‘She says not.’
‘She’ll be sorry for me in the end.’
Lotus sat on the edge of the divan. ‘You know, Geoffrey,’ she said, ‘I’ll take you back. This instant, if you like.’
‘I can’t understand what you see in me, Lotus. I’m not your kind of man at all.’
‘What are you going to live on without me?’
‘I’ve got a job. Anyway you’ve never supported me.’
‘Paid your debts. It’s much the same. What sort of a job have you got?’ She seemed genuinely to wonder; and remarked to Griselda: ‘Geoffrey’s incapable of work of any kind.’ It was a simple statement of fact.
‘I think we’d better face reality,’ replied Geoffrey.
‘I inspired all his poetry too,’ continued Lotus to Griselda.
Suddenly she fell sideways on the divan and began to sob. She sobbed beautifully. Kynaston looked distracted.
‘Good night,’ said Griselda.
‘For God’s sake,’ cried Kynaston clutching both her elbows and holding on.
‘It’s late. I really should go.’
‘I beg you,’ cried Kynaston. ‘You can see how utterly wrong for me she is and always has been.’
‘She’s very beautiful,’ said Griselda falling into the new convention of speaking as if the person spoken about were not present.
‘You’re beautiful too, Griselda.’
‘Not in the same class.’
Lotus looked up. ‘You are. You are. You know you are.’ Huge separate tears streamed down her lovely skin. ‘I love you Griselda. I need you. Please don’t leave me now.’ He was still desperately gripping one of her elbows.
Lotus dropped off the bed and knelt on the floor crying her heart out. ‘When you’ve married him, will you let me see him? Ever?’
But the door had opened and Barney entered. He spoke very quietly.
‘I thought I heard Lotus crying. Silence, Kynaston, while I break every bone in your body.’ Barney was a painter of the traditional school. Griselda had never before seen anyone in so dreadful a rage.
His first blow laid Kynaston on the floor, where Barney began systematically to maul him.
Deeming explanation useless, Griselda began to drag at Barney’s shoulders from behind. This was equally unavailing.
‘Could you please help?’ she said to the tear-stained Lotus. Even Lotus’s pyjamas were becoming dark and saturated. Her beautiful tears were particularly wet.
Lotus rose from the floor and with a single kick from one of her attractive shoes, mastered the situation. Barney stopped half-murdering Kynaston, and looked up at her, all rage evaporated.
‘I thought–’
‘You thought wrong. Get out.’ She kicked him again, unexpectedly and maliciously.
‘I wanted—’
‘Go to bed, Barney. You said you were tired.’
Once more his expression changed. ‘You’d made me desperate. I’m not a pekinese.’
‘You foul the air.’
Barney flushed; rose to his feet; and took Lotus in his arms. Quite calmly, as it appeared, she bit deeply into his left cheek. Barney’s blood on her big well-shaped mouth made her look like a beautiful vampire.
Barney felt in his trousers pocket for a handkerchief, but he was unprovided. Remembering the half-crown, Griselda extended her own handkerchief. He began to dab at his streaming cheek. Griselda’s handkerchief was much too small.
‘Are you going back to Kynaston?’
‘I’m not going back to you.’
‘I see.’ He turned to Griselda. ‘And you? Where do you come in?’
It was difficult to know what to say. Lotus saved Griselda the trouble.
‘Stop asking questions and leave the room, Barney.’ She took a short step towards him. It was like the school bully and her victim, Griselda thought.
‘I’ll kill myself.’
‘The best thing you can do.’
His bloodstained face was now completely white.
‘You don’t believe me?’
‘I don’t care.’
Hanging from the washbasin was a dirty towel, the property of a former tenant. It might have hung there for months. Lotus snatched it and flicked it with a loud report in Barney’s face.
‘Lotus.’ His voice was a voice from the tomb. ‘Lotus, I love you. I love you terribly, Lotus.’
Before she had succeeded in driving him from the room, she must have been hurting him quite considerably.
When Barney was outside, Lotus locked the door and stuck the key into the top of her black corselette, which her exertions had exposed to view.
Griselda was alarmed. But Lotus only looked dreamily at her for several seconds, her large eyes full of lustre, her exquisite hands making small groping movements; then with a low cry fell upon the prostrate Kynaston, all beautiful compassion. Again she looked at Griselda.
‘Do you know any first-aid?’
‘A little.’ Griselda reflected. ‘Very little.’
‘Can you tell if he’s alive?’
‘I think I can.’
Griselda held the mirror from her bag against the side of Kynaston’s mouth pressed against the dust coloured carpet. A slightly yellow mist immediately clouded it.
‘He’s alive.’
Lotus sqatted back.
‘I don’t mind if you marry him so long as you let me go on seeing him. It’s only his body I want really. I don’t at all care about your having everything else.’
‘I quite understand. Hadn’t we better try to bring him round?’
‘So long as you understand. It’ll be no different from any other marriage. Except, of course, that Geoffrey will never be able to keep you. Still I want him to be happy and might be able to help with that: always through you, of course. Geoffrey can’t tell the difference between fourpence and ninepence.’
‘That’s very kind of you.’
‘It’s not only kindness. There’s a close connection between a man’s happiness and his vitality, you know. In many ways, men are exactly like animals. Perhaps you don’t believe that?’
‘Shall we chafe his extremities?’
‘Why?’
‘It’s what we were taught.’
‘Then you’d better do it.’
Griselda hesitated.
‘Have you any brandy?’ She thought that this might, among other things, get the door unlocked and Lotus out of the room.
‘Of course.’
‘Do you think you could bring it?’
‘I suppose so.’ Lotus rose to her feet, stretching the cramp from her leg muscles. ‘What a curse men are.’ She was looking for the key. ‘Wait.’ She had unlocked the door and was going upstairs. Indeed she had left the door open.
To her own surprise Griselda remained with the body.
When Lotus returned, she once more locked the door. ‘We don’t want a crowd,’ she remarked. She bore a half-full bottle of excellent liqueur brandy; distinctly superior to what might be expected of Juvenal Court.
‘Shall we force it down him?’
‘I suppose so. I’ve never done it.’
‘I’ve never done it either. I always let other people deal with emergencies.’
Tenderly Lotus rolled Kynaston on to his back.
‘Give me that tooth-glass. I don’t see why we shouldn’t have some first. The whole thing’s Geoffrey’s own fault.’
‘It needs washing. There are two dead flies in it.’
‘All right. Wash it. But be quick.’
Griselda emptied the flies to the floor and cleaned the glass to the best of her ability.
‘I’ll dry it.’ Somewhat to Griselda’s distaste, Lotus dried the glass on the grimy towel. ‘Now then.’ She half-filled the glass with brandy. ‘Me first, if you don’t mind.’ At once the glass was again empty. ‘Now you.’ Griselda’s allowance was considerably smaller.
‘Thank you.’ It was certainly wonderful stuff.
‘How do you force drink between tightly clenched jaws?’