‘He asked me if I could trust him. I had to tell him not to be old-fashioned. Of course, I could trust him.’
‘Trust him to act exactly as you wished?’
‘Trust him not to make love to me. I was trusting him every time I saw him.’
‘You had not spent a night with him before?’
‘Of course I had not.’
‘You use the expression “of course” rather freely, and it seems to me with very little reason. You had plenty of opportunities of passing a night with him, hadn’t you – on the ship, and in your rooms where there was nobody but yourself?’
‘Plenty, and I did not avail myself of them.’
‘So you say; and if you did not, doesn’t it seem to you rather singular that you suggested it on this occasion?’
‘No. I thought it would be rather fun.’
‘Rather fun? Yet you knew this young man was passionately in love with you?’
‘I regretted it afterwards. It wasn’t fair to him.’
‘Really, Lady Corven, do you ask us to believe that you, a married woman of experience, didn’t realize the ordeal by fire through which you were putting him?’
‘I did afterwards, and I was extremely sorry.’
‘Oh, afterwards! I am speaking of before.’
‘I’m afraid I didn’t before.’
‘You are on your oath. Do you persist in swearing that nothing took place between you in or out of the car on the night of February the third in that dark wood?’
‘I do.’
‘You heard the inquiry agent’s evidence that, when about two in the morning he stole up to the car and looked into it, he saw by the light of his torch that you were both asleep and that your head was on the co-respondent’s shoulder?’
‘Yes, I heard that.’
‘Is it true?’
‘If I was asleep how can I say, but I think it’s quite likely. I had put my head there early on.’
‘Oh! You admit that?’
‘Certainly. It was more comfortable. I had asked him if he minded.’
‘And, of course, he didn’t?’
‘I thought you didn’t like the expression “of course,” but anyway he said he didn’t.’
‘He had marvellous control, hadn’t he, this young man, who was in love with you?’
‘Yes, I’ve thought since that he had.’
‘You knew then that he must have, if your story is true. But is it true, Lady Corven; isn’t it entirely fantastic?’
Dinny saw her sister’s hands clenching on the rail, and a flood of crimson coming up into her cheeks and ebbing again before she answered:
‘It may be fantastic, but it’s entirely true. Everything I’ve said in this box is true.’
‘And then in the morning you woke up as if nothing had happened, and said: “Now we can go home and have breakfast!” And you went? To your rooms?’
‘Yes.’
‘How long did he stay on that occasion?’
‘About half an hour or a little more.’
‘The same perfect innocence in your relations?’
‘The same.’
‘And the day after that you were served with this petition?’
‘Yes.’
‘Did it surprise you?’
‘Yes.’
‘Conscious of perfect innocence, you were quite hurt in your feelings?’
‘Not when I thought about things.’
‘Oh, not when you thought about things? What exactly do you mean by that?’
‘I remembered that my husband had said I must look out for myself; and I realized how silly I was not to know that I was being watched.’
‘Tell me, Lady Corven, why did you defend this action?’
‘Because I knew that, however appearances were against us, we had done nothing.’
Dinny saw the Judge look towards Clare, take down her answer, hold up his pen, and speak.
‘On that night in the car you were on a main road. What was to prevent your stopping another car and asking them to give you a lead into Henley?’
‘I don’t think we thought of it, my Lord; I did ask Mr Croom to try and follow one, but they went by too quickly.’
‘In any case, what was there to prevent your walking into Henley and leaving the car in the wood?’
‘I suppose nothing really, only it would have been midnight before we got to Henley; and I thought it would be more awkward than just staying in the car; and I always had wanted to try sleeping in a car.’
‘And do you still want to?’
‘No, my Lord, it’s overrated.’
‘Mr Brough, I’ll break for luncheon.’
Chapter Thirty-two
DINNY refused all solicitations to lunch, and, taking her sister’s arm, walked her out into Carey Street. They circled Lincoln’s Inn Fields in silence.