Follow a Stranger

ng with

agony. She could not possibly sleep now. She dressed again,

in jeans and sweater, and slipped out for a stroll in the

garden, but the thick heat of the air was no relief, and after

ten minutes she went back indoors, where it was cooler.

As she passed Mrs. Lillitos’s room the door opened and

Marc came out, his shoulders unusually bowed. He

straightened as they met, his eyes running over her jeans

and sweater in surprise.

“You’ve been out?” he asked sharply. “Alone?”

“I was too hot to sleep,” she said uncomfortably. He

moved closer and looked down at her, the grey

eyes narrowed. “Have you been thinking about what I

said?”

Before she could answer his mother called quickly from

within her room, and he turned back to answer her.

“Is that Kate?”

Kate looked in at the open door. “Yes, Mrs. Lillitos. I

couldn’t sleep as it was so hot.”

Mrs. Lillitos was sitting in a deep armchair with a jigsaw

puzzle on a tray in her lap.

She smiled. “Come and do this with me, then, my dear. I

cannot sleep, either. I am afraid there is going to be a

storm tonight, and I do hate them so.”

Kate went into the room. “I’m not very good at jigsaws,”

she said, “but I would like to talk to you for a while. I hate

storms, too.”

Marc had followed her in, and was standing watching

them. His mother looked at him severely.

“Go to bed, my son. You look very tired. I shall be quite all