"He may--some of the larger ones, for they had been submitted to an expert; but I doubt if he ever sees many of them again," her husband replied.
During these last two days Mona had been kept steadily employed in performing various duties for Mrs. Montague.
That lady"s costume for the ball was to be of great elegance and beauty.
The material was a rich garnet velvet, brocaded in white and gold, with point-lace garniture.
It had not been quite finished before they left New York, and Mona found no little difficulty in setting the many last st.i.tches, for she had had but small experience in finishing garments of any kind, and Mrs. Montague was very particular.
It was quite late in the evening when she completed her task, and, with a sigh of relief, laid the beautiful costume upon the bed, ready for Mrs.
Montague"s inspection when she should come up stairs for the night.
There was something of regret also mingled with her feeling that she, too, could not join the festivities on Monday evening. She had dearly loved society during the little while she had mingled with it, and the pleasurable excitement of the last few days, which kept all the young ladies in a constant flutter, made her long to be one among them.
It was about half-past two when Mrs. Montague made her appearance, looking flushed and elated, for she had just parted from Mr. Palmer, who had begged her to attend service at the village church with him the next morning. The request was so impressively expressed that she imagined her conquest was nearly complete, and she was therefore in high spirits.
She caught sight of her ball-dress immediately upon entering the room.
"How lovely it is, Ruth," she remarked, "and you have arranged the lace very tastefully upon the corsage. I believe it will be exceedingly becoming. I only wish I could see myself as others will see me on Monday night, and know just how I am going to look. Ruth," she added, suddenly, as if inspired with a bright idea, "you are about my height; suppose you put on the dress and let me get just the effect; that is, if you are not too tired and do not mind being made a show figure, here all by ourselves."
Mona smiled slightly over the woman"s vanity, but she was willing to oblige, and so signified her readiness to put the dress on, and in less than ten minutes she had metamorphosed herself from the quiet, retiring sewing-girl into a brilliant society belle.
The dress was a trifle loose for her, yet it was not a bad fit, while her pure neck and arms were as white as the costly lace, which fell in soft folds over them.
Mrs. Montague marveled at the exquisite fairness of her skin, and told herself that she had never realized, until that moment, how very beautiful her young seamstress was.
"You must put everything on, even to the jewels that I shall wear," she said, bringing a large case from one of her trunks, and exhibiting an almost childish eagerness to get the full effect of her costume.
She opened the case, and taking a diamond necklace of great beauty and value from it, clasped it about the girl"s milk-white neck. Then she fastened some fine solitaires in her small ears; three or four pins, each having a blazing stone for its head, were tucked amid the glossy braids of her hair, and two glittering snakes were wound about her beautifully rounded arms.
"Now for the fan, and you will be complete," cried Mrs. Montague, as she brought an exquisite affair composed of white ostrich tips, with a bird of Paradise nestling in its center, and handed it to Mona.
Then she stood off to admire the _tout ensemble_, and just at that moment there came a tap upon her door.
She went immediately to open it, and found her nephew standing outside.
"I"ve come for the money, Aunt Margie," he said. "I thought I"d better have it to-night, since I am going to town on the early train, and did not like to disturb you in the morning."
"Very well, I will get it for you, and I hope that Madame Millaise will have the mantle ready for you, for I must have it on Monday evening to throw over my shoulders after dancing," Mrs. Montague responded, as she turned back to get her purse.
She was on the point of closing the door, for she did not care to have her nephew know what was going on within the room. But Mr. Louis Hamblin was very keen. He knew from her manner that something unusual was occurring, and so he boldly pushed on after her, and entered the chamber before she was aware of his intention.
He stopped suddenly, however, the moment he had crossed the threshold, stricken with astonishment, as his glance rested upon Mona.
He had known that the girl was unusually lovely, but he was not quite prepared to see such a vision of beauty as now greeted his eyes.
"Jove! Aunt Marg, isn"t she a stunner?" he cried, under his breath. "You won"t see one at the ball Monday night that can hold a candle to her!"
Mona had flushed a vivid scarlet when he had so unceremoniously forced his way into the room; but at his bold compliment she turned haughtily away from his gaze with the air of an offended queen.
Her bearing, though full of scorn, was replete with grace and dignity, while the voluminous train of the rich dress made her slender form seem even taller and more regal than it really was.
Mrs. Montague had been no less impressed with the young girl"s beauty, but it would have affected her no more than that of a wax figure would have done had no one else been present to remark it. Now, however, at Louis" high praise, a feeling of envy sprang up in her heart, and a frown of annoyance gathered on her brow.
"I wish you would go out, Louis," she said, sharply. "It is very rude of you to thus force yourself into my room."
"Come now, Aunt Marg, that"s a good one, when all my life I have been in the habit of running in and out of your room, to do your bidding like a lackey," the young man retorted, mockingly. "But really this is an unexpected treat," he added, wickedly. "Miss Richards, in these fine togs, is the most beautiful woman that I have ever seen. And--"pon my word, Aunt Marg, I really believe she looks like--"
"Louis!" came in a sharp, warning cry from Mrs. Montague"s lips, as she wheeled around upon him, her blazing eyes having a dangerous gleam in them.
"Like--a _picture_ that I have seen somewhere," he quietly finished, but with a meaning smile and intonation. "How you do snap a fellow up, Aunt Margie! Here, give me the money, and I will clear out before another blast!"
Mrs. Montague handed him a roll of bills, telling him in an icy tone to be sure and get back as early as possible on Monday; and then, as he beat a retreat before her offended looks, she sharply shut the door upon him.
"Take off that dress!" she abruptly commanded of Mona.
Deeply wounded by her ungracious tone, as well as indignant at what had just occurred, the fair girl quickly divested herself of the costly apparel, and then, wishing the woman a quiet good-night, withdrew to her own room.
But nothing could make her very unhappy with the glad refrain that was continually ringing in her heart:
"Ray is coming! I shall see him!" she kept saying over and over. All other emotions were swallowed up in the joy of this, and she was soon sleeping the sweet, restful sleep of youth and dreaming of the one she loved.
But Mrs. Montague was terribly excited when she found herself alone.
"I should never have thought of it if Louis had not spoken, I was so absorbed in the costume," she muttered, as she stood in the middle of the floor and tried to compose herself. "I could almost swear that she was Mona come back to life. She looked almost exactly as she did that night in Paris--shall I ever forget it?--when I _told_ her, and she drew herself up in that proud way; and _she_ had a garnet dress on, too.
She _does_ look wonderfully like that picture! Louis was quick to see it, and I will have it destroyed when I return to New York. I can"t imagine why I have kept it all these years. Ugh! I feel almost as if I had seen a ghost."
She shook herself, as if to dispel these uncanny thoughts, and then disrobing, retired to rest.
Sunday was a lovely day--more mild and spring-like even than the previous ones had been.
Some of the guests at Hazeldean went to Rhinebeck to attend the morning service, Mr. Palmer and Mrs. Montague among the number; but most of them remained within doors until evening, when Mr. Wellington, their host, requested, as a favor, that all would attend a special service at one of the village churches, where a college friend was to preach, and he wished to give him as large an audience as possible. He also hinted, with a gleam of mischief in his eyes, that they would do well to take their pocket-books along, as a collection would be taken to help to pay for a new organ which the society had just purchased.
It was a glorious evening, and, everybody appearing to partake of the enthusiasm of the host, the whole party set out to walk to the church.
No one thought of asking Mona to go, and thus the young girl was left entirely alone in the house, except for the servants, who were by themselves in the bas.e.m.e.nt.
She was very lonely, and felt both sad and depressed, as she saw the party pa.s.s out of sight down the avenue, and for a moment she was tempted to rebel against her hard lot, and the neglect of others, who might at least have remembered that she had a soul to be benefited by Sabbath services as well as they.
She even shed a few tears of regret, for she was young and buoyant, and would dearly have loved to join that gay company of youths and maidens, if she could have done so as an equal.
But after a few moments she bravely wiped away the crystal drops, saying:
"I will not grieve; I will not give up to _anything_ until I have seen Ray. If _he_ is true, the world will be bright, though everybody else gives me the cold shoulder--and he will be here to-morrow. But I _am_ a trifle lonely, all by myself in this great house. I believe I will run down to the music-room and play for a little while. No one is here to be disturbed by it, and I shall not be afraid of critics."
So she went slowly down the dimly lighted stairs to a room on the right of the hall, where, without even turning up the gas, she seated herself at the piano.