Maskerade

'Good. Well done. Walter might not know his right from his left, but he does know his right from his wrong.' Granny rubbed her hands together. 'Well, we're already home and looking for a clean towel, eh?'

'What? You haven't solved anything!'

' 'Course we have. We know that it wasn't Walter what done the murders, so now we just have to find out who it was. Easy.'

'Where's Walter now?'

'Nanny's got him somewhere.'

'She's all by herself?'

'I told you, she's got Walter.'

'I meant... well, he's a bit strange.'

'Only where it shows.'

Agnes sighed, and started to say that it wasn't her problem. And realized it was useless even to try. The knowledge sat like a smug intruder in her mind. Whatever it was, it was her problem.

'All right,' she said. 'I'll help you if I can, because I'm here. But afterwards... that's it! Afterwards, you'll leave me alone. Promise?'

'Certainly.'

'Well... all right, then...' Agnes stopped. 'Oh, no,' she said. 'That was too easy. I don't trust you.'

'Don't trust me?' said Granny. 'You're saying you don't trust me?'

'Yes. I don't. You'll find a way to wriggle around it.'

'I never wriggle,' said Granny. 'It's Nanny Ogg who thinks we ought to have a third witch. I reckon life's difficult enough without some girl cluttering up the place just because she thinks she looks good in a pointy hat.'

There was a pause. Then Agnes said, 'I'm not falling for that one, either. It's where you say I'm too stupid to be a witch and I say, oh no I'm not, and you end up winning again. I'd rather be someone else's voice than some old witch with no friends and having everyone frightened of me and being nothing more than just a bit cleverer than other people and not doing any real magic at all...'

Granny put her head on one side.

'Seems to me you're so sharp you might cut yourself,' she said. 'All right. When it's all over, I'll let you go your own way. I won't stop you. Now show me the way to Mr Bucket's office...'

Nanny smiled her jolly‑wrinkled‑old‑apple smile. 'Now, you just hand it over, Walter,' she said. 'No harm in letting me see it, is there? Not old Nanny.'

'Can't see it till it's finished!'

'Well, now,' said Nanny, hating herself for dropping the atom bomb, 'I'm sure your main wouldn't want to hear that you've been a bad boy, would she?'

Expressions floated over Walter's waxen features as he struggled with several ideas at once. Finally, without a word, he thrust the bundle at her, his arms trembling with tension.

'There's a good boy,' said Nanny.

She glanced at the first few pages, and then moved them nearer to the light. 'Hmm.'

She treadled the harmonium for a while and played a few notes with her left hand. They represented most of the musical notes she knew how to read. It was a very simple little theme, such as might be picked out on the keyboard with one finger. 'Hey...'

Her lips moved as she read the narrative.

'Well now, Walter,' she said, 'isn't this a sort of opera about a ghost who lives in an opera house?' She turned a page. 'Very smart and debonair, he is. He's got a secret cave, I see...'

She played another short riff. 'Catchy music, too.'

She read on, occasionally saying things like 'Well, well' and 'Lawks'. Every now and again she'd give Walter an appraising look.

'I wonder why the Ghost wrote this, Walter?' she said, after a while. 'Quiet sort of chap, ain't he? Put it all into his music.'

Walter stared at his feet. 'There's going to be a lot of trouble Mrs Ogg.'

'Oh, me and Granny will sort it all out,' said Nanny.

'It's wrong to tell lies,' said Walter.

'Probably,' said Nanny, who'd never let it worry her up to now.

'It wouldn't be right for our mum to lose her job Mrs Ogg.'

'It wouldn't be right, no.'

The feeling drifted over Nanny that Walter was trying to put across some sort of message. 'Er... what sort of lies would it be wrong to tell, Walter?'

Walter's eyes bulged. 'Lies... about things you see Mrs Ogg! Even if you did see them!'

Nanny thought it was probably time to present the Oggish point of view. 'It's all right to tell lies if you don't think lies,' she said.

'He said our mum would lose her job and I'd be locked up if I said Mrs Ogg!'

'Did he? Which "he" was he?'

'The Ghost Mrs Ogg!'

'I reckon Granny ought to have a good look at you, Walter,' said Nanny. 'I reckon your mind's all tangled up like a ball of string what's been dropped.' She pedalled the harmonium thoughtfully. 'Was it the Ghost that wrote all this music, Walter?'

'It's wrong to tell lies about the room with the sacks in it Mrs Ogg!'

Ah, thought Nanny. 'That'd be down here, would it?'

'He said I wasn't to tell anyone!'

'Who did?'

'The Ghost Mrs Ogg!'

'But you're–' Nanny began, and then tried another way. 'Ah, but I ain't anyone,' she said. 'Anyway, if you was to go to this room with the sacks and I was to follow you, that wouldn't be telling anyone, would it? It wouldn't be your fault if some ole woman followed you, would it?'