' "Why whatever's this," I said,' Miss Burch went on. ' "It's my neck," he answered me. "Your cheek my man," I said and then Edith she did have the grace to get up on her two feet after that. But he went on sitting there. "What's it to you?" he asked though I could see he was ashamed for both of them. "Just this," I said so he couldn't be in doubt upon it. "There's right and wrong," I says, "and there's no two ways about which this is," I said.'
'His neck?' Miss Swift asked faint. 'You never can tell. Oh dear perhaps if I could have a glance.'
'He's kept his neck wrapped up the last two weeks,' Miss Burch announced, 'he makes out the glands are enlarged. But it's his whole head has swelled.'
'They can be dangerous swollen glands can,' the nanny said firmer.
'Well if you ask me things will go from bad to worse if Mrs Tennant won't come home soon. And I love that girl of mine Edith, I love that child Miss Swift.'
'She's a good girl Miss Burch. The children will do anything for her.'
'There it is Miss Swift, she's had her eyes on him a long time and wishing's not likely to make things different. But I'm afraid for her with that man. He's up to no good,' Miss Burch pronounced and then paused.
The nanny did not seem anxious for more. She merely repeated once again, 'She's a good girl Edith is.'
'I've never had a better,' Miss Burch began afresh. There, I'll go so far as that, never a better under me,' she said. 'In this great rambling place we have a week's cleaning to do each day. But you can depend on her. And that's something can't be said of the other, Kate. Sometimes I even wish with that one I'd been given an Irish girl to train up instead.'
'No Roman Catholics thank you,' Miss Swift said sharp.
'Yes,' Miss Burch agreed, 'we don't want those fat priests about confessin' people or taking snuff.' She stared from her knitting at Miss Swift for a moment. 'Are you feeling quite well?' she asked.
'Me?' the nanny said in a quavering voice. Thank you I'm sure. Poor nanny…' she began as if about to continue but Agatha broke in, Then that's all right. But I'm sorry for the girls nowadays,' she announced. 'It puts me in mind of the South Africa war. They see the men going out to get killed and it makes them restless. I remember how it was with me at the time. Then they look at us old women and they say to themselves they don't wish to end up like us. I was the same at their age. It's only after they've lived a few years longer that they'll come to realize there's worse than sleeping alone in your own bed, with a fresh joint down in the larder for dinner every day.'
'And a pension at the end, not just the old age,' Miss Swift put in quite bright once more. 'It was a weight off poor old nanny's mind I can tell you when they asked nanny to come back to Miss Violet after she'd done for her from a baby. To take on her own child's sweet babies the little angels.'
'Ah Mrs Jack,' Miss Burch announced in a voice of doom.
Miss Swift looked askance. She hurriedly went on, 'And two of the best behaved little girls as ever I've had in my charge,' she said, 'so loving with their pretty little ways the Iambs. There's but one thing I could wish which is that there were more children round about for them to play with. You know Miss Burch it's not right at the age they are and with their position in life to have none but themselves. I was right glad when Mrs Jack told me about this Albert.' She paused for breath.
'Ah Mrs Jack,' Miss Burch put in as though sorrowing.
The nanny set off again, more breathless still. 'Of course it's the times,' she said. 'Now even after the last war they would never have entertained it, the very idea. Why a boy like Albert, the cook's own nephew, dear me no. Never in your life. But it's come about. It's the shortage. Having no petrol,' she ended and lay back, blue about the lips.
'What was revealed came as a great shock to me,' Miss Burch said and paused to pick up a dropped stitch. The nanny rested herself with closed eyes. There was a silence. 'A great shock,' Miss Burch repeated getting up speed once more with her knitting. Miss Swift did not utter.
'They can do what they like after all,' Miss Burch went on, 'there's little or nothing we can say will make any difference when all's told. Yet I've got to consider my girls. It's not so much the example. Enough goes on in any farm yard. But there's the upset to a girl of Edith's age coming from a good home. I'm afraid for her.'
'She's a strong girl,' Miss Swift said faint, 'I can tell.'
'That's as may be,' Miss Burch replied, 'but going to call the lady and then to turn round after drawing those curtains to find the Captain Davenport in her bed as well why…' Miss Burch said and pursed her lips. There was no response so she looked up full at Miss Swift. This woman was lying back eyes closed or rather screwed shut in a wild look of alarm.
There,' Agatha added and returned to her knitting, 'I never meant to tell you. It slipped out. These last days I've been afraid it would throw my Edith right off her balance. It's her I mind for.'
They imagine things that's how it is,' the nanny murmured. 'I remember when I was a girl. Always imagining I was till I didn't rightly know."
'I saw him don't worry,' Miss Burch said in a loud voice. 'Why I thought she was going to faint away into my arms when she came out. Of course the moment she told me I went straight in. And there she lay the young lady naked as the day she was born with him just putting his shirt on. It didn't take me long to come away again I can tell you.'
'She was all the time the sweetest child,' the nanny said in a stronger voice. Miss Burch looked at her quickly, saw her face was smooth now, that she seemed peaceful. 'Miss Violet had such lovely golden hair,' Miss Swift went on, 'the only child I knew to keep it always. On her wedding day it was the same, oh dear. What a number of years that is to be sure.'
'So I told Edith, Miss Swift, how she'd best be off out of it. The less said the better I told her. And the next time we were alone I insisted she shouldn't pay attention, that what they did was no concern of ours. But she's took it to heart. I know. There's times I feel desperate.'
'Such a picture in white when she come up the aisle. Dear me it's a strange thing but I feel quite tired. I fancy I'll take a little nap.'
'Are you sure there's nothing you'd like, a cup of tea or something?'
'No thank you Miss Burch all the same.'
Agatha got her knitting together. She cast another glance at Miss Swift who was very blue about the lips.
'You're sure there's nothing now?' she said once more. 'You wouldn't like me to change your hot-water bottle?'
'No I'm quite comfortable,' the nanny answered. 'I just wonder if I won't have a little nap that's all.' So Miss Burch left. As she closed the door she said to herself, 'Well she never thanked me for coming but then I shouldn't have let my tongue run on. But she never took it in even. We're both getting old women,' she repeated aloud as she went along the white linoleum in that corridor and walked to one side over the purple key pattern border.
Miss Burch never told the nanny that her protest to Raunce and Edith had been without effect. Edith it is true had risen to her feet when she left them but Charley had not stirred. And now as Agatha went slowly to her room with a pounding heart, Edith down in the Red Library was back in what used to be Mr Tennant's special easy chair. She hardly seemed comfortable however for she Was protesting, '… and, well, I don't like it.'
'Now ducks,' he said.
'I don't want to set her against me Charley. It's me has to work with her. Not you after all.'
'She's got nothing on us,' he replied, 'no one has.' At that a silence fell between them. Then she let out careless in a low voice, 'Charley I found the ring.'
'What ring?' he asked as though talking of daisy chains.
'Why,' she explained with sudden excitement, 'Mrs T.'s ring she mislaid before she went away. I chanced on it the other afternoon.'
'She's always losin' valuables,' he remarked casual, 'the wonder is she gets them back so often.'
'That's what I mean,' she said.
'I don't get you.'
'Suppose she didn't get this ring back?'
'Well you're goin' to give it her surely? You don't want to hand it over to our Agatha so she claims all the credit. Stand up for yourself love. You found the object. You hand it back and gather the reward though I'm afraid you'll be unlucky there you know.'
'What I was wondering was suppose I never offered the old ring back?'
'Here,' he said, 'easy on. Knock the ring off you mean?'
'Keep it,' she agreed. She seemed overexcited.
'Where is it?' he asked.
'Hid here in the lining,' she replied and got up. She forked the thing out of a tear with her finger. Her hands trembled.
'Let's have a look,' he said. 'You know you want to go steady with suggestions like the one you've just put forward. See,' he said holding the ring on a level with his chin. It winked and glittered at him. He smiled on it. 'Christ,' he said low.