Your grandfather and his friend were the only two climbers he lost in his whole career, That's what I wanted to know, Bruno said Clare quickly. Did he have a problem guiding again? I mean, did climbers still trust him and want to hire him? Well, he told me that he chose not to climb again for one year, not as a guide, not by himself nothing. Then he started again, and became the best, by far the most popular and successful guide for about forty years. He's an amazing man. He's always been very special for me Ulrich Grunwalder came back into the room. The next day," he said, "I went up with a group of men from the village to see if we could find the bodies. Herr Younger was on the glacier, the rope had caught round a rock and Herr Crowe was hanging down in a crevasse in the glacier. They tried to pull Herr Crowe up but the rope broke again and he fell. We carried the other one down to the village. They had fallen about a thousand metres. Herr Grunwalder, did you know my grandfather mean apart from as a climber?' asked Clare. "He had been in Zermatt a few times, and I believe that summer he was here for quite a while.' There was no answer from the old man so Clare decided she'd better be direct. 'My family have got two letters from him to my grandmother, written from Zermatt during that summer. They said very strong mainly that he was going to stay in Zermatt and things never return to his family. Ulrich Grunwalder moved nervously in his chair and his handkerchief came out again. Is there something you are not telling me, Herr Grunwalder?" asked Clare quietly. "Ever since I first arrived in Zermatt, I've had the feeling that there is some sort of secret about my grandfather's death. Nobody wanted to tell me that you were his guide, for example. Why not? Madame, I will tell you why. I know it is time to speak But it is a sad story for your family and for mine. It all happened so long ago and times have changed. It probab wouldn't be the same today I don't know." Her Grunwalder leant forward and began, "Your grandfather was in love with my sister, Marianne. He came back to Zermatt in 1924 to be with her. There was a noise from Bruno's direction. Clare looked at him and realised that this was news to him too. Herr Grunwalder continued. His voice was almost a whisper now. It was not good he was a married man. He'd been here with his wife and daughter, everybody knew them. Then he came back alone. It was a scandal, I don't know if you can understand that but this was 1924, it was not like today Marianne loved him and I believe he loved her, but Marianne never forgot him. Is she still alive?' asked Clare "No," replied Bruno. She died about twenty years ago He turned to his grandfather "So that's why Aunt Marianne never married,' said Bruno, 'She was the only unmarried person l knew when l was a child. l thought was very strange. She was always good to you, Bruno said Herr Grunwald er sharply So, interrupted Clare, you went climbing with this man who had brought shame to your family and "Do not continue, Madame. You thin 1 killed him because of my sistet, I did not, I liked him, even if I didn't like what he was doing. But it is true that some people in the village thought that his death was the best way out for everyone except Marianne, of course," There was a fear in the corner of his eye. 'Poor Marianne. She also rhought had killed him at first