"Phyllis_A._Whitney_-_Feather_On_The_Moon" - читать интересную книгу автора (Whitney Phyllis A)

I no longer knew how sure I could be about anything. I might never have seen the man, and the woman had hidden her hair and eyes and been deliberately nondescript.
"Let's have supper now," Mrs. Aries decided. "This talk is tiring us both, and you must be hungry." She raised her voice slightly. "Crampton?"
The woman appeared from the hall instantly, and I wondered how much privacy we'd really had.
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FEATHER ON THE MOON
"Please tell Dillow we are ready to eat," Mrs. Aries said.
The meal arrived with such dispatch that he must have been ho\ ering nearby as well. He set a small drop-leaf table with linen and silver, pulled up a chair for me, and pushed Mrs. Aries's wheelchair into place. A cart with silver-covered dishes was wheeled in, and we were served poached salmon with dill sauce, green peas perfectly undercooked, a leafy salad and hot rolls, whisked from an oven. Then Dillow stood back and waited.
That was the moment when I sensed that something was wrong between the butler-manager and his mistress. A clear disapproval seemed to emanate from Dillow. Not so much toward me as toward Mrs. Aries. Her look rested on him sharply, and he stared directly back for just an instant, so that I was aware of tension between them.
Then Mrs. Aries nodded. "Thank you, Dillow. Tell Grace everything is fine. And you might phone Dr. Radburn, since he is expecting a call. If he is here in an hour, everything should work out nicely. Crampton, I'll ring when I need you, so have your own supper."
The shadowy Crampton murmured something respectful and disappeared again.
Dillow said, "Yes, madam," stiffly and also went away. His behavior was again impeccable, and there was no further hint of stress between the man who ran this house and the woman he worked for.
While we ate, Mrs. Aries explained about Dr. Radburn. "Joel is a cousin, as you might guess from his name. Though distant. He's not in private practice as a doctor any more, since he has gone into research-quite important research. In a sense, he inherited me as a patient from his father, who died last year, and who was my doctor and friend for much of my adult life. Joel keeps a careful eye on me. He knows everything about you that I know, and he approves of my bringing you here. He agrees with my doubts about the child. He's also been looking after my brother whenever it
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was necessary. Joel is in his late thirties and is the son of his father's second marriage. He has been observing the child, Alice, and he can answer some of the questions about her you may have."
I couldn't think of any questions, except for the one that possessed me entirely-would I recognize her? Already I was steeling myself for failure.
"You may need to stay here for a few days." Mrs. Aries spoke quietly, perhaps aware of the anxiety that must have shown in my face. "When you talk with the child, some memory may emerge-though it might not come at once. You must sleep tonight, so try to relax now. Perhaps you'd like to take a book upstairs with you. We've a fine library here."
I'd noticed a thick volume on a table near her wheelchair. A bookmark showed her place, and reading glasses rested on the green jacket.
She saw the direction of my glance. "That book might interest you. I ordered it as soon as I knew it was published, since it's an account by Frank Karsten of the expedition he led into Amazon jungles all those years ago. The expedition on which my grandson died. Unfortunately, since my illness I've had trouble with my eyes, and I've only been able to read a few pages at a time. Karsten has died since the book was published."
"I wonder if the Corwins are mentioned?"
"I don't know. I didn't get very far. If you'd like to read it, take the book along to your room. Then you can tell me if you find anything interesting."
It wasn't Edward Aries's life or death that concerned me now and I was already thinking of something else. Mrs. Aries seemed to call Mrs. Corwin "the woman" when she spoke of her-a label of denigration. Now I asked her first name,
"It's such a ridiculous name that I can't bear to use it," she told me. "Though perhaps it suits her well enough. She's called Peony."
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Peony. Yes, rather a silly name, except for a flower. I tried to remember the nondescript woman in dark glasses-an uncertain, nervous woman-but the dim memory would neither accept nor dismiss the name.
When the front doorbell sounded, I heard Dillow go to answer it. A deep voice greeted him cheerfully, and Dr. Radburn came quickly back to the library. Dillow had already removed our dishes and brought in small plates with Camembert cheese and wheat wafers. He busied himself pouring coffee, while Dr. Radburn bent to kiss Mrs. Aries's cheek. Dillow, I suspected, wanted to miss nothing.
The doctor was tall and rather slender, with dark brown hair conventionally cut. A slight line creased vertically between gray eyes that regarded me in friendly appraisal. The line, I thought, was probably not a frown but more likely grew from hours of concentration. His smile seemed warm in a pleasantly homely face that one might grow used to comfortably. No one had really smiled at me since my arrival, except for the impudent chauffeur.
"I'm glad you've come, Mrs. Thome," he said as he took my hand. "I know this isn't easy for you, but we hope you can settle one part of the dilemma. Perhaps to your advantage, if you recognize the little girl."
Dillow brought another chair and Dr. Radburn sat down, accepting a cup of coffee.
"I have told Mrs. Thorne what I know about the Corwins," Mrs, Aries said. "At least I've prepared her for their unusual background, which has undoubtedly affected the child."
Dr. Radburn glanced at Dillow in a questioning way, and Mrs. Aries dismissed the butler with a casual "You may go, Dillow." When he'd left the room, she spoke to the doctor. "It will be done my way, Joel."
"I've no doubt," Dr. Radburn said dryly, and spoke to me. "You haven't seen Alice yet?"
I shook my head. "Will you tell me about her, please?"
His eyes were deep set and there was no smile in them as
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he seemed to study me. "She's lonely, I think. Neither of the Corwins seems to have much imagination as far as Alice is concerned. Though the child is all imagination-maybe too much so. She and her mother have a sometimes affectionate, sometimes angry relationship, but Peony is under the domination of her husband, and Alice resents that and clearly dislikes her stepfather. For her sake, I hope that she can be taken out of the Corwins' hands, one way or another."
I looked at Mrs. Aries. "You mean they would give her up to you?"
Dr. Radburn answered for her. "I'm sure that Farley Corwin would accept a sum of money that he might regard as suitable, if the mother were to give the child up to her great-grandmother."
"What about this loss for the-the mother?"
"She'll do as she's told, as Dr. Radburn suggests," Mrs. Aries assured me.
I must have shivered, for the doctor spoke quickly. "You look tired, Mrs. Thorne. All this is distressing on top of your long flight. Would you like something to help you sleep?"
I shook my head. "I'd rather not. But you're right-I am very tired." I'd had all I could take. I wanted to get away before I found myself in tears.
"Of course," Mrs. Aries said. "I've kept you up far too long, considering the difference in time zones. So run along now, and sleep as long as you like in the morning. Breakfast will be on the buffet in the dining room, and you can go in when you like."
I remembered to take the book by Frank Karsten with me, though I doubted that I could concentrate on reading for long.
Dr. Radburn spoke to Mrs. Aries. "I'll look in on Uncle Tim before I leave. We have a serial chess game going. Good night, Corinthea. I'll see you tomorrow."
He came with me to the branching flight of stairs and we started up together, turning right at the landing.
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