And the drawing-room! As Alicia Drake advanced alone into its empty and blazing magnificence she could only laugh in its face--so eager and restless was the effort which it made, and so hopeless the defeat.
Enormous mirrors, spread on white and gold walls; large copies from Italian pictures, collected by Henry Marsham in Rome; more facile statues holding innumerable lights; great pieces of modern china painted with realistic roses and poppies; crimson carpets, gilt furniture, and flaring cabinets--Miss Drake frowned as she looked at it. "What _could_ be done with it?" she said to herself, walking slowly up and down, and glancing from side to side--"What _could_ be done with it?"
A rustle in the hall announced another guest. Mrs. Fotheringham entered.
Marsham"s sister dressed with severity; and as she approached her cousin she put up her eye-gla.s.s for what was evidently a hostile inspection of the dazzling effect presented by the young lady. But Alicia was not afraid of Mrs. Fotheringham.
"How early we are!" she said, still quietly looking at the reflection of herself in the mirror over the mantel-piece and warming a slender foot at the fire. "Haven"t some more people arrived, Cousin Isabel? I thought I heard a carriage while I was dressing."
"Yes; Miss Vincent and three men came by the late train."
"All Labor members?" asked Alicia, with a laugh.
Mrs. Fotheringham explained, with some tartness, that only one of the three was a Labor member--Mr. Barton. Of the other two, one was Edgar Frobisher, the other Mr. McEwart, a Liberal M.P., who had just won a hotly contested bye-election. At the name of Edgar Frobisher, Miss Drake"s countenance showed some animation. She inquired if he had been doing anything madder than usual. Mrs. Fotheringham replied, without enthusiasm, that she knew nothing about his recent doings--nor about Mr.
McEwart, who was said, however, to be of the right stuff. Mr. Barton, on the other hand, "is a _great_ friend of mine--and a most remarkable man.
Oliver has been very lucky to get him."
Alicia inquired whether he was likely to appear in dress clothes.
"Certainly not. He never does anything out of keeping with his cla.s.s--and he knows that we lay no stress on that kind of thing." This, with another glance at the elegant Paris frock which adorned the person of Alicia--a frock, in Mrs. Fotheringham"s opinion, far too expensive for the girl"s circ.u.mstances. Alicia received the glance without flinching. It was one of her good points that she was never meek with the people who disliked her. She merely threw out another inquiry as to "Miss Vincent."
"One of mamma"s acquaintances. She was a private secretary to some one mamma knows, and she is going to do some work for Oliver when the session begins.
"Didn"t Oliver tell me she is a Socialist?"
Mrs. Fotheringham believed it might be said.
"How Miss Mallory will enjoy herself!" said Alicia, with a little laugh.
"Have you been talking to Oliver about her?" Mrs. Fotheringham stared rather hard at her cousin.
"Of course. Oliver likes her."
"Oliver likes a good many people."
"Oh no, Cousin Isabel! Oliver likes very few people--very, very few,"
said Miss Drake, decidedly, looking down into the fire.
"I don"t know why you give Oliver such an unamiable character! In my opinion, he is often not so much on his guard as I should like to see him."
"Oh, well, we can"t all be as critical as you, dear Cousin Isabel! But, anyway, Oliver admires Miss Mallory extremely. We can all see that."
The girl turned a steady face on her companion. Mrs. Fotheringham was conscious of a certain secret admiration. But her own point of view had nothing to do with Miss Drake"s.
"It amuses him to talk to her," she said, sharply; "I am sure I hope it won"t come to anything more. It would be very unsuitable."
"Why? Politics? Oh! that doesn"t matter a bit."
"I beg your pardon. Oliver is becoming an important man, and it will never do for him to hamper himself with a wife who cannot sympathize with any of his enthusiasms and ideals."
Miss Drake shrugged her shoulders.
"He would convert her--and he likes triumphing. Oh! Cousin Isabel!--look at that lamp!"
An oil lamp in an inner drawing-room, placed to illuminate an easel portrait of Lady Lucy, was smoking atrociously. The two ladies" flew toward it, and were soon lost to sight and hearing amid a labyrinth of furniture and palms.
The place they left vacant was almost immediately filled by Oliver Marsham himself, who came in studying a pencilled paper, containing the names of the guests. He and his mother had not found the dinner very easy to arrange. Upon his heels followed Mr. Ferrier, who hurried to the fire, rubbing his hands and complaining of the cold.
"I never felt this house cold before. Has anything happened to your _calorifere_? These rooms are too big! By-the-way, Oliver"--Mr. Ferrier turned his back to the blaze, and looked round him--"when are you going to reform this one?"
Oliver surveyed it.
"Of course I should like nothing better than to make a bonfire of it all! But mother--"
"Of course--of course! Ah, well, perhaps when you marry, my dear boy!
Another reason for making haste!"
The older man turned a laughing eye on his companion. Marsham merely smiled, a little vaguely, without reply. Ferrier observed him, then began abstractedly to study the carpet. After a moment he looked up--
"I like your little friend, Oliver--I like her particularly!"
"Miss Mallory? Yes, I saw you had been making acquaintance. Well?"
His voice affected a light indifference, but hardly succeeded.
"A very attractive personality!--fresh and womanly--no nonsense--heart enough for a dozen. But all the same the intellect is hungry, and wants feeding. No one will ever succeed with her, Oliver, who forgets she has a brain. Ah! here she is!"
For the door had been thrown open, and Diana entered, followed by Mrs.
Colwood. She came in slowly, her brow slightly knit, and her black eyes touched with the intent seeking look which was natural to them. Her dress of the freshest simplest white fell about her in plain folds. It made the same young impression as the childish curls on the brow and temples, and both men watched her with delight, Marsham went to meet her.
"Will you sit on my left? I must take in Lady Niton."
Diana smiled and nodded.
"And who is to be my fate?"
"Mr. Edgar Frobisher. You will quarrel with him--and like him!"
"One of the "Socialists"?"
"Ah--you must find out!"
He threw her a laughing backward glance as he went off to give directions to some of his other guests. The room filled up. Diana was aware of a tall young man, fair-haired, and evidently Scotch, whom she had not seen before, and then of a girl, whose appearance and dress riveted her attention. She was thin and small--handsome, but for a certain strained emaciated air, a lack of complexion and of bloom. But her blue eyes, black-lashed and black-browed, were superb; they made indeed the note, the distinction of the whole figure. The thick hair, cut short in the neck, was brushed back and held by a blue ribbon, the only trace of ornament in a singular costume, which consisted of a very simple morning dress, of some woollen material, nearly black, garnished at the throat and wrists by some plain white frills. The dress hung loosely on the girl"s starved frame, the hands were long and thin, the face sallow. Yet such was the force of the eyes, the energy of the strong chin and mouth, the flashing freedom of her smile, as she stood talking to Lady Lucy, that all the ugly plainness of the dress seemed to Diana, as she watched her, merely to increase her strange effectiveness, to mark her out the more favorably from the glittering room, from Lady Lucy"s satin and diamonds, or the shimmering elegance of Alicia Drake.
As she bowed to Mr. Frobisher, and took his arm amid the pairs moving toward the dining-room, Diana asked him eagerly who the lady in the dark dress might be.
"Oh! a great friend of mine," he said, pleasantly. "Isn"t she splendid?
Did you notice her evening dress?"
"Is it an evening dress?"