Mrs. Fyne brushed them aside, with the
semi-conscious egoism of all safe, established, existences. They had
known each other so little. Just three weeks. And of that time, too
short for the birth of any serious sentiment, the first week had to be
deducted. They would hardly look at each other to begin with. Flora
barely consented to acknowledge Captain Anthony's presence. Good
morning--good night--that was all--absolutely the whole extent of their
intercourse. Captain Anthony was a silent man, completely unused to the
society of girls of any sort and so shy in fact that he avoided raising
his eyes to her face at the table. It was perfectly absurd. It was even
inconvenient, embarrassing to her--Mrs. Fyne. After breakfast Flora
would go off by herself for a long walk and Captain Anthony (Mrs. Fyne
referred to him at times also as Roderick) joined the children. But he
was actually too shy to get on terms with his own nieces.
This would have sounded pathetic if I hadn't known the Fyne children who
were at the same time solemn and malicious, and nursed a secret contempt
for all the world.
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