There were windows along the main corridor, and it was light-filled as she made her way to the master bedroom. Pushing open the door, Elizabeth went in and glanced around, remembering the last time she had been in this room. She had come to visit Mary, who had not wanted her to come, and had done so out of a sense of family duty. But her half-sister had been cold, had shown no interest in her, and had made it abundantly clear she could not wait for her to leave. Elizabeth recalled how she had gritted her teeth and stayed, sitting in the chair which had been placed near the bed for visitors. Mary, convinced she was carrying Philip’s child, had looked smug, even self-satisfied at certain moments, but also extremely ill. Elizabeth was fully aware that her half-sister’s swollen belly was due to a terrible sickness, and nothing else. This had proved to be true when Mary had later been diagnosed with cancer of the stomach. But that day, over a year ago now, her half-sister had been unbending in her attitude.
