Scandal at the Dower House
Page 20
Catarina sat at her escritoire and began a letter to Joanna. After ten minutes or so she heard horses, and glanced out of the window. Had Mrs Eade, as she had threatened, sent her husband to chastise Catarina? If so, the man would regret criticizing her behaviour. A carriage had drawn up just outside the gate. She could see the top of it over the hedge, but not who was in it.
It was not the Reverend Eade Staines showed into the drawing room. To Catarina’s astonishment it was her uncle, Sir Ivor, and her cousin, Matthew. She rose to her feet to greet them. Staines offered wine.
‘Uncle Ivor. Cousin Matthew. I was not aware you were back in England.’
Matthew grinned at her.
‘Or you would no doubt not have been receiving visitors. I’ve come to claim my child.’
Catarina stared at him in amazement.
‘What on earth do you mean?’
He sighed. ‘Catarina, do not be stupid. You know that Joanna and I were married and she had a child. That child is mine. Now I am back from Canada and have sold out, I want to live with my family. With Joanna’s fortune I can provide a good home for them both. Of course, Joanna’s so-called marriage to that Brazilian is bigamous and she will have to return to England. And I understand he is wealthy, and will no doubt be happy to recompense me for having deprived me of my wife, and to keep the scandal quiet.’
‘I see,’ Catarina said. ‘When it suited your purpose you told my poor sister the marriage had been a sham. You repudiated her, leaving her alone and desperate. You had other prospects, it seemed. What happened to the heiress you were planning to marry? Did she discover in time what a despicable rogue you are?’
Matthew laughed and moved towards the door.
‘You will sing a different tune when we have the child. We know she is in the house; we have been talking to people in the village. I am taking her back to Bristol with me now. You will write to Joanna and inform her, and say she can either come home and live with me, or stay with her lover. Of course, if she chooses to do that, she won’t see a penny of the fortune her father left her. Legally it belongs to me, her husband.’
‘If that marriage was legal. I need to have that proved before you can take your daughter away. Joanna left her with me when she went to Brazil and I intend to keep her.’
‘How do you propose to stop us? I don’t think your ancient butler will be much opposition.’
On the words he opened the door.
‘I suppose the child is upstairs? Do you mean to be sensible and pack what she needs, or do we have to remove her by force?’
‘You mean you would kidnap her?’
Matthew, with an oath, swung round at this new voice and saw Jeremy in the hall.
‘Who the devil are you?’
‘I own Marshington Grange; therefore this Dower House is also mine. I do not choose to have scoundrels such as you in it, so you will leave at once.’
Matthew sneered and moved forward.
‘And I suppose you think you can stop us, even though your arm is in a splint. You’ll get out of our way unless you want to be hurt again.’
Jeremy stepped aside. Matthew, with a smile of triumph, started towards the stairs only to see Staines and the two valets, both of them young and sturdy, blocking the way.
‘What’s this? Cousin, do you keep a male harem here in your snug little house? Are you missing Walter’s attentions?’
‘Get out before you are thrown out,’ Catarina said. ‘And don’t try to come back. We are well protected, as you can see.’
‘I’ll go for now, but you’ll regret defying me, Cousin Catarina! We will be back.’
Jeremy laughed as, trying to maintain their dignity, Matthew and his silent father backed out of the front door. He followed them and watched as they scrambled into their carriage and drove away. Then, growing suddenly pale, he fell into rather than sat in a chair beside the front door.
‘I rather think I ought to go back to bed now. Staines, I suggest you secure all the doors and windows, be prepared to repel boarders.’
Jeremy slept for the remainder of the day. Catarina surmised he had heard at least some of what Matthew had said while he was in the back part of the drawing room, and had made a great effort to summon the help of his own and Nicholas’s valet. She relished recalling the look on Matthew’s face when, instead of being faced just with the elderly Staines he had found two young, able-bodied men ready to oppose him. He’d known Sir Ivor, who was in his sixties and had said almost nothing during their confrontation, would not have assisted him in forcing his way upstairs. She was impatient to ask Jeremy exactly how much he had heard. Joanna’s secret was now probably no longer a secret, at least from Jeremy. Would he tell Nicholas? Who else would discover it? Did Staines know? Or the valets?
There was nothing she could do. She had briefly considered asking Jeremy not to tell Nicholas, but that would involve him in her own deception and she could not do that.
It would be at least afternoon on the following day before Nicholas returned and, if the wagon had not been able to reach Bristol in one day, it could be even later. Catarina wondered what Matthew would do. Did he intend to make another attempt to take Maria? Why did he want her? If he claimed the marriage between himself and Joanna was legal, he could control her fortune. He did not need the child; surely she would only be a nuisance?
The reason came to her in the middle of the night. Afraid Matthew might attempt to snatch the little girl during the hours of darkness, she had a truckle bed made up for herself in the nursery. Staines said the three men would take it in turns to patrol inside the house, so they had taken what precautions they could. Catarina still could not sleep. She was worried for Maria, the truckle bed was uncomfortable and Clarice snored.
Matthew, she suddenly realized, sitting up in bed as she woke from an uneasy doze, no doubt wanted the child as a hostage. He would promise not to harm her if she and Joanna did not attempt to claim Joanna’s fortune. She had no illusions about her cousin. He would harm the child if it suited him, in revenge if nothing else.
Jeremy, Staines told her the following day when, heavy-eyed, she was trying to force some breakfast down her constricted throat, meant to stay in bed for at least the morning.
‘He found yesterday a strain.’
‘But without him we might have lost Maria.’
‘Don’t fret, my lady. His lordship will be back tonight and we’re all on our guard.’
She could not help worrying, not just about the danger to Maria, but also that soon Nicholas would know all about the lies she had told. She was in no state to deal with the Reverend Eade when he called in the middle of the morning.
He wore his most solemn expression when Staines showed him into the drawing room, the one he put on when he delivered some ranting sermon complaining about the real or imagined sins of his congregation.
‘My lady,’ he said formally, and refused her invitation to sit down. Instead he paced slowly around the room, coming to lean over her when he thought he had some telling point to make.
‘I am here to perform a most unwelcome task,’ he said. ‘My wife is very hurt at the unseemly manner in which you treated her and her advice the day before yesterday. She is much older than you and, although I hesitate to describe us as worldly, she has been about in the world much more than you have. She is concerned for your reputation.’
‘I think I can be trusted to look to my reputation,’ Catarina said, furious at being treated to such a scolding as though she were a child. ‘Neither she nor you have any authority over me, or any responsibility for me, so I will thank both of you to keep your— to refrain from interfering in my affairs.’
‘You are impertinent, speaking to a man of the cloth in such an intemperate manner. But I understand what a strain you have been under since your dear husband died. It is my duty to forgive you.’
Catarina gritted her teeth and stood, the better to face him.
‘I neither need nor want your forgiveness.’
‘That is not the only problem I have come here to resolve. I was visited yesterday by your uncle, Sir Ivor Norton, and his son. They tell me the child you have here is the son’s daughter and you are trying to deprive her father of his rights. His wife, your sister, has apparently deserted him and run away with a rich Portuguese merchant.’
‘The marriage they claim between my sister and my cousin was a fake! He deceived her; a friend played the part of a parson to make her think she was truly married. Then he deserted her. When she informed him she was expecting his child he repudiated her, and said he was about to marry a girl he had met in Brussels, just before the battle. I have no notion what happened to her, but I suspect she discovered what a scoundrel he was.’
‘That, my dear lady, is only what your sister has told you. If she wanted to desert her child and become this other man’s concubine, she must have thought it a likely story. I am ashamed to think you believed it.’
‘You seem determined to disbelieve me, sir. I will not listen to your bigoted, uncharitable, unchristian remarks any longer, or your slandering of my sister. Please leave my house, immediately.’
‘Oh no, you cannot dismiss me so easily. I have come to take the child away to her true parent.’
‘What? You can’t do that! What right do you have to kidnap a baby?’
‘Kidnap! How dare you accuse me of that!’
She really thought he was about to strike her.
‘Yes, kidnap! You have no proof of what Matthew says, yet you believe him and not me. Have you seen the marriage certificate of this supposed legal marriage? Have you questioned the witnesses, asked who the clergyman was who conducted the ceremony, seen proof of his power to do so? How can you prove the child I have here is my sister’s baby?’
‘Sir Ivor is a respected gentleman, and his son has served his country in the army. I tend to believe such people.’
‘My uncle is a harsh disciplinarian and as bigoted as you are proving to be, Mr Eade. Now, please do as I ask and leave my house before I have to ask the servants to throw you out.’
‘Very well. I will not give you the heathen satisfaction of seeing a man of the cloth mishandled, but I will return with the magistrate and the constable. You will not presume to defy the law, I hope.’
Catarina stared in dismay. The only local Justice now was Sir Humphrey Unwin, and he would have no sympathy for her since she rejected his offer so decisively.
He swept out of the room. Catarina flew up the stairs to check that Maria was safe. She had a horrid feeling he might have been keeping her occupied while Matthew sneaked in and stole the baby.
When she saw Maria playing contentedly with a rag doll Clarice had sewn for her, she collapsed into a chair. Nicholas, she thought, come home, quickly. I need you!
Chapter Sixteen
CATARINA ALMOST WEPT with relief when Nicholas arrived as she and Jeremy were sitting down to nuncheon. Saying he was exceptionally hungry, since he had started back from Bristol early and it was a very cold day, he joined them. Jeremy declared that after a long sleep he was feeling better than ever, and began to tell Nicholas of the visitors they had endured.
‘This man Matthew claimed little Maria was his, and that he was married to Joanna,’ he reported, and then glanced at Catarina in remorse. ‘Oh, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that, should I?’
‘I think I had guessed the truth,’ Nicholas said gently. ‘Maria is so like you, my dear, but you and your sister are also very alike. She’s Joanna’s child, isn’t she? Do you fear they will return?’
She nodded, accepting his statement, and explained how she believed Matthew intended to use Maria.
‘Then the first thing to do is move everyone to the Grange. There are more people there, young, strong footmen and grooms, and we can repel invaders. I will send for carriages if you, Catarina, will tell your servants to pack what you will all need for a few days.’
‘All of them?’ Jeremy asked. ‘Even the cook and the gardeners?’
‘We don’t want to leave anyone at the mercy of the Reverend Eade’s tirades, do we? And you have plenty of room.’
‘Yes, of course, but then the Dower House will be empty.’
‘And no one can be bullied.’
Within the hour it had been accomplished, and Catarina, bemused but thankful, was settling Clarice and Maria in the nursery suite of rooms on the top floor of her former home.
When she sought out Nicholas to thank him she found him in the estate office writing letters and sending grooms riding off with them. He looked up and smiled at her. Her heart turned over with love for him.
‘I’ve just one more letter to write. I’ll come to the library when it’s done.’
She went and sat before a roaring fire, all her anxieties set at rest, and feeling more at peace than she had done since Walter’s death. The time for lies was over and she could relax. When Nicholas came in he pulled up a footstool and sat beside her, taking her hands in his and kissing them.
‘We’ll beat them,’ he said. ‘The tale Jeremy spun was a little confused. Tell me all about it.’
Hesitantly she began, telling him how Joanna, in deep distress, had come to her for help when Matthew deserted her, how they had spent the time in Lisbon until she was delivered, and how Joanna had met and fallen in love with Eduardo.
‘She said all along she did not wish to keep the baby, and once Maria was born she rejected her. I could not bear to give her away, so I decided to keep her. Joanna didn’t care,’ she added bitterly.
‘This so-called marriage,’ he said slowly. ‘Did Joanna tell you where it took place?’
‘Matthew took her to a small church a few miles south of Bristol. They didn’t have time to go far. She was foolish to believe it was a legal ceremony when they had to use the church at night, and secretly, but my sister has always been a romantic little fool!’
He suddenly stood up.
‘My love, we must settle this as soon as possible. I will invite Sir Humphrey and your cousin here, the Reverend Eade as well, and we will examine the facts. Now forgive me, I have some more letters to write.’
Catarina did not at all relish the thought of facing her cousin and the rector again, and Sir Humphrey was no longer an indulgent elderly man who wished to marry her. He would be resentful and she feared he might take this opportunity to try to humiliate her. She breathed deeply and told herself she had to endure whatever they said. Words could not damage her, but she was confident Nicholas would not permit them to take Maria away, and that was all that mattered.
The Reverend Eade called later that day, but Catarina did not see him. She had been in the nursery, helping Clarice unpack all the ancient toys that were stored there, which had been the playthings of earlier generations of Walter’s family.
Maria did not know which toy to look at first, so they ended up with the floor of the day nursery littered with all manner of things, dolls, chapbooks, balls and even the furniture of a doll’s house.
Blodwen had packed some of Catarina’s new dresses, so when she changed for dinner she chose the most flattering, one in a soft green with short puffed sleeves and an overdress of silver gauze. It was, perhaps, too elaborate for a simple dinner at home, but it suited her to perfection, and she could wear with it a string of emeralds set in a filigree gold necklace. From the admiring looks both Nicholas and Jeremy gave her she was satisfied she looked better than they had ever seen her.
At dinner Nicholas announced he had arranged for the meeting to be held in two days’ time.
‘How will you convince them?’ Jeremy asked.
‘Don’t worry, they will be convinced,’ he said, but refused to say more. ‘Jeremy, what do you propose to do about the villagers?’
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Jeremy frowned. ‘I will have to permit them to go on as they always have, until the stubborn ones see the benefits of what I am doing and decide they will agree to changes. But they will all have a hard time this winter. I don’t know how much I will be able to help.’
‘I will supply whatever money you need, and help in finding food. But there is another matter which needs urgent attention. Do you wish to have the Eades remain as your neighbours? Would you not prefer to choose a man more congenial for your rector?’
‘Yes, but how can I? I suppose Walter gave him the living?’ he added, turning to Catarina.
‘Yes, he did; on the recommendation of some old university friend, a tutor at Oxford.’
‘Where does he come from, do you know?’ Nicholas asked.
‘I believe his childhood home was near Norwich.’
‘Excellent. I have contacts there. I will make enquiries about possible livings, or even a position in the cathedral hierarchy. I am sure he will prefer to go back there, especially when he understands he will not be invited to dine at Marshington Grange in future. You don’t wish for his company, do you?’ he asked Jeremy.
Jeremy laughed. ‘Nick, you are indeed a devil after your namesake! I certainly do not wish to have to be polite to him, and I certainly don’t wish to listen to his tedious sermons.’
‘Then I suggest you begin to think whether any of your old cronies took orders. Or there is the curate at home – perhaps he is ready for a parish. But don’t make your choice too quickly. You’ll have to live with the man for years.’
After dinner, Nicholas retired to the estate office with Jeremy, saying there were matters to be decided, as he must soon be going home to Brooke Court.
Catarina, feeling somewhat flat after the excitement of the past few days, and a little hurt Nicholas did not seem to wish to spend any time with her, soon went to bed. What did he intend for her? Did he still want to marry her, now he knew about all the lies she had told him? What would happen when Matthew and he came face to face? Could Nicholas really convince them of the truth about the sham marriage? Was Maria safe?