O"Grady conveyed my mother through the crowd to a seat, where, having placed my cousin beside her, he once more came near me.
"Jack," whispered he, "come a little this way." He drew aside a curtain as he spoke, and we entered a boudoir, where a buffet of refreshments was placed. Here the scene was ludicrous in the extreme, from the incongruous mixture-of persons of so many nations and languages who were chatting away and hobn.o.bbing to one another in all the dismembered phrases of every tongue in Europe; loud laughter, however, poured from one corner of the room, whither O"Grady directed his steps, still holding my arm. A group of Cossack officers in full scarlet costume, their loose trousers slashed with gold embroidery and thrust into wide boots of yellow leather, stood in a circle round a person whom we could not yet perceive, but who, we were enabled to discover, was exercising his powers of amus.e.m.e.nt for this semi-savage audience, whose wild shouts of laughter broke forth at every moment. We made our way at length through the crowd, and my eyes at last fell upon the figure within. I stared; I rubbed my eyes; I actually began to doubt my very senses, when suddenly turning his joyous face beaming with good-humour towards me, he held forth his hand and called out, "Captain, my darling, the top of the morning to you. This beats Stephen"s Green, doesn"t it?"
[Ill.u.s.tration: 3-164]
"Mr. Paul Rooney!" said I.
"No, no! Monsieur de Roni, if you please," said he, again breaking out into a fit of laughing. "Lord help you, man, I"ve been christened since I came abroad. Let me present you to my friends." Here Paul poked a tall Cossack in the ribs to attract his attention, and then pointing to me, said: "This is Captain Hinton; his name"s a poser--a cross between chincough and a house-key. Eh, old fellow?"
A Tartar grin was the reply to this very intelligible speech; but a b.u.mper of champagne made everything comprehensible between them. Mr.
Rooney"s hilarity soon showed me that he had not forgotten his native habits, and was steadily bent upon drinking gla.s.s for gla.s.s with his company, even though they only came in detachments. With Bashkir chiefs, Pomeranian barons, Rhine graaf s, and Polish counts he seemed as intimate as though he had pa.s.sed as much of his time in the Caucasus as the Four Courts, and was as familiar with the banks of the Don as ever he had been with those of the Dodder.
"And is it really our old friend Mrs. Paul who entertains this host of czars and princes?"
"Is it really only now that you"ve guessed it?" said O"Grady, as he carried me away with him through the salon. "But I see Lady Charlotte is amongst her friends, and your cousin is dancing; so now let"s make the most of our time. I say, Jack, your lady-mother scarcely supposes that her host is the same person she once called on for his bill. By Jove, what a discovery it would be to her! and the little girl she had such a horror of is now the belle of Paris. You remember Louisa Bellew, don"t you? Seven thousand a year, my boy, and beauty worth double the money.
But there she is, and how handsome!"
As he spoke, a lady pa.s.sed us leaning on her partner"s arm, her head turned slightly over her shoulder. I caught but one glance, and as I did so, the rushing torrent of blood that mounted to my face made my very brain grow dizzy. I knew not where I stood. I sprang forward to speak to her, and then became rooted to the ground. It was she, indeed, as beautiful as ever; her pale face wore the very look I had last seen the night I saved her from the flood.
"Did you observe her companion?" said O"Grady, who fortunately had not noticed my confusion. "It was De Vere. I knew he was here; and I suspect I see his plans."
"De Vere!" said I, starting. "De Vere with Miss Bellew! Are you certain?"
"Quite certain; I seldom mistake a face, and his I can"t forget. But here"s Guillemain. I"ll join you in a moment."
So saying, O"Grady left my side, and I saw him take the arm of a small man in black, who was standing at a doorway. The rush of sensations that crowded on me as I stood there alone made me forget the time, and I knew not that O"Grady had been above half an hour away when he again came to my side.
"How the plot thickens, Hinton!" said he, in a low whisper. "Only think, the villain Burke has actually made the hand and fortune of that lovely girl the price of obtaining secret information from De Vere of the proceedings of the British emba.s.sy. Guillemain did not confess this to me; but he spoke in such a way, that, with my knowledge of all the parties, I made out the clue."
"Burke! but what influence has he over her?"
"None over her, but much over the Rooneys, whom, independent of threats about exposing their real condition in life, he has persuaded that such a marriage for their ward secures them in fashionable society for ever.
This with Paul would do nothing; but Madame de Roni, as you know, sets a high price on such a treasure. Besides, he is in possession of some family secret about her mother, which he uses as a means of intimidation to Paul, who would rather die than hurt Miss Bellew"s feelings. Now, Jack, De Vere only wants intellect to be as great a scoundrel as Master Ulick, so we must rescue this poor girl, come what will."
"We must and we will," said I, with a tone of eagerness that made O"Grady start.
"Not a moment is to be lost," said he, after a brief pause. "I "ll try what can be done with Guillemain."
An opening of the crowd as he spoke compelled us to fall back, and as we did so I could perceive that an avenue was made along the room.
"One of the sovereigns," whispered O"Grady.
I leaned forward, and perceived two aides-de-camp in green uniform, who were retreating step by step slowly before some persons farther back.
"The Emperor of Russia," whispered a voice near me; and the same instant I saw the tall and fine-looking figure of Alexander, his broad ma.s.sive forehead, and frank manly face turning from side to side as he acknowledged the salutations of the room. On his arm he supported a lady, whose nodding plumes waved in concert with every inclination of the Czar himself. Curious to see what royal personage shared thus with him the homage of the a.s.sembly, I stooped to catch a glance. The lady turned--our eyes met; a slight flush coloured her cheek as she quickly moved her head away. It was Mrs. Paul Rooney herself! Yes, she whom I had once seen with an effort subdue her pride of station when led in to dinner by some Irish attorney-general, or some going judge of a.s.size, now leaned on the arm of an emperor, and divided with him the honours of the moment!
While O"Grady sought out his new friend, the minister of police, I went in search of my mother and Lady Julia, whom I found surrounded by a knot of their own acquaintances, actively engaged in surmises as to the lady of the house--her rank, fortune, and pretensions. For some time I could not but feel amused at the absurd a.s.sertions of many of the party, who affected to know all about Madame de Roni and her secret mission at Paris.
"My dear John," said my mother in a whisper, "you must find out all about her. Your friend, the Colonel, is evidently in the secret. Pray, now, don"t forget it. But really you seem in a dream. There"s Beulwitz paying Julia all the attention imaginable the entire evening, and you "ve never gone near her. Apropos, have you seen this ward of Madame de Roni? She is very pretty, and they speak of her as a very suitable person." (This phrase was a kind of cant with my mother and her set, which expressed in brief that a lady was enormously rich and a very desirable match for a man with nothing.) "I forget her name."
"Miss Bellew, perhaps," said I, trembling lest any recollection of ever having heard it before should cross her mind.
"Yes, that"s the name; somehow it seems familiar to me. Do you know her yet, for my friend Lady Middleton knows every one, and will introduce you?"
"Oh, I have the pleasure of being acquainted with her already," said I, turning away to hide my confusion.
"That"s quite proper," said her ladyship encouragingly. "But here she comes; I think you must introduce me, John."
As my mother spoke, Louisa Bellew came up, leaning on a lady"s arm.
A moment"s hesitation on my part would have only augmented the embarra.s.sment which increased at every instant; so I stepped forward and p.r.o.nounced her name. No sooner had the words "Miss Bellew" escaped my lips than she turned round; her large full eyes were fixed upon me doubtingly for a second, and her face grew deep scarlet, and then as suddenly pale again. She made an effort to speak, but could not; a tottering weakness seemed to creep over her frame, and as she pressed her companion"s arm closely I heard her mutter--"Oh, pray move on!"
"Lady Charlotte Hinton--"Miss Bellew," said the lady at her side, who had paid no attention whatever to Louisa"s agitated manner.
My mother smiled in her sweetest manner, while Miss Bellow"s acknowledgments were made with the most distant coldness.
"My son had deemed himself fortunate enough to be known to you," said Lady Charlotte.
Miss Bellew became pale as death; her very lips were bloodless, as with a voice tremulous with emotion, she replied--
"We were acquainted once, madam; but----"
What was to be the remainder of the speech I know not, for as the crowd moved on she pa.s.sed with it, leaving me like one whose senses were forsaking him one by one. I could only hear my mother say, "How very impertinent!" and then my brain became a chaos. A kind of wild reckless feeling, the savage longing that in moments of dark pa.s.sion stirs within a man for some act of cruelty, some deed of vengeance, ran through my breast. I had been spurned, despised, disowned by her of whom through many a weary month my heart alone was full. I hurried away from the spot, my brain on fire. I saw nothing, I heeded nothing, of the bright looks and laughing faces that pa.s.sed me; scornful pity and contempt for one so low as I was seemed to prevail in every face I looked at. A strange impulse to seek out Lord Dudley de Vere was uppermost in my mind; and as I turned on every side to find him, I felt my arm grasped tightly, and heard O"Grady"s voice in my ear--
"Be calm, Jack, for heaven"s sake! Your disturbed looks make every one stare at you."
He drew me along with him through the crowd, and at length reached a card-room, where, except the players, no one was present.
"Come, my dear boy, I saw what has annoyed you."
"You saw it!" said I, my eyeb.a.l.l.s straining as I spoke.
"Yes, yes; and what signifies it? So very handsome a girl, and the expectation of a large fortune, must always have followers. But you know Lady Julia well enough----"
"Lady Julia!" repeated I, in amazement.
"Yes. I say you know her well enough to believe that Beulwitz is not exactly the person----"
A burst of laughter at his mistake broke from me at the moment; but so wild and discordant was it that O"Grady misconstrued its meaning, and went at some length to a.s.sure me that my cousin"s affection for me was beyond my suspicion.
Stunned by my own overwhelming sorrow, I felt no inclination to undeceive him, and let him persist in his error without even a word of reply.
"Rouse yourself, Jack," said he, at length. "This depression is unworthy of you, had you even cause for grief. There"s many a heart heavier than your own, my boy, where the lip is smiling this minute."
There was a tone of deep affliction in the cadence of his voice as these words fell from him, and he turned away his head as he spoke. Then rallying in an instant, he added--
"Do you know, our dear friend Mrs. Paul has scarcely ventured to acknowledge me to-night, and I feel a kind of devilish spirit of vengeance working within me in consequence. To out me! I that trained her infant mind to greatness; that actually smuggled for her a contraband viceroy, and brought him alive into her dominions! What dire ingrat.i.tude! Come, what say you to champagne?"
He poured me out a large gla.s.sful as he spoke, and, filling his own, called out, laughing--