Magic In Vienna Part 13

He must be joking. She slid coldly: "I have no doubt that you could remedy that if you should wish to. Doctor."

He smiled.

"Of course. Indeed, I intend to do so very shortly." He added kindly just in case she hadn't understood.

"Get married, you know."

She said bleakly: "How nice. I hope you'll be very happy."

"I have no doubt of that. Would you like a drink? No? You behaved with commendable aplomb this evening--I'm sorry that your evening was spoiled, Cordelia. The man will recover; he'd lost a lot of blood but as far as could be seen at the preliminary examination, nothing vital had been hurt."

"I'm glad. Does anyone know who he is?"

"No idea at the moment, the police will get on to that. He'll be well looked after." He put down his gla.s.s.

"What about tomorrow? Lunch at noon I think, that will give us a long afternoon. But take a look at Eileen before you say anything, will you? She's pretty fit now, but she mustn't get overtired." He got to his feet.

"And bed for you too."

He went and opened the door for her and as she went past him, put out a hand and caught her gently by the arm.

"Good night, Cordelia," his voice was gentle. . so was the kiss he gave her.

"Oh," said Cordelia for the third time and scooted across the hall and up the steps and along the corridor to her room, she heard the doctor laughing softly as she closed the door, and what with that and tiredness and a delayed fright at the evenings happenings, she began to cry. She cried steadily while she undressed, showered and went to peep at Eileen. She was still weeping when she fell asleep.

The remembrance of her tears annoyed her very much when she woke up in the morning. As a consequence she was very brisk and cheerful when she went to see how Eileen fared. That young lady took one look at her and wanted to know why she had been crying, which, considering Cordelia had taken a good deal of time in making up her face, was vexing.

She decided to ignore the question and embarked instead on a breezy account of the Prater Park which lasted nicely until the pair of them went downstairs for breakfast.

It being Sunday, there was no post, which meant that the doctor was able to devote all his attention to them. He wished them good morning, hoped that they had slept well, and recommended the scrambled eggs.

"Cordelia's been crying," said Eileen in a clear voice not to be ignored.

The doctor shot a quick glance at Cordelia, busy with the coffee pot and pink in the face, moreover he saw that her hands were shaking.

Possibly with rage, he thought with secret amus.e.m.e.nt.

"I'm not surprised," he answered, 'when we got back last night, we found a wounded man and she had to hold the torch while I had a look at him. Not a pretty sight and very upsetting to the nerves."

"Cordelia, darling, you didn't tell me, how awful for you. Was there a lot of blood?" She turned to her uncle.

"Is he dead?"

"Blood thirsty child. No, he/s not. Who is coming to church this morning?"

Cordelia looked up eagerly but said nothing and he went on, "The Schottenkirche it's close by, we can walk there, the three of us."

"I don't want. . ." began Eileen.

"No church, no Schonbrunn."

"Fair enough," agreed Cordelia, 'you can sit quietly if you get tired, Eileen. Besides it's one of the places we haven't been to yet and there's only a little time left now." She had spoken briskly but inside her, she felt sadness welling up to choke her. She ignored it, to be sorry for herself wouldn't help at all; she would go back with Eileen and stay with her until she was no longer needed and then get another, similar job. Beyond that she wasn't going to think.

That night, lying in bed wide awake and quite unable to sleep, she reviewed the day. Something to remember and most of it delightful.

Church, under the guidance of the doctor had been interesting and lunch together had been a decidedly chatty meal, with Eileen hogging the major share of the conversation, asking endless questions and showing an intelligence wh'which her uncle was quick to meet.

They got to Schonbrunn before two o'clock and had gone at once to the Coach Museum, where they had spent the greater part of the afternoon, goggling over the earlier coaches, equipped, for the twenty-six day trips to Paris, with what must have been the equivalent of all mod cons, and admiring the tiny coaches used by the young Habsburgs and the hunting sleigh with its swivel chair, s.p.a.ce for servants to ride back and front and reindeer horns to support the guns. But it was the Coronation coach which took up most of their time, with its gold tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs.

"Eight white horses," marvelled Cordelia, reading the descriptive leaflet.

I'd rather have Uncle Charles's car," said Eileen. They had ices before wandering past the long rows of linden trees and into the formal gardens and here presently, true to his promise, the doctor sat down with his niece and Cordelia was free to climb leisurely to the Gloriette where she stood and admired the view, wis.h.i.+ng that the doctor was there to share it with her. Presently, she walked back again and since none of them fancied visiting the zoo, and the afternoon was almost over, they had got back into the car and had tea at Sacher's Coffee House. It was crowded and the doctor seemed to be on terms with any number of people there. Cordelia was conscious of curious looks and when from time to time someone stopped at their table, she was introduced austerely as Miss Gibson. The doctor had good manners, but she had the feeling that he would much rather not have done so. She had acknowledged each introduction with a cool, correct, German greeting and made no effort to take part in the conversation. Probably he had felt ashamed of her, she thought miserably, she was so dreadfully mediocre, both as to face and dress.

Eileen on the other hand, took pains to draw attention to herself, trying out her greatly improved German and laughing a lot. In five years time, mused Cordelia, the child will be a menace, with young men vying for her attention. Perhaps she should try and explain to the child that drawing attention to herself wasn't quite the thing... They were on the point of leaving the cafe when the woman she had seen at the apartment paused at the table. Her greeting was effusive although she ignored both Eileen and her, something which the doctor had put right immediately.

"My niece, Eileen, and Miss Gibson, her governess." He spoke in German and the woman replied in the same language.

"My dear Charles, still saddled with your two unwelcome visitors."

She gave a tinkling laugh and the doctor frowned.

"Miss Gibson speaks excellent German," he said drily, 'and Eileen has

made great strides since she has been here. Perhaps ypu had better apologise, Maria."

She said sharply,

"I'll do no such thing. A governess and a child.. ."

She made them sound like something the cat had brought in, thought Cordelia and caught Eileen's eye and winked.

"My guests," the doctor reminded her and when she tossed her head and pouted, wished her a cold goodbye. She paused for a moment, looking at him, her lovely face full of temper, then she turned on her heel.

"Sorry about that," said the doctor,"I'll apologise for her. ..""Are we unwelcome visitors?" asked Eileen.He lifted a finger for the bill."I admit that when you came I was quite convinced that you disrupt my ordered life. But I can promise you that you have done nothing of the kind, on the contrary you have grown on me--I shall miss you abominably."

"Just me, or both of us. Uncle Charles?"

He had glanced at Cordelia, sitting, prim and upright across the table.

"Both of you. Will you miss me, Eileen?"

"Oh yes, you're ever so much nicer than I thought you'd 'be, in fact I

like you very much now. So does Cordelia." She caught Cordelia's outraged look: Well, she hasn't actually said so, but if you ask her I'm sure she'll say so. .."

"I think," said the doctor smoothly, 'that I won't chance my luck not at this moment. Now who's for home? I've got to look in on a patient before eight o'clock I'll drop you off as I go to the hospital."

"But it's only six o'clock," complained Eileen.

"It will be half-past six by the time I'm there and I'm going out this

evening."

"Who with?"

"That will do, Eileen," said Cordelia sharply, 'you're being rude.

You've had a lovely day; don't let's spoil it with peevishness."

Eileen had given an exaggerated sigh.

"Oh, darling Cordelia, you're being a governess again. I bet you wish

it was you."

Cordelia had shot a look at the doctor; he was sitting back in his chair, most annoyingly being amused.

"That's such a silly remark, I shall't answer it," she said.

Eileen put an impertinent head on one side. "You're quite pretty when

you're cross, Cordelia."

"Come along you are keeping your uncle waiting." / "I am a patient

man, quite prepared to wait for what I want, Eileen, be good enough to apologise to Cordelia you have been rather rude, you know."

Eileen had smiled widely.

"I'm sorry, darling

Cordelia, truly I am." She turned enquiring eyes on to her uncle."Why is it rude to say true things. Uncle Charles?""It so often causes acute embarra.s.sment to those who are listening,"he told her idly.Cordelia, going over every word, wondered for the tenth time, just what he had meant. That he was embarra.s.sed? Not likely at all, he must have meant herself and if he had it had been rather an unkind remark. . .

She had managed to keep out of his way for the rest of the evening, waiting until he had left the house before she went to the dining room for her supper, after seeing Eileen safely into bed with her own meal on a tray.

Cordelia settling herself on her pillows, thought that it had been a lovely day except for the last bit. There were four more days before Eileen's parents arrived, but she wasn't likely to see much of the doctor before then. And a good thing too, she reminded herself firmly.

"Out of sight, out of mind," and all the rest of it. She was just dropping off when she remembered another proverb: Absence makes the heart grow fonder.

CHAPTER SEVEN.

cordelia woke to the distant rumble of thunder and when she went to look out of the window it was to see the blue sky overhead rapidly disappearing beyond thick greenish clouds, tearing across the sky.

She flinched at a great jagged streak of lightning and withdrew her head smartly as the thunder pealed again. It was barely six o'clock and the street below was quiet, so that the silence after the thunder was uncanny, broken almost at once by Eileen's voice.

Cordelia bundled on her dressing gown and went through the bathroom to Eileen's room, to find her sitting up in bed, looking awfully scared.

She said at once,

"I hate thunderstorms, they frighten me..."

It hardly seemed the time to confess that she didn't like thunderstorms either, Cordelia arranged her features into what she hoped was a calm carefree expression.

"Nothing to worry about, love,"

she declared airily,

"I doubt if it will come any nearer."