The Young Duchess; or, Memoirs of a Lady of Quality — page 173: what you’re looking at

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was an entrance from another street; and it was therefore possible that she might have left the bazaar by that means of egress. I returned to the droshky, took my seat therein again, and ordered the man to drive to Dr. Nevel’s. ‘During the quarter of an hour that was occu- pied in proceeding thither, I thought to myself that if after all I should be mistaken, it would be outrageous to accuse Mildred unjustly, or to show that I had such little confidence in my own daughter as to rush to the immediate conclusion that she could be guilty of the grossest hypocrisy and indiscretion. I therefore calmed the violence of my emotions as well as I was able; and at all events I resolved to act with caution and pru- dence. In this frame of mind I alighted at Dr. Nevel’s house. I was at once conducted up into the drawing-room; and there I found Mildred quietly seated over her embroidery, which she had brought with her, while Madame Nevel was reclining on a sofa near her. Both gave vent to an ejaculation of surprise on beholding me; and Mildred, throwing herself into my arms, exclaimed in accents of joy, ‘Ah, what a surprise, dearest mother! what a surprise !"—I embraced her with effusion. Never, never had she seemed so dear tome! I was convinced I had wronged her most cruelly; and, Oh! what a relief it was to m mind to be enabled to greet her with these feel- ings! Having remained to chat with Madame Nevel for about half-an-hour, I rose to depart; and Mildred offered to accompany me. But in- asmuch as it was yet early in the day, and she was accustomed to remain until a later hour with Madame Nevel, I did not choose to take her away with me. I bade her remain and return home in time to dress for dinner. ‘With a light heart I descended to resume my seat in the droshky, when I found that I had left my fur cuffs in Madame Nevel’s drawing-room, and I retraced my way up-stairs to fetch them. Asin most Russian houses, there was an ante- room leading to the saloon by means of folding- doors. As I approached those doors, and was just on the point of opening one of them, I heard Madame Nevel say, ‘Well, I declare, Mildred, I was at first quite frightened !’—‘Oh, I could tell by my mother’s looks,’ responded Mildred, ‘ that Aothing was the matter. But how all this is to end I know not, unless he fulfil his vow and make me his wife speedily.—‘ My dear young friend, you must have patience,’ answered Madame Nevel.—‘ Patience indeed!’ cried Mildred, almost in accents of despair: ‘how can you talk to me of patience when in another month I shall be utterly unable to conceal my situation any longer 2” —‘ Trust to the Doctor, my dear friend,’ rejoined Madame Nevel, ‘to devise some excuse: he has immense influence with your mother ; he will re- commend her to go to England by herself, or visit Italy or the South of France, and leave you, my dear, behind, on the plea that as you are so completely acclimatised in this region of our’s it would injure your health to remove you hence.’— ‘Ah, but why all these subterfuges ?’? demanded Mildred. ‘Tell me, I conjure you, have you any doubts of the fulfilment of his pledge ? Tell me not that he is too highly placed to wed one so comparatively obscure as I! It was not thus he spoke when he declared his love and triumphed pver my weakness! No, nor was it thus that 159 you or your husband spoke when you first intro- duced him to me. Qh, it smites me with the effect. of a remorse when I think how I used to steal forth from the side of my poor mother’s couch as she lay steeped in the torpor that fol- lowed the ravings of delirium, to meet — ‘Hush, my dear young friend!’ interrupted Madame Nevel, ‘do not reproach yourself.’— ‘Ah! methinks,’ proceeded Mildred, ‘I am now so steeped in hypocrisies, so thorough a mistress of dissimulation’s art, that there must be some- thing inherently base and vile in me that I am become such a proficient in duplicity in so short a time! But let that pass, and reply to me, Madame Nevel! Do you apprehend any pos- sibility of further delay in the fulfilment of his vows ?’—‘ You saw his lordship just now, my dear,’ responded Madame Nevel: ‘surely you must know what he said to you?’—‘ Ah! it is always the language of love and affection when we are together,’ cried Mildred; ‘and then I am so devoted to him that it is so easy for him to satisfy my fears for the time being, or to seal my lips with a kiss! As for the interview just now, it was so brief a one—he had some particular business on hand at the palace—that we merely walked from the bridge to the bazaar, which we traversed, and then we separated at once. In- deed it was fortunate that we did; for what would my mother have thought if she had come hither and found me out??—‘Did you not tell me,’ asked Madame Nevel, ‘that he is coming hither to meet you to-morrow? If so, we must take more than usual precautions, inasmuch as your mother is now getting about again.’—‘It is not here that we are to meet to-morrow,’ re- plied Mildred. ‘It is on the Neva.’—‘ Ah, to be sure!’ ejaculated Madame Nevel: ‘I forgot the fancy-fair! Well, of course,’ she added, with a chuckling laugh, ‘you will go to the fair with the Doctor and me, and your mother will feel certain that you are under the escort of friends who would not for a moment suffer you to roam out of their sight, much less get into mischief.’ —‘Do not be ironical, Madame Neyel! do not make a mockery of the matter!’ interrupted Mildred seriously; ‘for I can assure you that scarcely even the immensity of my love recon- ciles me to the detestable part of ae dissembler which I am now compelled to play towards my dear mother !!—' Why, my young friend, I was only jesting !’ cried Madame Nevel. ‘Do you think that the Doctor or I would lend our- selves to anything of this sort, unless it were under very peculiar circumstances ?’—‘I should hope not ; nor unless it were with a certain con- viction,’ continued Mildred, ‘that there are the most honourable intentions on one side as there has assuredly been the tenderest confidence on the other. However, to-morrow, precisely at four o’clock in the afternoon, I shall meet him; and then I will appeal to his goodness, his love, and his sense of honour, to delay not in making me his wife! Yes, I will appeal more ener- getically than I have yet done; and if he love me as fondly as his tongue incessantly proclaims, he will not torture me with excuse or evasion !"—‘ You are exciting yourself, my dear Mildred,’ said Madame Nevel. ‘ Pray compose yourself. Let me ring for wine: a glass will do you good.’ oO COMO ree pr jr th npn ir unt niger tg ct gg THE YOUNG DUCHESS; OR, MEMOIRS OF A LADY OF QUALITY, rr Colin