"Yes!" said she, raising herself up, and clutching after sympathy of
any kind, at any price. "I'm come home again, and I'm telling Cynthia
how Lady Cumnor has been so cross to me, and all through her. Did you
know she had gone and engaged herself to Mr. Preston, and then broken
it off? Everybody is talking about it, and they know it up at the
Towers."
For one moment his eyes met Molly's, and he comprehended it all. He
made his lips up into a whistle, but no sound came. Cynthia had quite
lost her defiant manner since her mother had spoken to Mr. Gibson.
Molly sate down by her.
"Cynthia," said he, very seriously.
"Yes!" she answered, softly.
"Is this true? I had heard something of it before--not much; but
there is scandal enough about to make it desirable that you should
have some protector--some friend who knows the whole truth."
No answer. At last she said, "Molly knows it all."
Mrs. Gibson, too, had been awed into silence by her husband's grave
manner, and she did not like to give vent to the jealous thought in
her mind that Molly had known the secret of which she was ignorant.
Mr. Gibson replied to Cynthia with some sternness:
"Yes! I know that Molly knows it all, and that she has had to bear
slander and ill words for your sake, Cynthia. But she refused to tell
me more."
"She told you that much, did she?" said Cynthia, aggrieved.
"I could not help it," said Molly.
"She didn't name your name," said Mr. Gibson. "At the time I believe
she thought she had concealed it--but there was no mistaking who it
was."
"Why did she speak about it at all?" said Cynthia, with some
bitterness. Her tone--her question stirred up Mr. Gibson's passion.
"It was necessary for her to justify herself to me--I heard my
daughter's reputation attacked for the private meetings she had given
to Mr. Preston--I came to her for an explanation. There's no need to
be ungenerous, Cynthia, because you've been a flirt and a jilt, even
to the degree of dragging Molly's name down into the same mire."
Cynthia lifted her bowed-down head, and looked at him.
"You say that of me, Mr. Gibson? Not knowing what the circumstances
are, you say that?"
He had spoken too strongly: he knew it. But he could not bring
himself to own it just at that moment. The thought of his sweet
innocent Molly, who had borne so much patiently, prevented any
retractation of his words at the time.
"Yes!" he said, "I do say it. You cannot tell what evil constructions
are put upon actions ever so slightly beyond the bounds of maidenly
propriety. I do say that Molly has had a great deal to bear, in
consequence of this clandestine engagement of yours, Cynthia--there
may be extenuating circumstances, I acknowledge--but you will need
to remember them all to excuse your conduct to Roger Hamley, when
he comes home. I asked you to tell me the full truth, in order that
until he comes, and has a legal right to protect you, I may do so."
No answer. "It certainly requires explanation," continued he. "Here
are you,--engaged to two men at once to all appearances!" Still no
answer. "To be sure, the gossips of the town haven't yet picked out
the fact of Roger Hamley's being your accepted lover; but scandal has
been resting on Molly, and ought to have rested on you, Cynthia--for
a concealed engagement to Mr. Preston--necessitating meetings in all
sorts of places unknown to your friends."