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Authors: Jane Gardam
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stars as before. After a time she said, “I’d like to stay in the hotel here tonight, Eddie. I love this place. And no, I haven’t had dinner.”
“But we have our hotel rooms Kowloon-side. And haven’t you the Australian friend? She’ll wonder where you are. And I haven’t a shirt up here. For tomorrow.”
“She’s left for Home, tonight, I think. We only met up here. We’re old friends. We take it lightly.”
She watched him.
“There’s the wedding to plan.”
“Oh, yes,” she said. “I keep forgetting. I suppose that’s my job. By the way, I haven’t any money at all.”
“Oh, I’ll deal with that.”
“Not until I’m thirty. I’ll be quite well-off then.”
He smiled at her, not interested.
They hardly spoke on the ferry. At Kowloon the lights of the Peninsular Hotel blazed white across the forecourt. The Old Colony was lit down the side street with its chains of cheap lights and was resounding with wailing music and singing. It was still only nine o’clock.
“It’s only nine o’clock,” she said. “Goodnight then, since you say so,” and at last he seemed to come to himself.
“Yes. Nine. All out of focus. I’m sorry. Come in. Come in to the Pen and I’ll give you dinner. We’ll both have some champagne. Betty?”
She was staring at him. “No,” she said. “I’m going over to some friends in Kai Tak.”
“Kai Tak! Isn’t that a bit off-piste?”
“Yes. So are they. They’re missionaries. Hordes of kids. Normal people. In love with each other. My friends.”
“Elisabeth—what’s wrong? It is on , isn’t it?”
Sitting in the taxi she said, after a minute, “Yes. It’s on. But I need the taxi fare.”
“Shall I come with you?”
“No. I’ll be staying the night. Maybe longer,” and she was gone.
She saw him standing, watching her taxi disappear, and then the hotel’s white Mercedes roll along with all the legal team waving at him, making for the airport and Home. In very good spirits.
He was, in fact, unaware of them, but saying to himself that he’d made some mistake. Had made an absolute bloody bish. I wish Coleridge were here. I’m not good at pleasing this girl.
Betty, bowling along through the alleys round Kai Tak, was thinking: He’s shattered. He looked so bewildered. He’s so bloody good. Good, good, good.
Well, I’ll probably go through with it. I’ll be independent when I’m thirty. I’ll probably put a lot into it. I’ll damn well work, too. For myself. QC’s wife or not. And at least I have a past now. No one can take that away.
CHAPTER TEN
S ince the night of celebration at Repulse Bay and the end of the land reclamation Case and the horrible parting outside the Peninsular Hotel, Elisabeth had moved in with Amy at Kai Tak. It was at Amy’s command.
“Have you room for me?”
“Yes. There’s a camp bed. And don’t be grateful, you’ll be very useful. Take the baby—no, not that way. Now, stick the bottle in her mouth—go on. Right up to the edge. She won’t choke, she’ll go to sleep and we can talk before Nick comes in.”
The other children were already asleep. Mrs. Baxter must at some point have been taken up to her barbed-wire fortress. The Buddhists were practising silence on the floor below.
“Now then,” said Amy. “Date of wedding?”
“Edward’s arranging everything. The licence. I expect I’ll have to be there at some point for identification. In case he should turn up with someone different.”
“You’re being flippant.”
“Not that he’d probably notice.”
“Now you’re being cheap. Seriously, Elisabeth Macintosh—is it on? It is a Sacrament in the Christian Church.”
“I’m being told yes from somewhere. Probably only by my rational self. There’s no way I will say no, yet I don’t quite know why. Marriage will be gone in a hundred years in the Christian Church. There’ll be women priests and homo priests. Pansies and bisexuals.”
“You’re tired. You live
“But we have our hotel rooms Kowloon-side. And haven’t you the Australian friend? She’ll wonder where you are. And I haven’t a shirt up here. For tomorrow.”
“She’s left for Home, tonight, I think. We only met up here. We’re old friends. We take it lightly.”
She watched him.
“There’s the wedding to plan.”
“Oh, yes,” she said. “I keep forgetting. I suppose that’s my job. By the way, I haven’t any money at all.”
“Oh, I’ll deal with that.”
“Not until I’m thirty. I’ll be quite well-off then.”
He smiled at her, not interested.
They hardly spoke on the ferry. At Kowloon the lights of the Peninsular Hotel blazed white across the forecourt. The Old Colony was lit down the side street with its chains of cheap lights and was resounding with wailing music and singing. It was still only nine o’clock.
“It’s only nine o’clock,” she said. “Goodnight then, since you say so,” and at last he seemed to come to himself.
“Yes. Nine. All out of focus. I’m sorry. Come in. Come in to the Pen and I’ll give you dinner. We’ll both have some champagne. Betty?”
She was staring at him. “No,” she said. “I’m going over to some friends in Kai Tak.”
“Kai Tak! Isn’t that a bit off-piste?”
“Yes. So are they. They’re missionaries. Hordes of kids. Normal people. In love with each other. My friends.”
“Elisabeth—what’s wrong? It is on , isn’t it?”
Sitting in the taxi she said, after a minute, “Yes. It’s on. But I need the taxi fare.”
“Shall I come with you?”
“No. I’ll be staying the night. Maybe longer,” and she was gone.
She saw him standing, watching her taxi disappear, and then the hotel’s white Mercedes roll along with all the legal team waving at him, making for the airport and Home. In very good spirits.
He was, in fact, unaware of them, but saying to himself that he’d made some mistake. Had made an absolute bloody bish. I wish Coleridge were here. I’m not good at pleasing this girl.
Betty, bowling along through the alleys round Kai Tak, was thinking: He’s shattered. He looked so bewildered. He’s so bloody good. Good, good, good.
Well, I’ll probably go through with it. I’ll be independent when I’m thirty. I’ll probably put a lot into it. I’ll damn well work, too. For myself. QC’s wife or not. And at least I have a past now. No one can take that away.
CHAPTER TEN
S ince the night of celebration at Repulse Bay and the end of the land reclamation Case and the horrible parting outside the Peninsular Hotel, Elisabeth had moved in with Amy at Kai Tak. It was at Amy’s command.
“Have you room for me?”
“Yes. There’s a camp bed. And don’t be grateful, you’ll be very useful. Take the baby—no, not that way. Now, stick the bottle in her mouth—go on. Right up to the edge. She won’t choke, she’ll go to sleep and we can talk before Nick comes in.”
The other children were already asleep. Mrs. Baxter must at some point have been taken up to her barbed-wire fortress. The Buddhists were practising silence on the floor below.
“Now then,” said Amy. “Date of wedding?”
“Edward’s arranging everything. The licence. I expect I’ll have to be there at some point for identification. In case he should turn up with someone different.”
“You’re being flippant.”
“Not that he’d probably notice.”
“Now you’re being cheap. Seriously, Elisabeth Macintosh—is it on? It is a Sacrament in the Christian Church.”
“I’m being told yes from somewhere. Probably only by my rational self. There’s no way I will say no, yet I don’t quite know why. Marriage will be gone in a hundred years in the Christian Church. There’ll be women priests and homo priests. Pansies and bisexuals.”
“You’re tired. You live
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