The instant the thought came, she closed her mind to it. She couldn’t think of such a hideous possibility now. For now all she could cope with was how ineffectual he was being. And she was going to help him overcome his ineffectuality. She was going to show Josef that even if he could ride roughshod over Berthold, he most certainly couldn’t ride roughshod over her.

‘I need a couple of hours’ rest before dinner, Berthold.’

It wasn’t the truth. What she needed was a couple of hours on her own in which to think.

He rose to his feet, smiling sheepishly. ‘It’s good to have you home, Vicky. I’ve missed you every single minute of every single day.’

It was so obviously the literal truth that tears pricked the backs of her eyes. He loved her so very much, and with terrible certainty she knew that her love for him had undergone a profound change. She still loved him, of course, but not in the unquestioning way she had before she had left for Yorkshire. Then, she had thought him perfect. Now, she knew he was weak.

‘I missed you too,’ she said, hoping he would never know that his dependence on her was far greater than her dependence on him.

He touched her cheek gently, bent his head and kissed her and then left the room.

She sat still for a long time, wondering if she would ever be able to recapture the mood of fierce optimism with which she had left Yorkshire. Then, she had been determined to become just as much of a Berliner as Zelda. Now, the prospect of doing so seemed as far away as ever.

When she dressed for dinner, she did so carefully. Paris fashions and jewels had never been as important to her as they were to Zelda, but tonight she wanted Josef to be aware that she was someone he was going to have to take notice of. Until now she had been criminally uninformed about Remer steel plants and factories. She was going to be so no longer.

As Josephine helped her into a floor-length midnight-blue silk dress that had been cut low at the bosom to help draw attention away from her advanced pregnancy, she wondered just how much Zelda knew about Remer contracts and armament production, fairly sure it would be a lot. And yet Zelda had never raised the subject with her and there could be only one reason for her not doing so. Knowing what her reaction would be, Zelda had wanted to keep her in the dark.

It was not a nice thought.

Josephine was just fastening a sapphire and diamond pendant around her neck when the door burst open and Zelda whirled into the room.

‘I’ve just been told you’ve been back for hours, Vicky. I’d no idea. How can you have been back for hours and not visited the nursery to take a look at Claus Heinrich?’ She kissed her effusively. ‘He’s an absolute joy. Every inch a German. All blond and blue-eyed—a miracle when he has such a raven-haired mama.’