After Many Days: A Novel
Christian Reid
Paperback
(Forgotten Books, Sept. 27, 2015)
Excerpt from After Many Days: A NovelA Woodland glen into which the soft April sunshine streamed, through which a bright brook babbled, where graceful trees leaned over the water, and flowers of many kinds covered the ground like a carpet: on a flat stone at the foot of one of these trees a girl of sixteen sat dabbling a leafy branch in the current of the brook, and varying this amusement occasionally by leaning over to look at the water, which gave back a reflection of her face and of the white blossoms of a hawthorn which arched overhead.Near by, a boy, probably two years her senior, also sat, engaged in weaving, with remarkably dexterous fingers, a wreath of wild-flowers, which he had evidently gathered in the course of a long ramble."I don't think there's anything in the woods prettier than this crimson honeysuckle, Amy," he said. "See what a vivid color it has!""It is very pretty," said Amy, glancing up. "But I care more for the sweetness than the color. Give me a spray, Hugh.""Wait a minute," said Hugh, "and you shall have the wreath. I am making it for you. I'll put a long, trailing spray behind. There, now! I call that picturesque!"He extended the wreath at arms length, looked at it admiringly, then rose and laid it on his companion's head - a head covered with unruly masses of chestnut hair, in rich, curling waves."It's very becoming to you!" he said, stepping backward for a better view, and nearly tumbling over an outspread root into the water. "What a lovely Queen of May you'd make, Amy!"Amy leaned over and looked at herself in the clear brook."'For I'm to be Queen o' the May, mother, I'm to be Queen o' the May," she hummed, under her breath. "It's likely, isn't it?" she added, with a laugh that had a slight ring of bitterness. "Fancy anybody in Edgerton thinking of Amy Reynolds as Queen of May - except you, Hugh!""I'm not the only person who thinks you the prettiest girl in Edgerton," said Hugh. "I sometimes wish I was! Oh, yes, I do!" - as Amy looked at him, arching her brows in a challenging fashion she had. "It's no pleasure to me to hear men say, 'There goes pretty Amy Reynolds.' I always feel like knocking them down - and I'm not large enough for that, he ended, ruefully."I shouldn't advise you to try it," said Amy, and again her laugh rang out, this time full of unalloyed gayety. "You are not large, Hugh, and the consequences might be unpleasant.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.