Despite its inviting exterior, Tiscott was a draughty building. Fina looked forward to a hot cup of tea. And biscuits, of course. Loads of lovely biscuits. She had worked up quite an appetite at the lecture. She deserved it.
Ruby’s room was still warm from an earlier fire that had been reduced to ashes interspersed with bits of red glow. She marched over to her makeshift tea station on a side table and put on the electric kettle.
Fina threw off her shoes and folded her feet underneath herself as she settled into a worn but comfy chair.
“Do you think you can write to Ian to see if he can tell you more?”
Ruby poured the hot water into the teapot and placed it on the tray laden with edible goodness. She set it down in front of Fina, who sat in pleasurable anticipation of the tea and, more importantly, the biscuits.
“I did, but I’m afraid it won’t reach him. At least not for a good while. As you saw from the photo on the postcard, he’s in Grenada – but he didn’t leave a forwarding address. I suspect it will be a few months before he returns to London. I did write to him there, but I made my wording even more vague – just in case someone is reading his mail while he is away.”
Fina poured them each a cup of tea, enjoying the sounds of clinking spoons on their cups. She bit into a biscuit, which promptly dissolved into a pile of crumbs on her lap.
Ruby giggled. “Sorry, Feens. I told you my mum buys them all at once. I suspect they’re a little stale.”
“At least they still taste good,” said Fina as she made a careful transfer of the crumbs onto a napkin. “I’ll show you a trick. Put your mouth on the biscuit and blow warm air into it. I think the moisture makes the crumbs stick together.”
“You ought to be a chemistry professor,” Ruby said with a wink.
“In any case, back to our problem,” said Fina, all business now that she had satiated the little brownie in her gut. “Is there anything else we can do?”
“Not really. I think we should be on the watch for anyone who acts particularly oddly around us.”
“You mean like James?” smiled Fina.
“Oh, poor James. He is a bit gaga over Gayatri. I don’t think she knows.”
“Yes, or if she does, she’s laying on the sister-love so he hopefully gets the hint.”
“Doubtful,” said Ruby. “Even if James were acting that way and wasn’t smitten with Gayatri, I think his behaviour would be too obvious.”
“I see. We’re looking for a smooth operator.”
“Precisely. Mind you, it could be we’re safe by staying in college – and only have to worry if we leave.” She shuddered. Then her face lit up. “I do have some good news, though. Wendell is coming to visit!”
“That’s delightful!” replied Fina, who had developed a bond with Ruby’s brother during her stay with the family in St Kitts. “When will he arrive?”
“Not until next week. In the meantime, I’m supposed to host a friend of his. Not that he can stay in college, but he is coming to meet up with Wendell. He’s coming early to work on a story.”
“He’s a journalist? What’s his name?”
“Pixley. Pixley Hayford. Have you heard of him?”
Fina’s mouth dropped open. “Pixley Hayford? You must have heard of him. Remember the House of Lords story last year about an investment scheme gone off the rails?”
Ruby shook her head. “You know I only pay attention to the news when I have to. It makes my blood boil, so I try to avoid the daily news.”
“Well, this was a stupendous scoop. If he’s coming here to work on a story, it must be something quite juicy,” said Fina. Her eyes lit up. “Perhaps I can interview him for one of my term papers on corruption!”
Sighing, Ruby said, “That’s all we need. More attention drawn to ourselves. Still, I must be a good host. Wendell asked me to entertain him, though I told him how busy I was between schoolwork, designing new gowns for Vera—”
“Vera the Viper, you mean?”
“I know, but she pays! And she has so many friends in stuffy places. If I can get these few gowns correct, a whole new world will open for us. I hope you can help me out with the sewing as usual.”
“Of course, I’d be happy to. Anything to avoid working on my next paper!”
After a few hours of distracted studying, Fina stepped out of her room to go to dinner. Even though it would take her no more than two minutes to reach the dining hall, she wrapped herself in a large woollen shawl. Shivering, she scurried down the corridor. She knew it wasn’t that cold but the transition between the warmth of the summer and the chill of the autumn always affected her – to the point where she felt a little like her grandmother, complaining about her damp and draughty cottage on the Irish coast.
“Where are you off to in such a hurry, Miss Aubrey-Havelock?”
Fina turned round to behold a small woman, only a few years older than herself. She had the same little button nose as Fina. Her hair was a pile of curls trying to escape from the little linen cap on her head. Her smile looked genuine enough, though she was hunched over a broom as if it had been chaining her to the floor. Perhaps it had been. This must be the new college scout.
Fina made the first move. She strode over to the woman, hand outstretched. “How clever of you to know my name. You can call me Fina. You must be our new scout.”
“Yes, miss. I’m Beatrice. Beatrice Truelove. Truelove by name, truelove by nature, says my gran.”
“Welcome to Tiscott, Miss Truelove. I hope you’ve been finding everything you need. Have the other scouts been welcoming?”
“Oh yes, miss. They’ve been ever so kind, though I’m not sure about their cleanliness standards,” she said with a sigh of resignation.
“Were you a scout at another college?”
“Oh no, miss, this is my first time being a scout. I was a maid for the Dowager Croxton at Trafford Manor,” she said, swatting the air.
Fina didn’t see any flies.
“Sounds grand. I’m off to dinner. Do let me know if you have any questions – sometimes the ladies around here can get rather high-spirited.”
Beatrice nodded and began to sweep the corridor.
It was rather odd, thought Fina as she descended the square-spiral staircase. The corridor was already spotless.