The Reluctant Heiress

by Dilly Court

  Dinner that evening was a strained affair. Kate could see that in spite of what he said, Perry was shocked by her father’s assumption that he had been aware of the debt he was about to incur. She waited until Perry had taken his leave of her parents, and she followed him from the room.

  ‘You didn’t know about the money, did you?’

  ‘I must be very naïve,’ he said ruefully. ‘But all this has happened so quickly that I honestly hadn’t given it a thought. Although, of course, your father is well within his rights to ask for payment.’

  ‘I could see that you were taken aback. The point is, can you find the money to buy Papa out?’

  ‘I don’t have much choice, Kate. I’ll do my utmost to raise the necessary sum.’ He gave her a searching look. ‘But what about you? I thought you seemed out of sorts when I arrived earlier this evening.’

  She had decided to confide in him, hoping that he might know of a philanthropic backer to finance her scheme, but this was obviously not the time. She managed a weary smile. ‘I expect I was a bit tired, that’s all. I’ve had rather a busy day.’

  ‘Ahem.’ Henry hovered at Perry’s side.

  ‘Thank you, Henry.’ Perry acknowledged the footman with a brief smile. He put on his hat and tipped it at a rakish angle. ‘Good night, Kate. I’ll see you again very soon, I hope.’

  She smiled. ‘You can count on it, Perry. I might need some legal advice.’

  ‘Call in at my chambers at any time. It will be more private there and we can talk.’

  Later that evening, alone in her room, Kate counted the money she had saved from her monthly allowance. Her father was not overgenerous, but neither was he mean, and he was quite open about his purely selfish motives for having a well-turned-out daughter. Kate knew that this was partly due to her beloved uncle Edgar, who had criticised his brother for being parsimonious, and it was he who had insisted upon her being given a generous amount of pin money. Her father had continued this on their return to London, but she suspected that this was part of his plan to see her married off to someone rich and influential. Whatever happened, and no matter how much her parents disapproved, Kate was determined to marry for love, and if she could not be with Ash, she would remain single.

  The coins lay on her satin coverlet, glinting in the firelight, and she counted them once again. There was one pound and ninepence halfpenny. If she could reach a reasonable bargain with the owner of the premises in Cable Street she would have enough money left to make a start. Quite how she would finance the charity when her cash ran out was another matter, but she would face that when necessary. She placed the coins in her reticule and tucked it under her pillow – a habit that she had developed during her three years in Delhi where it was not unknown for monkeys to enter buildings and steal anything on which they could lay their tiny fingers.

  She rang the bell for Jenny to release her from the confines of her tightly laced stays.

  Kate was up early next morning, and set off for Cable Street on her own this time. She would have taken Jenny, but it would cause trouble both above and below stairs if she went against her mother’s wishes. Kate missed Jenny’s company, but she would have to work upon Mama’s better nature if she wanted to have her own personal maid. First and foremost she would have to swallow her pride and apologise.

  However, once set upon a mission, Kate was determined to see it through, and she hailed a cab. This cabby made no comment on her destination and he dropped her off outside the premises, accepting the fare but refusing to wait for her.

  ‘I’d be losing work if I sat around waiting for passengers. I got a living to make, miss. I got nippers to feed, so I’ll be on me way.’

  Despite her protests he drove off and she was left alone in the alien surroundings of Cable Street. She was assailed on all sides by unfamiliar noises from the docks, together with the rumble of trains as they headed towards the end of the line at the Minories, and the sound of booted feet pounding the pavements. The people who trudged up and down Cable Street were poorly dressed, especially when compared with those who lived and worked in the more affluent area of Finsbury Square. Kate was getting very odd looks from passers-by as she waited for Augustus Spears to answer her knock on the door, and she shifted nervously from one foot to the other. He came eventually and somewhat reluctantly allowed her to enter the building. It was half-past nine in the morning, but he was still wearing a grubby nightshirt beneath a faded and equally dirty woollen dressing gown. His bare feet pattered on the tiles as he padded into the kitchen where a desultory fire sputtered and spat sparks as flames licked the damp kindling.

  ‘What time of day d’you call this?’ he demanded crossly. ‘I ain’t even had me first cup of tea this morning.’

  ‘I’m sorry to inconvenience you,’ Kate said tactfully, ‘but I wanted to find out what your employer said to my offer.’

  Spears ran his hand through his long, untidy hair. ‘I never thought you’d come back. This ain’t the place for the likes of you, miss. Go home and do whatever it is that young ladies like you does while the rest of us works ourselves to death.’

  Kate looked round at the grubby floor, the dirty fingermarks on the walls and the peeling paintwork. It did not look as though Augustus Spears overexerted himself in any way. Even his attempts at making a pot of tea were sloppy, and it was obvious that the milk was on the turn. Lumps of curdled cream floated on the top of the murky brown liquid in his cup, but he drank it with relish.

  ‘If you’ll tell me if the landlord will accept my offer I’ll give you my answer and be on my way,’ Kate said reasonably.

  Spears opened his mouth to answer, but the sound of someone rattling the back door made him spin round so violently that he spilled his tea down the front of his nightshirt.

  ‘It’s Trader,’ he said nervously. ‘You’d best nip out the front door, miss. You don’t want nothing to do with Harry Trader.’

  Chapter Four

  Kate was about to tell him that she was going nowhere until she received an answer when the door burst open. A tall, broad-shouldered man, wearing a navy-blue reefer jacket and a peaked cap pulled down over his brow filled the doorway with his presence.

  ‘Harry, my dear friend,’ Spears said in a shaky voice. ‘To what do I owe this honour?’

  ‘Who is this?’ Trader demanded, glowering at Kate.

  She was not about to be cowed by a bully and she stepped forward, facing him with a defiant stare. ‘My name is Kate Martin and I’m the prospective tenant of these premises.’

  He stepped inside, pushing his cap to the back of his head to reveal dark hair waved back from a high forehead. His blue-green eyes, the colour of which put Kate forcibly in mind of the Indian Ocean, gleamed with amusement.

  ‘Why would a young lady like you want to rent this run-down place?’

  ‘Exactly what I said.’ Spears clutched his dressing gown closer around his body, eyeing Trader nervously. ‘Can I do anything for you, Harry?’

  ‘You can get the main room upstairs ready for a meeting tonight, Spears. When I say ready, I mean clean and tidy and a good fire going. Last time I came here it was a disgusting mess.’

  ‘Yes, sir. I does me best.’

  ‘If that’s what you call your best you’d better find yourself another job.’

  ‘Do you own these premises?’ Kate stared at Harry Trader in dismay.

  ‘Not good enough for you, Miss Martin?’ Trader grinned, revealing a row of even white teeth. ‘There’s the door. I suggest you leave now.’

  ‘I’ll go upstairs and start cleaning,’ Spears said hastily.

  ‘No, wait.’ Kate caught him by the sleeve. ‘You said you’d speak to the owner and it’s obvious that you did nothing of the sort.’

  ‘You can ask him yourself.’ Spears retreated into the front room, then there was the sound of his bare feet thudding on the wooden stair treads.

  Kate turned to Trader, arms akimbo. ‘Your man asked for an exorbitant rent.’

&nbs
p; ‘You are persistent, I’ll give you that. But you still haven’t told me why you would want to rent rooms in Cable Street.’

  ‘I intend to open a soup kitchen for the poor and destitute,’ Kate said firmly. She waited, watching his reaction carefully. She half expected him to laugh and dismiss her plan as being ridiculous, but he appeared to be considering her proposition.

  ‘A soup kitchen. What could be a better front than that?’

  ‘What do you mean?’ Kate asked nervously. Harry Trader had succeeded in dismissing all her preconceived ideas of what a gangster looked like and how one behaved. This man might have been a sea captain on leave from his vessel, or a well-to-do merchant. He was well spoken and clean-cut, not at all the sort of person she might have imagined running a criminal gang.

  ‘What did that scoundrel ask for? I mean how much rent did he quote?’

  ‘Ten shillings a month, Mr Trader. I told him it was too much and I intend to run the place as a charity.’

  ‘Ten shillings – the old crook. I’m supposed to be a villain but he is the bad fellow in this. Spears would cheat us both. I’ve no doubt he would take ten shillings from you and hand me five, which is what I charged the last tenant.’

  ‘What happened to that person?’

  Trader threw back his head and laughed. ‘He tried to cheat me, too. He’s inspecting the Thames bed as we speak, although I doubt if he’ll find much to interest him in the river mud.’

  ‘You mean you drowned him?’

  ‘Heaven forbid! No, I pay others to do my dirty work, as you might call it. Remember that, Miss Martin. I am a very bad man, so beware.’ The laughter lines deepened at the corners of his eyes, even though his tone was serious.

  Kate put her head on one side, regarding him with a candid gaze. She suspected that he was laughing at her, and it made her wary. ‘I’ll remember that, Mr Trader.’

  ‘Now you know exactly who I am and what you might expect if you rent the front room and the kitchen, do you still want to pay me five shillings a month rent?’

  ‘Yes, I do,’ Kate said simply. ‘But only if you promise to keep away from my clients. They will come here because they are facing starvation – I don’t want them to be recruited to your gang.’

  ‘You drive a hard bargain, Miss Martin.’ Trader moved towards her, holding out his hand. ‘Do we have a deal?’

  Kate opened her reticule and took out five shillings, which she placed on his palm. ‘A month in advance, Mr Trader.’

  ‘It’s usual to shake on a business agreement,’ he said, smiling. ‘I can see I’ll have to give you lessons in bargaining.’

  ‘I doubt if you could teach me anything of value.’ Kate hesitated. ‘But I will require a door key.’

  Trader shook his head. ‘Spears will let you in. That’s what he’s paid to do, amongst other things. We’ll give it a trial for a month. If at the end of that time either of us is dissatisfied, the arrangement will be terminated. Is that what you consider fair, Miss Martin?’

  ‘Perfectly,’ she said briskly. ‘I’d like to start tomorrow, unless you have any objections.’

  ‘You may begin whenever it suits you. I’ll watch your progress with interest.’

  He opened the street door, bowing her out with exaggerated gallantry.

  Kate arrived home to find her mother in the entrance hall with a small, thin woman of indeterminate age and Henry standing stiffly to attention. Judging by her mother’s expression, Kate knew she was in even more trouble.

  ‘Where have you been all morning, Kate? And why were you out on your own? You know that’s simply not done.’

  ‘I’m sorry, Mama. I had urgent business to attend to and you’ve demoted Jenny, so I don’t have a personal maid.’

  ‘Nonsense. Of course Jenny is your maid,’ Arabella tossed her head. ‘Miss Barnet will wonder what sort of establishment she has come into if we cannot afford such a small luxury.’

  Miss Barnet blushed and bobbed a curtsey. ‘No, indeed, my lady. Such a thought never occurred to me.’

  Arabella turned to Henry, frowning. ‘Why are you standing there like a dummy? I told you to show Miss Barnet to her room, and take her luggage with you.’

  ‘Yes, my lady.’ Henry clicked his heels together and picked up two large carpet bags. ‘This way, if you please, Miss Barnet.’

  ‘You should have been here to assist me, Kate. You knew that Miss Barnet was starting today. I was relying on you to explain her duties. You simply cannot come and go as you please without telling anyone.’

  Kate took off her bonnet and looped her shawl over her arm. ‘As a matter of fact I am involved in some charity work, Mama. You told me that I ought to be doing something worthwhile, and that is what I went out for this morning.’

  ‘I feel quite faint after dealing with the servants on my own. I’ll sip a glass of sherry wine while you tell me exactly what sort of charity work you’re involved in.’

  ‘Yes, Mama. Do you mind if I go to my room first and deposit my bonnet and shawl?’

  ‘I do mind, because you’ll stay there until it’s time for luncheon, and I won’t be any the wiser. You may ring for Jenny and she’ll see to your garments.’ Arabella stalked off towards the morning parlour.

  Kate realised that she was cornered and explaining her motives for starting the soup kitchen would not go down well with her mother. If she mentioned the exact location she could imagine the shocked looks, the long lectures and the ultimate end of her plan. It was frustrating in the extreme, but as an unmarried daughter she was very conscious of the role she had to play. She followed her mother to the morning parlour.

  Arabella seated herself in an armchair by the fire while Kate filled two glasses with sherry and handed one to her mother. In need of Dutch courage, Kate took a rather unladylike swig of her sherry. She knew that she was about to face a cross-examination equal to any meted out in a court of law.

  ‘Well,’ Arabella said, sipping her drink, ‘I’m waiting for an explanation, Kate.’

  ‘The charity feeds the poor and needy, Mama,’ Kate said truthfully. ‘It’s to be run from a premises not too far from the Royal Mint.’

  ‘Which premises? Who is the owner?’

  ‘I believe he is a well-known businessman.’

  ‘What is his name? Have I heard of him?’

  ‘He prefers to remain anonymous, Mama.’

  ‘But I assume he is the patron of this charity.’

  ‘In a manner of speaking, yes, he is. And he’s very wealthy.’

  ‘Is he married?’

  ‘I could hardly ask that, Mama. But he was not wearing a wedding ring.’

  ‘I want to know his name, Kate. He might be anybody.’

  Kate hesitated. She dare not mention Harry Trader, although it was unlikely that his notoriety would have spread this far, it was possible that he might be known to her father. She crossed her fingers behind her back. ‘Augustus Spears, Mama. Augustus Spears, Esquire.’

  ‘Then you must invite Mr Spears to dine with us one evening. If you make the invitation to him and his wife we will know if he is attached or not.’

  ‘Yes, Mama. Would you like another sherry?’

  Arabella held out her glass. ‘After the morning I’ve had, I need a little sustenance. Miss Barnet is very biddable, but a little slow on the uptake. Maybe I ought to keep Jenny and let you have the new person.’

  ‘But Miss Barnet came with an excellent reference from Lady Charlton. Jenny is just our housekeeper’s daughter. Surely you must take precedence, Mama?’

  ‘Yes,’ Arabella said wearily. ‘I suppose you’re right.’

  Having successfully diverted the conversation away from the soup kitchen, Kate refilled her mother’s glass and placed it in her hand. ‘Is it all right if I go and change out of my street clothes?’

  ‘Yes, but I’m still not convinced that getting involved in this so-called charity is a suitable occupation for you, Kate. I think your papa will agree with me.’

 
For once, and to Kate’s astonishment, her father did not share his wife’s concerns about the proposed soup kitchen. At dinner that evening he listened to Kate and applauded her public-spirited intention to feed the poor.

  ‘Bartholomew, I’m shocked,’ Arabella said crossly. ‘I thought you would support me in this.’

  ‘If our daughter is going to be a bluestocking, she might as well do something for others, Arabella. Besides which, Kate’s active involvement in a charity will reflect well upon me, and when it becomes known might further my chances of being a High Court Judge. I might even be put forward for a baronetcy.’

  Arabella’s eyes shone with excitement. ‘Do you hear that, Kate? Your papa is always right. He understands the wider issues here.’

  ‘You don’t object then, Papa?’ Kate said incredulously.

  ‘On the contrary, my dear, I might even make a small contribution to the charity. I dare say you need some sort of equipment to start preparing meals for those who need them.’

  ‘Yes, Papa. Pots and pans and such. I was going to ask Cook to make me a list.’

  ‘I’m sure we must have dealings with a local ironmonger. You may choose what you want and have it put on my account, Katherine. Never let it be said that Bartholomew Martin is a penny-pincher.’

  ‘The man who owns the property is very wealthy, so Kate tells me. Although I’ve never heard of him.’ Arabella turned to Kate, eyebrows raised. ‘What is his name? I’ve forgotten already.’

  Kate took a deep breath, hoping that Spears had not come to her father’s attention in the criminal world.

  ‘Augustus Spears.’

  ‘I’ve never heard of him,’ Sir Bartholomew said slowly. ‘Are you sure you have the right name, Katherine?’

  ‘Yes, Papa.’ Kate thought quickly. ‘I think he might be recently returned from the colonies, having made his fortune in …’ Kate thought hard, ‘in guano, I believe.’

  ‘It’s strange that he chose to buy property in the Minories,’ Arabella mused. ‘I don’t know that area well, but I have heard that it’s not the sort of place one would wish to live.’