
”

There was no v exation in her voi ce ; she spoke with

the indi fference ofo ne school ed to wait Li fe in the .

curio shop in the little parlour behind it in the

, ,

m
cr amped bedrooms upstairs w as one persistent waiting ,

— for something that ne ver came She ade the tea .

quietly in the R ussian fashion that her father had

brou ght with hi m to E ngland many years be fore ;
then she took her place at the table and began to
cut up the bread .

There w a another riot at the docks last night

s
,
”

m
she said and another robbery Whi t e s gang this
, .
’

fi
”
e

A wom an w as robbed o f a purse with ten bank

n otes in it She dre w up her chair
”
. .

“
So ? Old Solny stretched out a furtive hand
"

and drew his book nearer by an inch .

Yes And she gave up the purse without a

.

word .
”

So
7,

At the third excla m ation the girl struck the tabl e

m
sharply with her h and Father she cried do say ”
.
, ,

something ore ! You m ake m e feel so m uch

her voice shook so m uch alone She glanced
,
”
.

round the little room with its scanty furniture its ,

odds and ends its accu m ulation o f v alue and rubb ish
, ,
 THE CI R CL E 3

and her eyes suddenly filled with tea rs She kne w .

eve ry detail fro m the h al ffilled packing cases crowded

,
- -

on the window seat to the darkened ceiling but she

-
,

had never consciously spoken the word home She .

looked across the table an d throwin g back her head , , ,

tossed the tears out o fher eyes .

You d rather have one page o f that old book

’

Solny looked up perplexed ; then he pas sed his

fin ger lovingly over the manuscript “
B ut it is .

priceless he said “
Merovin gian — ten hundred
,
”
.

and twel ve He returned t o his pl ace on the sixth

”
.

A nna c u t hersel fanother round o fbread then she

sighed .I wi h I were a man s

Solny went o n deciphering ; the storm shook the

house in a further gale and the fire r ared up the o

chimney .

I wish I were a man she said again .

This ti m e her father looked at her o ver his glasses .

“
Why my child ? Are you not content ? Is the
,

li fe not good ? ”

Oh good enough , She leant back in her

chair .
“
B ut if I were a man — if I were a man ,

father I d get o n board a ship and be a sailor At

”
.
,

the docks to day the wind was roaring through the

-

masts and it ounded like a great loud song ; it

, s ,

made me mad to see the sea The world and the sea .

must be very much alike She rested her elbows on .

”

the table and to ok her fac e betwee n her hands .

4 THE CI R CL E
Solny m ade an unintelli gible sound The world .

is fit for one thing he said to keep out o f ,

”
, .
”

B ut father ,

You talk t oo much child Get me the cata , .

logue .
”

She rose Don t you think that the woman

.
’

whose purse was stolen w as a fool P ”

“
The catalogue His head was bent again .

She crossed the room and pausing by the boo k ,

shel f reached for a volume o n the upper tier

, If .

I had been in her place I d ha v e fought for what

’

belonged to me — With White or any man She .

”

tossed b ac k her plait o fthick red hair and blew some

dust from the co v er o f the book It must be fine .
“
,

you kno w to feel like that — to feel in the middle

,

o f things and not to care Here it s just pea rls ’

.
,

and china jars and dust always Don t you e v er .

’

want to go bac k ? ”

B ack where ?
“
Oh back into li fe ; back i nto when you were
,

young She paused

.
”
.

When I was young he said slowly there was ,

”
,

persecution po v erty and persecution for e very Jew .

That was all .

”

She loo ked at him lingeringly It must be fine .

t o be persecuted Did you feel a hero ? ”

.

No he aid shortly and h i head drooped

,
”
s ,
s .

An na w as studying the dial o f the clock and

mi sed the expression on his fac e At the brusque
s .

ness o fhis answer her ex pre ssion f ell You are n t ’

.
 TH E C I R CL E 5

a bit like a story she said regretfully

,
”
you ne v er ,

never tell things and yo u must have seen She

made a descriptive gesture with her hands .

You can see too much he said l aconically ,

”
.

She sat o n the back o f a chair and swung her foot

t o and fro the rise and drop o f the wind w as beat
ing in her blood ; she strummed an accompanying
tattoo o n the list book in her hand Oh h o w I .
“
,

wish
Solny tapped the table with a gesture not unlike
her o wn . You talk too much he said again ,
”
.

The catalogue
Slowly she got to her feet and cross ed the room
her sense keen as razor blades were racing at the
s, ,

heels o fthe wind Within a yard o f her father she

.

paused ; her head bent suddenly and the pupils o f

her eyes enlarged .

Father di d you hear that ?

,
”

He turned a page .

Father
The bo ok dropped .

Anna s body was slightly bent and there w as

’

Colou r in h e r face Father it s a ro w ! she said

.
,
’ ”

with conviction I can hear the running and the

.
“

shouts Father ! She clasped her hand

.
”
Father s. ,

I heard someone cry out Gi v e me the lamp ! ”

.

The old man turned pale You are mad Anna .

, ,

he said tremulously What would you d 9 Y o u

. o

are mad .
”

She was listening intently ; the colour in her face

6 TH E C IR C L E
ca me and went like a flame Oh She drew in
.

m
her breath .
Q ui k father the lamp !
c , ,
”

m
Y o u are ad he faltered again
,
”
.

She turned to hi a torrent o f speech behi nd her

,

lips ; but in view o f his frightened face the words

died away “
. Father she said shortly let m e
,
“ ”
,

pass C an t you see th at worlds would n t keep me

.
’ ’

bac k ? ”

He stretched o u t his hand but her ey e s and her ,

ea rs were elsewhere She flew pas t him like a whirl

.

wind and sei zed the copper lamp ten seconds later
, ,

he hea rd her struggling with the bar o f the shop

m
door. Anna he called waveringly
,
”
Ann a .
,

think of y treas ures ! My stock

B ut his only answer w as the trail o f smell and
.

smoke that the l amp had left .

P A R T O NE —C H A P TER II

NN A held the lamp above her head and her ,

fingers moved eagerly as they u n fas tened

the catch of the bar There was no .

fear in her face no sh adow o f it in her ,

mind ; her whole bein g was absorbed in o n e idea

the kn owledge that betwee n her and the rush o f li fe
there stood o nly o ne sm all door .

She h e ard her father stumble she hea rd a dragging ,

so und as he pulled back the curta in that divided

,

the parlour from the shop ; then she quickened her

m ovements an d the bar dropped fro m the door with
a clang A n instant later she blew o ut the lam p
.
, .

Ifthere is a ro w it s best to h ave no light Do

’
.
,

you hear father ? ,

”

Solny res po nded inau di bly ; his voice had the pit
eousness o fa child s
’
.

Anna smiled It 5 all right Here s my hand

.
"
.
’ ”
.

She held out her hand an d t o her impatienc e the ,

m inute see med interm inable be fore his fin gers grop , ,

ing in the air found and grasped her own

, .

B ut you can do no good and I dislike the

dark Anna !
.
”

I was n t thinking about doin g good I w ant to

’
.

see thi ngs A re you ready ?

”
.
8 THE CI R CL E
His hand ti ghtened on hers .

“
Father ! she said afresh
”
You can hear it .

agai n n o w — if yo u liste n hard

m
It s away behind .
”

the house ; it s back in E bury Street but the wind

’
,

is blowi ng it roun d the corner Can t you hear ? .

’

V oice s and running ? She pulled him forward and”

fo r a space there w as no sound in the pl ac e beyond

their di fferently ta ken breaths .

Then she straighte ned hersel f Solny shrank .

agai nst her arm but she mo v ed him aside and took
,

a fresh step forward Just wait for me father

.
“
,

and don t light the lamp I ll be bac k in a minute

’
.
”

—I only want to see .

”

B ut Anna
, He groped forward and caught
h er arm . Ifyou m us t go go by the yard into the ,

m
Passage it s easier it s safer than the front door
’
,
’
.
”

She laughed And be t ra pled to dea th in the

.

Pas sage if a crowd ca me up T will be all right .

’

father ; I ll shut the door — and I ll knock when

’ ’

I m ready to come bac k Now

’
With a roar .

from the freed wind that whirled her skirts and

m
whistled in her ears she let the door fall open and
,

stood fra ed in the aperture For a moment h e . s

breathed in the freshness o f the night ; then sh e

m o v ed forward drawing the door with her A
,
.

second later it closed with a gentle thud — shutt in g

,

her on the outer side .

The street was a sweep o f grey whipped clea n by ,

the gale To her right as she paused on the nar row

.
,

foot path ran the by way known as the Pass age an

-
,
-
 TH E CIR CL E 9

ill-kept lane that j oined E bury S treet with Spin m

ner s Alley and into which the yard at the side o f
’
,

S olnys hou se opened by a little doo r To her ri ght

’
.

stretched Felt Street on which the shop front opened

, ,

a place ofno great w idth tone paved and possessing ,

s -

houses o f enormous age She glanced along its .

len gth with impartial eyes It was unattracti v e in .

the day ; it w as e v en more unin v itin g in the night .

It had a desolate air — the desolate monotony o f

an over familiar scene She knew every cur ve in
-
.

the ea ves e v ery stone in the pavement Her eye

, . s

wandered from o ne obj ect t o another First be .

,

yond the curio shop came the baker s ; then the ,

’

pawn shop with its Haunting sign then the tiny cul
-

de sac no more than a gaping mouth among the dull

-
,

shadows ; then B ut her eyes grew weary ; she

turned and walked a step or two towards the corner ;
then paused again On the opposite side the j ut
.

ting houses were a black mass sa v e where a candle ,

showed thr ough a canty blind or a street lamps

ca ught reflections in a window pane E v erywhere -

.

were silence and shadow and an apprehensi v e sense

o f things to come She put up her hand and
.

smoothed the long wisps o f hair that the wind

had blown free o f her plait Th en she gav e a .

sli ght cry and stepped backward as a dog fled ,

round the corner o f the Passage and da rted down

Spinner s Al l ey with a howl A econd later h o t
’
.
s
,

upon its precursor came another fugitive ; but, ,

un like the dog it lurched into the cross stree ts

,
10 TH E CIR CL E
with the speed o f a badly launched arrow and -
,

there pause d .

Anna felt her blood eb b and her breath catch .

She stood immo vable her hand suspended in the air

, .

In the uncertain light the new comer was not easy of -

definition beyond the fact that he was a man and

small o f stature ; nevertheless as he paused in the ,

open space wi t h the breathless stillness o f a hunted

animal his figure showed up impressive and grey
, .

The pause was instantaneous but to the girl it ,

seemed immense She mo v ed ; the man turned ;

.

and in the hal f gloom she felt rather than knew , ,

that their glances met The wind w as blowin g

from him to her her skirts flapped like sai ls at sea ;
her hair blown across her eyes momentarily blinded
, ,

her ; faint and yet distinct came the sound that she
h ad heard from the parlour — the noise o f massed
feet and voices that is like no other sound on earth
, .

She tossed the hair o u t o f her eyes and l ooked

towards the man .

It was patent at a glance that the oncoming sound

h ad reach e d him as soon or sooner than it h ad h er
, , .

He seemed to sway for an insta nt in despair then ,

to gather decision from the v ery presence o fhis fear .

With a flash that was almost intuition she defined ,

his glance wild and eager as he revolved suddenly

, , ,

facing each o f the intersecting stree ts in turn ; an d

with an articulate sound o f excitement her mind ,

lea ped to the same solution at the sa m e instant

, ,

as did his .
 THE C I R CL E 11

The black alley ! she said below her b reath ;

”

and she clasped her hands and shut her eyes as he

fled past her up the cul de sac beyond the baker s - -
,
’

and the pawn shop ; then she turned and stood

-

against the corner fac ing the Pas sage Almost .

instantaneously the crowd blocked by its o wn haste ,

in the narrow outlet found egress and poured into

,

the open space There it wavered fell asunder

.
, ,

drew together again and finally stood still , .

m
Anna watched it steadily With a throb o f ex .

c it e e nt she realised the situation and waited events .

It was a se cond o r two be fore she was seen ; then ,

m m
with a vague impulsiveness that always marks a
o b t h e press swayed towards her
,
. oving in upon ,

the foot path while the outer stragglers spread in a

-
,

dark tail across the t eet s r .

“ Seen a man ? demanded a v oice in the fore

”

gro u nd ; and a dozen other voices instantly echoed

the question .
The colour rushed into Anna s face ; the j oy and ’

danger ofher position assailed her in a rush .

Speak up came from the centre o fthe thron g .

m
The crowd wa v ered towards her then receded m o ,

e nt aril
y the b reath from many throats was ca rried

to her across the wind She suddenly looked up . .

Wh at sort o fman she said .

A small man The words were spas m odic ; the

.
”

chase h ad been a h ot o ne .

He war n t so small neither

m
’ ”
.
,

Shut up ! The first an turn ed .

12 THE C I R CL E
Bout my size put in a third pushing t o the
,
”

fr ont only to be elbowed back .

Anna clasped her hands behind her For the .

first time in her existence issues o freal moment were

at sta ke She glanced quickly over the faces that
.

con fronted her and t o her inner eyes the picture o f

,

the fugiti v e alone in the grey street rose plain and

sharp —the panic o f h i last movements the inc o n s ,

ru it o f o n e man against fi f
ty She tightened her
g y .

fin gers and her eyes gleamed .

“
He was a sm all man she said I saw hi m ,
”
.
“

quite plainly He was a small man

.
”
.

“
That s right Small he was B ut look sharp
’
.

I came out to get a breath o fair and to feel the

wind ; I was lea ning against the door She
spoke with slow deliberate unconcern ,
.

A wa v e o fimpatience crossed the crowd A man .

o n the outer e dg e j ostled and p u shed .

She s kiddin you mate ! he called ; and a

" ’

,
”

laugh followed quickly by a grow l rose and dropped

,
’

ag ain .

“
Maybe she h idin him volunteered another
’
s
’
,
”
.

There s oles enough !

’ ’

m
Se v eral exclamations followed this followed in ,

their turn by an o inous sway towards the foot

path towards the pawn shop and the cul de sac
,
- - -
.

Anna felt it and felt her resolution quail ; then

, ,

with an effort that was inspiration she drew hers el f ,

very straight .

“
Stop ! she c ried
”
Stop ! Her voice rang ;
.
”
14 THE CI R CL E
t rem bled and there w as a sin ging in her e ars Sh . e

stood i m movable for a considerable space then ,

suddenly she spran g alert to the remem b rance o f

the rescued m an From the shadow s on her ri ght
.
,

m
someone was movin g steadily nearer inch by inch .

The light fro the scattered gas lamps was poor -

sh e bent f orward in keen curiosity ; then abruptly

she drew back .

Oh she said involuntarily Oh ! .

”

At no time would the sight have been a pleasant

o n e ; in the h al f dusk o f the quiet street it almo st

possess ed elements o f fear The figure o f the man

.

was small and de formed his face had the bl uish hue
,

o f chalk his lips trembled a dark stain ran ac oss

, ,
r

the forehead from eyebrow to temple .

For an instant Anna s capacities swam then with

’
,

equal speed her sense o f necessity sprang into its

,

pl ace
.

What s happened to you ? she asked

’
What ”

have they done to you ? Y ou are hurt cut ! ”

He gazed at her in a stupor o f silence ; it struc k

her that his eyes were unusually large .

She moved nearer conquering her repulsion

,
Do .

ou know tha t you a re saf e quite sa e

f
”

y ?
His lips moved but no sound came ; he had c ut
,

stri pped s eech by se v eral degree s

p .

B ut yo u are Wake up ! Understand You are

saf e quite sa fe She caught his shoulder and
”
.

shook it gently to en force the words then she drew

back and look ed at her hand It w as stained with .
 TH E C I R CL E 15

the blood that had dropped fro m his forehead to his

coat With a shock o f feeling she turned and
.
,

rapped violently on the shop door .

There was a long wait an incredibly lon g wait , ,

then the hinges creaked the dark shop opened be fore

,

her like a cave and t n e dry mell —the combination

, s

o fE astern spice wi t h Wester n must that had grown

wi th her into existence —fl oat ed out on the cold

air Pushing the stranger be fore her she stumbled
.
,

through the door Then she raise d her voice

. .

Father father are you there ? Strike a light

, ,

S ilence followed ; someone shut the door with a

thud then drew a matc h slowly ac ross a box It
, .

flared for an instan t lighting the scene the shop

,

with its litter its cobwebs its shadows ; the bent

, ,

form o f old Solny as he held it alo ft ; the drawn

, ,

h aggard face o f the rescued m an The united effec t .

verged on the grotesque .

Anna fel t hersel ftur n cold again ; but she laughed .

R eal li fe is rather terrible she said hus kily but ”

,

but it s fine all the sam e

’
, She sank down sud .
”

denly on an empty box .

PA R T O NE CH A P T E R I I I

mat ch flamed flickered and then fell

HE , , ,

and once more there was the darkness

with its magnified sense o f spice and
must For a space no one spoke ; then at
.

las t Ann a broke the silence her v ita lity re asserting ,

-

itselfwith a rush .

Father she cried sharply another match and

,
”
,

the lamp and hot water This man is cut to bits .

Solny fumbled ; then a fresh light flared up and

showed the stranger lean ing against the wall his ,

hands han ging by his sides his eyes glowing like ,

lamps in the uncertai n gloom A tinge o f pity .

moved Anna — the sense o f ownership and gentle

ness that one feels towards a rescued animal ; and
with o ne o f her rapid imp ulses she rose Solny had .

set a li ght to the lamp and she crossed the shop ,

quickly treadin g with caution between the china

,

and the stacks o f books .

You re very weak she said

’
Put your arm
,
”
.
“

round my neck ; I 11 help you to walk ’

.
”

The man wa v ered fo r an instant then obeyed , .

No w father she called go be fore us with the

”

li ght and we ll want a big fire —heaps and heaps

, , ,
’

o f coal Are you ready ? She turned t o the ”

.
 TH E C IR CL E 17

stranger pas sing her arm about his body ; and to

get h er —h e swaying slightly she measuring h er
,

steps with care — they crossed the dusty floor to t h e

little room behind .

In the parlour the fire was casting oran ge flames ;

the homely supper was still to be remo v ed For the .

first time Anna realised the grip o f familiar thi ngs .

Draw up the arm chair father she said ; then she-

, ,
”

turned again to the new comer It s rather nu -

.
“ ’

steady but you must n t mind

,
’
.
”

He glanced at her and a peculiar expression a , ,

look that was ironical and yet patient touched h is ,

face No Fraulein he said in somewhat slow and ”

.
, ,

halting E nglish I do not think that I shall mind

,
.
”

Then quite suddenly and quite quietly he fainted in

her arms .

It happened in a second ; the whole thing seemed

as natural and as much in sequence as a scene upon

the stage Anna realised it on the instant as she

.
,

bent to the additi nal weight ; Solny grasped the o

fact a moment later and between them they laid ,

hi m on the ground opening his collar for greater ,

air For a space they watched him breathlessly ;

.

then w ith a certai n u neasv haste Solny rose from

his knees He leant deprecatingly against the table
.
,

pu hed h i glas ses onto his forehead drew them down

s s ,

again then spoke

, .

“
If you don t really nee d me Ann a ’
he said , ,
”

hesitatingly ifyou don t really need me there s a

“ ’

,
’

sentence in that manusc ri pt that baffl es me Y ou .

9
18 THE CI R CL E
know I ha v e been much upset to night His glance -
.

wandered wistfully from the unconscious figure of

the stran ger to the boo k still lying beside his
plate.

Anna followed his gaz e then quite suddenly sh e ,

laughed — a spontaneous irresistible laugh ,Oh .

“
,

father you are di f

, ferent from everyone in the
w orld ! Give me the cold water and a bowl and
I ll let you go ; I can see your fingers t witching
’
.

Li fe is v ery amusing after all ! She threw b ack

,
”

her head and her teeth glea med ; she had gained a
new standpoint though an unrealised one
, .

For a long ti me and very care fully she bathed

, ,

the stran ger s face then quite calmly she tied up his
’

wound : she had none o f the dread o f unconscious

ness that troubles less steady brains She stud ied .

his features with candid curiosity her lips remain ,

ing parted in the questioning attitude o f a child .

“
Father she said suddenly
,
”
suppose he ne ver ,
“

wakes at all ? ”

She hardly expected an answer and she recei ved ,

none Solny was se parated from her by eight cen

.

t u rie s.She bent laying her ear to the stranger s

,
’

lips ; then she redoubled her splashings o n his face

and hair When at len gth his throat trembled and
.

hi s eyelids hesitatingly stirred his first sight o f a ,

m
returning world was a pair o f brilliant e ves and
a ont h that qui v ered in its eagerness to smile ;
and the welcome was so exhilarating and so ne w
th at he forgot his troubles his pain and the inci ,
 THE C IR CL E 19

dents that had b rought him there ; and accepting

the moment as it was returned the smile , .

A h that s better ! Anna drew a lon g breath

’ ”
.
1

“
For a while I thought you were dead And do .
,

o u know I ne v er dreamt that o u could smile

y , y
you have such gloomy eyes Father ! She raised .
”

her voice Father put away the boo k he s awake

.
, ,
’

again C ome and help him into the chair

. .
”

Solny shuffled round the table ; his glasses were

firmly fixed and his eyes looked preoccupied He .

m
put his hands under the man s lean arms and raised ’

hi . Dear me he said h o w thin you are ! I

“ “
,
”

suppose you know nothing o f Merovingian manu

script ? I ha v e put my hand upon a marvel .
”

The man smiled again in spite o f the pain his

mo vement caused “
I am o f little use I fear in
.
, ,

any way .
”

Anna interposed Action was her sphere ; her .

face looked radiant “

B ack to your book father .
, ,

we sha n t disturb you for an ho ur B ut first where s

’ ’
.
,
’

the French brandy ? ”

Solny gazed round abstrac tedly Where did I .

“

put the key ? he aid The brandy is in the top

”
s .

cupboard but the key ,

An na was trembling w ith i m patience Ne v e . r

mind the key ; you know you forget to lock the

cupboard in any case She prang to a chair .
”
s ,

poi sing hersel f lightly The strange eyes fol . r s

’
~

lowed her att entively ; she seemed all y uth and o

strength Of course !
. sh e cried with a laugh
“ ”
.
20 TH E C I R CL E
Of course The cupboard is as open as the day ”
!
.

She thrust her hand into the recess and drew o u t a

squat bottle o f old fashioned make Now this is -
.
“

pure gold she said seriously and must be taken

,
”
,
“

in drops like gold is melted in the mint

, She ”
.

sprang down and her eyes flashed in the brilliance

,

o fthe fire .

“
I ll set the kettle to boil and then put three
’

lumps of sugar in a tumbler — S o ! That s right ’

is n t it father ?
’

Solny muttered an assent .

And you ll feel as strong and well as if to night

’
-

had ne v er been She came and stood by th e new

.
”

comer . Already the pain is better eh ? ,

”

Already Fraulein , .

That s right ! B ut you m ust n t call me Frau

’ ’

lein I m just Anna you know — to everyone

’
, .

The man looked up .

And you She stirred the fire What are .

you called ? ”

He looked down again Johann he said shortly .

,
”
.

She repeated the name And nothing else .

Nothing else He spoke a fter a pause ”

. .

She seemed satisfi ed You are a Germ an eh ? ,

”

I come f rom Vienna .

There w as another silence ; then the girl spoke

a ain L isten to the
“
kettle It s going to sing ’

g . . .

Is Vienna very big ? B igger than London ?

Not so big but brighter .
”

Very bri ght ? She li fted o ff the kettle and ”

22 THE CI R CL E
What ? She frowned quickly ”
.

He m ade a deprecatin g motion with his hands .

“
Fraulein you know that I cannot stay here
,

Y ll know that
a

She drew back swi ftly “

Father did you hear .
,

that ? Disappointment and tears trembled in her

”

voice .

What child ? What ? Y o u have m ade me lose

,

m y place ”
.

Father I found him and sa ved him and b rought

,

him in and no w he wants to go

,

The man in the big chair mo ed uncom fortably v .

N ot wants Fraulein ,

Yes wants She turned o n him sharply then

, .
”

loo ked again to wards Solny Father did you .

,

hear ? ”

Solny ran his fingers desperately through his hair .

Have what you will child he said testily Ha v e , ,

”
.

whatever you will ; but lea v e me in peace If you .

want him no doubt he 11 stay Gi v e hi m the attic

,
’
.

roo m that John Desinski used ; gi v e him anything

you l ike — but don t speak again He turned in’
.
”

h is chair and put his hands o v er his ears .

T h e others con fronted each other silently .

B ut Fraule in ,

Anna raised her hand and mo v ed nearer by a step .

It s very well to talk about going she said but

’
,
”

can you go Then her manner chan ged ; her voice

so ftened and sh e smiled It w as like a wa v e o f sun .

through a c hill roo m Ho w do you arran ge to

. .
 THE CIR CL E 23

walk , you can t stand alone ? She bent down

w h . I]
’ ”

and looked into his f ace and again the fireligh t

,

seemed reflected in her eyes “

We h av e an empty .

room here and a good welcome It is n t very nice

, .
’

o fyou to go
”
.

He looked up helplessly .

“
It is n t very kind o f yo u when I want you to
’

st ay
.
”

Her clear gaze m et his When I am so alone

when I —when I would like so much to ha v e a
.

friend Won t you stay Johann ’

.

The appeal was irresistible There was a lo ng .

silence ; he looked down then looked up , I am .

m
What in E nglish you call a beggar he said harshl y ,
”
.

She watch d hi fo r a second

e Then te ach me .

to talk in Se rm an she said and we 11 never u se

,
”
,
’

the word .
”
PA R T O NE —C H A P TER I V

UC H the ad v ent o f Johann He came

w as .

as a thunderbolt might hav e come in a ,

whirl o f con fusion ; and like the thunder

bolt when its thrill o f li fe is passed he lay ,

where he h ad fallen sinking dee p into the soil o f a

,

new existence t oo inert and pas si v e to seek farther

fields He slept in the bed that had once belonged
.

to John D esinski a Polish artist who had died in the

,

attic abo v e the shop and he slept with the ex h au s

,

tion that follows tumult o f the nerves ; the pain of

his wound lost itsel f and the pas t with the present
, , ,

fell away be fore the necessity o f re t W h en he s .

opened his eyes a fter many hours and blinked before

the sunshine o f a fresh day it was with scarcely any
,

consciousne ss o fthe previous night .

He look ed at the unste ady dressing table with its -

white cloth he ca ught a glint ofsun mirrored back

from the water in t he ewer ; he watched t h e shadows
chequering in drab square o n the bare boards ; and
s

then with a peculiar reali sation o fshelter he let h i

, ,
s

eyelids droop again .

A cautio u s shaking o f the d or handle was h i

o -
s

second summon s ba ck into the world .

May I come in
 TH E C IR CL E 25

m
The voice brought a sudden colour to his face and
a de him raise h is hand to the unsightly bandage

o n his head .

Ifyou will Fraulein

”
.
,

S ay Anna or you get no break fast The ”

.

v oice tingled with a pleasant sense o f li fe he closed

hi eyes again and let it throb through him
s It .

warmed his mind like an intangible fire .

Well ? An impatient foot beat o n the floor

”

outside I can t hold the tray fo r e v er

.
’
.
”

He laughed in ner vous response Please then .

Anna .
”

With an accompanying sigh o frelie fthe door was

p ushed in ; and then it seemed to him that a sec
ond morning was created in the room that a second ,

flood o flight poured thr ugh it from some unguessed

o

source .

Good morning Johann She came slowly

,

acro s the room

s I ha v e made the co f
. fee as father
likes it and that means a l ot ; and I wasted three
pieces o f bread be fore the toast came right She .
”

care fully balanced the tray Bu t are you better ? .

”

Her t one sank and a solicito u l oo k cro sed her eye

,
s s s

it was one o f her characteri tics that her face and s

voice were a glass to her thought reflecting sensa s

tions to the finest point Poo Johann .she aid r s

simply Just for a sec ond yo u know I forgot

.
, , .
”

She helped him to sit up and p l aced the tray acr os , s

his knees ; then she lea nt against the foo t rail and
prepared to watch him ea t .
26 THE C IR CL E
A fter a full m inute s silence she spoke agai n ’
.

D o you remember anything about last night ?

The words light and unmea nt acted on hi m
, ,

curi usly He bent forward and laid his cup down

o .
,

with so jerky a movement that some ofthe coffee was

spilt on the sheet Don t he said nerv ously
.
“
I ’

,
”
.

had forgotten about las t night Your kindness and .

the daylight m ade me forget He co v ered his eyes .

”

and it seemed to the girl that his h and shook She .

wondered quickly if his re as n w as entirely sound o .

The de formed like the blind are qui k o finstinct ;

, , c

he looked up hal fconscious o fthe tho ught that had

,

crossed her mind Y o u are not to be a fraid

. he ,
”

said gently it is I who mus t be that

“
He stared .
”

past her at the window ; and it seemed to her that in

h i glazed eyes there were visions o fthe night be fore
s

f the streets o f the crowd — o f the uncertain

o , ,

baffling lights She laid her hand on his shoulder

.

m
with a firm protecti v e touch
, .

Tell e what it is Tell me what s the mat ter .

”
.
”

She stroked his arm Sometimes you know not

.
,

very o ften o fcourse but sometimes —I have a secret

, ,

o f my own ; and then I alway s tell it to my f ather .

He doe s n t always hear but that doe n t matter ;

’

,
s
"

the secret is gone and does n t weigh any more If ’

.

o u ll tell me yours ll listen all can and then

’
I I
’

y , ,
"
t will go from yo u — right away fr om you See ! .
”

She touched his hand entreatingly soothingly , .

He turned to her B ut you are a child Why

. .

sho uld I tell my tho ught to you ?

”
 TH E CI R CL E 27

For an instant she looked annoyed ; then she

smiled again You ll tell me because you ll have
.
’ ’

to You ll tell me to morrow if you don t to day

.
’
-
’
-
.

A nd you re quite wrong about my being a child

’ ”
.

He looked at her so young so reliant a type o f , , ,

the world apart from him and a sweeping b it t ernes

surged through his mind the bitterest o fall bitter
things the knowledge o fbeing aloo f U nconsciously
,
.

he bent his head .

She too was silent fo r a space the sense o f his ,

depression weighing on her without explanation .

She moved to the window and drawing back the ,

curtain let in an added floo d o f light Then she

, .

turned bathed in its brightness

, Is there anything .

so fine as the light ? she said ”

.

He li fted his head And the darkness ? Wh at .

o fthe darkness ?
”

Oh I don t count that There must be d arkness

,
’
.

o f course as well as sun but when it comes we can

, ,

shut our eyes She tried to read his expression

.
”
,

b ut it puzzled and evaded her .

Ah yes fo r you you carry the brightness with

, ,

you e v en your hair is like a torch .

”

She glanced at his swi ftly then raised her hand .

My red hair Y o u are laughing ? ”

No not laughing
, His v oice lapsed again ”
. .

Ho w old are you ? ”

Thirty He sighed”
. .

Thirty ! She considered for a while

”
Half .
“

father s age and nearly twice mine Johann will we

’
.
, ,
28 T H E C I R CL E
forget about the sun and the shadow and thin gs and ,

be friends ? She held out her hand

”
.

He took the hand qu estioningly His o w n fingers .

were thin and pallid hers looked full o fforce by con

,

trast They both look ed down and An na laughed

.
,
.

“
I belie v e I could squeeze hardest See ! She .
”

tightened her grasp ; then suddenly let go Have .

I hurt you Your face went all red ”

.

“
It was not pain he said ha tily It wa ,
”
s .
“
s

Ne v er mind what it was ; some day you will know

perhaps .He drew away h is hand and rai sed the
”

co ffee cup again

-
.

B ut I want to know no w v at w as it ? .
‘ ”

He was silent .

“
Johann what w as it ?
,
”

It was nothing He broke a piec e of toas t .

Wh at does your father say o fme to — day

She laughed Father ! Shall I tell you ? Her
.
”

mind was tossed by a new thought as a lea f is blown

by the wind .

Yes .He sat up straight

”
.

Well after break fast

,
She settled hersel f
com forta bly against the foot rail You know he .
xc

always reads at meals and ne v er talk ti ll after s .

A fter break fast he put down his book and rubbed

,

his glasses ; then he asked me quite se ri ously ifthere

were rats in the attic room he said he heard noise s

there last night She threw bac k her head and

.
”

w e nt into another peal o f laughter o fre h and ,

s s

amused that Johann j oin ed .

PA R T O NE —C H A P TE R V

m
T was eleven o clock when Anna slung a bas ket
’

m m
o v er her ar and went out to buy dinner fo r
the day She was arket w o an and cook in
.

the curio shop as well as mistress and the

, ,

duties that fell to her were varied and nu m erous .

She bought a fish an arm ful o f vegetables a packet

, ,

o flentils some co f
,
fee and dried figs then her errand ,

mm
finished sh e turned homeward The reflection o f
, .

the o ing was in her eyes an audible so ng ro se ,

occasionally to her lips for the lulled s t orm h ad le ft

,

a wintry sunshine behind it that quickened the

blood .

“
Father she cried as she swun g into the shop
, , ,

you ought to go o ut ! There s a feel in the air ’

to day that would wake you

-
Then as Solny made ”
.
,

no answer she looked farther into the darkness

, .

W hat Johann
, W h o gave you lea v e to dress ? ”

She laid down her basket and went forward hur

riedl
y
. What are you doing ? C atalo g uing ?
How silly with a wounded head !
,
”

Joh ann raised a pallid face “

It only hurts a .

little ; beside beside I like t o be occupied ,

”
.

Anna shook h er head H o w silly ! she said

.
”

again . You look ghastly ; you c an hardly stand v

.
 THE CI R CL E fl
z

Then I will sit for a little He loo ked u nce r .

t a inly about .

B ut the girl intervened C ome into the kitchen ; .

you can have a place by the fire while I work , .

He assented easily following her across the shop,

and through the li v ing room to the kitchen beyond ; -

,

it seemed that he lacked force to reason fo r hi mself .

m
See n by day his face looked meagre ; and the de
,
‘

t
o xit
y that by night h ad appea red shadowy showed ,

cruelly in the colder light .

A nna drew a wooden chair t o the grate and pick ,

ing up a bellows et the fire in a blaze From her

,
s .

place by the hearth h e glanced up at hi m ,

s Your .
“

face IS all pinched she said and your fingers are “

”

, ,

blue with cold I ll ha v e to look after you I see

.
’

,
.
”

He sat down doc ilely and a silence fell , .

She washed the lentils for the soup slice the , d

onions and broke up the celery but her eyes and her ,

attention were all the w hile o n the stranger s face ;

, ,
’

it was with a preoccupied air that she finally began

to prepare the fi h s .

Johann in his turn was uneasy He moved

, , .
,

sighed thrust his hands into his pockets then sighed

, ,

again ; at last he ro e It is o f no u e he said

s
“
s
,
”

I cannot sit quite still It w as the sa m e when you .

left this morning I could not lie in bed

,
He walked ”
.

nervou sly to the dresser h i hands hanging by his ,

s

sides Anna watching him intently felt that he

.
, ,

thirsted t o speak ; but she kept her head silently

ben t
.
32 THE CI R CL E
Anna ! ”
He
o fingered the plate s .

m
”
Y es .

Oh it is o fno use , He c ssed to the window .

”

then walked back again Anna I c annot keep it .

,

to mysel f The sweat breaks out e v ery time I think

. .

I am a coward — a coward He sorted a heap o f

plates till they rattled .

She watched him unswer v ingly “

I supp o se we .

are all cowards Johann ”

.
,

The steadiness o f her tone mas tered him he

ceased h i ner v ous gestures an d passed again to the
s

wi ndow where he stood looking out

, If I only .
“

dared he said at last .

She c o sed the room and slipping her arm thro u gh

r s ,

his led him back to the fire

, No w tell me what .
,

it i s.
”

He dropped into his former seat and covered his

“

eyes I have been robbed he said abruptly

. and ,
”

I am a f raid He lowly w iped the dampnes from ”

. s s

h i face
s .

Anna returned to the table and began to slice the

fish There was a long pause ; then she spoke
. .

“
Suppose you begin at the beginning Most ,

things hav e a beginning you know Secret hunt , .

”
-

ing was ne w to her but h e had a keen instinct , s

for the right ac t and the right wo rd Most .

things ha v e a beginning she said again in a le v el ,

”

voice .

The tonic acted h e at up It w as like this s .

He cleared his th roat .

 TH E CI R CL E 33

Take lots o ftime I hav e the fish t o cut up and

wash and dry ”
.

He steadied himsel f drawin g a short breath , .

For many yea rs I ha v e served a j ewel merchant in

V ienna — Golst oc k by name ; a man who has built
a grea t fortune for him el f; a hard man ; a man s

w ith a w ilLo f stone He paused and drew breath

”
.

again .
“
I ha ve been with him fo r ten years ; it
w as he who taught me the E nglish — to speak and

to write ; I hav e kept portions o f his E nglish cor

respondence fo r four years A little while ago he .

called me to his pri vate room

The man stopped ; and the only sound that broke
the silence w as the steady slicing o fthe fish .

“
He called me to his pri v ate room
paused again .

The girl waited drawing her finger tip slowly

,
-

across the tip o f the kni fe He r curiosity was run

Yes —I
.

ning riot but she kept a le vel v oice

, .

understand .
”

He pulled the edges of h i handkerchief thr ough s

his fingers seekin g ner ve in the friction o f the stuff

, .

Y o u wonder why I he itate and halt he said ”

s , ,

and shiver when I speak o f hi m ? I will tell

m
you why It is beca use I ha v e feared him all these
.

years He is a an who rules by fear

. .

Why ha v e yo u stayed with him all these years ?

That I hardly kno w He passed his hand again.
”

o ver his face The same reason I suppose that

.
“
, ,

made me come t o London on his errand the rea on s

3
34 TH E CI R CL E
that m akes men like him rule men like me always ; -

with just a word or a look from the eye ”

.

Anna looked down at her kni fe Wh at about .

the private room ? ”

“
I am comin g to that He moved nervously . .

When I entered the room he was sitting at his desk ,

and beside him on the top o f many papers was a

, ,

leather case he w as tappin g it with his fingers as I

cam e in . This is for a l ady in London he said
‘
,
’
.

‘
It m ust reach her in three days ; I am going to
trust it to you He opened the case and showed
’
.

me what lay inside five ornaments o f pink topaz -

with pearl and di amond rims ; two pins a ring a , ,

hair clas p and a dagger I reme m ber for I had to .

,

count the m many times till he was satisfied I should ,

not forget They were v ery brilliant and dazzled

.

me a little but I took them out and looked at them

,

one by one At last I ask ed him what they were

.

valued for He laughed

. Y o u are not paid to .
‘

v aluate he said
,
’
Ne v er see beyond your own
.
‘

horizon.
’

“
I hesitated for a mo m ent It was not that I .

feared the responsi b ility though a rose coloured -

topaz fro m B razil is something to be prized ; but I

was u ncertain I asked him at length why he h ad
.

chosen me He look ed at me slowly w ith his hard

.

eyes ; then he laughed once more I choose y u . o ,

Johann he said because you are a fool In the

,
’

,
‘
.

case o fvaluabl es one honest fool is better tha n ten

,

cle ver rogues ’ ”

 THE C I R CL E 35

Johann stirred uneasily at the remembrance o fthe

look and Anna felt the colour flood her ch eeks as it
,

had done when she faced the crowd .

What did you do she asked .

m
He shifted his position awkwardly I did noth .

ing — it did not see that there w as anything to

do.
”
The slow precision o f his E nglish the careful ,

for m ing o fhi s sentences m ade his meanings pain fully

clea r .

Go on ! She returned to her preparation o f

”

the fish H o w I should hate that man !

.

Do you hate me
Y ou Ho w silly She tossed back her plait .

Do you despise me ?
What a question ! Tell me what you said to
Golst oc k
”
.

said nothing He always talks

I .
”
.

Well ?
I consented to do the errand J oh ann s voi ce ” ’
.

was humble and low .

I would n t ha v e consented
’ ”
.

No ; yo u would not He waited for a little

.
”

then took up his theme again He gave me my .

“

route and my destination I was to tra vel to Bel .

gium in the least frequented way ; and reaching

Antwerp to cross to London by the sea People
, .

with v aluables take the quickest means I was to ,

ta ke the slowest It was all arranged it is a whim o f

.

Herr Golst oc k s working out these little schemes

’
.

It is his o nly whim th at I have known ; m ade since

36 THE C IR CL E
years ago he h ad a packet o f ru bies stolen in the
post . He stopped to collect his ideas ; a nd w h e n
”

he spoke again it was with more rapidity and force .

“
The end ca me through a countryma n— a bi g
Austrian with a yellow beard He ca me on board .

the ship when I did and we climbed the gangway ,

side by side During the day he spoke — casting a

.

word to me now and then in the E nglish with a ,

pleas ant smile B ut it w as at night in the cabin that

.

he played his card .

We were crowded together —so m e in bed some ,

undre sing ; the ship pitched ; and the smell o f the

s

s w in ging lamp w as very rank An argument was .

ru nning at the centre table but the voices out each ,

o ther so that nobody tried to hear Then o u t o f .

the medley like a gunshot ca me a ban g as the

, , ,

Austrian struck the table with his hand E verybody .

turned round IfI had the v alue o ften gold coins

.
,
’

he said I would throw them overboard sooner than

, ,

land with them to mo rro w night at the London -

docks His v oi ce shook the plac e and each man

.
’
,

acted a came best Some made a j est and laughed ;

s .

o thers laughed but not s ea ily ; and some turned ,

o s

pale and as ked hi m what he meant B ut he said no .

mo e Just for a moment his ca reless eyes ran round

r .

the pl ace like lightning dancing upon steel ; and it

,

m
was then in a sudden second that I felt his gaze o n
, ,

e. It w as but a flash but he saw my hand go to ,

m y pillow as I sat up he saw my thought show in

,

m y eyes The next day he came to me as I leant

.
38 T H E CIR CL E
do w n the sta irs and reached the street In the street
.

there were people — m an y people and I fell into

,

their m idst He stopped to catch his breath .

“
Go on Go on Anna s eyes flashed
’
.

I fell in amongst them my head was swin gin g

,

round ; then sharply from behind me I heard the

, ,

Au trian s voice with your E nglish cry o f Stop

s
’

thie f! A n d it see med to me that e v eryone I

’

most o fall began to run It w as then that I found

.

you . He suddenly collapsed .

There was a tense moment ; then Ann a let the fish

fall an d ran to hi m holdin g o ut her h ands
, .
P A R T O NE CHA P TE R VI

NN A took his hand and stroked it gently .

Poor Johann Poor Johann she said ,

punctuatin g the words with little motions

o f her fin gers She felt that the re were
.

things to say but they slipped her gras p His story

, .

m
still rang in her ears making dull echoes ; and she
,

watched hi with eyes half incredulous hal fenvious ,

o fthe adventure he h ad known .

He w as lying back with closed li ds and l ashes that

twitched w ith the drawing o fhis breath His pallid .

face looked thin ; and frequently in the years that,

followed the isolation o f his attitude in that mo

,

ment ca me back to her like the v aguely recalled

section o f a dream Time seemed to halt while
.

he sat there ; she counted four carts pass o v er the

cobbles o f the street then her patience broke away
,

she pressed his hand sharply and he sat up , .

Oh he moaned it w as terrible —terri ble

,
” “
,

His voice sank and he fell b ack again B ut Anna

, .

w as on the alert ; with a swi ft m ovement she drop ped

to her knees and looked up into his face F or a .

mo m ent the spirit in her eyes inspired him ; he raised

him self and sat forward in the chair “
I told .

you that I was a co ward Look . He held out

40 THE C I R CL E
his hand till the sun played on it ; she sa w that it

B ut Johann
,

His eyes turned o n her full o fquestion and doubt , .

m
“
Johann I want to underst and
, She rose and ”
.

o ved slowly to the fire Her tone lingered in a .

puzzled way an d her b rows were knit in a frown .

You have lost the jewels that s terri ble o f ’

,

course ; but it s not so bad as you say Y o u ll

’
.
’

go to this man in V ienna Her voice suddenly

st opped broken in o n by a laug h a lau gh as hard
,

and mirthles s as a crash o fstones .

Go back t o V ienna ! The v oice was as shrill ”

the laugh Go back to V ienna ! It would

.

make the dead turn in the gra v e A ll at once he .

”

sa w her f ace and his o w n chan ged

, Oh Fraulein .
, ,

I ha v e hurt you It w as the i rony and the fear

.

together Fraulein forgi v e

.
,

,
B ut Anna s back was turned
’
It is n t a hun .
“ ’

dred years ago she said coldly when a m an could

,
”
,

kill you or torture you .

”

True ! It is not a hundred years ago .

”

Then you are a coward Her tone w as short .

”

and contemptuous .

Th ere was a long pau se so long that she w a com ,

s

e lled at las t to turn round h e turned slowly then s

p ,

halted with a throb o f contrition .

He still sat forward but his face was humbly bent ; ,

his eyes pained a nd wi st ful were fixed o n her with

, ,

a co n centrated gaze ; as their glances met he spoke ,

.
 TH E CIR CL E 41

I a m
as I was ma e
he said gently d I could be
,
”
.

faith ful ; I thi nk I could lo v e well ; but in my o wn

cau se I shall always be a coward Nature was look .

ing out o fthe window when I wa born He added ”

s .

the last with a twist in his thin voice .

An na laughed but there w as a catch in her laugh

,

ter She came behind him and touched his hair

. .

“
I was a wretch ! B ut I am so rry Will that .

do ? ”

It w as true what you said .

”

It w as not It was hate ful Let s start agai n

. .
’

where I got cross I said you must go to V ienna ;

.

you said it was impossible Now why ? .

”

“
Because it is impossible Im possible There . .
”

was a nervous whiteness round his mouth .

B ut why
Because I am a fraid I know men cannot kill .

but there are other things besides killing He would .

v ent his loss on me in other ways Oh not for all .

,

the v alue o f the stones would I go back He .

”

grasped the arms o f his chair .

A nna paused undecided ; then all at once a gen

e ro us impul e crossed her f
s ace ; h e walked swi f t ly s

round the chair and tood in front o f him s Then .

don t bother any more she said

’
Ifyou are a fraid
,
”
.

to go don t go Stay here with us She bent l ok

,
’
. .
”

, o

ing straightly in his eyes No o ne will find yo u .

he re ; this place is like a mouse hole in the bigne - ss

o f London ; you will be as sa fe as —a mouse .

”

She laughed ; then grew gra ve again There s .

“ ’
42 THE C I R CL E
a room waiting to be used ; the re s father grow ’

ing more forget ful e v ery day there s the shop want ’

ing more care Oh you would n t be an id l er — I

.
,
’

can p omise you that

r She held out her hand .
”
.

He took it unsteadily then let it drop One , .

“

thing pre v ents .

”

Johann ! Her v oice fell”

.

He rose abruptly thrust his hand inside his shirt

, ,

and held something to the light .

Johann she said again but in an altered voice , .

The object in his hand shone with a peculiar pinkish

glow . Oh Johann it s v ery very fine
, ,
’

IfI were to stay he said suddenly this would ”

, ,

b urn into me — little at first greater a fterwards ,

until to mysel f I becam e a thief He turned his

, ,
.
”

eyes from the jewel to her face from her face b ack ,
’

agai n “
Wh at can I do with it ? What am I to
.

do ? ”

She was silent for a space then she glanced up , .

There are two places that it can go to B ack to .

Vienna Johann shivered or to the place in L on

”
, ,

don where the others should have gone Is n t that .

’

right
He cowered again Oh but I dare not I dare .
, .

not ! ”

There is the post .

”

No no Packets are traced ; letters are traced

, .
”
.

He mo v ed uneasily about the room .

Anna knelt on the wooden chair her el bows

resting o n the back Johann she sai d .
“
,
”
 THE CIR CL E 43

He turned to her .

You trust m e don t you ?,

’ ”

His eyes were eloquent .

Say it in words
”
.

I trust you
That s right ! N ow listen I 11 take your j ewel
’
.
’

t o the hous e where the other s should ha v e gone

”
.

Anna !
“
Yes Don t say anyt hin g I ll take it
.
’
Her .
’
.
”

voice quickened she suddenly knelt up Johann .

,

say that I can go ? The strength o f her anticipa

”

tion flashed across her eyes the force o f her excite

ment pas ed unconsciously to the man He moved
s .

towards her his face lighted by a new hope

, .

It would mean peace ? he said ”

.

Yes t would mean peace

,
’
She gras ped at the
.
”

word . T would mean pe ace for you Johann and

’
, ,

and who knows w hat for me She laughed

afresh and leant towards him Say I trust you .

again .

He moved awkwardly to the dresser and touched

the plates as he had done be fore ; then he turned .

I trust you ! And and I can never forget ”

.
PA R T O NE — CHA P TE R VI I

OUNT ING by human grades the journey ,

from the southeas t to the west o fLondon

m
is longer th an the crossing of the de sert .

To Anna it was the omentous under

takin g o f her li fe Pursued p art o f the way o n foo t
.

and pa rt by omnibus it held her spell bound with

,
-

inte rest and delight .

First came the by ways the intricate streets with

-
,

their j utting houses that h ad been familiar to her all

her li fe ; then the gradually widening thorough fare s ,

the warehouses the atmosphere o f steady comme ce

, r ,

the sense o f colo sal enterprise ; lastly a fter m any

s ,

intermediate ph as es hundreds o f graduating shades

the West E nd itsel f —
, ,

m
the thr on gs o f people the ,

glitter o f shops the colour and o v ement and

,

e xhilaration the surface suggestion o f li fe without

,

a ca re so no v el t o o ne bred in the ways o f toil It

, .

fas cinated and drew her forcibly ; for a time it

caused her to forget her errand and to loiter in
the crowd as dismounting from o ne omnibus she
, , ,

wai ted for the next that w as to take her on her way .

B ut the defection w as only momentary with a li t tle

gasp she recognised her con v eyance tightened her ,

finge s round the small linen bag she carried in

r
46 TH E CI R CL E
de sce nded the steps with headlon g spe ed Alm ost .

be fore she was aware she w as standi n alone in t h e

,
g

roadway watching the omnibus lurch pl acidly out

,

o f sight. Then she walked t o the foot path and -

c onsidered her next ac t .

She drew a slip of paper from h er poc ket rea d it ,

car e fully and glanced at the indicated house ; then

quite slowly her gaze travelled to her dress of coarse

m
b rown serge and she became alive to the stron gest
,

temptation that h ad assailed her yet the t e pt a

tion to run away The inclination was so compel
.

ling tha t she turned involuntarily an d w alked for

a couple o f y ards ; then the f ace o f Johann pale ,

and nervous , rose be fore her and she stood very

,

still It w as a trust ! She turned back ; her steps

.

dragged but did not swerve she reac hed the house
,

without a halt ; there settin g her lips she followed

, ,

the advice on the un familiar bell and pres sed .

F ar inside the hous e she heard a whiz zin g sound ,

and as she w aited a li ghtness stole through her a ,

fresh sense o f nervous anticipation that w as e ntirely

ne w . The time see m ed interminable ; then at last
t h e do or swu n g so f
tly back and sh e turned r ound .

A m anservant was gazin g at her with inquis iti v e

eyes .

m
The contact with a human prese nce b raced her ;
the trepidation vanished an d her courage ca e cree p
ing back .

. M
D oes Mrs axt ead li ve here ? she as ked He r
as level and direct ; b ut the
”

edmm
l
.

g la nce w an see ost

 THE C I R CL E
in his scrutiny and she li ft ed her head Please be .

quick ! she added”

I ha v e no time to waste .
”
.

He eyed her while he prepared a retort then he

smiled .Time must be valuable where you co m e
“

from he said
”
.
,

The blood flew t o her face and her lip trembled .

It is she said after a pause

,
” “
There servan ts
, .

have no time to speak ; they have only time t o

work Tell Mrs ax t ead I want to see her Tell
.

her at once Her voice rose .

”
. M .
.

M
For a second the man s dignity choked hi m ; then ’

he subdued it Mrs ax t ead is not at home

. . .
”

m
Anna s lips parted but quite as swi ftly they close d
’
,

m
again and at the same instant the an strai ghten e d
himself Fro behind a curtain on the right o f the
.

hall cam e the sound o fa bell i mperatively run g , .

“
Stand in for a minute he said ; and keep on
“
,
”

the m at He glanced doubtfully at her boots

.
”

then swi ftly shutting the hall door he turned and ,

di sappeared behind the curta in .

m
F or Anna t here followed a di f ficu lt mo m ent a ,

oment in which she hung between a desi re t o cry

arid a fresh lon gin g to turn and fly Then swiftly .

as such things occasionally occur she forgot her

m
impulses forgot her o wn exist en ce even in the su dden
, ,

fascination o f so methi ng quite apart Fro behind .

the curtain ca m e the so und o fa voice —the first cul

m
t u re d wo an s voice she h ad ever heard
’
and stro ng
as a flam e her power o fappreciation sprang in t o li fe .

S he stood breathless attentive to every word , .

48 THE C I R CL E
Wh o is it B ranks So meone for m e ? The
, ?
voice w as like water ripplin g under m oss .

A young woman ma am The alteration in the ,

’
.
”

m an s tone was notable F o r the first time Anna

’
.
‘

realised the gul fo fclass .

W hat does she wan t What does she say ?

m
That sh e mu t e e you ma am ; she says noth s s ,
’

mg ore .

The owner o f the v oice laughed — a cool well ,

bred laugh You must make her sa v

. .
”

“
Yes ma am ,
’
.
”

B ranks — wait ! The v oice seemed to linger ”

and hesitate Is h e a common person ?

. s
”

Anna drew back a ste p ; fo r a second she hun g in

dire s uspense Then B ranks replied. .

Well ma am , He considered
’
Her clothes .

are shabby but she has a way if I might say it ,

m a am a dominee ring ordering way

’

,
- .
”

Ah ? The inflection was ery faint

”
Y ou v .
“

may show her in Yes in here ; I 11 see her here .

’
;

One s curio ity is so se ldom touched

’
s .
”

Yes ma am ,
B ranks de ferenti ally withdrew
’
.
”
.

In the h all he turned t o Anna she noticed that

he sti ll held himsel fv ery straight .

“
You may follow me he said and his v oice ,
”

,
‘

sounded pompous and aggrie v ed A second late r .

,

with the clat ter o f brass rings he drew the cu rtain ,

back .
PA R T ONE —C H A P T E R VI I I

N the roo m there was a toning o f rose and

mau v e ; a toning that reminded Ann a o fJohn
D esin ski and the colour schemes o v er which
,

he used to ra v e in the attic abo v e the sh 0 p .

It was an instincti v e remembrance but instincti v ely ,

it linked this other li fe with hers and un consciously

sh e found the balance o f incidents as she passe d
through the door .

A m all table was drawn l uxuriously near the

s

fire and the suggestion o f lunch was still visible in

,

the diso rder o f sil v er and glass The occupant o f.

the room raised her head and disappointment was the

,

first feeling that sped through Anna s mind The ’

.

beauti ful voice did not belong t o a beauti ful face .

She pause d al m o t disconcerted ; then a second ex

s

pression the stealing o f a fresh impression crossed

,

her eyes and she moved on again

,
.

The owner o fthe v oice look ed up Y ou must n t .

’

he itate she said

s ,
”
I ha ve finished my lunch
quite She pushed back her chair and laid dow n
.
”

the book that she was holding She was a woman o f

.

thirty with dark hair and delicate skin but with e ves ,

that were almost unfeminine in their restless glance .

A woman de v oid o fgood looks but with a person al

,

4
50 TH E CI R CL E
ity an d a distinction that were magnetic — a woman
who need never fear a cro wd .

Without understandin g An na felt so methin g of ,

this She moved forward mechanically studying

.
,

the face be fore her line by line ; at las t she rested

her hand on the edge o fthe table and spoke .

It s quite wonderful she said thoughtfully

’
,
”

h o w you suit your voice If you d been pretty

’
.

you would n t ha ve suited it half so well — not half

’

M
so well
”
.

Mrs ax t e ad stared ; then she laughed

. B ranks .

w as correct she said looking at the girl “

You
”
.
, ,

m
certainly have a w ay Where in the world do you .

come fro ? I thought they h ad ceased t o manu

facture in the o ri ginal nowadays
”
.
,

Anna blushed then m v ed uncertainly

,
Y ou o .
“

must n t ask me that she aid

’
I have promised
,
”
s .
,

at leas t She stumbled at the words My .

father ca me from R ussia years ago if that i , ,

s

what you mean she added in a courteous a fter

,
”

thought .

The other laughed again and a faint irony under ,

ran the so f t ness o f the sound ; a tone that caught

one up with a sting o f interest at its start and lulled
one into forget fuln e ss at its fall ; a curious effect
o f salt and sweet that tin gled the senses into ac t iv

ity and le ft them anxious fo r what was yet to

come .

I t hought it was n t quite the E nglish type she

’

,
”

said slowly The E nglish type h as such a tendency

.
 THE C IR CL E 51

to knock at doors No w you would never knock at .

a door — ifyou wanted to get in

Ann a considered I think it would depend she .
,
”

said truth fully If it were a m an s door I think I

.
’
,

should knock
M
”
.

Mrs ax t ead lay back in her chair

. Y ou irre .

sist ible child ! C ome and ha v e some coffee ? I could

sit and ask you things for ho urs ”
.

Anna moved then paused B ut she began

, .
,

but
“
My dear child there is no such word C ome ! , .

The co ffee is quite hot and there are years in which

to tell me what you want She drew forward a low ”
.

stool with a brocaded cushion and set it beside her

chair. This ought to suit you yo u ha v e the see
ing eyes She smiled
.
”
Y o u should sit lo w down .

in front o f a fire with your hands about you r knees ,

and see castles and dream dreams Y o u do it I .

,

know .
”

A slight wonder spread over Anna s face Don t ’

.
’

you see pictures ? she asked ”

.

“
I ! My dear child I find too many things to ,

see in li fe I might gaz e into the fire for minutes

.
,

but I d only calculate the amount o fcinders my coal

’

m
merchant makes his profit by I am hopelessly co m
erc ial you see —to the finger tips
.

, She laughed -
.
”

and spread her hands to the blaze They were per .

fee t in shape b ut like all t hat surrounded her they

, , ,

g a ve their own pecu liar sense o ffineness underlaid by

ste el The impression was disti nct ; it gave An na 3

.
52 TH E CI R C L E
little thrill and sent the recollection o f her errand
,

flashing back upon her with double force She took .

the pro ffered seat then resolutely looked U p into her

,

companion s face
M
’
.

Mrs axt e ad she said ; then she w aited fo r

.
,
”

there was an uncontrollable tremor in her voice It .

was well enough to rehearse the scene in the ra w air

or in the dust and shadow o f the shop but its real ,

ity was di sconcerting She h ad m ade no allowance .

for a listener with a manner perfectly e v en perfectly ,

and coolly sweet but with eyes that seemed to ,

run through the mind and pi geo nhole the thoughts

be fore they could sprin g to words It was more .

than disconcerting She squeezed the little bag .

hidden in the palm o f her hand and m ade a ne w

start.

You are expecting j ewels from V ienna — pink

topaz jewels with pearl and diamond ri ms She .

m
stopped The plunge was ta ken and she felt like the
.

swi mer who rising to the top o f the water shakes

, ,

the spray from his eyes and looks about She looked .

M
round wondering how big the splash had been
,
.

Mrs axt e ad was looking at her ; her eyes were

.

narrowed and glittering with interest but her face ,

was quite unmo v ed .

Yes ? she sai d in e v er so still a v oice ; then she

”

paused .

Anna fo und the pause more di fficult than the word .

She pushed back her stool and rose .

“
Well she said h un iedly you will never get
,
” '

,
54 TH E C I R CL E
Who t old you where to b ring it ? T he voice
”

w as like t h e crisp b reaking o f ice .

“
I cann ot tell you that .
”

Suppos e I were to com pel you

You co uld n t com pel me Anna loc ke d up
’
. .

I don t know There are some very effici en t

'

’
.

ways .
”

Anna suddenly raised her head and at the same ,

instant the trin g o f the bag ca me undone

s No .

One could make m e say she said I think you ”

.
,

know that as well — as well as if you were me ”

.

The loo k in h er eyes was not a common look her ,

v oice was fearless and clear With a swi ft mo v e .

ment she tore the clas p from its covering and held
it out Take it ! she said
M
“ ”
. .

Still Mrs ax t e ad was immovab le

. not even her ,

e yelids stirred She w as watching the girl with a

.

quiet alert gaze

, .

Why don t you look at it ? Why don t you

’ ’

ta ke it ? ”

Beca use I am thinking ofsomethin g else ”

.

A nna threw the cl asp upon the table Well I ve ,

’

done it I can go no w
. She walked to the door ”
. .

“
Wait for a minute The voice was essenti ally ”
.

persuas ive The girl paused . Would you like t o .

know what my thought was ? ”

No .
”

Are yo u quite sure ? ”

She turned “
I d like to know why you pre
.
’

t e nded not to see the cl as p

”
.
 TH E C I R CL E 55

It was not pretence ”

.

“
Then what ? ”

I saw something tha t interested me m ore

”
.

An n a moved away again “

You are laughin g .
,
”

she said
Yes —at mysel f The wom an raised her b ril
.

“ ”
.

liant eyes and opened them wide “

I have lost
or you tell me I have lost —a present worth hun
.

dreds o f po unds Bein g a woman I should go

.
,

into hysterics instead o f which contrary to all

, ,

traditions I feel a ne w interest an d a ne w e nerg

,

flowing throu gh me by qu ite a new gate I see .

possibiliti e s and I want t o grasp them You don t .

’

understand ? Of course you don t They are all ’

.

wrapped up in haze like the rising sun She .

”

laughed and m oved forward h er voice as soft as ,

the rustle o f her dress Y ou ha v e shown me .

more th an the jewel she said a good deal more

“
,
”
, ,

and you have m ade m e greedy to increase m y kn owl

edge I wonder whether you would co m e to me
.

m
again ifI were to ask ? She laid her hands with ”

their firm pressure on the girl s ar “

C ome and ’
.

see me again ? She raised her eyeb rows in question

”

and smiled .

m
For a moment Anna s pride wave red She looked
’
.

across the room at the costly f u it ure then down at ,

her hostess s dress ; then at last she raised her eyes

’
.

I think I d lo v e t o come she said

’
,
”
.

m
A n d you are not t oo an gry t o shake hands
no t vexed at all — Her fingers
“ ’
I
”
now .
56 THE CI R CL E
turned the other s pressure I sh all c ome —when
’
.
“

e ver you like

”
.

Say this day next week

This day next week Like a dream sh e saw the .
”

curtain swing back and like a drea m she saw B ranks ,

open the hall door ; then the cool kee n air blew ,

ac ross her face whipping back the recollection o f

,

hersel f .

M
Inside the roo m o fpink lights and mau v e sh adows ,

Mrs . ax t e ad mo v ed to and f ro B e fore the hall .

door h ad closed her hand was on the bell a moment

later B ranks was in the room .

Where is Cé leste she asked .

In your room ma am It was only on occas ion

,
’
.
”

that B ranks hear d the ring resembling the ring of ,

steel in his mistress s v oice but he knew it well

,
’
,

enough to be swi ft in his response .

“
L e t her put on her hat and send h er t o me ,

here .
”

Y es m a am
’ ”

And B ranks —re mem ber there is al ways ti me

.
,

for gossip later on

”
.

M
Yes ma am , B ranks retired
’
.
”
.

Twi ce Mrs ax te ad walked from the fire to the

.

windo w and back again ; her glance flit t ed fr om

place t o place her fingers seemed trembling to ac t .

At last she stopped by the over mantel .

m
It is a look in itsel f she said suddenly and aloud ,
”

a look quite in itsel f This an has it She .

 TH E CIR CL E 57

picked up a photograph and stu died it intently ; it

was the picture o f a m usician who had made the
whole world turn round .Catrina Lotz had it ;
Leone Perez h ad it ; and it w as in the girl s eyes as’

she threw up her head I m sure it was It is in

”
.

spiration whatever its output whatever its groo ve

, .
”

She pressed her finger tips excitedly on the mantel

-

shel f Inspiration ! she said below her breath

.
“ ”
.

“
The o ne thin g t o set a match to the world —the
o n e thin g that really lights Her han ds dropped
”
.

to her sides .

Ah Ce leste ! she said as she turned round

,
’

, .
P A R T O NE —C H A P T ER IX

T was late afternoon when Anna entered the

shop Johann looked up the duster in h i
.
,
s

hand fell to the ground and he leant back ,

against the counter .

Well ? he said ”
.

m
She walked up to him took off her hat and threw
,

it into a co er ; then sprang on to the counter and

sat s win ging her f eet The dusk had fallen heavily,
.

and the ill smelling o il lamp had not yet been lit ;
-

only the tiny candle in S olnys o ffice shed a waverin g ’

gleam Her face was in full shadow but even in the

.
,

sh adow Johann felt the light that her presence made

the inimita ble flash o fyouth and exhilaration that
n o af t er time can reproduce Instinctively he hun g
.

his head .

There followed a full mome ntous pau se which the

,

scratching o fold Solnys pen inadequately filled At

’
.

l as t she lea nt forward and laying her hands on his

shoulders turned his face slowly round to hers
, .

“
Johann she whispered rapturously I have seen
,
”
,

it ! Think o f it — I have seen it at last ! She ”

swayed back and forw ard little gasps o f delighted

,

laughter slippin g in betwee n her words 0h . ,

Johann ! Joh ann ! ”

 TH E CIR CL E 59

He drew back Se en what ? His voice was

“ ”

timorously lo w .

Why li fe o fcourse ! Li fe !
, , She shook hi m a
little then looked away into the darkness o ver his
,

head . Oh Johann b ut it is fine ! They have

, ,

sil v er dishes to eat from and carpets like moss ; and

,

and e verything that is n t glittery is silk She

’

stopped to catch her breath .

Yes and the clasp

She laughed “
The clasp Why she h as rin gs
. .
,

that flash like twenty Clasps She dismissed the .

subj ect sum marily and retu rn ed to her train of

thought . She ga v e me co ffee in little gilded cups
that father would have died o f en vy fo r ; she m ade
m e sit o n an inlaid stool and —oh Johann it was , , ,

too lovely ! It was too lo v ely ! She clasped her ”

hands . I ran most o f the way home It was too .

wonderful to sit quite still .

”

There was a fresh wait then Johann spoke dully , .

I shall light the lamp he said ,

”
.

The lamp ! Oh Johann no It makes the

, , .

place so stu ffy and I burn Feel

, She raised o ne
.

o f his hands and put it against her cheek Let s

”
.

sit here in the dark —and talk P ”

He made no response .

Johann ”
.

Yes .
”

You are silent o r sad Johann She slipped .

to the ground Y o u don t as k things

. You are n t
"
.
’

ex cited a bit ; you are n t glad Her voice fell

’
.
”
.
60 TH E CI R CL E
B ut the silence continued .

Tell me what it is .
”

It is nothin g — nothing He moved away

from her Somewhere in his heart there was a dread
.

—a dr ead in whose shadow his own inefficiency his ,

o w n pitiable ter ors became very dw arf

r ed I am .

stupid he said below h i breath

,
”
I do not know
s .

what to ask I wo uld ask —I would ask ifI knew

.
, .
”

He turned again abrupt l y trying to see her face , .

B ut h e mi ed his mood When o ne is young it

s ss .

is hard to be a nything be side youth is all embracing -

in its demands The whole world to her eyes was a

.

b l ur o f rose and mau v e She laid her hands on his

.

shoulders again and laughed .

You dear stupid thin g she said You de ar .

stupid thing How I d like to wake you up You

”

are dull to night and I could sing and run and be

-
,

mad the world is so good .

The world is a child s puzzle he said sadly it

’
,
”

,
“

has two sides .

She caught him up swi ftly If it has two sid es .

“
,

then we ca n turn up which we like ; you h av e de

feated yoursel f! She lau hed again She was g .

like a young horse set loo se in a wide field ; there

w as a spa e in thing that
c
h e had not realised
s s

be fore Her exuberance o f spirit rose up demand

.
,
.

ing vent 0 h Johann

. she cried it is more
, ,
”
,
“

splendid than I e v er dreamt When I was little I .

,

fancied that this stree t was the whole world that

t h re w as nothing el se beyond
e Then o ne da y John .
,
62 TH E C I R CL E
She pe ered at him through the gloom Why do .

you ask such silly thin gs ? Six hours before she

”

would ha v e ans wered his question with a laugh n o w ,

she halted over her re ply To hersel f the hesitation

.

passed u nseen but it gripped at Joh an n s heart He

,
’
.

broke headlong in upon her w ords .

“
I was foolish Anna ; it was the sadness o f the
,

dusk It was the thought ofyour your brightness

.

and the other thought Forget that I spoke

. He ”
.

made a strenuous attempt to laugh .

B ut Anna w as silent ; when she spoke ag ain her

voice was tentative and still Johann she said
.
“
,
”

very so ftly do yo u really think that I could for

,

get that father is quite old — that the shop that

you She stopped and there was a question
,

in her attitude as she lea nt towards hi m Then .

ab ruptly and characteristica lly she li fted her head

and sprang back to h er f ormer seat Johann ”

she cried yo u are ri ght —quite right ! One does

.
,

“
,

row si ly in the d rk L i ght e lam p !

”

g l a . t h
P A R T O NE CH A P TE R X

T w as seven days later Mrs ax t ead w as

stan ding by the mantelpiece when the cur

. . M
tain w as drawn back and Anna s m iling and ,

radi ant walked into the room She watc hed

, .

her ente r with an expression that w as impo ssible t o

read ; her eyes were co ld and bright ; in he r hand
she held the m usician s photograph She laid the
’
.

picture in its place then she smil ed and put o ut her

,

hand .

I h ad al m ost be gun to wonder whether you

would co m e though your voice should have made
m e know ”
.

My voi ce ? Anna too k the extended hand

”
.

Yes You are original enough to have a candid

.

voice B ut you are cold Come to the fire

. . With .
”

perfec t graciousness she continued to hold the girl s ’

han d— drawin g her gently closer ti ll they stood ,

side by side .

“
No w w arm yoursel f Is it snowin g again ? I
.

never look through windows in winter time ”

.

Anna did not answer She was noting little .

changes storing m aterial for future dreams She

, .

sa w with a pang halfpain hal fadmiration that her

, , ,

hostess wore a di fferent and more elaborate dre ss ;

64 THE CIR CL E
she noti ce d that books and flowers had bo th bee n
changed and that a deep settee h ad ta ken the place
,

o f the lunch e o n tab le be fore t h e fire It was qui t e

-
.

a minute before she raise d her eyes .

I wonder why you ca re to ha ve me she said at ,

”

len gth.

For an i nstant their glanc es met and they studied ,

each other w ith th at look so peculi ar to the mo m ent

and to their sex The fi rst ac quaintance o f wo m en
.

m
rese mbles a shootin g plant The bare bo ugh is ri fe
.

with promi se fro its b ro wnness m ay spring flowe rs

or thorns ac co rdin g as the sun shines or the wind
,

cuts ; but for the mo m ent —the all pervadin g m o -

ment it is a bare bough and nothin g more Th ey .

watched each other for a mo m ent ; then the elder

shook thin gs into their groove with a laugh .

We shall be fri ends she said , I h ave an

”
.

instinct that is never quite astray Her eyes co n .

”

tinned t o rest on the girl s face but their glance ’

so ft ened and deepened in a way that w as m ore

eloquent than sound .

Anna who was usually restive under flattery re

, ,

s o nded t o the look as to a ray o f w ar m th You

p .

are kind she said sudde nly ; as kind as you are

,
”

cle ver The re was a ring of ad m iration on the

.
”

final word .

C lever ! The other laughed

”
My dear child .
,

h o w m uch you have to learn ! Sh e dropped the

”

hand that she was holdi ng and moved away ; then

she turned again a ne w ex pression on her face Sh e
, .
 T HE C I R CL E 65

h ad the invalu ble gi ft o f choosing the mo m ent

a

with her confidence w as e v er a bid for so m ethin g

,

higher — rarely a futile o ne She cho se her w ords

m
.

n w with a critical pe rceptio n o f her li te ner ind ’

o . s s

chose t he m slowly with in finite ca re My dear, .

little girl she said there are two classes o f people

,
”
,

in the world the people who are clever and the ,

people who are keen and you must never mix the
two ; they m ee t and t ouch they are necessary to ,

each other b ut they never never blend Sit do wn !

, , .

You will be tire d Her voice chan ged on a n e w

.
”

sentence with extreme rapidi ty though ne v er en ,

.

croac h in
g on the principle o f her theme She g a e . v

A nna one o f her sudden smiles then turned again ,

to the fire her glance straying restlessly from t h e

,

bur ning logs t o the toe o f her slippe r as it rested

on the fender .

It is j ust four yea rs ince I sorted my ca pa ities s c

and clas sed myself Some people find the proc ess .

di f
ficult ; it ca m e rather easily to me ”
.

Anna look ed up from the settee Sh e was vi v idly .

enthralled and feared to break the enchan t ment e v en

by a breath She was rai ed to an altitude w here
. s

the air w as di fficult and rarefied where she scarcely ,

MM
ac kn owled ed h er o wn being
g .

m
rs. ax t e ad gazing abstractedly into the o v er
,

m antel mirror studied the e xcited f ce nd i l ed

,
a a s

cautio n Jy “Then she spoke again the r w a a

-
.
, e s

faintly deprecating tone running w ith e r ord h c s.

I w as twenty five whe n my husba nd died lea vin g

-
,

6
66 TH E C I R CL E
me with hundreds o f acquaintances and a thousand
pounds a year She stopped again and picking
.
”

up the photograph that she had touched be fore ,

made it a screen to sh ield her face No w wi th .

“

a thousand pounds a year one is barely rich enough

to ha ve desires She turned with an ironica l
”
.

glance .

Anna looked up dreamily She followed the .

sense o f the words vaguely as one follows the tory , s

o f an opera .It was the necessary adjunct to the

magnetic voice as the argument is the immaterial
,

adj unct to t h e music It ga v e her the opportunity.

to listen .

M
Please talk on she said ,
.

Mrs ax t ead laid down the photograph as she

.

h ad done be fore and crossed to the girl s side It “

’
.
,

is very seldom that I talk about mysel f she said ,

”

because it is very rarely that I wish to be under

stood.
”
She sank on the sett ee and took one o f
Anna s han ds stroking it e v enly till her ring m ade
’

,
s

a swerv e o f light Her touch as well as her voice

.

possessed a magnetic thrill .

It was then that I stood up straight and looked

about I had to make my o ne thousand into four
.
,

so I had to kno w mysel f .

”

Anna waited watching the strong supple fin gers

, ,

caress her o w n .

IVh at do you guess that I disco v ered

Anna shoo k her head .

I discovered that I had a capacity all my w n o .

 TH E C I R CL E 67

Sh e rose again Her re tlessness was indomitable

. s
,

s omething she had ne ver quite subdued She .

crossed t o a table and picking up an u n read bo o k

began to cut the lea ve It was a capacity
s.
“

She used the paper kni fe with little j erks

'

- “
A .

capacity fo r exploiting cle v er people while ne v er ,

claiming cle verness fo r mysel f It is a track fe w .

people hav e follo w ed beca use fe w people are really

,

wise It sounds second hand but it is not It

.
, .

has a fund o f excitement that o ne can ne ver

plumb It is almo t port !
. s She mo ved back
s
”

a gain and stoo d w ith her back to the fire T h en .

she laughed .

“
I flatter mysel f that my position in li fe is
quite unique In four years I ha v e hel ped q uite
.

thirty people to tolerable success and without ,

makin g o ne obli gation or sapping o ne indepe nd

ence I have never o ffended a woman because I
.
,

ha v e studied h o w to take a second place w ith

grace ; and I have kept e very man friend I e v er

m
made by the simple means o f never expectin g
and ne v er allowin g h i to make love She .
”

paused and touched her dark hair with a peculi ar

gesture a gesture that was like a fine co mparison
,

or a neatly made po int Then she smiled once .

m ore and p re ssed the bell How I have talked

.
,
”

sh e said in a lowered v oice My throat feels like

“
.

dry sand ”
.

B ranks h ad brought in t h e t ea replenished the ,

fire and disappeared again be fore either spoke

, .
68 THE C IR CL E
Then it was Ann a who broke the pause ; her e v es
were filled w ith thoughtful shadows her mouth w as ,

grave .

What do you mean by exploit ? she as ked as ”

,

she crossed the room to fetch her cup “

No No . .

m
cream please ,
.
”

I know ; I pro v ided a lemon on pu rpose to see

R ussian ; I want you to think that my memory i s

good To exploit a person is t o d for them what

. o

they are too lazy or too incapable to do for them

sel v es ; to run them if you know what running ,

means There is youn g Anton Go lst ock for ex

.
,

ample Hot cakes o r cold ?

.
”

Anna s cu p beca me unstea dy fo r a mom ent She

’
.

t k a tiny cake
oo .

Th ere is Anton Golst oc k a clever boy — nephew

t o ld Go lst oc k o f V ienna w h o adores hi
o Well ,
,

m .
,

he h as talent as certainly as h is u ncle had m oney ,

but neither talent nor money can do quite e ery v

thin g though fooli h people think they can Theres .

were so m e particular doo r that A nton w as keen to s

open and it happe ned th at I p e ed the ke y It

,
o ss s s s.

w as all v ery simple and th e jewe l y u poke o f th

,
os s o s e

o ther day were the logical result Ifo ne were bitte . r,

m
o ne might call them the oil for the locks ; bu t
bitterness is such an unq u alified i take She at e s .
”

a biscuit critica l l y and sipped her t ea ; then h e s

looked at Anna with a wi ft sati ri cal s mile We l l

“
s , .
,
”

she said what have y u deduced ?

,
“
Her tone o
”

w a s light but her eye s flashed over the girl s f ac e

’
.
,
PA R T O NE —C HA P TE R XI
P I ER Anna s pronouncement there w as a
’

lengthy pause To the girl it was an

.

immaterial one for the atmosphere that

,

surrounded her — the warmth o f the

roo m the sense o fautumnal fl owe rs —was sufficient to
,

fill any spac e ; but to her companion it held a mean

in g that ra n below the surface and interwove itsel f
with facts as the pattern in the loom weaves through
, ,

i mprin t ing itsel fupon the silk It was a moment o f .

appreciation so spontaneou s and sincere that she ao

c e t ed it instinctively f orgettin g to look ironic ally
p ,

fo r the hidden moti v e power .

M
A ll n e w sensations are quieting fo r their o wn
duration Mrs . ax t e ad sat still f
. or a space o f
time ; her fingers toyed w ith c r teacup then with i ,

her spoon ; her hazel eye alternately lightened and

s

dee pened with the procession o f her th ughts At o .

la t the silver clock by her hand struck five and the

s ,

necessity f or action ca me leapin g b ack “ f

it h a .

slight movement o f her shoulders she became her

habit ual sel f— alert critical keen She ceased t o
, ,
.

mo v e her fin gers ; her lip parted for speech but

s ,

closed again Then she rose

. .

She rose softly ; her motions slight as the ru tl e ,

s

o fa leaf . For an instant Anna turned and looked at

 THE CI R CL E 71

her then returned to her watchi n g o f the fire She

,
.

crossed to the piano her m ovements so gentle as t o

,

suggest stealth then still silently she seated h er

, ,

sel f and her fingers passed in mute thought across

,

the keys Then with sudden resolution she began to

.

play .

Anna stirred leant forw ard questionin gly then

, ,

dropp ed bac k again .

The piece was the Storm Prelude o f Chopin ”

.

“ h y she chose the theme it would be di fficult to say

T

m
,

though from e v ery act o f hers ran a thread o freason ,

whose shuttle sometime s floated on the surface o f

facts so m eti es hung vaguely in their mids t and
, ,

someti m es lay at the bottom inscrutable and unseen

, .

The first faintly repeated note fell o n the si l ence

almost casually as the first act ion in a great series
,

o fevents might f all One felt that there was mastery

.

ifnot genius in the player s touch in the stren gth

’

o fher fin gers in the poise o fthe sound

, .

In complete silence with one m otionless listener

, ,

the m usic went on and on The so ft tonin g o f the

.

room melted into fireligh t —the fireglo w o f deep

shadows and coloured lights Beside the piano the .

tall Chrysa nthemum plants stood boldly up their ,

so ft lea v es a mere suggestion their massed blooms a ,

blot o f pink their scent pungent and remini scent

, , ,

mingling in the air The player s eyes fell separately

.
’

and critically upon e v ery detail then with a perfect ,

e venness o f glance they ran the polished length o f

,

the pian o and p aused o n the listener s face show ’

72 T H E C I R CL E
ing clea r again st the back ground o f t h e settee .

hey rested on it lon g and studiously passin g from

‘

the curve o f the hair and the sweep o f the thick

eyelashes to the generous impulsi v e lips And all , .

the wh ile the music swelled and grew with no sug ,

g estion lost no point missed

, the chords cras hin g ,

and mergin g the compelling m otive growin g do m i

,
~

nant with every repeated note .

It w as a fine mo m en t The player s eyes were .

’

c old questioning
, and b ri ght her fin gers unerring
, , .

The sounds cut the silence into pain the pathos ,

and lo s seemed to b eat together ; then w ith con

s ,

summate effect breaking upon the repeated note

, ,

ca me ilence the silence that only such a pause can

s

be The player s hand dropped quietly to her sides

.
’
s ,

but her eyes did not swerve .

Ann a caught her bre ath uneas ily and turned round .

M
What s that ? she said
”
Wh at s it called
”
.
’

Mrs axt ead leant f

. orward ; her fi gure was o h
servant in every line .

C ome here ! she said .

Ann a rose and crossed the room .

M
There was a sil v er m atch box on the piano Mrs -
. .

ax t e ad put out her hand quietly picked it up and ,

s truck a matc h .

The momentary light shot up and the girl s face ’

w as illumined the whitenes f her teeth between

- s o

M
the parted lips the su ddenl y narrowed pupils o f the
,

eyes Mrs axt ead looked swi ftly from one to the
. .

o ther then blew on the flame and dropped the match

,
.
 THE CI R CL E 73

Ah well she said ; there are more ro ads to

, ,
” “

R ome than o n e
”
.

Anna stared I don t understa nd

.
’
.

“
Did I expect you t o understand ? She rose
and laid her hand o n the girl s arm No w I am ’
.

m
g oin g to ask for a concession I w ant to he ar yo u r .

nam e She pressed the ar she held

.
”
I mu t c ll . s a

you something or how can we be friend ?

,
-
s
”

My name is Anna The girl raised her eyes

.
”
.

A nna that means graciousness ”

.

Anna was silent .

And what comes afterwards ? You can s urely

trust me such a little way ? ”

The girl counted the leaves o n one Chrysanthemum

pla nt while she made her decision ; then for the
second time she li fted her eyes .

I think yo u ha v e the right to ask It i A nna . s

Solny My father was Nicholas Solnikofi but he

.
’

d opped the e nding when the persecution came He

r .

M
says that in E ngland it i wiser to be brief ”
s .

Mrs ax t ead smiled

. A philosopher ! And a .

Je w eh
,

A nna nodded .

A R ussian Jew She ceased to s m ile and

once more glanced in the direction o f the fire A .

R u ssian Jew h e said again There has n t been ’

s .

an inspired R ussian Je w since She broke o ff

and looked up Do you know the history o f your
.

race
Anna took a step bac k No My father ne v er . .
74 TH E C I R CL E
speaks o fhis religion or o fhis people he says that
he h as suffered too much fo r both He says that God .

m
is for everyone to find with h is own lamp He is a .

MM
strange man y father - She stopped .
”
.

There was an interval rs axt e ad continue d

. .

m
to look towards the glowing coal s ; An na stood
otionless At las t the former broke the silence
. .

A R ussian Je w ! she said again Then she .

turned her manner changed

,
D o you know that .

this father o f yours with his philosophies h is

, ,

theories his strangeness may have gone critically

, ,

near to making a career to being a great teacher or

a great leader ? Do you know that suppressed races
burst out at intervals like volcanoes in a fl as h o f
, ,

flame —a flash of genius ? You must study your

people you must know your race ”
.

For a moment the cold voice was warmed To .

Anna it seemed as ifsilver h ad uddenly melted into s

gold her hesitancy fell from her she stepped t o the

other s side
’
.

When you talk like that she said simply you ,

”
,

make me see pictures like the pictures in the fire .

”

M
She spoke earnestly with the ea rnestness o fa child
, .

W hen Mrs ax t ea d responded her tone her very

.
, ,

gestures were care fully ruled

, You ar e very good .

to my v oice she said ,

” “
Some day it must move
.

you to greater things than a fire could do Sh e

”
.

m
laughed gently and drew the girl across the room ;
by the man telpiece she released her ar and sank o n
to the settee “
As for those pictures
. She sat up ”
.
 TH E CIR CL E 75

and touched Anna s wai st Tell me what they look

’
.

like Tell me what yo u do w ith them when they

.

made . Insensibly her touch tightened she drew t h e

girl lower and nearer till they sat side by side ; then
once more she took the hand she had bee n holding an d ,

stroked it every motion accompanying a word .

m
“
E veryo ne who makes a dream she said puts ”

his dream into an act —or Wishes to That an

, ,

m
with the cu rious mouth She nodded towards
the picture on the mantel shel f That an puts -
.

his dreams into the ho w o f his vi olin and draws

them out into realities for thousands and thousands
o fears Others
. She spoke slowly tentati v ely , .

Others put theirs into colours and mediums and ,

make big s paces o f can v as into living thing s

She paused keenly and glanced for the twentieth

,

time at the girl s face ’

.

An na s hand tightened o n hers but the glan

’

that responded to her words was not the glance

that she w aited for .

“
Oh I know cried the girl
, ,
” “
John Desin ski .

m ade his dreams li ke that

M
”
.

John D esinski Mrs ax t ead quietly dropped .

the hand Who was John Basinski P

.

He was an artist a Polish artist Anna spoke

- .

dreamily with a ring o fmemory in her voice Quite

poor —but with so much hope He was an exile
.

. .

like my father ; and my father gave him shelter He .

h ad nothing but his canvases and tubes but he u se d ,

to sing the wh ole day long as he worked in the att ic

76 THE CI R CL E
roo m And when I took him up his m eals — fo r
orget to eat —he d put down h is
.

s ometi m es he d f
’ ’

palette and catch my hands swingin g them to and ,

fro ; and he d speak with tea rs and laughter mix

”

ing in his voice Ah little Anna ! he used to say

.
, .

‘
L ittle Anna ! When my ships come home " B ut
then his v oice would break o ff sho rt and he (I ”

cough while the colou rushed into h i face T was

,
r s .
’

always the sa m e H o w well I reme mbe r ! B ut he

.

died five years ago Her tone droppe d He died

”
. .

be fore he painted the great picture that was t o

M
bring fortune to u all It w as v ery sads . .
”

Mrs ax t ead shivered

. Don t talk o f dea t h .
“ ’

,
”

s h e said ; it is the one ine v itable that I refuse to

“

reckon with She too k the girl han d again So ’

s .

he painted picture ? And what did you do whi le

s

the pictures were being m ade I “

Anna looked up with an involunta ry smile .

C leaned the palette she said “

and sometim es
,
”
,

the palette kni fe

Ne v er got t o brush es ? ”

M
She shook her head .

Mrs .ax t ead pre sed the hand th at she was

s

holding .

Then your dream d not materialise through s o

s ticky mediums and oily tu bes ? Her tone was ”

light but the hal fintense hal fironic question that

,
-
,
-

underran it was like a metal plating beaten very fine .

Anna co n side re d fo r a moment then looked ,

uaintly down N o h e said I har ly think

” “
q .
"
d , s ,
P A R T O NE —C H A P T E R XII

the cu rio shop the domain of old So lny was

F
silent with dus t the rest o f the house —the
, ,

parlo ur the sca nty bedrooms the kitchen each

, , ,

nook and crevice where Anna s brooms and ’

cloths could make an entry reflected cl eanliness

itself It was her pride to be thorough ; and much
.

o f the absorption that went to m ake her drea m s ,

straightened her shoulders an d bent her kn ee s t o

unpleasant ta sks .

Many a m orning when the snow lay o n the ground

and the dawn had sca rcely broken over Felt Street ,

the rattle ofpails and pans might be hea rd in the tiny

yard the curl o fs m oke be seen risin g from the chi m
,

ney as Ann a capab le self reli ant and cheerful went

, , ,
-
, ,

about the makin g o f her father s early cup o f tea ;

’

a tas k that as a child o f seven with sleepy eyes and

,

numbed hands she had first set hersel fto pe rform

, .

B ut whate v er o fher care o fher individuality was

, ,

t o be seen throughout the house it was in her own ,

bedroom that h e most markedly showed herse lf A

s .

narrow room with whitewas hed walls slanting ceilin g , ,

and une v en floo r it was yet big enough to hold a

,

key to her inner mind —a key that did not hang ,

as one m i ht have expected on the space o f wall

g ,
 TH E CI R CL E 79

betwee n th e little ivory water font and John Desin -

ski s study o fa child s head ; but a key t hat lay upon

’ ’

the bare boards in the form o f an E astern ca rpet

strip so rich oftexture so gorgeo us o fcolou ri n g that
, ,

it defied time and lay there in its scanty setting as

,

much a flower in the desert o f po verty as on the day

w hen An na struggling under its weight had proudly
, ,

carried it f rom the shop up the crooked stai rs

breathing and pausi ng o n e very step .

What circumstance had m ade it hers what deed ,

o f virtue it h ad rewarded what impulse o n old

,

S olnys p art it had shown forth she h ad long ago

’

forgotten but the thing remained — eternal

, ,

chan ging ; her prayer rug her magician s carpet,

’

from whose arabesque she drew many a picture in ,

whose glowing tones she h ad many times mirrored

t he world from her n arrow bed It was part o fh er .

s el f; so woven to mystery in her imagination as

almost to take o n human form E ach twist o f the .

design was the memento o fsome incident the record ,

o f some hour Across the wide stripe of blue were

.

m
the two round marks where for years she h ad knelt
morning and night to whisper — sometimes ech an i
cally sometimes with an excess o fardour the aspi
,

ration s o f the Greek church that John D e inski h ad s

taught her t o repeat Then further down where

.
,

the orange crossed the blue was the great sta in that
,

the broom had ne ver quite remo v ed the stai n that

her tears had made when the same John De sin ski no ,

l nger able to sing or work a cold still shadow of

o , ,
80 THE CIR CL E

m
himsel f w as nailed into the deal co ffin and ca rried
,

with many horrible jerks and knocks down the ar

ro w sta irs Then last o f all — the newest keenest

.
, ,

record o f all ca me the mark o fcandle grease on t h e

tri angle o f black ; the open palpable proo f o f a
,

heart that h ad throbbed and a hand that had

trembled with excitement as she carried her candle
upstairs o n the first night that the enchanted wand
had touched her eyelids and she had seen li fe .

She gazed at it no w as she stood leaning on the

handle o f her sweeping brush the pan of newly
-
,

gathered dust at her feet ; gazed at it as she h ad

gaze d a hun dred ti m es in the past weeks with eye s ,

that sa w in it an omen o fun fathomable things To .

her it was partly sacred the one blot upon her

,

treasure that she m ade no e ffort to Wipe out She .

looked long and questioningly ; then she su ddenly

straightened herself tossed bac k her plait and picked
, ,

up the dustpan with a j erk Holding it care fully

.
,

she crossed to the open window and overturned it on

the silk Attentively she watched the specks the ,

threa d the tiny scraps of dust eddy o u t u pon the

s,

air ; then she dropped to her knee s ta king her face ,

between her hands .

From the Pas age below rose the occasional sound

s

o fstri f
e It w as the li v ing hour o f the day Poles
. .

with drying clothes hung from the opposite windows ,

an od our o f decaying v egetables hung o n the ai ; r

b ut above where the slanting roo fs cut the sky

, ,

shone a space o f frosty blue and upon th is she fix ed

,
 THE CI R CL E . 81

her gaze She owned the inestimable quality o f

.

ng nothing below her wants .

Her eyes re sted on the strip of blue and away , ,

like zigzag lines w andered the pictures ofher mind

, .

Granite castles towered and battlemented rose out

, ,

o f a shimmering cloud ; belts o f fir trees shot into -

the air frost tipped and glistening as the sun white

,
-

a venues sti ff with ice twisted to illi mitable len gth

, , .

She looked till her eyes ached then she rose and ,

crossed the room Her face was flushed her eyes

.
,

dark ; she turned bac k the patched coverlet of the

bed and dre w out a book It was a small book .

boun d in calf; the lea v es th in and yellow were torn , ,

in parts ; acro ss the fly leaf ran the title A bra“ -

Mule ; or Lo v e and E mpire A Tragedy Passing

, .
”
.

this with small consideration she opened the book ,

at The Plain Dealer a C omedy and began to

“
, ,
”

re ad The words fr om fie q ue nt perusal were known

.

to her but through habit her eyes skimmed the

,

lines .

Five minutes pas sed —ten minutes h e sti ll read s

on. Then a knock fell upon the door .

She forgot to raise her hea d and the knock was

repeat ed At last she li ft ed her chin
. .

C ome in she call ed and at the ame moment , s

she thrust the book into it hiding place s - .

The handle turned and Johann face showed ,

’
s

round the co rne r f the door o .

You to l d me to tell yo u when it w as twel v e It .

is twel v e now He looked haras ed and ill at ease

”
. s .

6
82 TH E C I R CL E
Twel v e already ! C ome in Johann my work s , ,
’

all done C ome in while I put on m y h at ”

. .

He obeyed slowly and she w heeled towardshim , .

“
Would you be nervous to day — if you were ,
-

me She pushed a chair in his direction I was .

awake at fi v e and I hardly ate any break fast .

I noticed he said in a strained voice

”
.
,

A fter all it is but natural because it is the most

, ,

splendid day o fall my li fe W hen I return to night -

I 11 h ave seen a real pl ay —not a play in a booth

.

— or a play in a book she glanced involuntarily ,

”

t owards the bed but a play in a theatre with

,

a real stage She broke o ff abru ptly and look ed

.
”

across the room at the wist ful face and the twisted
body so pain fully conscious of itsel f
, Joh ann .
,

is n t she too g ood to me ?

’ ”

Johann turned his face fro m the light .

Whate ver seems good to you Anna is go od ,

to m e It is but natural that she sho uld love you

. .

It is but what I understand .

”

Ann a ran to him and squeezed his finge ’

Johann ! dear Johann ! Ho w kind you are ! I

feared that you might be cross to day and n o w -
,

you re not It see ms go od ! Look e ven the sun

’
.
,

shines ! She nodded towards the window then

”
,

passed to the door and li fted her hat fro m the hook .

She looked at it with a m omentary sigh .

Oh Johann she has such lovely clothes ! Will

, ,

she be ashamed d you think to be seen wi t h ,

”

me ? ”
 THE CI R CL E
Johann gave one o fhis rare harsh laugh ,

in the glas he said

s,
”
.

She turned hurt and puzzled

, .

Forgi v e ! Th e frost makes my he ad ache I am .

bitter not worth o ne of yo ur bright thoughts .

B ut can you understand ? He hal f thrust out his ”

hand then dre w it bac k

,
“
C an you understand ?.

This woman who claims you who ta kes yo u away ~ ~

day after day He devoured her with his eyes .

This woman Anna h as all all ; and we your

, ,

father and I and the shop we ha v e nothing ,

nothing Ah I grow stupid with jealous

,

thoughts His words broke he rose and turn ed

towards the door .

Ann a thrust on her hat and picked up her

Johann She caught his arm You grudge .

,

Johann

m Grudge ! Ah no no He turned veh e ”

-
.
,

ent l
y . Grudge ! You know I would lie down
under your feet to bring you one little wish .

In so m e points a woman in others still strangely ,

a child Anna s eyes grew misty in quick response

,
’
.

She was touched without comprehending ; without

realising she sa w
, .

Have I been un kind Johan n these two m onths , ,

since yo u came ?
Unkind He tried to sm ile .

Then what
He shook his head .
84 TH E C I R CL E
You won t tell ’

There is nothin g to tell .

”

Then you 11 come with me to the door You 11

" ’

sa
y g ood b ye -

Y es I will come with you to the doo

. r.

They descended the stairs in silence and in silence ,

passed through the lo w ceiled shop Anna paused -

.

by her father s partitioned desk and tapped on the

’

glas s .

I a m going out father she ca ll e d

”
.
, ,

Solny looked up with abstracted eyes .

Ah so ! E nj oy yoursel f my child
, He bent , .
”

his head again .

Anna turned to Johann Do fathers e ver ask .

where people go — o r see m to care ? Did you r

father ca re Her mind was strung by anticipation ,

but she was a w are suddenly o f a dropped link o me s

where in her o w n li fe .

Lookin g at her puz zl e d face a great impatience o f ,

old Solny rose in Johann s hea t Perhaps some’

r .
“

day he sai d in v oluntarily he will learn t o care

,
”
,

m
t oo much
”
.

An na ga 7e d at hi in question .

He shrugged his shoulders “

I told you I was .

m
bitte r t o day He walked across the shop
- .
”
.

Her face was grave as she followed hi to the

door b ut at the door the frost in the air was keen .

It swept doubt and disappointment be fo re it as

cobwebs are b rushed as ide She turned —her hand
,

held out .
86 TH E C I R CL E
hi m of her He looked up labori o usly ;
.

after a minute his lips moved

Go d ta ke care ofher he said ; and turning he
,

Walk ed into t he shop

.
P ART O NE C HA P TER X II I

N D the pla y Anna The play ,

Anna w as silent It was the third ti me

.

she had been silent to the same ques

tion put on each occasion in a fre sh
,

form Without raising her eyes she stirred in the

.

MM
deep ch air and stretched her feet to the fire .

rs ax t e ad pulled back the white s ilk c ur tains

.

of her bedroom windows and let the las t ofthe grey

daylight fall into the roo m ; then she moved t o the
dre singtab l e and shi fted the sil ver scent bottles from
s - -

plac e to place She w as o n the e v e o ftesting chan

.

and through all her blood she felt the nea rn e f ss o

It h ad been decisive fro m the first From the .

m m e nt that the footlights had been rai sed and sh e

o ,

had caught sight o fAnna s eyes in the dimn ess o fthe

’

bo x she h ad felt the cri is in the air

,
s .

Her moment h ad come and she gripped it meta ,

m
p h o ricall
y between her fingers
,
Then as a cat with.
,

a ouse she experienced the lon ging to let it slip a

,

little w ay fo r the keen delight of drawing it back

again She would m ake certainty trebly ce rta in be
.

fo re sh e burnt her boats With a sense o fexaltation

.

she loosened her fur wrap and laid it on the bed ;

then sh e crossed deliberately to the fire and stoo d
88 T H E C I R CL E
A nna —her el bows resti ng on the back o fthe
be hind
g irl’
s ch air her f , ace held between her h ands A co . m
m
pe lling vitality pe rvaded her ; there w as a pe culiar ,

h alfih u oro us expectation in her very attitude as

her glan c e fell o n the girl s hair ’
.

She chose her opening se ntence with excess ive care .

My dear Anna she said wit h cuttin g clearnes s

,
”

you are a bsolutely wrong The wom an was absurd .

in t h e p a rt Absurd ! . She s m iled her kee n s m ile

”

as she sa w the i m passi v e shoulders sti f f e n b ut h er ,

face w as bl ank as A nna turned rou nd .

A bsurd ? The girl spoke questioni ngly a

”

v ague repro ach overshadowin g her eyes ; t h en h er

face flushed beco m in g suddenly and sensitively
,

ali v e Ho w can you be so so unj us t There -

Mrs . M
w as a thrill in her voice

axt e ad s lids w ere lowered ;

’

care fully at her polished nails The trap h ad be en

.

she l ooked
.

al m ost too well b aite d With e xtre m e consi stency

.

she controlled her voi ce .

“
My dear little Anna you are so very youn g ! ,

There are s uch esse ntial grades i n an act res s such

de gree s Y o u wh o have never be fore see n a play
.
,

She made a delicate m o vement with her sho ulde rs .

I who h ave se en the m by the score

, She brok e
her se nte nces with good e ffect .

Anna s be wildered eyes sought h ers

’
.

B ut peo ple cheered and stam ped and cl apped ”

“
In t h e gallery people are force d t o stam p —t o
rest thei r fee t .
”
 TH E CI R CL E 89

The bewildered look deepened in Anna s eye s ’

.

B ut h e was real she persisted ; she w as real

s ,
”
.

Thi nk o f her when h e stood up in the seco nd ac t

s

with her hands sti ff and her eyes cold Oh I think .

,

you are unjust

The other s eyelids drooped again
’
B ut my dea r .
,

child h o w she tortur ed her words ! She gave the

,

lines like this

. M
Mrs ax t e ad was ne v er so sweetly natural as in a
studied scene She dr opped her arms from the chair
.

with a pe rfectly imp u l ive jerk and the dr oop ofher

s ,

head as she seemed to pau e o n her resolve w as

,
s ,

without a flaw ; late w hen she mo ved across the

r,

room the swish o f her kirt against the carpet

,
s s

w as the essence o f spontaneous haste By the nar .

ro w b ookca se sh e pause d With a touch o f question .

E ach o f the tightly packed books w as bound in

-

m
white ; her fingers mo v ed hesitatingly c o nsideringly , ,

o ver the upper tier ; ho vered abo ve a olu e that i

stood slightly forward from the rest ; then with ,

a delightful air of decision fell o n it and drew ,

Her head was be nt her fi ngers busy with the page s

,

as she recr ossed the room “

Her rea ding o f the
.

pas sage was something like this Anna If I ,

am wron g you will correct me 9 She look ed up

,
”

with a bri lliant smile .

A nna t urned questi o ningly but her co mpanion

’

,
s

aze had returned to the book

g .

She took up her old position but her attit ude w as ,

90 T H E C I R CL E
slightly chan ged she could now watch Anna s pro ‘

file clear cut again t the glowing fire She arranged

,
s .

the book ; then v ery deliberately set hersel f to read

from the play .

She had a flexible voice and she dropped it ,

to a dull m onotone that touched and frayed the

ner v es At the fi ft h line she saw the girl s lips ’
.

t w itch and her nostrils distend She bent her head .

with a little nod — a j ust perceptible m ovement o f

satisfaction and went steadily on .

For several se conds Anna sat ri gid ; then she

m o v ed uneasily in her chair leant back bent frt , ,

ward her susc eptibilities throbbing like the pendu

,

lum ofa clock .

The m onotonous voice went on on irritatin g ,

persistent seemin gly endless Anna felt a dampness

, .

on her forehead She li fted her hand and pushed

.

back her hair Somethin g within her w as bein g

.

slowly wound up and up The inner self—t h e .

sel f that h ad risen as from lon g darkness on the

ni ght o f Johann s rescue ; the unnamed po wer that
’

had ridden above her givin g her heart givin g her

, ,

ca pacity giving her win gs to so ar

, .

She rose une venly — a great l i ght on her face ;

and without a gesture o fpreparation swept the book
from the other s hand
’
.

“
You are c ruel Unjust and cru el ! What you
.

read is a lie She spoke it this way

. She thre w
back her head with sure decision and began s l owly , ,

line by line .
 THE CI R CL E 91

F or te n m inutes the ro om seemed t o hold its

m
b reath The words were the words o f a fine pla y ;
.

m
at the at in ee they had been spoken by a fine
actress ; but n o w in the quiet o f the fi
, religh t fro
,

the lips of a young untaught girl with an audience

, ,

o fo ne they h ad a meaning unpo ssessed be f

, ore Ti
.

sp ark that God sets in the fe w glowed in her voice

m
. M
and shone in her eyes
’
.

Mrs ax t ead s glance w as over bri ght her face a

-
,

little pale when Anna laid down the book her sure
,

ness her spontaneity seemed to have forsa ken her

, ,

as she cr ossed the room .

You will be the grea te st actress I have ever

known she said ; and for the first ti m e in her o wn
,
”

knowledge there was a quiver in her voice .

PA R T O NE —C HA P TE R X IV

HR OU GH the w indow o fthe little room

above the curio shop the sun no longer
shone ; the curtain was cl o sely drawn a ,

candle fl c ke red in the co ldnes o fthe air

i
s

and cas t sh adows on the bare washed wal l , By s .

m
the old fashi oned chest o f drawers stood Anna ;
-

her hat w as on one ar w as still through the slee v e

,

of h er coat the other had been h as tily drawn o u t ;

,

between her fin ger s she held an en velope th ick and ,

square in hape She held it closely and as she

s .
,

mo v ed neare r to the candle flame h e twisted it s

between her hands On her face were min gled ex

.

pressions excitement hesita ncy specu lation

, , .

She twisted the envelope again ; and her mind ,

with swi ft precision re v iewed the e v ents that had

,

m
m ade it hers .

As in a shi fting picture h e sa w herself once ore

s

in the lux uriou bedroom ; saw the white c urtains

s
,

thr ough which the daylight filtered as through mist

s aw the long glasses that reflected her in e v ery atti

tude u pon e v ery hand the bed with its embroidered

sheets and silk co v erlet ; then the picture stirred ,

growing clearer and closer to her m ental sight A

moment became discernible —t he moment
.

fre sh
94 TH E C I R CL E
and read it in your own room with your door locked , .

Then t o morrow co m e to m e again I shall wait i n

- .

all day Anna looked do wn and s m oothed the

”
.

envelope afresh .

On th e roo f opposite a ca t wailed The ound . s

ro used her She crossed to the window and drew

.

t h e curtai n back Then with a sudden impulse she

.

turned into the room and tore the en velope ap art .

The first three lines she deciphered in semi darkness ; -

then sh e stepped t o the candle and held the pages to

t he light Her fingers shoo k a little and her throat
.
,

see m ed tied with c ords .

M
lett r it is
e ;
A NN A —
Y DE A R

a question —
Tl1ls is not an ( ay it is not a
,

and the ans wer li es with you

m ,

.
”

Ann a laid down the shee ts and push ed back her

hair ; then she took a deep agitated breath ,
.

“
T o be candid is the privilege o f the strong ,

she read ca re fully It is only weakness that h ang s

on the outskirts o f a point I will rob the po int .

ev en of its frills ; I w ill be blunt .

On the first day that I saw you I felt that some

where o u some plane o f li fe you were meant to
, ,

st a nd quite alone In the m int o f existence we

.

are all stamped ; and your sta mp is in your eye s,

m
in your voice in the e xas peratin gly ini m itable
,

so e thing tha t m arks you all over .

m
“
Th at was a month ago and I was prophetic ; ,

mthis is to day and I a j ustified When I told

-
, .

yself then that you had genius I w as original ; ,

 THE CIR CL E 95

when I repeat it no w I but an ticipate t h e who le

,

m
world by a year or t w o .

This ay seem t oo bi g a sen te nce too stro ng a , .

sentiment ; if it does just pause L ay dow n the

, .

paper be fore you read another line and think —think

hard Shut your eyes and repeat slowly to yo ur
.

se l f T his is written by a woman —of a wo m an

,
‘
.
’

Ift hat fai ls to convince you I have no more t o say

”
.
,

Anna paused and unconsciously obeyed The can .

dle fl ame seemed to len gthen then to shorten ; t he ,

w alls to contract then to expand

, She put up he r .

hand and tentatively touched her face ; she was

doubtful even o f hersel f It was as if a grea t
.

clamour o f music had beate n on her ears an d then

passed by lea v ing her dea fened Automatically sh e
, .

m
li fted the letter to the light again .

And n o w it ran o n a I have m ade y pro

,
”
,
s

logue let me come to fac ts ; let me range yo u r

,

equ ipments and your drawbac ks side by side O n .

the one hand you have brain you ha v e good looks , ,

m
you ha v e ambition though you ha v e n t di scove i

i t a yet ; on the other ha nd

s e ember I am being r

blunt —on the other hand you hav e no education to

speak of yo u hav e no position w orth the name yo u
, ,

possess not one influential friend L e ft to yourse l f .

,

what future do you see ? L e t me answer for you .

The saddest future on this profitable earth the

future o fa thwarted career o fa di con t ented w a ted
,
s ,
s

li fe No w where is the remedy w here is the lo op

.
,

h ole ? For even the pessimists s o m etimes adm it that

96 TH E C I R CL E
we are eac h gi v en one chance at l eas t My child the .
,

remedy lies with me ! ”

For a seco nd the page s flutt ered in A nna s ha nd ’

and h er eyes da rkened ; then she reco vere d hersel f

and went te adily on s .

The remedy lies with m e I am your chance ! .

To be poetic there is a golden ladder waiting fo r

,

you but you will need it to be steadied while you

climb Well you ha v e seen my hands —they are
,

.
,

unusually strong .

“
Gi v e yourself to me and there is nothing to
which you may not attain Thanks t o your nation .

ality you already speak in French You shall go t o

, .

Fran ce —to Paris from where so many stars ha v e ,

s hone For fi v e years you wi ll work work work

.
-

for five years no one wi ll see you though it will be ,

my duty when the ti m e comes to arran ge that your

, ,

name is not unknown Wh en the five years are .

passed you wi ll co me into a world that is waiting

,

for you So m e day you will understand what that

.

m eans .

M
You admire my house ; I have een your adm i s

ration in your eyes y child this house is a ho v el . ,

compared to what y u can ha e by the li fting o f o v

vour hand Y o u can ha v e j ewels you can hav e

.
,

dresses you can hav e admiration without end

,

should admirati n please you ; but throu gh it all o ,

m
abo v e it all v ou will ha v e vour ambition to keep
,

m
you s traight I fee l y frozen enthusias m tha w
.

for Long ago when the world and the

“ i.
, ,
98 THE C I R CL E
gi ft that tarnishes so very soon B ut I dr i ft again ! .

My child you must pull me up A woman o f

, .

thirty with sentiments ! Ho w futile L e t me

start a f resh .

“
All that I have o ffered you I can give — and
m ore. Mentally I see your generosity leap up
as you read this ; but that must not be As I .

ha v e o ften told you fo r everything I give it is

,

my policy to receive I have my interest like .

,

the money lender — the pursuer o f any trade In

-
.

this case belie v e me I am all sel f Hereto fore I

, , .

ha v e steered my little boat evenly thr ough troubled

seas ; in the future I mean to rise on the very crest
o f the wave wit h you A s for m y condi tions they
.
,

are these
First we enter into a ten years bargain not a
,
’

legal bargain as yet fo r you are not legally o f age

,

b ut a bargain o f honour I see j ust h o w high

.

h onour stands with you and I take the risk For .

the first fi ve years I meet e very expense ; for the

se cond five I take a percentage — a large one re ,

member upon all money that you make If you

, .

succeed well there is the crest o f the wave fo r us

,

bot h ifyou fail B ut there is no such word !

“
That is my first condition my second is more ,

pe rs onal —womanlike I put it to the l as t So

m
"

.
,

ake a clear head and take your courage in b oth

h ands for you are facing your first problem

,
”
.

A nna felt her fingers turn a little colder : other

wise she re m ained un m oved .
 TH E CI R CL E 99

My child when I say that I can claim experience

,

I scarcely think you will dispute the point I do .

claim experience I have seen mistakes made ; I

.

ha v e m ade my o w n mistakes ; and in vour regard I

am determined I say it with all force I am dete r
-

mined that there shall be no false step No w the .

great artist like the great ruler must have no past

, , .

It is essenti al I ha v e known it I have proved it

. :

t o be true A future is one s o w n ; a p as t is the

’
.

property o f imbeciles and kna v es .

“
Were I to s peak to you face to face to give you ,

m y reas ons to raise you my arguments I know that

, ,

by their v ery tr uth I must win you t o my side ; but

thi s is a fight that if possible —if at all p ossible
,

I want yo u t o wage for you rsel f I make the propo

or you —I hope without prej udice o r
.

sit io n ; it is f

persuas ion —to accept .

m
T o be concise my meaning lies like this
, If .

you come to me you co e alone You leave your

, .

father and your home ; you break your li fe v olu n

t arily in t wo —setting one hal f as ide with things
that are done with and dead giving the othe r half ,

to me — to be born afresh .

Perhaps I seem inexpli ca ble I know that I

s ee m cruel in reality I am neither I am m erely a .

woman who has fished for long in the pond o f Pub

licit y and who has studied the seasons —and the
,

m
My dea r c hild in your present li fe there is an
,

ele m ent for the moment we will call it an ele ent ,

1 00 TH E CI R CL E
to morrow I c an be explicit if you desire — an ele
-

ment that has wrapped you in secrecy an element ,

that bro u ght you to me in the first instance upon a

mission of —forgi v e me a very doubt ful kind .

N w this element is your o wn under the micro

o ,

scope its particles might pro v e innocent enough ;

but —there is t h e inevitable but —is it the sand in
which to set the reporter the interviewer the busy
, ,

body of fi v e years hence digging with his l i t tle

,

spade ? I ha ve put the que tion t mysel f in fi fty

s o

forms and the answer has unchangingly b een No

’
.
,

“
No You are going to be too grea t ; you are
.

goin g to set your tent t oo fully in the daylight .

There m ust be no loophole fo r petty pite s .

Put the pas t away fro m you E very woman

lea rns the word sacrifi ce at some period o fher li fe ;
”

be thank ful to lea rn it no w Tears flo w e asily and

.

dry eas ily at sixt een For the rest I have taxed
.
,

your thoughts enough ; if I ha v e o v e rtaxed them I

can only plead my cause C ome to me to morrow
.
-

at any ti m e ; no one has ever been more looked for

tha n you will be. JE A NNE A XTE A D M .
”

There was a dull pause Anna folded the letter

.
,

re folded it slowly ; then with a swi ft movement

, ,

blew out the light .

1 02 TH E C I R CL E
l ifte d fro m her shoulders to another s while she ’

stood passively by The knowledge was cl ear cut

.
-

and unerring ; for the seco nd time she let her hand
fall
.

She crossed the room and raise d the wick o f the

lamp ; then she passed to the fire and crouch ed
be fore it spreading her fingers to the bl aze The
, .

wheel o f her ideas h ad ceased to turn The click o f .

china behind her the so ft motion o fJ oh ann s feet

,
’

pausing here h alting there absorbed her co n

,

sc iou sness ; beyond him her thoughts would not

stray The knowledge that his eyes were fixed
.

o n her was so sharp the certainty that his lips

,

trembled and yet dreaded t o spe ak w as so absolute ,

that it held her still At las t with an e ffof; she

.

bro ke the spell .

“
Johann where did these logs c ome fro m
,
She
nodded towards a pile o fw od tac ked to dry in the o ,
s

warmth o fthe fire .

The click ofchina ceased In i m agination she saw .

Johann s lips fall apart in the eager half reluctant

’
, ,
-

ac tion that always preceded speech And hot upon .

the fancy came another thought ; the thought o f a

m
li fe in which Johann s lips and Johann s words and
’ ’

all that pe rt ained to them would be a m e or

y
lapsing l osing deta il with every year T h e t h ough t
, .

fright ened her

logs
“
,
She raised her voice
Johann where did they co me fro —t h ese
. .

m
He m ade a deprecating sound You have often .
 THE C IR CL E 1 03

said h ow fine t h e wood fires are A ship wi t h timbe r .

cam e in to day; I heard o f it and I re m em be re d

- .

It was very simple He stopped ”

. .

An na sti ffen ed her hands .

And you carried the wood home

Of course It was very simple ”
. .

There w as a wait A burning w al dropped with

.

a little crash Ann a raised her head

. .

The stairs were cleaned to d ay ; I saw as I ca me

in Who cleaned them
I cl eaned them ”
.

A groan rose to Anna s lips but did not n a pe ’

, .

She look ed be fore her at the crackli ng fire .

Johann
Yes Ann a
, .
”

It w as t he old form ula The qu estion sharp and .

decisive ; the answer re ady anticipating hu nge ring

-
, ,

“
Joh ann you have done the work o f t h e whole
,

hou se while I have been away When will you do .

your own work all the tedious work that fat ha ad s

,
‘

you
Johann w as silent and e mbarrassed .

“
Johan n when ,

I shall find ti me .

She changed her position Droppi ng t o t h e alge .

o f the fender she turned roun d Johann you

“
.
, ,

mean that you will sit up half the ni ght that you -

slave t hat you do your own work and mine as well

-

while I stand by and do nothin g —nothin g at all

,

”
.
 1 04 TH E C I R CL E
The words d ropped sepa ratel y incontesta bly; for ,

the first ti m e in w eeks facts nak ed and cold stoo d

, , ,

s hiverin g in the li ght She saw Johann and she sa w

.

hersel f Suddenly she rose

. .

“
Johann h e r e yes were direc t h e r hands were
, ,

cl as ped behind her Johann why do you do all

“
, ,

this for m e ? ”

There was an acute silence ; then a c up slipped

fro m Johann s hand He stoo ped and fu mbled on
’
.

the fl oo r S o m ethin g withi n hi m was leapin g in

.

answer to her words ; so m ewhere in his inner co n

sc io usness a voice was c rying

“
No w ! Now It ,

ec h oed through hi m it ree led in his b rain He

, .

li fte d hi m sel f laboriously to one kn ee His pulses .

w e re boundin g T h e gates o fli fe see m ed aj ar need

.
,

ing b ut a tou ch .

Johann tell the truth

, .
”

T h e v oice se nt the blood to his fo re head ; he

caught the t able and dre w hi m sel fslowly up then he ,

turned to her His fac e was i n shadow hers was in

.
‘

the hi ll li ght The a rran gement w as prophetic It

. .

stru ck hi m with a chi ll He ste adied hi m sel f and .

m
felt the tide of blood recede .

Ann a he began then paused S he stood u, .

co nsciously typi fyin g Fate The red crow n o f her

h air t h e darkne ss ofher eyes —each was symbolic
.

.
,

He dre w a lon g breath such a b re ath as he had ,

draw n on t h e first night at his first sight o fh e r ,

.

“
Johann, sh e said again “
wh d you d
”
o o
y ,
106 TH E C I R C L E
Quite s t eadily he returned her glan ce The glow .

m
had gone from his face as the light from a quen ched
candle . Yes that is what I mean Y ou sav ed e
, .

you are God t o me .

”

“
And if one lost God ? Her words were low ”

and indistinct Johann ifone lost God P

. ,
”

He raised his shoulders automatically and again ,

thrust out his hands but without touchin g hers , .

I have said With loss the heart breaks He

”
. .

ca u ght up a piece o f bread and bendin g it betwe en

h is fin gers broke it in two ; then he crossed to t h e

fire and dropped the pieces into the blaze .

Anna stood by the table She was perfectly silen t .

,

perfectly still ; she was fighting inch by inch No .

o ne who glanced at her eyes could ha v e seen t h e

tumult behind them no on e who watched her first
forward mo v ement could ha v e gue ssed that with it a
castle toppled su mmarily from the skies The battle .

was vital absorbed intense A t last reluctantly

, , .
,

s te p by step she crossed the roo m

, .

Johann she said

”
.
,

He sprang towards her .

“
Johann yo u aid o nce I trust you
, s Will you ‘

say it again now to plea e me i s

’

m
With a sharp mo v ement he caught h er han d .

Ah ore than myse l f F o r alway Anna for

,
. s,

always
F or a m ment h e looked down at his bent head
o s

then the warmth o f his generosity shook her f

wi t h a rush across her heart
lowed
Her tear s rose bl .
,

, m
 TH E CI R CL E 1 O7

ring her sight ; her perplexity and her doubt met and
broke in a sob.

Oh Johann she cried with childish abandon

,

ment . Johann Johann ! ”

And up from the depth s o f remembran ce clear

,

and far as a bell among the mountains mocking and

,

distinct as an echo came the gho st o fa sentence

, .

“
Tears flo w easily and dry eas ily — at sixteen ! ”

With a little gasp her sobbin g ceased .

PA R T O NE —C HA P T E R X VI

RS . M blotted the letter that

AXTEA D
she w as writing and laid it on the t 0 p
o f her desk Then she pushed back
.

her chair .

For t wo minutes she h ad been consciou s that Anna

w as standing in the doorway fo r quite o ne minute
she had been aware that her o wnpulses were moving
at a quickened rate but appearances were o fprimar y
acco un t She was ca re ful first to blot the letter
.
,

a fterwards to turn round .

Her unmoved expression as she greeted the girl

did her credit Anna at a first glance was di
.
, ,
s

m
concertin g Her fi gure was limp her face m arred
.
,

M
by sleeple ssness and tear s .

Like the organiser o f a ca paign Mrs ax t e ad , .

summed up the situation She bracketed the state

m
.

o f affairs and her own plan o faction then she w ent

f rward with both hand si l ently held
o s t .

Anna stood motionless fo r a ec nd t hen s uddenly s o

walked past her into the room pau in g by the bed . s .

I only ca me for a minute she said I did n t

” ’
.
,

want to come at all but it seemed right The .

letter is no good No go od ! I have thought

it out and I can t do it —I can t
’
Her voice ’
1 10 TH E C I R CL E
B ecause Anna s strength de erted her
’
s .

Becau se my mind is made up you know — fixe d , .

Because
. MShe twisted her fingers
Mrs axtead sat very st ill
Anna come here .
”
.
.

An na mo ved reluctantl y forward .

Sit down It tire me to ee people stand

s s .
”

Still reluctantly Anna dre w forward a chair and

obeyed She trembled to shake o ff the fascin ation
.

that was holding her to stand up and go ; but she

,

lacked the courage o f the ac t She sat m ute and .

M
miserable
Mrs ax t ead s voice broke in again —lo w silky
.

’
.
, ,

How long is it since you first cam e here ? ”

Nine weeks .
”

In those nine weeks you have seen m ore t han

you e v er sa w learnt more understood m ore ? ”

Anna nodded
And —this is not m eanness it is necessity ; I
.

want to force a point In those nine weeks you

.

have been give n constantly given ; you have never

,

once been as k ed t o give Is that not so ?.

”

Anna flushed deeply .

M
What do you want ? she asked afte r a pause”
.

Mrs . ax t ead smiled That i s ri ght Li fe

.

should never be made harder than it is For the .

moment I w ant the small g i ft o fyour confidence

, .
”

The flush di ed slowly out of Anna s face Sh e ’

.
 THE C I R CL E 11 I

Th e other held out her hand S it down again .

it is no t so very terrible A question o r t w o .

that is all She leant forward her face impassi ve

.
”

, ,

her lashes lowered It was a bad omen for an O ppo .

nent when she hid her eyes Her v oice had never .

been more smooth than when she spoke ag ain .

It is not for yours el f Anna that you refuse this , ,

o ffer P ”

No . Anna s tone was uneven and dragged

” ’
.

The other waited Her next question came in a .

change o fkey .

Your father is ecce ntric You have o ften said .

that he scarcely knows that yo u exist Am I right .

in that ?
Anna took a deep breath For the first time t h e .

m
warmth and scent o f the room seemed to su ffocate .

She ade a great effort .

M
Y es you are right
”
.
,

Mrs ax t ead s eye remained upon the fire

.
’
.

“
And you can tell me candidly tell me that , ,

it is for a man who ignores you that you ,

refuse ? The v oice was meta ll ic ; it scattered

”

A nna s caution
’
.

No she said hurri edly ; it is no t —it i not

,
” “
s

M
for him
”
.

Ah ! Mrs ax t ead stirred ever so

”
little
. .

Then it is for the Austrian — the man who stol e

my jewels ? ”

Anna s chair made a dull rasp as she pushed it

’

bac k She rose ; took a step for ward a step back ;

.
,
 (H E
‘
1 12 CI R CL E
then with a loss o fvitality sank into her sea t again
, , .

Long ago the story o fJuda s had fascinated her f om r

John Desins ki s lips The v i i n o fthe sil v er piec

’
. s o es

seemed to rise no w and float be fore her mind .

In an a ony o f sel faccusation she cla ped her

g -
s

hands
Wh en did I say it ? she said slowly H w
”
. o

did I say it ?
M
She lea nt for w ard in her chair
”
.

From her place by the fire Mrs axt ead laughed . .

How great you would be in tragedy h e said ,

”
s .

B ut you need not accuse yoursel f; my knowledge

has n t come fro m you It is an e vent in a sequence
’
.

o f e v ents — nothing more She leant back and ”

.

closed her eye s Her face was pe rfectly alert per

.
,
~

fect ly serene ; the face o f a woman who appreciat e s

the moment to its minutest point .

You see when a child like you starts a game f

, o

co nseq uence s with me the handica p is t oo great ; ,

the result is t oo clear On the first day tha t yo u .

came here I had yo u followed Sin ce then I ha v e .

seen you constantly with ther people s eyes ; ha v e o

’

wound the whole skein o f your circumstan ces threa d

by thread Now what hav e you to say ? Like a
.
,
”

flash she turned the bri ghtness o f her eye upon the
g irl . W hat ha v e you t say 9 o

A nna looked up Her lip were set . s .

“
I suppo se —I am like a mouse in a trap h e ,
”
s

Ra ther descripti v e ! Bu t the trap h as yet to

s hut . Is it t o be war be t ween us ? ”
1 14 TH E C I R CL E
very faint flush touched her cheek then died away , .

“
In five years she said we will both remembe r
,
”
,

this and laugh I am glad I ha v e my te m per in

.

good co ntrol .
”

There was a pause

And this A ust rian —is his honesty really as
.

b ri ttle as his heart ? ”

Anna h it her lip .

“
Did he m ake you his co nfidant e in the jewel -

af fair s
"

I am his only friend .

”

A dangerous position ! ”

Anna was silent

And his only interest in li fe —as well as h is
.

only friend ? ”

m
Yes .At the root o f Anna s voice there was a
” ’

isgi v ing ; she crushed it down .

Does he never re fer to the j ewels now

N o he ne ve r re fers .
”

B ecause his innocence is so well proved ? ”

Oh you are very cruel !

,

He would cou rt a trial you think ,

M
Oh no I don t know ! I don t know ’ ’

, .

Mrs. ax t e ad smiled Anna there is some .

,

thing here She thought fully crossed the room .

Something fo r you to read She stop ped by the .

”

desk and her hand hovered above it Sometimes .

sidelights are very illuminating She searched and .

”
,

drew out a letter It was written in care ful E n glish

.

in a fine forei gn hand

, .
 TH E C I R CL E 1 15
“
Jusr glance thro ugh it S h e w a v ed the sheets
.
”

and they r u s t led a little again t the air s .

Mech anically Ann a stretched out her arm A .

great fea r a great shadow seemed lurching towards

,

her She opened the letter cautiously as if conta

.
,

gion l urked between the lines .

M
The whole letter ?
Mrs axt e ad looked up
.
“
N ot quite the whole
.

letter ; say from the third p age ”

.

Anna found the place .

In the matter o fthe j ewels m y dea r friend the , ,

”

writing ran “
I com m end your philosophy ! F o r
,

mysel f I can claim no such calm In one direction

, .

at least my fingers itch

, .
”

Who wrote this ? Anna s tone w as sharp then

” ’

m
without waitin g for an answer she read on again .

“
My fingers itch after my lost me ssenger w ho ,

your whirlpool of London see m s to have ca ught in

its eddy B ut as yet I do not repine ; such carrion
.

rise to the surface if o ne has the patience to wait .

When the time arri v e I promise you I shall p ss ss

s o e

m
mysel f to the v alue o f the stones I ha l l u ge . s r

the pr ec u t io n to its limits — and the limits sho u l d

be wide The fellow is either imbecile or a villain ;
.

in one c ase or in the other he will obtain his

dese rts As m y pe n inscribes th is I think I see
. ,

you s m i le ! ”

Anna laid down the letter and glanced up She .

would not admit the thought that was knocking at

her hea rt but against her will her eyes mirrored it .
1 16 TH E C IR C L E
This i Go lst oc k she said
s .

M
That is Golst oc k ”
.

Her lips opened sti ffly Mrs axt ead read their . .

question and made a motion with her hand .

m
In that letter she said you have the whole
“
,
”
,

an . It is an interesting letter The loss o f the .

stones he accepts — h e shrugs his shoulders at ; but

the fact o f being duped he does not accept That .

rankles like a pebble in a wound B ut my dea r .

,

little girl we fence ! We have fenced all along

, .
”

The quizzical tone died out of her voi ce ; she

ceas ed to guard her eyes She was keen direct .
, ,

set to her point .

I nstincti v ely Anna strai ghtened hersel f .

My dear child let me put things to you as they

,

are Let the issue he plain

. .
”

Anna mo v ed inconsequently to the desk and

picked up a paper kni fe -
.

“
I have never seen this A ust rian m you know
that B ut I ha v e made a picture o f him through
you —through Golst oc k through my maid Cé
.

leste I know him as if I had met him a hun dred

.

times In many points he is like a dog and like a

.

maim ed dog he has appealed to yo u He is ge ntle .

,

faith ful trustin g

, tru ting abo v e all thin gs ; but
s

he lacks one trait that the dog possesses He i a . s

coward ! ”

A nna caught her breath .

“
Yes he is a coward ! Y o u say that if he lost
,

you his heart would brea k No w that works two .

1 18 TH E C I R C L E
You don t think that Johann stole the stones P
’

Candi dly I do not

, .
”

Then you think

That his presence — his existence hinders me

m
beyond that I do not think Ifhe goe t o his pun . s

ish ent it will be you who ent him there My s .

conscience will be clear .

”

You are cruel !

I am human You are looking at the pre sent
.

moment ; I am looking five years ahead One day .

you will thank me for my l o ng sight Go home .

,

and face things Question yoursel f question Johann ;

.
,

if you find him ready to meet Gol t oc k — h e

”
s s

len gthened her words ready to face the e v i

“

dence o f the clas p — brought bac k by you as resti

t ut io n ; the eviden c e o f his li f
e in hiding then ,

well and good ! You cannot do better than sit d wn o

in yo u r curio shop — and wait B ut if if on the .

,

other hand he is not so ready to take the risk ; if

,

the loss o fyou in a secure re fuge seems more endurable

than the loss o f you in a prison then she let the ,

sentence fall and caught it up again urgency and ,

speed tipping the word then make your fare

s ,

m
well s t o night and come to me in the morning ; I
-

shall gi v e you until ten Sudden decisions —fo r e d

.

decisions hold the best ”

.

Anna s shoulder pressed hea v ily against the panel

’

o fthe door

And if I —if I were to come

.

The words
were faint relucta nt
, If I were —t o come
.
“

Joh ann would be safe ?

 TH E C I R CL E 1 19

My dear am I Golst oc k s bloodhound

,
’

Anna turned the handle o f the door mo v ed for ,

ward then on the threshold turned back

, , , .

MM
Ho w h ard you are
rs .axt ead laughed
she said
.
“

operatin g on a child The kni fe hurts ; the child

.
.

It is like a doctor

scream s ; but the doctor can afford to smile .

Calmly picking up Golst oc k s letter from the floor

’
,

In the d oorway Anna still stood irresolute

I —I —I hate you
.

she said suddenly . I

I hat e you ! A nd she fled down sta irs
”
.
P A R T O NE C HA P T E R X V I I

m m
m
LD S olny t by the parlour fire i ,

ersed in a book When Anna entered

.

the roo m he raised his eye s absently

, ,

shi ft ed his position then dropp ed his

,

gaz e agai n .

She ca m e in hurri edly Her first glance w as at .

the Dutch clock The hands m arked eight Her

. .

conscience stung her and she looked towa rds the

,

t able ; but the supper o f an hour ag o h ad been

removed In plac e o f the after fragm ents the
.
,

cru mbs the soiled pla tes a clean clot h m et her

, ,

lanc s lit ry cup and sauce r a so lita rv kni f

m
\
g e ; a o a e ,

m
and f ork ne wly poli sh ed in expe ct a tion o f her co
,

ing Her eyes strayed fro

. the table to the fire ;
w ith a d ull sinki ng o f the heart she saw the kettl e

re ady pl ac e d She turned to her fathe r

. .

Where is Johan n ? she said ”

.

So lny too k t h e nu mbe r o f his page then clo ed ,

s

t h e boo k Johann ! he repeate d vaguely ; the n

“ ”
.

he co ll ect e d hi m sel f Johann h as gon e fo r h is

“
.

w alk
m
He o pe n ed t he book again
”
.
.

A nna oved t ow ards t h e table Th ere w as a h or

m
.

ri ble conclusiveness in t h e wo rds ; t h ey see e d a last

s ur were a last spur needed ; t h e com preh e n si ve

p ,
122 THE C I R CL E
Father she said unsteadily
”
.

Old So lny did not hear .

She drew in her breath and crossed agitatedly to

the window ; kneeling on the window sill she looked -
,

out .

The bl urred panes gave on the little yard With .

attenti ve listening she could hear the relucta nt rain

d ops fa l ling on the buckets and zinc cans ; with a
r

stretch o fimagination she co uld see the grass blades

bet w en the cobbles that in summer time seen
e , ,

t h ro ugh the imperfect glass spread and elon gated to ,

pra i ie greenness The idea blew across her with a

r .

breath ofpas t thin gs She saw hersel fa baby wi th

.

big e yes and pale fac e little hand clasped litt l e

,
s ,

cheeks pressed again st the glas lost in wonder at s,

the si ght H o w long ago it seemed !

.

S h e sighed .

H o w long ago ! H o w much farther h o w much ,

longer would it seem She tightened her h ands

one above the other and pressed her hot face against
,

the pane One tear — two é splashed down in lo w

.
-
s

accompaniment to the rain ; with a swi ft i mpulse

she m o v ed till her lips t uched the glass Then she
o .

turned and her feet ca me sharply to the ground .

Father she said again .

Solny moved without turning round “

Y es my .
,

child .
”

Perhaps it was the moment perhaps the unwonte d ,

tenderness o f the words but her hear t swelled a,

sob rose t o her throat and was driven back .

 THE CI R CL E 12 3
“
Father Her head felt v ery light She .

walked slowly round the room pausing at each ,

point halting fin ally be hind his chair

,
Father .

Curiosity held no pl ace in Soln y He stared .

straight be fore him at the fire .

Father there is a question I want to ask

, .
”

Well my child ? The tone was gentle and

,
”

v ague .

“
Father which is eas ier to mend — a broken
,

heart or a cut th roat ? Her breath seemed to ”

There was a pause Her eyes were turned nervously

.

on the door that led into the shop ; to her s trained

ea rs the clock ticked With in c redible loudness .

Father she urged .

He li fted his head and answered as from a dream .

There is no mending my child for either ; they , ,

di ffer that is all

,
”
.

Anna s fingers were steel against his arm

’
A nd .

the di fference the di fference

m
His head drooped .

“
One makes li fe so long he said that a an ,
”
,
“

dare not l ook ah ead ; the other makes li fe so short

that he dare not look behind He still spoke as .
”

m
from a dream .

A nna s fingers relaxed hi s arm dropped ; she

’

stood for a oment with shoulders sti ff as his own .

Then she extended her fingers moving the m slowly ,

do w nward till they touched his hand

, .

Good night father she said

-
, ,
”
.
 ( H E
‘
1 24 C I R CL E
Good ni ght my child Sleep well !
-
, He took
.
”

up his book .

She hesitated waited then dre w away Heavily

, , .

she picked up her coat and crossed the room At .

the door h e stopped

s .

“
Father she said Father Go od nigh t !
.
“ -
”

B ut the words did no t reach Solny settled h i . s

glasses leant back in his cha ir and shift ed the

, ,

position o f his book .

196 TH E CI R CL E
clock struck six She counted the trokes fearfu lly ;
. s

as the last died out she stirred and looked down at

Her clothes lay Within a yard o f her The y lay .

precisely as they had lain morning a fter morning

sin ce first she had l earnt to dress hersel f Slowly .

she stretched out her fi nge rs and felt them o ne by

o ne ; there w as something ghostly and unreal in
their touch She shivered drew a garment towa ds
.
,
r

her and mechanically began to dress

, .

The dressing was a slow affair Her hands fumbled .

m
o ver buttons and halted at the tying o f knots

oved awkwardly as ifi mpelled by a force not quite

her own
,

E v en the shock o f the cold water as she

.
She .

washed le ft h e r still benumbed .

Sitting on the edge o f her bed sh e com bed and ,

m
plai t ed her hair ; then she ro se and li fting her hat ,

fro its peg put it on Her coat still da m p from

, .
,

las t night s rain w as thrown ac ross a chair ; she took

’

it up slowly shook it and forced her arms through

,

the tight sleeves Then very silently she strai ght

.

ened herself and turn e d about — ready save for her ,

boots .

With the same slowness o fmotion she took a step ,

forward and placed her hands on the foot rail o fthe -

bed letting her gaze run furtively along the wall

, .

In the struggling light John D esinski s childis h

’

portrait o f her stared at her with its question in g eyes .

Di mly she could follow the tangle o f the red hair ,

t h e so ft outline o f the face She re m e mbe red t h e

.
 THE CI R CL E 12 7

day of it s painting How gay he had bee n ! How

.

amusing ! Wh at stories he had told to keep her still !

Her eyes stared back into the pict ured eyes and a ,

void seemed suddenly t o stretc h be fore her She .

shivered again but her hands tightened o n the rail

,

and her eye s mo v ed in their sur v ey tra v elling fro m

,

one poor ornament t o another with delibera t e care .

Then for a moment her lids droop e d .

Until n o w she h ad guarded her glance ; but now

with a firm mo v ement she raised her body leant over ,

the rail and let her eyes rest long and steadily on
,

the carpe t beside the bed It w as the crucial test

. .

In the glimmering light the blue and orange stood

out with sharp distinctness ; the pattern seemed cut
as with a kni fe She looked in perfect silence as she
.
,

m ight have looked o n an unconscious anim al Her .

eyes smarted her throat swelled Then suddenly

, .

m
she dropped to the ground picked up her boots and
, ,

carrying the in her hand walked stea dfastly t o the

,

The door handle turn ed with a creak that brought

-

her heart t o her lips ; but she stepped across the

landing At the top o f the sta irs she paused but
.
,

the pause w as momentary At the third step she

.

st opped and leant against the wall ; the sm arting

behind her eyes had become a burning pain an ache ,

o f parting no longe r t o be denied Her whole form

.

swayed backward with her impulse but she caught ,

herself in the nick o f time With a stealthy rush

.

she began to des c end the stairs .

12 8 THE C I R CL E
At each crack and strain of the worn out st eps -

her b reath ca ught ; at each succeedin g silence it was

let go again .

Fro m the attic Johann could hear nothing Her .

father slept like the dead She reiterated the knowl

.

edge silently a ain and again Th en at last the foot

g .

o fthe stairs w as reached There she stopped . .

From the thought o f the shop door with its bar -

,

and its cumberso me hinges her mind drew back ; ,

in stincti vely it turned to the kitchen and the yard

with their narrow entrance into the Passag e ; and
almost without volition her dec ision was m ade .

Downstairs the ticking o f the clock filled all the

,

spaces Th e kitchen w ith its raked out fire possessed

.
-

a h uman loneliness Its b are gre y windo ws had the

.

look f eyes ; its fam iliar obj ects the sense o f out
o

s tretched hands She crept through has tily — the

.

m
great eyes seemed to pierce her soul The door into .

the yard w as eas y o f anagement ; the key turned

s m oothly the latch li ft ed with scarcely a click and
, ,

the raw ai r poured thr ugh the aperture with a o

rush .

She stepped hastily out and drew the d oor behind

her Then she sat down upon the doorstep and
.

pulled on her boots .

With the chill o f the day the w a ve o f h er resolu

tion receded leaving a d ull fear A dazed o v er
,
.
,

whelmin g loneliness seemed to li ft from the en folding

gl oo m ; her fin ge rs fumbled wi th the boot laces her -

head drooped Then suddenly she rose

. .
13 0 THE C I R CL E
shutt ers would be taken do wn mornin g aft er o
ing the dazzlin g dayli ght would pour in like an
mm
,

invading army Her father would take his position

.

by the de k Johann would take his place behi n d the

s

co unter ; the quiet une v ent ful round o fbar ter would
,

go on and on Day after day day after day

. .

Only in the kitchen in the parlour in the little yard

, ,

all would be still quite sti ll .

She closed her eyes but wi t h closed eyes the i mage

,

o f Johann so frequently recur rent rose p ain fully

, , .

She started alert again .

Johann would never understand With a n e w con .

fu sion the new thought spran g up Johann would .

think She put her hand over her eyes What .

would Johann think Leavin g like this without

a word without a messag e without good bye -

Her eyes trav elled down the counter over a pile ,

of milita ry cloaks then upward t o the black slate

,

and its recordin g ch alk hanging side by side u pon

,

the wall How many gam es o f Noughts and

.

C rosses they had served for in childish days

”

She stood with a dazed mind ; her ideas rose and

fell eac h li ft ing itself to su ffocate the last Then .

with a little cry she spran g back her hand upon the ,

door The silence h ad been rudely broken T he Dutch

. .

clock had struck again se ven inexorable beats .

In hal f an hour Johann would be downstair s.

m
m
E v en n o w he was awake In sudden fear she drew
.

back into the p ar lour ; but she left the c o u nica

tion door ajar .
 THE C I R CL E 13 1

She glan ced to the ri ght then to the le ft ; sh e ,

passed her hand again over her eyes Then she .

raised her glance to the clock It marked five min .

utes past the hour Her feet seemed weighted to

.

the floor ; she fe ared to go ; she dreaded to stay .

Without a word ! Wi thout good bye ! The -

thought rang through her con fusion ; swung to

the ticking o f the time .

Slowly slowly she retraced her steps ; slowly she

,

passed into the shop and behind the counter ; blindly

she stumbled over the cloaks ; then hesitatingly she
stood be fore the slate With her eyes on the ground
.

sh e took up the chalk .

Her fingers were numb ; her mind w as numb ; her

hand poi sed itsel f irresolute .

Somewhere upstairs a chair was overturned She .

jerked and the chalk made a white line on the black

,

surface Shakin gly she sti ffened her wrist wiped the
.
,

slate then began to write

, .

She wrote slowly pain fully indistinctly ; the let

, ,

ters were j agged and sti ff .

A n na will come back

”
.

Then without a gl ance at her work without a

, ,

backward look she replaced the chalk and walked

into the parlour ; from the parlour to the kitchen ;
fro m the kitchen into the yard ; from the yard o ut
into the st reet .
PA R T T WO —C H A P TE R I

T was an April day ; a day o f cool sunshine ,

. M
buddin g leav es and promise On either side o f
Mrs ax t ead s hall door was a narrow win
’
-
.

do w ; B ranks fro m his position in the hall

, ,

watched the ebb and fl o w o f li fe through the glass .

L o okin g to the le ft he co uld scan the young green

,

o f the Park trees and raisin g his gl ance could catch

,

a glint ofpale blue sky but his eyes h ad an absent

expression One is apt to become ab se nt when one
.

h a gazed o n the same scene with s m all intermission

s

fo r more tha n ei ght years Not that B ranks com

.

plained his b read was buttered with a liberal hand ,

and he understood the value o f butter to an ounce .

His ey e s continued to skim the gree nness ; then

verged to the nearer grey o f the road with its jin
gling stream o fv eh icles ; it s bright swi ft rush ofli fe
, .

London was filling ; with e v e y incoming train the

r

m
flood o f humanity thickened ; with each new morn

m
ing blinds were raised t rades e n s ladders borne
,
’

away fu it ure re urrected from its holland co ver

,
s

ings The sense o f a brilliant season was in the

.

air.

B ranks speculated on the po int with lazy sat isfac

tion He was a little stouter a little less supe rc ilio us
.
,
13 4 TH E C I R CL E
stri king She wore a tra v elling coat o f da rk sable
.
-

and carri ed a bunch o f v iolets in her hand .

W here had he seen her be fore ? H is d ull mind was

twisted by the questio n The outline w as so familiar
.
,

yet so un familiar so tantalising s aggrav ating

, ,
o .

Then quite swi ftly she turned and he gasped in,

audible relief .

He remembered the portrait in the dining roo m -

,

the girl in the trailing muslin dress and wide

brimmed hat Only yesterday his mistress h ad
.

turned from a pile o f newspapers and nodded to the

pic ture The greatest actress in E urope B ranks
.
,

she h ad said ; and he h ad replied Yes ma am in , ,

’

,
”

his most deferenti al tone .

With a flourish he threw the door wide .

The stranger ran up the steps her lips were smil

in g and her eyes seemed to reflect the smile
,
.

B ranks she said holding o u t her hand

, .

B ranks drew bac k cust om and good training were

strong within him but the h and w as still held out ,

and there is a charm be fore which the most per fect

training in the world goes ine v i t ably to the wall .

\ V ith an awkward movement he adv anced .

“
Ma am — miss
’
He was somewhat inc o
herent . We hav e heard o f your su cces miss s, .

We all feel proud —if I might say .

”

She laughed but her eyes darkened for a second

, .

M
It 8 good to be home again Branks Where s
" ”
.
,

Mrs . ax t ead ? In her bedroom ? All right

don t announce me Just see to my boxes —and to
’
.
 m
TH E C I R CL E 135

m y m aid ; she s so ewhere in the third ca b

”
She ”
.

ran across the hall ; but o n the lowest step o f t h e

stairs she paused .

“
B ranks ! ”

M
Y es mis
”
s.
,

Is Mrs ax t ead s bedroo m still white ? In all the

.
’

times I ve see n her I ve never remembe red to a k

’
,
’
s .
”

The room is still white miss ,

”
.

Ah
M
She turned and fl e w up the stairs
Mrs ax t ead laid down her newspaper with the
.

nearest appro ach to a start she had ever allowed

.

Anna ! she said sharply ”

Anna —from the .
“

very skies ! ”

The girl crossed t ne room eagerly From no .

“

w here so high Jeanne She bent laughingly and ”

.
,

M
kissed the other s cheek ’
.

Mrs ax t ead in her turn laughed

. L isten to
, , .

this — I was reading it as you opened the door .

Mdlle Solny the young Parisian actress contem

.
, ,

plates a tour in R ussia be fore opening her season in

London in the middle o f May A trifle inc on ist .
’
s

ent eh P She rai sed her brows

,
”
.

Anna swept the sheets aside My dear Jeanne .

,

who is e ver consistent ? Tell me you are glad to ,

see me
The other smiled again “
You know I never say .

things saying is so bad for the imagination B ut

-
.
”

she pressed the girl s hand Make your explanations ’

.
,

Anna Three weeks ago in V ienna you told me to

.
, ,
13 6 TH E CIR C L E
expect you four days be fore your opening ni ght
no t an hour soo ner
”
.

I know Bu t a month ago Jeann e Thin gs

.
, .

happen She took o ff her hat and threw it on

the bed.

Her co mpanion smiled again a sli ghtly iro nical ,

Why do you smile Anna turned round .

A reminiscence You are very m uc h —and v ery

litt le —changed in the eight years
.

”
.
,

Anna threw back her head Do n t talk of that ’

.

Ask me wh y I came .

I ha v e asked ”
.

m
There w as a pause .

mm
How lo v ely o fyou to have a e Ann a crossed
the o and knelt on the white rug “
I ve been .
”

praying for an E n glish spring and an E nglish fire

fo r four years She bent close to the blaze and the
”
.

flames lit up her face A fte r a m oment s wait she .

’

turned round .

“
It was two ni ghts ago at th e Archduchess s ’

Jeanne ; R lsle n h ad bee n singing you know how

m
her singin g seems to tighten round one s heart I ’

thinking —making i
.

w as standing by mysel f

pos ible drea ms

s She laughed a little and picked
up the bunch o f v iolets that she had dropped a
second be fore . Old Prince R ox ofl ca me to me '

sometimes he h as a very gentle manner and he said

quite so ftly They te ll me Mademoiselle that you
,
‘
, ,

o i ng home In themselve s the words were

’
are g .
13 8 THE CI R CL E
M ax t eacr ssed the room
the bell she turned
d o

.
, but with her fin ger on
,

Anna ”
.

m
Yes .
”

I not quite certain abo ut to night

’
-
.
”

Oh Jeanne , The girl s voice fell .

” ’
.

I hav e planned your first appearan ce in London ,

your fi rs t introduction to London so many times , .

It has been one of my schemes It was to be brilliant

—in e v ery sense
.

m
”
.

I tired o fbrilliance
’
.
”

I am not tired o f brilliance fo r you In eigh t .

”

years the v oice had lost nothing o fits ring .

Anna frowned ; then laughed Would you send .

“

M
me to bed like a naughty child ,

Possibly Mrs ax t e ad was speculative ; then

.
”
.

s wi ft ly with a flash o fenergy she mo v ed back to the

, ,

c entre o f the room My dear Anna what are yo u .

,

thinking o f What are you dream in g of Y ou

m
forget that the very hoardin g s in the streets talk o f
'

y o ur co in
g You will be a nine days
. wonder when "

you are fi t seen

“
rs .

Anna arranged her violets I d gladly postpone .

"

m
the nine da y wonder B ut Jeanne I do want to
s
’
.
, ,

M
eet your gu e sts ; I do want to listen to the crowd .
”

y dear child
Anna mo ved quickly forward ; there was colour in
her face and h er eyes gleamed Jeanne h e said . ,
”
s

suddenly I ha v e an inspiration I ha v e an idea

,
“
. .

Y ou say y u rs el f that I am unknown here

o that
 TH E CIRCLE 13 9

I
’
venot been seen Le t me enj oy the blessin g ?
.

Let s forget engagements and triumphs and sensa

’

t ions ju t for onces let me be your p rotégée

c at yo ur p rotégée returned fro m abroad ? The
chances are twenty to o ne a hundred to one , ,

that I sha n t be recognised I can wear a white

’ ’
.

froc k and a string o f pearls I can look nineteen . .

Jeanne
The appeal w as irresistible Mrs ax t ead s lips
tightened then relaxed at las t she laughed
. . M .
’

And the great Solny she said .

Will gi v e her understudy a chance I take .

the responsibility Jeanne I ll sit in the darkest

, .
’

cor ner and be the least attractive woman in the

,

room .
”

The other looked at her ; then her lips fell to

their old satirical cur v e The c r ner will ha ve
.
“
o

t be v ery dar k she said dryly ; and re crossing the

” -
o ,

room she pressed the be ll

, .
PA R T T WO C HA P T E R I I

dinner Mrs
FT E R ax t ead rose

lipped her arm through Anna s

s
, and . M ’
.

C ome upstairs she said It s ,

”
.
’

only nine ; I like an hour in my o wn

room be fore the storm bursts .
”

They both laughed and mo ed across the room v

,

then crossing the hall slowly ascended the stairs

, .

In the bedroom the fire h ad been replenished ;

otherwise the room was dark Anna crossed to the .

window and drew the curtains back The sky was .

clear and studded with stars ; the moon in its first ,

qu arter hung above the opposi t e trees against the

,

dark roadway the cab lamps m ade a strea m o f flit

ting lights S he looked in silence for a while ; then
.

quite abruptly she spoke .

M
I am breakin g my own prece pts Jeanne , .

Mrs . ax t ead w as h o lding a match to the tall

candles on the dressing table In wha t ? she -

.
”

asked.

“
I wanted to be shallow t o night and my mind -
,

will be per v erse and think

”
.
,

Co me away from the window then The stars , .

always demoralising
”
.
14 2 THE CI R CL E
l er slight alert figure were apparent to the glance .

She stood as she m ight have stood eight years be fore ;

when she spo ke it was in the same v oice with the
, ,

same preci ion the same infle xibly as sured ring

s , .

m
Anna she said you think I don t see your
,
” “
,
’

thoughts I a looking into the m as ifthey were a

.

pool o f w ater whe re I could see e v ery shred o f mo s s

and every tiny s t one This is a di fficult moment fo r

.

you you must make it a succ essful o ne Take this .

ghost o fyours and kill it outright ; make an end o f

it once for all You ha e rolled it into a gra ve and
, .
v

strewn earth o v er it then you have run away and all

,

the time sleeping and waking resting and working ,

you ha v e the thou ght that it s no t dead that at ’

any moment it can shake o ffthe ea rth and rise

Anna put o ut her hand Stop Jeanne I won t .
, .
’

listen ; I won t hear ’

.
”

There w as a long wait then she turned suddenly

mm
and ca u ght the other s h and Jeanne wha t a fool
’

thirstin g to h ear —th irsting t o speak

. ,

’
Ia ! I
—and you know I am S he freed her ha nd again
.
”
,

M
and pushed back her hair .

Mrs ax te ad was silent

. .

When yo u to o k m e away eight years ago , ,

I w rote a letter e very day to Johann or to my ,

father letters pages long letters of explanation of , ,

affection of homesickness and I stored them away

, , ,

promising mysel f to post them in fi ve years time ’

.

m
The posting was to be my first act o f emancipation
my first act ; I saw vself r nning through the u
 TH E CI R CL E 14 3

streets with the bundle in my hand ; I saw m ysel f

as I heard it drop into the let t er box I have cried .

night aft er night Jeanne at the len gth o f those five

, ,

debarred years ; I ha v e waked morning after morn

ing with a prayer o f thank fulness that another day
,

w as g one She turned to the window B ut that

”
. .

was eight years ago — eight whole years ago In .

the secon d yea r I wrote my lette rs e e rv week in tead v s

m
o fe v ery day ; in the third I wrote them e v ery month ,

-
and not always e v ery o nt h ; in the fourth I ,

ceas ed to write at all She stopped ”

. .

“
At the end o f the fi fth year o h you Knew the ,

world very well J eanne ; you had ca lculated very

well —ah the end o f the fih h year on the day o f
,

m
my triu ph at the C onservatoi re yo u ca me to me ,
,

and reminded me that our old bargain was ended

a nd o ur n e w bargain w as to be gin that I was a ,

w oman f ree to do what I liked with my o wn li fe

, .

Y o u were quite frank quite generous ,

I think you
guessed how sa fe the generosity was And I — what .

did I do ? Where were my re solutions and my

promises to myself? With my ambition o n fire and
my conceit running riot I went to my o wn roo m , ,

locked the door and burnt the letters o ne by

,

one Y o u never knew h o w w ell you scored — you

.

and the world She laughed with a catch in her

v oice
Mrs
.

M
ax t ead s glance was fixed o n the sky with
.
’

its light o f misted stars Presently she lowered h er

.

li ds .And now she said .

1 44 TH E C I R CL E

m
m
Now ? Anna li fted her head ”
There s no .
“ ’

‘
Jeanne —fo r that I ha v e learnt the l esson
,
’
.

very w ell ; something seems dead here She

touched her heart Sometimes I think t will ne v er
.
”

wake up again The time is gone when I could

.

sa
y I
‘
h ate you ! I h te y u ! as I once sa ida I o
’
.

have grown blunt ; I see thr ough you n o w Jeanne ; ,

I understand you but I can t say I hate you any ’

more You are a part o fthe w ld and I e gro w n

. or ,
’
v

to like the world — its good thi ng — it ea e and s s s

its success When the old day s come back I hut

.
,
s

mv e ves ; I can t look them in the face and den y

’

them as yo u would do ; I can t look them in the

,
’

face and acknowledge the m ; so I take the middle

course I shut my eyes Jeanne
, She look ed .

suddenly into the other s face “

Jeanne let me ’
.
,

keep my eyes shut P She raised her hand again

with the o ld childish gesture and pushed back her ,

h air ; then she shivered slightly and turn ed to the

M m
window .

Mrs ax t ead mo v ed so f
. tly into the roo and
set a light to the groups o f ca ndles han ging from
the wall Then she walked back to Anna and
.

touched her arm .

The gi l started wheeled about then laughed

r , ,

ner v ou l y s .

Oh the lights ! W hat a charm against bad

,

M
thoughts 3 You are very com prehending Jeanne , .
”

She laughed again unevenly ; and Mrs ax t ead .

di e w the curtains across the window .

P A RT T WO —C H A P T E R I II

long afte r her host ess left her Anna

OR ,

stood by the dressi ng ta ble From down -

stairs a faint m urm ur reached her —the

.

j in glin g echo of t rafic ho e through the m

o pen door into the h all t h e hu m o f laughter and
,

v oice s the pulsation and rustle and movement that

,

denotes arri ving gu ests She heard it mechanically

.
,

as o ne hears the roar o f a sto rm while absorbed in

the reading o f a boo k ; then as when a wilder gust ,

o f wind shakes the house one so metimes shuts the

,

boo k she broke the thread o fher musings and raised

,

m
her head attracted by a fresh sound The swing of
, .

usic lo w but un m istak able ca m e across the roo m

, , .

She stood upright and her fac e brighte ned ; it was

a gay inco nsequent tune a waltz sh e h ad danced t o
, ,

countless time s It ro use d h er stir red her ; uncon

.
,

sc iou sl she walked t o the doo r and opened it a little

y
w a ; t h e rush D f existence be came audible again
‘

y ,

r unning bel o w the music in f aint accompaniment .

Cautiously she stepped ac ross the corridor and looked

The scene was bright A gainst the dark carpeting

.
,

m
the glimmer o fj ewels and the so ft tones o fwomen s ‘

dresses made a glow and patch o f colo ur ; f o r

b ! w ee n the p alms o fthe inner hall the waltz float e d

e
 THE C IR CL E 1 47

up inspiritingly ; she caught the light scrape o f the

violins the deeper th rob o f the cello With a
,
’
.

sudden impulse she turned again and passed back

into the room .

C rossing to the dressing table she stood be fore -

,

the glas s and studied her reflection while a minute

pas sed ; with subdued excitement she ca ught up two
candlesticks and raised them till the light fell full

m
m
upon her face ; then silently repl acing them she
, ,

picked up her gloves and b u e d the tune o f the

,

waltz as she drew them on A second later she left .

the room descended by a side staircase and stood in

, ,

momentary hesitation by the door o f the reception

room ,

The reception roo m was the largest in the house

-
,

and t o Anna the least familiar In former days its

, , .

poli hed floor its panels and gilding its furniture o f

s , ,

Louis X VI had each in turn been a so u rce o f awe

.
, .

She smiled a little now as h e remembered h o w,

s

large they once h ad loomed ; then a glimpse o fher

hostess s black dress caught her eye and sh e crossed
’

M
the room .

Mrs ax t ead was st anding in a quiet corner ; a

.

tall screen served the double purpose o f a back

ground and a parti al shield As Anna approached .
,

she was leaning bac k agai nst it her eyes lowered her , ,

fan swayin g gently as she talked to her companion

, ,

a young man with a straight sli ght figure and an ,

attenti ve pose o f the head She loo ked round with.

a smile as the girl reached her .

1 48 TH E C I R CL E
You ve chosen a good moment she said
’
I m ,
”
.
”

takin g te m porary shelter The hurrica ne was pretty .

h ad .She laughed ; then her gaze narrowed to the

”

girl s face
’
B ut what ha v e you been doing ? Your
.

eyes look like big stars .

Anna laughed and blushed I ha ve been study

ing charms as propounded by you She caught

M m
the stranger s eye and stopped ’
.

Mrs axt e ad laid her fingers on her ar

. An na .
,

I ve al ways wanted you to know Mr Strode May

’
. .

I introduce him no w ? ”

Anna s m iled and the stranger bowed There was .

courteous deference in his bearing vitality and ,

stren gth in the clearness o f his eyes an d the healthy

. M
tan o f his skin She was noting each item when
Mrs axt e ad spoke again
Mr Strode is favoured by Fate she said
.

He
.

.
.
,

is delight ful by nationality Hal f his li fe h as been .

spent in C anada hal f in C ornwall ; he ca n expie ss ,

a n E nglishman s sincerity with an A merica n s charm

’ ’ ”
.

I ’
m
Anna smiled again and Strode laughed
a fraid he said that Mrs
rather like a lightning fla h She drops into dingy
,
”
,

ax t e ad s ,

s .
. M
.

c rners then i m agine they were ne v er dark

o ,
His s .
”

v oice was e as y and as ured his manner h ad a faint s ,

deliberation his eyes an attenti v e w av o f resting on

,

h i listener s face that marked hi m from other men

’
s .

In v oluntarily Anna returned h i glance Jeanne s .

has the secret o f popularity h e said she ees ,

”
s s

people as they would be seen .

”
1 50 TH E CI R CL E
She looked agai n across the room .

“
I hardly kn ow ; at best o f times it s an un ’

pleasan t process —one generally finds one sel f so

,

v ery small B ut let us talk o f somethi ng else

. .
”

She turn ed once m ore and met his eyes and the con ,

tact gave her an unlooked for thrill Ha v e you

-
.

known Jeanne fo r lon g ? Are you one o f the set

She in di cated the groups with a mo vement o f her
fan .

He laugh ed Oh absolutely not I m an

M
'
.
.
,

outsider —an offseas on friend When Mrs ax

m
-
. .

tead co m es to T rescar she takes co passion u pon

,

m e We are neighbours there you know Fro m the

.
, .

tower o f m y house I can see the woodbine climbing

round her chimney stac ks We introduced ou rs el v es
-
.

on the stren gth o f that woodbine He laughed ”

.

again .

“
B ut I thought Jeanne said Can ada ? She ”

raised her eyes .

“
She said Cornwall as well He s m il ed
.
”“
I .

li v ed at T rescar ti ll I w as fi fteen years old ; then my

father died an d my uncl e in C an ada thought that
,

trade in a new country was better for me than tra

dition in an old and I w as shipped to A merica
,

much against my will I was twenty one be fore

.
-

I saw ho m e ag ain You can guess I counted the

.

An na l ooked down critically at her gloves . You

returned when you ca me o fage ?

I sailed on m y birthday He laughed

.
”
. I m
’
 TH E C I R CL E 151

af raid I rather stick at things ; no pl ace will e v er be

quite Cornwall to me ; I l ook to returning perma
n ent l
y o ne day when my pile is made , He .
”

laughed once more .

A n d in the mean time ?

“
Anna smoothed her ”

gloves .

Oh in the mean time I grind hard at copper

, ,

m ining an d when trade and my uncle can spare me

, ,

I run across B ut why do you ne v er come t o

.

T rescar ? Don t you like the sea

’

She looked up quickly I loved the sea be fore “

I ever saw it ; now it is a sort o f fetish to me ; But

I ve ne v er seen T rescar —o r Jeanne s White Cot
’ ’

tage Like you I ve been out o fE ngland fo r many

.
,
’

years .
”

Studyin g ? ”

Studying She smoothed her glo v e again the n

.
”

again she looked up Yes ; also like you I want . ,

to make my fortun e some day some dista nt day .

For the present I m content to hear other people ’

talk o ftheirs .
”

There was a pause ; scraps o f conversation floated

t o the m the sound o fpas sin g skirt s on the opposite
,

side o f the screen the sway o f the music from the

,

hall outside Strode m oved nearer to her by a

.

m
step
I wish you d come to C ornwall he said i pul
’
,
”

sivel
y I don t know why but I feel we d grow t o
’
,
’

kn ow e ach other there There s something about .

’

the sea that levels things — prej udice and form ality
1 52 TH E C I R CL E

m
and thin gs He stopped and smoothed his fault
”
.

m
lessly smooth hair His speech h ad the slight an .

neris his v oice the deliberate intonation that

,

in the ne w country the E nglishman endeavours

to acquire and the Ame ri can d oe s his best to
discard .

Anna looked at him That s v ery true she .

“ ’

,
”

s aid I v e o ften thou ght it but I e ne ver put

.
’

,
’
v

it in quite that way The sea has a wonderful .

power .
”

Yes Like some people it takes one o u t o f n

.
, o e

s e l f Do you know that w e v e been stan ding h

.
’
e re

for hal f an hour ?

”

She glanced round and coloured N o ; when .

one is interested I suppose o ne forgets He r eyes .

”

were v ery bri ght .

Precisely Would I be trespassing if I as ked

“
.

you to come and find a seat — somewhere outside

the crowd ? Be quite candid in your answer ; I come
from a country where people mostly say ex actly what
they mea n He pau sed waiting for her reply and
.
”
, ,

it struck her that no man had e ver looked her so

h nestly in the eye A wa v e o fli fe o fexhil aration
o s. , ,

o f youth swept acros s her ; she returned his glance

w ith a smile .

Jeanne says that candour is worse than crime ,

”

she said Whose dogma shall I follow ? Hers or

.
“

yours ? Her eyes gleamed

”
.

Invol untarily Strode c ame nearer till s .

n either Let me an w er fo r you

”
. s .
P A R T T W O —C H A P T E R I V

RS M . sat e e her bed

A X T EA D b fo r
room fire It was well p t two o clock
. as
’

but as yet her only att empt at retiring

for the night had consi sted o fdrawing
o f all her rings and making them into a little heap .

A cup o f black coffee stood on a ta ble by her side ,

and against the saucer rested a halfburnt cigarette

-
.

On her face was an expression o fexpectation an -

expectation that settled into quiet certainty when

the handle o f her door was so ftly turned and so m e
o ne came into the room She made no attempt to
.

raise her head o r to look behind ; but with a faint

movement that was satisfacti on and decision in one ,

she let the rings slip to her lap and brou ght her
fi uger tips to gether
-
.

Anna came silently across the room She w as .

wrapped in a Chinese robe with a fantastic patte rn

M
in gold and wore slippers o f Oriental m ake She
, .

crossed the room and laid her hands on Mrs ax .

te ad s shoulders ; then her eyes fell on the co ffee cup

’
-

and she s m iled.

Co ffee and cigarettes at t wo in the m orning !

How many women would be sippin g hot wate and r

p repa rin g f
o r a day in bed !
”
 THE C I R CL E 155

. M
Mrs axt ead laughed her satirical laugh
in bed make me realise the gra v e
D ays
She gave a little .
”
.

shi ver . As for hot water —I never cou ld to lerate

“

it utside my bath
o She li fted the co ffee cup to her
.
”
-

l ips and laying it down picked up the cigarette and

, ,

to ssed it into the fire .

“
B ut I ve come to a conclusion concerning you
’

Anna Sit o n the ground and lean against my knees

. .
”

Anna gathered her wrapper abo ut her and obeyed .

To sit on the ground be fore a fire and gaze into the

blaze charmed her no w as much as it had e v er done .

M
It was her most confidential her most familiar pose , , ,

d long ago Mrs ax t ead h ad gauged its worth

. .

For a m oment they both followed the play o f the

fireligh t o n the dark blue and gold ofthe girl s ro be ;
’

then the silence fell away .

MM Your conclusion Jeanne I am cu rious ”

.
,

rs . ax t ead made a tower o f her rin g s then ,

tossed it down again “

To night passed she said .
-
,
”
,

but it can t be repeated You re too c onspic u

’ ’

ous —no that s a hate ful word : you re t oo ori gin al

.

’ ’
,

for Lo ndon An na The dark corners are too fe w ”

. .
,

“
Jeanne h o w inhospitable — h o w very horrid of
,

you Anna raised her eyes .

Ho w c onsiderate o f me She touched t h e

girl s chee k
’
My dear child so m ething must be
.
,

arranged In three days pe ople wi ll be talking ; i n a

week yo u w il l be recogn i ed in a whispering hal f s ,

hearted way and the big plash that I have promised

,
s

m ysel f will degenerate into a little ring of bubbles .

1 56 TH E C I R CL E
I can t ha v e that you kn w I can t hav e it
’

, o She .
’

straigh t ened hersel f .

A m o m ent followed in which the words died a w ay

then hal f humorously and hal f se riously Anna set
, ,

her lips .

I won t leave E ngland Jeanne it 3 no use

’

,
’
.
”

A faint amused gleam crossed the other eyes ’

s .

E ngland or London h e asked below h e r s

breath .

Anna hesitated ; then un accountably blushed .

M
E ngland I th ink .

Mrs ax t ead leant back in her chair ; she se emed

.

t o make deduction and calculation tha t were not

s s

unpleasant t o her mind ; when at last she hal frai sed

her lids and spoke again her v oice had its old silky,

tone.

You ve heard me spe ak ofT rescar An na ?

’
,
”

The girl mo v ed slightly Her fin gers carefully .

outlined a gold dragon that stretched across her

robe.

Her companion almost miled s .

Ha v e yo u e v er thought o fC ornwall as a place o f

interest Of course the e a there is n t like the sea s
’

at Naples but till ,

s She let her v oice drop .

Anna bent over her tas k she was absorbed in the

c urves o fthe drag on s ta il
’
.

“
There is a great slope of roc k at T rescar and a
stretch f heather and rather a pict uresque view
o , .

I forget w hether you like v iew s .

”

With a twi st o f the wri t Anna fini hed trac s s

1 58 TH E CI R CL E
. M
Mrs ax te ad pick ed up a polishin g pad and began -

m
t o rub her nails .

m
A an with three pro vinw s is apt to have
sup erfluous possessions she said dryly No I ,
”
. .
’

inclined t o call yo u wise The ri ght man Anna .

, ,

will ha ve a good deal mo re than th ree pro v inces

and a good deal less it see ms to me Her , .
”

b right eyes scanned the girl s fac e No w run ’

.

alon g t o bed To m orrow morn in g w e 11 talk busi ”

-
.

ness in the study ; to morrow evenin g at T rescar -

we ll begin to forget that busin ess exists Good

’
.

ni ght ! She bent lightly and kissed the girl s cheek ’

.

Ann a rose For a space she stood st rokin g a fold of

.

her robe ; then she looked up I ca me t o say a lot .

M
o fthin g s Jeanne ; no w they somehow won t g et said
’ ”
.
,

Mrs ax t ead was intent upon her n ails

. S ome .

how I thin k I understand Her voi ce h ad a quizzical .

”

Ann a smiled and moved towards the doo r ; h alf

way across the roo m she sto pped .

“
Jean ne ”
.

“
Yes ”
.

Mr Strode will be at T rescar

. .
”

A fter the w ords ca me a little pau se ; then with a

deli ghtful assu m ption o f vagueness Mrs
rai sed her head .
ax t ea d , . M
“
M auri ce ? She hesitated ”
Oh of course .
, ,

m m
M aurice St rode ”
.

Anna blushed “
Yes ; the A erican ; the an
.

who was here to ni ght I only wanted to say that

~
.
 T H E C I R CL E 1 59

he h as got the ridiculous idea into his hea d that

MM
I am a relation a cousin or somethin g o f yours ”
.
, ,

rs . ax t ea d retu rn ed t o the polish in g o f her

nails . We can ea ily undeceive him on that score

s ,

ifthat is all
”
.

Of course Anna s v oice was not enthusias tic

” ’
.
.

She t ook a fe w steps forward then pau se d afresh , .

“
Jeanne .
”

Yes .
”

It s rather nice t o be talked t o —to be liked

’

you know j ust for onesel f

, .
”

So I have always found ”

.

M
You are exasperatin g

m
Mrs . ax t ead lau ghed very so f t ly Anna too k .

t wo steps onward then pause d f or a third ti

, e .

“
Jeanne
”
.

Well P ”

Would it be very wron g — would it matter

much if I stayed your cousin for the thre e
weeks ? Her eyes were bright as they had bee n
”

when she sto od behind the screen ; there was a

n e w quick excitement in her voice .

m
Her companion noted both th ough her head was ,

bent When she raise d her eyes there w as un is

.
,

takable laughter in their depths .

That depends on Maurice Strode s se n se o fright ’

ar d wrong she said dryl y not upon mine B ut

” “
.
, ,

are say we ca n work it ifyou really like

“ ”
.
,
P A R T T W O —C H A P T E R I
/

RS . M A X T EA D
leant bac k against a
com fortably cu rved rock and sh ifl ed
her white parasol till its shadow fell
ac ross her book ; f or ten minutes she

read on without ra i ing her head s .

The corner was unique : on either hand rose rocks

o f v aried shape lichened to rust c olour and blac k
,
-

a nd g re y ; behind the cli ff loomed up a gu arding

, ,

m
w all o f gorse and b racken c rossed by a thread like,
-

pa th ; and straight in front immense superb illi it , , ,

a ble stretch ed the sea and sky — the o ne a h aze o f

,

mau v e the other a swee p o f blue the two blended

, ,

a n d toned and merged in a mist o f light bronz e ;

m
w hile abo v e all f ul filment o f the mo rning s promise ’

, ,

s u rety fo r t he co ing ni ght ho v ered the stilln e ss, ,

the brea thlessness that belon gs so absolutely and so

MM
e xquisitely to one hour in t h e twenty f our -
.

Suddenly rs axt ead h ut her book

.
“
What
s .

a gla r E she said

e With a little i magination one
.
,

m ight c onju re E gypt Sixpence f r your thoughts

. o ,

Anna 3
A nna ti rred luxuriously
s S h e lay at full length
.

o n the t rip o fgras

s t hat the nook af
s forded ; her hat
w a of
s f her hand cla ped be hind her head ; her eyes
. s s
,
1 62 THE CI R CL E
M
Mrs ax t e ad shut her parasol with a good deal
.

o f elaboration I should rather like to under

.

st and she said

,
”
.

You know very well what I mean The village .

people in the dear little straggling village ; the fish

ermen mendi n g their nets and ta rring their boats ;
old Treherne u at the C ottage trying to find weeds
p

M
in the flower beds on the lawn
-

Mrs ax t ead suddenly raised her head

. .

—And Maurice Strode e v erywhere she said ,

”
.

I i magine I understand .
”

Anna sat straight up That s the first tactless

.
’

thing I v e known you to say Jeanne

’
, .
”

The other smiled with serene good humour It -

.

is h ard to be truth ful and tactful both .

”

An na took her chin in her hand and gazed be ,

fore her at the se a It h as n t even the exc use of’

.

truth .
”

No
No
M
”
.

Mrs .ax t ead narrowed her e e s in calculation

y .

We ca me here in the middle o f April she said ,

”
,

and it is now the be ginnin g o f May I may be .

wrong but I cannot recall three consecutive hours o f

,

any day in which we have not seen Maurice Str ode .

Ofcourse I may be wrong

Anna watched the sea deepen from azure to steel ,

and as she watched a chan ge p assed across her f

, ace ,

her expressions wavered and m o v ed like clouds before

t h e wind ; the frown betwee n her eyeb rows smoothed
 THE CI R CL E 1 63

itsel f away ; the flush on her cheeks paled a little

at last she smiled .

“
Jeanne she said turnin g w ith a sudden impulse
,
”
, ,

“
why is it th at one can never be really an gry with
you ?
M
”

Mrs .ax t ead moved her parasol as she might

hav e shrugged her shoulders One does n t lose .

’

one s temper with a gnat because it stings B ut you

’
.

are slippin g past the point and the point interests ,

me When two wo m en accept a man when he is

.

m
present and com b ine to ignore him when he is
,

absent it means that one o f the t wo takes h i

,

seriously No w I have n t taken a man seriously

.
’

for thirteen years What am I to conclude ? ”

.

“
That all theories are fallible Anna laughed .
”

hastily and c v ered her cheek with her hand

o .

There was a silence in which the girl sat preter ,

naturally still w hile her companion plucked three

,

grasses and began to plait them with distracting

Talking o f theories she said at len gth I , ,

“

wonder how Maurice will take his enlightening ? ”

“
His enlightening Anna turned round .

The sorting o f his ideas if you like it better , .

I wonder h o w my little cousin with her simple

m anners and her linen frocks will expand into
Solny who has set the fashion in shoes and ce nt s

fo r three Pari sian seas ons —whose cast of

,

f flowe rs -

are worth five times their weight in gold —who se

hats th ree painters ha v e made fam ous Sh e
1 64 THE CI R CL E
paused between e v ery phrase arrangin g her bl ade s ,

o f grass .

A wa v e o f colour pread across Anna s face I s

’
.
“

think Mr Strode will u nderstand ; he is a gentleman

. .

The other laughed Man is an older word than .

gentleman Anna ; and man is a conservati v e animal

, .
”

She stopped .

Anna rose and leant against the rock ; the sun

had fallen palpably ; the first faint shadow o f the
e v ening crept across the cli ffwi th a little chill She .

shivered then lau ghed but some o f the spontane

, ,

ity was lackin g in the l augh “

We are chan ging .

places she said

,
”
You are gettin g sentimental and .

I se rious ; it 8 time we were gettin g home .

”

We dine with Maurice to ni ght - .

”

I know She picked up her hat

.
”
Ho w per .

M
sistent you are Jeanne ,

Mrs .ax t ead unloosed her gras ses and began

plaiting them again Persistence is a jewel she

”

“ ”
.
,

said if one learns how to polish it In lookin g at

,
“
.

Ma urice s face what strikes you most ?

’

,
”

Nothing Anna arranged her hat

.
”
.

Anna ! ”

Oh well — his eyes ; the horribly ste ady look

,

M
about his eyes She spoke with a little rush .
”
.

Mrs .ax t e ad nodded once or twi ce as she

completed her tas k “
Anna she said tentatively . ,
”

have you e v er noticed that men with those ey

those horribly steady eyes —can be somewh at hard
to handle a little restive on occasion
P A R T T WO — C HA P T E R VI

N their arrival that night Strode met ,

m
them in the hall They had lunched .

with hi twice and once they h ad ,

strolled across from the Co ttage at t ea

time and had been shown o v er the whole ramblin g
house fro m the dinin g roo m with its oak settl es and
,
-

ra ft ers to the tower at the eastern angle ; b ut they

had never dined with hi m be fore .

The dinner was an epoch Strode h ad felt it as

.

he dre ssed ; he h ad felt it as he paced the t errace a ,

cigar between his lips his eyes on the White C ottage

,

and he re alised it with so methin g o f a shock as he

m
held A nna s hand for a m oment and sa w th at t h e
’

co ttons and m uslins h ad bee n set aside for so ethin g

th at shimmered so ftly like the leaf o f a rose He
i
.

felt the ch ange with a subtle physical thrill and ,

involuntarily his fin gers tightened upon hers .

M
“
This is v ery g ood o f you he said gently ; t hen
,
”

he turned to Mrs axt ead wi th a smile

. .

I ve been dreading your wrath all day he

’

,
”

began as they crossed the hall to the drawin g roo m

,
-

beyond I ve h ad a real bad afternoon

’ ”

m
.
,

Poor M aurice What s happened ? Your c oo k

’

utinied
 THE CI R CL E 1 67
“
Worse . Y ou see thre e people
, can
’
t (line to

m
Ofco urse not ”
.

m
Ifyou re sarcastic I going to sto p
’ ’ ”
.
,

My dear boy I earnest to depression

,
’
. Please
”

go o n.

Wel l there had to be a man to m ake a fourth

,
.
”

They entered the drawing room -

.

An na laugh ed What it is to have a reputa

.

tion Jeanne !
M
”
,

Mrs axte ad walked to a m irror

. Would you .

m
say that Maurice was thinki ng qu ite absolut ely o f

m
e B ut who is this m ysteri ous individual ? ”

I afraid to tell you

m
’ ”
.

“
R a ke up your cour age ! All en are alike to
me .
”

B ut you h ave antipathies .

So have cats Be quick .

S trode smoothed his hair w hi msi cally I ll put .

’

it in the form o f a riddle What comes nea re t to . s

death P
Doctors responded Mrs ( axt ead promptly
,
”
. .

Strode laughed ' “

R ight ' You v e tr uck the
.
’
s

fourth guest It s the doctor from Cave ly ; a very

’
.

dece nt chap who s driving fourt een m iles fo r the

,
’

M
pl easure o f meeting yo u Just appreciate that ”
. .

m
Mrs axt ead waited to touch her hair then she
.
,

m
looked round I ll smell chloro for every time I ’

m
.

look at hi m and I know I shall watch hi cut U p

"
his eat .
1 68 TH E C I R CL E
Strode s lips twitched
’
There 5 a ga e called .
”
m
playing with fire .
”

She picked up a book .

A nna was smelling a jar o fpo t pourri ; she raised -

her eyes gleamin g with amusement and met Strode s

, .
’

glance . You can always think Jeann e that it , ,

mi g ht ha v e been an undertaker .
”

Doctor Penrhyn announ ced a servant from the

d oor.

The dinner was a success Strode s spirits were

M
’
.

unquenchable Mrs ax t ead excelled hersel f spurred

.
,

to unusual hei ght by the presence o f the new g uest ;

and Anna from the moment o f the first cou rse ate
, ,

and laughed and talked as if li fe held no other

obli gation .

The food and wines were g ood A heavy iron .

lamp hanging from the ceiling cast a glow upon the

, ,

cloth and a bank o fsca rlet flowers in the centre o f

,

the ta ble m ade a patch o f colour E veryt hing sug .

ge sted bri ghtness and ligh t ; and the ent ree h ad

been ser v ed and removed be fore the first pause b roke
the run o f talk Th e pau se was moment ary
. one
o f those silences that no one f eels and from which
con v ersation flowed on a fresh with fres h impetus ; ,

but sho rt as was its duration it w as long enough ,

fo r one circumstance long enou gh t o gi v e Anna s

’

im agination time to wake When Doct or Penrhyn

raising his head turned to Mrs ,
ax t ead with a
.

. M ,

ne w question the girl s eyes were on the flowers by

’
,
1 70 TH E C IR CL E
Strode was speakin g to a servant Anna looked .

up interestedly .

Y o u think excessive brain m eans eccentricity ? ”

sh e said .

“
No t as you understand the word He smiled .

indulgently I don t mean that a genius must eat

.
’

like a sa v age or forget to wash I believe that for .

ten years fo r twenty years a genius may act like an

, ,

ordinary hum an being but at the end o f those years ,

I believe the abnormality would break out .

”

Anna laughed In what form ? she as ked

.
”
.

Oh the form would depend upon chance Th e

, .

form o fa cri me the form o fan act o ffolly any form

, ,

M
you like to na m e B ut it s only a the ry as Mrs .
’
o , .

a xt ad says ; you c a n re f ute it if you like He ”

e .

picked up his glass again .

M
Hallo Penrhyn ! Talki ng o f geniuses in Mrs
, .

ax t ead s presence ? Strode turned back to the

’ ”

table with a laugh “

In town they tell me that
.
,

she deals in them buys and sells them by the ton .

Ask her for her O pinion don t o ffer yours you ll ,

’ ’

find yoursel f in the wron g s t reet ”

.

M
P e nrh yn s f ace expressed as tonishment He looked
’
.

from Mrs ax t ead to Strode

. from Strode back ,

again
Mrs
.

. M
ax t ead laughed You are un fair Mau
rice ; you know that I bar trade the moment I put
.
,

my foot on Cornish soil .

”

M
Penrhyn bent forward “
For the sake of the .

theorists Mrs , ax t ea d . .
”
 T H E C I R CL E 17 1

Just to score o ff the theorists Strode laughed .

”

agai n .

Anna fin gered her glass ; her eyes were o n her

M
friend s fac e
’
.

Mrs axt ead cast her o ne glance swi ft ly satirical

.
,
'

and reassu ring th en she turned to Strode

,
.

“7hen Do cto r Penrhyn goes o u t to dinner Mau ,

rice he lea v es h is m e dical appliance s in the consult

,

ing room I claim the same grac e Am I within

- . .

my rights Doctor Penrhyn ? , She looked round ”

with a bright smile .

Penrhyn bowed solemnl y and they all lau ghed .

F o r Anna there was a moment o f unaccountably

,

swi ft relie f Then with a chan ge o fcourse the talk

.
, ,

flowed o n again into a n e w groove .

The rest o f the dinner sped o n very light wings

and when the end came it was with a distinct sense ,

o fwell bein g that they pushed b ac k their chairs and

-

rose A waft o f air faintly co ol met them at the

.
, ,

door ofthe drawing room o n e o f the long windows -

m
stood aj ar and the fine scent o fmignonette blew in
, ,

ingled with sweet briar -

.

Anna cros sed directly to the window and S trode ,

followed ; fo r a m oment they sto od silently looking

o ut
. A hundred yards below the terrace they could
hear the sea po undi n g against the rocks ; near at
hand they c ould see the lawn with its glistening
moisture and plot of flowers ; hal fway between the -

m
two they could follow the high rose hedge already
,
-
,

astar w ith buds Presently followin g a frank i

.
,

pul se Anna turned

, .
1 72 TH E CI R CL E
Does n t it seem a shame to lea ve it all in three
’

little miserable days ? ”

In three days ? B ut I thought

She smiled So did I but Jeanne has arranged
“

di fferently She told me this e vening that we go

.

back to town on Thu rs day Does n t it sound .

’

soon
Strode said nothing He was looking across the .

M
lawn towards the cli ff .

They heard Mrs ax t ead laugh and Penrhyn

.

open the piano ; then very gently the notes o f

C hopin s Funeral March poured across the room
’
.

Strode looked round at Anna B ut you 11 come .

’

back I 11 see you again P

’ ”

Without looking at him she m oved across the

room .
“
Jeanne she said sharply why do yo u
,
”
,

M
play that ? Y o u know that I hate it .

Mrs ax t e ad stopped
.
“
Doctor Penrhyn h a .
s

never buried anybody to it ; I was j ust showing him

how it went She began a b ar or t wo o f Greig s
.
” ’

Wedding March .
”

Anna coloured and walked to the piano You .

are incorrigible She laid her hand on the other s ’

fingers Doctor Penrhyn don t you think it

.
,
’ ’
s

horrid of her to play o f serious things like marrying

and dying when we were all o gay ?
, s
”

Penrhyn looked across the room That de .

m
pends he said dryly
,
”
Our host might be co n .
“

t e plat ing either one or the other judging b y

looks .
”
P A R T T W O —C H A P T E R V I I

HE
waters o f the creek shone green in
the m ornin g light S t rode in a flannel .

suit with a pipe between his lips leant

, ,

over the side o f his boat and looked

down into the depths ; shorewards the cli ff cas t ,

emerald shadows ; sea ward the sun m ade a network ,

o f gold ; by his side a shelf o f flat rocks with many

j agged points many smoothed spac e s and glim m eri ng

,

pools ran out into the sea

,
.

It was a m ornin g o f shinin g stillness ; the scrape

o fthe moored boat ca m e m ethodically as each f aint ,

swell caused her to b rush the rocks ; o n the grey

shin gle the i m perceptible waves broke with a tiny
crash ; and hi gh above his h ead from the barley ,

fields beyond the cli ff came the rise and drop of a

,

l ark s son g
’
.

m
Anna th reading her w ay down the steep path
, ,

halted in silent ad iration ; the clearness o f the

morning the sh arp cut newness o f the day broke
,
-

on her with sudden meanin g ; she stopped and drew

in her breath From her position on the cli ff
.
,

Strode s bo at lyin g under the shadow o f the rock s

’
,

w as invisible F o r a moment she wondered ifit w a

.
s

dese crat ion to intrude on such a scene then smil , ,

 TH E CIR C L E 1 75

ing at the thought she went o n again Th e joy and

, .

st re ng th o fli fe were in the air ; the and o fthe path s

rose about her feet in little clouds t h e light tinted -

poppies mau v e and straw col o ur and pink swept -

her skirts as she passed ; with e v ery step her speed ‘

increased ti ll turning a cu v e in the track the

, , r ,

moored boat met her gaze and she stood still again ,

smiling and flushed .

IVit h the swi f t ness o fher pause a hand ful of peb

’

bles were unloosed and fell t o the rocks in a little

shower Strode loo ked up
. .

“
One moment ! he called as he raised his hat
”

, .

Stay where yo u are He threw his pipe into the

.
”

bo w and sprang as hore Anna o n the path abo v e .

, ,

watched the s win ging ease with which he crossed the

rocks and in v oluntarily the smile deepened round her
,

mouth The sun was on his face as he neared her and

.
,

in the critical light of the morning his tann ed skin

looked as clear as a bo y s his grey eyes almost as frank ’
, .

The nicest thing about you is your reliableness ,

”

he said Y o u keep a promise as ifyou were a man

. .

Is n t it a glorious day ?
’
He held out his hand ”
.

She too k it and the stren gth o f the fingers and

,

c oolness o f his skin struck her ; she looked down at

t h e hand and smiled .

You e been in the sea

’
v .
”

Yes at six o clock

,
’
.
”

They began t o descend the cli ff .

Had you a good swim

fine ! I pulled round t o my special divin g ‘
1 76 TH E C I R CL E
stone and had a glorious plun ge Look out That . .
’
s

a bad bit B ut I ve been home since then and hav e

.
’

bru hed my hair I would n t have dared meet you

s ,
’

o therwi se He laughed and t ok o ffhis hat

”
. o .

She looked at his well smoothed hai That was -

r.

very considerate o fyou Sh miled . e s .

He looked at her seriously Do you find me .

“

considerate
“
No special reaso n I d like to seem a decent
.
’

sort o fchap — to you .

”

They were silent ti ll the boat was reached Ann a .

s tepped in with due regard to balance ; then be fore

taking her place in the stern she li fted a cushion ,

and held it up Here is your witn e ss she said

.
,
”
.

They both laughed and Strode setting the boat

, ,

adri ft jumped in ; a se cond later the boat swung

, ,

s l o wly outward from the rocks A dozen rapid .

strokes sent t h em well into the open ; the cli ff

receded becoming a dark mass again st the sky ;
,

t h e sea spread be f ore them a lawn of enchan ted

g r een. Anna leant back the rope s o f the rudder ,

held i dly in her hands ; to her ears the click f ,

o

the c ars in the rowlocks w a like soothing m u sic : s

the j oy o f motion a n tingling through her It was

r .

a full minute be fore h e tirred o r spoke ; e v en then

s s

it was lazily as o ne makes a forced concession

,
.

I want you to talk she spoke without looking up

,
”
.

Strode leant forward resting on the c ars Can

,
.

I choose the subj ect

1 78 THE CI R CL E
w ithout his skin Just admit that there are other
.

things in li fe beside minin g and smelting and export

ing P He leant across the c ars
Anna blushed suddenly L ook she said . .

We re dri fting out to sea

’
.
”

I want an answer to my question .

”

And I w ant to skirt the head close in by the ,

land .

The boat spun round ; in twenty strokes they were

in shelter o fthe cli ff skimming slowly past the rocks
, .

“
No w yo u ve got your way let me have mine ?
’

Just admit that the re are other things ?

Anna was si l ent ; she lea nt o ut and caught a strand
o fseaweed dangling f rom a rock .

Are n t there other things

’

I suppose t h ere are Is n t this a lovely b rown ?

.
’ ”

She held the seaweed to the light .

Strode deliberately shipped the c ars and let the

boat dri ft ; then he leant forward and took the sea
weed from her hand .

Their eyes met .

m
“
When the crew m utinies she said it s time
“
,
”
,
’

for the p assen ger to j u p ashore She laughed a ”

.

little nervously but there was an excited brightness

,

in her eyes .

Without chan ging his po sition Str ode thr ew the ,

seaweed overboard The pas senger would only wet

.

her pretty frock he said ; she would n t alter the

,
” ’

inevitable by a pin s po int He looked at her

’ ”
.
 THE CI R CL E 1 79

A nna s fingers ti ghtened again round the rope s

’
.

She looked out across the sea — o ver the spaces o f

glassy green to the white hori zon line .

Strode bent very near With o ne hand he warded

.

the bo at f om the rock s with the other he touched

r ,

her arm .

“
Th ere are times w hen a man see m a fool he s ,
”

said the more he feel the greater fool h e see ms

s, .

I wan t you no t to laugh .

”

A nna remained silent but a mist , either o f sun

or tears crossed her eyes and shut away the sea .

His finge rs moved down and touched her hand .

“ ’
I ve cared fo r you since that first night in town .

Say do I seem at all worth caring for ?

,
”

There was no sound So great was the quiet that

.

fi fty yards abo v e them they could hear a goat mo v

ing amongst the bracken on the cli ff .

Anna ?
A pu ffin sailed round the stern o fthe boat looked ,

up inquisiti vely at t h e silent figures then dived ,

under the keel .

Anna
At las t Anna turned ; there was a light in her eyes
and her smile was very sweet When she Spoke
.

there was an echo o f the old childish candour run

ning through her voice .

“
I think you are more worth carin g for than any
body in the world she said simply and her warm
,
”

fingers closed round h is .

P A RT T W O —CHA P T ER VIII

RS . Mnewsp pershook
A X TE A D the sheets
and skimmed the
out

o f h er a

paragraph s w ith a preoccupied glance

it w as the Mor ning Post o f the ”

day be fore and stale news lacks piquancy A fter a

, .

fi v e minute s peru al h laid the pa pe down and her

’
s s e r ,

finger strayed to the day s c o rre pondence There ’

s s .

were nine letters for her and fourteen for Anna

four teen envelopes mostly foreign and all m uch re
,

addresse d She sorted them quickly and leaning

.
,

across the table made a l ittle heap beside the girl s ’

plate ; then she picked u p a kni fe and opened her

own letter one by one s .

Th e mall round table had been drawn into the

s

sun ; bunches o f mignonette ro se cool and odorou s

from green bowls ; the Chintz co v ere d furniture and -

muslin cu rta ins shone in the light and through the

open French w indow the warm sal t fragrance o f
the sea dri fted in across the lawn T h e promise o f .

the day that t w o hours be fore had lain coo lly o n the
,

w aters w as already merging into hot f

, ulfilment In .

C ornwal l summer sits luxuriously in the flower

,

fields while in less fav oured spots spring is still

,

tra iling her skirts .

1 82 THE CI R CL E
an d laughed Do you think I need dru ggin g ?
.
“ ”

She looked across at Strode .

He returned her glance humorously D you .

’

know he said I ve so meti m es speculated on that

,
”
,
’

very score .
”

m
Her eyes sparkled Specul ation my dear Mau .
,

rice is another for of laziness Come in and rin g

, .

the bell Of course you ll stay to break fas t now

.
’

that you are here ? ”

“
I wish I could H is eyes sought An na s bu t
” ’
.
!

hers were o n t he flowers .

What pre ven t s ? ”

Well yo u see H passed his h and over his

,
e

hair . Penrhyn stayed with me last night ; I sup

“

po se he ll want some food It s a great bore of

’
.
’
,

course
Mrs M
ax t e ad poured some cream into her cup
. .

H o w inconsiderate o f Penrhyn ! She raised her ”

eyes .
“
Though somehow I look upon hi m leni
ently ; I ve b een starvin g mysel f for hal fan hour
’
, , .
”

Anna dropped her flowers Oh Jeanne h o w .

“
, ,

abominable o fme ! Let me m ake up She li fted

the co v er o fthe sil ver dish .

Strode stepped from the windowand took up a plate .

You should have seen the sea thi s morning ,

Jeanne Anna helped the fish quickly

” “
It was
pure glass —like a magic mirror
. .

”
.

The mirro r o fShalot Strode balanced the hot .

”

plate .It reflected all the things in li fe .

”

Ann a colour ed and has tily covered the dish It .

 TH E CI R CL E 1 83

was so still under the headland that we could hear a

M
goat cropping the grass ever so high abo v e , .
”

Fact Mrs ax t ead Strode car ried round the

, . .
”

M
pla te and set it down .

Mrs ax t ead l ooked out across the lawn

.
“
Poor .

Do ctor Penrhyn she m u rm ured below her breath .

Strode looked at his watch Yes ; I expect .

o n e h as obligations He looked regretfully round

. .

“That a j olly room this is Go t a so rt o f cur v ed

M
e ffect He stopped .

Mrs ax t ead l ooked bac k into the roo m

.
“
When .

I stay with you Maurice you ll arrange that we

, ,
’

breakfast independently won t you ? It w o uld be ,

’

su ch a savin g o f ti m e
”
.

m
Strode laughed If Penrhyn has missed a meal
.
,

he s gained a cha pion Good bye

’
He held o ut
.
-
”
.

his hand .

“
Since when have we become ceremonious she
said ignoring the hand
,
.

He t urned to A nna “
Will you P .

She extended her hand laughin gly It s right .

’

to pity the rej ected is n t it ,

’

Their fingers touched and Strode s eyes fell o n ,

’

her plate .

What a lot o fletters

Involunta rily her free hand touched the top en
ve lo e
p . What “
a lot o f responsibilities ! There ”

was a ner v ous no t e in her v oice she raised her eyes

and met his straight glance We all have our
“
.

responsibilities You have Doctor Penrhyn

.

She laughed agai n .

184 TH E C I R CL E
The faint shadow o f question left his face as
q u ickly as it had come He pressed her hand . .

You should have none ; you were made to shi ft

your burdens on to someone else .
”

“
Maurice !
Not another word Mrs ax t ead ; I m o f
,

He crossed the room but at the French window he

f’ . M ’ ”

turned back
,

She looked up
.

Say Mrs ax t ead . M .

Penrhyn will be with me till evening ; we ll be ’

bo ring each other t o death by afternoon

She raised her cup Doctor Penrhyn struck me
.

as being rather interesting she remarked dryly ”

.
,

Strode stepped back into the roo m “

Then as k .

u s along to tea

There was a long pause ; then Mrs

looked up with a whimsical expression “
ax t ead

Trans
.

.
M
parent as you are Maurice you shut out the sun
, , .
”

Strode backed o n to the lawn B ut the tea ? .

Oh ifyou want to come very badly turn up at

, ,

You re the rudest person created but we ll come

’ ’

at fi v e
.
”
He l oo ked toward Anna but she had s ,

picked up her flowers again with a laugh he turned ,

towards the sea and they heard him whistle as he

,

crossed the lawn .

A fte r he h ad gone there was a m o m entous pause .

Anna arran ged the poppies with undue attention to

their shades ; she felt her companio n s eyes like ’
,
1 86 THE CI R CL E
“
stage fright at the l as t mo m ent
A nd go t ”
.

Anna smiled Well at first there was the sun

.
,

and the sea and the quickness o f the boat and I ,

could n t b rea k in o n the m straight away afterwards

’
,

under the cli ff She stopped again .

The other looked up keenly and qui zzi cally .

What happened under the cli ff? ”

For a second the girl moved irresolutely ; then

with a little rustle sh e dropped to her knees beside
her companion s chair and looked up into her face
’

, .

M
Under the cli ff Jeanne it was impossi ble ”

Mrs ax t ead bent —an unusual impulse wi t h

, , .

her. And why Anna ? ,

”

Anna returned her gaze ; for a second the single

ness o f her soul showed like sta rlight in her eyes ,

m
then her l as hes fell Because he cares fo r me
.

Jeanne and I care for hi m —and there w as no roo

,

for anything beside

”
.

An odd express ion crossed the other s face — an ’

expression fleeting as air that was yet a shadow a , ,

faint reflection o f a thought She bent lower and .

her lips p art ed then suddenly she shrugged her

,

shoulders and sat upright A s econd l ater she .

laughed her old casual lau gh

,
.

“
My dear Anna yo u have a wonderful power
, .

An other minute and I believe I should have cried .

M
Get up and ring fo r a n ew breakfast ! As for
aurice Strode I made up my mind ten months
ago that you and he should m arry ; it took me f o ur
years t o find a genius it h as ta ken m e eleven to
,
 THE CI R CL E 187

find an She shook out her skirts an d

Anna st ood up as well ; but still held t h e

other s hand and there were tears in her eyes
’
, .

M
Jeanne
Mrs . axt ead her hand and held it up .

D on t !
’ ”
she B lame is bracing but ,

praise She ne ver finished ; wi th a sudden hasty

move m en t sh e walked to the window and out across
P A R T T W O — C H A P TE R IX

RS . M
lay back in her long
A X TEA D
deck chair and held up her hand -
.

What a day it h as been ! E ven the

de w is forgetting to fall !
”

Penrhyn fro m his camp stool looked critically

, ,

towards the copper tinted sky Storm to morrow !

-
.
-

he said laconically as he laid his empty cup o n t h e

,

g rass
.

M
What a prophet o fevil She smiled .

Never mind Penrhyn Mrs ax t e ad he h a , .

, s a

prophetic instinct f r sulphurou smells Strode

o s .
”

lying o n the lawn shi fted his hat from his face and
,

laughed .

Anna li fted her head and unconsciou sly echoed t h e

laugh She was standin g by the tea table throwing

.
-
,

crumbs to the thrushes as they hopped in and out ,

am on gst t he fl ower beds Her tall fig ure in its so ft

-
. ,

p ink dress was outlined against the whiteness o f the

,

hou se her face lo ked v ery radiant and v ery young

o .

What a lazy a fte noon she said We were

r .

silent fo r five minutes till Jeanne spoke I counted ,

as I f ed the birds

m
”
.

m
l

What a shameful w aste o f ti e Strode rose ,

shaking some newly mown hay fro his clothes .

It s six o clock ; I propose a w alk

“ ’ ’ ”
.
 1 90 THE CI R CL E

MM
She looked at hi m for an instant then her glan ce
met rs axt e ad s and she smiled
.
’

, B ow to the .

inevitable I suppose
, .
”

Strode smiled his gratitude ana a moment later

the two crossed the lawn They walked quickly .
,

only the very young and the very happy walk ; their
forms were silhouetted straight and clear against the
orange sky ; and as they turned to the right and ,

M
the white gate swun g to behind them Strode s ca re ,
’

less laugh floated back across the qu iet rs Max . .

tead sighed then moved restlessly

, .

Doctor Penrhyn she said there is one gul f

“
,
”

o u scientists will ne v er brid ge ; one thing you will

y
never give us back .
”

Penrhyn leant forward And th at ? he as ked.

”
.

Is our youth She closed her eyes

. .

The t rack round the headland h ad darkened to

purple agalnst the green o f the brac ken ; above the
waters the coming dus k h ad gathere d in a cloud ;
against a m eta llic sky a ban d o f rooks drew slowly
‘

homeward with a flap o f hea vy win gs and an occa

sio nal raw cr in the distance a cow lowed with
y ; ,

gentle persi stence The whole o f nature seemed

.

drowsy with coming sleep .

Anna looked up at Strode Do you ever feel .

,
”

she said that there are ti m es when o ne is t oo

“

happy —when everyth ing is so st ill that one waits

,

for and dreads a break ?

”

For an swer b e bent and kissed her

, Dea rest .
,
”
 TH E C I R CL E 1 91

he said qui etly whe n two people suddenlv find

,
“

their hands full o f happiness they don t look away ,

’

for suppositions ; they w ant their thoughts fo r some

thing nearer home .
”

They walked ou again and in v oluntarily she ,

closed her eyes ; there w a dee p safety and pro t e c s

tion in the clasp o f his fingers about her hand She

put her next qu estion in a reluctant v oice .

m
Maurice ha v e y u e v er h ad anything o n your
, o

ind
He looked at her hu morously Of course .
“
.
”

He laughed Debts and duty and heaps o fthing

. s.

Bu t why
Because she mo v ed her fingers e tless l y
”
r s

in his then looked quickly up

, beca use I ha v e “

something on mine — something I want to say .

”

Something seri ous ? He gazed directly out ”

across the sea .

S mething quite erious

o s .

Then I won t hear it He looked round

’
.
”
.

There is only one seri u s thing that I ll li t en to o

’
s

to night and that I v e already heard

-
, He li fted
’ ”
.

her hand and held it again st his lips Hi manner . s

was quiet but there w a a reliant intonation in his

, s

v oice .

She l ooked up agai n with swi ft appreciati n o .

Maurice I v e alway aid you would be g ood at

,
’
s s

u nderstanding W as I right ? .
”

He thought for a moment without replying then

he glanced down at her with an amused smile I .
1 92 TH E C I R CL E
expect that de pends he said I have been ,
”
.
“

called obstinate and prejudiced and a lot o f other

un plea an t things ; but I think I could be very
s

m
lenient to yo u .
”

This thing o f mine Her fingers mo v ed u

easil y agai n It so little and yet so big ; I
.
“ ’
s

want to say it and I can t say it Wh at must I ’

.

do ? She laughed
”
.

Walking quickly they ha d turned the first bend ,

o f the cli f
f and the full majesty o f the sea spread
,

before the m ; above crowning the headland stood , ,

th ree trees whipped into fantastic shapes by re

,

M
current gales ; and below sharp against the water , ,

rose the pointed rock that m arked Mrs axt e ad s .

’

n ook Anna looked towards the horizon then back

.
,

to the path stretchin g in a dark ribbo n fro m their

What am I to do ? she said again .

For a full minute Strode was silent then quite ,

abru ptly he stood still .

I told you that I ve been called obstinate he ’

,
”

said , but no one has e ver called me in q ui siti ve .

m
I care for you beyond anything in t h e world ,

which mea ns I believe in you beyond a i lring in

the world I don t want to hear your secret bu t if
.
’

it worries you ha v e it out Have it out and let

, .
,
’
s

forget it ! I gi v e yo u to the nook to scre w up your

co urage He laughed again and in the fading
.
”

daylight his eyes looked very clear .

Anna drew a great sigh of satis faction “

Y ou .
1 94 THE C I R CL E
There was a delicious sense o f da nger in the d usk of
the sharp descent .

Strode held up his arms Quite sa fe like this

.

He held her fo r a moment closely then they both

stood flushed and laughin g on the little rock bound -

plateau .

Ann a felt her h at then began t o twist the rose

,

s talks into a b unch .

May I have one ? ”

She raised her eyes C an I spare one

.

m
You ha v e t oo many g ood things already ”
.

She s iled and slowly detached t wo buds Have

, .

you a pin
He searched the lapel ofhis coat “
N o won t it .
’

do without
“
Of course not You d lose one b ud and the ’
.
,

other would feel so small all alone in the world , .

Perhaps this will do 9 She put her hand to her

”

belt and drew out a pearl headed pin “

No w stand
-
.

quite still .
”

He obeyed and the roses were arranged She took .

a step back and surveyed the e f fe ct That s q uite

“ ’
.

nice but you must gi ve me something in exchan ge for

,

the pin pins are unlucky you know , .

”

So they are Just a econd

. He searched s

one pocket then another ; then he looked up with

,

whimsical distress B y Jove he said P enryh n

.
,

has cleaned me out at piquet There is n t a six ’

.

pence left .
”

Involuntarily she laughed A penny then .

, .
”
 THE CI R CL E 1 95
“
I scattered my coppers amon g the urch ins as we ,

cam e to tea What are we to do ?

.
”

She laughed again “

Gi v e me back my pin
.
”
.

He looked up Your first present N ot quite

. .
”

He recommenced his search ; then suddenly his face

clea red . By Jove ! he said again and with a jerk
”

he pulled out his watch .

Anna ca m e nearer
This is a coin with a history —o r rather the
.

“
,

co in ofa man with a history His fin gers were busy .

”

on a little ring I would n t part with it to anyone

.
’

but you I would n t really ; I must tell you its story

’

some day when you ve got time to listen

,
’
With a .
”

twist the ring opened and he held ou t the coi n a -

copper coin that showed du lly in the twilight .

Anna took it and held it up This is valuable .

,
”

she said interes tedly It belongs to the Greek

.

Imperial coinage She scanned the rude reli gious

.
”

rite that the coin portrayed .

He looked at her with sudden admiration One .

is always finding new things in you I did n t know .

’

you cared fo r coins and things like that .

”

She blushed .I understand the m a little

coins and manuscript She drew away from him and
M
”
.
,

settled hersel f hastil y in Mrs avourite

ax t e ad s f .
’

sea t making a place for S trode at her feet

, .

He dropped in t o t h e appointed place and sat

silent for a while ; then he l ooked up “
Now what .

about the wonderf ul secret ? He too k o ff his hat ”

and laid it on the gr ass .

1 96 THE C I R CL E
She s t oo ped forw ard and touched his hair
When we get back she said so ftly ,
”
.

Come you re shirking the compact

,
’
.
”

Maurice
No excuse s He smiled and felt for h er hand
.
”
.

She looked at the rocks then at the sea ; then ,

she closed her eyes in drea my pleasure .

Maurice let s make a bargain

,
’

He look ed up at her A deal ? He raised h is ”

eyebrows .

She opened her eyes l azily and smiled Something .

o f the co ming w arm t h and darkn ess o f the ni ght

were shadowed in her face Y es Tell m e you . . r

story now and I ll tell m ine afterwards It is the

,
’
.

very hour for a romance .

”

Strode raised hi m sel f B ut m y dear child .

, ,

t would take an hour

’ ”
.

I d like it to take t wo Be ni ce Maurice and

’
. , ,

give m e my way .
”

You won t like it ; it s a sad story

’ ’ ”
.

She leant forward gently and laid her hand in his .

When o ne is very happy Maurice one likes to , ,

hear o fother people s sadness it makes one appre ’

S t rode sank back .

You t e a regular tyrant he said ; but I sup

’
,
”

p ose the at m osphere is in league with you ; no one

M
would have the physical energy to res ist anyt hing
t o—
”
night . ay I light m y pi pe ?
1 98 THE CI R CL E
on me at the time ; it s m ade so rt o f echoes e ver ’

since Promise you won t l augh

.
’

She put out her hand a nd touched his hair .

What do you think ? ”

“
Well then it began in an uncommon way
, , .
”

He settled himse lf more com fortably It was my .

first day in London ; I possessed no club then and ,

the fe w people l knew were out o f town I was in .

the dull position o f an absolutely aimless being ,

when strollin g down the Strand I ran against a

, ,

man I kne w He t ook his pi pe from between h i

.
”

teeth “
He was a man I had met on shipboard
.

Lorrison by name ; a man who always sat wrapped

in a shawl with a cap pulled o v er his eyes and a
, ,

pile o f books at his feet He w as not the precise .

co m pani on I d have chose n but I belie v e I d have

’
,
’

shaken hands with the de v il himsel fon that part ic u

lar day I asked him what he h ad in v iew and he
.
,

told me he was bound for some benighted shop in

some beni ght ed sl u m o n a hunt for Mero v ingian ,

manu script T was rather Greek t o me ; but I sa id

.
’

tha t if he did n t m ind I d hail a hanso m and come

’
,
’

alon g He h ad no obj ection I hailed the cab and

. .

got inside It was a dreary morning and the .

drive was n t stimulating all smell and slum and fog

’
, .

I ll leave the details out It s enough to say th at

’
.
’

we arri ved le ft the hansom in a th rough fare and o

a narrow street —Hang this pipe !

, ,

v alked down

It s ac tually gone ou t At the le ft hand side o fthe

’
-

stree t was a shop Ah that s better He st ruck .

,
’
.
”
 TH E C I R CL E 1 99

a matc h re lit the pipe and drew in a long b reath

,
-
,

o r s m oke .

“
The shop was very low ceiled very mu ty - s

quite romantica lly musty —and on that particular

,

morning v ery dark A we entered I remember . s , ,

all the light there was seemed concentrated in a

glass partition that shut o ff a little desk Sitting .

at the desk in a huddled up sort o f way was -

,

the oddest fi gure Hallo ! W hat s that ? ’’

z
”

Only the coin The coin slipped . Anna bent .

”

and thrust her fingers Shakingly between the cre vices

o fthe rocks .

“
One minute ! I ll strike a light ! He struck ’ ”

a fresh mat ch and the girl put up her han d

, .

The glare hurts y o ur eyes

A little Please go o n
. .
”

Well inside the glass partition as I tell you

, , ,

w as the oddest figure I had ever seen It looked .

the very picture o f desolation the extremes o f ,

loneliness and isolation wrapped in o ne It seemed .

t o stare o u t o f the gloom like a f act that s sud

’

denly forced home It s fi v e years ago but I ll ’ ’

.
,

ne v er forget it ; I remember it as plain as I t e

member yesterday He wa v ed the match to and
.
”

fro as he searched The man was de formed but

.
,

somehow it was n t his deformity — it was his atti

’

tude his expression the air he breathed I tell

, , .

you commonplace beggar that I am I felt his

, ,

tra gedy be fore I d been five minutes in the place

’
.

Hallo there s the coin ! Between that anemone

,
’
 200 THE C I R CL E
tu ft and your dress Ann a mo v ed sti ffly and he
.
”

pick ed it up .

Won t you take it ’

He held it o ut .

She hal f stretched out h er hand then with an ,

unconquerable repu gnance drew rt back again , .

“
Keep it for the present ; it might slip ag ain
”
.

She spoke slowly but her voice was in excelle nt

,

control .

Strode dropped the coin into his po cket Well .

,

to go on Lorrison nodded to the man and as ked

.
,

after his m aster ; b ut the fellow instead o f answer ,

ing began to talk o f books I put him down as

m orbidly reticent —then and there For half an
.
,

hour he and Lorrison talked while I lean t against ,

the coun ter and j ust watched No w in action is .

m
very unpleasant to me ; but I found that watchin g
the m ost en grossin g thing I d ever done The an ’

gripped m e —literally gripped m e

.

”
.

He stopped t o rest and Anna leant bac k again st

,

the rock F o r the m o m ent she was entirely nu m b

. .

Wh at she h ad felt in any past hour was ch ao s ;

what she m i ght feel in any hour to come was
blank She passed her hand slowly along the cold
.

ness of the rock and it seemed that her blood w as

,

o f the sa me temperat ure B ut it is an o dd tru th

.

that one seldom meets the astounding facts o f li fe

with any great display \V hen Strode s v oice .
’

b roke in again her nerv es scarcely experienced a

,

j ar.
“
When we left the shop he said ,
”
, I questioned
2 02 TH E C I R CL E
the night and precisely as I pas sed the door it
,

opened and my odd friend came out I spoke to .

him and he shied away from me like a fri ghtened

,

horse ; then he saw my face by a gas lamp an d a -

look o f recognition cro sed his eyes — a look that

‘
s

was almost a crav ing for sympathy it seemed to me , .

Without his lea v e I j oined him and we walked down ,

the street side by side He led me by a hundr ed

.

little by ways and cross streets down to the whar ves

—his usual walking place And there in the midst
- -

-
.
,

o f a network o f bales and barrels with the ships ,

looming huge in the partial dark the mesh o f masts ,

and rigging cut against the sky we walked for t wo ,

hours : The filth o fthe town came to us mixed with

the tar o f the sea ; the fires o f the late workmen
flared up at interv als o f smoky gloom The scene .

was weird but in the whole odd medley my com

,

panion was the weirdest obj ec t o f all — his pale ,

face sometimes in shadow so metimes lit up ; his ,

deformed body sharp and plain at one moment v ague ,

and indistinct the next It was a queer experience

.

ifI was interested be fore I was twenty times more

,

interested then I set mysel f to draw hi m out with

.

all the persistence I possessed I walked with him .

u
p and down I.w orked on him hung back urged , ,

him o n .
”
Strode paused His tobac co pouch was .
-

held between his hands I had made up m y mind

.

to get at the man s story Anna and I won

’

,
In ,

his voice there w as the alert tone the assurance that ,

c h ar acterised his whole being He lean t bac k and .

 THE CI R CL E 2 03

looked up into the girl s face B ut the night had ’

.

fallen be tween them like a veil His glance failed .

t o reac h her though his tone did not

, .

A shudder ran through her to her feet and finger

tips She closed her eyes as on e closes them be fore
.
,

a precipice ; her brain swung round as it mi ght o n a

giddy height She h ad never fainted in her li fe but
.
,

she found hersel f wondering in an imperso nal way , ,

what the se nsation might be like .

“
And I won Anna ! I won ! ,
”

Her lips formed some word she w as uncertain ,

what Only an inarticulate sourrd esca ped them

. .

T hen she bent forw ard in sudden fear that he h ad

noti c ed and touched his h and
,
.

He caught her fin gers Sweetheart what a per

.
,
?

ee t listener you make ! She withdrew her hand ”

f
so ftly and he meditatively refilled his pipe He h ad
, .

the air o fa man wh o has settled down t o the tellin g

ofa yarn V isions o f night excursions in the Cana
.

dian forests o flyin g round a fire in the vast solitude

,

while men talked or listened in the eas y fre edom that

the dark engenders floated round him in lazy peace
, .

Y o u are as good a comrade as a man he said at

”
,

len gth Then he struc k a match

. .

Anna s faculties were numbed bu t her fear w as

’
,

still astir The throbbing o f her heart fr i ghtened

.

her by its i rre gulari ty ; the tingling se nsation crept

from her fin gers to her wrists At last panic sei zed .

h er and she sat up “

Maurice she said I am so ”

curious Please go ou —straight on to th e poin t

.
, ,

”
.
.
2 04 TH E CI R CL E
St rode pulled gently at his newly lit pipe Of -
.
“

course he said it s the sto ry o fa woman

,
” “
,
’ ”
.

“
Why o fcourse 9 ‘ ’ ”

B ecause woman is the big jump over which so

m any o f us get smashed up He laughed “
No .
”
.
,

dearest ! Se riously it was the blankest case o f cal

,
'

lou sn ess on a woman s part the hardest breakin g up

’
-
,

o f a decent li f e that I v e met with I sha n t tell ’ ’ ’

.

m
the tale as the poo r beggar told it me There were .

an v halt and stops I ll tell it straight clean ’

'

t oo s .
,

through as yo u ll understand it best

,
’
.

It seems that his coming to this shop in the first

instance sa v oured o fromance He made a wild story .

o f a winter night a robbery and a pursuing crowd

, , ,

from which he was saved by the dau ghter o f the

house —a girl of sixteen The rescue itsel f pos .

sessed unusual elements The picture was so sharply .

impressed on the poo r chap s brain that it even

’

roused me to some enthusiasm at the time B ut .

the enthusi asm evaporated v ery soon A woman .

who shows up fine in a dramatic moment and can

be meanly selfish o n second thoughts is hardly rare .

You know the type ? ”

There was a pause .

“
Yes I know the type Anna answere d dully
, , .

Her eyes were o n the red circle o f the pipe .

“
Well they took him in — the girl and her
,

father an eccentric o ld R ussian Jew —

, and fo r a

m
bit thin gs went all right Then the inevita ble ca me . .

The li fe was lonely The rescu ed an was .

2 06 TH E CI R CL E
walk ed bac k into the shop The an ad m it . m s

to bei ng a physical coward — yet he turned and

walked back into the shop I would n t h ave been .
’

in his place for a thousand pounds He stopped ”

.

again .

Anna clasped her h ands With the ag onies o f .

bi rth the old li fe the old o bligations were goading

, ,

themsel v es in t o being ; her breath caught in her

throat ; the silent oppression o f the night hung
upon her held her pressed her down
, , .

Some men sort o f li e in a drea m Strode said

v ,
”
.

This old R u ssian had been li vin g in a dream He .

e sca ped the persecutions with his reason —j us t

grazed the narrow line that turns the brain B ut .

on that mornin g His pipe h ad died lo w

mm
again ; he paused to pull it to a glow On that
o ing
A wave of expectan cy sick and deadly shook , ,

Anna her fingers dropped nervelessly apa rt .

On that m orning the extra lin e was drawn It .

seems that behind an indi fferent exterior this one

child was the light o f his eyes It took a long .

time t o m ake hi m understand ; when he did under

stan d
“
His b rain gave way With sweepi ng certa in ty
”
.

the words le ft Anna s lips but so lo w so horror

’
, ,

stri cken that their intonation was almost l ost

, .

“
E xactly The shock turn ed his b rain He s ’

qui t e harm less I believe —quite like a child ; but

. .

he 11 never see his shop again and he has forgotte n

’

,
 THE CI R CL E 2 07

how t o read He sits all day talkin g to his wi fe

.

and child S trode pau sed again and the silence

.
”
,

hung palpably o n the air .

Anna did not mo v e but the tension of her throat ,

ne ver relax ed The necessity o f coolness passed and

.

repassed through her mind with the method o f a

m achine and she clung to it with the desperate
,

p rimary instinct o f defence .

Did the girl leave no message ? she as ked at ”

len gth .

“
Oh yes she did ; to my mind that was her
,

worst ac t T w o days after she h ad gone when the

.
,

poor beggar I v e been telling you o f was trying to

’

patch thin gs to gether with the co mmon remedy o f

routine he found a message scrawled on the shop
,

s l ate Th ere you have the real woman o f the type ;

.

a fraid to strike a decent final blow she threw a ,

straw to a dro w ning man That was eight years .

a o
g .Incredible as it sounds that man is still cli ng ,

ing to the straw I can see his face as he turned in.

the glow of the fire and told me so .

”

Anna stirred B ut the girl Maurice . t he “

,

girl ? What could a child of sixtee n know — o r

uess — or drea m o f such re sults — P I think you
g
are unjust .
”

He looked up trying to see her face It is n t

, .
“ ’

the girl o f sixtee n that I blame he said but the ,

”
,

girl o f twenty o f t wenty one o f twenty two - - -

.

D you mean t o say that the facts o f li fe die out o f

’

their own accord ? that to a bright gi ft ed wom an

2 08 TH E CI R CL E
they would n t come bac k again and again in a ne w
’

guise with a new force ? Don t you thin k that the

,
’

poor souls she had deserte d would haunt her unless ,

o fher o wn deliberate will she shut them o ut ? He

laid down his pipe .

Anna s soul failed but she made a last stand

’

, .

You only know the man Maurice she said , ,

”

desperately You only think o fthe man ; you are

.

a man yoursel f You know nothin g o f the girl ;

.

she may hav e gone under long ago ; she may ha v e

died
Ah so I o ften thought ; so I thought till one
,

day three years ago when bein g in town I stroll e d

, , ,

into the shop and found the poor beggar there

curi ously disturbed He h ad obta ined news o f her
.

af ter five years ”

.

News
Yes — the oddest news In pas sing by a win .

dow where photog raphs are sold he had stopped

fo r a minute attrac ted by the crowd ; and there
, ,

in the place o f prominence was the picture o f a ,

v ery beauti ful and distin guished woman Of course .

you ve guessed The woman was the girl ; but

”
.

she was something more than j ust beauti ful

she was a celeb rity Who d yo u think she was ?
.
’ ”

He tur ned again eagerly “

Anna guess who she
.
,

w as

Anna s lips were so dry that they hardly mo ve d

’
.

How should I know Mauri c e ? How co uld I ,

know
2 10 THE CI R CL E
prominent thought —a great envelopin g reli ef that
her face could not be seen .

At her first movement Strode turned round ; h is

eyes n arrowed as he t ried to trace her features ; then
he s m iled Ha v e I tired you dear ?
. The hard ,
”

ness dropped o ut o f his voice ; he put out his hand

and touched her dress I have tired you and yo u
.
,

are cold What a b rute I ve been !

. He rose as ’ ”

well and took her hand Kiss m e and we 11 forget

’
.
,

it all . Here s your little coin ’

He felt in his ”
.

poc ket then held out his hand

, .

For a minute Anna peered through the gl oom ;

then the wa v e o f repulsion swept over her again ,

and she pushed his h and as ide “

N o she said .
,
”

su ddenly it s ill omened ill fated Maurice Take

“
,
’
-
,
-
, .

it aw ay ! ”

Very quietly he sli pped the coin back Forgive .

m e dear for tellin g such a tale in such a pla ce

, , .
”

With great gentlen e ss he m oved forward and took

her in his arm s Poor little girl ! he said
. Poor ”
.

little girl ! What inconsiderate beasts m en are !

”

Overhead the warm darkness h ad massed to clou ds ;

their faces were pale outlines to each other s eyes ’
.

For a space Anna remained m otionless her shoulder ,

restin g against his arm her head thrown back ; then

,

suddenly she stirred and clung to hi m .

Maurice she said tell me ex actly what I

”

see m to you —exactly We ve been wandering in

, ,
’
.

such a wilderness : I w ant to f eel love again ”

.

St rode held her to hi m for an instant You .

 TH E CI R CL E 2 11

the and the loveliest woman God eve r

m ade he said
,
” “
The v ery lo veliest and the
.

m
“
A b,she said lin geringly
”
,

that w as v ery sweet

. No w let us go ho e .
”
PA R T T WO C HA P T E R X I

hall o fthe Cottage was di mly lighted

HE
when they returned The shadow of a .

smile wavered across Anna s li ps as she ’

realised the circumsta nce Fate is ne v er .

wi thout its oddly ironic compensations At the .

door oft h e dra wing room she held o ut her hand

'

-
.

“
I ll say good bye here Maurice Doc t or Pen
’
-
, .

rh yn s storm is in the air I must bathe m y head

’
.

be fore dinner ; it aches badly ”

.

“
Poor little girl ! Strode raised her face and
”

looked into it I don t quite belie v e all that ; it

.
’ ’
s

m y wretched s t ory tha t s got clean on your nerves ’

.
”

She tried to smile We ll call it nerves nerves

.
’

is such a use ful word B ut don t worry I ll be all

.
’

,
’

right once the storm b reaks Say good night for .

’

m e to Doctor Penrhyn .
”

It s hard to let you go

’
.
”

It s harder to go
’
Her voice so unded tired
.
”
.

He pas sed his fin g ers o v er her hair “

I feel a .

b rute to keep you here yet I can t say go When ,

’
.

shall I see you t o morrow ? -

”

Oh any time ; after brea k fast any time

, .

Good night-
She touched h is hand remindin gly .

“
You ll be glad to see me ?
’ ”
2 14 THE CI R CL E
For an instant their lips held each other then ,

Anna pushed him away You must get home .

,
”

she said quickly ; yo u must get home be fore the

“

rain breaks Good night ! Think always — always

.
-
,

Maurice that I love you a million times mo re than

,

mysel f IfI seem strange to night it s the electricity

.
-
’

in the air Good night

. Her voice broke of short ;
-

she freed hersel f and ran down the corridor

, .

Strode moved forward Anna ! he called so ftly .

”
.

B ut the only answer that came t o hi m was the sharp

closing o fa door and the turning o fa key in a lock
, .

m
He wai t ed for a minute un certainly then with a ,

ove m ent o f pu zzled di sappointment he turned an d

walked back to the drawing roo m door -
.

M
The dinner gon g h ad sounded through the house
-
.

Mrs ax t ead waiting in the dining room loo ked

.
,
-
,

about her uneasily then glanced at her w atch The , .

French windows were closed and the air in the room ,

was stifling She rose w alked to the window then

.
, ,

bac k to the table lastly out into the hall The c o r

, .

ridor was di m ; she traversed it has tily and sto pped

at Anna s door There she knocked

’
. .

Who is it ? The answer ca me aft er a pau se

”

I —Jeanne Won t you have any dinner ?

.

’
.

I don t need dinner thanks ; I ll have so m e t ea

’
,
’

la ter My head aches

.
”
.

MM
There was silence then the thunder crackled
acro ss the sky rs ax t ead knocked
. ag i n . a
 TH E CIR CL E 2 15

L et me in Maurice and Doctor Penrhyn ha ve

.

gone ; it s uncanny gettin g through t h is storm

’

a lone
”
.

There w as a faint m ove m ent inside the roo m then

the sound o f a key being turn ed Mrs ax tead s
hand w as o n the handle she turned it instantly ;
. . M ,
’

then immedi ately the door yielded she drew back

, , .

Good hea vens child ! ,

”

T he roo m was dark except fo r the occasion al fl ash es

,
-

that spu n across it fro m the open window ; the cur

tains were drawn back and beyond the lawn and ,

cli ff the oily sea and rent sky were plainly to be

seen in the intervals of weird li ght B oth inside .

and o ut the excessive w ar m th hun g p ulselessly on

MM rs. moved forward

ax t ea d This is like the .

Inferno she said only more gruesome Where

,
’
, .

do you keep your matches ? I ca n t go anot he r ’

second without a li ght .

”

“
On the dressing ta ble Anna h ad returned t o ”
-
.

the window and stood lookin g out Another t wist .

M
mM
o f light shot though the room

ax te ad walked to the tab le and picked up

.
.

the matches Y o u re perfectly abominable

. she ’
,
”

began ; but her words were drowned in a swee p o f

soun d “
Anna ! Shut that window and draw the
.

curtains She lighted the can dles hastily then

.
”
,

walked across to the girl and ca ug ht her hand .

She drew her into the centre o f the room ; but

there she paused Why my dear ch ild ! sh e said
.
,
”
.
2 16 THE C I R CL E
My dea r child ! She turned swi ftly to the mantel ”

piece and rang the bell ; then she walked t o the

window let down the blind and drew the c urtains
, .

As the maid entered she tu rned round , .

B ring some co ffee and my bo x o fci garettes We .

sha n t dine to night

’ ’
She turned to A nna as the -
.
”

girl w ithdrew Now you e got to rise above this ,

’
v

storm You e been frightenin g yoursel f to dea th

.
’
v

your eyes are absolutely scared ”

.

Anna pushed the hair from her forehead ; her face

was very white and there were black circles under ,

her eyes .

You ve been lookin g out o f that window for

’

h al f an hour ”
.

There was no reply .

Anna

m
The girl moved to t h e dressing table There was -
.

a ri g idity in her actions that was ne w Her co .

panion s eyes took on their critical look

’
.

Anna she said is it really the storm at all ?

“
,
”
,

I have a lingerin g feeling that it s not ’

.
”

A nna stood very still N o Jeanne it s not ’

.
, ,

storm
M
”
.

Mrs ax t ead sat down quietly

. Yo u ve told .
’

Maurice she said directly and M auri ce h as n t

,
” “
,
’

taken it w ell .
”

Anna shi vered in spite o f the heat “

Oh no I .
,

have n t told him

’ ”
.

Then what is it I rather feel as ifI d dropped ’

a li nk Oh h o w detestable that noise is

.
,
2 18 THE C I R CL E
rom
f Mrs axt ead s hand . M Thunder to a wo man
’
.

is like a bo gie to a child it suggests the horri ble

potency o f the unsee n She picked up the ci gar .
”

ette and held it to a candle fl ame Anna do you ,

think you could possibly sit still ?

A nna loo ked round N o I ll sit still for all ’
. .

the rest o f m y li fe if you like but not t o night I

, ,
- .

feel as if I h ad been immovable fo r hours and ho urs

an d hours

M
”
.

Mrs ax t ead moved round sharply

. Stop she .

said . Did you hear that ? ”

They both stayed motionless for a second ; then

they each drew breath The sky seemed to tear .

asunder then tumble headlong to the earth in a

,

torrent o f sound .

Th e rain
The rain at last ! Mrs ax t ead w alked to

the window and held back the blind Th e wate r

”
. M .

was falling in a sheet across the lawn ; the li ght

n ing played f itfully at the ho ri zon ; but already
the note o f the thunder w as lowered and a breath ,

o f cooler air ca me f r om the sea .

Anna w alked to the window as well .

M
J e anne I ha v e a fa v our to as k ”
.
,

Mrs ax t ead raised her brows

. .

“
I ve been wanting t o ask it ever since you
’

came but somehow it would n t get said

, , She ,
’
.
”

paused and caught her b re ath Take me bac k .

“

to town t o morrow Jea nne instead of Thursday

-
, , .

I don t want to stay here another day

’ “

The
”
.
 THE CI R CL E 2 19

w ords were lo w and rapid her voice sounded

,

lips parted ; she tu rned

“
To morrow ! B ut my d ear child
-
, Then sh e
stoppe d “
. V ery well To m orrow at any ho ur
.
-

you like S he let the

”
.
PA R T TWO C H A P TE R X II

TR OD E sat in h i study The windows were s .

wide open and the cool breeze blew in

,

re freshingly from the sea ; the rain h ad

ceased as abruptly as it began and except ,

for an occasional distant growl the thunder h ad died ,

away On the desk before him was an array of

.

papers b ut his hands rested o n them idly and his

, ,

eyes h ad an abstracted look ; it w as only when a

knock fell cautiously on the door and an instant ,

later the door itsel f opened that his glance co n ,

c en t rat e d to li f
e .

The old serv ant who h ad been his father s valet ’

entered deprecatingly Sorry to disturb you sir

.
, .

but there s a lady to see you

’
.
”

A lady Straker Strode unconsciously glanced

,

at the clock .

Yes sir Shall I ask her to ste p in here sir o r

, .
, ,

t o wait in the drawingro om -

“
In here Strode rose and pushed his papers
.
”

aside . Never mind Straker ; o n second thou ghts

, ,

I ll see to it myse l f
’
.

The old man stepped aside and S t rode walked ,

quickly into the hall His m an ner under unusual .

c ircu m stances w as always cal m ; whate ve r su rprise

222 THE C I R CL E
It is very late S he looked at the clock
”
. .

m
Only twelve
”
.

How lon g ay I st ay
Fi ft ee n minutes ; I 11ta ke you back then W e ’
.

kn ows that you came

No one I slipped a way
.
”
.

G ood ! Penrhyn d rove off half an hour ago ,

and S traker is as discreet as the g rave So your sin .

won t find you out

’
.
”

Sh e looked up suddenly You don t think it ’

.

hat e ful of m e to h ave co m e ? ”

S trode s fingers were busy ; when he answered hi

’
,

v oi ce came rath e r lo w If I were to be honest

“
.
,

A nn a I d say that I e seldom felt q u ite so proud

,
’ ’
v .

It s yo ur first ad m i ssion o f reliance

’
He stopped .
”
.

She rose suddenly and stood behind him We .

are le avin g to m orrow Maurice ; w e g o to to wn by

-
,

the first train .

”

He turned with a j erk “

Wh at do you say ? .

T o morro w
-

Sh e gazed fixedly at the desk Jean ne h as b usi .

ness t h at ca n t wait
’ ”
.

M
Th e pe rple xity le f t his eyes and he s m iled .

Quite absurd my de ar child ! I saw Mrs

, ax .

tead at eight ; she never said a word of such a

thing ”l
.

m
Sh e did n t kno w at ei ght
’ ”
.

Oh a telegra
,

Anna bent her h ead .

St rode s m ooth ed his hair Th at s very h at e .

’
 THE CI R CL E 223

ful, he said aft er a pause very hate ful But you

”
, .

must ch ee r up ! You must cheer up ! It is n t ’

so bad af t er all He looked at her and smiled

”
. .
,

You 11 lose the poppies and the sea for a bit ; but
’

you ll still have me You don t think I m going

’
.
’ ’

to be left behind ? He smoothed his hair afresh

”

and laughed re assurin gly “

I w as loo king i nto .

thin gs as you came in ; I find I can be spared fr o m

,

here I ll be in town a day or two afte r you

.
’
.
”

Anna s head remained bent He put out his

’
.

hand and to uched her arm Dearest we 11 have a .

,
’

jolly time in town ? ”

She raised her head with an e ffort You know .

it was n t to say silly things th at I ca m e

’
.
”

“
T was never to tell me the famous se cret ?
That secret that you did m e out o f on the cli ff .
”

He lau ghed again with an eager attempt to a m use

her ; then suddenly his face clouded over and he ,

caught both her han ds Anna he said in a .

,
”

di fferent vo ice wh at s the m atter w th you to

i
’
,

m
ni ght ? ”

She e t his ey es steadily She had brac ed herself .

to the ordeal as she crossed the cli ff I m not .

“ ’

well that s all H eaps o f women would be li mp

,
’
.

after such a storm .

”

“
Poor little girl ! S it down again and let me
take ca re o f you ? ”

She shook h er head “

It s easier t o talk sta nd .
’

m
in g I m ust say what I ca m e t o sa ”

y
.
.

He ade a resi ne d
g ge st ure.
2 24 THE CI R CL E ‘

It is n t very easy to say Maurice

’
, .
”

His eyes n arrowed It is n t that you think .

’

you v e cea sed t o care or or any rubbish o f that

’
,

sort
She smiled faintl y N o it is n t rubbish o fthat
.
’

sort.
”

Then what else counts ?

Nothing and a lot o fthings .

L e t s ha v e it out
’ ”
.

Her lips parted twice be fore she spo ke ; then she

straightened hersel f I ha v e thought about your
.
“

coming t o town Maurice ; I e thought that you

,
’
v

woul d want to come and I came to night to tell you -

that you must n t that you must stay here that

’
,

you must promise me t o stay he re She freed her .

”

hands and clasped them tightly behind her back .

Strode stared at her in silence .

It w as to say that that I came I did n t want .

’

to go without seeing yo u I didn t want to put it in ’

a letter I know it sounds irrational but women

.
,

are f ull o f whims

”
.

He still stared incredulously What exact ly .

does it mean ? I suppose I ha v e some ri ght t o

ask
Maurice ! ”

He turned and walked to the open wi ndo w .

Maurice you are an gry

,

N ot an gry ”
.

Hurt
Possibly ; I don t quite kn o w ’ ”
.
226 THE CI R CL E
drew her b ack to the desk There will be no .
“

battl es for you while I am here to fight them .

Whatever this th ing is that has risen up to both er

you it must be le ft to me to me you u nderstand
, , .
”

She touched her lips with her handkerchie f and ,

slowly gathered u p her strength A fter this .

,

Mau ri ce she correct ed gently after this things

,
”
“
, ,

will be left to you ; but in this one cas e I must

act for m ysel f I m afraid there s no drawin g
.
’ ’

bac k .
”

Which implies He searched her face .

Her lips were cold but she met his gaze staunchly
, .

Which implies Maurice that somethin g has hap

, ,

p ened that I ne v er counted on never looked for ; ,

something that involves other people besides mysel f .

And I want you to give m e the greatest help it s in ’

your po wer to gi v e ; I want you to let me think of

ou he re — away f rom the h at e firl h aras sing world
y
—t hinkin g of me and believing in me till I can ,

sen d for you You know that I ll send the firs t

.
’

m oment that I can ? ”

“
My dear child the harassing world is a m an s
,
’

The finer o fhi m to relinquish it for a lit tle .

”

Str ode s eyes were puzzled and perplexed

’
Wo .

m en are inco m prehensi ble ! he said at last First ”

.

a m ysterious secret now a myste ri ous m ission ; it

,

so unds like the l as t century Ho w m any days will .

t his thin g ta ke provided I do c onsent ?

”
,

Four weeks fro m t o day -

”
.
 TH E CI R CL E 2 27

He took a step backward Wee ks ! Do you .

know what you are saying ? ”

“
Perfectly to an hour .
”

B ut a month — a whole month ! Wha t does it

mea n What under heaven am I to do with mysel f
for a month He look ed blank .

“
As you have done every other year Sail and .

fish and read ”

. She stopped checked by the look in
,

his eyes.

He came quite close to her and took her hands .

“
That is a v ery easy programme to m ake out he ,
”

sa id ; but you don t know what you say Sailin g

’
.

and fishing are poor spo rt when one has tried love .

You can tell me t o stay away from you b ut yo u ,

can t do more than tell

’
.
”

Her fingers showed white against his ; she look ed

unsteadily round the roo m then slowly reluctantly
, , ,

he r glance returned to his .

Maurice you said to night that you were

,
-

p roud o f my relying on you Have I relied t oo .

m uch ?”

His hand tightened o n hers, then relaxed ; he

dropped her fingers and turned again t o the

m
window .

There w as a long wait Anna m ade no ovement

. ,

b ut her face looked very tired .

M At last S trode spoke without lookin g round

an makes a poor sort o f lover a f t er all Anna ; , ,
.

he nee ds a lot of reminding .

”

She too k a step forw ard Mauri ce ? ”

.
228 THE CI R CL E
He was silent.

Mauri ce ?
He wheeled round and looked at her . Have n t
’

you kn own all alon g that a saint would give you any
thin g you asked if you only put it to hi m
,

I don t know what you want to do ; but I trust you

’

like myself Ofcourse I ll w ait

’
.
”
 THE C I R CL E
M M
230

eye sparkled
rs. A ept d W t
axt ead s
’
s . cc e ha
a word They h ve gone mad it s the s l on
! a ;
’
ea

your success Y o u were m agnificent I have never

. .

see n anythin g so fine Y ou have m ore grit than I .

ever thought .

An na was silent ; then she smiled very faintly and

looked up I think it s you who have the grit ’

Do you think I ha v e n t seen —all this

.
,

Jeanne
’
.

terrible week ? Se en you watchin g me seen the ,

dou bt in your mind though you ne ver as ked a ,

m
question never hinte d by a word that I was not
,

not quite the same ? I a not so dense Her .

”

papers
rsMM
voice w as very lo w
ax t e ad be gan f
.
.

oldin g and so rt in g t h e
It h as been the m ost aw ful week o f my
.

li fe There were ti m es but that does n t count

.
’

m
no w Las t night com pensate d for everything Las t
. .

ni ght was like the li f tin g of a coffin lid to a an -

who is bu ried alive I don t belie v e I stirre d a .

’

ha ir s breadth durin g the whole first ac t

’
- .
”

Ann a drew a lon g breath “

I knew l as t ni ght
'

would be all right It w as the waiting for l as t .

night ; it was the reception — your receptio n on

Thursday She shi v ered and closed her eyes
.
”
I .

shall never forget that reception Jeann e never , ,

ne v er The coldness o fmy hands and fee t ; the feel

.

in g o f being outside mysel f; the crowds and c rowds

o ff aces all inquisiti ve all on tiptoe as it were all , ,

bl ankly candidly disappo inted I shall never forget

,
.

it . It was a ni ghtm are She covered her face .

”
.
 THE CI R CL E
M
23 1

Mrs axt ead was s ilent fo r a moment her fin gers

.
,

stirring an d rustling amon gst the papers ; at las t

her eyelids drooped .

m
We won t talk a bout the reception she said
’

,
”

shortly it s burned into v brain B ut there is

,
“ ’
.

som ethin g that I want to say She paused then .

”
,

went o n agai n E ver since we le ft T rescar I ha v e

.

thought o f no body b ut you ; I have shown m ore

m
patience than I e v er dreamt I possessed ; I have been
inhu an — nothin g less Now that the ordeal o f .

the fi rs t night is o v er the actual crisis got thro ugh

I want you to consider me a little —to consider
, ,

what it costs a woman to be silent for ei ght days .

Y ou talk o fnightmares every nightm are must ha v e

a cause Tell me frankly what happen ed at T rescar
.

the ni ght be fore we left Till that night you were

perfectly happy I ne ver saw you so buoyant so full
, ,

o f li f
e ; then all in an hour everythin g collapsed .

S ince then you have been the m ere sh ado w o f your

sel f; yo u go about with your eyes open see in g !

nothin g ; you are intereste d in nothing ; you scarcely

hear when you are spoken to E xcept for l as t .

ni ght, you have been livin g in a trance F or .

heaven s sake rouse yoursel f! Shake it o ff!

’

,
She ”

to uched the girl s arm ’

.

Anna mo v ed languidly and turned her face away

‘

Anna you rose above it las t n igh t R ise abo v e

,
.

it now .
”

m
Anna s m iled a lit t le Ah that was the dramatic
.
,

situati on I a not t o be prai se d for t h at

. It is .
232 TH E CI R CL E
in m y blood I suppo se ; I act as a dog hunts by
,

instinct She moved her face restlessly against the

.
”

M
pillows .

Mrs. ax t ead still held her arm

“
It is not a .

quarrel between you and Maurice ; I know that .

With your temperaments you would hav e made it

up in twel v e hours ; it is something more las ting .

than a quarrel Can t you confide in me ? .

’

Anna drew her arm away I can t ; I have n t “ ’ ’

put it to mysel fas yet She pushed back her hair

.
”

with her habitual gesture At present I am an .

automaton ; I know that I have to play every night

fo r three weeks — and play well
.

A fter the three .

M
weeks
Mrs. ax t ead moved nearer by a step A fter .

the three weeks there is your big rest your six ,

months rest ; then the contract with P olo t ski if

’

o u consent and the terms tempt us A ft er l as t

y ,
.

m
night we should control the m arket B ut fi rst the .

rest ; I a set o n that no w more than ever We .

m ust burn back the co lour in to this She touched ”

.

the girl s cheek

’
You know the proverb of the
.

w i lling horse
”
.

Anna smiled again wearily .

Co me you ll enjoy the rest ?

,
’ ”

The girl sta red straight be fore her .

“
Weeks and weeks o f no responsibility — no
study —no rehear sals .
”

Ann a s eyelids quivered otherwi se she was abso

’
,

l ntaly still .
2 34 THE CI R CL E
papers do not get to T rescar ; I know Mauri ce cares
nothin g for the m ; still —st ill one can never tell , .

There are no herm ita ges nowadays .

”

An n a s fingers parted limply Sometimes Jeanne

’
.
, ,

I wish that Maurice would find out It w ould sim .

li a lot
M
o fthings
”

p y f .

Mrs axt ead m ade no co m ment but she ceased

.
,

to twist her rin g .

Anna she said so ftly you have not by any

,
” “
, ,

chance hea rd from your own people ? Her voice

,
”

was ver y lo w but as keen as a nee dle point

,
-
.

A flood ofcolour su ffus ed the girl s face then died ’

p ain fully away Her eyelids opened slowly and she

.

looked up N o Jeanne on m y word of honour !

.
, ,
”

Her lashes drooped ag ain

For a while Mrs ax t ead stayed m otionless Then
. M
she walked across the ro om There w as an unw ant ed
.

.
.

shadow in her eyes a perplexed line between her ,

b rows She stopped by the mantelpi ec e and lean

.
, ,

in g agai nst it looked down at the white lilac in t h e

,

“
You h ave never told me a lie, An na ! A nd

I have told you the truth no w Ho w could I .

ha ve heard fro m them ? They know nothing o f me

—nothing of where I am Her voice was monoto .
”

n ous and tired .

“
Of course not and yet Oh I ad m it myse lf
, ,

bea ten She li fted her head A gainst a doggedly .

i ndiffere nt wom an there is no weapon under th e sun ”

.
 TH E CIR CL E 235

m
She walked quickly towards the door then in the ,

centre o f the roo she paused Her hands were .

hanging by her sides and her eyes gleamed , .

Anna she sa id suddenly for h ea v en s sake cry !

,
”
,
’

Lose your t emper or cry Do something do an y .

thing only don t l ie there like that You look as i f

,
’
.

you were seeing ghost s She laid her hands on the

foot rail o f the bed and leant forward
-
.

Anna remained unmo v ed I ha v e n t cried sin c e .

’

that morning at T resc ar when I told you about ,

Maurice I don t know that I shall ever cry

.
’

again ! ”

Then tell me what it is ? There s nothing that ’

two people —t w o determined people — cannot do .

I am as ca pable o f helping you as a man — more

capable Anna ? .
”

There was a note in the last word that Anna had

not heard be fore Its appea l cut through her ; she
.

suddenly raised herself .

Oh Jeanne ! she said brokenly

,
”
I m doing .
’

my best Indeed indeed I m doing my best ! If

,

’
.
, ,

you care for me the littlest bit don t question me ,

’

M
any more Her voice rose
.
”
.

Mrs axt ead walk ed round to her former posi

.

tion be ide t h e bed and laid her hand on the girl s

s
’

shoulder B ut Anna pushed it excitedly as ide

. .

“
No ! Let me say what I can say n o w while
I want to say it Something h as happened : it
.

does n t mat t er what When there is a fire at sea

’
.

and peo ple are killed it doe n t much matter ’

,
s
236 THE CI R CL E
whether they are burnt or drowned They are .

dea d and that is enough Something h as fallen o n

, .

m e and left me stunned as yet I am neither rec on

ciled nor beaten — only stunned I ca n t talk to .
’

you about it because I have n t talked about it to ,

’

mysel f Some day soon when my courage begins

.
,

t o shake itsel f o u t I will f ace it and see where ,

I stand Then for the first time in my whole

.
,

li fe Jeanne I will really know mysel f Whate v er

, , .

is trongest — the best o r the worst will co me

s

to the top B ut now —now I am nothin g j ust

.

a shuttlecock tossed between two bats ; a feather

blown o n the wind ; anyt hin g you like to think
o f that has neither grip nor wei ght nor hold

that j ust exists Her eyes looked fixedly in front .

”

o f her her hands were clasped about her knees

, .

That s all I have to say — except o ne thing

’
.
”

Her hands relaxed and she turned her eyes o n her

companion s face Long ago you won m e o v er
’
.

by a trick — by a subterfuge ; but tha t s past ’

no w We are all honest or dishonest according

. ,

to o ur lights Acc ording to your s you meant mag

.

nifice n t ly by me — and you have done magnifice ntly .

I hav e n t forgotten and I sha n t forget I 11 play

’

,
’ ’
.
’

for you loyally e v ery night o f the thre e weeks .

You may count on that Whatever my days are .

like my nights will be all ri ght

, Her v oice sud ”
.

de nly dropped ; she smiled wearily and put out

M
her hand Loyally Jeanne R emember
”
“
. . .
,

Mrs ax tead took the hand and held it in silence

. .
PA R T T W O —C HA P T ER X IV

T was late
ernoon on the las t day in May
af
t .

Ra in h ad fallen heavily in the morning but ,

with the drying ca pacity o fthe London streets

the pavements were clean again though the ,

M
h eat that had prevailed for a fortnight was allayed .

Mrs ax t e ad stepped out o f her brougham and

.

paused o n the doorstep o f her house be fo re inse rting

her latch key She turned round and her glance
- .
,

m
m oved restlessly from the trees to the sky was hed ,

free o fclouds ; fro the skyback again She loo ked .

older than w as custom ary as she st ood in the full

flood o f li ght ; the faint lines about her mouth
se emed deepe r the set o f her lips harder than w as
,

u su al
. She looked a wom an who was bearing a

m
mental st rain the weight o f which she hardly ad
,

it t e d to hersel f Presently she si ghed then caught

.
,

hers el fup impatiently and opened the door .

The hall was empty She threw her parasol on a

.

table and mounted the stair The first door o n the s.

corridor was Anna s ; she stopped outside it and

’

tapped . Getting no answer she shrugged her ,

shoulders walked away and pushed her o wn door

, ,

ope n with a j erk Then she ra ised her eyeb rows

. .

“
A nna ! I ve j u t been lookin g for you
’
s
”
.
 THE CI R CL E 239

Anna rose from the desk a bundle of letters in ,

her hand She wore no hat but her arms were

.
,

M
slipped loosely through the slee ves o f her fur travel
ling wrap Mrs axt e ad noted the point
- . . .

Fur in May ! Ho w nu E nglish She drew -

of f her gloves .

The other laughed a little ner v ously I felt cold . .

I hav e been wri ting business letters ; you see I u sed

M
your desk to gi ve me inspiration .
”

Mrs axt ead nodded

. Business is rather petri .

fying Who were the letters to

.

No o ne o f acc ount I was writin g cheques and .

paying bills I was seein g how I stand

.
”
.

My dear Anna what a waste o ftime The glory

,

o fb eing rich is the fact o fbeing able to ign ore money ;

to be really Arcadian one should be a millionaire ”
.

Anna stood silent She w as toying with the letters.

in her hand ; occasionally she li fted her hand and

pushed back her hair I wrote one letter that w as
.

MM
not about business she said at len gth ”
.
,

r s. ax t ead care fully remo v ed her hat and veil ,

then w ith elaborate in di fference look ed into the

, ,

glass. You are inde fatigable sh e said ,

”
.

A nna stirred a little Don t be flippant Jeanne ’

.
, ,

MM
the letter was to Maurice
r s. ax t ead s hand almost trembled
’

controlled the impulse ; she adjusted a hairpin and

bu t sh e
.

studied the effect B ut you write to Maurice

.

every other day I wish you would be m ore casual

.

about tri vial things ”

.
2 40 THE CI R CL E
This letter w as di fferent from the others ”
.

Ho w ori gin al It s qui t e hard to get variety in ’

love letters ; they are like one strin ged instruments -

”
.

Anna w alked back to the desk her fac e w as

flushed but she shivered with nervous cold
,
“
Do .

ta ke it se riously Jeanne ; I want you to understand

, .
”

Well say on ,
.
”

M
I ha ve decided that Maurice must know ”
.

Mrs ax t ead turned from the gl ass

. I am so .

gl ad she said quickly

,
”
So very gl ad I h 0 pe . .

you ha v e used all your tact ! Tact is more essential

to life than brea d .
”

Anna touched t h e t op o f the desk tentati v ely .

“
I m a fraid I have not u sed any t act
’
.
”

What

m
Oh don t bla m e me Jeanne ; don t blame me
,