Not to Disturb Read Free Page A

come?’
    â€˜About half-past six, sir.’
    â€˜Anyone with him?’
    â€˜Two women in the car. They’re waiting outside.’
    â€˜Let them wait,’ says the Baron and goes towards the
library, across the black and white paving of the hall. He hesitates,
half-turns, then says, ‘I’ll wash in here,’ evidently referring to a wash-room
adjoining the library.
    â€¢
    â€˜I thought it best,’ Lister says as he enters
the servants’ sitting-room, ‘to tell him about those two women waiting outside,
perceiving as I did from his manner that he had already noticed them. — “Anyone
with Mr Passerat?” he said with his eye to me. “Yes, sir,” I said, “two ladies.
They are waiting in the car.” Why he asked me that redundant question I’ll never
know.’
    â€˜He was testing you out,’ says Hadrian who is whisking
two eggs in a bowl.
    â€˜Yes, that’s what I think, too,’ says Lister. ‘I feel
wounded. I opened the door of the library. Passerat got up. The Baron said “Good
evening, Victor” and Passerat said “Good evening.” Whereupon, being unwanted, I
respectfully withdrew.
Sic transit gloria mundi
.’
    â€˜They will be sitting down having a drink,’ says Pablo
who has cleaned himself up and is now regarding his hair from a distance in the
oval looking-glass. This way and that he turns his head, with its hair
shiny-black.
    â€˜Didn’t he ask for more ice?’ says Eleanor. ‘They never
have enough ice.’
    â€˜They have plenty of ice in the drinks cupboard. I filled
the ice-box, myself, and put more on refrigeration this afternoon when you were
all busy with your telephoning and personal arrangements,’ Lister says. ‘They
have ice. All they need now is the Baroness.’
    â€˜Oh, she’ll come, don’t worry,’ says Clovis, stacking his
papers neatly.
    â€˜I wish she’d hurry,’ says Heloise, as she slumps in a
puffy cretonned armchair. ‘I want to eat my dinner in peace.’
    Hadrian has prepared a tray on which he has placed a dish
of scrambled eggs, a plate of thin toasted buttered bread, a large cup and
saucer and a silver thermos-container of some beverage. Eleanor, with vague
movements, leaves her table-setting to place on the tray a knife, a fork and a
spoon; then she covers the toast and the eggs with silver plate-covers.
    â€˜What are you doing?’ says Hadrian, grabbing the knife
and fork off the tray. ‘What’s come over you?’
    â€˜Oh, I forgot,’ says Eleanor. ‘I’ve been in a state all
day.’ She replaces the knife and fork with one large spoon.
    Lister goes to the house-telephone, lifts the receiver,
and presses a button. Presently the instrument wheezes. ‘Supper on its way up to
him in the attic,’ says Lister. ‘Yours will follow later.’
    The instrument wheezes again.
    â€˜We’ll keep you informed,’ says Lister. ‘All you have to
do is stay there till we tell you not to.’ He hangs up. ‘Sister Barton is
worried,’ he says. ‘Him in the attic is full of style this evening and likely to
worsen as the night draws on. Another case of intuition.’
    Hadrian takes the tray in his hands and as he leaves the
room he asks, ‘Shall I tell Sister Barton to call the doctor?’
    â€˜Leave it to Sister Barton,’ says Lister, gloomily, with
his eyes on other thoughts. ‘Leave it to her.’
    Heloise says, ‘I can manage him in the attic myself, if
it comes to that. I’ve always been good to him in the attic.’
    â€˜You better get some sleep after you’ve had your supper,
my girl,’ says Clovis. ‘You’ve got a big night ahead. The reporters will be here
in the morning if not before.’
    â€˜It might not take place till six-ish in the morning,’
says Heloise. ‘Once they start arguing it could