Harriet was alone in the Senior Common Room, everybody else having departed to her work. The S.C.R. scout came in, carrying a pile of clean ash-trays, and Harriet suddenly remembered that her children lodged with the Jukeses.
‘Annie,’ she said impulsively, ‘what does Jukes come down into Oxford for, after dark?’
The woman looked startled. ‘Does he, madam? For no good, I should think.’
‘I found him loitering in St. Cross Road last night, in a place where he might easily get over. Is he keeping honest, do you know?’
‘I couldn’t say, I’m sure, madam, but I have my doubts. I like Mrs. Jukes very much, and I’d be sorry to add to her troubles. But I never have trusted Jukes. I’ve been thinking I ought to put my little girls somewhere else. He might be a bad influence on them, don’t you think
