I can't go back
to England, I can't leave Bordeaux--she's buried here. I've
hunted high and low for work, and found it nowhere save in the
_brasserie-a-femmes_. With that, and a little copying now and then, I
manage to pay my way.'
'But your uncle?' I asked.
'Do you think I would touch a penny of his money?' Pair retorted,
almost fiercely. 'It was he who began it. My wife let herself die. It
was virtual suicide. It was he who created the situation that drove
her to it.'
'You are his heir, though, aren't you?'
'No, the estates are not entailed.'
We had arrived at the door of my hotel. 'Well, good-night and _bon
voyage_,' he said.
'You needn't wish me _bon voyage_,' I answered. 'Of course I'm not
leaving Bordeaux for the present.'
'Oh, yes, you are. You're going on to Biarritz to-morrow morning, as
you intended.'
And herewith began a long and most painful struggle. I could persuade
him to accept no help of any sort from me. 'What I can't do for
myself,' he declared, 'I'll do without. My dear fellow, all that you
propose is contrary to the laws of Nature. One man can't keep
another--it's an impossible relation. And I won't be kept; I won't be
a burden. Besides, to tell you the truth, I've got past caring. The
situation you find me in seems terrible to you; to me it's no worse
than another.
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