At Lady Molly's - Anthony Powell [93]
‘Of course I knew J.G. had got hold of Lord Warminster,’ he said impatiently. ‘Surely everyone has known that for a long time. We had dinner together before I went to America. J.G. told me about the magazine he hoped to persuade Warminster to start. I saw at once that nothing would come of it.’
‘Why not?’
‘Warminster is too much of a crank.’
‘Do you know him?’
‘No, but I know of him.’
‘How did the Mona situation arise?’
All at once Members was on his guard.
‘But there is every prospect of Warminster becoming your brother-in-law, isn’t there?’
‘Most certainly there is.’
Members laughed, not in his most friendly manner, and remained silent.
‘Come on—out with it,’ I said.
We had by then known each other for a long time. It was not an occasion to stand on ceremony, as Members was well aware. He thought for a second or two, pondering whether it would be preferable to circulate a good piece of gossip, or to tease more effectively by withholding any information he might himself possess. In the end he decided that communication of the news would be more pleasurable.
‘You know what Mona is,’ he said.
He smiled maliciously; for although, so far as I knew, there had never ‘been much’ between them, he had known Mona years before her association with Quiggin; in fact I had first set eyes on Mona in the company of Members at Mr. Deacon’s birthday party.
‘She was altogether too much for Erridge, was she?’ I asked. ‘When she struck.’
‘Erridge?’
‘For Warminster, I mean—his family call him Erridge.’
‘Yes, Mona was too much for him. I don’t think things got very far. Some sort of an assignation. J.G. found out about it. The next thing was the two of them had gone off together.’
‘How has J.G. taken it?’
‘He was full of gêne at first. You know she had a stranglehold on him, I am sure. Now that he has cooled down, he is really rather flattered, as well as being furious.’
‘Were they married?’
‘No.’
‘Is that certain?’
‘Absolutely.’
I should have liked to hear more, but at that moment Jeavons came up to us. He took an unfamiliar object from his coat pocket, and held it towards me.
‘A present?’
‘No,’ he said. ‘That reminds me we’ll have to get you one, I suppose. Anyway, that’s Molly’s job. This is just for you to see. You might even want to buy one for yourself.’
‘What is it?’
‘Guess.’
‘I don’t like to say the word in company.’
Jeavons extended his clasped fist towards Members, who shook his head angrily and turned away.
‘For your car,’ urged Jeavons.
‘I haven’t got a car,’ said Members.
He was thoroughly cross.
‘What do you really do with it?’ I asked.
‘Fix it on to the carburettor—then you use less petrol.’
‘What’s the point?’
‘Save money, of course. Are you a bloody millionaire, or what?’
Molly drew near our group as she crossed the room to refill one of the jugs of drink. She saw what Jeavons was doing and laid a hand on his arm.
‘You’ll never sell Nicholas one of those things,’ she said. ‘Nor Mr. Members, either, I’m sure. I don’t myself think you will sell it to anyone, darling.’
She moved on.
‘It is called an atomiser,’ said Jeavons, slowly, as if he were about to lecture troops upon some mechanical device. ‘It saves thirty-three and a third consumption per mile. I don’t expect it really saves you that for a moment, as a matter of