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Page 235
the elderly factotum who had greeted them, had piled all the valises at the head of the stairs and was now distributing them. He brought in her bags with a wordless but friendly nod, then picked up the general's and brought them to the door directly across the corridor. Linda watched idly. Peter was next to Mrs. Sotheby, Rose-Anne across from her mother, and Donald opposite Peter.
As Yani trudged to and fro, Linda heard the floorboards of the corridor creak. Her first thought was that the house was old; probably it had belonged to a native resident rather than having been built in the native style for the foreign colony. Her second thought was that it was just as well she and Peter had not planned spending their nights in clandestine lovemaking. She and the general were closest to the stairs and the old man, no doubt a light sleeper, would almost certainly hear those floorboards creak if Peter wandered in the night.
Then Linda frowned. Mrs. Bates's disposition of her guests might be an accident, but Linda didn't think so. Peter was all the way at the other end of the corridor. The frown disappeared and Linda giggled softly. If Peter was right, and Mrs. Bates had noticed that he was interested in her, she had chosen a sure way to checkmate any surreptitious move Peter might plan. By the time his clumsy feet had passed down that creaking, groaning hallway, every head would be stuck out the door to see what was going

 
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