A Stairway to Paradise by Madeleine St John Page B

which could in Alfred’s view be matter only for deprecation, if nothing much stronger. Thus the conference at present in session: he having summoned Louisa to the Embankment Gardens on this autumn evening for the purpose of discussing Gideon’s present situation—this venue being reasonably close both to Alfred’s own place of employment (he was at the bar) and Louisa’s (in a famous shop in Regent Street). They had met here for the same reason more than once over the past decade, when they had taken on years and family responsibilities, while Gideon, youngest of the three, had continued to nettle and astound, disconcert and appal his elders. The death of their father several years ago had left to Alfred the task of expressing—if not indeed of feeling—vexation and contempt (those pre-eminently paternal sensations) in addition.
    His umbrella stabbed at another leaf. ‘Come along, Louisa,’ he muttered. ‘That’s enough sitting about. Let’s get on.’
    Louisa rose, and continued to trip along the path beside her brother. She took his arm.
    ‘The thing is, Alf, that I don’t really see why you’re in such a stew: Gideon’s done nothing wrong .’
    ‘Wrong? You don’t think it’s wrong, to squander that trust fund—or at any rate a large part thereof—on some damnfool trip to India—India!—at his age—what do you imagine the purpose of its being locked away until his thirtieth birthday was, if not to avert just such a folly? He was meant to have grown up by the time he came into it. It was intended to go towards the school fees, for God’s sake.’
    ‘Ah, yes, the school fees.’
    ‘Well—yes—it’s all very well for you to talk like that, in that blasé je m ’ en fiche de vos school fees manner, I must say! Do you still mean to send Fergus to Eton? Supposing they’ll actually have him, that is.’
    ‘Come now, mon frère . Gideon, voyez-vous , has no children, after all. He isn’t even married, for goodness sake.’
    ‘Exactly.’
    ‘You wish he were, do you?’
    She had him there. ‘I wish he were in a position even to consider it,’ said Alfred, with what seemed like genuine regret.
    Louisa looked at him. ‘Wouldn’t it be an awful bore,’ she said, ‘if we were all like us two? A family needs one non-conformist, doesn’t it?’
    ‘He doesn’t half overdo it.’
    ‘Come now.’
    ‘Look at the score. Sacked from school for smoking pot—’
    ‘Don’t call it pot, darling. Only hopelessly square people would call it that.’
    ‘ Pot . Next: left Oxford without taking his degree—a wicked waste of time, that, to say nothing of taxpayers’ money. Then what—oh, yes. We pull every string in the book to shoehorn him into that berth at Lloyd’s: and the rest I think you recall. Royal College of Music, or was it the Royal Academy—it makes no odds—Morocco, Greece—then this flight into Somerset, or whatever the county’s called these days—look, I know that the country’s been going to the dogs, I grant you that, these past umpteen years or so—’
    ‘More torn apart by jackals, don’t you mean?’
    ‘—but that’s no excuse for becoming an absolute wastrel. Why doesn’t he try to do something constructive?’
    ‘Well, he has been. Do be fair, Alf. All that gardening! If that isn’t constructive—’
    ‘Gardening, hah! And now this. Squandering his patrimony.
    Well, just let him try to come prodigal son-ing back to me, in a year or so. He may be surprised at the reception he gets.’
    ‘You’ll put a ring on his finger.’
    ‘ What? ’
    ‘Have you forgotten? That was one of the things the father did, when the prodigal returned.’
    ‘Oh, did he. Well, you won’t catch me putting a ring on Gideon’s finger, I’ll tell you that.’
    ‘Actually I think he probably will settle down after this India business,’ said Louisa, looking reflectively ahead.
    Alfred sighed. ‘One can but hope so,’ he said wearily. ‘And that’s another thing. Who are