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She wanted to be gone before Ashley came home"I don't know if
you're
aware of it, India, but Melly asked me on her deathbed to promise that
I'd watch out for Beau and Ashley India's body jerked as if she'd
been shot"Don't say a word," Scarlett warned her, "because there's
nothing you can say that means anything next to Melly's practically
last words
"You'll ruin Ashley's name just like you've ruined your ownI won't
have you hanging around here after him, bringing disgrace down on all
of us
"The last thing on God's green earth I want to do, India Wilkes, is
spend one more minute in this house than I have toI came to tell
you
that I've made arrangements at my store for you to get anything you
need
"The Wilkeses don't take charity, Scarlett
"You omega constellation watch crystal simpleton, I'm not talking charity, I'm talking my promise to
MelanieYou don't have any idea how quick a boy Beau's age goes
through breeches and outgrows shoesOr how much they costDo
you
want Ashley to be burdened with little worries like that when he's
broken-hearted about bigger things? Or do you want Beau to be a
laughingstock at school? "I know just how much income Aunt Pitty
gets
I used to live here, remember? It's just enough to keep Uncle Peter
and the carriage, put a little food on the table, an,d pay for her
smelling saltsThere's a little thing called 'the Panic, tooHalf
the businesses in the country are foldingAshley's likely going to
have less money coming in than ever"If I can swallow my pride and
beat on the front door like a crazy woman, you can chanel bucket bag swallow yours and
take what I'm givingIt's not your place to turn it down, because if
it was only you, I'd let you starve without blinking an eyeI'm
talking about BeauAnd Melly, because I promised her
what she asked"'Take care of Ashley, but don't let him know it,' she
saidI can't not let him know it if you won't help, India
"How do I know that's what Melanie said?"
"Because I say so, and my word's as good as goldNo matter what
you
may think of me, India, you'll never find anybody to say that I ever
backed down on a promise or broke my word India hesitated, and
Scarlett knew she was winning"You don't have to go to the store
yourself," she said"You can send a list by somebody else India
took a deep breath"Only for Beau's school clothes," she wholesale rolex watches said
grudgingly
Scarlett kept herself from smilingOnce India saw how pleasant it was
to get things for free, she'd do a lot more shopping than thatoe
Scarlett was sure of it"I'll say good day, then, India
Kershaw, the head clerk, is the only one knows about this, and he
won't
run off at the mouth to anybodyPut his name on the outside of your
list, and he'll take care of everything When she settled back in her
carriage, Scarlett's stomach gave out an audible rumbleShe smiled
from ear to earThank heaven it had waited
Back home she ordered the cook to heat up her dinner and serve it
againWhile she waited to be called to the table she looked through
the other pages of the newspapers, avoiding the stories about the
PanicThere was a column she'd never bothered with before that dolce |