"I was so bored--so intolerably dull--and it is the only thing on earth that one cares to do."
"But Lance had nothing to stake."
"I could lend him! Ah! you don"t know what betting is; why, we all do it--women, boys and all!" His voice became excited, and Felix in consternation broke in--"When did you do this?"
"Oh! weeks ago. Before I was out of bed. When I found my dice in my purse; but I have not tried it since, with him!"
"With whom, then?"
"Why--don"t fall on him--with Fulbert. He knew what it meant. Now, Felix, don"t come on him for it. Come on me as much as you please.
I"ve been a traitor to you. I see it now."
"Anything but that!" sighed Felix, too much appalled for immediate forgiving, dejected as was the voice that spoke to him.
"Yes, yes, I know! I see. The worst thing I could do," said Fernando, turning his face in on the pillow, in so broken-hearted a manner that Felix"s kindness and generosity were roused.
"Stay, don"t be so downcast," he said. "There"s no harm done with Lance, and you being so sorry will undo it with Fulbert! I do thank you for telling me, _really_, only it upset me at first."
"Upset! Yes, you"ll be more so when you hear the rest," said Fernando, raising his head again. "Do you know who set that inn on fire?"
"n.o.body does."
"Well, I did."
"Nonsense! You"ve had a bad night! You don"t know what you are talking about," said Felix, anxiously laying hold of one of the hot hands--perceiving that his own Christmas Day must begin with mercy, not sacrifice, and beginning to hope the first self-accusation was also delirious.
"Tell me. Didn"t the fire begin in the ball-room? Somebody told me so."
"Yes, the waiter saw it there."
"Then I did it; I threw the end of a cigar among the flummery in the grate," cried Fernando, falling back from the att.i.tude into which he had raised himself, with a gesture of despair.
"n.o.body can blame you."
"Stay. It was after father and uncle had gone! I was smoking at the window of our room, and the landlord came in and ordered me not, because some ladies in the next room objected. He told me I might come down to the coffee-room; but I had never heard of such meddling, and I jawed him well; but he made me give in somehow. Only when I saw that big ball-room all along the side of the building, I just took a turn in it with my cigar to spite him. Poor Diego came up and begged me not, but you know the way one does with a n.i.g.g.e.r. Oh!"
Felix did not know; but the voice broke down in such misery and horror, that his soul seemed to sink within him. "Have you had this on your mind all this time?" he asked kindly.
"No, no. It didn"t come to me. I think I"ve been a block or a stone.
The dear faithful fellow, that loved me as no one ever did. I"ve been feeling the kiss he gave me at the window all to-night. And then I"ve been falling--falling--falling in his black arms--down--down to h.e.l.l itself. Not that he is there; but I murdered him, you know--and some one else besides, wasn"t there?"
"This is like delirium, really, Fernando," said Felix, putting his arms round him to lay him down, as he raised himself on his elbow. "I must call some one if you seem so ill."
"I wish it was illness," said Fernando with a shudder. "Oh! don"t go- --don"t let me go--if you can bear to touch me--when you know all!"
"There can"t be any worse to know. You had better not talk."
"I must! I must tell you all I really am, though you will never let your brothers come near me, or the little angels--your sisters. I"d not have dared look at them myself if I had known it, but things never seemed so to me before."
Felix shivered at the thought of what he was to hear, but he gave himself up to listen kindly, and to his relief he gathered from the incoherent words that there was no great stain of crime, as he had feared; but that the boy had come to open his eyes to the evils of the life in which he had shared according to his age, and saw them in their foulness, and with an agonised sense of shame and pollution.
Felix could not help asking whether this had long dwelt on his thoughts.
"No," he said, "that"s the wonder! I thought myself a nice, gentlemanly, honourable fellow. Oh!" with a groan. "Fancy that! I never thought of recollecting these things, or what they have made me. Only, somehow, when those children seemed so shocked at my advising them to hold their tongues about their bit of mischief--I thought first what fools you all were to be so scrupulous, and then I recollected the lots of things I have concealed, till I began to think, Is this honour--would it seem so to Lance--or Felix? And then came down on me the thought of what you believe, of G.o.d seeing it all, and laying it up against one for judgment; and I know--I know it is true!" and there came another heavy groan, and the great eyes shone in the twilight in terror.
"If you know that is true," said Felix, steadfastly and tenderly, "you know something else too. You know Whom He sent into the world for our pardon for these things."
There was a tightening of the grasp as if in acquiescence and comfort; but the nurse came back to tidy the room, and still Fernando clung to Felix, and would not let him go. She opened the shutters, and then both she and Felix were dismayed to see how ill and spent her patient looked; for she had slept soundly through his night of silent anguish and remorse--misery that, as Felix saw by his face, was pressing on him still with intolerable weight.
By the time the woman had finished Mr. Audley came in, and seeing at once that Felix"s absence was accounted for by Fernando"s appearance, he stepped up at once to the bed, full of solicitude. Felix hardly knew whether to reply or escape; but Fernando"s heart was too full for his words not to come at once.
"No, I am not worse, but I see it all now.--Tell him, Felix; I cannot say it again."
"Fernando thinks--" Felix found he could hardly speak the words either--"Fernando is afraid that it was an accident of his own--"
"Don"t say an accident. It was pa.s.sion and spite," broke in Fernando.
"That caused the fire at the Fortinbras Arms," Felix was obliged to finish.
"Not on purpose!" exclaimed Mr. Audley.
"Almost as much as if it had been," said Fernando. "I smoked to spite the landlord for interfering, and threw away the end too angry to heed where. There!" he added grimly; "Felix won"t tell me how many I murdered besides my poor old black. How many?"
"Do not speak in that way, my poor boy," said Mr. Audley. At least, this is better than the weight you have had on your mind so long."
"How many?" repeated Fernando.
"Two more lives were lost," said Mr. Audley gently, "Mr. Jones"s baby and its nurse. But you must not use harder words than are just, Fernando. It was a terrible result, but consequences do not make the evil."
He made a kind of murmur, then turning round, uneasily said, "That is not all; I have seen myself, Mr. Audley."
Mr. Audley looked at Felix, who spoke with some difficulty and perplexity. "He has been very unhappy all night. He thinks things wrong that he never thought about before."
Mr. Audley felt exceedingly hopeful at those words; but he was alarmed at the physical effect on his patient, and felt that the present excitement was mischievous. "I understand in part," he said.
"But it seems to me that he is too restless and uncomfortable to think or understand now. It may be that he may yet see the joy of to- day; but no more talk now. Have you had your breakfast?"
He shook his head, but Felix had to go away, and breakfast and dressing restored Fernando to a more tranquil state. He slept, too, wearied out, when he was placed on his couch, while Felix was at Christmas service, singing, as he had never sung before,--
"Peace on earth, and mercy mild, G.o.d and sinners reconciled."
Oh! was the poor young stranger seeing the way to that reconciliation? and when Lancelot"s sweet clear young notes rose up in all their purity, and the rosy honest face looked upwards with an expression elevated by the music, Felix could not help thinking that the boy had verily sung those words of truth and hope into the poor dark lonely heart. Kindness, steadfastness, truth, in that merry- hearted child had been doing their work, and when Lance marched away with the other lesser choristers, the elder brother felt as if the younger had been the more worthy to "draw near in faith."
Fernando was more like himself when Felix came in, but he was a good deal shaken, and listened to the conventional Christmas greeting like mockery, shrinking from the sisters, when they looked in on him, with what they thought a fresh access of shyness, but which was a feeling of terrible shame beside the innocence he ascribed to them.
"I wish I could help that poor boy," sighed Wilmet. "He does look so very miserable!"
And Geraldine"s eyes swam in tears as she thought of the loneliness of his Christmas, and without that Christmas joy that even her mother"s dulled spirit could feel--the joy that bore them through the recollections of this time last year.