скачать книгу бесплатно
“Do you remember me telling you that I was going to Cumberland? Well, since we last met, I have been staying all the time at Limmeridge House.”
The woman’s sad pale face brightened for a moment.
“At Limmeridge House! Ah, how happy you must be there,” she said.
I looked at her. She smiled and I saw again the extraordinary likeness between her and Laura Fairlie. I had seen Anne Catherick’s likeness in Miss Fairlie. I now saw Miss Fairlie’s likeness in Anne Catherick. The great difference was that Laura’s face was full of joy and happiness, while this woman’s face was sad and frightened. What could it mean?
Anne Catherick’s hand laid on my shoulder.
“You are looking at me, and you are thinking of something,” she said. “What is it?”
“Nothing extraordinary,” I answered. “I was only wondering how you came here.”
“I came with a friend who is very good to me. I have only been here two days. Her tomb must be as white as snow. Is there anything wrong in that? I hope not. Surely nothing can be wrong that I do for Mrs. Fairlie’s sake?”
She was watching me.
“My name is Anne Catherick,” she said. “And I’ve come here to be close to my dear friend’s grave. Nobody looks after it – see how dirty it is. I must clean it.”
She picked up her cloth and started cleaning the marble.
“Are you staying in the village?” I asked her.
“No, no, not in the village,” she replied, “at a farm about three miles away. “Three miles away at a farm. Do you know the farm? They call it Todd’s Corner.[42 - Todd’s Corner – ферма Тодда]”
I remembered the place perfectly – it was one of the oldest farms in the neighbourhood, situated in a solitary, sheltered spot.
“The people there are good and kind, and an elderly woman looks after me well.”
“And where have you come from?” I went on.
“I escaped,” she said. “I’ve run away and I’m not going back.”
I remember that she escapes from an Asylum – a place where mad people are kept.
“You don’t think I should go back there, do you?” she said, looking at me worriedly. “I’m not mad and I’ve done nothing wrong. I was shut up in the Asylum by a man who is very cruel.”
“Certainly not. I am glad you escaped from it – I am glad I helped you.”
“Yes, yes, you did help me indeed,” she went on. “It was easy to escape. They never suspected me as they suspected the others. I was so quiet, and so obedient, and so easily frightened. You helped me. Did I thank you at the time? I thank you now very kindly.”
“Had you no father or mother to take care of you?”
“Father? – I never saw him – I never heard mother speak of him. Father? Ah, dear! he is dead, I suppose.”
“And your mother?”
“I don’t get on well with her.[43 - I don’t get on well with her. – Я с ней не лажу.] We are a trouble and a fear to each other. Don’t ask me about mother.”
Suddenly she looked at me with a new expression. “How is Miss Fairlie?” she asked.
“I’m afraid Miss Fairlie was not very well or very happy this morning,” I said.
She murmured a few words, but they were spoken in such a low tone, that I could not even guess at what they meant.
“Miss Fairlie has received your letter this morning. You did write that letter, didn’t you, Anne?”
* * *
“How do you know?” she said faintly. “Who showed it to you?” The blood rushed back into her face. “I never wrote it,” she cried; “I know nothing about it!”
“Yes,” I said, “you wrote it, and you know about it. It was wrong to send such a letter, it was wrong to frighten Miss Fairlie. If you had anything to say that it was right and necessary for her to hear, you should have gone yourself to Limmeridge House – you should have spoken to the young lady with your own lips.”
Anne sank down on her knees with her arms round the cross, and made no reply.
“Miss Fairlie will keep your secret,” I went on, “and not let you come to any harm. Will you see her tomorrow at the farm? Will you meet her in the garden at Limmeridge House?”
“Oh!” Her lips murmured the words close on the grave-stone. “You know how I love your child! Oh, Mrs. Fairlie! Mrs. Fairlie! Tell me how to save her. Be my darling and my mother once more, and tell me what to do for the best.”
I heard her lips kissing the stone. I stooped down,[44 - I stooped down – я склонился] and took the poor helpless hands tenderly in mine, and tried to soothe her.
It was useless. She snatched her hands from me, and never moved her face from the stone.
“I will talk of nothing to distress you,” I said.
“You want something,” she answered sharply and suspiciously. “Don’t look at me like that. Speak to me – tell me what you want.”
“I only want you to quiet yourself.”
“Why don’t you help me?” she asked, with angry suddenness.
“Yes, yes,” I said, “I will help you, and you will soon remember. I ask you to see Miss Fairlie tomorrow and to tell her the truth about the letter.”
“Ah! Miss Fairlie – Fairlie – Fairlie – ”
The mere utterance of the loved familiar name seemed to quiet her. Her face softened and grew like itself again.
“You need have no fear of Miss Fairlie,” I continued, “She knows so much about it already, that you will have no difficulty in telling her all. You mention no names in the letter; but Miss Fairlie knows that the person you write of is Sir Percival Glyde – ”
At the mention of Sir Percival’s name, she started to her feet, and a look of terrible hatred and fear came over the woman’s face. She screamed out, and my heart leaped in terror.
“What harm has he done you?” I asked.
“Sir Percival Glyde is the wicked man who shut me up in the Asylum!” she cried.
* * *
“I’m coming! I’m coming!” cried the voice from behind the clump of trees. In a moment more an elderly woman appeared.
“Who are you?” she cried. “How dare you frighten a poor helpless woman like that?”
She was at Anne Catherick’s side, and had put one arm around her, before I could answer. “What is it, my dear?” she said. “What has he done to you?”
“Nothing,” the poor creature answered. “Nothing. I’m only frightened.”
“Try to forgive me,” I said, when Anne Catherick took her friend’s arm to go away. “I will try,” she answered. “But you know too much – I’m afraid you’ll always frighten me now.”
“Good-night, sir,” said an old woman.
They moved away a few steps. I thought they had left me, but Anne suddenly stopped, and separated herself from her friend.
“Wait a little,” she said. “I must say good-bye.”
She returned to the grave, rested both hands tenderly on the marble cross, and kissed it.
“I’m better now,” she sighed, looking up at me quietly. “I forgive you.”
She joined her companion again, and they left the burial-ground.[45 - burial-ground – кладбище]
Half an hour later I was back at the house, and was informing Miss Halcombe of all that had happened during my meeting with Anne Catherick. She listened to me from beginning to end with a steady, silent attention.
“I’m so worried about the future,” she said. “I don’t have a very good feeling about Laura’s marriage to Sir Percival. What shall we do now?”
“I have a suggestion,” I said. “We have to ask Anne Catherick a lot more questions, but I’m sure she will talk more openly to a woman than a man. If Miss Fairlie – ”
“No,” interposed Miss Halcombe, in her most decided manner.
“Let me suggest, then,” I continued, “that you should see Anne Catherick yourself. Tomorrow, why don’t you come with me to the farm where she’s staying? You can meet her there and talk to her.”
“I will go anywhere and do anything to serve Laura’s interests. What did you say the place was called?”
“You must know it well. It is called Todd’s Corner.”
“Certainly. Todd’s Corner is one of Mr. Fairlie’s farms. Our dairymaid here is the farmer’s second daughter. She goes backwards and forwards constantly between this house and her father’s farm, and she may have heard or seen something which it may be useful to us to know.”
“Very well,” agreed Marian. “And in the meantime, there’s something else we have to do. We need to find out why Sir Percival Glyde shut Anne Catherick up in the Asylum. The Asylum you have mentioned is a well-known private one and it’s very expensive. Why is Sir Percival Glyde paying all that money to keep Anne there? We need to know the answer to that question before Sir Percival can marry my sister. Laura’s happiness means everything to me.
I’ll write to our family lawyer, Mr Gilmore, and tell him what’s happened. He will advise me as to what to do.”
“There is not the shadow of a doubt. The only mystery that remains is the mystery of his motive”.
“I see where the doubt lies, Mr. Hartright. Sir Percival Glyde shall not be long in this house without satisfying Mr. Gilmore, and satisfying me.”
We parted for the night.
This was my last day at Limmeridge House, and it was necessary, as soon as the post came in, to follow Miss Halcombe’s advice, and to ask Mr. Fairlie’s permission to shorten my engagement by a month, in consideration of a necessity for my return to London.
After breakfast the next morning, when the post had come, I sent a polite note to Mr. Fairlie. I told him I had to return to London on urgent business and asked his permission to leave. I knew that my time at Limmeridge House was nearly at an end.
I sat down at once to write the letter, expressing myself in it as civilly, as clearly, and as briefly as possible. An hour later I received Mr. Fairlie’s reply.
“Dear Mr Hartright,
I’m sorry but I’m not feeling well enough to see you at the moment.
Please excuse me. My nerves are so very delicate.
I cannot possibly imagine what business you have in London which is more important than your business at Limmeridge House. I am really very disappointed in you. However as I do not wish to be upset by any more such requests from you, I will allow you to leave. My health is of the greatest importance. Therefore you may go.”
I folded the letter up, and put it away with my other papers. I didn’t feel any anger inwards Mr Fairlie, I was only glad to leave. I accepted it now as a written release from my engagement. Then I went downstairs to find Marian and tell her that I was ready to walk to the farmhouse with her to meet Anne Catherick.
“Has Mr. Fairlie given you a satisfactory answer?” Marian asked as we left the house.
“He has allowed me to go, Miss Halcombe.”
We had agreed to say nothing to Laura about my meeting with Anne in the churchyard, and what Anne had said about Sir Percival Glyde. It would only worry Laura and upset her.
On our way to Todd’s Corner we arranged that Marian would enter alone, and I would wait outside. I thought she would be a long time talking to Anne Catherick, but she went into the farmhouse and came out again in less than five minutes.
“Does Anne Catherick refuse to see you?” I asked in astonishment.
“Anne Catherick is gone,” replied Miss Halcombe.
“Gone?”
“Gone with Mrs. Clements,[46 - Clements – Клементс] her elderly companion. They both left the farm at eight o’clock this morning.”
I could say nothing – I could only feel that our last chance of discovery had gone with them.
“The dairymaid just told me she left for the station at eight o’clock this morning.”
“Let’s ask the dairymaid some more questions,” I said.
We went back inside. Clearly the dairymaid had no idea why Anne Catherick had left so suddenly. She had been planning to stay at the farm for several more days, but the evening before she had suddenly become ill and fainted.
“Do you think anything happened to frighten her?” I asked.
“I don’t think so,” replied the girl. “I was only trying to cheer her up by telling her the local news. She looked so pale and sad sometimes that I felt sorry for her.
“And you told her the news at Limmeridge House?”
“I was telling her about Miss Fairlie and Limmeridge House as I thought she would be interested.”
“Did you tell her that visitors were expected at the house on Monday?” I said.
“Yes, sir. I told her that somebody was coming. She was taken ill after that.”
“Did you mention names? Did you tell them that Sir Percival Glyde was expected on Monday?”
