A Double Knot. George Manville Fenn
for I love it, I love it,” she whispered to herself, and the soft dawn of a young mother’s yearning for her offspring grew warmer in her face.
“You will never see it more,” exclaimed the woman at last, in a hard harsh voice, though she trembled and shrank from her daughter’s eyes as she spoke. “It will never lie by your side for him to gaze upon your shame and his: the child is dead.”
A piteous cry broke from the young mother’s breast, and in her bitter grief she lay sobbing violently, till nature interposed, and, exhausted, weak and helpless, she sank into a heavy sleep with the tears still wet upon her face.
“It is better so—it is better so,” muttered Mrs. Riversley, as she stood gazing down at her child. “It will nearly kill her, but, God forgive me, it must be done.”
She stood watching in the shaded room till a slight noise below made her start, and hastily glancing at her daughter to see that she slept, she stole on tiptoe from the bedside, and crept downstairs to where a sharp angular-looking woman of four or five and twenty was standing in the little drawing-room with her shawl over one arm, and her bonnet swinging from the strings.
She looked flushed with exercise, and her hair about her temples was wet with perspiration, while her boots were covered with dust.
“Well?”
“Well,” said the woman, with a rude, impatient gesture. “You must give me a glass of wine. I’m dead beat. It’s quite four miles there, and as hot as hot.”
“How dare you speak to me in that insolent way, Jane?” said Mrs. Riversley angrily.
“Oh,” said the woman sharply, “this is no time far ma’aming and bowing and scraping; servants and missuses is all human beings together when they’re in trouble, and folks don’t make no difference between them.”
“But you might speak in a more respectful way, Jane,” said Mrs. Riversley, biting her lips, and looking pale.
“Dessay I might,” said the woman; “but this ain’t the time. Well, you want to know about the—”
“Hush! for Heaven’s sake, hush,” exclaimed Mrs. Riversley, glancing round.
“Oh, there’s no one near us,” said the woman with a mocking laugh; “not even the police, so you needn’t be afraid. It ain’t murder.”
“Did you find her?” said Mrs. Riversley. “Pray tell me, Jane. I spoke rather harshly just now, but I could not help it, I was so troubled and upset.”
“Dessay you were; dessay everybody else is,” said the woman roughly. “How’s Miss Mary?”
“Better, Jane; but you must never see her again. She must never know.”
“Did you tell her it was dead?” said the woman sharply.
“Yes, yes, and so it must be to her. But tell me,” continued Mrs. Riversley eagerly, “did you make the arrangement?”
“Yes, and I had to give her every penny of the money you started me with.”
“And she does not know anything?”
“No,” said the woman, “and never will if you behave to me proper.”
“Yes, yes, Jane, I will; anything I can do, but you must go from here—at once.”
“And how are you going to manage?”
“As I can,” said Mrs. Riversley sternly. “This secret must be kept.”
“And what are you going to give me to keep it?” said the woman sharply.
“I am not rich, Jane—far from it,” began Mrs
Riversley.
“You’re rich enough to pay me twenty pounds a year always,” said the woman, with a keen greedy look in her unpleasant face.
“Yes, yes, Jane, I will,” said Mrs. Riversley eagerly, “on condition that you keep it secret, and never come near us more.”
“Then I want that grey silk dress of Miss Mary’s,” said the woman, with the avaricious look growing in her face. “She won’t want to wear it now.”
“You shall have it, Jane.”
“And there’s that velvet jacket I should like.”
“You shall have that too, Jane.”
“I ain’t got a watch and chain,” said the woman, “you may as well give me yourn.”
Without a word Mrs. Riversley unhooked the little gold watch from her side, drew the chain from her neck, and threw it over that of her servant, whose closely set eyes twinkled with delight.
“You must pay me the money in advance every year,” said the woman now sharply. “I’m not going without the first year.”
Without replying Mrs. Riversley walked to a side-table, unlocked a desk, and from the drawer took out four crisp new bank-notes.
Jane Glyne, maid-of-all-work at the Dingle, a place two miles from everywhere, as she said, and at which she was sure no decent servant would stop, held out her crooked fingers for the money, but Mrs. Riversley placed the hand containing the notes behind her.
“One word first,” she said firmly. “I have agreed in every respect to the hard terms you have made.”
“Well, if you call them hard terms”—began the woman in an insolent tone.
“Silence!” exclaimed Mrs. Riversley, “and listen to me.”
She spoke in a low deep voice, full of emotion, and the low-bred woman quailed before her as she went on.
“I say I have come to your terms that you have imposed upon me.”
“I never imposed upon you,” began Jane.
“Silence, woman!” cried Mrs. Riversley, stamping her foot imperiously. “I have agreed to all you wished, but I must have my conditions too. You have that unfortunate babe.”
“Your grandson,” said the woman in a low voice, but Mrs. Riversley did not heed her.
“Bring it up as you will, or trust it to whom you will, but from this hour it must be dead to us. I shall give you the money in my hand, and I will do more. This is June. From now every half year fifteen pounds shall be ready at an address in London that I will give you. To such a woman as you that should be a goodly sum, but my conditions are that within an hour you shall have made up a bundle of the best of your things, and left this place, never to return. If you ever molest us by letter or visit, the money will be stopped.”
“And suppose I tell everybody about it?” said the woman insolently.
“It is no criminal proceeding that I am aware of,” said Mrs. Riversley coldly; “but you will not do that; you value the money too much. Do you agree to my terms?”
“But my box,” said the woman. “I can’t carry away half my things.”
“Here is another five-pound note,” said Mrs. Riversley coldly; “five five-pound notes. I gave you ten pounds before, and you only gave that woman half.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I know your grasping character,” said Mrs. Riversley firmly. “Now—quick—do you decide? Try to extort more, and finding what you are, I shall risk all discovery, and bear the shame sooner than be under your heel. Do you agree?”
“Yes,” said the woman surlily.
“Quick, then; get your things and go. I will bring you the dress and jacket.”
“Ain’t I to say good-bye to Miss Mary?”
“No,”