At what hour?
For only the previous evening, she, by her orders and commands to the servants, had barred all doors.
Yet here he was!
Obviously, his, not her, friends and servants must have collaborated to have done this for him.
And so plainly now, all would be anticipating a change of attitude on her part, and if so, all the customary and formal last rites due to any such distinguished man.
In other words, he would have won.
It would appear as though she had altered her views and condoned his unfettered self-directing actions.
But no, never should they do this to her!
Insulted and triumphed over to the very last; Never!
And yet, even as she declared her defiance to herself, there he lay, and even as she gazed on him, there was the sound of footsteps behind her, and as she turned her head, Carr, the butler, approached, a letter in his hand, saying:
“Madam, this has just been delivered at the door for you.”
And although at first she gestured as if to wave him away, he had no more than turned his back, when she exclaimed:
“Give it to me!”
And then, tearing it open, she read:
Aileen, I am dying.
When this reaches you, I will be no more.
I know all my sins and all those you charge me with, and I blame only myself.
But I cannot forget the Aileen who helped me through my prison days in Philadelphia.
Yet it will not help me now, or either of us, to say I am sorry.
But somehow, I feel that in the depths of your heart you will forgive me, once I am gone.
Also it comforts me to know that you will be taken care of.
I have arranged for all that, as you know.
So now, good-by, Aileen!
No more evil thoughts from your Frank, no more ever!
A conclusion on his part which caused Aileen to go forward to the casket and take his hands and kiss them.
And then, after gazing at him for a moment, she turned and hurried away.
However, a few hours later, Carr, having been the recipient, through Jamieson and others, of various requests, was compelled to consult with Aileen concerning procedure in connection with the burial.
The requests for permission to attend were so numerous that finally Carr was forced to bring forward a list of names, so long a list that it caused Aileen to say:
“Oh, let them come!
What harm can it do now?
Let Mr. Jamieson and Mr. Cowperwood’s son and daughter arrange everything as they please.
I will keep to my room, as I am not well enough to help in any way.”
“But, Mrs. Cowperwood, wouldn’t you be willing to have a minister present to pronounce the last rites?” asked Carr, a suggestion that had been made by Dr. James, but which fitted Carr’s religious nature.
“Oh, yes, let one come.
It can do no harm,” said Aileen, as her thoughts wandered back to the extreme religiosity of her parents.
“But limit the number of those who are to come here to fifty, no more”—a decision which caused Carr to get in immediate touch with Jamieson and Cowperwood’s son and daughter, in order to inform them that they were to go ahead with such funeral arrangements as they felt appropriate.
This news, reaching Dr. James’ ears, caused him to heave a sigh of relief, at the same time that he proceeded to have the many admirers of Cowperwood informed of this fact.
Chapter 72
Among the friends of Cowperwood who called at the mansion that same afternoon, and the morning following, those whose names were on Buckner Carr’s list were allowed to enter to view the body now lying in state in the spacious drawing room on the second floor.
The others were advised to attend the tombside ceremonial at Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn the following day at 2 p.m.
In the meantime, Cowperwood’s son and daughter had called on Aileen, and it was arranged that they were to ride with her in the first mourner’s carriage.
By that time, however, every New York newspaper was ablaze with the so-called sudden end of Cowperwood, who only six weeks before had arrived in New York.
Because of his great number of friends, the articles stated, the funeral services would be attended by intimate friends of the family only: a statement which, however, did not deter many people from going out to the cemetery.
Accordingly, the next day at noon, the funeral cortege began forming in front of the Cowperwood mansion.
Groups of people gathered on the streets outside to observe the spectacle.
Following the hearse was the carriage containing Aileen, Frank A. Cowperwood, Jr., and Cowperwood’s daughter, Anna Templeton.
And then, one by one, the other carriages moved into line, and proceeded along the highway, under an overcast sky, until finally they passed through the gates to Greenwood Cemetery.
The gravel drive gradually mounted a long incline, bordered by heavy trees, behind which ranged stones and monuments of all descriptions.
About a quarter of mile in, as the drive continued to rise, a roadway branched off to the right, and a few hundred feet farther on, between great trees, the tomb loomed solemnly high and majestic.
It stood alone, no other monument being within thirty feet of it, a gray, austere, and northern version of a Greek temple.