Chapter 8

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_ CHAPTER VIII In one of the private offices of Messrs. Tudor, Peck & Co., the shrewd Baltimore detectives, stood Rex, waiting patiently until the senior member of the firm should be at leisure. "Now, my dear sir, I will attend you with pleasure," said Mr. Tudor, sealing and dispatching the note he had just finished, and motioning Rex to a seat. "I shall be pleased if you will permit me to light a cigar," said Rex, taking the seat indicated. "Certainly, certainly; smoke, if you feel so inclined, by all means," replied the detective, watching with a puzzled twinkle in his eye the fair, boyish face of his visitor. "No, thank you," he said, as Rex tendered him an Havana; "I never smoke during business hours." "I wish to engage your services to find out the whereabouts of--of--of--my wife," said Rex, hesitatingly. "She has left me--suddenly--she fled--on the very night of our marriage!" It hurt Rex's pride cruelly to make this admission, and a painful flush crept up into the dark rings of hair lying on his white forehead. Mr. Tudor was decidedly amazed. He could not realize how any sane young woman could leave so handsome a young fellow as the one before him. In most cases the shoe was on the other foot; but he was too thoroughly master of his business to express surprise in his face. He merely said: "Go on, sir; go on!" And Rex did go on, never sparing himself in describing how he urged Daisy to marry him on the night of the fête, and of their parting, and the solemn promise to meet on the morrow, and of his wild grief--more bitter than death--when he had found the cottage empty. "It reads like the page of a romance," said Rex, with a dreary smile, leaning his head on his white hand. "But I must find her!" he cried, with energy. "I shall search the world over for her. If it takes every cent of my fortune, I shall find Daisy!" Rex looked out of the window at the soft, fleecy clouds overhead, little dreaming Daisy was watching those self-same clouds, scarcely a stone's throw from the very spot where he sat, and at that moment he was nearer Daisy than he would be for perhaps years again, for the strong hand of Fate was slowly but surely drifting them asunder. For some moments neither spoke. "Perhaps," said Mr. Tudor, breaking the silence, "there was a previous lover in the case?" "I am sure there was not!" said Rex, eagerly. Still the idea was new to him. He adored Daisy with a mad, idolatrous adoration, almost amounting to worship, and a love so intense is susceptible to the poisonous breath of jealousy, and jealousy ran in Rex's veins. He could not endure the thought of Daisy's--his Daisy's--eyes brightening or her cheek flushing at the approach of a rival--that fair, flower-like face, sweet and innocent as a child's--Daisy, whom he so madly loved. "Well," said Mr. Tudor, as Rex arose to depart, "I will do all I can for you. Leave your address, please, in case I should wish to communicate with you." "I think I shall go back to Allendale, remaining there at least a month or so. I have a strong conviction Daisy might come back, or at least write to me there." Mr. Tudor jotted down the address, feeling actually sorry for the handsome young husband clinging to such a frail straw of hope. In his own mind, long before Rex had concluded his story, he had settled his opinion--that from some cause the young wife had fled from him with some rival, bitterly repenting her mad, hasty marriage. "I have great faith in your acknowledged ability," said Rex, grasping Mr. Tudor's outstretched hand. "I shall rest my hopes upon your finding Daisy. I can not, will not, believe she is false. I would as soon think of the light of heaven playing me false as my sweet little love!" * * * * * The dark mantle of night had folded its dusky wings over the inmates of the seminary. All the lights were out in the young ladies' rooms--as the nine-o'clock call, "All lights out!" had been called some ten minutes before--all the lights save one, flickering, dim, and uncertain, from Daisy's window. "Oh, dear!" cried Daisy, laying her pink cheek down on the letter she was writing to Rex, "I feel as though I could do something very desperate to get away from here--and--and--back to Rex. Poor fellow!" she sighed, "I wonder what he thought, as the hours rolled by and I did not come? Of course he went over to the cottage," she mused, "and Septima must have told him where I had gone. Rex will surely come for me to-morrow," she told herself, with a sweet, shy blush. She read and reread the letter her trembling little hands had penned with many a heart-flutter. It was a shy, sweet little letter, beginning with "Dear Mr. Rex," and ending with, "Yours sincerely, Daisy." It was just such a dear, timid letter as many a pure, fresh-hearted loving young girl would write, brimful of the love which filled her guileless heart for her handsome, debonair Rex--with many allusions to the secret between them which weighed so heavily on her heart, sealing her lips for his dear sake. After sealing and directing her precious letter, and placing it in the letter-bag which hung at the lower end of the corridor, Daisy hurried back to her own apartment and crept softly into her little white bed, beside Sara, and was soon fast asleep, dreaming of Rex and a dark, haughty, scornful face falling between them and the sunshine--the cold, mocking face of Pluma Hurlhurst. Mme. Whitney, as was her custom, always looked over the out-going mail early in the morning, sealing the letters of which she approved, and returning, with a severe reprimand, those which did not come up to the standard of her ideas. "What is this?" she cried, in amazement, turning the letter Daisy had written in her hand. "Why, I declare, it is actually sealed!" Without the least compunction she broke the seal, grimly scanning its contents from beginning to end. If there was anything under the sun the madame abominated it was love-letters. It was an established fact that no tender billets-doux found their way from the academy; the argus-eyed madame was too watchful for that. With a lowering brow, she gave the bell-rope a hasty pull. "Jenkins," she said to the servant answering her summons, "send Miss Brooks to me here at once!" "Poor little thing!" cried the sympathetic Jenkins to herself. "I wonder what in the world is amiss now? There's fire in the madame's eye. I hope she don't intend to scold poor little Daisy Brooks." Jenkins had taken a violent fancy to the sweet-faced, golden-haired, timid young stranger. "It must be something terrible, I'm sure!" cried Sara, when she heard the madame had sent for Daisy; while poor Daisy's hand trembled so--she could scarcely tell why--that she could hardly bind up the golden curls that fell down to her waist in a wavy, shining sheen. Daisy never once dreamed her letter was the cause of her unexpected summons, until she entered Mme. Whitney's presence and saw it opened--yes, opened--her own sacred, loving letter to Rex--in her hand. Daisy was impulsive, and her first thought was to grasp her precious letter and flee to her own room. How dared the madame open the precious letter she had intended only for Rex's eyes! "Miss Brooks," began madame, impressively, "I suppose I am right in believing this epistle belongs to you?" A great lump rose in Daisy's throat. "Yes, madame," answered Daisy, raising her dark-blue eyes pleadingly to the stern face before her. "And may I ask by what right you dared violate the rules and regulations of this establishment by sending a sealed letter to--a man? Your guardian strictly informed me you had no correspondents whatever, and I find this is a--I blush to confess it--actually a love-letter. What have you to say in reference to your folly, Miss Brooks?" "I'm sure I don't know," sobbed Daisy. "You don't know?" repeated madame, scornfully. "Not a very satisfactory explanation. Well, Miss Brooks, I have fully determined what steps I shall take in the matter. I shall read this letter this morning before the whole school; it will afford me an excellent opportunity to point out the horrible depths to which young girls are plunged by allowing their minds to wander from their books to such thoughts as are here expressed. What do you mean by this secret to which you allude so often?" she asked, suddenly. "Please do not ask me, madame," sobbed Daisy; "I can not tell you--indeed I can not. I dare not!" An alarming thought occurred to madame. "Speak, girl!" she cried, hoarsely, grasping her firmly by the shoulder. "I must know the meaning of this secret which is so appalling. You fear to reveal it! Does your guardian know of it?" "No--o!" wailed Daisy; "I could not tell him. I must keep the secret." Poor little innocent Daisy! her own words had convicted her beyond all pardon in the eyes of shrewd, suspicious Mme. Whitney, who guessed, as is usually the case, wide of the mark, as to the cause of the secret Daisy dare not to reveal to her guardian or herself. "My duty is plain in this case," said madame. "I shall read this as a terrible warning to the young ladies of this institution; then I will send for Mr. John Brooks, your guardian, and place this letter in his hands." "Oh, no, madame, in pity's name, no!" sobbed Daisy, wildly, kneeling imploringly at her feet, her heart beating tumultuously, and her hands locked convulsively together. "Do not, madame, I pray you; anything but that; he would cast me out of his heart and home, and I--I could not go to Rex, you see." But madame did not see. She laughed a little hard, metallic laugh that grated, oh, so cruelly, on Daisy's sensitive nerves. When one woman's suspicions are aroused against another, Heaven help the suspected one; there is little mercy shown her. "Man's inhumanity to man" is nothing compared to woman's inhumanity to woman. Mme. Whitney had discovered a capital way to score a hit in the direction of morality. "No," she said, laying the letter down on the table before her. "Arise from your knees, Miss Brooks. Your prayers are useless. I think this will be a life-long lesson to you." "Oh, madame, for the love of Heaven!" cried Daisy, rocking herself to and fro, "spare me, I beseech you! Can nothing alter your purpose?" "Well," said madame, reflectively, "I may not be quite so severe with you if you will confess, unreservedly, the whole truth concerning this terrible secret, and what this young man Rex is to you." "I can not," wailed Daisy, "I can not. Oh, my heart is breaking, yet I dare not." "Very well," said madame, rising, indicating the conversation was at an end, "I shall not press you further on the subject. I will excuse you now, Miss Brooks. You may retire to your room." Still Daisy rocked herself to and fro on her knees at her feet. Suddenly a daring thought occurred to her. The letter which had caused her such bitter woe lay on the table almost within her very grasp--the letter, every line of which breathed of her pure, sacred love for Rex--her Rex--whom she dared not even claim. She could imagine madame commenting upon every word and sentence, ridiculing those tender expressions which had been such rapturous joy to her hungry little heart as she had penned them. And, last of all, and far the most bitter thought, how dear old John Brooks would turn his honest eyes upon her tell-tale face, demanding to know what the secret was--the secret which she had promised her young husband she would not reveal, come what would. If his face should grow white and stern, and those lips, which had blessed, praised, and petted, but never scolded her--if those lips should curse her, she would die then and there at his feet. In an instant she had resolved upon a wild, hazardous plan. Quick as a flash of lightning Daisy sprung to her feet and tore the coveted letter from madame's detaining grasp; the door stood open, and with the fleetness of a hunted deer she flew down the corridor, never stopping for breath until she had gained the very water's edge. Mme. Whitney gave a loud shriek and actually fainted, and the attendant, who hurried to the scene, caught but a glimpse of a white, terrified, beautiful face, and a cloud of flying golden hair. No one in that establishment ever gazed upon the face of Daisy Brooks again! _

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