“I’m not keeping up an affair—with anybody. You’ve no right to say such a thing to me, Colonel Marchbanks!” She looked about; all the eyes were upon her, “And I think I’d better not stay in your house, anyhow.”
“Now, don’t go and make her mad, Lee.” Mrs. Marchbanks came over. “She’s tired and excited. Of course she’s going to stay with us. We’re all sort of upset this evening. It’s no time to pick at the girl about—about— Run on to your room, Hilda, and wash up for supper. I’ll talk to this cross man. It’ll be all right.”
“If you’ll excuse me, Mrs. Marchbanks, I don’t want any supper,” Hilda said; but she moved toward the stairs from which Maybelle had disappeared. The children were established at the dining table, eating noisily, poor, bewildered Miss Ferguson trying to wait on them. Fayte stood, a sandwich in his hand, backed against the sideboard, laughing silently at her.
“She’ll stay, all right,” he called, half tauntingly.
“I’ll not!” At his words and tone Hilda whirled from the lowest step of the stairs. “I will not. You’ll see!”
CHAPTER XXIX
THE RESURRECTION PLANT
In her own room, the door slammed and locked, Hilda faced the situation. She fairly glowed and palpitated with the rage that ran like fire in her veins and seemed to burn out timidity and indecision. She’d done it now. Pearse had asked her to stay—and she’d told those people downstairs that she was going to leave. She would leave, too. If Pearse knew, he’d want her to leave. He’d want her to walk right out of the house.
Without stopping to change from her riding dress she hurried from closet to bureau drawers, pulling out things, throwing them on the bed, folding them, dragging out her trunk, her valises, and beginning to pack.
Movement in Maybelle’s room; but the door between wasn’t even touched. Well, she didn’t want to talk to Maybelle. She had nothing to say to any of them. She was going home.
She worked more systematically now. The supper bell rang. Maybelle left her room and went down, humming, clattering on the stair. Then Mrs. Marchbanks herself came to call Hilda. Without opening her door Hilda repeated that she didn’t want any supper.