"Did Miss Rosamond appear much excited?" he asked, in a tremulous tone, and without raising his eyes from the letter which he held in his hand.
"She was crying very much, sir," responded the servant; "and it made me quite sad to see her. I attempted to comfort her; but she only shook her head impatiently, and then sobbed as if her heart would break. I knew that she was going to leave, because she had a small package in her hand; and she did cry so dreadful when she told me to give you this note."
Mr. Torrens turned aside, and hastened to his chamber, where he remained until half-past five o'clock. He then descended to the parlour, dressed for the nuptial ceremony. To the servant's enquiry relative to the serving up of the dinner, he replied that he had no appetite, and immediately gave orders for the horse and gig to be got ready by a stable-boy, who had been hastily hired in the morning to take the place of Jeffreys until a more efficient substitute could be found.
This command was soon obeyed, and shortly before seven o'clock Mr. Torrens arrived in Old Burlington Street.
The flight of his daughter from home had proved a more severe shock to him than the reader might imagine, considering the cold and heartless disposition of this man. It was not that he felt he should miss her society;—no—he did not love her enough to harbour a regret of that nature;—but her departure from the paternal dwelling had made him writhe beneath the maddening—the galling conviction that his independence was in a measure gone, and that a stern necessity had compelled him to assent to link his fate with that of a woman so vile and abandoned, that his own child fled at the idea of her approach.
Influenced by such feelings as these, it was no easy task for Mr. Torrens to assume a complacent demeanour suitable to the occasion of his nuptials. He, nevertheless, managed to conceal the emotions which wrung him so acutely, and played his part with tolerable satisfaction to Mrs. Slingsby as she introduced him to Dr. Wagtail and the other guests, including a clergyman, who were already assembled at her house.
The ceremony was performed by the reverend gentleman just alluded to, Dr. Wagtail giving the bride away. A splendid banquet was then served up; and shortly after ten o'clock Mr. and Mrs. Torrens departed together for the Cottage.
CHAPTER LXXXIII.
THE REWARD OF CRIME.
At half-past eleven on the following morning, Mr. Torrens entered the office of Mr. Howard, the solicitor.
His countenance wore a smile of satisfaction, in spite of the various events which had lately occurred to harass him; for he was about to receive a large sum of money—and his fingers itched to grasp the bank-notes and the gold which he had seen stowed away in the safe on the preceding day.