Agatha Christie - Towards Zero

Someone in Mr. Treves' hearing had referred to Nevile as "that lucky beggar Strange — got everything in the world anyone could wish for." Yet he did not look, at this moment, at all a happy man.

Thomas Royde, with Nevile's re-entry, seemed to feel that his duties as host were over. He left the room without attempting to say good night, and his walk was slightly more hurried than usual. It was almost an escape.

"A delightful evening," said Mr. Treves politely as he set down his glass. "Most — er — instructive."

"Instructive?" Nevile raised his eyebrows slightly.

"Information of the Malay States," suggested Ted, smiling broadly. "Hard work dragging answers out of Taciturn Thomas."

"Extraordinary fellow, Royde," said Nevile. "I believe he's always been the same. Just smokes that awful old pipe of his and listens and says 'Um' and 'Ah' occasionally and looks wise like an owl."

"Perhaps he thinks the more," said Mr. Treves. "And now I really must take my leave."

"Come and see Lady Tressilian again soon," said Nevile as he accompanied the two men to the hall. "You cheer her up enormously. She has so few contacts now with the outside world. She's wonderful, isn't she?"

"Yes, indeed. A most stimulating conversationalist."

Mr. Treves dressed himself carefully with overcoat and muffler, and after renewed good nights he and Ted Latimer set out together.

The Balmoral Court was actually only about a hundred yards away, around one curve of the road. It loomed up grim and forbidding, the first outpost of the straggling country street.

The ferry, where Ted Latimer was bound, was two or three hundred yards farther down, at a point where the river was at its narrowest.

Mr. Treves stopped at the door of the Balmoral Court and held out his hand. "Good night, Mr. Latimer. You are staying down here much longer?"

Ted smiled with a flash of white teeth. "That depends, Mr. Treves. I haven't had time to be bored — yet."

"No — no, so I should imagine. I suppose, like most young people nowadays, boredom is what you dread most in the world, and yet, I can assure you, there are worse things."

"Such as?"

Ted Latimer's voice was soft and pleasant, but it held an undercurrent of something else — something not quite so easy to define.

"Oh, I leave it to your imagination, Mr. Latimer. I would not presume to give you advice, you know. The advice of such elderly fogeys as myself is invariably treated with scorn. Rightly so, perhaps, who knows? But we old buffers like to think that experience has taught us something. We have noticed a good deal, you know, in the course of a lifetime."

A cloud, had come over the face of the moon. The street was very dark. Out of the darkness a man's figure came towards them walking up the hill.

It was Thomas Royde.

"Just been down to the ferry for a bit of a walk," he said indistinctly because of the pipe clenched between his teeth.

"This your pub?" he asked Mr. Treves. "Looks as though you were locked out."

"Oh, I don't think so," said Mr. Treves.

He turned the big brass door-knob and the door swung back.

"We'll see you safely in," said Royde.

The three of them entered the hall. It was dimly lit with only one electric light. There was no one to be seen, and an odour of bygone dinner, rather dusty velvet, and good furniture met their nostrils.

Suddenly Mr. Treves gave an exclamation of annoyance. On the lift in front of them was a notice: LIFT OUT OF ORDER

"Dear me," said Mr. Treves. "How extremely vexing! I shall have to walk up all those stairs."

"Too bad," said Royde. "Isn't there a service lift — luggage — all that?"

"I'm afraid not. This one is used for all purposes. Well, I must take it slowly, that is all. Good night to you both."

He started slowly up the wide staircase. Royde and Latimer wished him good night, then let themselves out into the dark street.

There was a moment's pause, then Royde said abruptly: "Well, good night."

"Good night. See you to-morrow."

"Yes."

Ted Latimer strode lightly down the hill towards the ferry. Thomas Royde stood looking after him for a moment, then he walked slowly in the opposite direction towards Gull's Point.

The moon came out from behind the cloud and Saltcreek was once more bathed in silvery radiance.

She and Audrey were sitting on the beach just below the imposing edifice of the Easterhead Bay Hotel. Audrey wore a white swim-suit and looked like a delicate ivory figurine. Mary had not bathed. A little way along from them Kay lay on her face exposing her bronzed limbs and back to the sun.

"Ugh!" She sat up. "The water's horribly cold," she said accusingly.

"Oh, well, it is September," said Mary.

"It's always cold in England ," said Kay discontentedly. "How I wish we were in the South of France! That really is hot."

Ted Latimer from beyond her murmured: "This sun here isn't a real sun."

"Aren't you going in at all, Mr. Latimer?" asked Mary.

Kay laughed.

"Ted never goes in the water. Just suns himself like a lizard."

She stretched out a toe and prodded him. He sprang up.

"Come and walk, Kay. I'm cold."

They went off together along the beach.

"Like a lizard? Rather an unfortunate comparison," murmured Mary Aldin, looking after them.

"Is that what you think of him?" asked Audrey.

Mary Aldin frowned.

"Not quite. A lizard suggests something quite tame. I don't think he is tame."

"No," said Audrey thoughtfully "I don't think so, either."

"How well they look together!" said Mary, watching the retreating pair. "They match somehow, don't they?"

"I suppose they do."

"They like the same things," went on Mary. "And have the same opinions and — and use the same language. What a thousand pities it is that — " She stopped.

Audrey said sharply: "That what?"

Mary said slowly: "I suppose I was going to say what a pity it was that Nevile and she ever met."

Audrey sat up stiffly. What Mary called to herself "Audrey's frozen look" had come over her face. Mary said quickly: "I'm sorry, Audrey. I shouldn't have said that."

"I'd so much rather — not talk about it if you don't mind."

"Of course, of course. It was very stupid of me. I — I hoped you'd got over it, I suppose."

Audrey turned her head slowly. With a calm, expressionless face she said: "I assure you there is nothing to get over. I — I have no feeling of any kind in the matter. I hope — I hope with all my heart that Kay and Nevile will always be very happy together."

"Well, that's very nice of you, Audrey."

"It isn't nice. It is — just true. But I do think it is — well — unprofitable to keep on going back over the past. 'It's a pity this happened — that!' It is all over now. Why rake it up? We've got to go on living our lives in the present."

"I suppose," said Mary simply, "that people like Kay and Ted are exciting to me because — well, they are so different from anything or anyone that I have ever come across."

"Yes, I suppose they are."

"Even you," said Mary with sudden bitterness, "have lived and had experiences that I shall probably never have. I know you've been unhappy — very unhappy — but I can't help feeling that even that is better than — well — nothing. Emptiness!"

She said the last word with a fierce emphasis.

Audrey's wide eyes looked a little startled. "I never dreamt you ever felt like that."

"Didn't you?" Mary Aldin laughed apologetically. "Oh, just a momentary fit of discontent, my dear. I didn't really mean it."

"It can't be very gay for you," said Audrey slowly. "Just living here with Camilla — dear thing though she is. Reading to her, managing the servants, never going away."