Tabitha in Moonlight by Betty Neels Read Free Book Online Page B

matter.’
    Tabitha said dryly: ‘Yes, isn’t it?’ and prepared to leave the room again; she had heard it all before, and would doubtless hear it all again at some time or other. She asked: ‘The usual room, I suppose?’ and when Mrs Crawley nodded, went upstairs. At the head of the staircase she crossed the landing, and passing the room which used to be hers but which her stepmother had argued was unnecessary to keep as hers now that she lived away from home, went on up a smaller flight of stairs to the floor above, where she went into a small room at the back of the house which she used on her infrequent visits. It was pleasant enough, simply furnished and with a wide view of Lyme Bay which almost compensated Tabitha for the loss of her own room. She unpacked her own things quickly, hung the new dress carefully in the wardrobe, and went back downstairs to the kitchen where the cook and her husband, the gardener and odd-job man, were eating their supper.
    They were a nice enough couple whom her stepmother had engaged after her father’s death, when the old cook and even older gardener had been dismissed by her as being too elderly for their jobs. They had gone willingly enough, for Tabitha’s father had remembered them generously enough in his will, and now they lived in the village where they had spent their lives and Tabitha made a point of visiting them each time she went to Chidlake and remembering their birthdays and Christmas, for they had loved her parents and home almost as much as she did herself. Now she accepted a plate of cold ham and salad and carried it into the dining room, where she ate her solitary meal at the rosewood table which could seat twelve so easily. It had been fully extended; no doubt there would be people to dinner before the dance.
    She took her plate back to the kitchen, wished her stepmother good night and went to her room, where she spent a long time doing her nails, which were pink and prettily shaped and one of her small vanities. This done to her satisfaction, she sat down before the mirror, loosened her hair from its tight bun and piled it high. It took a long time and she lost patience several times before it was exactly as she wanted it, but when it was at last finished, she was pleased enough with the result. She would do it that way for the dance, she decided, as she took it down again and brushed it slowly, thinking about Mr van Beek. She was still thinking about him when she got into bed; he was nice, she wanted to know more of him, though there wasn’t much chance of that. She supposed he would stay until Mr Raynard could get back to work once more, and if Mr Raynard chose to clump around in a plaster, that wouldn’t be long. Then, presumably, he would be off on his lecturing tour and she would never see him again. She sighed, wishing that she was as pretty as Lilith, for if she had been, he would probably have taken her out just for the pleasure of being seen with her. As it was she would have to be content with their brief businesslike trip to Mr Bow’s room. She remembered that he had said that she was a restful girl and smiled, and smiling, went to sleep.
    There was a lot to do the next day. Lilith, who didn’t appear until halfway through the morning, was taken up with the hairdresser, countless telephone calls and endless discussions as to her appearance, which meant that Tabitha had to run several errands in the village, help with the flowers and then assist her stepmother to her room because her head ached. It was lunchtime by then, a hurriedmeal over which Tabitha and Lilith wasted no time; they had little to say to each other, and beyond remarking that Tabitha looked tired already and pointing out several grey hairs she was sure Tabitha hadn’t noticed for herself, Lilith had nothing of importance to say. Tabitha knew about the grey hairs, and ignoring the remark about her tired looks, she got up from the table saying she