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Authors: Ruth Rendell
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beginning?’
‘Where is the beginning? From the time she, or whoever she is . . .’
‘Tell me about it from the time of her return to this country in November.’
Dora put her head round the door. He knew she had come to ask him if he was ready for his dinner but she retreated without a word. Dinah Sternhold said:
‘I think I’m keeping you from your meal.’
‘It doesn’t matter. Let’s go back to November.’
‘I only know that it was in November she came back. She didn’t get in touch with Manuel until the middle of December – 12 December it was. She didn’t say anything about our getting married, just could she come and see him and something about healing the breach. At first she wanted to come at Christmas but when Manuel wrote back that that would be fine and I should be there and my parents, she said no, the first time she wanted to see him alone. It sounds casual, putting it like that, Manuel writing back and inviting her, but in fact it wasn’t a bit. Getting her first letter absolutely threw him. He was very – well, excited about seeing her and rather confused and it was almost as if he was afraid. I suggested he phone her – she gave a phone number – but he couldn’t bring himself to that and it’s true he was difficult on the phone if you didn’t know him. His hearing was fine when he could see the speaker. Anyway, she suggested 10 January and we had the same excitement and nervousness all over again. I wasn’t to be there or the Hickses, Muriel was to get the tea ready and leave him to make it and she was to get one of the spare rooms ready in case Natalie decided to stay.
‘Well, two or three days before, it must have been about the 7th, a woman called Mrs Zoffany phoned. Muriel took the call. Manuel was asleep. This Mrs Zoffany said she was speaking on behalf of Natalie who couldn’t come on the 10th because she had to go into hospital for a check-up and could she come on the 19th instead? Manuel got into a state when Muriel told him. I went over there in the evening and he was very depressed and nervous, saying Natalie didn’t really want a reconciliation, whatever she may have intended at first, she was just trying to get out of seeing him. You can imagine. He went on about how he was going to die soon and at any rate that would be a blessing for me, not to be tied to an old man et cetera . All nonsense, of course, but natural, I think. he was longing to see her. It’s a good thing I haven’t got a jealous nature. Lots of women would have been jealous.’
Perhaps they would. Jealousy knows nothing of age discrepancies, suitability. Camargue, thought Wexford, had chosen for his second wife a surrogate daughter, assuming his true daughter would never reappear. No wonder, when she did, that emotions had run high. He said only:
‘I take it that it was on the 19th she came?’
‘Yes. In the afternoon, about three. She came by train from Victoria and then in a taxi from the station. Manuel asked the Hickses not to interrupt them and Ted even took Nancy away for the afternoon. Muriel left tea prepared on the table in the drawing room and there was some cold duck and stuff for supper in the fridge.’
‘So that when she came Sir Manuel was quite alone?’
‘Quite alone. What I’m going to tell you is what he told me the next day, the Sunday, when Ted drove him over to my house in the morning.
‘He told me he intended to be rather cool and distant with her at first.’ Dinah Sternhold smiled a tender, reminiscent smile. ‘I didn’t have much faith in that,’ she said. ‘I knew him, you see. I knew it wasn’t in him not to be warm and kind. And in fact, when he went down and opened the front door to her he said he forgot all about that resolve of his and just took her in his arms and held her. He was ashamed of that afterwards, poor Manuel, he was sick with himself for giving way.
‘Well, they went upstairs and sat down and talked. That is, Manuel talked. He said
‘Where is the beginning? From the time she, or whoever she is . . .’
‘Tell me about it from the time of her return to this country in November.’
Dora put her head round the door. He knew she had come to ask him if he was ready for his dinner but she retreated without a word. Dinah Sternhold said:
‘I think I’m keeping you from your meal.’
‘It doesn’t matter. Let’s go back to November.’
‘I only know that it was in November she came back. She didn’t get in touch with Manuel until the middle of December – 12 December it was. She didn’t say anything about our getting married, just could she come and see him and something about healing the breach. At first she wanted to come at Christmas but when Manuel wrote back that that would be fine and I should be there and my parents, she said no, the first time she wanted to see him alone. It sounds casual, putting it like that, Manuel writing back and inviting her, but in fact it wasn’t a bit. Getting her first letter absolutely threw him. He was very – well, excited about seeing her and rather confused and it was almost as if he was afraid. I suggested he phone her – she gave a phone number – but he couldn’t bring himself to that and it’s true he was difficult on the phone if you didn’t know him. His hearing was fine when he could see the speaker. Anyway, she suggested 10 January and we had the same excitement and nervousness all over again. I wasn’t to be there or the Hickses, Muriel was to get the tea ready and leave him to make it and she was to get one of the spare rooms ready in case Natalie decided to stay.
‘Well, two or three days before, it must have been about the 7th, a woman called Mrs Zoffany phoned. Muriel took the call. Manuel was asleep. This Mrs Zoffany said she was speaking on behalf of Natalie who couldn’t come on the 10th because she had to go into hospital for a check-up and could she come on the 19th instead? Manuel got into a state when Muriel told him. I went over there in the evening and he was very depressed and nervous, saying Natalie didn’t really want a reconciliation, whatever she may have intended at first, she was just trying to get out of seeing him. You can imagine. He went on about how he was going to die soon and at any rate that would be a blessing for me, not to be tied to an old man et cetera . All nonsense, of course, but natural, I think. he was longing to see her. It’s a good thing I haven’t got a jealous nature. Lots of women would have been jealous.’
Perhaps they would. Jealousy knows nothing of age discrepancies, suitability. Camargue, thought Wexford, had chosen for his second wife a surrogate daughter, assuming his true daughter would never reappear. No wonder, when she did, that emotions had run high. He said only:
‘I take it that it was on the 19th she came?’
‘Yes. In the afternoon, about three. She came by train from Victoria and then in a taxi from the station. Manuel asked the Hickses not to interrupt them and Ted even took Nancy away for the afternoon. Muriel left tea prepared on the table in the drawing room and there was some cold duck and stuff for supper in the fridge.’
‘So that when she came Sir Manuel was quite alone?’
‘Quite alone. What I’m going to tell you is what he told me the next day, the Sunday, when Ted drove him over to my house in the morning.
‘He told me he intended to be rather cool and distant with her at first.’ Dinah Sternhold smiled a tender, reminiscent smile. ‘I didn’t have much faith in that,’ she said. ‘I knew him, you see. I knew it wasn’t in him not to be warm and kind. And in fact, when he went down and opened the front door to her he said he forgot all about that resolve of his and just took her in his arms and held her. He was ashamed of that afterwards, poor Manuel, he was sick with himself for giving way.
‘Well, they went upstairs and sat down and talked. That is, Manuel talked. He said
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