people were n&apos;t enemies . they wanted to help . when they &apos;d reached the house she &apos;d been swept inside to meet a circle of faces and eyes and reaching hands , but it had n&apos;t been for her . she &apos;d stood there , invisible . the eyes and the hands and the quick voices had all been for the baby . that was how it had been , and afterwards , too . someone had brought her up and gone straight away again , to the room next door . where the baby was . she &apos;d heard voices in there for a long time . even now , if she went close to the communicating door , she could hear faint voices the other side . she wanted desperately to turn the flower-painted china knob on the apple-green door , and go through , but somehow she could n&apos;t . she had a dreadful feeling that if she did she &apos;d find she was really and truly invisible ; that eyes would look through her , and steps go past and no one would see or hear her at all . she thought desperately , I &apos;m going crazy , then turned sharply towards the other door - the one leading out to the wide , white-painted corridor . she called , come in and the door opened , to release bright electric light into the twilighted room . it bounced in , scattering gay colour into the carpeted floor . a grey ghost followed it . that was what the figure looked like . grey and blurred . hastily Lea groped for her glasses again , and the ghost became a plump , grey-haired woman in a grey pleated skirt and grey jumper . one of the people who &apos;d been downstairs in the hall . she did n&apos;t know which one . all the names and distinctions had been jumbled up in her mind . the grey woman seemed to know that , because she explained now , I &apos;m Abby Paladrey - Mort &apos;s sister , just in case you did n&apos;t get things clear when we were introduced . how &amp;hellip; how do you do ? Lea rose stiffly , jerkily from the window seat , striving to brush some of the creases from the cheap blue linen of her skirt . she wished that she &apos;d started to tidy up and had n&apos;t been found like this - a mess . she knew that was how she appeared . she &apos;d seen herself in the mirror coming up the stairs and she &apos;d looked terrible . all eyes and white hollow face and cheap , crumpled clothes . are you comfortable ? Abby Paladrey asked , her bright gaze going from Lea to the shabby suitcase by the bed . not unpacked ? I &apos;ll send Edith up to help you then . that &apos;s Edith Camm . our housemaid . a good worker , even if she is silly about boys , or rather just one boy . she &apos;s determined to get married and leave , young as she is . they &apos;re all too independent these days . Mrs Stewart too . that &apos;s our daily , Rita Stewart . she &apos;s a widow . she hesitated , as though expecting that Lea would break her silence . when she did n&apos;t , she went on in her brisk , clackety voice , that reminded Lea of nothing so much as a childhood memory of the boy next door playing with a morse set . clack , clack , clackety , clack . it was just the same . it &apos;s not like the old days at all . in a place like this there would have been two housemaids at least and a cook and a girl for the kitchen and maybe more , but now it &apos;s get what you can and be thankful for that . why , I remember , even at home when I was small there was a woman full time and another for the washing and the rough work and we never had money or much , but even in Wales it &apos;s all changed . the words had been flowing over Lea . like the sea . going in and out . softly , pleasantly . lulling her . then there was the big wave of surprise and she jerked . Wales ! I thought you were Americans . Miss Paladrey looked equally surprised . her rosebud mouth went into a perfect crumpled O . she answered , no . that is , Babby is , of course , and Honor . and Eddie was . her plump bosom went up , and down , just like a billowing wave , before she went on explaining , they all came from America . Babba married when she was sixteen , which was worse than Edith , but there - they all seem to do it over there . that was to Ed Anwood , but he died years back and then came the day young Eddie got his draft papers , as they call them . he should have had them before , only he hurt his shoulder at football or somesuch and there was a long time spent in treatment , so it was all deferred , but finally he went . into the air force , that was , and next thing they sent him over here to work out his spell of duty . so Babba packed up and followed . of course she came to see Ian and his father . the old gentleman was dying then and when Babba made him an offer he said yes . an offer ? Lea was beginning to feel dizzy . for the place . you &apos;ve no idea , looking at it now , what it was like then . so Babby says , anyway . even when we came it was different to now . Babba &apos;s just poured money into it . she was suddenly silent . Lea saw with surprise that the rosebudy mouth was no longer a bud . it was thin and straight and tight . then abruptly it relaxed . the bright little eyes looked into hers and the clackety-clack continued as though the break had never been . Ian had to agree to the sale because it was the only thing to do , things being as they were . so Babba moved in and Ian took over managing the place for her . and that was when Mort and I came into the picture . as I said , we were brought up in Wales . our father was a songster . Lloyd Paladrey . she was silent again ; expectant . Lea said with embarrassment , I do n&apos;t know much about music . oh well , Abby did n&apos;t seem discouraged , he was too much of a dreamer ever to do any good . people used him as they liked and he never seemed to get more than a penny or two out of it . later on Mort and I came to London and he made a good little packet for himself . I kept house for him and things were just perfect , Mrs Beverly . then we went for a touring holiday . a coach trip , all over the place , with a group , and one day we finished up at a castle . Babba was there , sight-seeing with Eddie , who was on leave . she &apos;d bought this place by then and had settled in and she asked us to come and see it . she made a lot of jokes about it being an ancient monument she &apos;d restored for England . well Mort fell for her and that was that . she made a little gesture of her plump hands , and the pouter bosom billowed again . Lea thought , she said things had been perfect . she did n&apos;t add it to present events . she looked into the bright eyes , but they were expressionless . almost apologetically , Abby added , I seem to have talked enough , but I wanted to put you straight about everyone in the house . you looked dazed down there in the hall , as though things were too much to take in . Lea thought warmly , so I was n&apos;t invisible to one person anyway . she felt swift gratitude towards the plump , chattering woman . I was dazed , she admitted . Abby nodded vehemently , just like a ferris wheel , I should think . Honor made me go on one once at a fair and I &apos;ve never forgotten . up and down and round and round and never getting to any place and then leaving you that dizzy &amp;hellip; . Lea repeated dully , a ferris wheel , and shivered ; remembered a long-ago scene . she &apos;d been tiny then . her parents had taken her to a fair and there had been a wheel , a great sparred skeleton of bright red against the evening sky . it had gone round and round and then people had been screaming and the wheel had come slowly apart and had &amp;hellip; . crash ! she was back in the nightmare . she came out tearingly , to hear Abby saying brightly , but you &apos;ll be all right now . will I ? Lea wondered . I doubt it . unconsciously her gaze went to the other door . everything now seemed silent beyond it . Abby had n&apos;t followed the direction of the girl &apos;s gaze . she was saying , so do you know who everyone is now ? Honor was the tall fair girl and you know Ian , and &amp;hellip; . Lea spoke without thinking . she asked , what does Ian think of being just a servant here now - in his old home ? Abby seemed to answer without thought , too . she said , oh he hates it , and us . chapter four . Lea woke to the certain knowledge that something unpleasant was to be faced . she lay still , staring upwards at the ceiling . there was a shadow on it just over her head . she tried to make out what it was , then rolled over and sat up , reaching for her glasses . the shadow resolved itself into a large brown moth . it looked alien in the carefully decorated pastel bedroom . like I do , Lea thought and glanced across at the communicating door . she slid softly from the bed , padding over the thick carpet , hesitating , then turned the china door-knob and went into the other room , a too-thin figure in the fragile blue nylon nightgown . the baby was still asleep . as always , when she looked at him , she tried to trace some resemblance to herself in his tiny features , but there was nothing . standing there , she told herself she had much to be glad for . she had warmth and shelter and food and comfort . and apparent friendship . at dinner the previous evening Babba had been friendly ; had striven to make the stranger a part of the household . so had Abby , with her constant stream of chatter , about the dairy herd of Fen House , about the Fens themselves , about their neighbours . Lea remembered that Mort Paladrey had put an end to that , when he &apos;d interrupted one cheerfully scandalous anecdote with a terse , that &apos;s libel . is n&apos;t so . you &apos;re a mean-minded gossiping old woman . Abby &apos;s putty-blob of a nose had turned red . for a moment Lea had feared a scene , then Abby had laughed ; had turned the talk to something else . Lea was not sure of Mort Paladrey . short and rotund , with thinning grey hair and ruddy face , out of which two surprisingly blue eyes stared at the world about him , he had n&apos;t said much and nothing at all to Lea - not after the first greeting and later , when Babba had shooed her upstairs , he &apos;d said goodnight . Ian had said very little and Honor had just sat there , eating a little , smoking a lot , never even seeming to gaze at the guest , but always , when Lea looked away from her , she had the impression that Honor &apos;s grey eyes went straight to her face . that had been one of the uncomfortable things . another had been Jean McLone &apos;s firm , the baby &apos;s asleep , Mrs Beverly . I would n&apos;t go into his room now . Lea knew she should have held her ground . gone in . but she had n&apos;t . something inside her had curled up in panic and she &apos;d said something vague and gone to bed without seeing the baby at all . that had been wrong and she &apos;d wondered if downstairs they would comment on it and say she did n&apos;t seem to love the baby . she wondered if they would n&apos;t be right . she was acting selfishly , denying the baby a name - but perhaps she was giving him more than a name . he had security , comfort , for a little at least . far more than ever she could hope to give him . she did n&apos;t dare think ahead , to the day when she would have to tell about Arthur , confess she &apos;d preyed on these people , for the sake of a few months of comfort . she &apos;d been mad to come and yet &amp;hellip; . there &apos;d been one more uncomfortable thing , too , before she &apos;d fallen asleep . Edith Camm coming into the bedroom just after Lea had slipped between the sheets - apple-green sheets that matched the walls and had made Lea feel as though she was part of a great apple-green meringue . 