Read An Unusual Bequest Online
Authors: Mary Nichols
Tags: #Fiction, #Romance, #Historical, #General
An Unusual Bequest (22 page)
‘Your obedient.’ Captain Topham clicked his heels to attention and bowed his head.
‘And this is my daughter, Julia,’ Stacey went on, drawing Julia forward. ‘And the others are Miss Hobart and Miss Frances Hobart.’
To give Gerard his due, he concealed his amusement very well as he bowed to the young ladies. ‘I was on my way to see you,’ he said to Stacey when the formalities had been concluded. ‘I have news.’
Charlotte looked from one to the other; they both appeared secretive and obviously not prepared to speak in front of her. ‘Come, girls,’ she said. ‘We will walk on and allow Lord Darton to talk to Captain Topham.’ And she ushered them out of earshot.
‘The vessel is only a few miles off shore,’ Gerard said when they had gone. ‘We thought it was making for the Kent coast, but a cutter went out to it from Felixstowe and it turned north. It is battling into the wind, but, if you are right about its destination, it should reach Parson’s End in the early hours of tomorrow morning.’
‘Sunday. Will they unload on a Sunday?’
‘Don’t see why not. If the wind and tide are right and there’s no moon, they wouldn’t put it off simply because it was the Sabbath, but they might not arrive in time to have everything off the beach by dawn and will stand off until it’s dark again.’
‘I must go back and make sure the villagers keep indoors. How many men will you have?’
‘Enough.’
‘Make sure they keep away from the house on the cliff, will you?’
‘They will have their orders.’
‘Good. Will you round up the free-traders on the beach or after they have taken the cargo to the Manor?’
‘On the beach, I think. I don’t want to give them the opportunity to take it anywhere else, I’d have a devil of a job finding it and proving it is contraband if they do. The usual trick is to mix it with legitimate merchandise to be taken inland.’
‘Bentwater and Spike may not go down to the beach themselves and, if they are not present, you will have a hard task proving they were involved.’
‘Then it is up to you to persuade them their presence is needed on the beach. You can do that, can’t you?’
‘Yes, if they realise the villagers have not turned out they will want to know why.’
‘Good. I will see you then.’
Stacey strode after Charlotte and the girls and carried on laughing and teasing them as if he had nothing else on his mind at all.
Immediately after they had eaten an early dinner at the Great White Horse, Stacey hurried to the inn where he had stayed the night and changed into riding clothes, leaving Jem to oversee the harnessing up of his carriage and saddling of Ivor. In less than an hour they were leaving the town and on their way back to Parson’s End, though now Jem was driving the carriage and Stacey was riding beside it on Ivor.
Julia had been overjoyed to see the horse and had patted it and nuzzled up against its neck. ‘Oh, please, Papa, could you not send Jem to fetch Ebony, then we could ride together? It must be wonderful to gallop along the beach with the waves pounding on the shore.’ He looked from her to Charlotte, the one eager, the other inscrutable. ‘Does that mean you are resolved to stay at school?’ he had asked.
‘If I could have Ebony, I would.’
‘That is blackmail.’
‘No, no, it is a promise.’
‘Perhaps I might allow it after you have finished your month’s trial and if Lady Hobart gives me a good report.’
‘But that is ages away.’
‘Nevertheless it is my decision.’ He had turned from her to pay the reckoning at the hotel, which Charlotte had allowed him to do only after a heated argument. Why was he always arguing with her? Why did she have to be so damned independent, and why insist that Sir Grenville had provided her with enough to pay her way and she was no longer impoverished? It was the last straw and made him more determined to have his own way.
It was almost dark by the time they arrived at The Crow’s Nest. Jenkins was waiting to help Jem see to the horses and put the carriage away. Stacey accompanied Charlotte and the children into the house where Betsy and Miss Quinn ushered the children up to bed. They were so sleepy they made no protest.
‘Thank you for your escort,’ Charlotte said to Stacey when they were alone. ‘Everyone had a lovely time.’
‘Even you?’ he asked quietly.
‘Especially me. I am sorry I was a cross-patch. It was not fair when you have been so kind.’
Kind, was that all it was? He smiled a little crookedly. ‘It was my pleasure, my lady.’
‘Captain Topham…He was talking about the smugglers, wasn’t he? Have they been? Has it all happened while we have been away?’
‘No, according to the Captain, they have been hindered by adverse weather. They may come tonight, perhaps not until tomorrow night. So please, stay indoors and keep the girls in, will you?’
‘Of course.’ Did he think she was such a ninny as to take the children down to the beach in the middle of the night? ‘What are you going to do?’
‘I am going to warn the village men that if they value their freedom, they, too, will stay indoors. I only hope they will listen to me.’
‘Why not ask the Reverend Fuller to speak to them? They will take notice of him.’
‘That’s a good idea. I’ll go now, before I go back to the Manor.’
‘Do you think Cecil knows that you know?’
‘Perhaps. I must let him know that I have nothing against free-trading. I might learn a little more.’
‘Would you like to go up to the tower and look through Captain MacArthur’s telescope?’
He had forgotten all about that telescope. ‘Yes, if they are already off shore then they may try landing tonight.’
She conducted him up to the room at the top of the tower and he spent several minutes scanning the sea and the horizon. ‘Nothing there yet,’ he said. ‘I doubt it will be tonight now.’
He preceded her back down the narrow stairs. ‘Where are Captain Topham’s men?’ she asked.
‘They are on their way.’
‘Then I beg you, try to make sure the village men are not involved. I should feel so guilty…’
They had reached the hall again and he turned towards her. ‘Guilty? Why?’
‘It started up at the Manor with Cecil and his gambling. I should perhaps have tried to dissuade him.’
He gave a low chuckle. ‘You could not stop him, no one could have.’
‘But you encourage him.’
‘No. The issue is more important than that. You have lost your home because of it.’
‘You are doing it for me?’ she asked in astonishment.
‘Not just for you.’ He grinned suddenly. ‘For me. One day I will explain, there is no time now. I must go.’ He reached forward, took her hand and, turning it over, kissed the palm. The touch of his lips sent shivers right through her body, convincing her, if she needed convincing, that her desire was still alive, still strong, still ready to engulf her. The only way to control it was to stand rigidly and pretend, pretend for all she was worth, that it meant nothing, that he meant nothing, that he was simply trying to rouse her for his own amusement.
He raised his head and looked at her, but she would not meet his gaze; instead she seemed to be concentrating on the pin in his cravat. ‘Good night, my lady.’ It was said softly, as one would speak to a child one wanted to soothe. ‘Tomorrow or the day after, we will have that talk and perhaps learn to understand one another better.’ He released her hand, picked up his hat from the table and made for the door.
‘My lord,’ she said softly as he reached it. ‘Be careful, please.’
He turned back to her with a smile that lit his whole face. ‘I will, my love, I will. Until tomorrow.’
And then he was gone and she was looking at the closed door, unable to believe she had revealed so much in those few words and he had answered as he had. Surely, surely it meant more than mere flirtation?
Stacey, smiling to himself in the darkness, walked to the village. Ivor was out of condition and had had a long run that day and he decided not to saddle him up again. There was still a light on in the Rectory and he assumed the Reverend Fuller was working on his sermon for the next day. He knocked and was admitted by a maid who conducted him to the parson’s study, where he sat at his desk surrounded by books and papers, with a glass of brandy at his elbow.
‘I am sorry to interrupt you,’ Stacey told him, wondering briefly if the brandy had had its excise duty paid. ‘But I need your help.’
He was invited to sit and offered a glass, which he accepted. ‘Now, what can I do for you?’ the old man asked, sipping his own drink.
‘Have you heard anything of smugglers in these parts, Reverend?’ Stacey asked.
‘Would anyone tell me if they were breaking the law?’
Stacey smiled. ‘No, but I am sure you hear things.’
‘Sometimes it is better to be a little deaf.’
‘Oh, I agree, but unfortunately there is even now a contraband ship approaching Parson’s End and the Coast Blockade have been alerted. There could be trouble and I wish to prevent it.’
‘And you think I can do that? You must have a great belief in miracles, my lord.’
‘Not in miracles, but in your powers of persuasion. I am almost sure the men of the village have been recruited as tub carriers and I hoped you would persuade them it would be a foolish thing to do and they had better stay indoors.’
‘The lure of a guinea or two might be stronger than my words, my lord. These are poor people.’
‘I know. But I want you to assure them they will be paid whatever they lose by not taking part. I do not want to see the men arrested and their wives and children made destitute. It will ruin all the hard work you and Lady Hobart have put in to help them.’
‘Ah, Lady Hobart,’ the Reverend said. ‘She is a splendid lady, full of compassion.’ Then he added with a smile, ‘Did you enjoy the ball?’
‘Very much.’ He wondered if the parson was deliberately trying to change the subject. ‘I have asked Lady Hobart to keep the girls indoors until the situation with the free-traders is resolved,’ he said, reverting to the reason for his visit. ‘I have seen no ship close to the shore so I do not think it will be tonight, which means tomorrow will be a day of waiting. Presumably the village children will be doing whatever they usually do on a Sunday…’
‘Playing truant from church if they can get away with it,’ the Reverend said drily.
‘We must endeavour to keep them from the cliffs and the beach. Their parents too.’
‘I will send my manservant with a message to everyone that I want them all in church in the morning, even those who have not set foot in the place for years.’ He stopped to chuckle. ‘Then I will deliver the longest sermon they have ever listened to in their lives. By the time I have finished, they will be too afraid for their eternal souls to dare lift a tub.’
Stacey smiled. ‘I should like to hear it, but unfortunately I must ask to be excused. I shall be otherwise engaged at the Manor.’
‘Is that where the goods are to be taken?’
‘Yes, which is another reason for wanting it stopped. I know Lady Hobart does not live there now, but it was her home and her name would be connected with the scandal that might ensue. I wish to prevent it.’
‘It is a great shame she had to leave the Manor.’
‘That is true, but she has shown great fortitude and courage, which is why I would like to see those who used her so ill put behind bars, but not the villagers, whom she loves. You do understand?’
‘Oh, I understand perfectly. It is because she cared about the children that she stayed in Parson’s End after old Lord Hobart died when she could have gone to her great-uncle.’
‘Ah, yes, Lord Falconer. I collect they are estranged.’
‘Yes, I am sure he knows nothing of what has been going on. Once or twice I have been burdened with a conscience over it and wondered if I should write and inform him myself, but I knew such interference would not find favour with Lady Hobart and so I did nothing. I was prodigiously relieved when you arrived and seemed to be taking charge.’
Taking charge! Stacey smiled to himself. One thing he was not and that was in charge. Charlotte Hobart would not allow it; they had quarrelled, though for the life of him he could not say exactly what it had been about, except that she had taken exception to being kissed. Was that the aristocratic side of her coming to the fore? Why had she never told him about her mother’s family? Was she testing him, trying to find out how he behaved towards anyone who was not highborn? He did not care a groat for that, though undoubtedly it would weigh with his parents and for that reason alone he was glad of her rank. He wondered if Hardacre had written to his lordship as he said he would and what the reply had been. Was she still to be ignored? It made no difference. Apart from Julia and stopping those evil men at the Manor, there was nothing he wanted more than to have that promised talk with Charlotte and to resolve their difficulties.
C
harlotte went round the house, checking that everywhere was locked up and all the lamps extinguished and then she went to bed and lay there thinking about Stacey, reliving every word they had said to each other, worrying about the smugglers, or more correctly about the villagers. Unable to sleep, she put on a dressing robe and climbed the stairs of the tower to search the horizon through the telescope. There were a few sails on the horizon, but as none approached land, she had no idea if one could be the contraband ship. She gave up when the pink light of dawn began to lighten the sky and returned to her bed. It was, as Quinny had a habit of pointing out, another day.
She took the girls to church and was astonished to find all the pews packed. It looked as though the whole population of the village was there, except the men from the Manor. Except Stacey. They sang more hymns than they had been used to do and said more prayers, most of which revolved around doing no evil and not assisting others to do evil, and the wages of sin being eternal damnation. The Reverend Fuller was at his tub-thumping best when it came to the sermon and it was then she realised why there were so many in church and why so many of them were fidgeting and looking sheepish. Without actually saying so, he made them aware that he knew what was going on and that he condemned it and, if they persisted, they would be punished. ‘And I do not mean in the next world,’ he thundered. ‘I mean in this. Retribution is at hand, closer than you think.’ A concerted gasp went round the church at this. ‘Now let us pray for guidance.’
He let them go at last, but he stood at the door and spoke to each of the men and the bigger boys. ‘Doing what is right should be its own reward,’ he told them severely. ‘But in case it is not, whatever your sinful wages would have amounted to will be replaced by honest coin. If you are without guilt and you know what I mean by that, come to me tomorrow afternoon. Now, go home and think about it.’
He smiled at Charlotte as she came out of the church, ushering the girls along. ‘Ah, my lady, a fine day, is it not?’
‘Yes, Reverend, very fine.’
‘Not so fine one would want to wander too far abroad though. There might be squalls.’ His words were loaded with meaning which she had no trouble interpreting.
‘There might indeed, but perhaps we are worrying for nothing and the day will pass uneventfully.’
‘Let us pray so. And the night too. Shall you open the school tomorrow?’
‘Oh, yes, it is important to maintain a routine, do you not agree?’
She took the girls home, wondering if and when Stacey would come, but there was no sign of him. He preferred playing cards to visiting her, even though he had said he would come and they would talk. She concealed her disappointment even from herself and set about trying to amuse the girls. Confined to the house, they were inclined to be fractious and quarrelsome and could not understand why they could not go for a walk when it was such a lovely day.
They played cross-questions, Jackstraws, Speculation and Lottery Tickets with mother-of-pearl fishes, which was very noisy and which Julia won. They had dinner at three and after that Charlotte had them take it in turns to read aloud from the bible while the others sewed. They were soon bored by that and Julia wanted to know why they could not read
Waverley
instead and Charlotte gave in. Outside the sun still shone and the ill-kept garden, which Jenkins had been trying to restore, looked inviting.
‘Why can’t we go out, Mama?’ Lizzie asked. ‘I know it is Sunday, but surely a little walk would not be wrong? We have done it before.’
‘Because Viscount Darton asked me to keep you in.’
‘But why?’
‘No doubt because he is coming to visit and he would not like to find us out.’
‘But we have been in all day and he has not come,’ Julia said. ‘It is always the same with him, he makes promises and does not keep them. No doubt he has found company more to his liking.’
‘Oh. Julia, you should not say that about your papa. He always wants to do what is best for you. You had a lovely day yesterday, looking round that ship, didn’t you?’
‘Oh, he only suggested that because he wanted to meet his friend there.’
‘I do not think he expected to see Captain Topham. They both seemed surprised by it. You must have more faith in your papa, Julia.’
‘I will when he deserves it. If he fetches Ebony for me to ride, then I will believe what he says. He is not coming today now.’ She gave a huge sigh. ‘I’ll wager he is out on Ivor, galloping along the beach, which is what I should most like to do.’
‘You know he is not,’ Charlotte said. ‘The horse is still in the stable.’
‘Could we not play hide and seek?’ Fanny, the peacemaker, suggested. ‘I am sure we would all enjoy that.’
Fanny was the first to hide and was soon discovered in the pantry; Lizzie, the next, was found under the desk in the library, but when it came to Julia’s turn, she could not be found anywhere. Charlotte, worrying that she might have gone outside, searched the garden, coach house and stables, but there was no sign of her. Jem, who was polishing Ivor’s saddle, said he had not seen her. Turning to go back, Charlotte glanced upwards just in time to see a flash of light from the window of the tower as the sun caught the glass of the telescope. She ran indoors and up the stairs to find Julia with her eye to the glass.
‘Julia, what are you doing? You know you have been forbidden to come up here.’
The girl swivelled the instrument to look up and down the coast. ‘I am looking to see if I can see Papa.’
‘Oh, Julia, he will come, I am sure.’
‘You can see so much through this,’ the girl went on as if Charlotte had not spoken. ‘All the ships out to sea and the little boats, and even some men on the beach further along.’ She sighed. ‘But you cannot see what is directly below us. Do you think he might be down there?’
‘I do not think so, he would have called on us on his way.’ Charlotte wasn’t sure of the truth of that, but she was on tenterhooks, having Julia up in the tower where she had no business to be. ‘Come away, Julia. I gave my word to Captain MacArthur I would allow no one to come up here. How did you get in? The door is usually locked.’
‘It wasn’t. It wasn’t even shut properly. I was looking for a hiding place and I peeped in. Then I saw this.’ She pointed to the telescope. ‘I was doing no harm, only looking.’
Charlotte realised she had not locked it after her when she and Stacey had been up there the day before. She could hardly blame the child for her own negligence. ‘Leave it, Julia. Come down. It is supper time.’
Reluctantly the girl left the room. Charlotte locked the door and put the key in her skirt pocket, then followed Julia downstairs. She was inclined to agree with the child; Stacey would not come now. She tried to imagine what might be happening up at the Manor. Were they still gambling? Really, the parson would do better to preach his sermon against the evils of the gaming table because that was what had caused all this upheaval.
Stacey was bored and longed to go to The Crow’s Nest, but he dare not absent himself from the Manor until he knew exactly what was going on and that he had Sir Roland and Augustus Spike where he wanted them: down on the beach when the contraband came in and Gerard appeared. Although Sir Roland, not one for more exercise than he could help, was in the room, Augustus Spike was out and Stacey assumed he was patrolling the cliff top. He prayed the man would go nowhere near The Crow’s Nest.
Had the parson managed to persuade the village men to defect? He had no way of knowing. He played cards for cobnuts again because, unsurprisingly, Cecil did not have the cash to cover the vouchers. ‘A slight delay,’ he told Stacey, cracking and eating a nut from the pile at his elbow, thus depleting his stake. ‘Tomorrow I will have it.’
‘Are you going to conjure it up from the air?’ Stacey asked him.
‘None of your business.’
‘A little trading, perhaps, goods sold for cash and a profit made?’
Cecil laughed. ‘Of course. What did you think?’
‘I think the delay might have something to do with a northerly wind.’
Stacey heard Sir Roland growl angrily and turned to him, smiling easily. ‘Did you think I was a cabbage head to be gulled into believing you were staying here for the love of the company?’
Cecil laughed harshly. ‘And why did you stay? Or do we need to ask? Though what you see in her I do not know. She hasn’t a penny to her name, or pretends she has none.’
How he remained seated Stacey did not know. He felt like giving the man a facer—more than that, battering him to a pulp. ‘Nothing to do with the lady,’ he said, controlling his voice with an effort. ‘Much more to do with a pile of useless vouchers. And unless they are redeemed, I shall shout it from the rooftops that Lord Hobart is a welcher.’
‘We made a bargain,’ Cecil reminded him. ‘Are you going to renege on that?’
‘No. I am here, ready and willing. What about you?’
‘At your service, but tomorrow it will have to be.’
‘Then I assume the merchandise will arrive tonight and be despatched to its buyers by dawn. That’s how it works, is it not?’
Sir Roland rose, standing over him, a threat in every gesture as he waved a wine bottle in one hand and a glass in the other. ‘A revenue man! I might have known.’
‘Not at all,’ Stacey said levelly. ‘I have no more liking for excise men than you have. Just rotten bad form not to offer a man a cut, don’t you know? Especially when you are in his debt.’
‘Never mind that. What have you heard? Who said it?’
‘Your friend, Cecil,’ he said with a smile. ‘He has a very loud voice. When I overheard the words “tub carriers”, I knew it could only mean one thing. And tub carriers are usually local men, so I spent some time in the Dog and Fox.’
‘Peasants!’ The man resumed his seat, to Stacey’s immense relief. ‘They know nothing, so what can they have told you?’
‘Oh, they told me nothing. I deduced it from overhearing them tell each other how they would spend their sudden windfall.’
‘I said we should not have trusted them,’ Sir Roland told Cecil. ‘No notion of how to keep their tongues between their teeth.’
‘Imported men would have cost more and would have drawn attention to themselves,’ Cecil retorted.
‘It’s of no consequence,’ Stacey said. ‘All you have to do is include me in your plans.’
They looked at one another, mentally sizing up the consequences of not complying against the cost of allowing him a part of the proceeds. He could almost see their brains at work, wondering how they could pretend to comply and then cheat him. It made him smile.
‘How do we know we can trust you?’ Sir Roland asked.
He shrugged. ‘Does it matter? I am not going anywhere, not tonight anyway, unless I decide to take a stroll down to the beach to see the fun.’
‘Well, I am not going down there,’ Sir Roland said. ‘Someone has to be here when the goods arrive. If you want to be included, Darton, you can go and keep an eye on those tub carriers, make sure they don’t purloin any of the cargo.’
‘What time are you expecting the vessel to arrive?’ Stacey asked.
‘As soon as it is dark enough and the tide turns. It’s a large cargo and we want it all off the beach and safely stowed in the cellar by dawn.’
‘The buyers are coming here for it?’
Cecil gave a cracked cackle. ‘I’m giving another house party and they’ll all have blunt in their pockets. You will have your game, Cousin Darton, have no fear, though whether you will be the richer at the end of it, I cannot say.’
Stacey laughed. ‘That’s all I ask. I’ll be off now, take a walk, see what’s going on.’
‘Take the flasher with you.’ Sir Roland handed him a pistol without a barrel. ‘It will burn a blue light when you pull the trigger. Make sure, before you do, that it’s
The Kentish Maid
lying offshore and there’s no revenue cutter lying in wait. You won’t see another sunrise if you make a mistake over that, I promise you.’
‘Do you expect a revenue cutter?’
‘No, they are too busy watching the Kent coast.’
Stacey laughed. ‘Clever of you.’ And with that he went to his room, put on top boots and a black cloak and left the house, carrying the strange pistol in his pocket. If
The Kentish Maid
was there, he would signal it in and then send a message to the Manor that the village men had not arrived and the beach was littered with contraband and no one to shift it. That would bring them down to the shore in a great hurry and Gerry and his men, who were safely hidden, would round them up. And then, his part done, he would go to The Crow’s Nest and have that talk with Charlotte. Somehow or other, they had to come to an understanding.
Charlotte was frantic. Julia was not in her bed, had never been to bed by the look of the neat quilt and unmarked pillow. What had made her go into the girl’s room to check she was asleep and not reading by candlelight, she did not know, but it was as well she had. A quick search established Julia was not in the house. Where had she gone? The back door, which Charlotte had so carefully locked and bolted, was undone, so it looked as though she had escaped that way. Oh, what a night to run away! It would have been bad on any night, but with a shipload of contraband expected, she could easily run into danger. But perhaps she was hiding in the coach house or the stable.
Slipping her cloak round her shoulders, Charlotte ran to the outhouses; there was no sign of Julia, but Ivor had gone. Surely the child could not ride that great stallion? And there was no lady’s saddle, so it must have been Stacey who had come and taken it. Had he taken Julia with him? She dismissed that idea at once; he was too wrapped up with the smugglers and his card game and had left the girl in her care while he resolved whatever it was needed resolving. His daughter did not figure in that. So, where was Julia? She went back indoors and roused Betsy and Miss Quinn.
‘You’ll have to inform his lordship,’ Joan Quinn ventured when the three adults were sitting in the kitchen with the heavy curtains pulled across so that their light did not show. Betsy and Miss Quinn didn’t know why that should be important but Charlotte had said they must not show a light out to sea in case the sailors confused it with the lighthouse. It was the first they had heard of that, but their mistress was obviously too worried to think clearly.