“What’s become of those kiddy bridesmaids you had?” Mr. Smee warily asked.
“Gerty Gale and Joy Patterson?—I’m sure I don’t know.”
“Oh, my word.”
“Well, how goes the world with you, Mr. Smee?”
“So-so. I’ve been away on tour. Mildred Milson and Co. Oh! my Lord—it was. No sooner did we get to Buxton—down in Derbyshire—than Miss Milson fell sick and had to be left behind.”
“What was wrong with her?”
“Exposure.... On Bank Holiday some of the company hired a three-horse char-à-banc and drove from Buxton over to Castleton Caves—my hat. What hills!—and from there we went to take a squint at Chatsworth, where Miss Milson came over queer.”
“And how does Mrs. Smee?”
“So-so.”
“One never sees her now.”