“I’m going to work,” Harvey said decidedly. “Let’s get going.”
They put Gin down first, while she tried feebly to tuck her hair up before she ran into her house. From the depths of the house they heard Flo, shrill and abusive, as they turned the car in the narrow street and headed for the Lennards’. Blake fell silent and thoughtful as they drew near home.
“On second thought,” he told Harvey, “it might be wise for me to walk the last few steps. Mother may be excited. I hope she went to sleep.” He stepped lightly over the door and advanced bravely to the house: the car turned discreetly and went toward town again.
Harvey was grumpy on the way back. He dumped Teddy at the door of their house and drove away again silently. Already the day seemed tired. Languid and a little depressed, Madden unlocked the door, carried in the warm bottle of milk, and lay down on his bed.
His telephone rang late in the afternoon and woke him. Confused and feeling guilty, he stumbled over to it and answered the call in a cracked, sleepy voice.
“Hello, Hello? Teddy Madden? Dear boy, where have you been? This is Bob.”
“Oh, I was asleep. Just a minute——?” he lit a cigarette. “I say, am I due up there tonight? I’ve lost track of time.”
He was, Bob assured him a little indignantly. Moreover, he was late for tea.
“I’ll be right up,” he said. He hung up the receiver and before doing anything else, sat quietly in the half-dark, his head in his hands.
“Gosh....” Waves of gloom had overtaken him at last; after being outrun for a week they had caught him. Reasonless, they were; or at any rate he had too many reasons to worry; none at all for this persistent depression. Bills, conscience, perpetual hangover—he ran them over in his mind, but there was no answering twinge as he called them out. It was something else; something that followed every jag of happiness. It was as much a part of this play town as the other, pleasant, excitement: a gnawing whimpering nameless anxiety that was waiting for him whenever he sat alone in the dark. It took gigantic effort to call the cab-stand.