do to Mr. Aylwin. Carey saw a stout man with a rugged face and sandy hair mixed with grey. He looked at her with interest as he shook hands.
âJuliaâs granddaughter,â said the deep voice, introducing her.
âJust so. I am afraid I donât remember her.â
âNoâyou would only be ten years old when she died.â She turned to Carey. âMr. Aylwin is a connection of yours as well as of mine. My great-aunt, Harriet Harland, became his grandfatherâs second wife.â Her bright, penetrating glance moved on, resting in turn upon Robert, Dennis, Nora, Honor, and Magda Brayle, who had come in from the other side. âI wish to tell you all in front of Mr. Aylwin that I have added Careyâs name to the beneficiaries under my will. I donât wish anyone to say that it was done in a hole-and-corner way, or as a result of undue influence, or in weakness of intellect. If anyone has any doubt about my being of sound mind, Iâll trouble them to say so now, and not go raising hares and blackening my reputation and their own after Iâm gone. There are plenty of you here, so there are plenty of witnesses. If any of you have got anything to say, you can say it.â
It was the most uncomfortable moment of Careyâs life. Her colour burned and died, leaving her distressed and pale. She murmured something which sounded like âPlease, Cousin Honoriaââ but the words were drowned by Dennisâs laughter. He blew his aunt a kiss and said,
âDarling, how too dramatic! You do brighten things up, donât you? Not a dull moment!â
Mr. Aylwin gave him a look between tolerance and reproof, and turned to say something in a low voice. Beyond the fact that it began with âMy dear Honoria,â no one but her was any the wiser.
She made very much the same face as Nora had made at Dennis and sketched a gesture which set all her rings making rainbows. Her voice mimicked his.
âMy dear Mark! Sit down and have your tea. Magda, bring a cup of tea for Mr. Aylwin. Nora, itâs your turn to pour out. Itâs just as wellâat least you wonât drop the teapot if I shock you, and Honor probably would. Well now, isnât anyone going to speak? Remember, hereâs your opportunity. If you donât take it, there wonât be anything doing afterwardsâMark will see to that.â
Mr. Aylwinâs sandy eyebrows rose, but he made no further protest. Having known Honoria Maquisten intimately for forty years, he was only too well aware of the fact that opposition merely spurred her. If she meant to have a scene, a scene she would have. He took his cup of tea from Magda, sat down, and surveyed the baited family. Of them all Robert showed the most temper, and the most control. He glowered, but he had himself in hand. He was older than the othersâmatureâa man with a business of his own. Honoria shouldnâtâno, she really shouldnât.
It was quite plain that Honoria was enjoying herself. The red curls quivered and the diamonds flashed.
âNobody got anything to say? What unanimity! Well then, if youâre all quite satisfied you can say so. Youâve all got tongues.⦠Robert?â
He certainly had himself very well in hand. His voice couldnât have been bettered as he said,
âIsnât this all a little unnecessary, Aunt Honoria? What you do with your property is entirely your own affair. I hope you donât think that any of us would question that.â
Mrs. Maquisten bent a look of smiling malice upon him. If she had looked like Nora a moment before, she now bore a startling resemblance to Dennis.
âMy dear Bob, that is a pious platitude. Did you really expect to get by with it? What I am asking all of you, and at the moment you in particular, is whether you are satisfied? Or not?â
âI couldnât possibly answer a question like that.â
âAnd why not?â
He managed to
Robert Swartwood
Frank Tuttle
Kristin Vayden
Nick Oldham
Devin Carter
Ed Gorman
Margaret Daley
Vivian Arend
Kim Newman
Janet Dailey