Just Fate

by Barbara Cartland

  At the same time she was astute enough to know that he meant what he said and his place would have to be taken by somebody else.

  When he had finished the two letters, his secretary, who had been with him for many years, said,

  “May I congratulate Your Grace!”

  “Thank you,” the Duke replied. “However, Watson, this is for the moment entirely confidential.”

  “Yes, of course, Your Grace.”

  “And now I have a great many things I want you to do for me.”

  The Duke gave his secretary a long list.

  Then he went into the hall at the exact moment when a number of the party who had been to Church returned.

  “I trust we will be able to see your new horses,” one of the men suggested, “especially the Irish additions you were talking about last night.”

  “My stable lads would certainly be disappointed if we did not make the traditional visit,” the Duke replied with a smile.

  They all dutifully followed him to the stables.

  The Duke noted as he arrived that everything was in order and there was nothing to show of the turmoil and excitement that had taken place last night.

  He had been reported to him first thing in the morning. He learnt that while the thieves had fought fiercely to escape they had all been captured.

  They had been tied up so that they could not move. As soon as it was daylight they had been taken to the Police Station in the nearest town.

  Long before any of his guests had come down for breakfast the Chief Constable had called on the Duke.

  Between them they had arranged that there should be no scandal. Also, if possible, that nothing should appear in the local newspapers.

  The thieves would be charged not with horse stealing, but with the intent to burgle.

  As they had dangerous weapons in the shape of pistols on their persons, they would undoubtedly receive severe sentences.

  The Duke made sure that a certain Peer who had been one of his guests was not mentioned.

  He was, however, not surprised to learn that the gentleman in question had left very early.

  He had told Mr. Watson that he had received a message that one of his relatives was dangerously ill. No one, however, could confirm that any message had arrived at The Castle.

  The Duke then felt that he could congratulate himself.

  Everything was tied up neatly and satisfactorily and with no loose ends.

  All he wanted now was to be with Elizabeth, but he knew that he could not leave what remained of his party.

  He also wished to make certain of Lais’s engagement to the Earl.

  He was able to ascertain this later in the day when the ladies went up to rest before dinner.

  The Earl came to find him in his study and as he closed the door behind him the Duke thought that he had never seen a happier man.

  “You know why I am here,” the Earl began.

  “I am hoping that my guess is the right one,” the Duke replied.

  “I have come to tell you that when I asked for your help last night I was in despair,” the Earl said. “Now I am so happy that I feel I could jump over the moon!”

  The Duke laughed.

  “She has accepted you! I know you will be happy and she is indeed very beautiful. Congratulations!”

  “Thank you,” the Earl said. “She is so beautiful that I am only afraid I shall be fighting duels every week or being sued for bodily assault!”

  The Duke laughed again.

  “I would not presume to advise you, but only a strong man, in the words of the novelettes, can conquer a beautiful woman and that is what you will have to do.”

  “I have every intention of it,” the Earl responded firmly. “I shall be Master in my own house and, as you say, we will be ecstatically happy.”

  “I expected to drink to your health,” the Duke grinned, “and the champagne is already on ice!”

  He walked to the grog tray in the corner of the study.

  Lifting the open bottle from the silver wine cooler that bore his Coat of Arms he poured out two glasses.

  He handed one to the Earl and lifted his own glass.

  “To your happiness, Michael!” he toasted. “May it grow and increase with every year that passes.”

  “Thank you,” the Earl replied, “and I understand that I can say the same to you. Is it really true that you are going to marry Lais’s mother?”

  “It is true,” the Duke confirmed, “but I have no wish to have people chattering about it before it takes place. We will be married quietly.”

  “I envy you,” the Earl remarked. “I am sure that Lais will want a very large Wedding so that she will be the most beautiful bride who ever walked up the aisle of St. George’s, Hanover Square!”

  The Duke laughed as the Earl went on,

  “It really does not matter to me if I marry her on top of the Albert Hall or at the bottom of the Serpentine! As long as she is mine, that is all I want in the whole world.”

  The Duke smiled as he raised his glass again to his lips.

  He was toasting Elizabeth.

  ‘She is like an orchid,’ he thought, ‘so exquisite that I want her only to myself!’

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Mena felt heavy-eyed in the morning because she had cried herself to sleep.

  She had thought that not only would she never see Lindon again but it would be a great mistake to do so.

  How could she possibly tell her mother and the Duke that she was in love, madly in love, with one of his employees who looked after the horses?

  She could imagine that her mother would be very distressed.

  The Duke would understandably be shocked and perhaps, because of her, Lindon would be dismissed.

  ‘I cannot – hurt him – that is something I – just cannot do,’ she sobbed.

  She had gone to sleep murmuring his name and had awoken feeling as if he was near her simply because she wanted him so desperately.

  She washed her face in cold water and thought that it made her look a little better.

  She had no intention of explaining to her mother why she was depressed nor must she in any way spoil her happiness.

  As usual she carried her mother’s breakfast tray upstairs and set it down by the bed.

  “Good morning, dearest,” her mother greeted her, “I have just been wondering if William will come to see me today. It seems a very long time since I saw him.”

  “I am sure he will come as soon as all his guests have left The Castle, Mama,” Mena replied reassuringly. “Do rest, so that you will look beautiful when he does arrive.”

  She went downstairs and because she wanted the Duke to appreciate their house she went out into the garden to pick a basketful of flowers.

  She arranged them in vases so that the drawing room looked like a bower and the fragrance of roses scented the air.

  She then went into the kitchen to see what Mrs. Johnson was preparing for luncheon.

  It was, she reflected, very different fare from the delicious dishes that they had enjoyed at The Castle and then she thought that she must not be critical or make comparisons.

  It was something she had told herself very firmly on their return when she had been to the stables to hug Kingfisher.

  She knew as she did so that, although he might not compare with the magnificent horses she had ridden at The Castle, he was delighted to see her.

  She knew that he loved her and as she hugged him the tears came into her eyes.

  “I love you, Kingfisher,” she said, “and however fine Conqueror and The Ghost may be, they could never mean the same to me as you do.”

  She felt that Kingfisher understood her.

  He nuzzled against her and in his own way was trying to welcome her home. She took him for a short ride in the afternoon.

  But the beauty of the woods only made her think that Lindon was with her.

  She hurried home because she was becoming afraid of her own thoughts.

&n
bsp; If it was not for the fact that it would hurt her mother and Lais would undoubtedly be horrified, she would have ridden back there and then to The Castle.

  She wanted to find out if Lindon still loved her.

  He had seemed to do so when he had kissed her.

  However, when she went to bed, she thought perhaps his kisses had simply been an expression of his gratitude.

  She had warned him about the thieves and had saved Conqueror.

  Could he now wish to be with her in his adorable little Elizabethan house?

  Before they met he had obviously been quite content with his own company and he had said that he had been abroad.

  He had not, however, explained how he had managed to afford to do so and she suspected that he had been employed by somebody.

  Perhaps he had been a Guide or a Courier, for he was very knowledgeable about the different countries that they had talked about.

  Or perhaps he had been engaged as a Tutor, young men who were students at Oxford or Cambridge often engaged Tutors for the vacations.

  She remembered how her father had said that travel had been so much easier than when he was young. And people of all ages, if they could afford it, now went abroad.

  She could imagine that Lindon would find some way of travelling even if it was not in comfort or he had to work his passage.

  Her thoughts kept her tossing and turning.

  Finally, because everything seemed so hopeless and she felt that Lindon was as far away as if he was on the moon, she wept.

  When her mother came down to luncheon, Mena thought that she was looking very lovely.

  Her gown was not in the latest fashion. It was one that she had worn before her husband’s death.

  But it had been very much more expensive than anything they were able to afford now.

  “You look very beautiful, Mama,” Mena told her.

  “Are you quite sure?” her mother asked. “Supposing when William sees me here rather than surrounded by the orchids at The Castle he does not – admire me – anymore?”

  Mena laughed.

  “You would look glorious wherever you were,” she said, “and I have always believed that this house was a perfect frame for you. So are the flowers I have put in the drawing room.”

  “That was sweet of you, dearest,” her mother smiled, “and I am very grateful.”

  As she spoke, Mena knew that her thoughts were only on the Duke.

  After luncheon was over she insisted on her mother lying comfortably on the sofa in the drawing room with a cushion at her back.

  She put an exquisitely worked Chinese shawl over her legs. Her father had bought it on one of his journeys abroad.

  “Now relax, Mama,” she advised, “and try to sleep. Perhaps the Duke will be here at teatime, so I am going to help Mrs. Johnson make some scones like those we had at The Castle and also a sponge cake.”

  “That is a delightful idea,” her mother replied. “I do hope William will have arrived by then.”

  Mena was leaving the room when she thought of something.

  “I wanted to ask you, Mama, what will happen to this house when you are married to the Duke? After all we cannot just go away and leave it empty.”

  “You are coming with me to Devonshire, darling,” her mother replied, “and I think the right thing to do would be to let Papa’s brother have the house. After all there have been Mansfordes living here for many generations.”

  Mena looked at her in astonishment.

  “Give it to Papa’s brother?” she said. “But he is abroad.”

  “I know, darling. He is in India with his Regiment, but when he wrote to me when Papa died he said that he would soon be returning to England.”

  “Yes, of course,” Mena agreed. “I remember that now.”

  She had been so deeply distressed by her father’s death that she had found it hard to read the letters of condolence without crying.

  “Stephen and his wife have several children,” her mother went on, “and I am sure that they would be very grateful to have a nice house in England after having been away for so long.”

  “Of course they would,” Mena nodded.

  When she left the room, she thought that everything was crumbling under her feet.

  Now she was losing her home as well. The only home she had ever known and that she loved because it was so old and beautiful.

  She knew too it would be uncomfortable to be a third person when all her mother wanted was to be alone with the Duke.

  ‘Perhaps I can go away somewhere,’ she thought despairingly, but she could think of no one who would welcome an unattached young woman.

  She knew that her mother would disapprove if she suggested trying to earn her own living.

  ‘What shall I do – what can I do?’ she asked herself desperately.

  There seemed to be no answer.

  She and Mrs. Johnson made the scones for tea and then baked a cake and Mena thought that it bore some resemblance to those she had been offered at The Castle.

  Then because time was getting on she went back to the drawing room.

  As she expected, her mother had her eyes closed and was fast asleep.

  She closed the door very quietly and went out to the stables.

  Kingfisher had followed her round the garden this morning while she was picking the flowers and she now led him out of his stall again.

  As she did so, she said to the old groom who had been with her father for many years,

  “By the way, Gale, we expect a visitor later this afternoon. Will you please be watching so that you can look after his horses while the gentleman is with us?”

  “Aye, Miss Mena, ’course I’ll do that,” the old man said, “and I’ll put some fresh straw down in case the visitor wants me to take ’em from the shafts.”

  “Yes, please,” Mena replied.

  With Kingfisher following her she went back into the garden.

  However magnificent the Duke’s garden in Devonshire might be she knew she would miss the one that was so much a part of her life.

  She could remember when she was very small picking the first daffodils of spring and she carried them in triumph to her father.

  “For you, Papa!” she had said.

  He had picked her up in his arms and kissed her.

  “You are a very clever girl. You have brought me daffodils, which appear when winter has passed and spring brings us new hope and joy and like Persephone sweeps away the darkness of Hades.”

  “Is that me, Papa?” she had asked, thinking that the name was not unlike her own.

  Her father had laughed.

  “Yes, my dearest, it is you and, wherever you go, you will bring the spring to every man who looks at you.”

  Mena had not then understood.

  But she thought now that she would like to bring the spring to Lindon and then he could own his own horses and not have to train them for other people.

  ‘Even if I – never see – him again,’ she thought, ‘I will pray for his – happiness.’

  She spent a long time in the garden and then took Kingfisher back to his stall.

  It was nearly teatime and she thought if the Duke was going to arrive it must be soon because he would not want to have to hurry away soon after tea.

  She entered the house to find that her mother was awake.

  “I have been asleep,” Mrs. Mansforde said. “Help me with my hair, dearest. I am sure it is in a mess.”

  “No, Mama, only crushed a little,” Mena assured her.

  Her mother rose from the sofa and went to the window and Mena saw that there was a worried expression in her eyes as she said almost beneath her breath,

  “Perhaps he has – forgotten me!”

  Even as she spoke the door opened and Johnson in his best manner announced,

  “His Grace the Duke of Kernthorpe, ma’am!”

  Elizabeth turned round and gave a cry of delight.

  “You have – come! You have – come!” she
exclaimed with the eagerness of a young girl.

  The Duke walked across the room to take her outstretched hands.

  He kissed them, one after the other.

  “I came at the very first opportunity,” he answered. “I was thinking that my guests would never leave!”

  “But you are here!” Elizabeth said, looking at him with adoring eyes.

  “Yes, I am here, my darling,” the Duke said, “and that is all that matters.”

  Knowing that she was unwanted Mena had moved across to the door.

  As she was leaving the room, the Duke said,

  “There is somebody outside to see you, Mena.”

  He just said the words and then turned again to Elizabeth. It was obviously impossible for him to think of anything else.

  Mena felt her heart leap.

  Closing the door she hurried across the hall.

  Outside she saw the team of white horses that had carried her and her mother to The Castle.

  Standing beside them and talking to old Gale was Lindon.

  Because she was so thrilled to see him she felt as if he was suddenly enveloped in a dazzling light.

  He looked up at her standing in the doorway.

  She thought that her heart flew from her breast and into his arms.

  He had obviously given Gale his instructions for the old man started to lead the white horses in the direction of the stables.

  Lindon then came towards Mena. He was looking very smart and there was a tall hat on his head.

  She thought as he swept it off that he must have been driving the Duke. Perhaps that was another of his duties at The Castle.

  As he reached her, her eyes met his.

  She was trembling because it was so exciting that he was here.

  “I have to talk to you,” he said in a deep voice. “Where can we go where we will not be disturbed?”

  “In the – garden,” Mena replied.

  Lindon put his hat down on the floor just inside the door.

  He took her hand and they walked into the garden.

  He did not speak as Mena led him to a special place that she had wanted him to see. It was a replica of a small Greek Temple.

  Her father had bought it soon after he became obsessed with Greece and it had been for sale at an estate that had been broken up after its owner’s death.