That Alicky, who always carried her enthusiasm to extremes and was far too fey and fatalistic for her own good, was now dabbling with spiritualism deeply disturbed May. She had been eleven when Alicky’s mother had died, and she remembered her Aunt Alice as being very practical and full of brisk common sense. Not at all the sort of person who would have thought it helpful to be sending messages to her highly susceptible daughter from beyond the grave.

The spacious Belgian Suite was on the ground floor of Buckingham Palace’s north-facing Garden Wing. Entering it with Dolly, May heard music playing and saw at once that as well as Toria, Looloo and a shockingly pale Maudie, there were cousins she hadn’t seen for quite a while: Ducky and Missy – Missy looking alarmingly sophisticated for a soon-to-be fifteen-year-old – and Ernie Hesse, and Ernie and Alicky’s eldest sister, Vicky.

With a slam of her heart May saw Eddy standing by one of the French windows that led into the garden. Hélène was with him and, even though his father was only yards away, in conversation with Marie-Louise’s father, Eddy’s arm was around Hélène’s waist.

There couldn’t have been a more public statement that they were a couple, and that their romance had his parents’ blessing. Before they should see her looking towards them, May looked swiftly away, intending to cross the room towards Maudie.

Ducky forestalled her. ‘I thought that eye-catching Romany-looking brother of yours might be here, May, but Marie-Louise says he’s in disgrace over something or other and has left the country. Is it true? I don’t want this party to be a complete waste of my time.’

She was thirteen and whereas Missy, only a year older, could have passed for being seventeen or eighteen, Ducky was still every inch a plain, awkward-looking adolescent.

Trying not to look as taken aback by Ducky’s bluntness as she felt, May said a little stiffly, ‘If you are referring to Frank, he’s abroad improving his foreign-language skills.’

Ducky looked glum. ‘I don’t suppose he would have taken any notice of me, even if he had been here. It’s always Missy who gets all the male attention.’

Looking across to where Missy was fluttering her eyelashes at a bemused Louis of Battenberg, May absolutely believed her. She looked round to see where Georgie was and, although he had been in the room when she had entered it, couldn’t see him anywhere. Wondering if Maudie had got it right about Georgie being in love with Missy, she said, ‘I understand Missy is quite smitten by Georgie.’