The Three Sisters

Book excerpt: Excerpt: ... going," Gwenda said, "because I want to. If I stayed I wouldn't marry Steven Rowcliffe, and Steven Rowcliffe wouldn't marry me." "But-I thought-I thought--" "What did you think?" "That there was something between you. Papa said so." "If Papa said so you might have known there was nothing in it." "And isn't there?" "Of course there isn't. You can put that idea out of your head forever." "All the same I believe that's why you're going." "I'm going because I can't stand this place any longer. You said I'd be sick of it in three months." "You're not sick of it. You love it. It's me you can't stand." "No, Ally-no." She plunged for another argument and found it. "What I can't stand is living with Papa." Ally agreed that this was rather more than plausible. XXXVIII The next person to be told was Rowcliffe. It was known in the village through the telegrams that Gwenda was going away. The postmistress told Mrs. Gale, who told Mrs. Blenkiron. These two persons and four or five others had known ever since Sunday that the Vicar's daughter was going away; and the Vicar did not know it yet. And Mrs. Blenkiron told Rowcliffe on the Wednesday before Alice told him. For it was Alice who told him, and not Gwenda. Gwenda was not at home when he called at the Vicarage at three o'clock. But he heard from Alice that she would be back at four. And it was Alice who told Mrs. Gale that when the doctor called again he was to be shown into the study. He had waited there thirteen minutes before Gwenda came to him. He looked at her and was struck by a difference he found in her, a difference that recalled some look in her face that he had seen before. It was dead white, and in its whiteness her blue eyes, dark and dilated, quivered with defiance and a sort of fear. She looked older and at the same time younger, as young as Alice and as helpless in her fear. Then he remembered that she had looked like that the night she had passed him in the doorway of the house at...