The dull train journey alongside Cribbs, who could barely contain her excitement about leaving the city for the first time, was an endurance of her patience. The fact that the scenery passing them by showed little promise of excitement, further deepened her sense of despair at such a forced exile. She had endured her father’s lecture about reputation and order with a sense of boredom and, of course, had expected some form of punishment. Knowing that she was his darling, she had been confident that whatever he had had in mind she could escape, by means of her expert persuasion. This was something she had cultivated since she was a little girl and Agnes, no matter how hard she tried to emulate her, was unable to exert the same influence. She had therefore been rather shocked when, on the matter of her punishment, her grim faced aunt had been ushered to the fore, and Elizabeth was less impressed when she found out what the old girl had in store for her. A summer break at the Fearncott country finishing school and, no less, she was expected to babysit for the runt of some man the old woman had her claws into!
