Latter End

CHAPTER 9

Antony ran into Minnie Mercer in the passage just outside his room-or rather it was she who ran into him, and he who avoided what might have been quite a collision by stepping back just in time. As it was, she blundered against his arm and he had to catch and steady her, or she would have fallen. It was then that the light from his open door showed him her face, quite white, quite rigid, the eyes fixed and almost colourless. He had not been through five years of war without knowing shock when he saw it. He kept his arm about her, took her into his room, shut the door, and put her into a chair. She did not seem to know what he was doing, but when he said, “What is it, Minnie?” her hands began to tremble. She sat stiffly upright and tried to keep them quiet in her lap, but they shook and went on shaking. Looking past him with her eyes on some distant point, she said,

“I shall have-to go.”

“Minnie dear!”

“She wants me to.”

“My dear, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She said very slowly and stiffly,

“I’ve been here twenty-five years-but it’s no use-she’ll turn me out.”

Antony began to distinguish a pattern. He put a hand on her shoulder.

“Minnie, you look all in. Lean back and rest whilst I get you something. Then if you like, you can tell me about it.”

She shook her head. Two slow tears overflowed and began to creep down towards her chin. She said,

“You can’t do anything-no one can do anything. If she has made up her mind to send me away, I shall have to go.”

He pulled up another chair and sat down beside her.

“How do you know she wants to send you away?”

The two slow tears dripped down upon her shaking hands. Others took their place, as pitiful and as unheeded. She didn’t turn her head, or look at him, or vary the tone of her voice.

“I went to the morning-room to ask her something-I forget what it was. When I opened the door I heard her say my name. She said, ‘I’ve heard of the very thing for Minnie. Brenda Grey’s aunt wants a companion. Minnie is the born companion.’ ”

Antony ’s face had set, hard and dark.

“Who was she talking to?”

“Jimmy.” For the first time the stiff voice shook.

“What did he say?”

“He didn’t seem to understand.”

“Well?”

“She told him. She said I was going, and he wanted to know why. She made him think I wanted to go. She said what a good thing it was, because it would save her the trouble of giving me notice. There’s going to be a butler again, and she said I wouldn’t fit in. I know she has heard of two maids.”

“But, Minnie, you were here for years when there was a full staff.”

She said, “Twenty-five years-it’s a long time. But I helped Marcia, and when she died there were the girls. There won’t be any place for me now.”

He said, “Jimmy wouldn’t let her turn you out,” and hoped, without any certainty, that what he said was true.

She turned her face to him. The tears were still running down. The eyes had lost that fixed look. They were gentle and very sorrowful, and so was her voice.

“We mustn’t bring him into it, my dear. It wouldn’t do, you know. It doesn’t do to come between husband and wife. It isn’t right, and it only makes trouble. If she wants me to go, there isn’t anything I can do-except go.” Her hands were still shaking. She got up. “You have been very kind, Antony. I am sorry I gave way. I shouldn’t have done so if I had had time to collect myself. It was just the shock, and running into you like that, and-and your kindness.”

She went quickly out of the room, leaving a very angry young man behind her. It was all very well to say nobody could do anything, but he certainly wasn’t going to let it go at that. He thought probably the best chance lay in tackling Lois herself. You could work Jimmy up to the sticking point, but you couldn’t keep him there-not unless you got on to one of his half-dozen inhibitions. This business of turning Minnie out-well, would it stir one of them up, or would it not? It might. Very difficult to tell with Jimmy. He’d give in, and give in, and give in, and then quite suddenly you’d come up against something that wouldn’t budge an inch. He had seen it happen a dozen times-sometimes about the merest trifle, sometimes about a thing that really mattered. But small or big, all the incidents had something to do with Latter End…

The hospitality of his house-that might be ground on which Jimmy would stand and fight. Antony was tolerably certain that Lois would never get him to turn either Ellie or Julia from his door, charm she never so wisely. Whether this went for Minnie too was what he didn’t know. It might, but then again it mightn’t. Jimmy was incalculable. He thought he had better try Lois, and if it came to a row, he was going to get a good deal of satisfaction out of speaking his mind. Of course he would have to see Jimmy first, because he couldn’t give Minnie away. His knowledge of Lois’ plans must be acquired from Jimmy. Nothing easier of course, because Jimmy would be only too ready to pour the whole thing out to a sympathetic ear.

From his window he could see Lois on her way to the rose-garden with a basket on her arm. Ten minutes with Jimmy and he could follow her there. If there were going to be a row, the rose-garden would be an admirable place for it- well away from the house, and no interruptions.

Jimmy actually took a quarter of an hour, because he was so very much distressed that he had to be placated. He tramped up and down the study, rumpling his hair and demanding why Minnie should want to leave them after all these years.

“I thought she was fond of us all-I thought she was happy here. But Lois says she wants to leave-I can’t understand it.”

“Perhaps Lois could persuade her to stay.”

Jimmy brightened.

“Yes, yes-she can’t really want to go-Lois must persuade her!”

“I think she might. Minnie may have some idea that she isn’t wanted.”

This was as far as he dared go, but it had a very good effect. Jimmy fairly snatched at it.

“Oh, if that’s all! Women get these ideas into their heads. Minnie has never been one to put any value on herself. Very unselfish sort of girl-always was-ready to do anything for anyone. She might think she wasn’t going to be wanted. Now how can we put that right?”

“Would you think I was butting in if I talked to Lois about it?”

Jimmy brightened still more.

“No, of course not-why should I? A very good idea. You know, it upset me so much that I don’t feel I really got to the bottom of it. I don’t know when anything has upset me so much. I don’t like it, Antony -I don’t like it at all. Why-let me see-Minnie is three years younger than I am, and I’m fifty-one. She’s been here twenty-five years. Twenty-three- that’s what she was when she came, and a very pretty girl too. And she’s been like one of the family ever since. I can’t understand it at all. Go along and talk to Lois and see if you can get to the bottom of it.”

He found her in the most romantic setting. The beautiful Mrs. Latter in her rose-garden, the late summer sunshine bright on her auburn hair and the cool, flawless skin which never tanned or freckled. Her dress of honey-coloured linen blended pleasantly with the flowers in their September bloom. The basket on her arm was brimmed with roses in all the shades of coppery pink.

Antony ’s sense of humour stirred angrily. A row would be a most glaring incongruity. Well, perhaps it wouldn’t be necessary to have one. After all, Lois had a brain if she chose to use it. There really wasn’t any sense in upsetting Jimmy and stirring up all this fuss.

Lois smiled delightfully as he came up.

“How nice of you! I was just wanting someone to carry the basket.”

He took it.

“You like being waited on-don’t you?”

“Very much.”

“Jimmy tells me that you are arranging for quite a lot of it-butler and maids again.”

She snipped off another rose as she said carelessly,

“Yes-won’t it be a relief!”

Instead of dropping the rose into the basket she held it up for him to smell.

“Well? Won’t it?”

“Probably. At the moment Jimmy is considerably upset.”

She gave her rippling laugh.

“That’s because of Minnie. He’ll get over it. I hope you didn’t encourage him.”

“He didn’t need any encouragement. Look here, Lois, we’ve been pretty good friends, and we’ve never gone in for beating about the bush. Why are you outing Minnie? I know you told Jimmy that she wanted to go, but that won’t go down with me.”

“Darling, how fierce!”

“I want to know why you are doing it.”

She was snipping quite idly now, a leaf here, a dead bloom there. She threw him a smiling look.

“Well, you see, I think she’s been here long enough.”

“Why?”

“My dear Antony, she’s the born old lady’s companion, I’m not an old lady, and I don’t want a companion. To be perfectly frank, I don’t want Minnie. I don’t want her at meals, I don’t want to meet her about the house-she gets on my nerves. She can go and be a treasure to old Miss Grey.”

“And be eaten up alive like all the other companions she’s had for the last fifteen years or so!”

She laughed.

“Oh, Minnie won’t mind that. She just asks to be trodden on.”

Antony was silent for a moment. Then he said,

“Do you know, Lois, I wouldn’t push Jimmy too far over this. I’ve known him all my life, and he can be-unexpected. I’ve got an idea that this is one of the things it would be better-” He hesitated for a word, and she took him up.

“Better for whom, darling?”

He said,

“You.”

“Really, Antony!”

“Lois, listen! Jimmy thinks the sun rises and sets by you- you’ve got him eating out of your hand. You think you know him-you think he’s easy, and so he is-up to a point. I’m telling you you’d better not drive him past that point. If you do, he may be-incalculable.”

She gave a scornful laugh.

“All this fuss about Minnie Mercer! As if she mattered twopence!”

His eyes dwelt on her with a curious appraising look.

“Don’t be stupid. You’re not a stupid woman, so don’t pretend you are. Jimmy’s got his loyalties. I’m telling you that you’d better respect them. If you don’t you may find you have smashed something you can’t put together again. If you don’t want Minnie to meals, give her a sitting-room of her own-she’d love it. She wouldn’t want to meddle with your parties-she’d be only too pleased to keep out of the way. And she’d make herself useful. I know she did all the mending for Marcia and the house.”

“Thank you-Gladys Marsh does all the sewing I want. And she amuses me. You should hear her on the village. No, it’s no use, Antony. And you had better not go on, or you’ll make me angry. I don’t want to be angry.” She looked at him sweetly and broke into a laugh. “I’d have been raging if it had been anyone else, but you mustn’t take advantage of my having a soft corner somewhere for you.” She came closer. “I have, you know.”

He said in a hard, even tone,

“Minnie has been here a long time.”

The clear, natural colour brightened in Lois’ cheeks. She kept her voice silky.

“And she’s in love with Jimmy. Why don’t you say it, darling? She’s been in love with him for all that long time you keep harping on. I don’t find it exactly a recommendation, you know.”

Antony was smiling. If Julia had been there she would have known just how angry he was when he smiled like that.

“My dear Lois, are you asking me to believe that you are jealous of Minnie? I really would like you to be serious, if you don’t mind. We in this family have been Minnie’s family for twenty-five years. We are the only family she has got. We rather take her for granted, and we all impose on her a good deal, but we are very fond of her. She loves us all a great deal better than we deserve. She adores Jimmy. It is all on such a simple, humble plane that the most jealous person in the world couldn’t take exception to it. Be generous and leave the poor little thing alone. It’s going to pretty well kill her if you tear her up by the roots. Jimmy has never thought of her except as part of the family. Let her alone there, and he never will.” The smile had gone. The dark face was earnest.

Lois put up the rose she held and flicked him lightly on the cheek.

“You ought to have been called to the Bar, darling. I feel exactly like a jury. And now I’ve got to consider my verdict.”

“Reconsider it, Lois.”

She said,

“We’ll see. Come and help me do the flowers.”