“Is Mrs. Moreau’s state of health too bad to allow her to travel?” said Shackleton, interrupting suddenly and rudely.
Mrs. Willers colored slightly. She knew her chief well enough to realize that his tone indicated annoyance. Why did he so dislike to hear anything about the late Dan Moreau?
“As to that I don’t know,” she said. “She’s so much of an invalid that she rarely goes out. But with good care she might be able to take a journey and benefit by it. A sea trip sometimes cures people.”
“Miss Moreau couldn’t, and, I have no doubt, wouldn’t leave her. It’ll therefore be necessary for the mother to go to Paris with the girl, and if she is so complete and helpless an invalid she’ll certainly be of no assistance to her daughter—only a care.”
“She’d undoubtedly be a care. But a person couldn’t separate those two. They’re wrapped up in each other. It’s a pity you don’t know Mrs. Moreau, Mr. Shackleton.”
For the second time that afternoon Mrs. Willers was conscious that words she had intended to be gently ingratiating had given mysterious offense to her employer. Now he said, with more than an edge of sharpness to his words:
“I’ve no doubt it’s a pity, Mrs. Willers. But there are so many things and people it’s a pity I don’t know, that if I came to think it over I’d probably fall into a state of melancholia. Also, let me assure you, that I haven’t the least intention of trying to separate Mrs. Moreau and her daughter. What I’m just now bothered about is the fact that this lady is hardly of sufficient worldly experience, and certainly has not sufficient strength to take care of the girl in a strange country.”
“Well, no,” said Mrs. Willers with slow reluctance, “it would be the other way round, the girl would be taking care of her.”
“That’s exactly what I thought. The only way out of it will be to send some one with them. A woman who could take care of them both, chaperone the daughter and look after the mother.”
There was a silence. Mrs. Willers began to understand why Mr. Shackleton had walked down to The Trumpet office with her. The walk was over, for they were at the office door, and the conversation had reached the point to which he had evidently intended to bring it before they parted.