Читать книгу The End of the Battle - Evelyn Waugh - Страница 13

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VIRGINIA TROY had not been in his house ten days before Ian Kilbannock began to ask: “When is she going?”

“I don’t mind having her,” said Kerstie. “She’s not costing too much.”

“But she isn’t contributing anything.”

“I couldn’t ask Virginia to do that. She was awfully decent to us when she was rich.”

“That’s a long time ago. I’ve had Trimmer shipped to America. I just don’t understand why she has to stay here. The other girls used to pay their share.”

“I might suggest it to her.”

“As soon as you can.”

But when Virginia returned that evening she brought news which put other thoughts out of Kerstie’s head.

“I’ve just been to my lawyers,” she said. “They’ve got the copy of all Mr. Troy’s divorce evidence. Who do you think collected it?”

“Who?”

“Three guesses.”

“I can’t think of anyone.”

“That disgusting Loot.”

“It’s not possible.”

“Apparently he’s a member of the firm who works for Mr. Troy. He still does odd jobs for them in his spare time.”

“After we’ve all been so kind to him! Are you going to give him away?”

“I don’t know.”

“People ought to be warned.”

“It’s all our own fault for taking him up. He always gave me the creeps.”

“A thing like this,” said Kerstie, “destroys one’s faith in human nature.”

“Oh, the Loot isn’t human.”

“No, I suppose not really.”

“He made a change from Trimmer.”

“Would you say Trimmer was human?”

They fell back on this problem, which in one form or another had been fully debated between them for three years.

“D’you miss him at all?”

“Pure joy and relief. Every morning for the last four days I’ve woken up to the thought ‘Trimmer’s gone.’ ”

At length after an hour’s discussion Kerstie said: “I suppose you’ll be looking for somewhere else to live now.”

“Not unless you want to get rid of me.”

“Of course it isn’t that, darling, only Ian ...”

But Virginia was not listening. Instead she interrupted with: “Have you got a family doctor?”

“We always go to an old boy in Sloane Street called Puttock. He’s very good with the children.”

“I’ve never had a doctor,” said Virginia, “not one I could call my doctor. It comes of moving about so much and being so healthy. I’ve sometimes been to a little man in Newport to get him to sign for sleeping pills and there was a rather beastly Englishman in Venice who patched me up that time I fell downstairs at the Palazzo Corombona. But mostly I’ve relied on chemists. There is a magician in Monte Carlo. You just go to him and say you have a pain and he gives you a cachet which stops it at once. I think perhaps I’ll go and see your man in Sloane Street.”

“Not ill?”

“No. I just feel I ought to have what Mr. Troy calls a ‘check-up.’ ”

“There’s a most luxurious sick-bay in H.O.O. HQ. Every sort of apparatus and nothing to pay. General Whale goes there for ‘sun-rays’ every afternoon. The top man is called Sir Somebody Something—a great swell in peacetime.”

“I think I’d prefer your man. Not expensive?”

“A guinea a visit I think.”

“I might afford that.”

“Virginia, talking of money: you remember Brenda and Zita used to pay rent when they lived here?”

“Yes, indeed. It’s awfully sweet of you to take me in free.”

“I adore having you. It’s only Ian; he was saying tonight he wondered if you wouldn’t feel more comfortable if you paid something ...”

“I couldn’t be more comfortable as I am, darling, and anyway I couldn’t possibly afford to. Talk him round, Kerstie. Explain to him that I’m broke.”

“Oh, he knows that.”

“Really broke. That’s what no one understands. I’d talk to Ian myself only I think you’d do it better.”

“I’ll try ...”