When in Rome. Ngaio Marsh
behind the counter, doing her nails.
Sophy read some of the notices and glanced at already familiar brochures. She was about to leave when a smaller card caught her eye. It advertised in printed Italianate script: ‘Il Cicerone, personally conducted excursions. Something different!’ it exclaimed. ‘Not too exhausting, sophisticated visits to some of the least-publicized and most fascinating places in Rome. Under the learned and highly individual guidance of Mr Sebastian Mailer. Dinner at a most exclusive restaurant and further unconventional expeditions by arrangement.
‘Guest of honour: The distinguished British Author, Mr Barnaby Grant, has graciously consented to accompany the excursions from April 23rd until May 7th. Sundays included.’
Sophy was astounded. Barnaby Grant was the biggest of all big guns in her publisher’s armoury of authors. His new and most important novel, set in Rome and called Simon in Latium had been their prestige event and the best-seller of the year. Already bookshops here were full of the Italian translation.
Sophy had offered Barnaby Grant drinks at a deafening cocktail party given by her publishing house and she had once been introduced to him by her immediate boss. She had formed her own idea of him and it did not accommodate the thought of his traipsing round Rome with a clutch of sightseers. She supposed he must be very highly paid for it and found the thought disagreeable. In any case could so small a concern as this appeared to be, afford the sort of payment Barnaby Grant would command? Perhaps, she thought, suddenly inspired, he’s a chum of this learned and highly individual Mr Sebastian Mailer.
She was still gazing absent-mindedly at the notice when she became aware of a man at her elbow. She had the impression that he must have been there for some time and that he had been staring at her. He continued to stare and she thought: Oh blast! What a bore you are.
‘Do forgive me,’ said the man removing his greenish black hat. ‘Please don’t think me impertinent. My name is Sebastian Mailer. You had noticed my little announcement I believe.’
The girl behind the counter glanced at him. She had painted her nails and now disdainfully twiddled them in the air. Sophy faced Mr Mailer.
‘Yes,’ she said. ‘I had.’
He made her a little bow. ‘I must not intrude. Please!’ and moved away.
Sophy said: ‘Not at all,’ and because she felt that she had made a silly assumption, added: ‘I was so interested to see Barnaby Grant’s name on your card.’
‘I am indeed fortunate,’ Mr Mailer rejoined, ‘am I not? Perhaps you would care—but excuse me. One moment. Would you mind?’
He said something in Italian to the savage girl who opened a drawer, extracted what seemed to be a book of vouchers and cast it on the counter.
Mr Mailer inspected it. ‘Ah yes,’ he said. ‘Others, also, would seem to be interested. We are fully booked, I see.’
At once Sophy felt an acute disappointment. Of all things now, she wanted to join one of Mr Mailer’s highly sophisticated tours. ‘Your numbers are strictly limited, are they?’ she asked.
‘It is an essential feature.’ He was preoccupied with his vouchers.
‘Might there be a cancellation?’
‘I beg your pardon? You were saying?’
‘A cancellation?’
‘Ah. Quite. Well—possibly. You feel you would like to join one of my expeditions.’
‘Very much,’ Sophy said and supposed that it must be so.
He pursed up his full mouth and thumbed over his vouchers. ‘Ah,’ he said. ‘As it falls out! There is a cancellation I see. Saturday, the twenty-sixth. Our first tour. The afternoon and evening. But before you make a decision I’m sure you would like to know about cost. Allow me.’
He produced a folder and turned aside in a gentlemanly manner while Sophy examined it. The itinerary was given and the name of the restaurant where the party would dine. In the evening they would take a carriage drive and then visit a nightclub. The overall charge made Sophy blink. It was enormous.
‘I know,’ Mr Mailer tactfully assured her. ‘But there are many much, much less expensive tours than mine. The Signorina here would be pleased to inform you.’
Obviously he didn’t give a damn whether she went or stayed away. This attitude roused a devil of recklessness in Sophy. After all, mad though it seemed, she could manage it.
‘I shall be very glad to take the cancellation,’ she said and even to herself her voice sounded both prim and defiant.
He said something further in Italian to the girl, raised his hat, murmured, ‘Then—arrivederci’ to Sophy, and left her to cope.
‘You paya to me,’ said the girl ferociously and when Sophy had done so, presented her with a ticket and a cackle of inexplicable laughter. Sophy laughed jauntily if senselessly in return, desiring, as always, to be friendly with all and sundry.
She continued to walk about Rome and to anticipate with feelings she would have been quite unable to define, Saturday, the twenty-sixth of April.
III
‘I must say,’ Lady Braceley murmured, ‘you don’t seem to be enjoying yourself very madly. I never saw such a glum face.’
‘I’m sorry, Auntie Sonia. I don’t mean to look glum. Honestly, I couldn’t be more grateful.’
‘Oh,’ she said, dismissing it, ‘grateful! I just hoped that we might have a nice, gay time together in Rome.’
‘I’m sorry,’ he repeated.
‘You’re so—odd. Restless. And you don’t look at all well, either. What have you been doing with yourself?’
‘Nothing.’
‘On the tiles, I suppose.’
‘I’ll be all right. Really.’
‘Perhaps you shouldn’t have pranced out of Perugia like that.’
‘I couldn’t have been more bored with Perugia. Students can be such an unutterable drag. And after Franky and I broke up—you know.’
‘All the same your parents or lawyers or the Lord Chancellor or whoever it is will probably be livid with me. For not ordering you back.’
‘Does it matter? And anyway—my parents! We know, with all respect to your horrible brother, darling, that the longer his boychild keeps out of his life the better he likes it.’
‘Kenneth—darling!’
‘As for Mummy—what’s the name of that dipso-bin she’s moved into? I keep forgetting.’
‘Kenneth!’
‘So come off it, angel. We’re not still in the ‘twenties, you know.’
They looked thoughtfully at each other.
His aunt said: ‘Were you a very bad lot in Perugia, Kenneth?’
‘No worse than a dozen others.’
‘What sort of lot? What did you do?’
‘Oh,’ Kenneth said, ‘this and that. Fun things.’ He became selfsuffused with charm. ‘You’re much too young to be told,’ he said. ‘What a fabulous dress. Did you get it from that amazing lady?’
‘Do you like it? Yes, I did. Astronomical.’
‘And looks it.’
His aunt eyed herself over. ‘It had better,’ she muttered.
‘Oh lord!’ Kenneth said discontentedly and