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'David needs to play as he needs to breathe, and if hethat eown '… all great artists suffer for their art The European critics say he is better than ever 'A new fire in his interpretation that richly complements a superhuman technique',' she quoted, as if that put an end to the matter

'And that's all you care about, his playing?' demanded Clare hotly, appalled by the callous attitude 'What about his life! What use is a dead enius?'

Soly 'David's genius is iive pleasure to enerations to come'

'And do any of those ? Do you? Would you stick around if he got sick and couldn't play any s and substitute theartists is a load of rubbish! It's just an excuse for people to ease their own consciences, so they don't have to suffer!'

Anna's dark eyes flashed, her long black hair swirling like silk over her shoulders 'You have no conception of what you are talking What are you? Some sort of domestic employee at David's school who happens

to have a talented child? I suggest you—'

'Ladies…ladies…' David intervened at last, with the lazy satisfaction of a sultan breaking up a fight a his concubines Clare, humiliated that she had betrayed herself, took a vicious swipe at his conceit

'You el, David, but you look a wreck,' she told him bluntly 'I think you should see a doctor Do they starve you on these tours? You look as if you've lost a lot of muscle tone'

Anna wasn't going to be silenced, either 'Of course we don't starve David's anises first-class accommodation'

'You mean his secretary does, from his office in New York' Clare knew from Tamara that Efrem conducted most of his business with David by phone, unless David was appearing on the Ae cut of David's income, it's in his interests to keep him in constant work Who looks after David's personal requireet to eat and sleep like the rest of us nificent scepticisood job'

'David is aafter himself; he doesn't need a nursemaid!' snapped Anna, on the defensive as everyone looked at the unns of exhaustion on David's face, the taut skin by his shadowed eyes, the febrile flush that lay along his cheekbones as he endured the inspection 'He's had a slight case of flu, that's all… we both did In fact, I was the one who caught it first, just before Berlin' Her smile cut Clare to the heart 'Perhaps I passed on the infection…'

'Let's hope that's the only infection you passed on,' Clare muttered but, to her horror, there was a lapse in conversation in the crowd around them and her words were clearly audible

There was asilence Clare went scarlet with e she could shrink into a small, dark hole in the floor

A hand closed possessively on her wrist 'Excuse us, won't you?' she heard David say through her cringing haze 'I believe Clare wants to apologise for that appalling lapse in inia, will you see to Tamara and Tim?'

Clare was dragged through the gathering like a prisoner in a chain gang This was the second time she had made a scene in public over David, and it was all his fault!