"Now, dear Aunt Cathie," he said, "you know I am not impertinent or inquisitive, I hope. But I cannot help seeing what all this means, your parting with the piano, the servants being out, the neglect in the garden. But why, why didn't you tell Lucia or me? I don't think it was kind of you."
There came a sudden jerking in the muscles of Aunt Cathie's throat. But she overcame it bravely.
"Lucia, I am sure, was very busy," she said, "and it was no wonder she forgot. I did write to her, but I felt I couldn't write again. And I have a servant. Surely one old woman can be looked after by one servant. Many people have none at all."
And then very gently, though with a sickness of heart at what she had told him, he got from her the story of what had happened. Elizabeth had urged her to put the bulk of their money into some Russian oil property that yielded a higher percentage than did their present investment, and three months ago, when the half-yearly dividend was due, it had not been paid. She had received the report of the meeting, and it was quite clear that this embarrassment would only be temporary, and that the payment of dividends would soon be resumed. But in the meantime it was better to sell the piano, and do without a gardener.
Aunt Cathie could not go on at once.
"I don't mind about that," she said, "and it is very wicked of one to mind about anything else. But when I think of Lucia forgetting all about it, sometimes I do feel hurt. I don't mean to, I don't want to. I know she loves me, and we all forget things at times. I never had a good memory myself."
Then suddenly she recovered her ancient spirit, blew her nose violently, and became astonishingly brusque.
"Hope you're hungry," she said, "because if I am good for anything, it's cutting bread and butter. And the kettle's boiling. Now tell me what you and Lucia are going to do with yourselves. When are you coming to Brayton? Been in London, haven't you?"
Edgar did not stop long after this, but before going he extracted the extent of her losses from Aunt Cathie, and her promise that Fair View should be instantly reinstalled with a new piano and its usual complement of servants. A visit to her bank was necessary, but after that he had not the heart to do
