He said such cruel
things I could not bear it, and cried out that I would come to you, for
I was quite wild with terror, grief, and shame, that seemed like oil to
fire. He swore I should not, and oh, Pauline, he struck me! See, if I do
not tell the living truth!"
Trembling with excitement, Mrs. Redmond pushed back the wide sleeve of
her wrapper and showed the red outline of a heavy hand. Manuel set his
teeth and stamped his foot into the carpet with an indignant exclamation
and the brief question, "Then you left him, Babie?"
"Yes, although he locked me in my room, saying the law gave him the
right to teach obedience. I flung on these clothes, crept noiselessly
along the balcony till the hall window let me in, and then I ran to you.
He will come for me. Can he take me away? Must I go back to suffer any
more?"
In the very act of uttering the words, Mrs. Redmond clung to Manuel with
a cry of fear, for on the threshold stood her husband. A comprehensive
glance seemed to stimulate his wrath and lend the hardihood wherewith to
confront the three, saying sternly as he beckoned, "Babie, I am waiting
for you."
She did not speak, but still clung to Manuel as if he were her only
hope. A glance from Pauline checked the fiery words trembling on his
lips, and he too stood silent while she answered with a calmness that
amazed him:
"Your wife has chosen us her guardians, and I think you will scarcely
venture to use force again with two such witnesses as these to prove
that you have forfeited your right to her obedience and justify the step
she has taken.
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