If Only etc. | Page 5

married life that she had defied him, and he
looked at her in utter astonishment.
"Yes," she cried, turning on him like a small fury, with the book tightly
held in both hands; "I'm not a child to be dictated to and ordered to do
this and that. I'm perfectly well able to act for myself and I intend to do
so now and always. I'm sick of your eternal fault-finding, and the
sooner you know it the better. If it's not one thing it's another. Nothing I
do is right and I'm about tired of it."
John Chetwynd sat perfectly silent under this tirade. He was a shrewd
man, and he knew that Bella had been spending the evening with her
own people, and jumped at once to the conclusion that in defying him
she was acting by their advice, and his brow grew black and lowering.
Then he looked up at Bella, who, a little ashamed of her vehemence,
was slowly unbuttoning her gloves, having laid aside the unlucky cause
of the battle royal.
"My wife," he said kindly, "if you will not act on my advice, let me beg
of you to think twice before accepting that of others, since I at least
may be credited with having your real good at heart."

"And you think that--you mean to imply that--"
"That your sister has her own ends to serve? Undoubtedly I do."
"You are all wrong--all wrong." But the tell-tale blushes on Bella's face
showed him plainly enough that he had been right in his conjecture,
and had to thank his wife's relatives for her rebellion and newly
developed obstinacy and resentment.
"Now, Bella, from to-night I cannot allow you to go to Holly Street:
stay," as Bella would have spoken, "you may see your mother here
when you please, but you must let your sister fully understand that she
will not be welcome. Something surely is due to me as your husband,
and that there is no great amount of sympathy between you and Saidie
you have said repeatedly; therefore I am asking no great sacrifice of
you. Do you hear me, Bella?"
"Yes, I hear."
"And you will respect my wishes in the matter?"
"I don't know," she spoke uncertainly.
She was not fond of her sister, as he had said; certainly not sufficiently
fond of her to allow her to come between herself and Jack; and yet she
felt that it would be unwise and undignified if she were to give in and
refuse Saidie admission to their house. She had just declared that she
would stand no coercion; and after all, what had poor Saidie done?
"I don't think you have any right to keep my people away," she said at
last, sullenly. "This is my house as well as yours, remember."
"I am not going to argue over it, my dear girl." Dr. Chetwynd rose
determinedly from his chair with an expression on his face which his
wife had learned to know and dread. "I forbid you to ask your sister
here again. I am sorry to have to speak so decidedly; but your conduct
leaves me no alternative."

And he walked quickly across the floor and the next moment the door
closed upon him.
"I don't care what he says. I won't be ordered about," flashed out Bella,
all that was worst in her nature roused by Jack's resolution. "Saidie is
quite right; if I don't put my foot down I shall soon be nothing better
than a white slave."
"Putting her foot down," certainly had one effect, namely, that of
making life anything but a bed of roses for the unfortunate doctor.
Never had Bella shown herself so unamiable and unloveable as during
the next two days. She hardly addressed her husband and she flounced
about the room and tossed her head and hummed music-hall ditties
(which she had caught from Saidie) under her breath, and altogether
comported herself in the most exasperating fashion.
John Chetwynd hardly knew how to act towards her. If he pretended to
be unconscious of anything unusual, it would probably provoke her to
stronger measures, and yet he was very loth to stir up strife between
them, and leant towards the hope that this spirit of fractiousness would
die out in time and that Bella would become her loving, tractable self
again. But he reckoned without his host.
Saidie, who was duly apprised of the condition of things, urged upon
her sister to stick to her guns and on no account to yield an inch, and
although desperately miserable, Bella took her advice.
Returning from seeing a patient a day or two later, Dr. Chetwynd ran
into the arms of an old friend, a man he had not seen since his marriage.
"Why, Meynell, old chap,