Not to Disturb. Muriel Spark

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СКАЧАТЬ house comes a howl and a clatter.

      ‘I’ll have a vodka and tonic,’ says Clovis, as he passes through the big kitchen and returns to his papers at the butler’s desk.

      ‘Very good,’ says Lister, looking round. ‘Any more orders?’

      ‘Nothing for me. I had my carrot juice. I couldn’t stomach a sherry, not tonight,’ says Eleanor.

      ‘Nerves,’ says Lister, and has started to leave the kitchen when the house-telephone rings. He returns to answer it.

      ‘Lister here,’ he says, and listens briefly while something in the telephone crackles into the room. ‘Very good,’ he then says into the telephone and hangs up. ‘The Baron,’ says he, ‘has arrived.’

      The Baron’s great car moves away from the porter’s lodge while the porter closes the gates behind it. It slightly swerves to avoid Hadrian who is walking up the drive.

      The porter, returning to the lodge, finds his wife hanging up the house-telephone in the cold hall. ‘Lister sounds like himself,’ she tells her husband.

      ‘What the hell do you expect him to sound like?’ says the porter. ‘How should he sound?’

      ‘He was no different from usual,’ she says. ‘Oh, I feel terrible.’

      ‘Nothing’s going to happen, dear,’ he says, suddenly hugging her. ‘Nothing at all.’

      ‘I can feel it in the air, like electricity,’ she says. He takes her arm, urging her into the warm sitting-room. She is young and small. She looks as if she were steady of mind but she says, ‘I think I am going mad.’

      ‘Clara!’ says the porter. ‘Clara!’

      She says, ‘Last night I had a terrible dream.’

      Cecil Klopstock, the Baron, has arrived at his door, thin and wavering. The door is open and Lister stands by it.

      ‘The Baroness?’ says the Baron, passively departing from his coat which slides over Lister’s arm.

      ‘No, sir, she hasn’t arrived. Mr Passerat is waiting.’

      ‘When did he come?’

      ‘About half-past six, sir.’

      ‘Anyone with him?’

      ‘Two women in the car. They’re waiting outside.’

      ‘Let them wait,’ says the Baron and goes towards the library, across the black and white paving of the hall. He hesitates, half-turns, then says, ‘I’ll wash in here,’ evidently referring to a wash-room adjoining the library.

      ‘I thought it best,’ Lister says as he enters the servants’ sitting-room, ‘to tell him about those two women waiting outside, perceiving as I did from his manner that he had already noticed them. – “Anyone with Mr Passerat?” he said with his eye to me. “Yes, sir,” I said, “two ladies. They are waiting in the car.” Why he asked me that redundant question I’ll never know.’

      ‘He was testing you out,’ says Hadrian who is whisking two eggs in a bowl.

      ‘Yes, that’s what I think, too,’ says Lister. ‘I feel wounded. I opened the door of the library. Passerat got up. The Baron said “Good evening, Victor” and Passerat said “Good evening.” Whereupon, being unwanted, I respectfully withdrew. Sic transit gloria mundi.’

      ‘They will be sitting down having a drink,’ says Pablo who has cleaned himself up and is now regarding his hair from a distance in the oval looking-glass. This way and that he turns his head, with its hair shiny-black.

      ‘Didn’t he ask for more ice?’ says Eleanor. ‘They never have enough ice.’

      ‘They have plenty of ice in the drinks cupboard. I filled the ice-box, myself, and put more on refrigeration this afternoon when you were all busy with your telephoning and personal arrangements,’ Lister says. ‘They have ice. All they need now is the Baroness.’

      ‘Oh, she’ll come, don’t worry,’ says Clovis, stacking his papers neatly.

      ‘I wish she’d hurry,’ says Heloise, as she slumps in a puffy cretonned armchair. ‘I want to eat my dinner in peace.’

      Hadrian has prepared a tray on which he has placed a dish of scrambled eggs, a plate of thin toasted buttered bread, a large cup and saucer and a silver thermos-container of some beverage. Eleanor, with vague movements, leaves her table-setting to place on the tray a knife, a fork and a spoon; then she covers the toast and the eggs with silver plate-covers.

      ‘What are you doing?’ says Hadrian, grabbing the knife and fork off the tray. ‘What’s come over you?’

      ‘Oh, I forgot,’ says Eleanor. ‘I’ve been in a state all day.’ She replaces the knife and fork with one large spoon.

      Lister goes to the house-telephone, lifts the receiver and presses a button. Presently the instrument wheezes. ‘Supper on its way up to him in the attic,’ says Lister. ‘Yours will follow later.’

      The instrument wheezes again.

      ‘We’ll keep you informed,’ says Lister. ‘All you have to do is stay there till we tell you not to.’ He hangs up. ‘Sister Barton is worried,’ he says. ‘Him in the attic is full of style this evening and likely to worsen as the night draws on. Another case of intuition.’

      Hadrian takes the tray in his hands and as he leaves the room he asks, ‘Shall I tell Sister Barton to call the doctor?’

      ‘Leave it to Sister Barton,’ says Lister, gloomily, with his eyes on other thoughts. ‘Leave it to her.’

      Heloise says, ‘I can manage him in the attic myself, if it comes to that. I’ve always been good to him in the attic.’

      ‘You better get some sleep after you’ve had your supper, my girl,’ says Clovis. ‘You’ve got a big night ahead. The reporters will be here in the morning if not before.’

      ‘It might not take place till six-ish in the morning,’ says Heloise. ‘Once they start arguing it could drag on all night. I’m intuitive, as Mr Lister says, and – ’

      ‘Only as regards your condition,’ says Lister. ‘Normally, you are not a bit intuitive. You’re thick, normally. It’s merely that in your condition the Id tends to predominate over the Ego.’

      ‘I have to be humoured,’ says Heloise, shutting her eyes. ‘Why can’t I have some grapes?’

      ‘Give her some grapes,’ says Pablo.

      ‘Not before dinner,’ says Clovis.

      ‘Clara!’ says Theo the porter. ‘Clara!’

      ‘It’s only that I’m burning with desire to ask them what’s going on up at the house tonight,’ she says.

      ‘Come back here. Come right back, darling,’ he says, drawing her into СКАЧАТЬ