Beauty for ashes Author:Joan Sutherland Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER IV EVE WILMOT was dining at the rectory for the purpose of having a really confidential talk with the friend she had not seen for five years; and as t... more »he invitation had been an informal one over the telephone that morning, she was not in the least surprised to find only the family, with the exception of Mrs. Cardew, present. Raven, contrary to his usual custom, talked well. Billy could always be relied upon for conversation, and Pauline, despite her anxiety, was as ever, an excellent hostess; yet Eve was conscious, or thought she was, of some underlying strain, and presently to test that impression spoke her brother's name carelessly: "Desmond has gone off to Brighton for the week-end," she said. "He says he wants fresh air and long walks. He'll get the air, but Brighton!" "Such a foul place!" Billy exclaimed, gazing at her with elaborate frankness. "I loathe it! Miles of streets and trams and shops, and Jews! Jews! Jews!" "Lord Desmond went to the first place he thought of, I imagine," Pauline remarked. "It's always difficult to decide on a winter week-end inEngland, and Brighton is as good as anywhere else." "Yes, I suppose it is. I envy you your villa at Bordighere, Pauline! It must be a dream!" She had learned what she wanted and switched the conversation away from her brother; and afterwards, alone with Pauline in the latter's sitting- room, she took a bold step. "Pauline," she said, "have you seen your brother, Lionel, to-day?" Pauline had been choosing a cigarette; she paused now, and lifting her eyes looked across at her friend. "Yes," she said after a moment, "why do you ask?" Eve did not answer immediately. She was sure now of the underlying tension, and although she did not desire to betray Desmond's confidence, she was desperately a...« less