'Now, what does she mean by that?' he thought. The word was to him extravagant and dangerous--it was as if she had said: "How jolly!""And they'll continue not to know each, other," he added, but instantly regretted the challenge in those words. Fleur was smiling.
In this age, when young people prided themselves on going their own ways and paying no attention to any sort of decent prejudice, he had said the very thing to excite her wilfulness. Then, recollecting the expression on Irene's face, he breathed again.
"What sort of a quarrel?" he heard Fleur say.
"About a house. It's ancient history for you. Your grandfather died the day you were born. He was ninety.""Ninety? Are there many Forsytes besides those in the Red Book?""I don't know," said Soames. "They're all dispersed now. The old ones are dead, except Timothy."Fleur clasped her hands.
"Timothy? Isn't that delicious?"
"Not at all," said Soames. It offended him that she should think "Timothy" delicious--a kind of insult to his breed. This new generation mocked at anything solid and tenacious. "You go and see the old boy. He might want to prophesy." Ah! If Timothy could see the disquiet England of his great-nephews and great-nieces, he would certainly give tongue. And involuntarily he glanced up at the Iseeum; yes--George was still in the window, with the same pink paper in his hand.
"Where is Robin Hill, Father?"
Robin Hill! Robin Hill, round which all that tragedy had centred!
What did she want to know for?
"In Surrey," he muttered; "not far from Richmond. Why?""Is the house there?""What house?"
"That they quarrelled about."
"Yes. But what's all that to do with you? We're going home to-morrow--you'd better be thinking about your frocks.""Bless you! They're all thought about. A family feud? It's like the Bible, or Mark Twain--awfully exciting. What did you do in the feud, Father?""Never you mind.""Oh! But if I'm to keep it up?"
"Who said you were to keep it up?"
"You, darling."
"I? I said it had nothing to do with you.""Just what I think, you know; so that's all right." .
She was too sharp for him; fine, as Annette sometimes called her.
Nothing for it but to distract her attention.
"There's a bit of rosaline point in here," he said, stopping before a shop, "that I thought you might like."When he had paid for it and they had resumed their progress, Fleur said:
"Don't you think that boy's mother is the most beautiful woman of her age you've ever seen?"Soames shivered. Uncanny, the way she stuck to it!
"I don't know that I noticed her."
"Dear, I saw the corner of your eye."
"You see everything--and a great deal more, it seems to me!""What's her husband like? He must be your first cousin, if your fathers were brothers.""Dead, for all I know," said Soames, with sudden vehemence. "Ihaven't seen him for twenty years.""What was he?"
"A painter."
"That's quite jolly."
The words: "If you want to please me you'll put those people out of your head," sprang to Soames' lips, but he choked them back--he must not let her see his feelings.
"He once insulted me," he said.
Her quick eyes rested on his face.
"I see! You didn't avenge it, and it rankles. Poor Father! You let me have a go!"It was really like lying in the dark with a mosquito hovering above his face. Such pertinacity in Fleur was new to him, and, as they reached the hotel, he said grimly:
"I did my best. And that's enough about these people. I'm going up till dinner.""I shall sit here."With a parting look at her extended in a chair--a look half-resentful, half-adoring--Soames moved into the lift and was transported to their suite on the fourth floor. He stood by the window of the sitting-room which gave view over Hyde Park, and drummed a finger on its pane. His feelings were confused, tetchy, troubled. The throb of that old wound, scarred over by Time and new interests, was mingled with displeasure and anxiety, and a slight pain in his chest where that nougat stuff had disagreed. Had Annette come in? Not that she was any good to him in such a difficulty.
Whenever she had questioned him about his first marriage, he had always shut her up; she knew nothing of it, save that it had been the great passion of his life, and his marriage with herself but domestic makeshift. She had always kept the grudge of that up her sleeve, as it were, and used it commercially. He listened. A sound--the vague murmur of a woman's movements--was coming through the door. She was in. He tapped.
"Who?"
"I," said Soames.
She had been changing her frock, and was still imperfectly clothed; a striking figure before her glass. There was a certain magnificence about her arms, shoulders, hair, which had darkened since he first knew her, about the turn of her neck, the silkiness of her garments, her dark-lashed, greyblue eyes--she was certainly as handsome at forty as she had ever been. A fine possession, an excellent housekeeper, a sensible and affectionate enough mother. If only she weren't always so frankly cynical about the relations between them!
Soames, who had no more real affection for her than she had for him, suffered from a kind of English grievance in that she had never dropped even the thinnest veil of sentiment over their partnership.
Like most of his countrymen and women, he held the view that marriage should be based on mutual love, but that when from a marriage love had disappeared, or, been found never to have really existed--so that it was manifestly not based on love--you must not admit it. There it was, and the love was not--but there you were, and must continue to be! Thus you had it both ways, and were not tarred with cynicism, realism, and immorality like the French. Moreover, it was necessary in the interests of property. He knew that she knew that they both knew there was no love between them, but he still expected her not to admit in words or conduct such a thing, and he could never understand what she meant when she talked of the hypocrisy of the English. He said:
