Men -- Societies and clubs -- Fiction; Storytelling -- Fiction
“‘A fine player—that fellow,’ I said, following him with my eyes.
‘Don’t know much about the game myself, but the experts tell me——’ And
at that moment I saw her face, and stopped abruptly. She had gone very
white, and her knuckles were gleaming like the ivory on the handle of
her parasol.
“‘Major Chilham,’ she said—and her voice was the tensest thing I’ve
ever heard—‘who is that man who has just come out?’
“‘Trevor is his name,’ I answered, quietly. ‘He’s one of the
troop-sergeants in my squadron.’ I was looking at her curiously, as the
colour slowly came back to her face. ‘Why? Did you think you knew him?’
“‘He reminded me of someone I knew years ago,’ she said, sitting back in
her chair. ‘But of course I must have been mistaken.’
“And then rather abruptly she changed the conversation, though every now
and then she glanced towards the next tent, as if trying to see Trevor.
And sitting beside her I realised that there was something pretty
serious in the wind. She was on edge, though she was trying not to show
it—and Trevor was the cause, or the man who called himself Trevor. All
my curiosity came back, though I made no allusion to him; I was content
to await further developments.
“They weren’t long in coming. The house team, with the respectable total
of three hundred and fifty odd, were all out by tea-time, and both
elevens forgathered in the tent behind. All, that is, except Trevor, who
remained in the other until Apson himself went and pulled him out. I
watched the old man, with his cheery smile, take Trevor by the elbow and
literally drag him out of his chair; I watched Trevor in his blue
undress jacket, smart as be damned, coming towards us with our host. And
then very deliberately I looked at Giles Yeverley’s wife. She was
staring over my head at the two men; then she lowered her parasol.
“‘So you weren’t mistaken after all, Mrs. Giles,’ I said, quietly.
“‘No, Dog-face, I wasn’t,’ she answered. ‘Would you get hold of Giles
for me, and tell him I’d like to get back. Say I’m not feeling very
well.’
“I got up at once and went in search of her husband. I found him talking
to the Zingari captain and Sergeant Trevor. He seemed quite excited,
appealing as he spoke to the I Z. skipper, while Trevor stood by
listening with a faint smile.
“‘What he says is quite right, Sergeant Trevor,’ remarked the Zingari
man as I came up. ‘If you cared to consider it—you are absolutely up to
the best county form. Of course, I don’t know about your residential
qualifications, but that can generally be fixed.’
“‘Dog-face,’ cried Yeverley, as soon as he saw me, ‘he’s in your
squadron, isn’t he? Well, it’s so long since I left the Army that I’ve
forgotten all about discipline—but I tell you here—right now in front
of him—that Sergeant Trevor ought to chuck soldiering and take up
professional cricket. Bimbo here agrees with me.’
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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