The Workhouse Girl (25 page)

She settled in the chair on the opposite side of the hearth. ‘I know you told me to leave it until today, but I went to fetch the horse and cart, sir. The servants think they can stay here no matter what, but I thought if we go now we could take some of Mrs Arbuthnot's things.'

‘I agree, Sarah. Trigg might have purchased the property but that doesn't entitle him to the contents, which presumably belong to Mrs Arbuthnot.'

‘I think so, sir.'

‘I wanted to speak to the good lady, but Dorcas tells me that she is indisposed and it's not surprising, given the circumstances.'

‘She is very upset, sir.'

‘Understandably so.'

‘You have something to tell me, Mr Moorcroft. Is it good news? Have you raised the money to get Grey out of prison?'

‘Don't worry about that, Sarah. It's all in hand.' He leaned towards her, lowering his voice. ‘This is a delicate matter and one that I must stress must be kept strictly between us. I don't want Mrs Arbuthnot to be bothered with the knowledge I am going to impart to you.'

‘I can keep a secret, sir.'

‘What I am about to tell you is strictly against my principles as a lawyer, but I want to help you and the good lady who has been so cruelly cheated of her home.'

Sensing that they were not alone, Sarah turned her head and saw Mrs Arbuthnot standing in the doorway. ‘Who are you, sir? And what is it that you are afraid to say to my face?'

Moorcroft rose to his feet. ‘I beg your pardon, madam. I was informed that you were indisposed and unable to see me.'

‘I am quite well, thank you,' Mrs Arbuthnot said coldly. ‘And I want to know what is going on. Why are you all whispering behind my back? I'm not a child.'

‘It's my doing, ma'am.' Sarah leapt to her feet. ‘Mr Moorcroft is a solicitor. We met by chance yesterday and he has been trying to help us.'

‘I am still the mistress in this house, Sarah. I decide who should handle my affairs, and I don't think I should trust a man who admits to putting aside his principles.'

Moorcroft bowed his head. ‘I apologise for any offence my actions may have caused, but I hate injustice and it's obvious that you have been badly done by. If you will just hear me out maybe I can convince you that I am sincere in my wish to help.'

With obvious reluctance, Sophia Arbuthnot took a seat. ‘I'm listening.'

Moorcroft was about to speak when Dorcas burst into the room. ‘You got to come right away, madam. They're hammering on the door like they mean to break it down. I dunno what to do.'

DORCAS PUT HER
lips to the keyhole. ‘Go away, you brutes. Leave us alone.'

‘Open up or we'll call the police. This property belongs to Mr Thaddeus Trigg.'

Sarah covered her mouth with her hand to stifle a hysterical giggle. ‘Thaddeus,' she whispered.

Dorcas nudged her in the ribs. ‘Shut up. It's not funny.'

Mrs Arbuthnot had come up behind them. She tapped Dorcas on the shoulder. ‘Out of the way, Dorcas. I'll deal with this.'

‘Don't open the door, ma'am,' Dorcas said urgently. ‘They'll attack us poor defenceless females.'

‘Nonsense,' Mrs Arbuthnot said, pushing her aside. ‘I want to see the title deeds in Trigg's name before I let him take my home. That's right, isn't it, Mr Moorcroft?'

‘I would certainly say so, ma'am. But these men are not used to dealing with ladies like you. Would you allow me to speak to them?'

The hammering on the door increased and she backed away. ‘Perhaps it might help. But I won't leave until it's absolutely necessary. I refuse to be bullied, Mr Moorcroft.'

‘You are very brave, ma'am.' He turned to Dorcas. ‘Keep the door closed. I'll go out though the tradesmen's entrance. They won't be expecting that.'

‘I'll show you the way, sir.' Dorcas fled in the direction of the back stairs and Moorcroft followed at a slower pace.

Sarah gazed anxiously at Mrs Arbuthnot. ‘Come and sit down, ma'am. Leave it to Mr Moorcroft. I'm sure he'll make them see sense.'

‘Thank you, my dear. I will sit down. It's been a very trying time, but I won't give in to grief or hysteria. My dear husband protected me from everything during his lifetime but I am stronger than he gave me credit for.'

‘I'm sure you are, ma'am.' Sarah led her unprotesting to the parlour and seated her by the fire. ‘Would you like a cup of tea?'

‘Thank you. That would be nice.' Mrs Arbuthnot sat back in the chair and closed her eyes. ‘I dare not imagine what will happen to us all if we have to leave this house.'

Sarah hesitated in the doorway. ‘Have you any relatives you could depend upon, ma'am?'

‘No one, Sarah. All dead and gone, every last one of them.'

‘You have me, ma'am. You took me in when I was a nipper and I'll stand by you.'

‘You are a good girl and you deserve a better life than one of servitude.'

‘I'll fetch the tea. You rest there and let Mr Moorcroft sort things out. He's a good man.' Sarah closed the door softly behind her as she left the room. The hammering had ceased and the house was suddenly and eerily silent. She made her way down the back stairs to the kitchen.

Cook was standing by the area door brandishing a copper-bottomed saucepan and Dorcas stood behind her with a rolling pin in her hand. Betty was curled up on the floor with a blanket over her head but no one seemed to notice. Sarah went over to her and lifted her to her feet. ‘It's all right, Betty. No one is going to harm you.'

‘Bad men, miss. There are bad men out there and they hurt girls. They do nasty things to them and beat them if they cry. I knows it for certain.'

‘Mr Moorcroft will send them away. He's a lawyer and he won't let them do anything to hurt you.'

‘If you say so, miss.'

‘Good girl. Sit quietly in the corner and I'll give you a piece of cake.'

‘Don't pander to her,' Dorcas said crossly. ‘She'll do anything for something sweet. She's not such a fool as she makes out.'

Betty began to sniffle and Cook stepped outside into the area, banging the saucepan with a wooden spoon. ‘I'll soon sort 'em out.'

‘No!' Sarah and Dorcas cried in unison as they dragged her into the relative safety of the kitchen and slammed the door.

‘Leave it to Mr Moorcroft,' Sarah said breathlessly. ‘He's got the law on his side and he knows what to say.' She cocked her head on one side. ‘It's gone quiet out there.'

Moments later they saw Moorcroft descending the area steps. Sarah ran to open the door. ‘Have they gone, sir?'

He entered the kitchen, pausing to wipe beads of sweat from his brow. ‘I managed to convince them that we needed to see proof of ownership. It buys us a little time, that's all.'

Cook uttered a low moan. ‘Where will I find another position at my age? I'll end up in the workhouse with the idiot girl.'

Taking her by the shoulders Dorcas gave her a sharp shake. ‘Stop that, or you'll start Betty off again. None of us are going to come out of this smelling of roses. I should have married Wally and not set me cap at the sugar baker. I'll end up an old maid, doomed to spend the rest of me life in service.'

‘None of this is her fault, Dorcas.' Sarah slipped between them and helped Cook to her chair by the range. ‘Let Mr Moorcroft have his say. He's trying to help.'

‘I'll do my best,' Moorcroft said warily. ‘But please don't give way to despair yet, ladies. I'm going to speak to Mrs Arbuthnot and see what we can do.' He beckoned to Sarah. ‘Come with me, my dear. And bring the sal volatile if you have any to hand.'

Dorcas reached up to take a small brown bottle from the dresser. ‘A whiff of this would bring anyone round unless they was dead.' She plucked her shawl from a peg near the door. ‘I'm going to get help.'

Moorcroft frowned. ‘The police won't be able to interfere in a civil case unless there is violence.'

She wrapped the shawl around her head. ‘Who said anything about the cops? Franz and his mates will see off Trigg's bullies.' She was out of the door and tearing up the area steps before anyone could stop her.

‘I was hoping to settle this without resorting to violence,' Moorcroft said with a sigh. ‘Let's hope that firebrand doesn't start a riot.'

Upstairs in the parlour Moorcroft stood with his back to the fire, gazing anxiously at Mrs Arbuthnot. ‘I've bought us some time, ma'am. But your maid has gone to fetch help, and I'm afraid that this could turn nasty.'

She raised her eyes to his face and her bottom lip quivered. ‘Do you think that Trigg was telling the truth?'

‘Is it true that your husband remortgaged the property, Mrs Arbuthnot?'

She looked away. ‘Yes, I'm afraid he did. James was desperate to raise the funds in order to rebuild the sugar mill but it all went wrong. The money was lost and my poor husband was so ill that I hadn't the heart to tell him.'

‘You've known about this for some time?'

‘Yes,' she said in a low voice. ‘I tried to make ends meet by taking in commercial travellers and then I had to sell or pawn anything that was of value. I kept up the payments for as long as I could, but there were doctors' bills and so many expenses. I'm not a business woman, Mr Moorcroft.' Her voice broke on a sob. ‘But I did my best.'

Sarah laid her hand on her shoulder. ‘You've been very brave, ma'am.'

‘Quite heroic,' Moorcroft said, clearing his throat. ‘But now I know more of your circumstances I think we should face the inevitable.'

‘You mean that I'll lose my home.' Mrs Arbuthnot's face crumpled and tears rolled unchecked down her cheeks.

‘I'll do anything I can to help, ma'am. Please don't cry.' Sarah looked around the room, realising for the first time that the shelves were bare of ornaments. The ormolu clock that had once graced the mantelshelf with a garniture of two matching candelabra had also disappeared, and there were faded patches on the walls where oil paintings of rural scenes had once hung. She sent a pleading glance to Moorcroft. ‘What can we do?'

‘The first thing must be to find alternative accommodation,' he said slowly. ‘And it would be wise to remove as many of your possessions as possible, Mrs Arbuthnot. I'm afraid that the arrival of the bailiffs is a definite possibility if you still owe money.'

‘I don't know if Cook has paid the tradesmen,' she said, holding her hanky to her streaming eyes. ‘I'm not very good at handling money or keeping the household accounts. I've been leaving it to her.'

Moorcroft drew Sarah aside. ‘I think you ought to start packing Mrs Arbuthnot's personal effects and anything of value that you can find. She may have to leave in rather a hurry.'

Sarah nodded wordlessly. She knew that it made sense to be prepared to evacuate the house but she did not know where to begin. Leaving Moorcroft to comfort Mrs Arbuthnot, she went downstairs hoping that Dorcas might have returned, but she found Cook collapsed in her chair with the sherry bottle held to her lips. Betty eyed her warily as she cowered in the corner, stuffing the remains of the cake into her mouth.

Sarah could see that neither of them was going to be much help and she was about to go upstairs and begin packing when she saw Dorcas and Franz coming down the steps. She ran to open the door. ‘Well?'

Flushed and breathless Dorcas smiled triumphantly. ‘Franz is going to help. Tell her what you told me, Franz.'

He entered the kitchen, dragging off his cap. ‘There's an empty house in Elbow Lane. I know it because I walk that way when I call for Miss Parfitt at the school. One of the sugar bakers bought the place for his aged parents, but they died last year and he wants to sell it.'

‘Hold on, Franz,' Dorcas said angrily. ‘You never said nothing about buying the house. The mistress is all but bankrupt.'

‘I've been saving my earnings for some time and I intend to purchase the property, but I don't want to live there until I have a wife to make a home for me.'

Dorcas blushed rosily. ‘Oh, Franz. Have you anyone in mind?'

‘That's for me to know. I won't speak up until I'm ready and in the meantime I would gladly let Mrs Arbuthnot live there until she finds somewhere better. It is in a poor state and I would not charge rent. An empty house is not good.'

Dorcas's mouth turned down at the corners and her eyes narrowed. ‘You're not thinking of proposing to the schoolteacher, are you? She thinks she's a cut above you, Franz Beckman.'

‘Again, that is for me to know.' He turned to Sarah. ‘Will you take me to the mistress? I would like to speak to her personally.'

‘I'm the head parlourmaid,' Dorcas said, pushing Sarah out of the way. ‘She's not even employed here, and all our troubles are due to her in the first place. If Mr Arbuthnot hadn't taken her and that flighty carrot-headed girl from the workhouse, none of this would have happened. I would have been a married woman and Cook wouldn't have a tendency to take nips of the cooking sherry when things go wrong.' Dorcas sent a warning look to Sarah as if daring her to argue, and tossing her head she flounced up the stairs. ‘Come on, Franz. Don't stand there gawping like a fish on a slab. The bailiffs could turn up at any moment.'

He paused at the foot of the stairs, glancing over his shoulder with a hint of a grin. ‘And she wonders why she is still unmarried.'

The decision was made and Sarah suspected that it was Moorcroft who had persuaded Mrs Arbuthnot that there was no alternative but to leave as quickly as possible. Cook was sobered up with cups of strong coffee. She was still slightly groggy and unsteady on her feet but she rallied sufficiently to help Betty pack up the kitchen utensils and the crockery, together with any foodstuffs they found in the larder. Franz had sent for some of his fellow workers, who carried everything to the waiting cart. Dorcas and Sarah concentrated on the rest of the house and the first load was sent off to Elbow Lane with Franz on the driver's seat and his mate Heinrich at his side.