Political Death Read Online Free PDF Page B

syndrome.
    "February 5. Bur in court giving his story. Looked so handsome. Heart swelled. Couldn't help thinking about cocoa -wicked with that awful old judge peering round. Not allowed to meet for lunch though. Bur: "Unwise". Promised to come round later for cocoa if Tee doesn't come up. (Typical Tee! Not interested in seeing Bur in court). Su maddening at lunch. So much for girl friends! Had forgotten about her old friendship with Tee (school). Told me quite unnecessary story about Bur and Tee being so happy together in the country."
    But the evidence, thought Jemima. Ah, here Imogen Swain did get on to the appearance of Franklyn Faber in the dock. This was more like it: "Bur says F.F. could ruin him. Political death, he says, if things come out. Always looks so sandy for a villain, hate white eyelashes in a man. Nonsense to say Bostonians are more English than American that's what he thinks. Looked at him hard, willing him. Don't ruin my Bur. Otherwise, says Bur, boot could be on the other foot. Political death all round. Wore my navy-blue Dior which Bur' But Jemima skipped quickly over the details of what Lady Imogen had worn.
    Burgo Smyth had told his mistress that Franklyn Faber could ruin him. That it would be political death. What did that mean? Beyond the obvious fact that Franklyn Faber's evidence had been crucial to Burgo Smyth's survival as a politician. In the box, Faber had denied Burgo's foreknowledge of the use to which he would put the document. They were old friends, but not conspirators. That was all. '"Otherwise"', says Bur, '"boot could be on the other foot"'a nd '"Political death all round"'. A threat? Threatening someone with 'political death' i.e. permanent exclusion from the world of politics, was hardly the same as threatening them with actual death, was it? Although some dedicated politicians might not agree. The scrappy Diary simply did not make it clear what had been meant.
    Jemima flipped forward the light golden-edged pages. There were a great many details about interior decoration, fifties style. Lady Imogen's house was generally deemed to be ravishing ('pale pink swags in my bedroom a triumph' was a typical entry) and the houses of her friends rather less so ("Laura's dining-room dragged paint positively dull..." ) Poor Laura, lucky Imogen. Jemima passed over all this as quickly as possible, merely marking that the present dilapidated state of Hippodrome Square gave little clue to the fact that its owner had once been preoccupied by triumphant pink swags and positively interesting dragged paint.
    A certain amount of the Diary was also occupied by the somewhat tedious problems of Nanny, who sounded a real old-fashioned nightmare, with Bad Millie the little show-off and Good Olga the little angel (with occasional black clouds). There were children's parties to which Lady Imogen generally sent the nanny, but at one of these, to which she did actually escort her own children, the Smyth twins featured. "Terribly plain, "was the uncharitable comment, "Just like Tee'. There were also adult social events including Imogen Swain's own dinner parties and outings with other men who courted her. If Lady Imogen was a widow (there was the occasional reference to 'poor Robin'), she was evidently a merry one. And the Diary ended, by chance, two days before the date on which Franklyn Faber vanished.
    Otherwise Lady Imogen's absolute physical obsession with Burgo Smyth permeated the Diary. "Cocoa with Bur' (or the lack of it) meant that any day was either 'wonderful' or 'miserable' (sometimes even more strongly 'bloody day). Yet the sheer concentrated focus of her feelings appeared to have lulled Burgo into a sense of false security about his mistress's discretion. Because nothing mattered to her except him, Burgo had trusted Imogen not to betray him. On the evidence before Jemima, he had not been entirely wise to do so. He clearly did not know that Imogen kept a diary.
    More than once Lady Imogen had made a