The Unknown Mr. Brown (7 page)

CHAPTER FOUR

VICTORIA had ample time in the watches of the night to review not only her own disturbed emotions but Kate’s too, and as Robert had predicted, by the morning hostility had returned. He was stopping over Monday as a brief concession to overstrain, and her elaborate manoeuvres to keep out of his way apparently passed unnoticed. He made no attempt to seek her out.

John Squires looked in on them before lunch to run a professional eye over Timmy, evidently surprised and not too pleased to find the weekend guest was still with them. Victoria liked the quiet, uncommunicative doctor who was a widower with a growing practice in the district and, listening to the two men’s casual exchanges over their beer, realised that neither much cared for the other. She had long suspected that John Squires had more than a friendly interest in Kate and no doubt resented Robert’s easy claim to her hospitality, but familiar now with the betraying nuance which could creep into a desultory remark almost unnoticed, she thought that Robert, too, was not immune from the natural antagonism of the possessive male.

“Still waiting and hoping, seeking no reward but the comfort of your smile and, presumably, the periodical settling of his bill?” Robert said when the doctor had driven away.

“Don’t be so absurd, Rob! John takes a great interest in Timmy and has always thought that something could be done about that leg when he’s older,” Kate said a little brusquely, but she flushed very slightly and Victoria, because she considered that if he was aware of Kate’s feelings for himself, Robert had no right to make fun of her in this fashion, remarked with some tartness:

“It’s easy to jeer at qualities one doesn’t possess oneself.”

She should have kept her mouth shut, of course, for Robert turned round to look at her absently as if he had forgotten her presence and observed with amusement: “Dear me! Is it possible that you, too, have fallen a victim to the good doctor’s hidden virtues? Kate, you must look to your laurels in the face of unexpected competition,”

“Be quiet, Robert! Your humour is ill-placed since it’s obvious neither of us has anything but honest liking for a very good friend. I don’t know what’s got into you since yesterday,” Kate said with most unusual asperity.

“I must have got out on the wrong side of my bed, as they say in the nursery,” he replied meekly. “And here’s another who made the same error, didn’t you, Victoria Mary?”

“I’ll go and get Timmy cleaned up for lunch, Kate,” Victoria said, pointedly ignoring him, and went out of the room.

“You see!” Kate said as the door closed with the faint suggestion of a slam.

“What am I supposed to see? A little girl who takes teasing as a personal affront when she should know better?”

“I’m not at all sure that wasn’t your intention. You may be regretting your lapse of yesterday, Robert, but you don’t need to rub it in by being deliberately hurtful. Victoria may be inexperienced, but she has enough savoir faire to take such things at their proper value.”

“What things?”

“Oh, don’t be so tiresome! I was only trying to say that she’s unlikely to have taken your advances seriously.”

“Advances—what a delightfully old-fashioned expression! But only yesterday, sweet Kate, you were trying to convince me of the opposite. Putting ideas into her head, you said.”

“On the contrary, it was you who said that when I suggested you might send her some flowers for her birthday.”

“So I did. Anyway, don’t you think we’re making rather much of a very commonplace incident?”

“Not so commonplace in Victoria’s reckoning, I don’t mind betting. Now, will you do some chores in the village for me after lunch? Timmy is dying for a drive in your new and opulent motor and you can take Victoria, too, and establish a truce.”

But the outing was not a success. Before starting off Victoria, who had not wanted to go, viewed the Bentley’s elegant lines without enthusiasm and when asked by Robert for her opinion, observed rashly: “Sleek and superior rather like you,” which she had to admit later was not a promising overture to friendly relations. Robert insisted on Victoria taking the wheel, thinking, no doubt, she would enjoy handling a quality car after Kate’s ancient and sober old Morris. She had passed her test some time ago and was quite confident when driving the familiar Morris, but Robert’s Bentley was a different matter altogether and he made her nervous.

“For goodness’ sake, don’t stamp on the accelerator like that! This car’s a high-powered lethal weapon and will rocket us straight into kingdom come if you don’t watch out,” he exclaimed on one occasion.

“You do it on purpose for the fun of it—just the same way you enjoyed tearing strips off me that day in court,” she said, and he was surprised to see tears in her eyes.

“Oh, come now! I don’t enjoy the mishandling of a fine piece of machinery. It sets my teeth on edge,” he protested, ignoring her accusation.

“Then why insist that I drive the beastly thing when you know very well I’m inexperienced?”

“I merely thought it would give you pleasure. Tell me, Victoria, is all this sudden antagonism a result of yesterday’s charming little interlude?”

She sat very still beside him, blinking back the tears which already shamed her. She wanted to dismiss that episode as casually as he seemed to regard it and hurt him if she could for supposing that it might have meant anything more to her, but he unexpectedly cupped her averted chin in gentle fingers, turning her round to face him, and she remembered only the pleasure of his touch and Kate’s overheard words as she came down the stairs.

“Dear Victoria Mary, don’t turn me into an ogre just to satisfy your belief that there must be a villain in every self-respecting fairy-story,” he said softly, and she smiled a little tremulously.

“I suppose Kate told you that.”

“Oh yes, among other things. I suppose I should feel flattered that I unknowingly shared the honours with Mr. Brown in your flights of fancy, even if I
was
cast for the part of the Demon King.”

He was smiling at her with that cajoling tenderness which only yesterday had surprised her into compliance, and she experienced a brief return of that curious desire to forget her preconceived notions and simply please him. She made a small gesture of hesitancy towards him, but they had both forgotten Timmy.

“Why’ve you stopped? What you want to quarrel for? Where’s the Demon King? Want to
see
him!” he wailed, and when Victoria, remorseful at her own neglect, reached back to draw him to her, he struck at her outstretched hands, called her a rude name and started to bawl.

“That’s enough, young man,” Robert said, his laughter gone, and lifted the child over the back of the seat and deposited him in the road with one quick movement. “Now, Timmy—little boys who behave badly aren’t wanted on motor drives. Are you going to say sorry to Toria for hitting her or do we leave you behind in the road?”

The boy stood, scarlet and hiccoughing on the grass staring up at his godfather, dimly aware that something besides his own behaviour had sparked off this unfamiliar anger, but unwilling to admit defeat.

“You—you wouldn’t
really
l-leave me here, Uncle Rab,” he spluttered, torn between doubt and defiance.

“Oh, yes, I would. It’s time you learnt that boys don’t hit girls, whatever the provocation.”

“Toria wouldn’t let you—besides, I’m lame. Lame boys have special attention.”

“Toria will do as I tell her if she knows what’s good for her, and you’re no more entitled to special attention than other children. You were born lame, so you’ve known nothing different.”

There was silence, punctuated only by Timmy’s hiccoughing sobs and the cackling of hens from a nearby farmyard. Victoria, who had slid over into the passenger seat, made no further move to intervene but watched the small contest of wills with interest. It was rare in her experience for Robert to use his authority with Kate’s son, but it was evidently not the first time.

The little comedy by the roadside came to an abrupt end when Robert reached out a hand to the dashboard and switched on the ignition. To Timmy, the sound of the gently idling engine was the final proof that desertion was imminent and without more ado he flung himself upon Victoria in a fierce abandonment of remorse.

“Good!” said Robert cheerfully, taking his seat behind the wheel. “Now that we’re all friends again you shall sit between us in the front, Timmy, and if you’re very quiet and good I’ll let you steer between my hands.”

Timmy, thus reinstated to a position of importance, held their attention all the way home, but once there he did not take kindly to being banished to the kitchen to take tea with Elspeth, and Kate, obliged to deal both with tears and Elspeth’s ruffled feelings, was in no mood to bear tolerantly with her cousin’s amused explanation of the original cause of the trouble.

“Yes, that’s all very well,” she said, for once finding no favour with Robert’s handling of her son, “but Timmy isn’t as strong as other children and when he gets overexcited, trouble can start. You at least should know that by now, Victoria—or were you too much engrossed with your own affairs to give a thought to your charge?”

The sudden attack was so uncharacteristic that Victoria was too taken aback to make any coherent reply and it was Robert who answered for her.

“Your young employee had been suffering discomfort on her own account, and might therefore be excused,” he said on a faint note of irony, and Kate looked up quickly.

“And what might that mean?” she asked sharply, but he gave her one of his slow, tantalising grins.

“Not what you’re obviously thinking, careful Kate. I had mistakenly urged the poor girl to try the Bentley thinking only to give pleasure, and she didn’t take kindly to my comments on her driving.”

There was a moment of rather flat silence during which Victoria could find no gratitude for Robert’s intervention, then Kate gave a small apologetic laugh and hastily pressed fresh cups of tea upon them.

“I’m sorry, Victoria, I’ve been making mountains out of molehills, I’m afraid. Forgive me and have some more cake.”

“Yes, you have, haven’t you?” Robert said before Victoria could reply. “I wonder what can have provoked such an unusual display of feminine pique.”

But Victoria had a strong suspicion, and since she judged by Robert’s false air of innocence that he was equally aware of the answer, hostility rose in her again.

“Since you’re a man you’d only recognise one reason for feminine pique, whatever that may mean, but women, let me tell you, allow small trivialities to upset a mood which have nothing whatever to do with the sexes,” she said, putting down her empty cup and getting to her feet. “If you’ll excuse me, Kate, I’ll go up and read to Timmy until it’s time to put him to bed.”

“Well, there’s gratitude for you!” Robert exclaimed as the door closed behind her. “I strive to excuse your employee’s imagined shortcomings by stating the facts and get put in my place for my pains!”

“Serve you right, too! You know very well, Rob, that your intentions were anything but altruistic. You wanted to embarrass the child, didn’t you?” Kate replied, and somewhat absently poured herself a third cup of tea.

“It’s not easy to embarrass Miss Victoria Mary Hayes when her hackles are up, but I confess I find her unpredictable reactions rather endearing,” he said, and received a straight old-fashioned look from his cousin.

“If I, didn’t know you better I’d have serious misgivings on the wisdom of encouraging these odd weekends,” she said bluntly. “It would be a pity, if you succeeded in turning the girl's head just because you find her unpredictable reactions rather endearing.”

“Would you say there was any chance of her head being turned when the remembered image of the first Mr. Robert Farmer is forever looking over my shoulder?” he asked her with mock despair, and she shook her head at him.

“Don’t play games just for the masculine satisfaction in breaking down resistance. It wouldn’t be fair,” she answered soberly, and the humour went from his face leaving it grave and suddenly tired.

“No, it wouldn’t be fair,” he said gently. “Don’t anticipate contingencies that may never arise, sweet Kate; just remember that I’m grateful for the past years and your unfailing support and hospitality and wouldn’t willingly give you cause for concern, imagined or otherwise.”

“Dear Rob ...” she said with a little smile of acceptance, “has the thaw set in at last?”

“The thaw?”

“That protective wall of ice you fashioned for yourself to shut Irene out. It’s been so long.”

“Yes, I suppose it has. Well, don’t be too hasty with your metaphors, my dear. If ice melts too quickly it leaves nothing behind but a puddle of dirty water—no solid foundation on which to build again—so leave me a few stubborn icicles to bolster up my morale,” he said with a return to his old manner, and she knew that the moment for confidences had passed.

“Well,” she said, “I’d better go up to the nursery and do my share of story-telling. Will you come up later to say good night? Timmy’s very jealous of his Uncle Rob’s attentions.”

“Yes, I'll be up. I don’t think you’ll find my halo’s slipped, you know. Timmy was quite aware that he was being not only rude but wrong in hitting out at Victoria.”

“Yes, and of course you were quite right to check him. I don’t know why I made such a thing of it.”

“Don’t you? Well, never mind. It’s been rather an unsettling week-end altogether, so perhaps we’ve all been acting a little out of character.”

But although with Robert’s departure the next morning the household appeared to settle back into its normal quiet routine, Victoria was conscious of change. Perhaps she imagined a slight withdrawal in Kate and only fancied a certain coolness in Elspeth, but she found herself hoping that pressure of work would keep Robert away from Farthings for a time, for not least of her doubts was the curious effect on her own emotions. She did not flatter herself that his behaviour on Sunday afternoon meant any more than an impulse of the moment born of idleness and a masculine desire to experiment, but she wished now that she had slapped his face in the traditional manner instead of responding with such undisguised pleasure.

With the dawn of her birthday, however, such fancies were dispelled by the goodwill and small attentions surrounding her. Kate, very conscious that their quiet country life offered little in the way of excitement to a young and attractive girl, had tried to make the day a festive one with small surprises and presents hidden in unlikely places, just as she planned for Timmy on like occasions, and Elspeth contributed with a splendid cake ablaze with twenty candles.

The morning’s post had brought the usual small cheque from the solicitors, together with the customary handkerchiefs from Scottie and Robert’s promised birthday card. Kate privately thought Robert might have found time to choose a personal gift, knowing that Victoria had no relations to remember her, but if Victoria was disappointed there had been no time to dwell on it, for all her pleasure had culminated in the biggest surprise of the morning. Five dozen red roses had arrived by special delivery packed with all the extravagant trimmings of ribbons and bows and a card attached by a silver cord which read simply:
With the compliments of Mr. Brown
.