“There is a serving-man below, my lady,” he said, presenting the letter to Evaline, “who charged me to bring thee this; but he holds the name of the writer a secret. Master Gray is also below.”
“Bid Master Gray come to me, Adam,” answered Evaline, at the same time accepting the letter.
Her countenance fell as she tore the letter open. It was from Sir Walter Raleigh; and informed her, in a few cautious words, of that person’s loss of the Queen’s favour, and forced retirement from the court. Thus, in one brief moment, were all her hopes blighted,—all her expectations overthrown.
After she had once learned the tenor of the letter, she hardly retained sufficient perception to carry her to its close. As her eye arrived at the concluding signature, she felt her head whirl again; and, dropping the letter, she fell back in her chair in a swoon.
Martha, who had been anxiously watching for the effect which the letter would produce on her features, and, seeing her become dejected, was preparing to console her, sprang to her assistance in a moment. But, unused to see her so deeply moved, the fair girl was herself so agitated, and, withal, so ignorant of what would be serviceable in such a case, that she could do no more than catch her in her arms, and call for more efficient succour.
Aid was nearer than she supposed. While she was yet calling out, the door of the chamber, which was right opposite to where she stood, was pushed open, and Bernard Gray rushed in.
“What hath happened?” he cried, with a look of concern, at the same time springing to her side.
He needed no explanation when he had once glanced at the face of Evaline. Without saying a word, he caught up a jug of water from the table, and proceeded, with all the tenderness of a nurse, to lave it gently over her temples. He watched the effect of his application with the most intense anxiety. No one, indeed, could have gazed on that fair face, now void of bloom and expression, without feeling an almost equal degree of interest and sympathy. Its surpassing beauty looked all the purer and more refined for its lack of animation. Her black hair, falling loosely back, in a dozen fairy ringlets, seemed almost to sparkle in its contrast with her alabaster forehead. The long, raven fringe of her eyelids, which, from their exquisite sphericity, were themselves invested with a charm, was equally striking, and nearly as fascinating as her veiled eyes. Her every feature, indeed, from her brow downwards, still held out some attraction, which would not have been apparent in the animation of the whole, and would have lost its softness under the touch of expression.
Earnestly as Bernard surveyed these several particulars, his contemplation of Evaline did not engage him so entirely, above every other object, as to make him quite overlook the less striking beauty of Martha. In the present disposition of that person, this was, indeed, exhibited to the highest advantage. Beaming with solicitude for her mistress, her pure and dazzling complexion, rounded with the brightest red, seemed to reflect and illustrate the amiability of her heart. Though her light-brown locks did not offer the same contrast to the forehead that was afforded by those of her mistress, they were still lovely, and in perfect keeping with her complexion. The same might be said of her eyes, which were of a deep blue, and though, from her ardent anxiety for Evaline, now dimmed with tears, endued with a depth and lustre beyond expression. Being so young, her figure, though tall, was not yet matured, but its outlines were full of promise, and revealed the most chaste and exact proportions. This was particularly apparent in the mould of her shoulders, which, in her agitation, had just pushed themselves above her frock, and were thus partly visible. As they incurred Bernard’s notice, he could not but mark, by a hasty but searching glance, their faultless symmetry, and the grace and accuracy with which they were turned. But his sympathies, though deep and ardent, and now peculiarly alert, were too exclusively engaged by Evaline to allow him to pause on Martha’s charms, and, after he had cast a rapid glance over her person, his attention became wholly engrossed by her mistress.
The application of the cold water to Evaline’s forehead, in the manner described, quickly had a beneficial result. In a brief space, she opened her eyes; and the delicate lines of colour, which were previously quite dormant, again mounted to her cheeks. She was still very dejected; but as her eye, on looking up, encountered the anxious gaze of Bernard, her face became more animated.