The Golden Peaks Read Online Free

her room and stretched herself on the bed, or on the old chaise - longue which Anneliese had so thoughtfully left on the balcony for her. She was so tired that she dropped off to sleep as soon as she lay down. She bought herself an alarm clock to wake her at the appropriate times, not trusting herself to be able to do so. She had telephoned to the rest centre, giving messages for Dorothy to explain her absence, but at the end of a week, she decided she must make the effort, and attempt the climb to the plateau.
    It was pleasant to leave the black dress of her uniform behind , and to put on a grey dress and short, loosely swinging grey coat, leaving her head bare to the sun and the wind. It was less pleasant to face the upward walk, for every step reminded her sharply of her aching thigh muscles. Several times, she stopped, to rest them. There was a cold w in d today, blowing down off the snow, but in the sheltered spots the sun was wonderfully warming. When she reached the narrow path that had tempted her to explore before, she could not resist a swift upward look as she passed it. Not that she expected to see anybody there; yet she felt that she would scarcely have been surprised had a rugged figure been silhouetted against the brightness of the sky. The man had seemed, thought Celia as she plodded upwards towards the plateau, as if he belonged to the mountain. It was difficult to think of him living in the valley, working like other men, doing the things that ordinary people did—he had seemed so much a part of the snow peaks, the forests and the crags.

 
    CHAPTER TWO
    Celia found that she became rapidly accustomed to the routine of life at the Hotel Rotihorn . Lisel and Hertha assured her that this was a very quiet period, although Celia found the unusual work hard enough. At Easter, they informed her, the hotel would fill up, and there would be not one moment o f peace for anybody. Mr. St. Pierre would certainly be at the Rotihorn during Easter, because he had managers at the Bellevue and the Mirabella. Lisel always spoke to Celia in English since she was anxious to improve in the language, but Hertha, who was lazier, talked always in German, so that Celia was able to practise. Anneliese could converse with equal ease in English, German, French and Italian, and was in constant demand by visitors in difficulties.
    Johanna soon discovered that Celia was a good needlewoman, so that, often, when she was not actually waiting at table, or laying the tables freshly for meals, Celia was put to mending the finer linens. This she liked, because it gave her an opportunity of resting her tired limbs, and saved her the rougher, more arduous tasks; but as there were already two sewing maids, she was likely to be called away at any time to help with cleaning silver. She listened interestedly as the staff talked, eager to learn all she could of a different way of life, but frequently the girls talked in the dialect of the people, the difficult Swiss-German; and then she could not understand at all. They accepted her then she could not understand at all. They accepted her with very good grace, asking her questions about life in England, often helping her out of difficulties in her new work.
    One afternoon, when she was free and was setting off to see Dorothy, she was approached by a tall Englishman who had newly arrived at the hotel. He was not at one of her tables, but she had been teased by an odd familiarity about him. She felt sure she had seen him before, but could not place him. She waited politely as be came to her, and returned his greeting, now struck by the familiarity of his voice.
    “I won’t keep you a moment,” he said, “but I felt I had to talk to you. I’m pretty sure we have met before.”
    “I don’t think we have,” said Celia, “but I also feel I’ve seen you somewhere.”
    “The moment I saw you, I was intrigued by your resemblance to somebody I knew. It was the dark-red hair at first, and when I saw