Miss Winbolt and the Fortune Hunter (22 page)

William frowned, shrugged his shoulders and, with an apologetic bow, said, ‘I'm sorry, but I can't help you.' With a glance at Emily, he went on, ‘You must excuse me. Emily is right, we must go back. But you must feel free to look for your button here if you wish.' He called one of the men over and said, ‘Give Mrs Fenton as much help as she needs.'

‘William!' called Emily sharply.

 

As they drove off Emily looked back to see Maria in conversation with William's man. ‘It's Walter's button, of course, but he can't look for it himself in case someone recognises him,' she said.

‘I wonder why she's so
very
worried,' said William thoughtfully. ‘She isn't a woman to panic lightly.'

‘Don't tell me you're sorry for her!'

‘Not in the slightest. Congratulations on your playacting ability, by the way. I'd be sorry for myself, if the way you spoke to me in front of Maria Fenton was a sample of the way you would speak after we're married,' said William. ‘If I thought it was real, I'd call off the engagement tomorrow.'

After a silence Emily said care fully, ‘What engagement?'

‘W
hat engagement?'

William shook his head ruefully. ‘I'm sorry. I forgot. It isn't a real engagement at all, is it?' Emily held her breath. He waited then asked again, ‘Is it, Emily?'

‘I…I suppose not. You…you said we should not suit. You said it was done with.'

‘Well, if that isn't just like a woman! You were the one who broke it off, not I! I thought we had an agreement, you and I. I realise now it wasn't ideal, but it was what I would call a gentleman's agreement. A reasonable, rational contract. You promised to marry me and look after the children, and in return I offered you an establishment of your own and independence to run it. Then suddenly for no real reason you tell me in the unkindest possible terms that you won't marry me! Is it any wonder that I told your brother we should not suit?'

‘I've said I'm sorry that I misjudged you!'

‘So you should be.'

They drove in silence for a while. Then, in a small voice, Emily said, ‘Are you going to forgive me?'

‘I already have,' he said curtly. He looked at her. ‘I've come to under stand why you acted the way you did.'

‘I'd still like to hear the rest of what you said that day. Will you tell me now?'

He didn't pretend not to know what she was talking about. ‘If you must know, I was angry with both the Deardons for re minding me of the stupid remarks I made before I knew you. Strong-minded you were. Plain you could never be. I told them so. I said I was proud of you, and very proud that you had agreed to marry me. That you were the most intriguing woman I had ever known. That I couldn't imagine anyone else as my wife.'

‘Oh, William, did you really?' She stopped to swallow a lump in her throat. ‘What a fool I was! I lost so much by running away too soon.'

The distress in her voice touched him. He said more gently, ‘Not everything. In spite of it all, we've managed to work together. And I'm hoping that, when this business is all over, we might begin again, differently this time.' Till now he had been serious, but William never allowed himself to stay serious for too long. He looked at her sideways and smiled irrepressibly. ‘But I'd like to begin again with the oak tree. And the hollow. I liked that girl, Emily.'

 

As soon as they were back at Shearings, William spoke to Philip and Rosa and spent a short time with the children. Then he gathered his things together, put the Valleron treasure in a more fitting container and, after collecting Barnaby Drewitt, left for London. He
planned to put the Valleron treasure safely under lock and key, but had decided not to return it to its owners immediately. That was bound to be a long and complicated business, and, in the present circumstances, would keep him away from Shearings for too long for his peace of mind. Even so, it meant that he would have to spend two nights in London and could not hope to be back before late afternoon of the second day.

After his departure Emily took the children riding. Philip had recently offered a pony to each of the children and they were very eager to exercise them. They had a good ride, but she kept them inside Shearings's fences. James's picture of the fountain had brought the deaths and dangers of the Valleron robbery too close to home, and until Kidman and his friends had somehow been disposed of, she didn't feel like straying too far, especially as William was not available to call on for help.

 

Meanwhile Maria Fenton had continued to search the ruins of the Dower House for the button her brother-in-law had lost. Her mind was not fully on the search. She was far more seriously worried about the disappearance of the picture of the fountain. Since the day before that had become a very serious matter indeed. It occurred to her that some of the men now at work on the Dower House might have worked on the main house too, and might have seen the picture there. She decided to ask them, but without letting them suspect how des per ate she really was. ‘I seem to be having such bad luck at present,' she said lightly. ‘First I lose a button off my pelisse, and then a picture I particularly wanted, and which Sir William was ready to sell me, seems to have
disappeared. He tells me it might be on a rubbish heap some where. Could you ask if anyone has seen it? It was a picture of the fountain in the garden. I was so disappointed when he told me it had gone.'

She shuddered inwardly as she said this. Disappointment was hardly the issue. She was very afraid it might be more a question of life or death. Why on earth had she not realised that Kidman was in the house when she had come back from her excursion to Charlwood with William Ashenden? Now, as she watched the men, a picture of the scene from the day before was vivid in her mind. She had arrived home and Walter had asked her where she had been…

 

‘To Charlwood with William Ashenden. If you must know, I was looking once again for the Valleron jewels, though he didn't know that, of course.'

‘I thought you had given him up? As I remember it, you called him a conceited oaf.'

‘Yes, well, he came here today while you were out and started making up to me again. He still doesn't know I'm not as rich as I pretend, and he's fallen out with Emily Winbolt.'

‘Sis, it's time you stopped thinking about Ashenden and concentrated on the Valleron stuff instead.'

‘If you were to ask me, Walter, I'd say that Ashenden might be a better future prospect for me than the “Valleron stuff”, as you call it. That won't be found for years. If ever.'

‘What the devil do you mean by that? Why not?'

Her angry frustration had caused her to be less cautious than usual. ‘Because the key to it has probably been thrown on the rubbish heap, that's why!'

A different voice, and one to be dreaded, asked softly, ‘What's this about a key, Maria?'

She whirled round in shock. Kidman stood in the doorway. Staring at him, Maria was not deceived by his dispassionate look of enquiry. She had once seen him, with just the same look on his face, using his own methods to question a man until he was screaming for mercy.

‘Kidman!' she exclaimed nervously. ‘How…how wonderful to see you! I…I was just about to say I wished you were here. We need your help.'

‘What key?' He took a step closer, and this time his voice was even softer. ‘Tell me.'

Maria did the best she could in spite of the shivers running up and down her spine. ‘I…I've been thinking and thinking about those last hours with Edric. It…it was all so confused, and I…I was distressed. Very distressed. It's not surprising I didn't remember it all at once. It was so…so p-painful that p-perhaps my mind didn't want to remember. You can under stand that, can't you?' He stared at her in silence and she tried not to stammer as she went on. ‘I t-told you he had mentioned the fountain.'

‘You did. As I remember, Maria, you told me that after a touch of prompting. But not before.'

‘Yes, yes. I know. That was…was b-because I…I didn't think it was important. I thought Edric was just muttering nonsense. B-but when I really thought about it afterwards, it…it became c-clear to me that it might have been
fountain.
Silly of me, wasn't it? And then just…just recently it came back to me that it hadn't been just the fountain. He had said
picture
as well.
Picture
of the fountain. S-so I went to look for…for a p-picture of the fountain.' She tried to give him a flattering smile. ‘You
always thought the jewels were inside the house, didn't you? I think you must have been right—as usual.'

Kidman listened in silence, but it was clear that he was not taken in by this tale. She added, ‘I was hoping to surprise you, Kidman, I swear!'

‘Do you know, Maria, if I didn't know you better, I'd say you were lying to me. That you were looking for those jewels—my jewels—for yourself. But you wouldn't do that, would you? I think
you
know
me
better than that.' He came closer still and caught her wrist. ‘I don't like liars, Maria. Especially when they're trying to cheat me.'

‘I wasn't! You're hurting me, Kidman, and I don't deserve it,' cried Maria with a sob in her voice. He threw her away from him so that she stumbled and fell.

‘Find the picture,' he said. ‘If that is the key, I want it. Find it.'

Still on the floor, she cried, ‘But I can't! I've searched the house for the damned picture, but I couldn't find it. And then Ashenden said it had probably been thrown on the rubbish heap.'

‘Then get in to the rubbish heap and turn it over until you find it, Maria. Otherwise…' He paused. ‘Otherwise I might think you're playing with me. I might even suspect you know where my jewels are already, and have a…dangerous ambition to keep them yourself.' She scram bled to get up, and he made no attempt to help her. He waited for her to stand, then pulled her to him and caressed her throat with long fingers. ‘Don't, Maria. The jewels wouldn't look pretty on a corpse.'

‘I don't know where they are! I swear I don't. Walter, why don't you tell him?' But Walter was silent.

Kidman went to the door. ‘I'll be back tomorrow or the next day,' he said. ‘Find the picture.'

 

He had gone again, taking Walter with him. She didn't know where. Kidman had always come and gone like a ghost. And she had been left alone and afraid. She had even considered flight, but where would she go? He or one of the others was sure to hunt her down, and the end would be the same. Now, after a sleep less night, she was here at the Dower House. Maria looked round her. What was she doing here now, looking for a button that might or might not incriminate Walter, when Kidman might appear again at any moment? She was lost!

‘Mrs Fenton! Ma'am!' It was William's man. ‘We haven't found no button, ma'am, but one of the men says he thinks he knows where your picture might be.'

‘What?'

‘Your picture, ma'am. One of the men heard young Master James talking about it when he was here after the fire. He's got it.'

‘Master James? You mean Sir William's nephew?'

‘That's the one. He's got it at Mr Winbolt's house. He calls it his treasure trove, or some such nonsense.'

The relief was so enormous that Maria felt a moment's dizziness. This was such a totally unexpected reprieve. At first she was quite unable to speak, then, as the man stared, she recovered enough to thank him before hurrying back home to consider how she could get hold of this all-important picture…

 

Maria's luck seemed to have turned. The next day, after a little judicious questioning in the village, two facts emerged that would make her plan much easier to carry out than she had feared. One was that Sir William Ashenden was in London on business and would
not be back till the following day, and the other was that the Winbolts were to visit Lady Langley that very afternoon. Armed with this information, she set out for Shearings, fully in tending to arrive after the Winbolts had left.

Nevertheless, she said at the door how disappointed she was to have missed
dear
Mrs Winbolt, especially as she had brought some little sweets for the
darling
children. She was afraid for a moment that the stupid man at the door was not going to react as she had hoped. She said charmingly, ‘Perhaps I could just see Master James and his sister?' To her relief he said after a pause,

‘Well, ma'am, the children are out in the park for a walk with Miss Anstey. You could meet them there, if you wish.'

Better and better! Maria walked grace fully along the path towards the park, and when she saw Miss Anstey and the children she greeted them warmly and asked if she might join them on their walk. Charity Anstey had not met Mrs Fenton, but she knew of her, and was impressed by her air of fashion. The children seemed to know the lady too, and had responded naturally to her greeting, so Charity was quite ready to agree. So they all set off again along the avenue of trees, and soon Maria had them talking about Charlwood. James might have been told not to mention his picture outside the house, but the boy was no match for one of the most skilled manipulators in London. Mrs Fenton had the right credentials in his eyes to be an exception. She had visited Shearings more than once, and obviously knew Charlwood very well. What was more, she was interested in treasure trove, too. In no time at all James was telling Mrs Fenton all about
his
bits of treasure trove, including his prize possession.

At the end of the walk Charity Anstey was impressed by Mrs Fenton's kindness and patience with the children, and grateful to her for keeping them, James especially, so amused. Maria herself was more than grateful. Before she left for home that afternoon, she knew all she needed, about the picture, about where Uncle William had put it for safety, and about how to get in to the East Wing without bothering the servants.

 

That night, as soon as she thought the children would be in bed and asleep and the servants in their own quarters, she put her plan into practice. It was some time since she had last visited premises without their owner's knowledge, but it all came back to her. And in fact, because it was not often in use, she found the East Wing at Shearings ridiculously easy to get into. In a surprisingly short time she was on her way back home with the all-important picture in her possession.

 

It was just as well. Kidman arrived the noon the next day with Walter at his side and in no mood for prevarication. He was as tense as she had ever seen him. ‘Where is it?' were his first words. With a touch of triumph in her smile, Maria handed the picture to him. But, far from looking pleased, he said grimly, ‘Why was I so sure that you would “manage” to find it, Maria? Where was it? Hidden in your room? I warn you, one of these days you will play your tricks once too often.' He looked at the picture. ‘What the devil is this? Are you trying to gull me again?'