‘He won’t wake now, only for tea,’ Kate said. ‘Because after he’s had his he feeds the birds.’
‘Oh Kate isn’t he a sight and all.’
‘Well come on we can’t stand looking. What’s next?’
‘If I make a crown out of them ferns in the corner,’ Edith said, ‘will you fetch something he can hold?’
‘You aim to make him a bishop? Well if I ‘ad my way I’d strip those rags off to give that pelt of his a good rub over.’
‘Don’t talk so. You couldn’t.’
‘Who’s doing all the talking?’ O’Conor gave a loud snore. Both girls began to giggle.
‘Oh do be quiet dear,’ Edith said picking a handful of ferns and starting to twist them. Then they were arrested by movement in the sunset of that sidewall which reflected glare from the floor in its glass.
For most of one side of this room was taken up by a vast glass-fronted cupboard in which had once been kept the bits, the halters and bridles, and the martingales. At some time O’Conor had cut away wooden partitioning at the back to make a window into the next chamber, given over nowadays to his peacocks. This was where these birds sheltered in winter, nested in spring, and where they died of natural causes at the end. As though stuffed in a dusty case they showed themselves from time to time as one after another across the heavy days they came up to look at him. Now, through a veil of light reflected over this plate glass from beneath, Edith could dimly see, not hear, a number of peacocks driven into view by some disturbance on their side and hardly to be recognized in this sovereign light. For their eyes had changed to rubies, their plumage to orange as they bowed and scraped at each other against the equal danger. Then again they were gone with a beat of wings and in their room stood Charley Raunce, the skin of his pale face altered by refraction to red morocco leather.
The girls stood transfixed as if by arrows between the Irishman dead motionless asleep and the other intent and quiet behind a division. Then dropping everything they turned, they also fled.
Miss Swift was deaf and could not always hear her charges’ words as along with Evelyn and Moira and Mrs Welch’s Albert she came that afternoon to the dovecote round by the back. She groaned while she settled herself in the shady seat and the doves rose in a white cloud on softly clapping wings.
‘What’s troublin’ ‘er?’ Albert asked.
‘It’s only nanny’s rheumatism,’ Miss Moira quoted.
‘Why come to that I got an uncle ‘as ‘is joints boiled Tuesdays and Thursdays over at St Luke’s down the old Bow Road.’
‘Now shall poor old nanny tell you a story of the two white doves that didn’t agree?’
Moira nudged Evelyn and pointed. A pair of these birds on a ledge were bowing beak to beak. The two girls copied them, nodding deeply one to the other as they sat on either side of Miss Swift. This woman rubbed a knee with both hands without looking at it. She had closed her eyes.
‘Once upon a time there were six little doves lived in a nest,’ she began and Raunce came out of an unused door in that Castle wall. The rusted hinges creaked. The two girls waved but Mrs Welch’s Albert beyond Evelyn might almost have been said to cringe. Raunce put a finger to his lips. He was on his way back from the round he had made of the peacocks’ corn bins and during which he startled Kate and Edith. Then Miss Evelyn and Miss Moira each put a finger to their mouths as they went on bowing to each other. Raunce made off. Miss Swift continued,
‘Because they were so poor and hungry and cold in their thin feathers out there in the rain.’ She opened her eyes. ‘Children,’ she said, ‘stop those silly tricks’ and the girls obeyed. ‘But the sun came out to warm them,’ she intoned.
‘Jesus,’ Albert muttered, ‘look at that.’
This dovecote was a careful reproduction of the leaning tower of Pisa on a small scale. It had balconies to each tier of windows. Now that the birds had settled again they seemed to have taken up their affairs at the point where they had been interrupted So that all these balconies were crowded with doves and a heavy murmur of cooing throbbed the air though at one spot there seemed to be trouble.
‘You’re very very wicked boy,’ said Evelyn to Albert looking where she thought he looked. What she saw was one dove driving another along a ledge backwards Each time it reached the end the driven one took flight and fluttered then settled back on that same ledge once more only to be driven back the other way to clatter into air again. This was being repeated tirelessly when from another balcony something fell.
‘That’s ripe that is,’ Albert said.
‘I didn’t see,’ Evelyn cried. ‘I didn’t really. What came about?’
‘And then there was a time,’ the nanny said from behind closed eyes and the wall of deafness, ‘oh my dears your old nanny hardly knows how to tell you but the naughty unloyal dove I told of.
‘It was a baby one,’ Albert said.
‘A baby dove. Oh do let me see.’
‘I daresn’t stir,’ he said.
‘Where did she fall then?’ Evelyn asked.
‘Quiet children,’ Miss Swift said having opened her eyes, ‘or I shan’t finish the story you asked after, restless chicks,’ she said. ‘And then there came a time,’ she went on, shutting her eyes again, hands folded.
‘What? Where?’ Moira whispered.
‘It was a baby one,’ Albert said, ‘and nude. That big bastard pushed it.’
‘The big what?’ Evelyn asked. ‘Oh but I mean oughtn’t we to rescue the poor?’
‘Where did she drop then?’ Moira wanted to be told But a rustle made them turn about on either side of Miss Swift who sat facing that dovecote shuteyed and deaf. They saw Kate and Edith in long purple uniforms bow swaying towards them in soft sunlight through the white budding branches, fingers over lips. Even little Albert copied the gesture back this time. All five began soundlessly giggling in the face of beauty.
‘Did you see Mr Raunce?’ Kate asked at last.
‘ ‘E went that way,’ Albert answered while the two girl children sat with forefingers still on their mouths.
‘What did ‘e come out of?’ Kate asked.
‘That door,’ Albert said.
‘And then they were in great peril every mortal one,’ Miss Swift continued.
‘And oh Edith,’ Miss Evelyn announced, ‘we’ve been watching the doves they are so funny.’
‘I shouldn’t pay attention if I was you dear.’
‘Why shouldn’t I pay attention?’
‘Not if I was you I shouldn’t.’
‘Why shouldn’t I?’ Miss Evelyn asked.
‘Because they’re very rum them birds,’ Kate said also whispering.
‘Why are they rum?’ Miss Moira asked.
‘I’ll say they’re rum,’ Albert announced. ‘One of the old ‘uns shoved a young bird and ‘e fell down right on ‘is nut.’
‘Well I never,’ Kate remarked to Edith. They watched that dovecote over the children’s heads.
‘Sssh,’ said Edith watching rapt. The children turned. There were so many doves they hardly knew which way to look.
‘And then there came a time when this wicked tempting bird came to her father to ask her hand,’ Miss Swift said, passing a dry tongue over dry lips, shuteyed.
‘It don’t seem right not out in the open,’ Kate mentioned casual.
‘And again over there too and there,’ said Edith.
‘Where?’ cried Miss Evelyn too loud though not sharp enough as she thought to interrupt Miss Swift. The nanny just put a hand on her arm while she droned.
‘Oh what are they doing then?’ Miss Moira cried.
‘They’re kissing love,’ Kate answered low.
‘Hush dear,’ said Edith.
‘But where Kate I don’t see. Oh look at those two oh look she’s got her head right down his beak, she’s going to strangle him,’ and Moira’s voice rose ‘Nanny nanny stop it quick.’