Sounds suggestive of the carrying upstairs of luggage followed, and a hinnying laugh echoed once down the stairs.

The girls looked at one another; there was a shadow in Ulyth's eyes.

She did not share in the general smile that passed round the table, and she finished her tea in dead silence.
"Going to sample your new property ?" whispered Mary Acton as the girls pushed back their chairs.
"What's the formula for swearing an undying friendship ?" giggled Addie Knighton.
"Was it Rose of Sharon you called her ?" twinkled Christine Crosswood.
"Or Lily of the Valley ?" Ulyth did not reply.

She walked upstairs very slowly.

The nasal twang of that high-pitched voice in the hall had wiped the bloom off her anticipation.