"I liked that boy's voice, too," said Mrs Weston. "Tommy Luton used to have a lovely voice, but this one's struck me as better-trained even than Tommy Luton's. Great credit to you, Mrs Rumbold."
The grey hungry mouse suddenly gave a shrill cackle of a laugh, quite inexplicable. Then Georgie guessed.
He got up.
"Now nobody must move," he said, "because we haven't drunk 'absent friends' yet. I'm just going out to see that they have a bit of supper in the kitchen before they go on."
His trembling legs would scarcely carry him to the door, and he ran out. There were half a dozen little choir boys, four men and one tall cloaked woman….
"Divine!" he said to Olga. "Aunt Jane thought your voice very well trained. Come in soon, won't you?"
"Yes: all flourishing?"
"Swimming," said Georgie. "Lucia hoped your voice would crack soon. But it's all being lovely."
He explained about food in the kitchen and hurried back to his guests.
There was the riddle of the Quantocks to solve: there were the tableaux
vivants imminent: there was the little red-haired boy coming in soon.
What a Christmas night!
Soon after Georgie's hall began to fill up with guests, and yet not a word was said about tableaux. It grew so full that nobody could have said for certain whether Lucia and Peppino were there or not. Olga certainly was: there was no mistaking that fact. And then Foljambe opened the drawing-room door and sounded a gong.