The Young Duchess; or, Memoirs of a Lady of Quality — page 196: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

182 THE YOUNG DUCHESS ; ‘‘ Here, dear Ethel,” said the Princess, ‘‘is the portrait of my mother.” One glance—yes, one glance was sufficient; and then from Ethel’s lips started the ejaculation —“ Mildred!” and she gazéd up in a kind of vacant wonderment into the’ countenance of the astonished and almost affrighted Princess. At that very instant the door opened, and the Grand Duke made his appearance. ‘“My father!” exclaimed Roxana: and she snatched at the portrait in order to conceal it about her person. But it dropped upon the carpet: the Grand Duke—-who had at once perceived that there was something strange on the part of his daughter and Mrs. Trevor—sprang forward, and caught the miniature from Roxana’s hand just as she had picked it up again. ‘“Good God!—Mildred!” exclaimed the Grand Duke; and with a countenance suddenly smitten by a “haggard and ghastly expression, he stag- gered back and sank upon a chair, while ejacu- lations of terror and dismay burst from the lips of Ethel and the Princess. CHAPTER XXXVII. THE AMBASSADOR’S VISITRESS. Wr must now return to Count Olonetz, whom we left at the moment when he was about to receive the lady whose card had been sent up and duly handed to him by the footman. ‘Lady Langport,” muttered the Count to him- self, as he again glanced at the card, after the Grand Duke had conducted Ethel away from the apartment, and while a footman was gone to escort the visitress thither. ‘Now that I bethink me, this name of Langport is not altogether un- familiar to me. There was an English diplo- matist of this name. To be sure! Lord Lang- port! I met him somewhere a great many years apo aD At this moment the door opened; and the foot- man announced Lady Langport. Count Olonetz advanced a pace or two in order to salute his visitress with becoming courtesy: but he suddenly stopped short—started—passed his hand rapidly across his eyes—and then looked at her again with a strange, wildly wondering and bewildered expression of countenance. “JT see that your Excellency has a recollection of me,” said Lady Langport, advancing with a smile upon her countenance— and there was something more or less significant or malicious in that smile: “but you cannot quite call to mind where you have seen me before; and there- fore I will refresh your memory.” ‘““My memory?” repeated Olonetz, as if me- chanically; and he looked bewildered — con- founded. “You need not think, my lord,” continued Lady ‘Langport, with a more marked expansion of that smile of malicious significancy, “that I am come to pick a quarrel with you or cover you with upbraiding; for I see that your conscience is unpleasantly reminding you that it is not alto- gether clear in respect to myself—though even a CR, MEMOIRS OF A LADY CF QUALITY. yet I scarcely think you rightly know who I am, or that your memory serves you with a faithful accuracy.’ ‘But how—where—when”—faltered out the Russian plenipotentiary, more and more bewil- dered.and perplexed. ““T will come to your assistance,” interjected Lady Langport: then fixing her black eyes, so vividly brightened by Kahol, upon the Ambassador, she said with peculiar significancy, ‘‘ Your Excel- lency will remember a certain Miss Malcolm who was introduced to your lordship at the British Embassy at Constantinople, and whom you sub- sequently intended to have carried off in your steamship.” Count Olonetz stared as never before that accomplished diplomatist and polite courtier had stared upon a human being. Never until then had he so completely lost his self-possession !— never had he shown himself so utterly at fault! —never had he so completely betrayed the fact of being surprised in a manner that was astounding, almost overwhelming. “You see, my lord,” continued Lady Langport, ““T have rightly accused you. Your conscience pricks you.” “And you—and you,” he faltered out, “ are— Miss Malcolm ?” “The Miss Malcolm of that time,” rejoined the visitress; ‘‘but Lady Langport now. Indeed I ° became Lady Langport a very few weeks after I had the honour of meeting you at Constantinople —and when,” she continued, in an ironical tone, ‘* you entertained such pleasant and agreeable designs concerning me.’ While Lady Langport was thus speaking, Count Olonetz was recovering his self-possession and his faculty of deliberation—though, if possible, he grew more and more bewildered as he gave way to his reflections and as he gazed on the lady be- fore him. “ Ah!” thought he to himself, ‘ there is indeed a difference! my memory had not failed me! Here we have dark hair and éyes—and this is assuredly the same whom I knew as Miss Malcolm at Constantinople. She then seemed to be about four or five and twenty—that was fifteen or six- teen years ago— and now she seems to be ap- proaching forty. So itis the same! But good God! that other!”—-and again all the Count’s ideas were lost in a bewildering fog, and in a mist which it appeared impossible for reason or discrimination to penetrate. “You evidently take very much to heart, my lord,” resumed Lady Langport, utterly ignorant of what was really passing in his mind, “ the conduct of which you were guilty—or rather, I should say, which you sought to practise towards me fifteen or sixteen years ago at Constan- tinople. But pray be at your ease. I will forgive you on one condition—and that condition is that you will be candid with me.” ‘Candid with you ?” repeated Olonetz, motion- ing for her ladyship to be seated, while he him- self sank into a chair; and that. politeness to his visitress was mechanical rather than deliberate and intentional at the moment. “YVes-I will explain: myself,” said her lady- ship, accepting the chair which was proffered her. “But in the first instance I should inform your lordship that I only just now heard of your COMO YN Wn) Colin