New Doctor at Northmoor Read Online Free Page B

Gwenny thought, as she heard her mother say that: she ’ s in one of those moods.
    She dragged herself to her feet and went to the stairhead to look down at them. Mummy must have had a bad day at her meeting. Gwenny struggled to remember which one it was, but she couldn ’ t. She called down, ‘ If you ’ re talking about the place being tidied up, I did it. What ’ s wrong with that? ’
    ‘ Well, I never! Saucebox !’ Mrs. Otts observed. ‘ It ’ s my job, and I ’ ll thank you, young lady, not to get out my carpet sweeper and leave it on the landing for honest folks to fall over, and like as not break it so I get the blame. ’
    ‘ Did I leave it out? I ’ m sorry. I went to lie down. ’
    ‘ Worn out, I daresay, by the unaccustomed bit of trying to do housework, I suppose ,’ Mrs. Otts said, with heavy sarcasm. ‘ It ’ s my job to do the house, and I won ’ t have interference or else I leave .’
    ‘ There ’ s no question of your leaving, Mrs. Otts! ’ Mrs. Kinglake said distractedly. ‘ Why do you have to be such a nuisance, Gwenny? ’
    ‘ I thought I was helping. I ’ ve removed some dust —’
    ‘ If you ’ re saying, miss, as I ’ m dirty— ’ Mrs. Otts shrilled indignantly.
    ‘ Oh, do give over, ’ Gwenny begged, holding on tight to the newel post. ‘ You ’ re always saying you haven ’ t time to tidy up, so I thought I ’ d try, as I had nothing to do. Has anyone looked to see what the rooms up here look like? ’
    ‘ No, I haven ’ t, ’ Mrs. Kinglake said crossly. ‘ But the rooms down here don ’ t look up to much —’
    ‘ I didn ’ t get round to them, but I did tidy the top ones. You might look at them, to see how they seem, ’ Gwenny said, shocked to find that she was near tears. She went back into her bedroom and stood looking out of the window, then heard her father ’ s voice, as he came in at the front door. He hated to find a row going on, the minute he set foot in the house.
    Now there were three voices going at it. How on earth could she go and tell him she felt very peculiar and ask him to help her, when he had been greeted like this?
    She dragged herself downstairs again. They stopped talking and looked at her. Somehow, though she didn ’ t know they were thinking it, she had become older in an intangible way. She was still wearing the same shirt and pinafore dress that was much too short for her—not, as it happened, from the dictates of fashion but because she had grown out of it—but no one had said anything about her having a new dress and she knew better than to ask. She still wore no stockings and childish sandals which she had almost worn out, but as her feet had stopped growing, there had seemed no need to ask for a new pair. Her hair hung untidily as usual about her face, but this, too, happened to coincide with the dictates of fashion.
    It was a puzzled trio of adults who found themselves thinking that, without anything having been done to alter Gwenny ’ s exterior, somehow she looked different. Her eyes had an adult anger in them and her face seemed to have fallen in, and lost its eager-child look. She wasn ’ t young Gwenny any longer.
    Mrs. Otts was moved to say, ‘ Well, perhaps I shouldn ’ t have shouted at you, Miss Gwenny. You tried to help, I suppose. ’
    And Mrs. Kinglake said, ‘ You could do with a nice cup of tea, I should think. I know I could. It ’ s been a most tiring day !’ But she trailed off doubtfully, and that wasn ’ t like her. Her usual manner was a forthright one, and devil take the hindmost.
    Dr. Kinglake opened his mouth to say, rather awkwardly, that Gwenny didn ’ t look too good and she ’ d better go into the surgery with him. But it never got said.
    A car drew up noisily at the gate and Laurence leapt out, slamming the door after him.
    ‘ Laurence! What the devil are you doing at home at this hour? ’ Dr. Kinglake asked, and went out to the gate to meet him. No one would have realized that