"_I_ wouldn"t evict you--never, never!" said Nora. "Oh, never!" she added, tears, not of fright, but of pity, filling her eyes. "But how can I control my father?"
"That"s for you to see to, missy; I must go back now, or we"ll none of us leave this cave alive. But you"ll just shlip into that water, and you"ll never be heard of again unless you promises. I"ll go back; they none of "em will know I followed yez. You"ll be drowned here in the deep pool, and I"ll go back to the boat, or you promises and we both goes back."
"But, Andy, what am I to promise?"
"That you won"t have me evicted. You say solemn here: "Andrew Neil, I would rather die myself or have my tongue cut out, and may the Holy Mother cast me from her presence forever, and may the evil spirits take me, if I don"t save you, Andy." You has to say that."
"No, I won"t," said Nora with sudden spirit. "I am not afraid. I"ll do my very, very best for you; but I won"t say words like those."
The man looked at her attentively.
"I was a little frightened at first," continued Nora; "but I am not now.
I would rather you pushed me into that pool, I would rather sink and die, than take an awful vow like that. I won"t take it. I"ll do my very best to save you, but I won"t make a vow."
"Faix, then, miss, it"s you that has the courage; but now if I let yez off this time, will ye do yer best?"
"Yes, I"ll do my best."
"If yer don"t, bonny as you are, and the light of somebody"s eyes, you"ll go out of the world. But, come, I trust yez, and we must be turning back."
The man took the matches from his pocket, struck one, and lit the candle. Then, Andy going in front of Nora, they both turned in the direction where the boat was waiting for them.
CHAPTER VII.
THE MURPHYS.
It was between two and three in the morning when the girls found themselves back again in the desolate mansion of Cronane. Biddy had left a window open; they had easily got in by it and gone up to Biddy"s big room on the first floor. They were to sleep together in Biddy"s small bed. Personally, discomforts did not affect them; they had never been accustomed to luxury, and rather liked the sense of hardship than otherwise.
"I brought up a bit of supper beforehand," said Biddy. "I am real hungry. What do you say to cold bacon and taters--eh? I went down to the larder and got a good few early this morning. I put them in the cupboard in a brown bowl with a plate over it. You"re hungry--aren"t you, Norrie?"
"No, not very," answered Nora.
"What"s come to you, you"re so quiet? You have lost all your spirit. I thought we would have a real rollicking time over our supper, laughing and talking, and telling our adventures. Oh! it was awful in that cave; and when you were away talking to the lady Banshee I did have a time of it. I thought that awful Andy was going to murder me. I had a sort of feeling that he was getting closer and closer, and I clutched hold of little Mike. I think he was a bit surprised; I"ll give him a penny to-morrow, poor gossoon. But aren"t you hungry, and won"t you laugh, and shan"t we have a jolly spree?"
"Oh, I shall be very glad to eat something," said Nora; "and I am a little cold, too. I took a chill standing so long in that icy water."
"Oh, dear, oh, dear! it"s the rheumatics you"ll be getting, and then you"ll lose your beautiful straight figure. I must rub your legs. There, sit on the bed and I"ll begin."
Nora submitted to Biddy"s ministrations. The room was lit by a small dip candle, which was placed in an old tin candlestick on the mantelpiece.
"Dear, dear! the light will be coming in no time, and we can quench the glim then," said Biddy. "I"ve got to be careful about candles. We"re precious short of everything at Cronane just now. We"re as poor as church mice; it"s horrid to be so desperately poor as that. But, hurrah for the cold taters and bacon! We"ll have a right good meal. That will warm you up; and I have a little potheen in a black bottle, too. I"ll put some water to it and you shall have a drink."
"I never touch it," said Nora, shuddering.
"But you must tonight, or you"ll catch your death of cold. There, the best thing you can do is to get right into bed. Why, you"re shivering, and your teeth are chattering. It"s a fine state Mrs. O"Shanaghgan will be in tomorrow when you go back to her."
"I must not get ill, Biddy; that would never do," said Nora, pulling herself together with an effort. "Yes, I"ll get into bed; and I"ll take a little of your potheen--very, very weak, if you"ll mix it for me--and I"ll have some of the bacon and potatoes. Oh! I would eat anything rather than be ill. I never was really ill in my life; but now, of all times, it would never do."
"Well, then, here you go. Tumble into bed. I"ll pile the blankets on you. Now, isn"t that better?"
Biddy bustled, intent on hospitality. She propped Nora up with pillows, pulled a great rug over her shoulders, and heaped on more and more blankets, which she pulled expeditiously from under the bed. "They always stay here in the summer," said Biddy. "That"s to keep them aired; and now they"re coming in very handy. You have got four doubled on you now; that makes eight. I should think you"d soon be warm enough."
"I expect I shall soon be too hot," said Nora; "but this is very nice."
She sipped the potheen, ate a little bacon and cold potatoes, and presently declared herself well again.
"Oh, I am perfectly all right!" she said; "it was coming home in the boat in my wet things. I wish I had taken a pair of sculls again; then I wouldn"t even have been cold."
"Now you"ll tell me," said Biddy, who sat on the edge of the bed munching great chunks of bacon and eating her cold potatoes with extreme relish. "Oh! it"s hungry I am; but I want to hear all about the lady Banshee. Did she come? Did you see her, Nora?"
"No, she didn"t come," said Nora very shortly.
"Didn"t come? But they say she never fails when the moon is at the full.
She rises up out of that pool--the bottomless pool it is called--and she floats over the water and waves her hand. It"s awful to see her if you don"t belong to her; but to those who belong to her she is tender and sweet, like a mother, they say; and her breath is like honey, and her kiss the sweetest you ever got in all your life. You mean to say you didn"t see her? Why, Nora, what has come to you? You"re trembling again."
"I cannot tell you, Biddy; don"t ask me any more. I didn"t see the Banshee. It was very, very cold standing up to my knees in the water.
I suppose I did wrong to go; but that"s done and over now. Oh, I am so tired and sleepy! Do get into bed, Biddy, and let us have what little rest we can."
Early the next morning Nora returned to O"Shanaghgan. All trace of ill effects had vanished under Biddy"s prompt treatment. She had lain under her eight blankets until she found them intolerable, had then tossed most of them off, and fallen into deep slumber. In the morning she looked much as usual; but no entreaties on the part of Biddy, joined in very heartily by Squire Murphy and also by Mrs. Murphy, could induce her to prolong her visit.
"It"s a message I"ll take over myself to your father if you"ll but stay, Nora," said the Squire.
"No, no; I must really go home," answered Nora.
"It"s too fine you are for us, Nora, and that"s the truth; and don"t go for to be denying it," said Mrs. Murphy.
"No; I hope I may never be too fine for my real friends," said Nora a little sadly. "I must go back. I believe I am wanted at home."
"You"re a very conceited colleen; there"s no girl that can"t be spared from home sometimes," said Mrs. Murphy. "I thought you would help Biddy and me to pick black currants. There are quarts and quarts of "em in the garden, and the maids can"t do it by themselves, poor things. Well, Biddy, you have got to help me today."
"Oh, mammy, I just can"t," answered Biddy. "I"m due down at the sh.o.r.e, and I want to go a bit of the way back with Nora. You can"t expect me to help you today, mammy."
"There she is, Nora--there she is!" exclaimed the good lady, her face growing red and her eyes flashing fire; "not a bit of good, not worth her keep, I tell her. Why shouldn"t she stay at home and help her mother? Do you hear me, Squire Murphy? Give your orders to the girl; tell her to stay at home and help her mother."
"Ah, don"t be bothering me," said Squire Murphy. "It"s out I"m going now. I have enough on my own shoulders without attending to the t.i.ttle-tattle of women."
He rose from the table, and the next moment had left the room.
"Dear, dear! there are bad times ahead for poor Old Ireland," said Mrs.
Murphy. "Children don"t obey their parents; husbands don"t respect their wives; it"s a queer state of the country. When I was young, and lived at my own home in Tipperary, we had full and plenty. There was a bite and a sup for every stranger who came to the door, and no one talked of money, nor thought of it neither. The land yielded a good crop, and the potatoes--oh, dear! oh, dear! that was before the famine. The famine brought us a lot of bad luck, that it did."
"But the potatoes have been much better the last few years, and this year they say we"re going to have a splendid crop," said Nora. "But I must go now, Mrs. Murphy. Thank you so much for asking me."
"You"re looking a bit pale; but you"re a beautiful girl," said the good woman admiringly. "I"d give a lot if Biddy could change places with you--that is, in appearance, I mean. She"s not a credit to anybody, with her b.u.mpy forehead and her c.o.c.ked nose, and her rude ways to her mother."