Sentence The Fourhundredandsixtysecond

Maude woke with a start and looked around: “I feel as if I have lost a day,” she said sleepily, “have I missed anything?” to which Daphne responded: “not a lot, dear heart, we were just discussing a vatic prophecy which, if it came to pass, might embroil The Vatican in a bit of a mare's nest,” and when Maude looked puzzled, Daphne continued: “Sister Evadne wrote that female connubial suffrage should become the norm in the time of a Pope Francis, but Father Mungo says we may be reading too much into it, it may not necessarily apply to Vatican City; after all, she wrote it a long, long time ago,” and Maude appeared to notice the elderly priest for the first time: “where are we? and who is he?” she asked, “I seem to have mislaid my Bradshaw's,” and Daphne gave her Life's Companion a

piercing look, which went unnoticed: “we're in Father Macaneny's study in Our Lady of Longformacus, as you well know, but this,” and she held up a slim volume bound in calfskin, “is dynamite!” but, at seeing the flicker of alarm on Maude's face, Daphne softened her tone: “this, my sweet, is Griselda of Longformacus' private diary and she made extensive notes on all her meetings with Sister Evadne Eglantyne, of blessed memory,” and Maude repeated the blessing, “remember dear, we were schlepping around the Edinburgh Archives and then Father Macaneny here,” said with a sweeping gesture which included not only the priest, but also a collection of stuffed birds and animals which adorned his den, “told us about Griselda of Longformacus' Papers here, which it seems no-one but himself,” in a broad Irish brogue, which brought a grin to the old man's face, as he

took a nip from a battered hip-flask, “knew about: this,” said while waving the book like a table-tennis bat, “is a simulacrum, compared to the boxes of stuff downstairs, which we'll need a pantechnicon and a bunch of brawny lasses to transport – the Caddys, together with Lulu and her Girl Gang, should be able to do the business – so could you give Phemie Lauder a ring and ask her if we can nip in for a quick chat,” and Maude's eyes brightened at mention of Phemie and Daphne noted that her strange air of bewilderment had vanished as she quickly drew a mobile from her pocket and began tapping out a number entirely from memory!