“Uncle George is at Windsor and Aunt Emily is visiting her friend by the sea.We expect them home any day,” Una said.“George is in Africa—“
“Oh, I knew aboutthat, at least.It’s been in the papers,“ said Violet, standing up.“What have you done to the old nursery?Pip says I won’t recognise it.”She took a step towards her but Una shut the door firmly behind her and blocked her way.
“Not now,” Una said.“Let’s go down to breakfast.”
Una scooped up Oolong and made for the stairs.
Violet’s manners had not improved during her time away, Una soon noticed.On the way to breakfast, Violet had simply shaken out her jacket and put it back on, hideously rumpled.Una wondered if her sister had hidden a change of clothes somewhere, or if what Violet wore really represented all her worldly possessions.
They were not the clothes she had run away in.Where had they come from?Had her old things been stolen?Una tried not to stare at her older sister as the three of them ate their breakfast.
“So he was after old Georgie’s bit of armour, was he?”Violet said, loading her toast with a monstrous amount of jam.“He’s probably some sort of fanatic.England’s full of them, you know.Theosophists and spiritualists and what-have-you.I heard a lady lecture in Leeds—she says she’s found the reincarnation of Jesus Christ as a little Hindustani boy.She set up a subscription to send him to Oxford, to be educated as a gentleman.”
And Violet let out a throaty laugh at the thought.
“Some people have all the luck,” Pip muttered.
Violet turned to him in surprise.“Do you really think so?I wouldn’t be him for worlds.”
“Which?”said Pip.“A Hindustani boy, or Je—“
“Oh, stop!”Una protested.
“Neither of them,” Violet answered decidedly.“I don’t think either of them would receive kind treatment there.”
Pip choked on his tea.
“It does us no good to speculate about it,” said Una crisply.“Cousin Edith is writing to Stephen Fairweather about the intruder.He’ll make inquiries.”
“Is he still at the War Office?”asked Violet.“Hang on, Pip, didn’t you live with the Fairweather family in Bloomsbury?What was that like?”
Pip shrugged.
Violet sat back in her chair and looked at them both.“The two of you are not very forthcoming.I was counting on you to give me all the gossip.”
Pip glanced at Una, as if he wanted her to change the subject.
Una opened her mouth, but at that moment there was a patter of quick footsteps and the door burst open.
“Violet!”cried Cousin Edith.“You absoluterotter!”
In only a moment, Edith had hauled Violet to her feet, embraced her fiercely, held her at arm’s length, straightened and dusted off Violet’s jacket, then hugged her again.
“Don’t youdarelaugh!“ Edith scolded, for Violet was indeed laughing.“Because then I’ll laugh too, and I want to becross, you terrible scapegrace!”
Suddenly, Edith was crying.She sank into a chair, and began to fish about for a handkerchief.“Oh, no,notthat one,“ she muttered to the one she pulled from her sleeve, going after another in her pocket.
Una froze, suffering bewildering waves of feeling.
Was this how she ought to have reacted to her sister’s appearance?And why hadn’t she?
“I’m sorry to weep on you,” said Edith.“But I was so afraid that you’d be gone again before I got here.Before Mother came home.And I’m so relieved.Please, please, don’t disappear again!”
Violet looked as if Edith’s greeting confused her as much as it did Una.She shoved her hands in her pockets like a guilty schoolboy—perhaps she didn’t know what else to do with them.
“And then to hide like that—from everyone but the twins, and sneak about!”Edith took a deep breath.“Whydid you do it?”
Violet stammered, “I think—I think I wanted to just glimpse you and see—if there was still room for me.”
