The door opened and a magnificently attired man came in and shouted something. Then the personages arrived. There were a man and a woman, and the servants who had formed into lines bowed so low that I thought they were going to knock their heads together. The recipients of all this homage were dressed in travelling clothes; with them was a tall, youngish man with very fair hair. Others were coming in—about twenty in all, and among them were a girl and a boy.

The servants began to move away, scuttling in all directions while the arrivals were making their way to the staircase.

"We have to look out now," said Daisy. "We'd better hide behind these curtains. Hans will know where to look for us when he comes."

"They won't come here," I said. "They'll go to their rooms to wash off the stains of travel."

"They might," said Francine. "Come on, let's hide ourselves."

There were sounds of running footsteps on the stairs and a babble of voices. We had hidden ourselves just in time when the door of the solarium was opened. I felt my heart beating wildly as I visualized the outcome of exposure. I imagined our being sent back to the Manor while complaints were made to our grandfather. That we should be in great trouble, I knew.

A girl came into the room. She appeared to be about my age. She was small with blond hair worn in two neat plaits reaching to her waist. She had very pale skin and her light blue eyes were closely set. She stood for a moment looking round while we all held our breath asking ourselves if we were properly hidden. She tiptoed forward and stood still as though listening. Then she said in German, "Who's there?"

I felt sick with shame and horror. Then she said in heavily accented English. "Who is hiding? I know you are there. I see a foot under the curtain."

It was Francine who stepped out. She knew exposure was imminent anyway.

"Who are you?" asked the girl.

"I am Francine Ewell of Greystone Manor," said Francine.

"You are visiting us?"

"Yes," answered Francine.

"And there are others?"

Daisy and I came out then. The girl's eyes rested on me, I supposed because we were of the same age.

"You visit?" she said looking at me.

I decided that the best thing was to tell the truth. "We were being shown over the house," I said. "We were interested because it was our grandmother's old home."

"You know my father ... my mother ..."

"No," I said.

Francine cut in then. "I have no doubt we shall if they are staying long in the neighbourhood. We are from Greystone Manor. Perhaps we should go now."

"Wait," said the girl. She ran to the door. "Mutti," she called.

A woman had come into the room. She was stately and stood looking at us in astonishment. Now we knew we were truly caught.

Francine stepped forward and said in fair German and with dignity, "You must forgive us. We have been guilty of an indiscretion. We were eager to see the house because it was once our grandmother's home and she often talks of it. We did not know that you would be returning and we thought it would be a good opportunity to look over it today... ." She trailed off. It was a limp excuse and the woman continued to look at her very curiously.

"What is your name?" she asked.

"Francine Ewell. I live at Greystone Manor with my grandfather. This is my sister Philippa and Daisy our maid."

The woman nodded. Then she smiled slowly. She kept her eyes on Francine who, I must say, looked particularly lovely with the flush in her cheeks and the sparkle in her eyes which the adventure had given her.

The woman said, "We have just arrived. It was good of you to call. You must drink a glass of wine with me."

Daisy had stepped back. I think she was quite speechless with admiration for Francine's skill in extricating us from a delicate situation.

"Come with me," said the woman. "And you—you are?"

"Daisy," said Daisy, for once overawed.

"I shall send-"

At that moment Hans appeared. He was intensely nervous and when he saw who was there he looked as though he was uncertain whether to turn and run or break out into incoherent explanations.

"We have visitors, Hans," said the woman in German which both Francine and I could understand perfectly. "Take ... Daisy to the kitchen and give her some wine. And send up more wine to the Weinzimmer."

Hans certainly looked astonished. Daisy went over to him and I was sure she gave him one of her winks, though I couldn't see her. She went off with him, and Francine and I followed our hostess down the stairs to the smaller room through which we had recently passed.

"Please to sit," commanded our hostess. "Now tell me. You are from Greystone Manor. It is the Big House here. Bigger than this one. We are just the Grange, eh? It is good of you to call."

Francine said it was hardly a call. It was a piece of impertinence.

"Impertinence?" she cried. "What is this impertinence? An English custom?"

Francine laughed in her infectious way and our hostess was soon joining in.

"You see," Francine explained, "we were very curious."

The woman listened intently as the wine came and with it the girl who had first discovered us.

"Tatiana, what is it you wish?" asked the woman.

The girl said in voluble German that she wished to see the visitors and the woman, whom we presumed to be her mother, chided her. "It is not polite to speak in a language other than that of our guests. You have your lessons in English. Come, you must speak in that language."

Francine said, "We have some German. We learned to speak it when we were with our parents. And now we have a governess who is half German and speaks the language with us."

"Ah, that is very good. Language can be a problem. Now they tell me this room was known as the Punch Room. I said, 'What is this punch?' and they tell me it is a drink—a kind of wine. Then I say, 'This shall be the Weinzimmer ... so here we drink our wine with our guests."

Tatiana sat down and watched us intently. During the conversation our hostess told us that she had had a Russian mother and that her daughter had been named for her. She was the Grafin von Bindorf and she and the Graf with their family would be staying here for a while.

It was an extraordinary half hour. Here we were being entertained by the Grafin von Bindorf, sipping the wine which had been brought to us and being treated like hon­oured guests instead of interlopers. She asked a great many questions about us and we told her how, when our father had died, we had come to Greystone Manor to be with our grandparents. Tatiana asked a few questions, mostly concerning me, and as Francine was talking freely with the Grafin, I saw no reason why I should not do the same with Tatiana.

At length Francine said we should go, and the Grafin replied that we must call again. I could see Francine wanted to invite her to Greystone Manor but restrained herself from that folly in time.

We were accompanied to the door where we were joined by Daisy. We were all excited and still marvelling, and talked incoherently all the way home. Daisy said that Hans was amazed at the way it had turned out and he was grateful to us for keeping him out of it.

Francine thought the Grafin charming. She was dismayed at the prospect of her calling at the Manor.

"It makes you realize," she said, "What restricted lives we lead. Is it going to be like that forever?"

I saw by the light in her eyes that she was determined that it should not be.

We did not sleep that night but lay awake talking about the adventure, and Francine came to the conclusion that we might let a week pass and then call again.

Daisy was in a state of great excitement. She and Hans were very friendly again and Tom of the stables was green with jealousy. Daisy was delighted to be the object of so much desire.

Francine's seventeenth birthday was in two weeks' time and as we sat at dinner the night after our adventure our grandfather commented on the fact, and added that he thought it was an occasion which we should celebrate. Aunt Grace nervously fingered her collar and tried to simulate excited interest. She knew all too well what the purpose of this entertainment would be, and being herself a victim of our grandfather's despotic orders she feared for Francine.

Francine said afterwards, "You know what he will do at the party. He will announce the engagement."

I nodded gloomily and waited for some inspiration.

"I'm going to call on the Grafin," said Francine. "We'll go this afternoon."

"It will be fun," I replied. "But how is that going to help?"

"I don't know," she replied, but there was speculation in her eyes as though she had some scheme in mind.

Boldly we went through the gates; we pulled the bell and heard it clanging through the house. A servant in colourful livery opened the door and we stepped into the hall.

"We have come to call on the Grafin in response to her invitation," said Francine importantly in German.

The man replied, "The Grafin is not at home."

"Oh?"

"What about the Lady Tatiana?" I said with sudden inspiration. She had been interested in us, so perhaps she would receive us.

The servant shook his head. It seemed that she was not at home either. So there was nothing to be done but retire crestfallen. The door shut on us and just as we were turning away a man on horseback rode up. He leaped down, looked at us and bowed. He called out and a groom came running to take his horse.

"You look ... lost," he said, his eyes on Francine. "Perhaps I can help."

He spoke good English with only the faintest trace of a foreign accent. Francine had brightened considerably. He was extremely handsome, tall, blond and in his early twenties I imagined, with grey eyes and a ready smile.

"We had come to see the Grafin," Francine explained. "She did ask us to call ... and now we find that she is not at home."

"She will be here later today, I believe. I wonder if it would be acceptable for me to take her place? Come, let me offer you tea ... is that not what you would take at this hour?"

Francine's cheeks were touched with the delicate rose colour which was so becoming and her blue eyes sparkled with excitement. "That would be most kind," she said.

"Come, then." He pulled the bell and the manservant opened the door. "We have guests," he added.

The servant showed no surprise to see us back again and the young man gave orders in German for tea to be served.

Then he ushered us into the room in which we had taken wine on the previous occasion and bade us sit down.

"You must be related to the Grafin," said Francine.

"No—no. We are not related. Tell me about yourselves."

Francine explained that we lived at Greystone Manor and how we had met the Grafin. "She did say we might call again," she insisted again.

"She would hope for that. She will be desolate to have missed you. That is unfortunate for her—but fortunate for me."

"You are very gallant," said Francine with a hint of coquetry.

"Who could be aught else in the presence of such beauty?" he answered.

Francine, as always, blossomed under admiration, even though she had always had a great deal of it, and she was soon chatting away telling him about our life on the island and at Greystone Manor, to which he listened very attentively.

"I am so happy that I came when I did," he said. "It has been a great pleasure meeting you and the silent one."

"Oh, Pippa is not usually silent. She generally has plenty to say for herself."

"I shall look forward to discovering what she has to say."

Tea had arrived and with it the most appetising little cakes I had ever seen. They were decorated with whorls of cream and were of various colours.

The young man was looking at Francine. "You must do— what do they say?—the honours? It is the lady's place, is it not?"

Francine settled happily behind the teapot, her fair hair breaking free of the ribbon which tied it back and which she was expected to wear at the Manor, and falling about her face. I had rarely seen her look so lovely.

We discovered the young man's name was Rudolph von Gruton Fuchs and that his home was in a place called Bruxenstein.

"It sounds very grand and far away," said Francine.

"Far away ... well yes, perhaps. And grand? Maybe you will visit my country one day and see for yourself."