The Time Of Waiting

: The House On The Borderland

The sun was now warm, and shining brightly, forming a wondrous contrast

to the dark and dismal cellars; and it was with comparatively light

feelings, that I made my way up to the tower, to survey the gardens.

There, I found everything quiet, and, after a few minutes, went down to

Mary's room.



Here, having knocked, and received a reply, I unlocked the door. My

sister was sitting, quietly, on the bed; as th ugh waiting. She seemed

quite herself again, and made no attempt to move away, as I approached;

yet, I observed that she scanned my face, anxiously, as though in doubt,

and but half assured in her mind that there was nothing to fear from me.



To my questions, as to how she felt, she replied, sanely enough, that

she was hungry, and would like to go down to prepare breakfast, if I did

not mind. For a minute, I meditated whether it would be safe to let her

out. Finally, I told her she might go, on condition that she promised

not to attempt to leave the house, or meddle with any of the outer

doors. At my mention of the doors, a sudden look of fright crossed her

face; but she said nothing, save to give the required promise, and then

left the room, silently.



Crossing the floor, I approached Pepper. He had waked as I entered;

but, beyond a slight yelp of pleasure, and a soft rapping with his tail,

had kept quiet. Now, as I patted him, he made an attempt to stand up,

and succeeded, only to fall back on his side, with a little yowl

of pain.



I spoke to him, and bade him lie still. I was greatly delighted with

his improvement, and also with the natural kindness of my sister's

heart, in taking such good care of him, in spite of her condition of

mind. After a while, I left him, and went downstairs, to my study.



In a little time, Mary appeared, carrying a tray on which smoked a hot

breakfast. As she entered the room, I saw her gaze fasten on the props

that supported the study door; her lips tightened, and I thought she

paled, slightly; but that was all. Putting the tray down at my elbow,

she was leaving the room, quietly, when I called her back. She came, it

seemed, a little timidly, as though startled; and I noted that her hand

clutched at her apron, nervously.



'Come, Mary,' I said. 'Cheer up! Things look brighter. I've seen none

of the creatures since yesterday morning, early.'



She looked at me, in a curiously puzzled manner; as though not

comprehending. Then, intelligence swept into her eyes, and fear; but she

said nothing, beyond an unintelligible murmur of acquiescence. After

that, I kept silence; it was evident that any reference to the

Swine-things, was more than her shaken nerves could bear.



Breakfast over, I went up to the tower. Here, during the greater part

of the day, I maintained a strict watch over the gardens. Once or twice,

I went down to the basement, to see how my sister was getting along.

Each time, I found her quiet, and curiously submissive. Indeed, on the

last occasion, she even ventured to address me, on her own account, with

regard to some household matter that needed attention. Though this was

done with an almost extraordinary timidity, I hailed it with happiness,

as being the first word, voluntarily spoken, since the critical moment,

when I had caught her unbarring the back door, to go out among those

waiting brutes. I wondered whether she was aware of her attempt, and how

near a thing it had been; but refrained from questioning her, thinking

it best to let well alone.



That night, I slept in a bed; the first time for two nights. In the

morning, I rose early, and took a walk through the house. All was as it

should be, and I went up to the tower, to have a look at the gardens.

Here, again, I found perfect quietness.



At breakfast, when I met Mary, I was greatly pleased to see that she

had sufficiently regained command over herself, to be able to greet me

in a perfectly natural manner. She talked sensibly and quietly; only

keeping carefully from any mention of the past couple of days. In this,

I humored her, to the extent of not attempting to lead the conversation

in that direction.



Earlier in the morning, I had been to see Pepper. He was mending,

rapidly; and bade fair to be on his legs, in earnest, in another day or

two. Before leaving the breakfast table, I made some reference to his

improvement. In the short discussion that followed, I was surprised to

gather, from my sister's remarks, that she was still under the

impression that his wound had been given by the wildcat, of my

invention. It made me feel almost ashamed of myself for deceiving her.

Yet, the lie had been told to prevent her from being frightened. And

then, I had been sure that she must have known the truth, later, when

those brutes had attacked the house.



During the day, I kept on the alert; spending much of my time, as on

the previous day, in the tower; but not a sign could I see of the

Swine-creatures, nor hear any sound. Several times, the thought had come

to me, that the Things had, at last, left us; but, up to this time, I

had refused to entertain the idea, seriously; now, however, I began to

feel that there was reason for hope. It would soon be three days since I

had seen any of the Things; but still, I intended to use the utmost

caution. For all that I could tell, this protracted silence might be a

ruse to tempt me from the house--perhaps right into their arms. The

thought of such a contingency, was, alone, sufficient to make me

circumspect.



So it was, that the fourth, fifth and sixth days went by, quietly,

without my making any attempt to leave the house.



On the sixth day, I had the pleasure of seeing Pepper, once more, upon

his feet; and, though still very weak, he managed to keep me company

during the whole of that day.