Heirs of Ravenscar (42 page)

‘I'
m so glad you're here, Bess,' Nanny exclaimed, hurrying out of the butler's pantry and into the grand entrance foyer of Ravenscar. Her voice was strained and she was obviously alarmed.

Bess had only just arrived from London, having taken the train to York, and she was standing in the hall with her luggage. But she spotted Nanny's anxiety immediately, and hurried across to her, saying, ‘Nanny, whatever is it? What's the matter?'

‘It's the boys,' Nanny answered, her desperation echoing. ‘We can't find them. They're missing.' She was on the verge of tears.

‘
Missing
,' Bess repeated, sounding puzzled. ‘I'm not following you, Nanny.'

Jessup had come out of the butler's pantry, and now he joined them, explaining, ‘They went fishing this morning, Miss Bess. Down on Ravenscar beach. They like to go to the Cormorant Rock. Their father, er– er– Mr Deravenel,
used to take them there all the time. Cook made them a picnic lunch, which Young Edward took in the fishing basket, and off they went. They haven't been seen since –'

‘But aren't they down on the beach?' Bess cut in, giving Jessup a sharp look, her puzzlement apparent.

Nanny said, ‘No, they're not. I told them when they left at eleven to come back to the house around two o'clock, two-thirty at the latest. You know Young Edward is very responsible, Bess, and so is Little Ritchie. They return when they're supposed to, they're never late. It's now four. Half an hour ago, I became worried. I asked that nice under-gardener, Jeremy, to run down to the beach to fetch them for me. He came back rather upset, and said they weren't there. In fact, there was no trace of them, and no fishing rods, no fishing basket, nothing. The beach was deserted.'

‘How very strange,' Bess muttered. ‘Could they be somewhere in the house, Nanny?'

‘No, Bess, they're not here.' Nanny shook her head emphatically. ‘I've looked everywhere. Anyway, you know as well as I do that they have always been very obedient boys, and no trouble to me at all. Or to anyone else, for that matter.'

‘Could they have wandered off somewhere, gone down into the village?' Bess posed this question to Nanny, and then looked across at the butler. ‘What do you think, Jessup?'

‘It's too far to the village, Miss Bess. Anyway, it's not like them to disobey Nanny. But I'll ask one of the stable boys to saddle one of the horses and ride down to the village to make inquiries, if you wish, Miss Bess?'

‘Yes, do it, Jessup, thank you, and now I'll go and have a word with my grandmother. I'll come up to see the girls in a minute or two, Nanny.'

The three of them dispersed, and Bess rushed down the Long Hall and into the library, the room where everyone sat, in the afternoon most especially.

Cecily Deravenel had broken her leg two weeks earlier, and it was now encased in a plaster of Paris cast. She was seated in a wheelchair near the window, looking out towards the sea. She turned the chair at the sound of footsteps, and her tired face lit up when she saw her granddaughter. ‘Bess! There you are, my darling. I'm so glad you've come to stay with us.'

Bess hurried across the floor. The library was so filled with memories of her father that she could hardly bear it. This room was his, and it would always be his. His presence was everywhere. And the marvellous painting of him, completed just before his fortieth birthday, hung above the fireplace, dominating the room.

Pushing a smile onto her face, Bess went to her grandmother and kissed her on the cheek. ‘I'm happy to be here, Grandmother,' she said and perched on the edge of a chair. In a controlled, very steady voice she said, ‘Grandmother, there seems to be a problem.'

Cecily gave her a questioning look. ‘What kind of problem.'

‘The boys are missing. Young Edward and Little Ritchie seem to have disappeared. Vanished … into thin air.'

A graveness settled over Cecily at once; she was suddenly alarmed. ‘How can they have disappeared? I don't understand. They told me they were going fishing on the beach, where Ned always took him. They even said they were looking forward to having tea with me, and you, and the Little Dumplings, as they call the girls. I told them not to be late, to get back in time. Where could they be?'

‘They're not on the beach, and they're not in the house. Nanny is in a terrible state of upset, but I must say she did send the under-gardener down to look for them, and he reported back very quickly. There's no sign of them and their things are not on the beach either.'

Cecily sat back in the wheelchair; a shadow crossed her
face. ‘I wish Richard were here,' she said at last, rubbing a hand over her mouth. ‘He would know what to do.'

‘Where
is
Uncle Richard?'

‘He spent a couple of days in Ripon, at Thorpe Manor, with Anne and Little Eddie. The weekend actually. He went to London yesterday.'

‘And Anne and her boy are still at Thorpe Manor with Nan Watkins?'

‘That's right.'

There was a short silence; neither woman spoke.

‘Excuse me, Grandmother, I'm going to telephone the police –'

‘But you should talk to Richard first,' Cecily interjected.

‘Why? He's in London. I'm here on the spot. And the sooner we move the better.' Bess hurried out, went into her father's old office and sat down at the desk. She thought for a moment, and then telephoned Lady Fenella in London. The butler at the Curzon Street house answered and a moment later Lady Fenella herself was saying, ‘Hello, Bess, how are you?'

‘Hello, Aunt Fenella. I'm phoning you because I have a dreadful problem and I need your advice. I just arrived at Ravenscar. My brothers are missing.' Talking rapidly, Bess filled her in, and repeated everything she had learned, then finished, ‘I thought of phoning the local police, and then decided to speak to you first. I would really appreciate it if you could ask Mark what he thinks, what I should do.'

‘This is shocking news, Bess,' Fenella replied. ‘Could it be a kidnapping, do you think? For a ransom? Everyone knows that the Deravenels are an important family, and wealthy.'

‘It's a possibility … I just don't know what to think at this moment.'

‘Is Richard there?'

‘No, he's apparently in London. Anne is with her mother
in Ripon, and I'm here with my grandmother, who's stuck in a wheelchair with a broken leg.'

‘I'm sorry to hear it. Give her my best. Your mother went to Monaco, didn't she?'

‘Yes, with Cecily and Anne. I don't want to start worrying her, not yet.'

‘That's not necessary at the moment. Let me speak to Mark and he or I will phone you back very soon.'

Bess sat back in the chair, staring into space, waiting for Mark Ledbetter to phone. She knew he would insist on doing so when Fenella explained the situation.

And she was right. Ten minutes later the phone rang and she grabbed the receiver at once, before Jessup could pick it up.

‘It's Mark, Bess. I'm sorry about this.'

‘Hello, Mark.'

‘Tell me everything you know.'

She did so, and then asked, ‘Should I get in touch with the police?'

‘No, I'll do it for you. It'll be easier all round and much faster if I make the calls. Scarborough is your local constabulary, but I'm going to phone York as well: it's a bigger force.'

‘Thank you, Mark.'

‘Listen to me, Bess, and very carefully. If the boys are not found by tonight, I want you to contact me immediately whatever the time. And if there's a call or a note about a ransom you must also phone. I shall come up there at once. Not as the head of Scotland Yard, but as a friend of the family. I don't want to step on any local toes. I'm sure you understand. Try not to worry. We'll find them.'

Bess remained seated at her father's desk, her mind racing. After a few moments she came to a conclusion: the boys had disappeared without a trace, so they had either been taken off that beach by someone, perhaps for ransom, or they had gone out in a boat and had some kind of accident. Had they lost an oar and were drifting? Had the boat overturned for some reason? Or sunk? If that were the case her brothers had more than likely drowned. She trembled at this possibility. It was too much even to contemplate.

Suddenly a thought struck her and she jumped up, ran down the Long Hall, took the stairs two at a time, and rushed into her bedroom. She took off her lightweight travelling suit, put on a tweed skirt and blouse, found a warm cardigan and changed into walking shoes. Only then did she go to the nursery.

Nanny looked up when she came in, and asked worriedly, ‘Any news, Bess?'

‘Not at the moment. But I did speak to Lady Fenella and Mark Ledbetter phoned back. He's getting in touch with the local police … York as well as Scarborough. And I'm going down to the beach to look around for myself.'

Nanny nodded and glanced at Katharine and Bridget, the two youngest children, dubbed the Little Dumplings by their brothers.

Bess picked up on Nanny's worried glance and went over to the two girls, who were sitting at the nursery parlour table having their milk and sliced fruit.

Four-year-old Katharine lifted her face to be kissed, and clung to Bess's arm as she bent over her. ‘Where are the boys?' she whispered.

‘Not far away, darling, I'm sure of that,' Bess answered, and held the child close.

Moving around the table a moment later, she hugged three-
year-old Bridget and kissed her cheek, murmured, ‘I'll be back in a few minutes, all right?'

‘Yes, Bess,' Bridget said.

Downstairs again, Bess decided she must telephone her uncle at Deravenels, and she returned to her father's office and did so. It was his secretary who answered, and when Bess asked for him, Eileen told her he was out at a meeting in the City.

Bess thought for a second, wondering if she should explain the reason for her call, decided not to. ‘Please ask him to telephone me, Eileen. I'm at Ravenscar and I need to speak to him. Urgently.'

The beach was empty.

Bess could see that as she hurried down the flight of steps cut into the cliff face. Once her feet touched the shingle she ran to the outcropping of rocks which sheltered the Cormorant Rock from her line of vision. She was a little out of breath and slowed to a walk as she rounded the outcropping and finally stood in front of the famous rock. Below it, the dark sea lapped around its base, swirling and frothing as it usually did all year round.

Dropping her eyes to the shingle, Bess covered the area, searching for
what
? She did not know … something that might give her a clue to what had happened. But there was nothing. It was only when she lifted her head and glanced up that she saw the fishing hut on the higher moorland. Its door was swinging back and forth in the wind. Why was it open? Or course, Young Edward. He had obviously unlocked it earlier.

Climbing up the path, Bess reached the hut, went inside
and looked around. There were always four fishing boats stored here. Two large and two small. Now there were only three … one large and two small. Obviously her brothers had taken one of the larger boats. She looked at the names of the boats still there …
Sea Dog, Meg O' My Heart
and
Macbeth
. It was the
Lady Bess
which was missing, the boat named for her by her father. She stood very still, her heart tightening in her chest. If they had gone out in it, on the North Sea, they could easily have had an accident. And drowned.

The rest of her energy seeped out of her at the mere idea of this. She leaned against the door jamb for several minutes, trying to calm herself. Then she turned, went outside, closed the door of the hut and locked it. She put the key back in her pocket, continuing down the path, filled with dismay.

Once she stepped onto the shingled beach she looked everywhere again. There was no boat; nor any signs of one being dragged. But then there never was any sign of that … because of the shingle.