“All the same,” he went on cheerfully, “I’d have liked the chance to question them. To know exactly how he managed to pull off all those murders without being caught. It took talent and skill, I’ll give them that.”
“They used disguises, I’m sure,” I said. “I expect they moved around disguised as Willum and Wild Sal, knowing that nobody would have paid them any attention.”
“Too crafty for their own good,” he said. “Oh, well. Now we’ll never know, will we? I’ll stop off at your mother’s cottage after I’ve talked with Lady H-G, then, shall I? I’d like to say good-bye to your grandfather. A proper old-fashioned gent, isn’t he? I wish there were more like him on the force these days.”
I went on to the cottage and found that my mother was packing up to leave too.
“I’ve had a telegram from Max,” she said. “He is coming to London to meet me. He had a gloomy Christmas and missed me dreadfully. And frankly I’ve had enough of country living. I mean, it’s fun to play at cottages and simple English food for a while, isn’t it? But then one longs for a good nightclub and caviar and the things that make life worth living.”
“Will you be going back to Germany right away?” I asked.
“Actually, I’m going to persuade Max to rent a house in London for a while.”
“So that you can finish working on the play with Mr. Coward?”
She glanced up the stairs and I recognized that expression. “I don’t think this play is going to work out somehow,” she said, sotto voce. “Noel really does want to hog all the best lines, darling, and I’ve only just found out that he sees my character as a mature woman. I ask you—me, a mature woman? Well, really!”
And she made a dramatic exit. My grandfather and I exchanged grins.
“So you’ll be heading back to Scotland, will you?”
“I hope not,” I said. “I’m going to try to find another job. I wish I could come and stay with you, but . . .”
“Of course you can’t, my love,” he said. “We live in different worlds, you and me. But you’re always welcome to come and visit.”
“At least you’ve got Mrs. Huggins.”
He made a funny face and stepped nearer. “Between you and me and the gatepost, she’s beginning to get on my nerves. Fusses over me like an old hen. I don’t mind it when she’s next door, but not under the same roof.”
“Well, I suppose it’s good-bye, then.” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “It’s been a sad day. All these good-byes.”
Granddad stroked my hair as if I were a small child. “I expect you’ll keep turning up like a bad penny,” he said fondly.
Mummy appeared at the top of the stairs again. “Georgie, I’ve just had a brilliant idea. Noel suggested I write my autobiography. Won’t that raise some eyebrows!”
“Are you sure you should?” I started to laugh. “Won’t there be an awful lot of husbands who have to do some explaining to their wives?”
“Darling, I’ll be discreet. I’ll only include the really juicy ones. But listen to my brilliant idea. Why don’t you come to London with me and you can be my secretary. Can you use a typewriting machine?”
“I’m afraid I can’t.”
“No matter. I’ll buy you one and you can learn and I’ll scribble down my thoughts and you’ll tidy them up for me. How about it?”
“Sounds like fun,” I said.
I was fully aware as I said the words that working with my mother was not going to be easy. But living in a house in London, with proper heat and decent food, was definitely preferable to the only other alternative—time spent in a bleak Scottish castle with Fig. What’s more, I’d learn to use a typewriting machine and develop a real skill, more useful than where to seat a bishop at a dinner table. And I’d be in London, on the spot, the moment Darcy reappeared in the country. All in all, the future hadn’t looked brighter in a long while.
The next morning Sir Oswald, Lady Hawse-Gorzley and Bunty came out to see me off. The latter two hugged me fondly and begged me to come back soon. What an incredible stroke of luck that I’d seen that advertisement and dared to answer it, I thought as I waved through the rear window. The car took me and Queenie to the station and we caught the train going back to London. The Devon countryside flashed past the train window, with the snow-clad tors of Dartmoor in the background, until they merged into the Somerset lowlands and green fields, and Tiddleton-under-Lovey was just a memory.
The old-fashioned Christmas has almost disappeared, but if you’d like to re-create some of the things in this book, here are some recipes for games, food and fun.
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Christmas Recipes
Mince pies and sausage rolls are traditional Christmas snacks to be eaten warm when guests arrive, after caroling, while opening presents . . . anytime there isn’t a formal meal.
Mince Pies
In the old days people used to make their own mincemeat, which included real meat. Today it comes in a jar (Crosse & Blackwell mincemeat with rum or brandy is the best).
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Make a shortcrust pastry dough (see recipe below). Roll out and cut into circles to fit into muffin pans. Fill half full with mincemeat. Cut smaller circles for tops and cover pies. Crimp edges shut. Brush with beaten egg, sprinkle with sugar. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden. Cool and eat.
Shortcrust Pastry
In the old days, pastry was always made with lard. Today it’s more likely to be made with chilled butter or shortening.
Cut the butter into small cubes and rub into the flour with a fork until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs (you may also do this in a food processor). Gradually stir in ice water until the mixture binds together. Roll out on floured board.
Sausage Rolls
English sausage meat is not identical to US meat, as rusk filler is used (i.e. the sausage meat has some kind of starch added to bind the meat and retain the fat). The closest I can find is Jimmy Dean Premium Pork Sage Sausage.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Make shortcrust pastry as before. (You can also substitute sheets of puff pastry from the grocer’s freezer, but shortcrust is more authentic.) Roll out thinly. Make thin rolls of sausage meat. Wrap with pastry dough. Cut into segments about 2 inches long. Bake 15-20 minutes.
Bread Sauce
Goose used to be the traditional Christmas fowl, but today it is usually turkey. The stuffing for either bird is made either with sage or chestnuts, and is accompanied by a bread sauce.
