The Jade God Alan Sullivan (best summer reads of all time .txt) š
- Author: Alan Sullivan
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āI wish I could.ā
āJack, itās only that of a brokenhearted woman, her way of expressing it, and nothing else. Yet in spite of that sheās a household treasure. Things do themselves; thereās no lost energy and no lost time. If Perkins could be duplicated in sufficient quantities sheād revolutionize domestic life in England.ā
āItās a pity sheās never married and started a new breed.ā
Edith decapitated a surviving thistle. āThat kind doesnāt marry very often. Theyāre born into the world without any desire for marriage, and perhaps itās just as well in this case. Sheād be working for her husband and not for us. Marriage,ā she added quizzically, āisnāt the solution for everything.ā
āBut why do you say sheās brokenhearted?ā
āBecause of a queer thing that happened last night. I wasnāt going to say anything about it, but youāre so unusually sensible today that it doesnāt matter. I was lying half awake last night, and seemed to hear someone talking at a little distance with no attempt at concealment, and quite loud, so I wasnāt nervous. It was a womanās voice. I got up and prowled about and found it came from Perkinsās room. She was talking in her sleep in a queer, flat tone, talking very fast, apparently arguing with someone, greatly excited and rather desperate.ā
āWhat was she saying?ā put in Derrick sharply.
āThatās the strange part of it; I couldnāt understand a word. It was all in some strange liquid sort of language, ending in āongā and āyangā and āing,ā and sounds like that. Three or four times she said, āMaster, master.ā That must have meant Mr. Millicent, to whom she was so devoted. All of a sudden it stopped, as though her brain had come back from its travels, and I heard nothing more. This morning I looked at her very closely, but not a line of her face had changed, and her eyes were just the same as ever. She had evidently been dreaming about Mr. Millicentās death, and, Jack, thatās the biggest thing in her life now. She was dour and silent before; Mrs. Millicent said so today; and one can imagine what a tragedy like that must mean to a queer locked-up nature like hers.ā
āCanāt you remember any of the foreign words she used?ā he asked casually.
She frowned a little, thinking hard. āThere were two that came quite often, more than any others, one something like rumah, sambayĆ¼ng, and the other like santari. Thatās as near as I can get to it. Why do you ask?ā
āNo particular reason, except that Iād like to identify the language.ā
āYouāre not going to speak to Perkins herself, are you?ā
āNo,ā he smiled. āFar be it from me to put my finger into the wheels of domestic comfort. Anything more about her?ā
āNothing except that Iām going to try and cheer her up, and coax out a smile or two. As it is she smiles about once a week. Then thereās Martin.ā
āAnd what of him?ā
āI donāt quite know. Iāve been watching him at work and talking to him occasionally, and what strikes me is that here at Beech Lodge are two of the loneliest souls imaginable. Iāve got it now!ā she added suddenly. āWhy shouldnāt they marry?ā
āOh!ā said Derrick, startled.
āWell, just think a minute. It might work splendidly for all concerned,ā continued Edith, warming to the idea. āMartin, in spite of his appearance, is as faithful as a dog, and he absolutely loves flowers. This place is going to be a picture next summer. Heās had some sort of a blow, too, and his eyes are often more sad than I can describe, and not a bit shifty or furtive. And heās beginning to like you just as he used to like Mr. Millicent from all accounts. Jack, why shouldnāt they marry? Donāt you suppose itās possible that thatās what brought him back, looking for Perkins?ā
Derrick did not answer at once. The idea was too fantastic. It was not Perkins that Martin sought when he returned, nor was she the type of woman to bring a suspected man round the world to a place which for every reason he should avoid. They shared something; he was sure of that; but whatever it was it had dug a gulf between them, and to discover a bridge to span that gulf was Derrickās aim.
āIf I were you Iād put that idea out of my head,ā he said quietly.
Edith was a little disappointed. āWhy? Stranger things have happened before this.ā
It was on the tip of his tongue to say that stranger things would probably happen, but he only laughed.
āWe know nothing of their pastā āthat is, before they came to Beech Lodgeā āand their future is their own. Itās too delicate a business. Perkins doesnāt like Martin, though she was bound to recommend him as an excellent gardener, and it would be stretching the point a good deal to imagine that she is anything to him. She hardly speaks to him as it is. Didnāt you say just now that she was not the marrying kind?ā
āYes, I did; but since thereās no probability of my arranging my own wedding, I rather like to potter about with other peopleās. That may be useful to you, Jack, later on. As to Perkins, I dare say youāre right, and after all, if they did ultimately come together, it couldnāt be utterly festive, could it?ā
āNo,ā he laughed, āit couldnāt. What else is there in the mind of the thoughtful Martha?ā
āNothing except that Iād like to make those two lives a bit more cheery, if I could; and naturally oneās mind pitches ahead.ā
āIt does,ā he admitted. āDo you feel prophetic at the moment?ā
She sent him a keen glance, at which he colored in spite of himself.
āI donāt believe, old boy, youāre quite ready for me
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