She always helped shift the patient into a fresh bed, and that was done
very often. She would run to the cook or the butler for anything that was
wanted in a hurry. She flung gentility and humbug to the winds. Then she
dressed in ten minutes, and went and dined with Vizard, and made excuses
for Zoe's absence, to keep everything smooth; and finally she insisted on
sitting up with Ina Klosking till three in the morning, and made Miss
Gale go to bed in the room. “Paid nurses!” said she; “they are no use
except to snore and drink the patient's wine. You and I will watch her
every moment of the night; and if I'm ever at a loss what to do, I will
call you.”
Miss Gale stared at her once, and then accepted this new phase of her
character.
The fever was hot while it lasted; but it was so encountered with tonics,
and port wine, and strong beef soup (not your rubbishy beef tea), that in
forty-eight hours it began to abate. Ina recognized Rhoda Gale as the
lady who had saved Severne's life at Montpellier, and wept long and
silently upon her neck. In due course, Zoe, hearing there was a great
change, came in again to look at her. She stood and eyed her. Soon Ina
Klosking caught sight of her, and stared at her.
“You here!” said she. “Ah! you are Miss Vizard. I am in your house. I
will get up and leave it;” and she made a feeble attempt to rise, but
fell back, and the tears welled out of her eyes at her helplessness.
Zoe was indignant, but for the moment more shocked than anything else.
She moved away a little, and did not know what to say.
“Let me look at you,” said the patient. “Ah! you are beautiful. When I
saw you at the theater, you fascinated me. How much more a man? I will
resist no more. You are too beautiful to be resisted. Take him, and let
me die.”
“I do her no good,” said Zoe, half sullenly, half trembling.
“Indeed you do not,” said Rhoda, bluntly, and almost bitterly. She was
all nurse.
“I'll come here no more,” said Zoe, sadly but sternly, and left the room.
Then Ina turned to Miss Gale and said, patiently, “I hope I was not rude
to that lady--who has broken my heart.”
Fanny and Rhoda took each a hand and told her she could not be rude to
anybody.
“My friends,” said Ina, looking piteously to each in turn, “it is her
house, you know, and she is very good to me now--after breaking my
heart.”
Then Fanny showed a deal of tact. _“Her_ house!” said she. “It is no more
hers than mine. Why, this house belongs to a gentleman, and he is mad
after music. He knows you very well, though you don't know him, and he
thinks you the first singer in Europe.”
“You flatter me,” said Ina, sadly.
“Well, he thinks so; and he is reckoned a very good judge. Ah! now I
think of it, I will show you something, and then you will believe me.”
She ran off to the library, snatched up Ina's picture set round with
pearls, and came panting in with it. “There,” said she; “now you look at
that!” and she put it before her eyes. “Now, who is that, if you please?”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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