"Mrs. Roby monopolised her from the first. And _that_, I"ve no doubt, was her purpose--to give Osric Dane a false impression of her own standing in the club. She would hesitate at nothing to attract attention: we all know how she took in poor Professor Foreland."
"She actually makes him give bridge-teas every Thursday," Mrs. Leveret piped up.
Laura Glyde struck her hands together. "Why, this is Thursday, and it"s _there_ she"s gone, of course; and taken Osric with her!"
"And they"re shrieking over us at this moment," said Mrs. Ballinger between her teeth.
This possibility seemed too preposterous to be admitted. "She would hardly dare," said Miss Van Vluyck, "confess the imposture to Osric Dane."
"I"m not so sure: I thought I saw her make a sign as she left. If she hadn"t made a sign, why should Osric Dane have rushed out after her?"
"Well, you know, we"d all been telling her how wonderful Xingu was, and she said she wanted to find out more about it," Mrs. Leveret said, with a tardy impulse of justice to the absent.
This reminder, far from mitigating the wrath of the other members, gave it a stronger impetus.
"Yes--and that"s exactly what they"re both laughing over now," said Laura Glyde ironically.
Mrs. Plinth stood up and gathered her expensive furs about her monumental form. "I have no wish to criticise," she said; "but unless the Lunch Club can protect its members against the recurrence of such--such unbecoming scenes, I for one--"
"Oh, so do I!" agreed Miss Glyde, rising also.
Miss Van Vluyck closed the Encyclopaedia and proceeded to b.u.t.ton herself into her jacket "My time is really too valuable--" she began.
"I fancy we are all of one mind," said Mrs. Ballinger, looking searchingly at Mrs. Leveret, who looked at the others.
"I always deprecate anything like a scandal--" Mrs. Plinth continued.
"She has been the cause of one to-day!" exclaimed Miss Glyde.
Mrs. Leveret moaned: "I don"t see how she _could!_" and Miss Van Vluyck said, picking up her note-book: "Some women stop at nothing."
"--but if," Mrs. Plinth took up her argument impressively, "anything of the kind had happened in _my_ house" (it never would have, her tone implied), "I should have felt that I owed it to myself either to ask for Mrs. Roby"s resignation--or to offer mine."
"Oh, Mrs. Plinth--" gasped the Lunch Club.
"Fortunately for me," Mrs. Plinth continued with an awful magnanimity, "the matter was taken out of my hands by our President"s decision that the right to entertain distinguished guests was a privilege vested in her office; and I think the other members will agree that, as she was alone in this opinion, she ought to be alone in deciding on the best way of effacing its--its really deplorable consequences."
A deep silence followed this outbreak of Mrs. Plinth"s long-stored resentment.
"I don"t see why I should be expected to ask her to resign--" Mrs.
Ballinger at length began; but Laura Glyde turned back to remind her: "You know she made you say that you"d got on swimmingly in Xingu."
An ill-timed giggle escaped from Mrs. Leveret, and Mrs. Ballinger energetically continued "--but you needn"t think for a moment that I"m afraid to!"
The door of the drawing-room closed on the retreating backs of the Lunch Club, and the President of that distinguished a.s.sociation, seating herself at her writing-table, and pushing away a copy of "The Wings of Death" to make room for her elbow, drew forth a sheet of the club"s note-paper, on which she began to write: "My dear Mrs. Roby--"