“That 's a secret, Mr. Purvis; but you shall hear it afterwards.”
“I guess al-ready,” said Scroope, with a cunning leer. “You 're going to be m-m-m-married, ain't you?”
“Mr. Purvis, Mr. Purvis, I must call you to order,” said Jekyl, who saw that very little more would make the scene unendurable to Kate.
“I hope it 's not an It-It-Italian fellow; for they 're all as poor as Laza-Laza-Laza—”
“Yes, yes, of course; we know that. Your discretion is invaluable,” said Jekyl; “but pray step in, and ask this question for us.”
“I'll tell who'll do better,” said Purvis, who, once full of a theme, never paid any attention to what was said by others. “Midche-Midche-Midche-k-k-off; he owns half of—”
“Never mind what he owns, but remember that Miss Dalton is waiting all this time,” said Jekyl, who very rarely so far lost command of his temper; and at last Purvis yielded, and entered the shop.
“Come now,” said Jekyl to his companion; “it will take him full five minutes to say 'chatelaine,' and before that we shall be safely housed.” And with these words he hurried her along, laughing, in spite of all her anxieties, at the absurdity of the adventure. “He 'll see the carriage when he comes out,” added he, “and so I 'll tell the coachman to drive slowly on towards the Pitti.” And thus, without asking her consent, he assumed the full guidance at once; and, ere she well knew how or why, she found herself within the dark and dusty precincts of Morlache's shop.
Jekyl never gave Kate much time for hesitation, but hurried her along through a narrow passage, from which a winding flight of stone steps led downwards to a considerable distance, and at last opened upon a neat little chamber on the level of the Arno, the window opening on the stream, and only separated from it by a little terrace, covered with geraniums in full flower. There was a strange undulating motion that seemed communicated from the stream to the apartment, which Jekyl at once explained to his companion as a contrivance for elevating and depressing the chamber with the changes in the current of the river; otherwise the room must have been under water for a considerable portion of the year. While he descanted on the ingenuity of the mechanism, and pointed attention to the portraits along the walls, the Kings and Kaisers with whom Morlache had held moneyed relations, the minutes slipped on, and Jekyl' s powers as a talker were called upon to speak against time, the figety nervousness of his manner, and the frequent glances he bestowed at the timepiece, showing how impatiently he longed for the Jew's arrival. To all Kate's scruples he opposed some plausible pretext, assuring her that, if she desired it, no mention should be made of the loan; that the visit might be as one of mere curiosity, to see some of those wonderful gems which had once graced the crowns of royalty; and that, in any case, the brief delay would disembarrass them on the score of Purvis, whose spirit of inquiry would have called him off in some other direction. At last, when now upwards of half an hour had elapsed, and no sound nor sight bore token of the Jew's coming, Jekyl resolved to go in search of him; and requesting Kate to wait patiently for a few minutes, he left the room.
At first, when she found herself alone, every noise startled and terrified her; the minutes, as she watched the clock, seemed drawn out to hours. She listened with an aching anxiety for Jekyl's return, while, with a sorrowing heart, she reproached herself for ever having come there. To this state of almost feverish excitement succeeded a low and melancholy depression, in which the time passed without her consciousness; the half-dulled sounds of the city, the monotonous plash of the stream as it flowed past, the distant cries of the boatmen as they guided their swift barks down the strong current, aiding and increasing a feeling that was almost lethargic. Already the sun had sunk below the hills, and the tall palaces were throwing their giant shadows across the river, the presage of approaching night, and still she sat there all alone. Jekyl had never returned, nor had any one descended the stairs since his departure. Twice had she shaken off the dreamy stupor that was over her, and tried to find the door of the chamber, but, concealed in the wainscoting, it defied her efforts; and now, worn out with anxiety and disappointed, she sat down beside the window, gazing listlessly at the water, and wondering when and how her captivity was to end.