The Last Girl Read Online Free PDF

in from all directions. Stand anywhere for
long and you end up showered in sparks. In a little while you come to
understand what the guy must feel. And it's no good telling yourself you
haven't done a thing wrong. When Ethel's got you in your sights you just have
to get used to the fact that you're guilty.
    The only way
of dealing with it is to stay as cheery as can be. Resolute under fire.
    'Mr Mann. I
understand you've had words with Miss Tyson.'
    'Indeed I
have, Mrs Duck. And a lovely quiet girl she seems to be. Ever so friendly.'
    'She can be
as friendly as she likes, Mr Mann. But that doesn't excuse a thing.'
    So. it wasn't
me, but Mandy. You would scarcely have thought there could have been enough
time. But done something she has. Already Ethel is marching back towards the
kitchen, and naturally I'm right behind her. She throws open the kitchen door,
then stands aside for me to have a look. But even that is not enough. As I poke
my head inside, a vicious little jab between the shoulder blades pushes me
halfway across the floor.
    'Now you tell
me,' hisses Ethel. 'Just what do you think of that?'
    It's a mess,
that's what I think, though I don't actually say so. There are a couple of
plates in the sink, unwashed, as well as cutlery, a table covered with
breadcrumbs, and in the middle a lone tea cup, with a spill of coffee where the
saucer should be. The table is Formica, so it's hardly going to come to any
harm. But that's not the point of course, that's not the point at all.
    Ethel pipes
up behind me, 'I need hardly tell you that this is not what I expected of her,
Mr Mann. Oh no. What sort of place does she think this is? If I'd have thought
for one second she'd be the kind who ...'
    'Mrs D,' I
said. Seeing where this was heading I'd butted in before I'd thought what I was
going to say. But I carried on anyway. 'I'll have a word with her tonight, save
you the trouble. How's that? If you ask me, all she wants is to find her feet a
bit. This time next week you'll have forgotten it ever happened.'
    'Mr Mann, she
hasn't made her bed either.'
    Oh, this was
bad. Ethel wasn't going to stand for that. Down here the walls may be peeling
and the ceiling coming down in flakes, but Ethel doesn't see it like that. All
she can see is the mess that people cause.
    'It's no
good, Mr Mann. I should have stuck to my usual sort of girl. They may not be
like you or me, but they never gave me one ounce of trouble. They knew how to
keep a place tidy. But this one, well I ask you. What would her mother say?'
    Up to that
point I'd been thinking all was lost, but mention of Mandy's mum gives me an
inspiration. 'Her mother wouldn't like it, I'm sure, Mrs Duck. But she wouldn't
make too much fuss about it, not the first time. See, I reckon she'd understand.
Out there where Mandy comes from, they must have got servants for all this kind
of thing. Poor girl's probably never known anything else.' I don't mention
Edinburgh. 'Leaves her with a terrible disadvantage really. I bet she's not
used to looking after herself. But she's a lovely girl. She'll learn. You mark
my words.'
    I said I was
inspired, and was right. The effect on Ethel is a little miracle in itself. The
thought of having a tenant whose mother keeps servants brings about a
transformation. You could feel the tone of the whole house rising even as we
talked.
    So why did I
nearly have to spoil it all by adding, 'All the same, these young girls. All
they want is a guiding hand. Remember our June as a youngster ...?'
    Luckily for
me, I saw the look on Ethel's face almost before it appeared. She never could
stand having a kid knocking around the house. Doreen used to go on about her
being jealous because it never happened for her and Gilbert. As if. The truth
is, the thought of Ethel with maternal feelings is hardly what you could call a
likely proposition. Anyway, what was wrong with me? Comparing Mandy with June
is like comparing chalk with cheese. June might have been all right when she
was