‘My lady and I were working in a room together, sir, typing out stuff from ledgers. We decided they were just making work for us. Then one of the bosses needed a temporary secretary and Ro – I mean my lady, got the job. So I was on me . . . my . . . own. Men kept dropping in for a bit, but when they saw it was only me they left.

‘I began to feel that Daisy Levine was really nothing. I began to remember the old days in the theatre, where I was considered attractive. I thought I’d just go back to my own kind, as I thought of them. That’s where I met Billy. I’d known him before, and when he asked me up to that flat for a drink, it seemed all right to go.

‘Like a fool, I told him the whole story. I was lonely, you see. You can’t break the barriers of class, sir. It’s flying in the face of nature.’

Harry turned to Rose. ‘You inadvertently broke the barriers of class, Lady Rose. You joined the suffragettes and then abandoned them. You cannot go around changing the rules and expect things to be easy. So do you want to get rid of Miss Levine and return to your comfortable and privileged life?’

Rose thought of her pride in her job and how she had dragged Daisy along with her into this new life. She remembered Daisy’s gallantry, her spirit, and realized for the first time that she would not have been able to go through with the business of getting a job without Daisy.

‘I’m sorry, Daisy,’ she said. ‘Thank you for helping me to escape. We will go on as before . . . as friends.’

‘Thank you, my lady.’

‘Rose, please.’

‘The doctor is here,’ said Becket.

‘Take him through to the back parlour. When he is finished, we will have lunch.’

‘Very good, sir. Miss Levine?’

The doctor declared the burns to be bad but not serious. Daisy’s wrists were once more treated and bandaged. She was made to swallow two aspirin and told to rest.

After the doctor had gone, Becket produced a meal he had ordered from a restaurant in the King’s Road.

During the lunch, Rose suddenly said, ‘I am glad now we decided to work at the bank. Please apologize to your secretary for trying to take her job away from her.’

Harry raised his eyebrows. ‘I beg your pardon?’

‘I had this mad idea that it might be fun to work for you and I went round to offer my services.’

‘Miss Jubbles said nothing of this to me,’ said Harry. ‘I wonder why.’

‘Well, she wouldn’t, would she?’ remarked Daisy. A touch of colour had returned to her cheeks.

‘Why not?’

‘She doesn’t want to lose her job.’