"Then she's brought him up to London, and she's putting him in a train
at Euston. That's it."
"Only there is no London train that gets to Knype at half-past six,"
Edwin said. "It's 7:12, or 7:14--I forget."
"Oh! That's near enough for Hilda," Janet smiled, looking at her watch.
"She doesn't mean any other train?" Mrs Orgreave fearfully suggested.
"She can't mean any other train. There is no other. Only probably
she's been looking at the wrong time-table," Janet reassured her mother.
"Because if the poor little thing found no one to meet him at Knype--"
"Don't worry, dear," said Janet. "The poor little thing would soon be
engaging somebody's attention. Trust him!"
"But has she been writing to you lately?" Mrs Orgreave questioned.
"No."
"Then why--"
"Don't ask _me_!" said Janet. "No doubt I shall get a letter to-morrow,
after George has come and told us everything! Poor dear, I'm glad she's
doing so much better now."
"Is she?" Edwin murmured, surprised.
"Oh yes!" said Janet. "She's got a regular bustling partner, and
they're that busy they scarcely know what to do. But they only keep one
little servant."
In the ordinary way Janet and Edwin never mentioned Hilda to one
another. Each seemed to be held back by a kind of timid shame and by a
cautious suspicion. Each seemed to be inquiring: "What does _he_ know?"
"What does _she_ know?"
"If I thought it wasn't too cold, I'd go with you to Knype," said Mr
Orgreave.
"Now, Osmond!" Mrs Orgreave sat up.
"Shall I go?" said Edwin.
"Well," said Janet, with much kindliness, "I'm sure he'd be delighted to
see _you_."
Mrs Orgreave rang the bell.
"What do you want, mother?"
"There'll be the bed--"
"Don't you trouble with those things, dear," said Janet, very calmly.
"There's heaps of time."
But Janet was just as excited as her parents. In two minutes the
excitement had spread through the whole house, like a piquant and
agreeable odour. The place was alive again.
"I'll just step across and ask Maggie to alter supper," said Edwin, "and
then I'll call for you. I suppose we'll go down by train."
"I'm thankful he's had influenza," observed Mrs Orgreave, implying that
thus there would be less chance of George catching the disease under her
infected roof.
That George had been down with influenza before Christmas was the sole
information about him that Edwin obtained. Nobody appeared to consider
it worth while to discuss the possible reasons for his sudden arrival.
Hilda's caprices were accepted in that house like the visitations of
heaven.
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