Prev | Current Page 238 | Next

Crane, Stephen, 1871-1900

"Active Service"

One reads so much of the Attic
Plains, but aren't these mountains royal? They look
so rugged and cold, whereas the bay is absolutely as
blue as the old descriptions of a summer sea."
" I wanted to speak to you about Nora Black," said
Coleman.
"Nora Black? Why?" said Marjory, lifting her eye-
brows.
You know well enough," said Coleman, in a head.
long fashion. " You must know, you must have seen
it. She knows I care for you and she wants to stop it.
And she has no right to-to interfere. She is a fiend,
a perfect fiend. She is trying to make you feel that I
care for her."
" And don't you care for her ? " asked Marjory.
"No," said Coleman, vehemently. " I don't care
for her at all."
" Very well," answered Marjory, simply. " I believe
you." She managed to give the words the effect of a
mere announcement that she believed him and it was
in no way plain that she was glad or that she esteemed
the matter as being of consequence.
He scowled at her in dark resentment. " You mean
by that, I suppose, that you don't believe me ? "
" Oh," answered Marjory, wearily, " I believe you.
I said so. Don't talk about it any more."
"Then," said Coleman, slowly, " you mean that you
do not care whether I'm telling the truth or not?"
" Why, of course I care," she said. " Lying is not
nice."
He did not know, apparently, exactly how to deal
with her manner, which was actually so pliable that-it
was marble, if one may speak in that way.


Pages:
226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250