Chapter 29

Two days went by undisturbed by the least manifestation from Wemyss. Miss Entwhistle wrote to him on each of the afternoons, telling him of Lucy’s progress and of what the doctor said about her, and on each of the evenings she lay down on the sofa to sleep feeling excessively insecure, for how very likely that he would come down by some late train and walk in, and then there she would be. In spite of that, she would have been very glad if he had walked in, it would have seemed more natural; and she couldn’t help wondering whether the little thing in the bed wasn’t thinking so too. But nothing happened. He didn’t come, he didn’t write, he made no sign of any sort. ‘Curious,’ said Miss Entwhistle to herself; and forbore to criticise further.

They were peaceful days. Lucy was getting better all the time, though still kept carefully in bed by the doctor, and Miss Entwhistle felt as much justified in being in the house as Chesterton or Lizzie, for she was performing duties under a doctor’s directions. Also the weather was quiet and sunshiny. In fact, there was peace.

On Thursday the doctor said Lucy might get up for a few hours and sit on the sofa; and there, its asperities softened by pillows, she sat and had tea, and through the open window came the sweet smells of April. The gardener was mowing the lawn, and one of the smells was of the cut grass; Miss Entwhistle had been out for a walk, and found some windflowers and some lovely bright green moss, and put them in a bowl; the doctor had brought a little bunch of violets out of his garden; the afternoon sun lay beautifully on the hills across the river; the river slid past the end of the garden tranquilly; and Miss Entwhistle, pouring out Lucy’s tea and buttering her toast, felt that she could at that moment very nearly have been happy, in spite of its being The Willows she was in, if there hadn’t, in the background, brooding over her day and night, been that very odd and disquieting silence of Everard’s.

As if Lucy knew what she was thinking, she said—it was the first time she had talked of him—’You know, Aunt Dot, Everard will have been fearfully busy this week, because of having been away so long.’

‘Oh of course,’ agreed Miss Entwhistle with much heartiness. ‘I’m sure the poor dear has been run off his legs.’

‘He didn’t—he hasn’t——’

Lucy flushed and broke off.

‘I suppose,’ she began again after a minute, ‘there’s been nothing from him? No message, I mean? On the telephone or anything?’

‘No, I don’t think there has—not since our talk the first day,’ said Miss Entwhistle.

‘Oh? Did he telephone the first day?’ asked Lucy quickly. ‘You never told me.’

‘You were asleep nearly all that day. Yes,’ said Miss Entwhistle, clearing her throat, ‘we had a—we had quite a little talk.’

‘What did he say?’

‘Well, he naturally wanted you to be well enough to go up to London, and of course he was very sorry you couldn’t.’

Lucy looked suddenly much happier.

‘Yes,’ said Miss Entwhistle, as though in answer to the look.

‘He hates writing letters, you know, Aunt Dot,’ Lucy said presently.

‘Men do,’ said Miss Entwhistle. ‘It’s very curious,’ she continued brightly, ‘but men do.’

‘And he hates telephoning. It was wonderful for him to have telephoned that day.’

‘Men,’ said Miss Entwhistle, ‘are very funny about some things.’

‘To-day is Thursday, isn’t it,’ said Lucy. ‘He ought to be here by one o’clock to-morrow.’

Miss Entwhistle started. ‘To-morrow?’ she repeated. ‘Really? Does he? I mean, ought he? Somehow I had supposed Saturday. The week-end somehow suggests Saturdays to me.’

‘No. He—we,’ Lucy corrected herself, ‘come down on Fridays. He’s sure to be down in time for lunch.’