The Silence of the Children

Olive sat with Christopher and little Henry who dangled from his father's lap. She had not expected the silence of these children or even the silence of Anne, who was different than Olive remembered. I'm tired, Anne said to her at one point, and Olive said, I should think so, so maybe that was it. From the study, she could hear Anne murmuring and the higher pitched voices, but not the words of the children.