Vellenaux A Novel - Edmund William Edmund William (best affordable ebook reader .txt) 📗
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Result, Which She Knew Must Ensue. A Loud Shriek From Edith Rang Through
The House, And Breathless With Excitement, Reynolds Entered And
Announced Sir Jasper'S Death And That Miss Effingham Had Fainted.
The Time For Action Had Now Arrived. "He May Be Only In a Fit," Said
Mrs. Fraudhurst. "I Will Myself Drive Over For Dr. Martin. Call Miss
Effingham'S Maid And Let Her Be Carried To Her Own Room And Properly
Attended To. I Will Return With All Speed; In The Meantime, Reynolds, Be
Sure That No One Enters The Room. You Had Better Lock The Door And Take
Possession Of The Key As Soon As Miss Edith Has Been Removed." After
Quickly Dressing, She Proceeded Towards The Stables To Hurry Forward The
Harnessing Of The Pony Phaeton, Which Was At All Times At Her Disposal,
And Drove Rapidly To The House Of Dr. Martin, Though She Well Knew His
Services Would Be Of No Avail, But It Was A Part Of The Plan She Had
Matured, And Was Now Carrying Out.
Fortunately For Her The Rector And Sir Jasper'S Lawyer And General
Business Agent Were At The Time With The Doctor In His Surgery,
Consulting On Some Parish Business And Without A Moment'S Delay They
Proceeded To Vellenaux, The Rector Riding With Mrs. Fraudhurst, Whose
Appearance And Conduct Were Well Suited To The Occasion.
Life Was Pronounced Extinct, And The Cause Of Death Was Supposed To Be A
Sudden Attack Of His Old Complaint, Disease Of The Heart. The Lawyer, In
The Presence Of All, Placed Seals On The Escritoire And Doors Of The
Study Immediately After The Body Had Been Transferred To The Bedchamber,
And Wrote To Ralph Coleman, As The Only Male Relation Of The Late
Baronet, Acquainting Him With What Had Occurred, And It Was Not Long
Before That Gentleman Presented Himself At Vellenaux.
Chapter 7
The Morning Prior To The Funeral It Pleased Mrs. Fraudhurst, On Meeting
Ralph Coleman In The Long Corridor, To Request That Worthy Individual To
Grant Her A Private Interview In The General Library At Eleven O'Clock,
Precisely, The Lawyer Bowed In The Affirmative And Passed On.
At The Time Appointed The Widow, In Very Deep But Fashionable Mourning,
Entered The Library By One Door, And A Few Minutes Later The New Baronet
Presented Himself At Another. After Closing It He Advanced To The Centre
Table And Waited For The Lady To Announce The Nature Of Her Business
With Him.
In A Low, Clear And Cold, But Perfectly Steady Voice She Thus Addressed
Him, "Some Two Years Since I Informed You By Letter Of The Existence Of
A Will In Which The Late Baronet, After Paying A Gratuity Of Five
Thousand Pounds To Arthur Carlton, Left Miss Effingham Sole Heiress. In
That Will The Name Of Ralph Coleman Does Not Appear. If This Document Be
Read To-Morrow," She Continued After A Slight Pause, "Vellenaux Is Lost
To You Forever."
"But, My Dear Madam," He Replied, "Among The Late Baronet'S Papers Will,
Doubtless, Be Found A Codicil In My Behalf, In Fact My Cousin Distinctly
Promised Me That He Would Make A Suitable Provision For The Successor To
The Title."
"And So He Would Have Done Had He Lived Long Enough To Complete It," Was
The Lady'S Quiet Reply.
"You Do Not Mean To Say That You Are Certain Sir Jasper Made No Such
Provision," Enquired The Lawyer In a Quick And Excited Tone.
"No Document Of That Kind Had Been Executed Prior To The Baronet'S
Death," She Boldly Asserted, Advancing Towards Him. "Now Listen To Me:
Providing The Will In Question Be Not Forthcoming After The Funeral, The
Law Will Declare You Heir To The Estate. Now, If You Swear To Me By All
That You Hold Most Sacred, That You Will Allow Me One Thousand Per Annum
And A Suite Of Apartments At Vellenaux So Long As I Shall Live, No Will
Shall Appear, And Within One Hour After The Body Of The Late Sir Jasper
Has Been Consigned To The Tomb, You Shall Become Sir Ralph Coleman And
Master Of Vellenaux And Its Broad Lands."
"But," Was The Cautious Reply Of The Wily Lawyer, "How Know I That Any
Will Has Been Made Or That The Baronet Has Not Kept Faith With Me. Your
Word Is All That I Have To Depend On For The Truth Or Falsity Of The
Statement." He Knew Her To Be An Unscrupulous Woman, But Shrewd Withal,
And Could Not Bring Himself To Believe That She Would Compromise Herself
So Far As To Have Fraudulently Possessed Herself Of, Sir Jasper'S
Papers, Yet Her Language Indicated Very Strongly That Something Of The
Kind Was The Case.
"If She Really Has Them," He Thought, "One Thousand Per Annum Would Not
Be Too Large A Sum To Purchase Her Silence Concerning Them; And As The
Bargain Would Be A Verbal One, And Unknown To Any But Ourselves, She
Could Not Hereafter, By Any Disclosures That She Might Make, Convict Me
As An Accomplice To The Transaction." These Thoughts Flashed Through His
Mind Ere She Again Spoke.
"Your Words, Sir, Though Not Complimentary To Me, I Can Excuse, On
Account Of The Peculiarity Of Your Present Position And Frame Of Mind,
And You Shall Be Satisfied Of The Truth Of That Which You Pretend To
Doubt," And Drawing From Her Pocket Two Papers, Mrs. Fraudhurst Held
Them With A Firm Grasp Before Him, But In Such A Position That It
Enabled Him To Read Every Line. "There," She Continued, In a Low Tone,
"Is The Will In Question, And The Codicil Which You So Much Depend On;
Are You Satisfied?" Then, Refolding The Papers Somewhat Hastily,
Replaced Them In Her Dress And Turned To Leave The Room, Remarking As
She Did So, "I Shall Return In a Few Moments, And You Must Make Up Your
Mind As To How You Intend To Act Before I Do So."
Ralph Had Read Every Line And Word, And Saw How Hopeless Was His Case
Unless He Closed With The Widow'S Offer, But He Would Make One More
Trial To Obtain The Best Position, And As She Re-Entered Said, "Place
Those Documents In My Possession And I Will Swear To Fulfil The Terms
You Propose."
"Not So," She Replied With A Contemptuous Curl On Her Lip, "They Remain
With Me, And I Remain Here; There Will Be No Difficulty In That. Of
Course Miss Effingham Must Find Shelter Beneath Your Roof For Some Time
At Least, And As You Are A Single Man, You Will Require Some One To
Superintend Your Establishment Until The Future Lady Coleman Shall
Appear On The Scene, And Ere That Event Takes Place, Other Arrangements
Can Be Made. Accept My Conditions And You Become One Of The Wealthiest
Men In The County. Reject Them, And I Immediately Place Both Documents
In The Hands Of The Late Baronet'S Lawyer, Who Is Now In The House. I
Have Merely To Say That I Gathered Them From The Floor Of The Study, On
The Morning Of Sir Jasper'S Death, And That, In The Hurry And Excitement
Of The Moment, Carried Them To My Own Room, Unconscious Of Their
Importance, Until This Morning. This Statement, True Or Otherwise, Will
Suffice To Account For Their Being In My Possession"
Ralph Coleman Would Have Still Hesitated, But Her'S Being The Stronger
Will Of The Two, He Succumbed, Took The Required Oath, And The Compact
Between Them Was Complete. No Sooner Was This Effected Than Both Parties
Left The Place Of Meeting In The Same Order As They Entered.
Having Carried Her Point And Thus Secured For Herself A Comfortable
Income, Together With A Handsome Suite Of Apartments Within The Walls Of
Vellenaux, Which She Very Naturally Concluded Would Be A Permanent Home,
At Least During The Life Of Sir Ralph, He Being Completely In Her Power,
As She Could At Any Time, By The Production Of The Late Baronet'S Will,
Drive Him Ignominiously From His Present Luxurious Abode. It Is True, In
Effecting This She Would Have To Seek Refuge In a Foreign Land, Yet A
Vindictive Spirit Will Often, As The Old Adage Runs, Cut Off The Nose To
Be Revenged On The Face.
Having Gained The Mastery Of The Position, She Turned Her Thoughts In
The Direction Of The New Baronet With A View Of Inducing Him To Submit
To The Matrimonial Yoke And By That Means Establish Herself As
Vellenaux'S Envied Mistress With The Prefix Of Lady Before Her Name.
However, She Could Afford To Bide Her Time, Feeling Certain That In The
Long Run Sir Ralph Would Yield, Her Stronger Will Working On His Fears.
The Funeral Was Over. The Family Vault Of The Coleman'S In The Quaint
Old Church, A Little Beyond The Park Limits, Had Received The Mortal
Remains Of The Worthy Man, Who For Forty Years Had Attended Divine
Service Within That Sacred Edifice Where The Last Sad Rite For The
Departed Had Just Been Performed. It Had Been A Solemn And Imposing
Ceremony. The Cortege Passed Slowly And Silently Down The Broad Avenue
Of Venerable Elms, Through The Park Gate And Up The Road Leading To The
Old Church Yard. The Superbly Mounted Coffin, Borne On Its Funeral
Hearse, Whose Black Plumes, Undulated In The Soft Winds That Sighed
Through The Trees, Was Drawn By Six Velvet Palled Horses, And
Accompanied By Mutes, Pall Bearers And Others In all The Solemn
Paraphernalia Of Woe, Followed By The Mourning Coaches, And The Long
Line Of Private Carriages, Some Occupied And Others Empty, For By One Of
The Conventionalities Of English Well-Bred Society, One Can Be Present
On Such Occasions By Proxy. Your Carriage Will Suffice, Should You Not
Feel Equal To The Task Of Attending In Person. The Full, Deep, Rich
Tones Of The Organ Poured Forth The Funeral Dirge, As The Coffin Was
Carried Up The Centre Aisle And Placed On Trussels In Front Of The
Altar. The Pews, Gallery And Aisles Were Filled By Rich And Poor; So
Much Had The Late Baronet Been Respected By Friend And Tenant. The
Venerable Rector Who Performed The Service, Although Accustomed To Such
Scenes, Was Deeply Affected. He Had Been On The Most Intimate Terms With
Sir Jasper, And Had Never Solicited His Kind Offices On Behalf Of The
Poor In Vain. Besides, He Was More Advanced In Years Than The Friend
Whom He Had Now Consigned To The Cold Embraces Of The Grave, For Were
Not His Own Days Numbered And Must Soon Draw To A Close?
As The Different Parties Separated On The Conclusion Of The Ceremony,
Various Were The Comments And Conjectures As To The Manner In Which Sir
Jasper Had Divided His Property, And It Was Almost Universally Believed
That Miss Edith Would Come In For A Greater Part Of His Wealth And The
Estate Of Vellenaux Would Undoubtedly Become Hers.
Sir Ralph, As He Must Now Be Called, And Others Interested In Such
Proceedings, Returned, To Vellenaux To Examine And Hear Read The Will
And Such Other Documents Relating To The Distribution Of The Property
Real And Personal Of The Late Baronet, And Great Was The Surprise Of All
Present Except One, When It Was Announced That, After The Strictest
Search, No Will Or Other Document Of The Kind Had Been Found Among The
Papers Of The Late Baronet. Mr. Russell, A Man Of Integrity, And Well
Known For The Uprightness Of His Dealings, And Who Had For Upwards Of
Thirty Years Transacted All The Legal Business And Had The Management Of
The Estate Of The Late Sir Jasper, Declared That, To The Best Of His
Knowledge No Will Had Been Made. This Was Followed By A Statement From
Sir Ralph To The Effect That It Was But A Few Weeks Since, That His
Cousin, The Late Sir Jasper Coleman, Had Declared To Him His Intention
Of Making A Will In His (Sir Ralph'S) Favor. Miss Effingham, On Being
Asked, Had Sent Word That She Had Never Heard Her Uncle Say Anything On
The Subject, And Mrs. Fraudhurst, On Being Interrogated, Announced That
She Had Always Been Of The Opinion That Miss Effingham Was To Be Sole
Heiress Of Her Uncle'S Wealth, But Had Never Heard
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