‘I thought we’d have them just before the ball ends,’ Robert replied.
She nodded in approval. There was so much noise of people talking and the fiddlers or the piper playing that she had to shout to be heard. It was two o’clock in the morning and the revelry was at its height. The castle seemed to shake with music and activity and laughter, and Robert decided this was the perfect moment to set off the firework display before everyone got tired and started drifting away.
An announcement was made and the guests all surged into the garden, pouring out of the front door and on to the lawn, huddled in great enthusiastic groups, some carrying glasses of wine, others holding hands. Suddenly the clear dark sky was splintered into a thousand sparkling lights and there was a loud crack. Gasps of appreciation followed and clapping, and that was only the beginning. Laura, standing beside Walter, had never seen such an incredible display of colour and lights, as sparkling fountains burst above their heads and arched over the castle’s ramparts, or whizzed straight up into the air and exploded high above them. There were burning waterfalls of gold that fell out of the sky and whirling will-o’-the-wisps cartwheeling over the tree tops. Then there was a final display when the ground shuddered as if in an earthquake, releasing several rockets which whizzed up into the sky before bursting into giant starry pom-poms which hung above the silent crowds for a moment before fragmenting slowly and drifting down like sparkling apple blossom in a summer breeze.
Laura looked at Walter but he was staring in the direction of the castle. She turned and saw a fiddler standing on the ramparts with his bow raised. A moment later he was joined by another man whose lone voice floated poignantly from the ancient battlements.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
For auld lang syne.
For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We’ll tak a cup o’kindness yet,
For the sake of auld lang syne.
The party was over. By tomorrow the family would have gone, bringing to an end five hundred years of Scottish history and for the Fairbairn girls a lifetime of memories.
Eighteen
Cranley Court, 1910
‘Laura? Is that you darling?’ Diana called out when she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. She hurried out of the breakfast room and placed her hands on her sister’s shoulders as she reached the bottom step.
‘There’s someone here to see you,’ she said in a quiet voice.
Laura’s hazel eyes widened nervously. Sleepless nights had taken their toll in the last two months and, although staying with Diana had been the essence of comfort and tranquillity, she still felt shaken to the bone, her very being jarred by what had happened.
‘Debt collectors?’ she whispered anxiously.
Diana smiled reassuringly. ‘No. Walter is here. He’s come to see you.’
‘He’s here?’ For a moment Laura looked distraught and then she started trembling. ‘Oh, God! What’s he doing here? I’m not ready for this.’
‘I think he wants to make amends. He’s in the study. Why don’t you go and see him; Robert and I will keep out of your way for a while.’
‘I’m still so angry,’ Laura confessed, her mouth tightening. ‘Caroline doesn’t know he’s here, does she? I don’t want her upset.’
‘She’s having breakfast in the nursery and I’ve sent a message up to Nanny to keep all the children up there for the time being.’
With a quick nod Laura turned and marched towards the study.
‘Good luck,’ Diana whispered sympathetically. ‘Call me if you need me.’
Walter was standing with his back to the fireplace, and as soon as he saw Laura his face lit up and he was smiling, his eyes wide and clear. His expression reminded her of a child who has been very naughty but is certain of adult forgiveness.
‘Hello, Laura,’ he said eagerly, coming forward as if to kiss her, but she sidestepped him and with furrowed brows looked at him coldly.
‘Why are you here?’
He dropped back, looking crestfallen. ‘I thought you’d be glad to see me. I’m well again, darling. The doctors said I’ve made a wonderful recovery. I very much wanted to see you, too.’ He lifted his chin, rallying again. ‘I’ve been staying with Rowena, who has been looking after Neil, which you so obviously didn’t want to do and she . . .’
‘That’s unfair,’ Laura shot back. ‘He’s happier with his aunt than he ever was with me. He’s never liked me because he resented me taking his mother’s place in his life and you know it. Why do you think he set fire to my bedroom? Then the drawing room? He’s badly disturbed by his mother’s death and your drinking; the poor child is much better off with his aunt, who can give him stability.’
Walter looked surprised, as if he was unaware of his son’s feelings. ‘I believe he’s very fond of you,’ he protested. ‘I’d like us to all live together again as a real family. You, me, Caroline and Neil, and Rowena is quite happy to put us up in her house.’
Laura blinked. It was as if the events of the past had been no more than an inconvenience caused by his ‘illness’.
‘What? Live with you and your sister? Sponge off her and her widow’s pension until you bleed her dry? Until you drag her down as you did me, until she loses everything too?’
Walter’s expression was one of incredulity. ‘What do you mean?’ he asked, offended. ‘I wouldn’t dream of sponging off Rowena. I shall get a job. You’ve become very bitter, Laura. I’m surprised at you. I didn’t think it was my money you were after.’
Laura sank on to a chair, shaking her head in disbelief. ‘Walter, I don’t think you realize the trail of utter chaos you leave in your wake. I don’t even think you know how much you’ve hurt people. There are times when you take to drink that you become another person.’
‘You were in love with me when it suited you,’ he grumbled resentfully.
‘That’s true, but I’d never have married you if I’d realized there was another side to you,’ she admitted with a touch of sadness. ‘If you think I can forget all about losing our home and every single possession we ever had, which left me with Caroline and only enough money to get two train tickets to travel the short distance to come here, otherwise we’d have been on the streets . . .’ her voice rose in anguish, ‘then you’re completely in denial about the reality of life. Diana and Robert have saved Caroline and me from the workhouse!’
‘But I’m all right now. It won’t happen again, I promise you.’ Laura covered her face with her hands in utter exasperation. ‘You say that every time, Walter. You promise you’ll never touch alcohol again, but you always do. Now you’ve squandered every penny and there’s nothing left. We had everything when we were first married but you’ve neglected your affairs, spent money like water and ended up bankrupt. What do you think that has done to Caroline? To watch the bailiffs throw her toys into a van? To come here with only the clothes we’re standing in?’
‘I can’t help it.’ He sounded like a lost soul.
She fought back the tears. ‘And I can’t help you.’
‘Can I see Caroline?’
‘Not today. It’s too soon and it would make her very unsettled. I’ll bring her over to Rowena’s at some point; you can see her then.’
Walter stood up abruptly and she saw the tears in his eyes as he turned away and charged out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
Laura wiped away her own tears. It was time she went back to dressmaking professionally so she could support herself and Caroline. There was no other way.
Diana raised her eyebrows when she heard about Laura’s decision. ‘Dressmaking?’
‘It’s the only thing I can do. Caroline and I can’t stay with you and Robert for ever. I’m going to have to earn money. Caroline has to be educated and given a chance in life, and Walter isn’t going to be able to provide that. I’m going to have to bring
her up on my own.’ She spoke with sudden confidence. Seeing Walter again had made her realize she was the stronger of the two.
Diana looked appalled. The idea of having a husband who didn’t provide for his wife and children was unthinkable. ‘How will you manage? You must live with us, Laura. You can always work from here if you want to do some dressmaking and Nanny can look after Caroline while you’re sewing, but you can’t possibly fend for yourself.’
‘You sound like Mama,’ Laura pointed out. ‘I have two options. I can ask Helen if I can join her in business; that is if she’d have me. Or I can get the bank to lend me some money so I can start from scratch.’
‘How can you be so brave? You’ve just lost everything, Laura. Everything! You’re destitute, darling. Don’t you understand?’
Laura nodded. ‘I don’t need you of all people to rub it in. I know none of you thought I should rush into marriage with Walter, and you were right.’
Seeing Diana’s sympathetic expression, she continued, ‘I’m not the first woman to be left destitute! I’ll get back on my feet. I started my own business before and I can do it again.’
Diana looked pained. ‘You were on your own then, with no one but yourself to think about, knowing you could always go back to Lochlee if the worst happened.’
‘I’ll never forget the ghastliness of what happened and I don’t know if I can forgive Walter, but I do know that life must go on, if only for Caroline’s sake. It’s made me more determined than ever to rebuild my life. I promise you, Di, I’ll make a success of my business all over again.’ Laura held her sister’s gaze, her eyes full of resolve. She was ready to face the future, no matter what It might hold.
The Fairbairn Girls Page 23
