“I can’t. I’ve tried but I can’t.” Her control was extraordinary. I did not then guess the reason for her calm, her strength.
“Then I must try.” I stood up. She backed away at the expression on my face.
“You can’t do anything. He won’t see you. He won’t see anyone but me.”
“I thought he told Paul he agreed with me, that he didn’t want to ... to countenance all this, that he....”
“At first he took your side, if it is really what you yourself feel: then he thought about it and ... this morning he decided to go ahead with Paul’s plan.”
I was confused. “Does Paul know?”
Iris smiled wanly. “John is reserving for himself the pleasure of doing what he must do without Paul’s assistance.”
“Or knowledge?”
Iris shrugged. “Paul will find out about it this evening, I suppose. There will be an announcement. John’s secretary is getting it ready now ... one for the public and another for the Establishment.”
“When will it happen?”