Vanderbridge. It would
help her to know that you see her also."
But the next morning, when I went down to Mrs. Vanderbridge's room, I
found that she was too ill to see me. At noon a trained nurse came on
the case, and for a week we took our meals together in the morning-room
upstairs. She appeared competent enough, but I am sure that she didn't
so much as suspect that there was anything wrong in the house except the
influenza which had attacked Mrs. Vanderbridge the night of the opera.
Never once during that week did I catch a glimpse of the Other One,
though I felt her presence whenever I left my room and passed through
the hall below. I knew all the time as well as if I had seen her that
she was hidden there, watching, watching--
At the end of the week Mrs. Vanderbridge sent for me to write some
letters, and when I went into her room, I found her lying on the couch
with a tea table in front of her. She asked me to make the tea because
she was still so weak, and I saw that she looked flushed and feverish,
and that her eyes were unnaturally large and bright. I hoped she
wouldn't talk to me, because people in that state are apt to talk too
much and then to blame the listener; but I had hardly taken my seat at
the tea table before she said in a hoarse voice--the cold had settled on
her chest:
"Miss Wrenn, I have wanted to ask you ever since the other evening--did
you--did you see anything unusual at dinner? From your face when you
came out I thought--I thought--"
I met this squarely.
Pages:
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298