And now Julia, who had been worrying about Thomson, got to that pitch like when a vessel is being filled it gets so full the water spills over. Julia broke in, saying but what about Thomson, he was sent out with you Robert, what's happened to him?
'Half a tick, Julia. No, look here, Evelyn, if I had seen her subconsciously as you say I would not have been so surprised when I did realize she was there.'
'But how do you know?'
'Oh, bother you two and your questions,' said Julia. 'What am I to do about Thomson? Now that they have put that steel door down over the hotel he won't be able to find us or anyone.'
Miss Henderson suggested he might have gone back to their luggage.
'Robert, I wonder if you will do something for me,' Julia said. 'Could you go to the station master, no, of course you can't get outside. But you could telephone to him, couldn't you, and say it's for me, and ask him to send someone out to look for Thomson and tell him that he must go back at once to where the luggage is and tell him to see my porter does not put it in the cloakroom if we are a long time. I told my porter that he must not put it in the cloakroom whatever happened, I don't trust these places, but you know what these porters are. Robert, will you do that for me?'
'Yes, only too glad to. But I say, Julia, you know that station master must be a pretty busy man, what with the fog and everything. What do you think?'
'He'll be glad to do it because of my uncle. It would be ever so sweet of you, my dear.'
Miss Fellowes, in her room, felt she was on a shore wedged between two rocks, soft and hard. Out beyond a grey sea with, above, a darker sky, she would notice small clouds where sea joined sky and these clouds coming far away together into a darker mass would rush across from that horizon towards where she was held down. As this cumulus advanced the sea below would rise, most menacing and capped with foam, and as it came nearer she could hear the shrieking wind in throbbing through her ears. She would try not to turn her eyes down to where rising waves broke over rocks as the nearer that black mass advanced so fast the sea rose and ate up what little was left between her and those wild waters. Each time this scene was repeated she felt so frightened, and then it was menacing and she throbbed unbearably, it was all forced into her head; it was so menacing she thought each time the pressure was such her eyes would be forced out of her head to let her blood out. And then when she thought she must be overwhelmed, or break, this storm would go back and those waters and her blood recede, that moon would go out above her head, and a sweet tide washed down from scalp to toes and she could rest.
'My dear Mr Hinham,' the station master said to Robert, for he
had not caught his name, 'My dear sir, there are now, we estimate, thirty thousand people in the station. The last time we had a count, on the August Bank Holiday of last year, we found that when they really began coming in, nine hundred and sixty-five persons could enter this station by the various subways each minute. So supposing I sent a man out to look for the individual Thomson, and he did not find him in ten minutes, there would be forty thousand people to choose from. A needle in a – a needle in a—' and he was searching for some better word, 'a haystack,' he said at last, at a loss.
'I know,' said Robert.
'So you see, sir, I'm afraid we can't,' the station master said, and quickly rang off before his temper got the better of him.
Miss Crevy asked Alex where everyone had got to. and he said he could not think where they could be. She asked him outright if anything had happened to anybody, and then, because this question seemed awkward, especially as whatever it was that had happened was obviously being kept from her, she lost her grip and fell further into it by asking him did he know what had become of her Robin. She knew she had been thinking of him without realizing it, all this time.
'But he's gone, Angela.'
'Oh, yes, of course, he had to go away.'
To tide over her embarrassment Alex suggested they might mix the cocktails now.
'But Max isn't here,' she said.
'That doesn't matter. He won't mind.'
Because of all that had gone before, she said:
'But it's rude to drink other people's cocktails before they come in. You wouldn't go into someone else's house...' and she stopped there, realizing, of course, he probably would if he knew them well enough. She felt miserable. Alex had been so tiresome about Embassy Richard – she must remember to call him by Ms proper name – and they were all conspiring together to keep something or other from her and then she had shown about Rob, everyone now would think they were engaged. And it was really so rude to start on his drinks without Max being there.
As for Alex he was frantic that she had been asked on their party. People one hardly knew were always putting one in false positions.
It would have been too offensive, though so tempting, to reply that naturally one could go into someone's house and drink their drink, not champagne, of course, but why not gin and lime juice, everyone else did. And besides, it was a question of how well you knew the person, it was intolerable that he should be put wrong because she did not know Max well. It was true that people used not to do it, but when one was in the schoolroom one did not suck one's fingers after jam; on account of one's sisters' governess one wiped them, but one sucked them now, one was grown up.
'I'm sorry, I'm afraid I'm being tiresome,' she said. 'But this journey is being so long, isn't it? I think I'm going out for a minute.'
'Oh, don't go,' was all he could think of saying, and she all but said try and stop me if you can, I could knock you down, but she did no more than look away as she went by him.
When she went out into that corridor she had made up her mind she must go home. She felt she had only been invited so they could humiliate her; not that Max would ever do such things, it was the others. Then she saw the nannies, who were still crying. Poor ducks, she thought, have they been vile to them too, how really beastly, poor old things and one of them Claire's nanny. She went up and said,
'There, there, it will be quite all right.'
But they would not cry in front of a stranger, and she was surprised and rather hurt to find their tears were drying up, and in two moments she saw they would be putting their handkerchiefs away. Even their nannies, she thought, even their nannies are in league to make one feel out of it. At that instant the man who had been with Miss Fellowes in the bar, and had spoken to her and watched her, and who had followed when she had been carried up, reappeared walking slowly up the corridor. His head was bent forward. He stared at those nannies when he was close to them. He stopped and then, for the first time, he looked at her.
'Ah, they carried 'er up here. Terrible bad she was then, I reckon.'
There was a long silence. He went on:
'On one of them stools with backs to 'em there was in the bar.'
Alex had come out after Angela. It upset him to see this man. He spoke in his high voice he had when he was upset.
'What are you doing here?' he said.
'What's that to you, my lad?'
'Why don't you go away? These are private rooms here.'
'Aye, but the corridor's public,' this man returned, and without any warning he had used Yorkshire accent where previously he had been speaking in Brummagem. This sudden change did his trick as it had so often done before and Alex, losing his nerve, asked him in to have a drink. He thought he might be the hotel detective.
'What'll you have?'
'I don't mind,' this man said, speaking this time in an educated voice.
'I'm afraid everything must seem very odd to you,' said Alex, 'I mean there seems to be so much going on, but you see we are all going on a party together abroad, and now here we are stuck in this hotel on account of fog.'
It was difficult for Alex. He had come out after Angela because he could never stand things being left in what he called false positions. He was friendly by nature and if he could not help feeling annoyed with Miss Crevy and having digs at her, particularly when she tried to put him in the wrong as he now felt she was continually trying to do, he did not want her to bear him a grudge. It was as much this particularity of his which led him to entertain the mystery man as it was his feeling that he might make trouble for Miss Fellowes if he was not kept amused. While he busily talked with this little man he kept on despairing of ever getting things straight with Angela.
Miss Crevy stood outside with those two nannies, who were also standing up now. She was not so anxious to get home. She was wondering what could be going on that they would not tell her. Then Claire came out with a man who was too obviously the hotel doctor. He looked at Angela with suspicion, and walking down that corridor he said to Claire, quietly:
'What relation is the lady I have just examined to you?'
'She is my aunt.'
'I see, I see.'
'What are we to do?' Claire asked him. 'It really is such a bore poor Auntie May getting like this, and it seems quite impossible to get her out of here. It was extraordinarily lucky that we were able to get hold of you. But, of course, it is too tiresome for her, I can't think of anything worse, can you, than being ill in a hotel bedroom? It was so lucky I did go where they told me I'd find her, because I could see at once she was very ill. What do you think of her?'
'Has she been drinking any stimulants, within the last hour shall we say?'
'Why, yes, I think someone said she had.'
'Well, I don't think you need worry about her. It would be a good thing if she could get some sleep. Keep her warm, of course. Oh, yes, it will pass off. Perhaps I might see your husband, wasn't it, for a moment?'
When Robert Hignam came out this doctor drew him aside and said that would be ten and sixpence, please. Claire sent those nannies in to watch Miss Fellowes telling them there was nothing to worry over in her condition, which they did not believe, and she told Julia who was there, too, that it was nothing, and they could go back to that other room and have a drink. Max had come back after trying unsuccessfully to get an ambulance to take Miss Fellowes home (it appeared the streets were so choked with traffic that no communication was possible) and Robert having paid the doctor they all, with Angela, came into the room where Alex was pouring drinks.
As they came in, Robert was explaining to Julia how impossible it was for any search to be made for Thomson. She said:
'Good heavens, who's that?'
They saw facing them that little man, with his glass of whisky, and in the other hand a shabby bowler hat. His tie was thin, as thin as him, and his collar clean and stiff, and so was he; his clothes were black, and his face white with pale, blue eyes. Compared to them he looked like another escaped poisoner, and as if he was looking out for victims. Alex, in the silence this man had made with his appearance, asked him loudly if he would have another drink, and this time he nodded, as though he did not want to speak until he could make up his mind which accent would do his trick best this time.
After she had glanced at Max and seen that he did not seem to care either way about the little man being there, Julia decided it was best to ignore him.
'But are you sure you gave my name?' she said to Robert.
'Yes, I did, and he said he felt you would understand.'
'But what about poor Thomson's tea? He is most frightfully particular about that.'
'Well, after all, he can get some for himself,' and Robert thought it was absurd. Julia would say nothing of keeping Thomson up for
something or other until three in the morning, why start this game about tea?
Angela said to Max:
'Darling, who is that man?'
'Don't know.'
'But then why is Alex giving him drinks?'
'Don't care, do you?'
'Max, darling, is there any chance of going home do you think? I mean, it does seem to be rather hopeless hanging about here.'
'No chance at all. I couldn't even get an ambulance for Claire's aunt.'
'What, is she ill?'
'Didn't you know?'
'Yes, darling, didn't you know?' Claire said. 'But the doctor says there is nothing the matter with her really. Rest would put her right, he said.'
Alex was overjoyed, and said why, that was splendid, loudly, and that little man did not seem pleased, gulped down his drink and left them, saying, in Brummagem, she had been cruel bad when he seen her last.
'Who on earth was that, Alex?'
'My dear Julia, I'm perfectly sure it was the hotel detective.'
'But why?'
'Why? But don't you see that if this Miss Fellowes had been really bad, and he had found out he would have insisted on having her moved.'
'I don't see at all.'
'They won't have people, well, people who are very bad in hotels.'
Claire asked who had said her Aunt May was very bad, and Alex could only say his little man had. Angela said 'Oh, well, if you will believe what he said,' and Julia took that up and said she thought Alex had been perfectly right. Angela, trying to be malicious and yet not rude, said she was horrified to hear Miss Fellowes had been ill, and that she had only remarked to Robin Adams when they met her how she had not seemed right. Alex wanted to ask Miss Crevy where Mr Adams was, but he did not dare, and Claire said yes, she knew, but she thought it so awful of people to saddle others with their family troubles, Max had been perfectly sweet to put her aunt in a room of her own, but it did seem so unfair that all the rest of
them should be bothered by it. 'So I didn't tell you,' she said to Angela, and in so doing, gave herself away, for she had at first seemed surprised that Miss Crevy did not know. And Miss Crevy, thinking to withdraw and be nice, said well, poor Miss Fellowes could not help herself feeling ill could she, and, sensing that she must have said the wrong thing, she added that whenever she felt ill she consoled herself with those sentiments.
'But, darling, why did you think he was a hotel detective?' Julia said to Alex.
'Because he had a bowler hat, of course,' said Claire. 'If Alex will go to so many films where they are the only people who do wear bowlers, of course, that's how he gets it into his head. No, you needn't be embarrassed, I know exactly how it was, you couldn't have told how ill she was, and I think it was perfectly sweet of you to have looked after this man like you did, and like that angel Evelyna is looking after Auntie May this moment. And that reminds me that I must go back and relieve poor Evelyn, I shan't be long,' and with that she left. Alex felt better but not entirely justified so he asked Julia why she was so certain it could not have been a detective. Julia, however, had seen Max put his arm round Angela Crevy and draw her to the window where they now stood looking down at crowds beneath. Alex did not find that Julia was giving him her attention.