The Eustace Diamonds. Anthony Trollope
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to say to me?" she asked Augusta, with her hands clasped, when she went up to put her bonnet on after breakfast.
"To fix the day, I suppose," said Augusta.
"If I thought so, I would endeavour to please him. But it isn't that. I know his manner so well! I am sure it is not that. Perhaps it is something about my boy. He will not wish to separate a mother from her child."
"Oh dear, no," said Augusta. "I am sure Frederic will not want to do that."
"In anything else I will obey him," said Lizzie, again clasping her hands. "But I must not keep him waiting—must I? I fear my future lord is somewhat impatient." Now, if among Lord Fawn's merits one merit was more conspicuous than another, it was that of patience. When Lizzie descended he was waiting for her in the hall without a thought that he was being kept too long. "Now, Frederic! I should have been with you two whole minutes since, if I had not had just a word to say to Augusta. I do so love Augusta."
"She is a very good girl," said Lord Fawn.
"So true and genuine—and so full of spirit. I will come on the other side because of my parasol and the sun. There, that will do. We have an hour nearly before going to church;—haven't we? I suppose you will go to church."
"I intend it," said Lord Fawn.
"It is so nice to go to church," said Lizzie. Since her widowhood had commenced, she had compromised matters with the world. One Sunday she would go to church, and the next she would have a headache and a French novel and stay in bed. But she was prepared for stricter conduct during at least the first months of her newly-married life.
"My dear Lizzie," began Lord Fawn, "since I last saw you I have been twice with Mr. Camperdown."
"You are not going to talk about Mr. Camperdown to-day?"
"Well;—yes. I could not do so last night, and I shall be back in London either to-night or before you are up to-morrow morning."
"I hate the very name of Mr. Camperdown," said Lizzie.
"I am sorry for that, because I am sure you could not find an honester lawyer to manage your affairs for you. He does everything for me, and so he did for Sir Florian Eustace."
"That is just the reason why I employ some one else," she answered.
"Very well. I am not going to say a word about that. I may regret it, but I am, just at present, the last person in the world to urge you upon that subject. What I want to say is this. You must restore those diamonds."
"To whom shall I restore them?"
"To Mr. Garnett, the silversmith, if you please—or to Mr. Camperdown;—or, if you like it better, to your brother-in-law, Mr. John Eustace."
"And why am I to give up my own property?"
Lord Fawn paused for some seconds before he replied. "To satisfy my honour," he then said. As she made him no immediate answer, he continued—"It would not suit my views that my wife should be seen wearing the jewels of the Eustace family."
"I don't want to wear them," said Lizzie.
"Then why should you desire to keep them?"
"Because they are my own. Because I do not choose to be put upon. Because I will not allow such a cunning old snake as Mr. Camperdown to rob me of my property. They are my own, and you should defend my right to them."
"Do you mean to say that you will not oblige me by doing what I ask you?"
"I will not be robbed of what is my own," said Lizzie.
"Then I must declare—" and now Lord Fawn spoke very slowly—"then I must declare that under these circumstances, let the consequences be what they may, I must retreat from the enviable position which your favour has given me." The words were cold and solemn, and were ill-spoken; but they were deliberate, and had been indeed actually learned by heart.
"What do you mean?" said Lizzie, flashing round upon him.
"I mean what I say—exactly. But perhaps it may be well that I should explain my motives more clearly."
"I don't know anything about motives, and I don't care anything about motives. Do you mean to tell me that you have come here to threaten me with deserting me?"
"You had better hear me."
"I don't choose to hear a word more after what you have said—unless it be in the way of an apology, or retracting your most injurious accusation."
"I have said nothing to retract," said Lord Fawn solemnly.
"Then I will not hear another word from you. I have friends, and you shall see them."
Lord Fawn, who had thought a great deal upon the subject, and had well understood that this interview would be for him one of great difficulty, was very anxious to induce her to listen to a few further words of explanation. "Dear Lizzie—" he began.
"I will not be addressed, sir, in that way by a man who is treating me as you are doing," she said.
"But I want you to understand me."
"Understand you! You understand nothing yourself that a man ought to understand. I wonder that you have the courage to be so insolent. If you knew what you were doing, you would not have the spirit to do it."
Her words did not quite come home to him, and much of her scorn was lost upon him. He was now chiefly anxious to explain to her that though he must abide by the threat he had made, he was quite willing to go on with his engagement if she would oblige him in the matter of the diamonds. "It was necessary that I should explain to you that I could not allow that necklace to be brought into my house."
"No one thought of taking it to your house."
"What were you to do with it, then?"
"Keep it in my own," said Lizzie stoutly. They were still walking together, and were now altogether out of sight of the house. Lizzie in her excitement had forgotten church, had forgotten the Fawn women—had forgotten everything except the battle which it was necessary that she should fight for herself. She did not mean to allow the marriage to be broken off—but she meant to retain the necklace. The manner in which Lord Fawn had demanded its restitution—in which there had been none of that mock tenderness by which she might have permitted herself to be persuaded—had made her, at any rate for the moment, as firm as steel on this point. It was inconceivable to her that he should think himself at liberty to go back from his promise, because she would not render up property which was in her possession, and which no one could prove not to be legally her own! She walked on full of fierce courage—despising him, but determined that she would marry him.
"I am afraid we do not understand each other," he said at last.
"Certainly I do not understand you, sir."
"Will you allow my mother to speak to you on the subject?"
"No. If I told your mother to give up her diamonds, what would she say?"
"But they are not yours, Lady Eustace, unless you will submit that question to an arbitrator."
"I will submit nothing to anybody. You have no right to speak on such a subject till after we are married."
"I must have it settled first, Lady Eustace."
"Then, Lord Fawn, you won't have it settled first. Or rather it is settled already. I shall keep my own necklace, and Mr. Camperdown may do anything he pleases. As for you—if you ill-treat me, I shall know where to go to." They had now come out from the shrubbery upon the lawn, and there was the carriage at the door, ready to take the elders of the family to church. Of course in such a condition of affairs it would be understood that Lizzie was one of the elders. "I shall not go to church now," she said, as she advanced across the lawn towards the hall door. "You will be pleased, Lord Fawn, to let your mother know that I am detained. I do not suppose that you will dare to tell her why." Then she sailed round at the back of the carriage and entered the hall, in which