"How long does Mr. Tancred propose to stay?" she asked.
"How can I tell," Jan answered wearily, as she sat down in one of the deep window-seats. "He has nowhere to go and no money to go with; and, so far, except for a vague allusion to some tea-plantation in Ceylon, he has suggested no plans. Oh, yes! I forgot, there was something about fruit-farming or vine-growing in California, but I fancy considerable capital would be needed for that."
"And how much longer do you intend to keep Mr. Ledgard waiting for _his_ visit?"
"It would be small pleasure for Mr. Ledgard to come here with Hugo, and horrid for Hugo, for he knows perfectly well what Peter ... Mr. Ledgard thinks of him."
"But if friend Hugo knew Mr. Ledgard was coming, might it not have an accelerating effect upon his movements? You could give him his fare--single, mind--to Guernsey. Let him go and stay with his people for a bit."
Jan shook her head. "I can"t turn him out, Meg; and I"m not going to let Mr. Ledgard waste his precious leave on an unpleasant visit. If I could give him a good time it would be different; but after all he did for us while we were in Bombay, it would be rank ingrat.i.tude to let him in for more worries at home."
"Perhaps he wouldn"t consider them worries. Perhaps he"d _like_ to come."
Jan"s strained expression relaxed a little and she smiled with her eyes fixed on Meg"s neat swinging feet. "He _says_ he would."
"Well, then, take him at his word. We can turn the excellent With.e.l.ls on to Hugo. Let him instruct Hugo in the importance of daily free gymnastics after one"s bath and the necessity for windows being left open at the top "day and night, but _especially_ at night." Let"s tell that Peter man to come."
Jan shook her head.
"No, I"ve explained the situation to him and begged him not to consider us any more for the present. We must think of the maids too. You see, Hugo makes a good deal of extra work, and I"m afraid Hannah might turn grumpy if there was yet another man to do for."
Meg thoughtfully blew beautiful rings of smoke, carefully poked a small finger exactly into the centre of each and continued to swing her feet in silence.
Jan leaned her head against the cas.e.m.e.nt and closed her eyes.
Without so much as a rustle Meg descended from the table. She went over to Jan and dropped a light kiss on the top of the thick wavy hair that was so nearly white. Jan opened her tired eyes and smiled.
This quaint person in the green linen frock and big white ap.r.o.n always looked so restfully neat and clean, so capable and strong with that inward shining strength that burns with a steady light. Jan put her arms round Meg and leaned her head against the admirable ap.r.o.n"s cool, smooth bib.
"You"re here, anyway," she said. "You don"t know how I thank G.o.d for that."
Meg held her close. "Listen to me," she said. "You"re going on quite a wrong tack with that brother-in-law. You are, Jan--I grieve to say it--standing between him and his children--you don"t allow him to see his children, especially his adored daughter, nearly enough. Now that he is well enough to take the air with Mr. With.e.l.ls I propose that we allow him to _study_ his children--and how can he study them if they are never left with him? Let him realise what it would be if he had them with him constantly, and no interfering aunt to keep them in order--do you understand, Jan? Have you tumbled to it? You are losing a perfectly magnificent opportunity."
Jan pushed Meg a little away from her and looked up: "I believe there"s a good deal in what you say."
"There"s everything in what I say. As long as the man was ill one couldn"t, of course, but now we can and will--eh, Jan?"
"Not Tony," Jan said nervously. "Hugo doesn"t care much for Tony, and I"m always afraid what he may say or do to the child."
"If you let him have them both occasionally he may discover that Tony has his points."
"They"re _both_ perfect darlings," Jan said resentfully. Meg laughed and danced a two-step to the door.
"They"re darlings that need a good deal of diplomatic managing, and if they don"t get it they"ll raise Cain. I"m going to take them down to the post-office directly with my Indian letters. Why not come with us for the walk?"
Hugo quite enjoyed his run with Mr. With.e.l.ls and Mr. With.e.l.ls enjoyed being consulted about Hugo"s plans. He felt real sympathy for a young man whose health, ruined by one bad station after another, had forced him to give up his career in India. He suggested various ameliorating treatments to Hugo, who received his advice with respectful grat.i.tude, and they arranged to drive again together on Sat.u.r.day, which was next day but one.
Hugo sought the sofa in the drawing-room for a quiet hour before dinner and lit a cigar. He had hardly realised his pleasantly tired and rather somnolent condition when his daughter entered carrying a large Teddy-bear, two dolls, a toy trumpet and a box containing a wooden tea-set. She dropped several of these articles just inside the door.
"Come and help me pick up my sings," she commanded. "I"ve come to play wis loo, Daddie."
Hugo did not move. He was fond of little Fay; he admired her good looks and her splendid health, but he didn"t in the least desire her society just then.
"Poor Daddie"s tired," he said in his "saddest" tone. "I think you"d better go and play in the nursery with Tony."
"No," said little Fay, "Tony"s not zere; _loo_ mus" play wis me.
Or"--she added as a happy alternative--"loo can tell me sumfin instastin."
"Surely," said Hugo, "it"s your bed-time?"
"No," little Fay answered, and the letters were never formed that could express the finality of that "no," "Med will fesh me when it"s time.
I"ve come to play wis _loo_. Det up, Daddie; loo can"t play p"oply lying zere."
"Oh, yes, I can," Hugo protested eagerly. "You bring all your nice toys one by one and show them to me."
""At," she remarked with great scorn, "would be a velly stupid game. Det up!"
"Why can"t Meg play with you?" Hugo asked irritably. "What"s she doing?"
Little Fay stared at her father. She was unaccustomed to be addressed in that tone, and she resented it. Earley and Mr. Burgess were her humble slaves. Captain Middleton did as he was told and became an elephant, a camel, or a polar bear on the shortest notice, moreover he threw himself into the part with real goodwill and enjoyment. The lazy man lying there on the sofa, who showed no flattering pleasure in her society, must be roused to a sense of his shortcomings. She seized the Teddy-bear, swung it round her head and brought it down with a resounding thump on Hugo"s chest. "Det up," she said more loudly. "Loo don"t seem to know any stolies, so you _mus"_ play wis me."
Hugo swung his legs off the sofa and sat up to recover his breath, which had been knocked out of him by the Teddy-bear.
"You"re a very rude little girl," he said crossly. "You"ll have to be punished if you do that sort of thing."
"What sort of sing?"
"What you did just now; it"s very naughty indeed."
"What nelse?"
Little Fay stood with her head on one side like an inquisitive sparrow.
One of the things she had not dropped was the tin trumpet. She raised it to her lips now, and blew a blast that went through Hugo"s head like a knife.
He s.n.a.t.c.hed it from her. "You"re not to do that," he said. "I can"t stand it. Go and pick up those other things and show them to me."
"Loo can see zem from here."
"Not what"s in the box," he suggested diplomatically.
"I"m tah"ed too," she said, suddenly sitting down on the floor. "You fesh "em."
"Will you play with them if I do?"
She shook her head. "Not if loo"re closs, and lude and naughty and ...
stupid."
Hugo groaned and stalked over to collect the two dolls and the tea-things. He brought them back and put them down on one end of the sofa while he sat down at the other.