sung,” ” I quoted, and my voice had a high pitch to it.
Although I was worried about Friday, I was very relieved to be safe, which seemed unaccountably foolish.
” I’m going to tell them to bring you some hot milk. It’ll make you sleep.” said Gabriel.
” Gabriel. I can’t stop wondering about Friday.”
” He’ll turn up. You go to your room and I’ll go to the kitchen to tell them to bring that milk.”
I went on up, thinking how gentle he was, how considerate to the servants. They had so many stairs in a house of this nature to contend with.
When I reached our room, the first thing I noticed was Friday’s empty basket and I felt very unhappy.
I went into the corridor and called him once more. I tried to comfort myself that he was hunting rabbits. It was a favourite pastime of his and I had known him forget everything when pursuing it. It might be that in the morning he would come home.
I did realise there was nothing more I could do that night, so I undressed and got into bed.
So exhausted was I that I was almost asleep when Gabriel came in. He sat by the bed and talked about our trip to Greece he seemed really excited about it. But soon one of the servants came in with my milk on a tray.
I did not really want it but I drank it off to please Gabriel, and in a few minutes I fell into a deep sleep.
I was awakened by a banging on my door. Reluctantly I awoke; rarely had I slept so deeply. I sat up in bed to find Ruth standing in the room. Her eyes looked enormous, her face was the colour of white paper.
“Catherine,” she was saying.
“Wake up! Wake up, please And I knew something terrible had happened.
68 I looked for Gabriel but there was no sign of him.
” It’s Gabriel,” said Ruth. ” You must prepare yourself for a shock.”
” What … has happened to Gabriel?” I asked as though [ found the greatest difficulty in getting out the words.
” He is dead,” she said. ” He has killed himself.”
I did not believe her. I felt as though I was struggling out of a fantastic world of dreams.
Gabriel . dead? It wasn’t possible. Why, only a short while ago he had sat by my bed watching me drink my milk, talking of our trip to Greece.
” You’ll have to know,” she said, looking at me steadily; and was it with a hint of accusation in her eyes? ” He threw himself over the parapet of the balcony. One of the grooms has just found him.”
” It can’t be true.”
” You’d better get dressed,” she said.
I stumbled out of bed; my limbs were trembling; one thought kept hammering in my brain. This is not true. Gabriel did not kill himself.
Chapter 3
So within a week of my coming to Kirkland Revels tragedy had struck the house.
I do not clearly remember the sequence of events of that day, but I can recall the numbness which took possession of me, the certainty that something inevitable had taken place, something which had threatened me, warned me from the moment I entered the house.
I remembered lying on my bed during that first morning. Ruth had insisted that I should, and it was at this time that [ learned what a forceful character she had. Dr. Smith came and gave me a sedative; he said it was necessary, and I slept until the afternoon.
I joined them in the room which was known as the winter parlour . one of the smaller rooms on the first floor which looked onto the courtyard and which was so-called because during the winter it could be kept warmer and more cosy than those rooms which were less sheltered. The entire family was there: Sir Matthew, Aunt Sarah, Ruth, Luke; and Simon 69 Redvers had joined them. I was conscious of the gaze of everyone as I entered.
” Come here, my dear,” said Sir Matthew. ” This is a terrible shock to us and especially to you, my dear child.”
I Went to him because I trusted him more than any of the others; and when I sat down beside him. Aunt Sarah came over and, taking the chair on the other side of
Although I was worried about Friday, I was very relieved to be safe, which seemed unaccountably foolish.
” I’m going to tell them to bring you some hot milk. It’ll make you sleep.” said Gabriel.
” Gabriel. I can’t stop wondering about Friday.”
” He’ll turn up. You go to your room and I’ll go to the kitchen to tell them to bring that milk.”
I went on up, thinking how gentle he was, how considerate to the servants. They had so many stairs in a house of this nature to contend with.
When I reached our room, the first thing I noticed was Friday’s empty basket and I felt very unhappy.
I went into the corridor and called him once more. I tried to comfort myself that he was hunting rabbits. It was a favourite pastime of his and I had known him forget everything when pursuing it. It might be that in the morning he would come home.
I did realise there was nothing more I could do that night, so I undressed and got into bed.
So exhausted was I that I was almost asleep when Gabriel came in. He sat by the bed and talked about our trip to Greece he seemed really excited about it. But soon one of the servants came in with my milk on a tray.
I did not really want it but I drank it off to please Gabriel, and in a few minutes I fell into a deep sleep.
I was awakened by a banging on my door. Reluctantly I awoke; rarely had I slept so deeply. I sat up in bed to find Ruth standing in the room. Her eyes looked enormous, her face was the colour of white paper.
“Catherine,” she was saying.
“Wake up! Wake up, please And I knew something terrible had happened.
68 I looked for Gabriel but there was no sign of him.
” It’s Gabriel,” said Ruth. ” You must prepare yourself for a shock.”
” What … has happened to Gabriel?” I asked as though [ found the greatest difficulty in getting out the words.
” He is dead,” she said. ” He has killed himself.”
I did not believe her. I felt as though I was struggling out of a fantastic world of dreams.
Gabriel . dead? It wasn’t possible. Why, only a short while ago he had sat by my bed watching me drink my milk, talking of our trip to Greece.
” You’ll have to know,” she said, looking at me steadily; and was it with a hint of accusation in her eyes? ” He threw himself over the parapet of the balcony. One of the grooms has just found him.”
” It can’t be true.”
” You’d better get dressed,” she said.
I stumbled out of bed; my limbs were trembling; one thought kept hammering in my brain. This is not true. Gabriel did not kill himself.
Chapter 3
So within a week of my coming to Kirkland Revels tragedy had struck the house.
I do not clearly remember the sequence of events of that day, but I can recall the numbness which took possession of me, the certainty that something inevitable had taken place, something which had threatened me, warned me from the moment I entered the house.
I remembered lying on my bed during that first morning. Ruth had insisted that I should, and it was at this time that [ learned what a forceful character she had. Dr. Smith came and gave me a sedative; he said it was necessary, and I slept until the afternoon.
I joined them in the room which was known as the winter parlour . one of the smaller rooms on the first floor which looked onto the courtyard and which was so-called because during the winter it could be kept warmer and more cosy than those rooms which were less sheltered. The entire family was there: Sir Matthew, Aunt Sarah, Ruth, Luke; and Simon 69 Redvers had joined them. I was conscious of the gaze of everyone as I entered.
” Come here, my dear,” said Sir Matthew. ” This is a terrible shock to us and especially to you, my dear child.”
I Went to him because I trusted him more than any of the others; and when I sat down beside him. Aunt Sarah came over and, taking the chair on the other side of
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