Moth to the Flame Read Free

on the door.
    She found it at last at the end of the passage and guessed that Jan
    must have one of the flats at the front of the building with the
    balcony that she had noticed when she arrived. She pressed the
    buzzer beside the door, noticing as she did so the small loudspeaker
    just above it. It was no surprise therefore when the speaker gave a
    crackle and Jan's familiar voice speaking with a hint of impatience
    said, 'Who's there?'
    'It's Juliet.' She felt faintly bewildered. The commissionaire had
    presumably reported that she was on her way up. Who else could it
    be, for heaven's sake?
    'Oh, Julie!' Her sister's voice sounded almost relieved. There was a
    rattle as a chain was unfastened inside and then the door swung
    open. Jan stood in the doorway smiling at her. 'Darling, what a
    lovely surprise!'
    'Weren't you expecting me?' Juliet walked past her into the
    apartment and put her case down.
    Jan shrugged. 'Mim mentioned something in one of her letters, but
    frankly I wondered if you'd go through with it. But it's marvellous to
    see you now you are here. How long are you staying?'
    'A week, if that's all right.' Juliet found her eyes straying round the
    room in which they were standing. It was a large room, and built on
    two levels. They were standing on the upper level, a kind of gallery
    surmounted by a wrought iron balustrade which led presumably to
    the bedroom as well. Two wide steps descended into the living
    room, which judging by its size ran the whole length of the
    apartment. At one side, wide glass doors led to the balcony. Thick
    cream and gold carpet stretched from wall to wall, and Juliet
    noticed a wide chesterfield sofa upholstered in warm golden brown
    hide with two matching armchairs arranged with their backs to the
    window, and facing a wall where an elegant fitment contained a
    complicated-, looking hi-fi unit and a television set. At the other
    end of the room, she saw a white baby grand piano surmounted by
    an alabaster vase containing long-stemmed yellow roses.
    'Oh, that's fine.' Jan sounded amused. 'That's plenty of time to
    prepare a report for Mim. I assume that's why you're here.'
    Juliet felt the colour steal into her cheeks, and her sister's smile
    widened.
    'Don't look so stricken,' she advised. 'Mim's very transparent, you
    know, and you're not much better. And I don't mind—really. I
    suppose I could have suggested it myself, but I've been so busy.'
    She shrugged eloquently. 'Anyway, we'll put your case in the
    bedroom, and then I'll make some iced coffee. We'll have it on the
    balcony.'
    The bedroom was also a large room, its single beds fitted with
    quilted gold bedspreads. There were wild silk curtains at the
    windows, and an entire wall was taken up with fitted wardrobes in
    white and gold. The bathroom which led off the bedroom was even
    more breathtaking, with a sunken bath and gold-plated taps shaped
    like dolphin's heads.
    Juliet shook her head helplessly as she gazed around her. Nothing
    could have been further from the rambling Victorian semi-detached
    house where they had been born and brought up, yet Jan seemed
    completely at home in her exotic surroundings. It brought home to
    Juliet as little else could have done just how much she and her sister
    had grown apart. She felt alien and out of place in all this luxury.
    'Do you like the apartment?' Jan sat down oh the padded stool by
    the dressing table and gave her an amused glance.
    'It's unbelievable!' Juliet picked her words with care. 'But where is
    Maria? I thought you were sharing with her.'
    'Oh, that didn't work out,' Jan admitted casually. 'But this place is
    only temporary, I may say. I'm not a millionairess yet. There was a
    cancellation over a lease and I was able to step in on a short-term
    basis, at a reduced rent. I'll have to move in the autumn when they
    find another permanent tenant, of course, but until then it's quite
    pleasant to live in the lap of luxury.'
    She was smiling as she spoke, and her green