Casting Off: Cazalet Chronicles Book 4 Read Free Page A

you?’
    ‘A flat. I don’t know whether either of them would consider a flat . The Brig would think it was poky, and the Duchy would think it was fast. She thinks flats are for bachelors until they get married.’
    ‘Nonsense,’ Sid said. ‘Hundreds of people will be taking to flats in the same way that they will have to learn to cook.’
    ‘But not at the Duchy’s age! You can’t expect someone of seventy-eight to start learning to cook!’ There was an uncomfortable silence, and then she said, ‘No. If anyone has to learn to cook, it should be me.’
    Sid, looking contrite, put out her hand to touch Rachel’s arm. ‘Touché! But it’s your life we’re talking about, isn’t it?’
    Hugh felt obscurely irritated at her trying to include him. In spite of what she had said about not saying a word, she was interfering in what he felt was none of her business. He signalled the waiter to get a menu, and said, to Rachel, ‘Don’t worry, darling. I’ll have a word with the Brig about an alternative to Chester Terrace and you and I can hunt for a suitable place. If the worst comes to the worst, you could always move in with me as an interim. Now, who would like an ice or fruit salad or both?’
    When Rachel, who immediately said that she couldn’t possibly eat any more, had been persuaded to have some fruit salad and he and Sid had settled for a bit of both and he’d ordered coffee for everyone, he raised his glass and said, ‘What shall we drink to? Peace?’
    Rachel said, ‘I think we should drink to poor Mr Churchill as we seem to be letting him down so badly. Doesn’t it seem extraordinary that they should want to chuck him out the moment the war’s over?’
    ‘The war isn’t completely over. There’s another good two years’ fighting in Japan, I should think. I suppose one has to say that at least the other lot are used to government – at Cabinet level anyway.’
    Sid said, ‘I’m rather in favour of the other lot. It’s time we had a change.’
    Hugh said: ‘I think what most people want is to get back to normal as soon as possible.’
    ‘I don’t think we shall be going back to anything,’ Rachel said. ‘I think it’s all going to be different.’
    ‘You mean the Welfare State and a brave new world?’
    He saw her face puckering in a little flurry of frowns and remembered suddenly how he and Edward had called her Monkey when they wanted to tease her.
    ‘No, what I meant is that I think the war has changed people, they’ve got kinder to one another.’ She turned to Sid. ‘ You think that, don’t you? I mean, people have shared things more – particularly the awful ones, like being bombed and separated and all the rationing and men getting killed—’
    ‘I think there isn’t the same kind of arrogant indifference,’ Sid said, ‘but if we don’t have a Labour government there jolly soon will be.’
    ‘I’m absolutely no good at politics, as you well know, but surely both sides are saying the same things, aren’t they? Better housing, longer education, equal pay for equal work . . .’
    ‘They always say that sort of thing.’
    ‘We’re not saying the same thing. We aren’t going to nationalise the railways and the coal mines, et cetera.’ He glared at Sid. ‘That’s going to cause chaos. And, from our point of view, it means that we shall be faced with only one customer instead of a comforting number.’
    The waiter brought their coffee – just as well, he thought: he really didn’t want to have a political argument with Sid – he was afraid he might be rude to her and that would upset Rachel.
    Now she was saying, ‘What are you going to do? About your house, I mean. Are you going to stay in it? Edward and Villy are selling theirs and looking for somewhere smaller, which seems sensible.’
    So that he can afford a second place to put that woman in, he thought. He said, ‘I don’t know. I’m fond of it. Sybil said she never wanted to leave it.’
    There was a