yet , he might be wrong . a hope began to rise in his viscera . perhaps he was mistaken . perhaps the entry in Sylvia &apos;s diary - she hated her mother ; she had been jealous of his attentions to her ; perhaps it was the hysterical invention of a child who herself in puberty had fallen in love with the nearest , familiar man . perhaps that was the origin of her hatred which had then led him by her subconscious design to the diaries . the memory of Elizabeth , greeting him with her outflung arms , soared into his mind and with it the recollection of the bloodstained towel which he had held to her forehead . oh , God , he thought , perhaps I &apos;m wrong , and with the thought came an unexpected hope like that of a man who , told that he has an incurable disease , hears that the pathologist had made a mistake in examining the tissue . perhaps I &apos;m wrong . the hope became a music , and with it a compulsive need to see Elizabeth again , to hold her and to feel again their old safe love . that ends our proceedings , said the Chairman , and the members rose with a shuffle and scraping of chairs . they began to leave the committee room like a pattern of the trends in the party . Ormston stepped down from the dais into the central aisle , taking the longest route through the room to the public exit . he was greeted on all sides with friendly smiles . members made a path for him , and he was quickly surrounded by a number of ex-Ministers who had retired to the back benches , a few knights of his recommendation , and a rank-and-file of younger members whom he had encouraged with advice and expectations . Gore and a few of his associates in the new Africa group became involved in this stream as it pressed towards the door like a debouching cinema audience , and they were regarded with the same indifference as members of cinema audiences reserve for each other . Melville moved towards the platform exit , together with some of the party officials and Waters . he was followed by about half the members in the room as if he were leading them into a plebiscite . they grouped themselves around him , smiling and demonstrative as if to show where their sympathies and loyalties lay , though no one addressed him personally . in the corridor , the chief whip caught up with him , and said , I thought the Chancellor settled Gore pretty well . did you ? Melville said . I had a different impression ; I rather thought he was goading him . to abstain ? yes , said Melville . there &apos;s nothing he likes more than to frighten the party . that &apos;s the first step . then he likes to come along and kiss it better . he outdistanced his attendants with Waters , and said , I &apos;ll have to talk to the P.M . will you telephone and arrange for me to go down to Greystoke tomorrow ? yes , said Waters . are you lunching in the members &apos; dining-room ? no , said the Minister . I want to walk across the Park . he walked briskly without hat and coat , and soon felt himself sweating under the hazy , copper-coloured sky , heavy with the storm which had begun to rumble and crack beyond Buckingham Palace . the ducks had retreated to the reeds , and the water had black reflections . on the grass , couples lay stretched out , the men in shirt-sleeves , the women in sleeveless summer dresses , some engaged in what otherwise would have seemed coital preliminaries , were such activities not the normal convention of London crowds in hot summers . others picknicked close by - the whole a picture of domestic living in the open air . as Melville walked , a thunderclap awoke the prostrate figures as if by the alarm signal of a gigantic clock . they rose . the women smoothed the creases of their dresses . the men languidly put on their jackets . and to the accompaniment of the first fat raindrops , they began to move swiftly away in pairs . the lake started to become dappled with rain , there was a dazzling flash , followed by a massive roll , and soon the Park began to scurry with figures running for shelter from the storm . as Melville walked , he heard steps splashing behind him . like a share of my mac ? a voice said . he turned with the rain purling down his face to see Armstrong , who had quickened his step to keep pace with him . for a moment , he did n&apos;t recognise him . then he said , that &apos;s very civil of you . no , thanks . I &apos;ll just imagine I &apos;m doing a cross-country run . I &apos;ll change when I get in . as you like , said Armstrong , and was about to turn into a side path but Melville , thinking that he might have felt snubbed , said , come this way - then you can cut across . I used to play rugger , said Armstrong . I missed it when I gave it up . how old were you ? thirty-six , said Armstrong . I &apos;m fifty-four now . to make conversation , Melville asked a few questions about his family and south Wales . he liked his cadenced voice , his easy , undeferential manner and his pleasant , open face with the blue scar at the side of his head . you &apos;re having a bad time , said Armstrong . in Africa ? yes . it &apos;s pretty bad . well , I &apos;m sorry for you , lad , said Armstrong . they walked along without speaking with the rain streaming down their faces , and Melville wished that he had learned to know the opposition back-benchers better . he wanted to talk to Armstrong , but he had difficulty in finding the language and so they walked in silence . but the leaves gave off a warm , soaking smell , the pain in his head lifted , and he felt refreshed . he changed his suit in his dressing-room into which a bed had been moved , and then knocked on the door of the main bedroom . Elizabeth was sitting propped up against the pillows , wearing a pale blue bedjacket over a white nightdress . Broome was sitting at her bedside , and greeted Melville with a broad smile . she &apos;ll live , he said . do n&apos;t let the head-dress worry you . she likes wearing it . thinks it makes her interesting . I &apos;ll look in tomorrow . when he had left , Melville stood by the window , looking out at the street , and Elizabeth turned her face into the pillow . after a minute of silence , Melville said , Elizabeth - I must talk to you . she did n&apos;t answer , and he faced her . on her bandages , there was a trace of blood ; her cheeks were pale ; and her eyes had heavy violet shadows beneath them . she was looking straight in front of her as she answered in a flat voice , I have nothing to say to you . you are a very wicked person . I have something to say to you , he said savagely , sitting on the bed and taking her wrists in his hands . I want to know - I &apos;ve got to know - she turned her eyes on him , and said in the same flat voice , if you say again what you said last night , I &apos;ll kill myself as soon as you leave the house . he slowly let go of her wrists and rose from the bed . his gaze still held her expressionless eyes , and he withdrew to the door . then he went to his study , his certainties complete . it was done , and nothing could ever change it . nothing . ever . he looked at a photograph of Elizabeth and himself taken on the terrace a few years before , and suddenly , covering his face with his hands , he began to weep , the tears trickling through his fingers as they had done in his childhood when his father had died and there was no comfort in the whole world . chapter twelve . after lunch two of the Prime Minister &apos;s grandchildren who had sat , rather intimidated by Ormston and staring at the Grinling Gibbons carving around the fireplace , rose gratefully from the table , leaving the two men together . a nurse came in , and asked the Prime Minister if he wanted to be helped out on to the lawn , but he waved her away impatiently . the Prime Minister was wearing a grey suit and a white shirt with a soft collar , but his neck had become thinner and the collar stood away from it as if it had been bought haphazard . his face had a jaundiced colour , and his cheekbones were red , touched with a feverish cosmetic . only his voice was unchanged ; it was slow and thoughtful with its familiar , rehearsed calmness . he crumpled his table napkin , and laid it on a plate . I see no urgent anxiety , he said at last . perhaps I can put it this way , said Ormston , and now I &apos;m seeing the situation purely as Chancellor . our reserves are low , and are getting lower . I feel rather like a father whose child is bleeding to death . his simile disturbed him ; it evoked other associations , and he hurriedly drained the glass of water . the Prime Minister said nothing , and Ormston continued , let &apos;s leave out the political merits of the situation . is that possible ? for the sake of my hypothesis - yes . I &apos;m thinking for the moment in plain , economic terms . we can n&apos;t afford to increase our costs in Africa - we simply can n&apos;t afford it . I do n&apos;t mean just our direct military costs . I &apos;m thinking of the African boycott which is already working up . I &apos;m afraid , Prime Minister , you &apos;re not going to like the trading position when you see it . I never do , the Prime Minister commented wearily . the Chancellor was repeating an argument which he had already developed for an hour before lunch . it comes at a bad time , said Ormston . a singularly bad time . the party &apos;s very restless , you know . it &apos;s a sign of life - very encouraging ! the younger men - which ones ? the younger ones like Gore , Vaughan , Hadley , Prebble , Lambert-Price - the new Africa lot - do they confide in you ? have you spoken to them ? only at yesterday &apos;s meeting - they &apos;re very restless , Prime Minister . they feel that it &apos;s very old-fashioned - shooting down mobs of natives . they &apos;re very much afraid that if the opposition get a commission of enquiry some rather dismal stuff is going to come out . young back-benchers are always restive when they &apos;re bored , said the Prime Minister , and for the first time since his grandchildren left the table , he smiled . why do n&apos;t you give them something to play with ? they &apos;ve found their own toy , said Ormston , and this is it . they want to abstain next week . the Prime Minister continued in his flippant tone , tell the chief to give them a talking-to . the Chancellor closed his eyes , and then said , I think it &apos;s gone beyond that , Prime Minister . they feel pretty strongly about Africa . they are greatly disturbed by the new and rather ugly image of the party which our African policy is creating . on the whole , the country is still in favour of moderation and common sense . Melville has in a curious way made us look old-fashioned - extravagant - nineteenth centuryish - almost cranky . do n&apos;t you think the British public has reveries of Britannia &apos;s strong , firm hand ? I think the British public does n&apos;t dislike force provided that it &apos;s short , sharp and rewarding . they both laughed and felt relaxed . then Ormston frowned and went on , what the British public does n&apos;t like is violence that &apos;s protracted , messy and expensive . at that point , you get a moral revulsion against force - especially if it makes taxation rise . I must tell you , Prime Minister - we &apos;re heading for an ugly crisis - and I &apos;m obliged to say this - Melville has a very heavy responsibility in this matter . what could Melville have done to avoid all this ? well , obviously , said Ormston , taking up a pair of nut-crackers , he boobed by talking to Julia Drayford - and that was the start of the whole thing . the Prime Minister looked puzzled , and said , Julia Drayford ? how does she come into it ? I can n&apos;t follow these complexities - it is n&apos;t quite that . the whole business blew up from Melville &apos;s disgraceful indiscretion to Julia Drayford in Mrs M&apos;landa &apos;s presence . I do n&apos;t know the exact chain of gossip or who told who what . 