XIII
Evie brought the news at a run. She had been shopping with Teddy—the store had given her a holiday, and there was some talk of subscribing for a wedding present.
"I said to Teddy, 'let's stop and see who it is'—we knew it was somebody swagger by the two cars and the cab outside the door. And then I thought that I knew one of the cars. I said, 'Teddy, I'll bet it is Beryl Merville'—and it was!"
Christina was pale.
"She wasn't to be married until tomorrow," she insisted.
"Well, she's married. My dear, she looked awful. Teddy says—"
"Oh, damn Teddy!" snapped Christina and was sorry. "I don't mean that, but I'm so used to damning your young men that I can't get out of the habit. Did they go away together—Steppe and she?"
"No—she's gone back to the house with her father. Steppe—is he a man with black whiskers—well, he went alone."
Christina kicked off her slippers determinedly.
"I'm going to see her," she said.