第308章

“I do hate you,” she said in a clear but trembling voice. “But it hasn’t been hypocrisy that’s kept me quiet It’s something you can’t understand, not possessing any—any common courtesy, common good breeding. It’s the realization that if all of us don’t hang together and submerge our own small hates, we can’t expect to beat the Yankees. But you—you—you’ve done all you could to lower the prestige of decent people—working and bringing shame on a good husband, giving Yankees and riffraff the right to laugh at us and make insulting remarks about our lack of gentility. Yankees don’t know that you aren’t one of us and have never been. Yankees haven’t sense enough to know that you haven’t any gentility. And when you’ve ridden about the woods exposing yourself to attack, you’ve exposed every well-behaved woman in town to attack by putting temptation in the ways of darkies and mean white trash. And you’ve put our men folks’ lives in danger because they’ve got to—”

“My God, India!” cried Melanie and even in her wrath, Scarlett was stunned to hear Melanie take the Lord’s name in vain. “You must hush! She doesn’t know and she—you must hush! You promised—”

“Oh, girls!” pleaded Miss Pittypat, her lips trembling.

“What don’t I know?” Scarlett was on her feet, furious, facing the coldly blazing India and the imploring Melanie.

“Guinea hens,” said Archie suddenly and his voice was contemptuous. Before anyone could rebuke him, his grizzled head went up sharply and he rose swiftly. “Somebody comin’ up the walk. ‘Tain’t Mr. Wilkes neither. Cease your cackle.”

There was male authority in his voice and the women stood suddenly silent anger fading swiftly from their faces as he stumped across the room to the door.

“Who’s thar?” he questioned before the caller even knocked.

“Captain Butler. Let me in.”

Melanie was across the floor so swiftly that her hoops swayed up violently, revealing her pantalets to the knees, and before Archie could put his hand on the knob she flung the door open. Rhett Butler stood in the doorway, his black slouch hat low over his eyes, the wild wind whipping his cape about him in snapping folds. For once his good manners had deserted him. He neither took off his hat nor spoke to the others in the room. He had eyes for no one but Melanie and he spoke abruptly without greeting.

“Where have they gone? Tell me quickly. It’s life or death.”

Scarlett and Pitty, startled and bewildered, looked at each other in wonderment and, like a lean old cat, India streaked across the room to Melanie’s side.

“Don’t tell him anything,” she cried swiftly. “He’s a spy, a Scalawag!”

Rhett did not even favor her with a glance.

“Quickly, Mrs. Wilkes! There may still be time.”

Melanie seemed in a paralysis of terror and only stared into his face.

“What on earth—” began Scarlett.

“Shet yore mouth,” directed Archie briefly. “You too, Miss Melly. Git the hell out of here, you damned Scalawag.”

“No, Archie, no!” cried Melanie and she put a shaking hand on Rhett’s arm as though to protect him from Archie. “What has happened? How did—how did you know?”

On Rhett’s dark face impatience fought with courtesy.

“Good God, Mrs. Wilkes, they’ve all been under suspicion since the beginning—only they’ve been too clever—until tonight! How do I know? I was playing poker tonight with two drunken Yankee captains and they let it out. The Yankees knew there’d be trouble tonight and they’ve prepared for it. The fools have walked into a trap.”

For a moment it was as though Melanie swayed under the impact of a heavy blow and Rhett’s arm went around her waist to steady her.

“Don’t tell him! He’s trying to trap you!” cried India, glaring at Rhett. “Didn’t you hear him say he’d been with Yankee officers tonight?”

Still Rhett did not look at her. His eyes were bent insistently on Melanie’s white face.

“Tell me. Where did they go? Have they a meeting place?”

Despite her fear and incomprehension, Scarlett thought she had never seen a blanker, more expressionless face than Rhett’s but evidently Melanie saw something else, something that made her give her trust. She straightened her small body away from the steadying arm and said quietly but with a voice that shook:

“Out the Decatur road near Shantytown. They meet in the cellar of the old Sullivan plantation—the one that’s half-burned.”

“Thank you. I’ll ride fast. When the Yankees come here, none of you know anything.”

He was gone so swiftly, his black cape melting into the night, that they could hardly realize he had been there at all until they heard the spattering of gravel and the mad pounding of a horse going off at full gallop.

“The Yankees coming here?” cried Pitty and, her small feet turning under her, she collapsed on the sofa, too frightened for tears.

“What’s it all about? What did he mean? If you don’t tell me I’ll go crazy!” Scarlett laid hands on Melanie and shook her violently as if by force she could shake an answer from her.

“Mean? It means you’ve probably been the cause of Ashley’s and Mr. Kennedy’s death!” In spite of the agony of fear there was a note of triumph in India’s voice. “Stop shaking Melly. She’s going to faint.”

“No, I’m not,” whispered Melanie, clutching the back of a chair.

“My God, my God! I don’t understand! Kill Ashley? Please, somebody tell me—”

Archie’s voice, like a rusty hinge, cut through Scarlett’s words.

“Set down,” he ordered briefly. “Pick up yore sewin’. Sew like nothin’ had happened. For all we know, the Yankees might have been spyin’ on this house since sundown. Set down, I say, and sew.”

Trembling they obeyed, even Pitty picking up a sock and holding it in shaking fingers while her eyes, wide as a frightened child’s went around the circle for an explanation.

“Where is Ashley? What has happened to him, Melly?” cried Scarlett.

“Where’s your husband? Aren’t you interested in him?” India’s pale eyes blazed with insane malice as she crumpled and straightened the torn towel she had been mending.