◆ SpookStack

ae N the summer af 1982 . Melinda Mactican and . her familly apent a few cays in Paris, Then, in the new car Mrs. Dunbar had bought her, she drove to Normandy for a holiday. The house they had rentad at Glanville bore . the grand name of Le Manoir de Madame des Vaux and was in delightfal countryside a few miles Aaniand-trom Desuville. But it rained nearly every * @ay and Melinda had neither : . dhe sunshine fer the rest her Guctor had prescribed. My wifa and I drove down to spend the week-end cand found If difficultto revive any of her real gaiety. Soon afier that with the Wediher growing steadily wars. she and Ber peother decided tp so @us SROTE the Holday and they felurmed to Paris. = There again we caw a godd deal >», @t Melinda. and there it was for the Bret dime thay she said she wos Bare Donald was behind the “Tran Curtain. . She bad nothing to ge on, but “- pormehow, she said. she just knew. ae er ea 3, ae . aad oF — ge ea ae ae Sie NN Ae “A, & fy Mes Now for a’ “remake ber ie, She was going to ‘take her mother and the children a Geneva. But the ehldren inal ehesl Gnd a Gat, and then over to Singland tovry to get ot leacahsnew, geil Donald's caret. x | delighter Sa she had really decided to? aig ahe mus; And &~ Bit r “ps 1 later discovered, she dew 3 Rrapine picture of the terrible ' PEK shewourd be in should bet mother die. She and the children, she told ma, were entirely depen: f gent upon Mrs, Dunbar and would very fikeiy starve because her mother's money died with puer as it were, _ This was sonsense. Th aay true thet ghe and ibe children were living on Mies. Dunbar, far Mac: lein Bad lef her nothing but debts—the E2507 repaid ihe advance on Beaconshaw—and she had. received nel gs penny from the Foreign Otice since he was -“puspended * 8 June 1, 11 Bos ghehad a small idedine of bef own. she owed at somattime other came Inte more Woary fromm a trust fund established by her grandfather, and when her tmother ied she would be reason. ably comfortably off. Thay Wwascclearly looking inte the fature. The fact semains that, most fortunately for her and her ehiidren, financial worries . at least were spared her, Cher worrlés persisted and were indeed mare real to her. She Nis the ehtdres seeded a “tsther.” It would be bad fas them continually te be brought UB id @ “wmun-less” home. : ‘Would she- yemarry? J suga@@cted that when she had divarecd. Bongld she could easily remarry, “ aaticieing Nersely somewhat} nilessly, would jJook- far younger than’ her 3@ years, She had many most admirable Qualitios—snd her natural garely rand. spaniandity would spen eTeLuen, Bul no. She was coneinted that her marital life was definitely Pwver Hever ia begin again. The. ponly future for her lay in finding Le i680: bur whar could ‘This was a problem, lor she bad never dame any real wark. The next day, September % Hd, she left for Geneva. driving her mdtber, the three children and their devoied. Engiish surse in her new American eaz. t is ariothar example of the contradigiions fp Melinda that ihig -apparentiv frail, sick girl icould quile easily drive the loag gad stmetimes: Arduovs 32-hour -journey from Paris tg Geneva, mainly fo bopring rain. in one ap. x * Then.” after a few days, she went with considerable trepida- “hen tu see the headmaster of the international achool te xrrange aboat sending the bova thera ind to tel bim who they were. Afterwards, she wrote te ker { gagtery ; dh was absolute agony telling hint about Donald, bur TI felt af eaorse I had to de it.” + Asd et the sume dime’she bad the diftentt, delicate task pf ex plaining lo Fergus and Donald Jos. what pad happened to. ther father, . . . Fhe boys started school, which > ~ Whe wotld matry g aotordes. | wothan Hke me with three wong] children?” she asked. ** 3 The answer was abvioug: low . of men would be only. too : ta marry her Melinda, although she pad ageil soete “ten years dnvthe monte since Maclean weny-o¥ jnie ihe udknaws, wes stil an excead. lagiy atiragtive girl who. if she enuld only emerge from the black - depression whieh grip BEL So a ee a. en Fer - fy she ds? ~ Me they Uked very rm Malinda Jooked ‘round She waa alsa looking aud without much séne: tien fer the jo8 whic tnabie her fo atari a. But although Dhy sic Picked up a LHtthe, apis: war sill very lew and Me in the muddle ot Ss “Pteok ae completely since. arriving here anc how FT can summen up it. takes: lo start 2 new » She loo! .. better At the beginning “sf Melinda and her fauil & letthe apcestrient found inthe Hue des A fost pleasant part of within sight of the 3 and with a Hithe park : whieh the children cos bk was in Geneva at and went to see her in getting, Melinda. Was a tite « Nitle elated abaut tre : fel M wuld make a: ference ta thelr file and Ure hove as on sOrk ot “serding down 7 div Gor E ghaught she leak: betier than. she had + sethetartes Stes ttn sana i teal AN a ell