Read Ebook: The fog by Pelley William Dudley

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Ebook has 2685 lines and 116237 words, and 54 pages

"Compromises him?"

"Suppose the boy loses his head and has to marry her! I'll see him dead before I'll see him make hamburg of his life as marriage made hamburg of mine!"

"You'll only make it worse by opposing him! Do have a little sense!" The wife was too calloused to appreciate the insult to herself.

"I know! That's the hard part. What can I do? I feel so helpless and weak and incompetent."

"Why go to all this fuss? Why do anything at all about it? You're an awful lot of trouble to yourself at times, John Forge! Let the whole thing work itself out If you don't attach any importance to it, neither will Nathan."

"But he's such a sickly, sentimental young fool! I can't trust him! I can't trust him, I say!"

Nevertheless, intent on seeing what manner of Circe was ruining his son's life, Johnathan shed hat and coat and headed grimly for the parlor.

Hands in pockets, face glowering, Johnathan stood between the porti?res, waiting for the music to cease. Nathan was advised of his father's appearance by a warning dig from Edith's elbow. Miss Gardner sensed something amiss, stopped playing, turned around.

"This is my father," said Nathan thickly. "Pa, this is Miss Gardner."

Carol arose and moved over effusively, one hand on a hip, the other outstretched to Johnathan.

Johnathan did not remove his hands from his pockets. He addressed himself to his daughter.

"Edith, your mother wants you! Nathan, you and I have business to discuss. Miss Gardner will excuse us."

Edith's face flamed scarlet.

"I'm sorry! We've got other company to supper. Miss Gardner will excuse us from supper too."

At the coarse insult, the righteously angered Gardner girl threw her chin in the air.

"I'm sorry I'm intruding," she said. "I'll be going."

"Nathaniel!" The father's voice was ominous. "As soon as Miss Gardner's gone, come to the kitchen. I've pressing business to discuss with you!"

The Gardner girl departed in high pique. The boy's face wore an unhealthy look as he came into the kitchen. Edith was already sobbing on her mother's sharp shoulder. Johnathan closed the door and spoke first.

"You dared," he cried hoarsely, "to bring her right here into this house! You dared!"

"Well," demanded the son desperately, "what do you want me to do? Sneak up some back alley with her?"

The apparent impudence of the question was so flagrant that Johnathan's temper exploded with a bang. Like lightning he ripped a hand from his pocket and struck Nathan in the head, an unexpected blow so fierce and hard it knocked the boy sprawling over a clothes basket.

"Shut up! Not a word out of you! There may be murder done in this house to-night! You're not too big yet for me to thrash, even if you can line the help up against me in my own factory."

Despite his white-hot rebellion Nathan saw a facial expression that made him fear his father. It cowed him. Beside, at heart he was still much of a boy and the habit of obedience was strong in him.

"Now," declared Johnathan, "you're going to listen to me. Edith! Anna! Go out! This is my affair and Nathan's--alone!"

The terrified women withdrew. Father and son faced one another beneath that ghastly white light from the burner sticking out from the wall.

"You've been going with that girl--unbeknown to me--you've been seen with her!"

Johnathan began moving back the chairs dramatically.

"All right! Suppose I have! What of it?"

"Then you--you--admit it!"

"Yes. I admit it!"

"Unbeknown to me--against all I've told you--you've gone with her and now you admit it!"

"Do you want me to say I haven't? Do you want me to lie to you?"

"I want you to keep your mouth shut! Don't speak unless you're spoken to!"

"But you did speak to me, didn't you?"

Johnathan walked over deadly close.

"Nathan," he said gutturally, "you're my son--and murder is punishable by hanging. But I swear if you give me any more of your lip, I'm going to send you to the undertaker and I'm going to do it to-night!"

The boy backed away from his father against the wall, as far as he could retreat. He did not answer. He waited.

"Six or eight years ago," went on Johnathan, when he saw he had browbeaten his boy into silence, "six or eight years ago I told you you were to have nothing to do with girls! Not until you were old enough to know your own mind, became of age and reached years of discretion. You understood me plainly enough then, didn't you? What? You may answer! What?"

"Yes, sir!"

"And all down the years you've understood I insisted on obedience, didn't you--right down until to-night?"

"Yes, sir!"

"But regardless of the fact that you knew my wishes and preferences in the matter perfectly, regardless of my warnings, my whippings, my admonitions--just like you did that picnic day with the Gridley girl--you've deliberately disobeyed me, haven't you? You may answer me that too! What?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Then what's the answer? What is it you deserve--deserve terribly?"

"Nothing, sir!"

"What?"

"I said 'Nothing'!"

"Nothing!"

"Precisely! Nothing! You can't lay down a law that runs contrary to human nature and expect obedience."

"Nathan--I'm--going--to--kill you!"

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