The Witness, Grace Livingston Hill Lutz [the little red hen ebook .TXT] 📗

Most Succulent Apple Pie In The World,  With A Creamy Glass Of Milk

To Make It Go Down.

 

Chapter 23 Pg 138

Father Had Just Finished Trying To Make Bonnie Take A Second Helping Of

Everything,  When He Suddenly Dropped The Carving-Knife And Fork With A

Clatter And Sprang Up From His Chair:

 

"I Declare To Goodness,  Mother,  If I Didn't Forget!" He Said,  And Rushed

Over To The Telephone.

 

"Why,  That's So!" Cried Mother. "Don't Forget To Tell Him How Much We

Love Her!"

 

Bonnie Looked From One To The Other Of Them In Astonishment.

 

"It's That Young Man!" Explained Mother. "He Wanted We Should Telegraph

If You Got Here All Safe. You Know He Sent Us A Message After He Put You

On The Train."

 

"How Very Thoughtful Of Him!" Said Bonnie,  Earnestly. "He Is The Most

Wonderful Young Man! I Can't Begin To Tell You All He Did For Me,  A Mere

Stranger! And So That Explains How You Knew Where To Send Your Message.

I Puzzled A Good Deal Over That."

 

Four Hours Later Courtland,  Coming Up To His Room After Basket-Ball

Practice,  A Hot Shower,  And A Swim In The Pool,  Found The Telegram:

 

     Traveler Arrived Safely. Bore The Journey Well. Many Thanks

     For The Introduction. Everybody Happy; If You Don't Believe

     It Come And See For Yourself.

 

                          Father And Mother Marshall.

 

Courtland Read It And Looked Dreamily Out Of The Window,  Trying To Fancy

Bonnie In Her New Home. Then He Said Aloud,  With Conviction,  "Some Time

I Shall Go Out There And See!"

 

Just Then Some One Knocked At His Door And Handed In A Note From Gila.

 

     Dear Paul,--Come Over This Evening,  I Want To See

     You About Something Very Special.

 

                       Hastily,

                               Gila.

Chapter 24 Pg 139

Gila's Note Came To Courtland As A Happy Surprise. He Had Not Expected

To See Her Until The Next Evening. Not That He Had Brooded Much Over The

Matter. He Was Too Busy And Too Sanely Healthy To Do That. Besides,  He

Was Only As Yet Questioning Within Himself Whether He Was Going To Fall

In Love. The Sensation So Far Was Exceedingly Pleasurable,  And He Was

Ready For The Whole Thing When It Should Arrive And Prove Itself; But At

Present He Was Just In That Quiescent Stage When Everything Seemed

Significant And Delightfully Interesting.

 

He Had Firmly Resolved That The Next Time He Saw Gila He Would Tell Her

Of His Own Heart Experience With Regard To The Presence. He Realized

That He Must Go Carefully,  And Not Shock Her,  For He Had Begun To See

That All Her Prejudices Would Be Against Taking Any Stock In Such An

Experience. He Had Only So Shortly Himself Come From A Like Position

That He Could Well Understand Her Extreme Views; Her What Amounted

Almost To Repugnance,  Toward Hearing Anything About It. But He Would

Make Her See The Whole Thing,  Just As He Had Seen It.

 

Now Gila Had No Notion Of Allowing Any Such Recital As Courtland Was

Planning. She Had Her Stage All Set For Entirely Another Scene,  And She

Had On Her Most Charming Mood. She Was Wearing A Little Frock Of

Pale-Blue Wool,  So Simple That A Child Of Ten Might Have Worn It Under

A White Ruffled Apron. The Neck Was Decorated With A Soft 'Kerchief-Like

Collar. Not Even A Pin Marred The Simplicity Of Her Costume. Her Hair,

Too,  Was Simpler Than Usual,  Almost Carrying Out The Childish Idea With

Its Soft Looping Away From The Face. Little Heelless Black-Satin

Slippers Were Tied With Narrow Black Ribbons Quaintly Crossed And

Recrossed Over The Slim,  Blue-Silk Ankles,  Carrying Out The Charming

Idea Of A Modest,  Simple Maiden. Nothing Could Be More Coy And Charming

Than The Way She Swept Her Long Black Lashes Down Upon Her Pearly

Cheeks. Her Great Eyes When They Were Lifted Were Clear And Limpid As A

Baby's. Courtland Was Fairly Carried Off His Feet At Sight Of Her,  And

Felt His Heart Bound In Reassurance. This Must Be Love! He Had Fallen In

Love At Last! He Who Had Scorned The Idea So Long And Laughed At The

Other Fellows,  Until He Had Really Begun To Have Doubts In His Own Heart

Whether The Delightful Illusion Would Ever Come To Him! The Glamour Was

About Gila To-Night And No Mistake! He Looked At Her With His Heart In

His Eyes,  And She Drooped Her Lashes To Hide A Glint Of Triumph,  Knowing

She Had Chosen Her Setting Aright At Last. Softly,  Dreamily,  Pleasantly,

In The Back Of Her Mind Floated The Capitol Of The Nation,  And Herself

Standing Amid Admiring Throngs Receiving Homage. She Was Going To

Succeed. She Had Achieved Her First Triumph With The Look In Courtland's

Eyes. She Would Be Able To Carry Out Mr. Ramsey Thomas's Commission And

Win Courtland To Anything That Would Forward Ambitious Hopes For Him!

She Was Sure Of It!

 

The Very Important Business About Which She Had Wished To See Courtland

Was To Ask Him If He Would Be Her Partner In A Bazaar And Pageant That

Was Shortly To Be Given For Some Charitable Purpose By The Society Folks

With Whom She Companioned. She Wanted Courtland To March With Her,  And

To Consult Him About The Characters They Should Choose And The Costumes

Chapter 24 Pg 140

They Should Wear.

 

As If She Had Been A Child Desiring Him To Play With Her,  He Yielded To

Her Mood,  Watching Her All The Time With Delighted Eyes,  That Anything

So Exquisite And Lovely Should Stoop To Sue For His Favor. Of Course He

Would Be Her Partner! He Entered Into The Arrangements With A Zest,

Though He Let Her Do All The Planning,  And Heeded Little What Character

She Had Chosen For Him,  Or What Costume,  So She Was Pleased. Indeed,  His

Part In The Matter Seemed Of Little Moment So He Might Go With Her--His

Sweet,  Shy,  Lovely Maiden! For So She Seemed To Him That Night! A

Perfect Solveig!

 

The Reason For The Little Slippers Became Apparent Later,  When She

Insisted Upon Teaching Him The Dancing-Steps That Were To Be Used In A

Final Splendid Assembly After The Pageant. There Was Intoxication In The

Delight Of Moving With Her Through The Dreamy Steps To The Music Of The

Expensive Victrola She Set Going. Just To Watch Her Little Feet Like

Fairies For Lightness And Grace; To Touch Her Small,  Warm Hand; To Be So

Near Those Down-Drooping Lashes; To Feel Her Breath On His Hand; To

Think Of Her As Trusting Her Lovely Little Self To Him--Made Him Almost

Deliriously Happy. And She,  With Her Drooping Lashes,  Her Delicate Way

Of Barely Touching His Arm,  Her Utter Seeming Unconsciousness Of His

Presence,  Was So Exquisite And Pure And Lovely To-Night! She Did Not

Dream,  Of Course,  Of How She Made His Pulses Thrill And How He Was

Longing To Gather Her Into His Arms And Tell Her How Lovely She Was.

Afterward He Was Never Quite Sure What Kept Him From Doing It. He

Thought At The Time It Was Herself,  A Sort Of Wall Of Purity And

Loveliness That Surrounded Her And Made Her Sacred,  So That He Felt He

Must Go Slowly,  Must Not Startle Her Nor Make Her Afraid Of Him. It

Never Occurred To Him That The Wall Might Be Surrounding Himself. He Had

Entirely Forgotten That First Visit To Gila In The Mephistophelian

Garments,  With The Red Light Filling All The Unholy Atmosphere. There

Had Never Been So Much As A Hint Of A Red Light In The Room Since He

Said He Did Not Like It. The Lamp-Shade Seemed To Have Disappeared. In

Its Place Was A Great Wrought-Metal Thing Of Old Silver Jeweled With

Opalescent Medallions.

 

But It Was Part Of The Deliberate Intention Of Gila To Lead Him On And

Yet Hold Him At A Distance. She Had Read Him Aright. He Was A Man With

An Old-Fashioned Ideal Of Woman,  And The Citadel Of His Heart Was Only

To Be Taken By Such A Woman. Therefore,  She Would Be Such A Woman Until

She Had Won. After That? What Mattered It? Let Time Plan The Issue! She

Would Have Attained Her Desire!

 

But The Down-Drooping Lashes Hid No Unconscious Sweetness. There Was

Sinister Gleam In Those Eyes As She Looked At Herself Over His Shoulder

When They Passed The Great Mirror Set In A Cabinet Door. There Was

Deliberate Intention In The Way The Little Hand Lay Lightly In The

Strong One. There Was Not A Movement Of The Dreamy Dance She Was

Teaching Him,  Not A Touch Of The Little Satin Slipper,  That Did Not Have

Its Nicely Calculated Intention To Draw Him On. The Sooner She Could

Make Him Yield And Crush Her To Him,  The Sooner He Declared His Passion

For Her,  That Much Nearer Would Her Ambitions Be To Their Fulfilment.

Chapter 24 Pg 141

Yet She Must Be Very Sure That She Had Him Close In Her Toils Before She

Discovered To Him Her Purpose.

 

So The Little Blue Puritan-Like Spider Threw Her Silver Gossamer Web

About Him,  Tangling More And More His Big,  Fine Manly Heart,  And

Flinging Diamond Dust,  And Powder Made Of Charms And Incantations,  In

His Eyes To Blind Him. But As Yet She Knew Not Of The Presence That Was

Now His Constant Companion.

 

They Had Danced For Some Time,  Floating About In The Pure Delight Of The

Motion Together,  And The Nearness Of Each Another,  When It Seemed To

Courtland As If Of A Sudden A Cooling Hand Was Laid On His Feverish Brow

And A Calm Came To His Spirit Like A Beloved Voice Calling His Name With

The Accent That Is Sure Of Quick Response.

 

It Was