Yet, though the latter was a perfectly innocent victim, Miss Briggs could not disguise from her friend her fear that Miss Crawley's affections were hopelessly estranged from Rebecca, and that the old lady would never forgive her nephew for making so imprudent a marriage.
On this point Rebecca had her own opinion, and still kept up a good heart.
If Miss Crawley did not forgive them at present, she might at least relent on a future day.
Even now, there was only that puling, sickly Pitt Crawley between Rawdon and a baronetcy; and should anything happen to the former, all would be well.
At all events, to have Mrs. Bute's designs exposed, and herself well abused, was a satisfaction, and might be advantageous to Rawdon's interest; and Rebecca, after an hour's chat with her recovered friend, left her with the most tender demonstrations of regard, and quite assured that the conversation they had had together would be reported to Miss Crawley before many hours were over. This interview ended, it became full time for Rebecca to return to her inn, where all the party of the previous day were assembled at a farewell breakfast.
Rebecca took such a tender leave of Amelia as became two women who loved each other as sisters; and having used her handkerchief plentifully, and hung on her friend's neck as if they were parting for ever, and waved the handkerchief (which was quite dry, by the way) out of window, as the carriage drove off, she came back to the breakfast table, and ate some prawns with a good deal of appetite, considering her emotion; and while she was munching these delicacies, explained to Rawdon what had occurred in her morning walk between herself and Briggs.
Her hopes were very high: she made her husband share them.
She generally succeeded in making her husband share all her opinions, whether melancholy or cheerful.
"You will now, if you please, my dear, sit down at the writing-table and pen me a pretty little letter to Miss Crawley, in which you'll say that you are a good boy, and that sort of thing."
So Rawdon sate down, and wrote off,
"Brighton, Thursday," and
"My dear Aunt," with great rapidity: but there the gallant officer's imagination failed him.
He mumbled the end of his pen, and looked up in his wife's face.
She could not help laughing at his rueful countenance, and marching up and down the room with her hands behind her, the little woman began to dictate a letter, which he took down.
"Before quitting the country and commencing a campaign, which very possibly may be fatal."
"What?" said Rawdon, rather surprised, but took the humour of the phrase, and presently wrote it down with a grin.
"Which very possibly may be fatal, I have come hither--"
"Why not say come here, Becky?
Come here's grammar," the dragoon interposed.
"I have come hither," Rebecca insisted, with a stamp of her foot, "to say farewell to my dearest and earliest friend.
I beseech you before I go, not perhaps to return, once more to let me press the hand from which I have received nothing but kindnesses all my life."
"Kindnesses all my life," echoed Rawdon, scratching down the words, and quite amazed at his own facility of composition.
"I ask nothing from you but that we should part not in anger.
I have the pride of my family on some points, though not on all.
I married a painter's daughter, and am not ashamed of the union."
"No, run me through the body if I am!" Rawdon ejaculated.
"You old booby," Rebecca said, pinching his ear and looking over to see that he made no mistakes in spelling --"beseech is not spelt with an a, and earliest is."
So he altered these words, bowing to the superior knowledge of his little Missis.
"I thought that you were aware of the progress of my attachment," Rebecca continued:
"I knew that Mrs. Bute Crawley confirmed and encouraged it.
But I make no reproaches.
I married a poor woman, and am content to abide by what I have done.
Leave your property, dear Aunt, as you will.
I shall never complain of the way in which you dispose of it.
I would have you believe that I love you for yourself, and not for money's sake.
I want to be reconciled to you ere I leave England.
Let me, let me see you before I go.
A few weeks or months hence it may be too late, and I cannot bear the notion of quitting the country without a kind word of farewell from you."
"She won't recognise my style in that," said Becky.
"I made the sentences short and brisk on purpose."
And this authentic missive was despatched under cover to Miss Briggs.
Old Miss Crawley laughed when Briggs, with great mystery, handed her over this candid and simple statement.
"We may read it now Mrs. Bute is away," she said.
"Read it to me, Briggs."
When Briggs had read the epistle out, her patroness laughed more.
"Don't you see, you goose," she said to Briggs, who professed to be much touched by the honest affection which pervaded the composition, "don't you see that Rawdon never wrote a word of it.
He never wrote to me without asking for money in his life, and all his letters are full of bad spelling, and dashes, and bad grammar.
It is that little serpent of a governess who rules him." They are all alike, Miss Crawley thought in her heart.
They all want me dead, and are hankering for my money. "I don't mind seeing Rawdon," she added, after a pause, and in a tone of perfect indifference.
"I had just as soon shake hands with him as not.