Nightfall | Page 9

an uncontrollable shrinking on Laura's part, an occasional
hesitation or reluctance in Val--which hinted at flying storms. But Val,
the father supposed, could make allowance for a cripple: Bernard was
so much to be pitied that no man would resent an occasional burst of
temper! And there his children left him. The younger generation can
trust one another not to interfere, but when the seniors strike in, with

their cut and dry precedents and rule of thumb moralities, who knows
what mischief may follow? Elder people are so indiscreet!
"It's a cousin of Major Clowes," Isabel continued, "but they haven't met
for years and years--not since the war. Laura knows him too, she met
him before she was married and liked him very much indeed. She's
looking forward to it--that is, she would be if she had spirit enough to
look forward to anything."
"Clowes never said a word to me about it," remarked Val.
"Didn't he?" Isabel unfolded herself and stood up. "That means he is
going to be tiresome. I must run now, it's five past nine. Which will you
both have, cold beef or eggs?"
"Oh, anything that's going," said Val.
"Eggs," said Rowsley, "not less than four. Without prejudice to the cold
beef if it's underdone. Hallo!"
"What?"
"What's the matter with your skirt?"
"Nothing," said Isabel shortly. She screwed her head over her shoulder
in a vain endeavour to see her own back. "It's perfectly all right."
"It would be, on a scarecrow." Isabel stuck her chin up. "Have you been
over to the Castle in that kit, Baby? Well, if Yvonne won't give you
some of her old clothes, you might ask the kitchenmaid."
"The kitchenmaid has more money than I have," said Isabel cheerfully.
"Is it so very bad? It's clean anyway, I washed and ironed it myself."
"It looks very nice and so do you," said Val. Isabel eyed him with a
softened glance: one could rely on Val to salve one's wounded vanity,
but, alas! Val did not know home-made from tailor-made. Reluctantly
she owned to herself that she had more faith in Rowsley's judgment. "It
seems rather short though," Val added. "I suppose you will have to go

into long frocks pretty soon, won't you, and put your hair up?"
"Oh bother my hair and my dresses!" said Isabel with a great sigh. "I
will pin my hair up when I get some new clothes, but how can I when I
haven't any money and Jim hasn't any money and neither of you have
any money? Don't you see, idiot," this was exclusively to Rowsley,
"when I pin my hair up I shall turn into a grown up lady? And then I
shall have to wear proper clothes. At present I'm only a little girl and it
doesn't signify what I wear. If any one will give me five pounds I'll pin
my hair up like a shot. Oh dear, I wonder what Yvonne would say if
Jack expected her to outfit herself for five pounds? I do wish some one
would leave me 10,000 pounds a year. Get up now, you lazy beggar,
come and help me lay the supper. It's Fanny's evening out."
She pulled Rowsley to his feet and they went off together leaving Val
alone on the lawn: good comrades those two, and apparently more of an
age, in spite of the long gap between them, than Rowsley and Val, who
was the eldest by only eighteen months. And Val sat on alone, while
stains of coral and amber faded out of the lavender sky, and a rack of
sea clouds, which half an hour ago had shone like fiery ripples,
dwindled away into smoke--mist --a mere shadow on the breast of the
night. Stars began to sparkle, moths and humming cockchafers sailed
by him, a chase of bats overhead endlessly fell down airy precipices
and rose in long loops of darkling flight: honeysuckle and night-scented
stock tinged with their sweet garden perfume the cool airs from the
moor.
Val lit a cigarette, a rare indulgence. If cigarettes grew on gooseberry
bushes Val would have been an inveterate smoker, but good Egyptians
were a luxury which he could not often afford The Wanhope agency
was ample for his needs, though underpaid as agencies go: but there
was Rowsley, always hard up, uncomplaining, but sensitive, as a young
fellow in his position is sure to be, and secretly fretting because he
could not do as other men did: and there was Isabel, for whom Val felt
the anxiety Mr. Stafford ought to have felt, and was trying to make the
provision Mr. Stafford ought to have made: and then there was the
vicar himself, who laid out a great deal of money in those investments

for which we are promised