‘Can I fetch you anything?’ Sybil enquired, even though she actually wasn’t officially on ward duties.

‘No, I’m fine, sit down,’ Rosie urged. ‘You look like you need a bit of looking after yourself, love.’

Unexpectedly touched by the warmth of her kind words, Sybil did indeed sit down.

‘It’s been a long day, starting with damn laundry duty.’ She pulled down the corners of her pink pouty mouth to form a grimace.

Rosie leant across to squeeze Sybil’s chapped hand. ‘Never mind, you’ll soon be out of here,’ she said softly.

As tears pricked the back of Sybil’s eyes, she wondered if her brain was going soft; she was on a ruthless mission to coax information out of Rosie, yet here she was going all soppy because Rosie was being kind to her.

‘I’ve missed our little chats,’ Rosie continued cheerfully. ‘The time just flew when I was talking to you about Lady Veronica. I hope I didn’t bore you to death,’ she added with a self-conscious blush.

‘Not at all: it made a nice change from the usual run-of-the-mill conversations here at Mary Vale,’ Sybil said, grinning. ‘If I have to sit through another meal listening to pregnant women talking about their toilet habits, I swear I’ll scream!’

‘The way you talk reminds me so much of Lady Veronica,’ Rosie laughed. ‘Maybe it’s your posh accent or just the outrageous things you say.’

‘We probably moved in similar circles too,’ Sybil said as casually as she could.

‘Maybe,’ Rosie agreed. ‘The Brigadier often invited members of his staff to Dowry House.’

Sybil averted her gaze to the floor, trying not to look too obviously interested.

‘Maybe not the ones he was knocking off,’ she thought bitterly, before she said, ‘He was such a big head, I bet he was an awful show-off.’

‘Oh, yes, he loved being the centre of attention,’ Rosie replied. ‘Especially when it came to the women.’

‘Don’t overstep the mark,’ Sybil quickly warned herself. ‘Let Rosie unravel the tale in her own time.’

‘Sometimes it was embarrassing for us staff,’ Rosie confessed. ‘Especially when, you know – we caught him at it.’

Feigning innocence, Sybil asked, ‘Kissing and cuddling?’

‘No!’ Rosie exclaimed, then lowering her voice to a whisper she hissed, ‘More than that; you know, at it, with other women.’

Sybil gave a theatrical gasp. ‘He betrayed the lovely Lady Veronica in his own home?’

Rosie gave an indignant snort. ‘More than once too.’ Having gone this far, Rosie suddenly didn’t seem in the mood for stopping. ‘He couldn’t keep his hands off any new young woman.’

Sybil well remembered being a new woman herself. Smart, well educated, with a plummy, alluring voice, an hour-glass figure and neat ankles. Knowing Monty as she did now, she knew she must have been like a flame to a moth.