"Mary Stewart - Airs Above The Ground" - читать интересную книгу автора (Stewart Mary)

repress that look of malicious curiosity. "But I did think you'd probably be joining him later, and if you
were, then if you and Timmy could travel together it would solve everything, don't you see?"

"No, I don't. If Graham's in Vienna, I can't see how I-"

"The thing is, you'd be there, and you've no idea what that would mean to me. I mean, just letting him go
off like that to meet Graham, with no idea of what their plans were or anything, and Timmy never writes,
you know what boys are, and of course I'd sooner not be in touch with Graham myself, at all. But if I
knew you and Lewis were somewhere around-I mean, Lewis must know his way about in foreign
countries by now, and I expect he's fairly reliable on the whole, isn't he?"

She made it sound a rather doubtful quality. Just then Lewis was at rock bottom in my estimation, but I
defended him automatically. "Naturally. But I can't go with Tim, I'm afraid. . . . No, Carmel, please listen.
It isn't that I wouldn't do it like a shot if I were going to Vienna, but we're going to Italy for our holiday,
and besides-"

"But you could join him in Vienna first. It would be more fun, wouldn't it, and salvage a bit of the holiday
you've missed?"

I stared at her. "Join him in Vienna? But-what do you mean? We can hardly ask Lewis-"

"If it's the fare, dear," said Carmel, "well, since you'd be sort of convoying Timmy, I'd expect to take care
of that."

I said with some asperity: "I think I could just about manage it, thank you."

It was one of Carmel's more irritating characteristics to assume that everyone else was penniless and that
Lewis, who made what seemed to me a very good thing indeed out of his chemical firm, would hardly
have been able to afford a car if it hadn't been run on an expense account. But then, my standards were
not Carmel's. I said dryly: "I expect I'd be able to swop the tickets, thank you."

"Then why not? What's to stop you joining him out there, once his business is finished? It would save him
having to come back here for you, and you'd get the extra time, and a bit of extra fun too. I mean, I'd be
happy to stand you both the difference in the fares. But you can see that it did seem the most marvellous
piece of luck that Lewis was in Austria and you might be thinking of joining him? As soon as I knew, I
rang you up."

"Carmel. Look, stop these wonderful plans and just listen, will you? I'm not likely to be going to Vienna,
now or later, for the simple reason that Lewis is not in Austria. He's in Sweden."

"In Sweden? When did he leave Austria?"

"He didn't. He's been in Sweden all along. In Stockholm, if you want to know. He went on Sunday, and I
heard from him on Monday."

I didn't add that the only message in four days had been a very brief cable. Lewis was as capable as I
was of holding tightly to a quarrel.

"But you must be wrong. I'll swear it was Lewis. And Molly Gregg was with me, and Angela Thripp, and
they both said, 'Oh, that's Lewis March!' And it was."