Tranquillity House. Augusta Huiell Seaman
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Название: Tranquillity House
Автор: Augusta Huiell Seaman
Издательство: Bookwire
Жанр: Документальная литература
isbn: 4064066431068
isbn:
“Oh, do be good and not tease!” I said. “What did happen?”
“Well, I heard him talking in the hall with Tomkins,” Connie relented and informed me. “I hear lots in this room that I’m not supposed to, but I can’t help that. He evidently hadn’t seen Uncle yet, but he noticed the trained nurse around and this room being occupied and couldn’t make out what had happened—that was plain. So he got hold of Tomkins and they talked for several moments in low voices—but not so low that I didn’t get about all of it!” And Connie chuckled gleefully. “He began by asking Tomkins very suspiciously what was the matter in the house, and Tomkins explained to him all about my accident. I noticed, however, he didn’t say a word about how I’d poked my foot through the paneling!
“But that evidently didn’t satisfy old Cookson! For then, Elspeth—then, I heard him ask if I’d done any damage to the woodwork or the paint! Said he’d noticed that there seemed to be fresh paint on the landing. Tomkins appeared to be clean bowled over at that and hardly knew how to answer him. But he got around it very well, saying that I’d struck the paint pretty hard and chipped it off, which of course I did, and he’d put on a fresh coat so that it would look all right. Wasn’t that clever of him?”
“It certainly was!” I agreed. “And I saw Cookson last night staring at that paint as if his eyes would pop out of his head. What in the world does he care about it, anyway?”
“Don’t ask me!” exclaimed Connie. “I’m going to find out yet, though. But I haven’t told you all. This explanation seemed to satisfy Cookson and he ended by saying: ‘You’d better not worry Mr. Benham by speaking of it, though. You know he is easily upset at present, especially since he’s not been well. And his heart—’ But Tomkins interrupted right there to say Mr. Benham knew all about it. And at that, old Cookson gave a snort and muttered something that sounded like ‘abominably unfortunate!’ and walked off!”
“Cookson’s mixed up in this thing!” I announced dramatically.
But Connie took the wind out of my sails by saying, “Why, of course! What else did you suppose? But I haven’t finished yet. There’s something else that happened. Last evening, during dinner, Beulah came up here to see me and get my supper-tray. The rest were having dessert and didn’t need her just then, and I think, anyway, she slipped up here just to see me and gossip a minute and satisfy her curiosity. Before she left, I couldn’t resist the temptation to find out about this room if I could, and I knew she'd been here years and years. So I asked her why the room was furnished just exactly like Uncle Benham's across the hall—and I wish you could have seen her eyes! They suddenly got as round as saucers and she rolled them in that funny way she has and shook her head till I thought her white turban would fall off. ‘Bress you, honey, Ah—Ah jes’ can’t tell you!' she stuttered. “Why not? Don’t you know? I asked. And what do you think she answered? That she knew—oh, yes, well enough!—‘but Mr. Benham he done tol’ me nebber to mention it to no one—ef Ah didn’t want to get sent back, bag and baggage, to ol' Virginny!’ ”
Connie gave me a couple of minutes in which to think over this latest piece of news and then said, very solemnly, “Elspeth, I’m beginning to wonder why they ever called this place “Tranquillity’!”
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