Chapter 68

Berenice, in the meantime, having reached her room, sat there woodenly, finding herself powerless to think, so filled with fear was she, for Cowperwood as well as herself. Aileen might have returned to his apartment, and how dreadful the effect of that on him at this time! It might actually bring about his death! And how terrible it was that she could not do anything for him! Finally, she thought of going to Dr. James and asking him how to defeat this vicious, merciless mood on the part of Aileen. But she was held back by the fear of again meeting her. Perhaps she was in the hall, or in Dr. James’ room! By degrees the situation became so unbearable to her that at last it produced a practical idea. She went to the telephone and called Dr. James, and, much to her relief, he answered.

“Dr. James, ” she began, shakily, “this is Berenice. I want to know if you won’t please be good enough to come to my room at once. Something dreadful has happened, and I am so unstrung and nervous I must talk to you! ”

“Why, certainly, Berenice. I will come at once, ” he replied.

Then she added, in a most unsteady voice: “If you should see Mrs. Cowperwood in the hall, please don’t allow her to follow you here.”

But here her voice broke off, and James, sensing danger, hung the phone up hurriedly and, seizing his medical kit, went directly to her apartment and knocked at the door. Berenice responded by whispering from behind the door:

“Are you alone, Doctor? ”

When he assured her he was alone, she opened the door and he stepped inside.

“What is the matter, Berenice? What is all this? ” he asked, almost brusquely, at the same time studying her white face. “Why are you so terrified? ”

“Oh, Doctor, I can’t tell you.” She was actually trembling with fear. “It’s Mrs. Cowperwood. I saw her here in the hall as I was coming in, and she saw me. Her expression was so savage that I am afraid for Frank. Do you know whether or not she has seen him since I left? I have the feeling that she might have returned to his apartment.”

“Certainly, not, ” said James. “I have just come from there. Frank is all right, quite safe. But here, ” and taking a few small white pills from his medicine case, he handed her one. “Take this, and don’t say anything more for a few moments. It will quiet your nerves, and then you can tell me all about it.” And going toward a sofa, he motioned her to sit beside him. Gradually she showed signs of becoming more quiet. “Now, listen, Berenice, ” he added, “I know that your situation here is a very difficult one. I have known it ever since you came here, but why are you so wrought up? Do you expect Mrs. Cowperwood to attack you personally? ”

“Oh, no, I am not worried about myself, ” she replied, more calmly. “It’s Frank I’m really worried about. He is so ill and so weak and helpless at this time, and I’m afraid that she may say or do things that might hurt him so terribly he would not want to live. And, oh, he has been so liberal and so well-meaning toward her. And just now when he needs love, not hate, and after all he has done for her, she is ready to do I don’t know what—abuse him so violently that he may suffer a relapse. He’s told me many times that she always loses control of her emotions when she becomes jealous.”

“Yes, I know, ” said James. “He is a very great man, who has married the wrong woman, and to tell you the truth, I feared something of this kind. I thought it unwise for you to be in the same hotel. However, love is a powerful force, and I saw how deeply you cared for each other when I was in England. But I also knew, as did many people, that his relations with Mrs. Cowperwood were unsatisfactory to him. By the way, did you exchange any words with her? ”

“Oh, no, ” replied Berenice. “I just saw her as I stepped out of the elevator, and her anger and opposition, as she recognized me, were so real that I felt it through my whole body. It came to me that she might do something desperate to both of us, if she could. Besides, I was afraid she might return to his apartment immediately.”

At this point Dr. James advised Berenice to stay in her suite until this storm subsided, and to wait until she heard from him. Above all, as he instructed her, she was not to say a word to Cowperwood about this when she saw him again. He was far too ill to endure it. In the meantime, as he patiently explained, he would brave the anger of Mrs. Cowperwood and call her, to determine, if possible, what she might be doing or planning to say publicly. And then he left Berenice to go to his own room to think the matter over.

However, before he had time to reach Aileen on the telephone, one of the nurses came into his room to ask if he would not please step in and look at Mr. Cowperwood; he seemed more restless than usual. When he did so, he found Cowperwood stirring around in his bed as though he were uncomfortable. And when he asked him how his visit with Aileen came out, he answered wearily:

“Oh, everything worked out all right, I think. At least, I went over the most important points with her. But somehow, Jeff, I feel very tired and exhausted from our long conversation.”

“Well, I expected that. Next time, don’t talk for such a long time. And now here is something for you to take. It will give you a little rest for the present.” And with that he handed Cowperwood a powder with a glass of water, which he swallowed as Dr. James added: “Well, that will do for now, and I’ll look in on you a little later this afternoon.”

Whereupon he returned to his own room and called Aileen, who by that time had returned home. Upon hearing his name announced by her maid, she came directly to the phone. James, in his most courteous tone, told her he was calling to find out how her visit with her husband had worked out, and asked if there was anything he could do to help her.

Her voice was angry and uncontrolled as she spoke.

“Yes, Dr. James, you can help me very much by not calling me any more, if you please, for I’ve just found out what has been going on all the time—in London and here—between my so-called husband and Miss Fleming. I know she has been living with him there and is now living with him under your eyes, and apparently with your aid and approval. And you want to know whether I had a satisfactory interview with him! And that woman hiding in the same hotel! It’s the most outrageous thing I ever heard of, and one which I’m sure the public will be glad to hear about! And it will, depend on that! ” And then, her voice almost breaking with rage, she added: “You, a doctor! A man supposed to be concerned with the decencies of life...”

Whereupon Dr. James, sensing the fierceness of her rage, managed to interrupt her sufficiently to say, forcefully but calmly:

“Mrs. Cowperwood, I beg to take exception to your accusations. I was called in on this case in a professional capacity, not as a judge of situations which are none of my making. And you have no right to judge the motives of a man about whom you know as little as you do about me. Whether you believe it or not, your husband is a very sick man, very, and if you make the grave error of giving out any story to the press, you will be hurting yourself a thousand times more than you could ever hurt him, or anyone connected with him. For he not only has powerful friends, but admirers, as you know—friends who will deeply resent any such action as you propose, and who will not fail him. If he dies, as he well may... well, judge for yourself how any such public attack as you have in mind will be received.”

These cutting words reminded Aileen of some of her own indiscretions in the not too distant past, and her voice suddenly lost some of its vibrato as she said:

“I don’t want to discuss any of the personal angles of this matter with you or anyone else, Dr. James, so please, don’t call me again on any matter connected with Mr. Cowperwood, no matter what happens. You have Miss Fleming there to wait on and comfort my husband. Let her take charge, and please don’t call me. I’m tired of the whole wretched relationship. And that’s final, Dr. James.” Here the telephone clicked, for she had hung up.

As Dr. James turned away from the phone, his face wore a faint smile. From his long years of professional experience with hysterical women, he knew that the force of her rage had spent itself in the hours since she had seen Berenice. For, after all, as he also knew, this was not a new story to Aileen. And he felt reasonably sure that her vanity would not allow her to give free reign to public utterances. She had not done so in the past and would not do so now, he felt. And with this much assurance, he went to call on and report to Berenice, whom he found still nervous and impatiently waiting to hear from him.

He still smiled as he proceeded to explain that he felt sure that Aileen’s bark was worse than her bite. For although she had threatened him and Cowperwood and Berenice with exposure, still, after his talk with her, he had the definite feeling that her rage had spent itself and that nothing more of a violent nature was likely to occur. Now, he added, since Aileen had declared finally that she proposed never to see her husband again, it looked to him as if he should have to ask Berenice to take charge, and they would, both of them, see if they could not pull him through. She might take the evening nursing shift from four to twelve.

“Oh, how wonderful! ” exclaimed Berenice. “I’ll be so happy to do all I possibly can to help him—anything within my power! For, oh, Doctor, he must live! He must get well and be free to do the things he has planned. And we must help him.”

“I’m very grateful to you for this. I know that he cares for you deeply, ” said James, “and he will no doubt be much better in your care.”

“Oh, Doctor, it is I who am truly grateful to you! ” she exclaimed, taking both of his hands in hers.