"Away! My father will know what
to do with you."
"Oh, if you please, Miss Coleman, pray say nothing about it, pray do
not mention it to your father; I do not know what the consequences
will be; I really meant nothing; I really did not"--which was
entirely true.
"You who propose to teach religion to people! I ought to stop you;
but no, I will not be dragged into the mud."
A sudden thought struck her. He was shaky, and was holding on by the
table. "I will be silent," she cried--what a relief it was to him to
hear her say that! "but I will mark you," and before he could
comprehend what she was doing she had seized a little pair of
scissors which lay near her, had caught his wrist, and had scored a
deep cross on the back of the hand. The blood burst out and she
threw him a handkerchief.
"Take that and be gone!"
He was so amazed and terrified, not only at the sight of the blood,
but at her extraordinary behaviour, that he turned ghastly white.
The pain, however, recalled him to his senses; he rolled the
handkerchief over the wound, twisted his own round it too, for the
red stain came through Pauline's cambric, and departed. The account
current in the college was, that he had torn himself against a nail
in a fence.
Pages:
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288