Reed continued to reflect. He was hardly in a position to refuse such an offer. Besides, he was really leaving her in charge of Harris. “Well,” he said at length, “in that case I could leave for California to-morrow night. That matter is pressing hard––all right, I accept the company’s offer. It’s no more than is due the girl, anyway.”
“Good!” replied Ketchim. “I’ll make the necessary arrangements at once. And now let’s go over to church.”
Thus it was that two days later Carmen, still wondering if she was dreaming, was enrolled in the Elwin Select School for Girls, with Marjorie Ketchim for roommate; while Reed, on the Overland Limited, hurrying to the far West, was musing dubiously at frequent intervals on Ketchim’s rather conflicting statements, which, until left to this enforced leisure, he had not had time to try to reconcile. At the same time, while Harris was loudly declaiming to the gracious Madam Elwin on the astonishing mental prowess of the girl, Ketchim and Cass sat deeply immersed in the tentative plans for the newly-projected Simití Development Company.
“Now listen,” said Ketchim, who for some minutes had been quietly scanning his youthful lawyer, “Ames knows nothing about the formation of this company, but Harris and Reed are not to know that; and we’re going to keep Ames in ignorance of all our plans. With the first sales of stock––and they’ve already begun––we’ll return him his Molino investment. Nezlett wired me this morning that he’s sure to sell a big block to the Leveridges, that they’re mightily interested, and want to meet Carmen. We’ll use the girl for just such purposes. That’s one reason why I wanted her handy, so’s we could reach her at any time. She makes a star impression; and with her as an advertisement we’ll sell a million dollars’ worth of stock, and no trouble at all! She’s got that honest look that’s convincing. And she can tell a story that beats the Arabian Nights! Ames has given me a week to explain, or make good his investment. By that time we’ll have the Leveridges sold for twice his investment, and we’ll just pay him off and remove him. Meantime, you go over to the bank in the morning and put up the best line of talk you’re capable of. I’ve got sixteen hundred dollars to give ’em on that note; and that’ll secure more time, until the sales of stock are enough to pay it all up. Perhaps Uncle Ted will advance me enough to take up the note when he hears about La Libertad. And, say, you see brother James, and shake the club over him until he disgorges that check he got from Miss Leveridge. You can hand him a scare that he won’t get over. By George, old man! things have taken a great turn, eh? Why, I can just see Simití stock sales humping these 50 next few months. Oh, Miss Honeywell,” calling to his cashier, “bring me five dollars, please, and charge it to Molino––I mean, to Simití. Make a new account for that now.” Then, again addressing Cass: “Come with me to the football game this afternoon. We can discuss plans there as well as here. Gee whiz, but I feel great!”
CHAPTER 6
Carmen’s rapid transition from the eternal solitudes of Guamocó to the whirring activities of New York was like a plunge into the maelstrom, and left her groping blindly in the effort to adapt herself to the changed order. There was little in her former mode of existence that could be transferred to her new environment, and she felt that she was starting life like a new-born babe. For days, even weeks, she moved about dreamily, absorbed, ceaselessly striving to orient herself and to accept easily and naturally the marvels, the sudden accession of material aids, and the wonders of this modern, complex civilization, so common to her associates, but scarcely even dreamed of by her in her former home, despite the preparation which Josè had tried to give her. The Elwin school was small, its student-body seldom numbering more than fifty, and in it Carmen found herself hedged about by restrictions which in a way were beneficial, in that they narrowed her environment and afforded her time for her slow adjustment to it.
But if these restrictions aided her, they also rendered the length of her stay in the school almost calculable. Little by little the girl saw the forces developing which she knew must effect her dismissal; little by little, as Madam Elwin’s manner toward her became less gracious, and her schoolmates made fewer efforts to conceal from her the fact that she was not one of them, Carmen prepared for the inevitable. Six months after the girl’s enrollment, Madam Elwin terminated her series of disparaging reports to Ketchim by a request that he come at once and remove his charge from the school.