The Alington Inheritance

And with that there was a scurry of feet on the stairs and Meg was in Je

“She told us to stay upstairs! As if we could! Oh, Je

Step by step down the stairs Joyce came. She dragged her feet, and she looked so scared and miserable that Je

“Poor child!” said Carter. “It comes very hard on the children, Miss Danesworth.”

Chapter XLIII

Je

She went down into the kitchen and saw Mrs. Bolton, who began by being a total stranger receiving her new mistress, which was dreadful, and then suddenly burst into tears and addressed her as “Miss Je

“And they do say that everything belongs to you now, my dear.”

“Yes, Mrs. Bolton, it does.”

Je

Early in the afternoon Miss Crampton arrived, dressed in the funereal old black which was her habitual garb at funerals and visits of condolence. Mary opened the door to her, and was promptly buttonholed.

“This is dreadful news, Mary.”

“Oh, yes, ma’am.”

“Those poor children-I’ve come to see them. And Miss Je

“Oh, yes. Carter rang her up at once.”

“It is most improper that she should be here by herself? I ca

Mary was begi

“Oh, but she isn’t alone,” she said. “There’s Mr. Richard-”

Miss Crampton interrupted her.

“Do you mean to tell me that she is here alone with that young man? How exceedingly improper!”

“No, miss, I never said so. Mr. Richard drove Miss Je

“Oh-” Miss Crampton stepped across the threshold. “Well, I’ll come in. And I’ll see Miss Je

Mary lacked the assurance to stand up to her. She had attended Sunday School under Miss Crampton. The habit of obedience persisted. She showed her into the drawing-room, where the flowers which Mrs. Forbes had picked yesterday were still fresh, and went ru

“Oh, Carter, there’s Miss Crampton in the drawing-room! She walked straight past me, and I couldn’t stop herl”

Carter gave her a dark look.

“You could have said Miss Je

Mary shook her head.

“Not to Miss Crampton, I couldn’t.”

Carter went along to the schoolroom, where the little girls sat painting superintended by Je

“I don’t see that it matters,” she said.

“Of course it matters,” said Meg. “It’s one of the windows of Alan’s room. I can’t leave him with one window.”

“Lots of people have only one window,” said Joyce.

“I shall tear it up and start all over again.”

“Well, I think you’re silly,” said Joyce. Her voice was obstinate.

And then Carter came in.

“If you please, Miss Je

“Horrid old thing,” said Joyce in a fretful tone.

Meg tipped her chair up.

“Miss Crampton’s a horrid old thing,” she chanted. “And how did she know you were here, Je

“Will you see her, Miss Je

“I suppose I’d better,” said Je

Miss Danesworth laid down her book.

“Shall I come too?” she said.

“Oh, if you would,” said Je

They went down together. Just outside the drawing-room door Je

Miss Crampton sat facing the door in her mourning clothes. When she saw Je

“You must not think,” she said, “that Je

“I am sure she can. But it won’t be necessary for you to put yourself out. I can stay as long as she needs me.”

Miss Crampton plunged into a series of questions. Where was Alan? Had they heard from him? Did they know where to send a wire? Did they know why Mac had shot himself?

“I never was more shocked in my life. I was in the post office, and Mrs. Boddles gave me the dreadful news. I could really hardly believe it. Such a fine young man. Ah well, it just shows that you can’t ever tell, doesn’t it? You must have come away in a great hurry, Je

“We came as soon as we heard,” said Je

“Oh, yes, yes-of course.”

“It was the little girls,” said Je

“Richard Forbes?” said Miss Crampton. “Ah, yes-he would be the son of those people who were killed in an air raid-oh, a long time ago. They were cousins or something.”

“Mrs. Forbes was my sister,” said Miss Danesworth.

“Oh, yes, I believe she was. He’s your nephew then. He would have been very much shocked by Miriam’s death, no doubt. I do not remember if I ever saw her, though of course I remember her mother. She was a sort of third cousin-you know how it was when families were so big. I wrote to her, but I have not had a reply. People are very careless about those sort of things nowadays. My dear father was most severe about it. ‘It is the very least you can do to answer all letters of condolence promptly,’ he used to say, and I have always done so. But Grace Richardson, I remember, was inclined to give way. It comes out at times like this.”

At this point Richard opened the door and looked in. At the sight of Miss Crampton, very stiff and upright in her black clothes, he was visibly shaken, but seeing that there was no help for it, he advanced, was introduced, and shook hands. Miss Crampton looked him over, and exclaimed,

“What an extraordinary likeness!”

Miss Danesworth smiled.

“To the portrait in the hall?” she said. “Yes, he is like it. He has the same name too-Richard Alington Forbes. Likenesses are strange things, are they not?”

“They are indeed,” said Miss Crampton.