The Tree of Love

by Barbara Cartland

  She turned and went back to her boudoir.

  She sat down at the piano and played a tune which expressed her joy that he had accepted Pluck – and that he was so much better than when she had first arrived.

  She was still playing when she heard Higgins say,

  “His Grace the Duke, to see you, Captain.”

  Shenda took her hands off the keys and listened.

  “How are you, my boy?” she heard the Duke say, as he must have been walking to the bed. “I am sorry I could not visit you before, but, as I expect you know, I have been in Cambrai.”

  “I have missed you, sir, but thanks to you, I am very much better than when you last saw me.”

  “I understand from Higgins it is due to the nurse I brought you. He could not speak any more highly of Miss Linbury – and looking at you now I feel prepared to offer her my congratulations.”

  “I am so much better,” Ivan admitted, “and it is due entirely to Miss Linbury throwing away all those doctor’s rubbishy medicines and preparing natural herbs for me.”

  “So I have heard from Higgins and if you ask me, he has never been so astonished in his life at the difference they have made to you.”

  “They have indeed and now more than anything I want to get up, which I think and hope I will tomorrow.”

  “Now take it easy and don’t rush your fences, Ivan. Several of my Officers have suffered a relapse from getting up too soon and your wound was a particularly nasty one.”

  “I can truthfully say I can hardly feel it now, sir. The reason I feel so well is because of a weird concoction made from the leaves of some tree I have never heard of!”

  “Well, you and Higgins have told me everything I need to know and when you are feeling fit enough, you can join me at Cambrai, but actually I think you would be wise to return home on leave. I am sure that the Prince Regent is worrying about you!”

  Ivan chuckled.

  “I expect the truth is he wants my advice on some treasure he has found in a back street and no one will tell him whether it’s good or bad.”

  The Duke smiled.

  “Anyway I expect your own family will be looking for you. I wrote to your grandmother last week and told her that you were in safe hands and that I hoped that she would see you soon.”

  “That was very kind of you, sir, she is the one close relative that I have left and I have often reproached myself for not saying goodbye to her before I joined you.”

  “Hurry up and get well and you can join me again! Although I daresay there are more important things for you to do at home than there are in the Army of Occupation.”

  The Duke paused for a moment before he added,

  “One of my problems is how to keep the men active and stop them from getting into mischief, which invariably happens when soldiers have too little to occupy them.”

  Ivan did not reply as the Duke patted Pluck.

  “This is a good-looking little terrier – and I am sure he would much rather be roaming the countryside than here in a town, even if it is Gay Paree!”

  “I cannot answer that question as I have not seen anything of Paris yet, except those French doctors, who are certainly not as good as French food is reputed to be!”

  “What you need, my boy is plenty of good plain food to build you up, but remember my warning – don’t go too fast too quickly.”

  “I will obey your orders, sir!”

  Listening intently, Shenda was certain that the Duke smiled at him before he walked towards the door.

  As he reached it, he turned back,

  “By the way I would like to see your nurse, Miss Linbury, before I leave.”

  “If you go through the door on your right, you will find her at the piano which you must have heard playing as you came in.

  “I did wonder who it was – ”

  The Duke walked to the door and opened it.

  Shenda slipped off the piano stool as he closed the door behind him.

  “I congratulate you, Miss Linbury. Higgins told me that the Captain was better, but I can see he has entirely changed since I last saw him – and it is all due to you.”

  “I am most grateful to Your Grace for sending me here.”

  Then they both instinctively went to the other end of the boudoir just in case they were overhead by the patient.

  The sunshine was streaming through the windows and it shone on her beautiful dark hair.

  Looking at her the Duke thought that she was very lovely and that no man who saw her, even one as prejudiced as Ivan, could fail to find her attractive.

  “I hope your patient has not been as difficult as we anticipated, Miss Linbury?”

  “He actually spoke to me for the first time today when Pluck, who I was hiding from him, ran into the room and jumped up onto his bed.”

  “An unusual introduction,” the Duke reflected, “but obviously a successful one.”

  “I am hoping so, Your Grace. As Higgins may have told you, his wound has really healed in a most miraculous way. I was incredibly lucky to be able to buy leaves from the Maidenhair tree to give him energy.”

  “You may not believe it, but I have actually heard of the Maidenhair tree! Surely it comes from China?”

  “It is supposed to be the oldest tree in the world and we were fortunate enough to have one at home which Papa had brought back from China when he was a young man. My mother healed a great number of people with it.”

  “And now you have healed the Captain. So I am very grateful to you and the next time I come I am sure he will be walking about.”

  “I think so too, Your Grace. Thank you once again for sending me here. Everyone has been so kind to me.”

  “I am glad and if you need me, I will be in Paris for another two weeks or so before I move to Cambrai.”

  He walked towards the door and, when they stepped out onto the landing, Shenda went downstairs with him.

  Higgins was there waiting in the hall and the Duke nodded to him as he took his hat from one of the footmen.

  “You must admit, Higgins, that I sent you the right person at the right moment.”

  “That’s exactly what I say to Your Grace when you arrives,” Higgins replied. “Miss Linbury’s shown up them Frenchies and I ’opes we never ’as to see them again.”

  “I only wish she could do the same for all the men who were wounded at Waterloo – ”

  “Us still needs ’er ’ere,” Higgins said quickly.

  “I know,” responded the Duke. “So I will not try to take her away. And please keep looking after her as I hear you are doing so well.”

  Higgins realised without the Duke saying so that he was pleased that he had arranged for Shenda to be escorted whenever she left the house.

  He put a golden coin into his hand and the footmen bowed to him as he walked out of the house.

  His open carriage was waiting outside and before he stepped into it he turned towards Shenda.

  “Do keep up your good work, Miss Linbury. I am so delighted with what I have seen and I am sure your dog is as good a tonic as the Maidenhair tree!”

  As the Duke drove off, she waved until he was out of sight and then she turned and ran back into the hall.

  “Pluck crept into the Captain’s room when I was at the piano,” she told Higgins, “and jumped straight onto his bed. The Captain patted him and he spoke to me and asked me why Pluck was there.”

  “That’s just what I ’oped would ’appen, miss, and there’s nothin’ like a dog to make a man feel he should be up walkin’ or climbin’ mountains if they be available.”

  Shenda gave a cry of horror.

  “The Duke warned him against doing anything too quickly and the Captain must be persuaded to take things easy until he is really himself again.”

  She ran up the stairs as she finished speaking.

  “I’d better see what Pluck is up to or we may be in trouble!”

  She was moving so quickly that she did not hear Higgins answer.

  S
he ran along the corridor to the Master suite, still feeling nervous of the Captain, although he had now spoken to her.

  She therefore opened the door quietly, half afraid of what she might find.

  She walked in to find that Pluck was still lying on the Captain’s bed and his hand was moving smoothly over the dog’s back.

  Although his eyes were closed, she knew he was not asleep.

  Without saying anything she went into the boudoir and started to play the piano again.

  It was a happy tune, one that expressed her feelings better than anything she could possibly say.

  She played of how glad she was feeling that Pluck had been accepted as one of the family.

  *

  Shenda had found on the second day after her arrival that there was a garden behind the house.

  The garden was not large, but it contained a number of trees and the lawn and a gardener who came in every other day tended all the flowerbeds.

  She learnt that there had been a grave shortage of workmen during the war and the owners of several of the nearby houses had agreed that one gardener could see to all their gardens.

  The Vicomte certainly had exceedingly good taste, not only in the way the house was furnished but also the way the garden was laid out.

  He had made the very best of the ground available and the flowers were a delight.

  Now, because she had said how much they meant to her, the servants had arranged flowers in all the rooms she was using.

  It was a great relief that there was a large garden for Pluck to run in and so Shenda did not have to take him for a walk whenever he wanted to go out.

  At the same time she was still anxious to see more of Paris and when the Captain was asleep she went out to enjoy the sights of the City with Pierre in attendance.

  She visited the lovely Madeleine Church and said a prayer not only for herself but for the Captain.

  She continued to pray for him as she was dressing his wound and she was sure that the combination of her prayers and the cream she had made were together invincible.

  Nevertheless she could have been extremely lonely as, although the servants were all kind and attentive, what really made her happy was the library.

  She found the books exciting and most interesting and she would retire to bed early and read the latest book that had attracted her attention.

  She found it hard to stop herself from reading until nearly midnight, but she longed to have someone to discuss the books with.

  She thought she must have expressed this feeling in her music, for rather surprisingly the next day the Captain volunteered,

  “I hear you are finding the library very interesting. Is there something you could recommend to me?”

  “It’s such a beautiful library and I am sure there are dozens of books you will find as entrancing as I do. Tell me what particularly interests you, Captain.”

  “I suppose anything to do with history will be fine, but not about wars like the one I have been fighting in.”

  “It would be a great mistake for you to read about wars until you have forgotten all about this one. What are your other interests, Captain?”

  Thinking of the Prince Regent, he replied,

  “I suppose furniture and I must say, from the little I have seen of this house, it is well furnished and the pictures are impressive. Have you been to the Louvre yet?”

  “I thought about it, but I cannot take Pluck in with me. He might be hurt if I left him at home.”

  Ivan smiled.

  “I believe dogs are more demanding than children, but if you cannot visit the Louvre, I am sure there is a book somewhere in the library illustrating its contents.”

  “Yes, there will be and I will find it for you and any other books on subjects that interest you.”

  “Then I will leave it to you. So what interests you?”

  “I have always wanted to travel,” Shenda answered. “Preferably to the East. I would love to see India and any of the other Asian countries.”

  “India is very beautiful. So find me a book on that country and I am sure I can show you something you can transpose into music.”

  “What a lovely suggestion! Supposing we start an entirely novel idea of selling music to go with every book. Think how intrigued the bookshops would be!”

  Ivan chuckled.

  “As you say, it would be a great new idea and one we could perhaps introduce first into England, although I rather suspect the French are more musical than we are.”

  “Then we must not give them our new idea before we return to England – ”

  Even as she spoke, she thought perhaps she had said the wrong thing.

  She saw by the expression in his eyes that when he thought of England, he remembered all that had upset him at home – which, of course, concerned a woman.

  Quickly Shenda sprang to her feet.

  “I am going off to the library now. Will you keep Pluck with you or shall I take him with me?”

  “Walk to the door,” he suggested, “and we will see if he follows you – or stays with me.”

  Shenda did so and, when she looked back, Pluck had not moved.

  She felt maybe the Captain had cheated, because he was still stroking him, but she knew it would be a mistake to say anything.

  She left the room and ran downstairs to the library.

  It was not difficult to locate a book of illustrations of the treasures of the Louvre and there was another of all the paintings of Michelangelo and the Italian Masters.

  In fact there were quite a number of such books and, if she looked for any more, she would be unable to carry all of them.

  She had actually decided it would take more than two journeys when Higgins appeared.

  “What’s goin’ on in ’ere? I finds you in ’ere, miss, when I thinks you was upstairs playin’ the piano.”

  “The Captain has asked me to find him some books to read, but I do think it would be better for him to look at illustrations first and only start to read a book when he is a little stronger.”

  “I supposes you’re right, as I never ’as time to read a book meself, I’m all for them pictures.”

  Shenda laughed as she was sure what he was really saying was that he found it difficult to read and therefore avoided doing so whenever he could.

  Higgins took a pile of books upstairs to the Master suite and Shenda followed him with the remainder.

  When they walked in, they both stood for a moment without moving.

  Ivan and Pluck were both fast asleep.

  Higgins placed his books gently beside the bed and Shenda did the same with hers.

  Pluck was aware that they were there, opened one eye, but did not move as Ivan’s hand was resting on his back.

  Shenda and Higgins then tiptoed from the room and into the boudoir.

  As they closed the door behind them, Higgins said,

  “He be lookin’ better than I’ve ever seen ’im and if you asks me that there dog will be a real joy to ’im. He’s always loved animals and there’s no one who rides an ’orse as well as the Captain.”

  “I might have guessed it! I expect he has some very good horses in England.”

  “I ’opes one day you’ll see them, miss.”

  “I hope so too – ”

  But there was a note in Higgins’s voice that told her it was most unlikely that she would ever see the Captain’s horses.

  Of course, she was curious to know who had driven him away and made him hate women so overpoweringly.

  However, she was not going to ask a servant.

  Higgins had volunteered no information as to what had happened and she therefore had no intention of letting him know that she was curious.

  Because the Captain was such a good-looking man, there must have been many women in his life, just as there were endless women pursuing the Duke of Wellington.

  She had thought about it this afternoon as she was talking to him.

  It was not only obvious that the Duk
e’s good looks made him so attractive to women – he also had a charm that one was instantly aware of the moment one came into contact with him.

  Shenda was almost sure that the Captain had very much the same charm, but it was somewhat undeveloped and therefore not so strong as the Duke’s.

  She had wondered, when the Duke was leaving, if he was going to visit one of his beautiful women.

  She had heard the servants talking about him and, despite being French, they were exceedingly impressed by the way he had beaten Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo.

  And they could not but admire him for his success with all the beauties of Paris, just as he had captivated the beauties in London.

  Shenda was aware that the two old housemaids had peeped at the Duke when he arrived and watched him leave from a window in one of the unoccupied bedrooms.

  The footmen and the kitchen servants watched him drive away and her French was good enough to understand what the footmen were saying about him.

  They were using colloquialisms that were not in the French curriculum she had learnt at school, but there was no mistaking the innuendo behind the words.

  Nor the fact that every man in the house, whatever his position, was envious of him.

  They asked themselves why the Duke had such an attraction for women and wished they were in his shoes.

  ‘Perhaps one day,’ Shenda pondered, ‘I will fall in love, but I hope it is not with a man like the Duke, because however hard one tried one could not help being jealous.’

  She could imagine nothing could be more upsetting or heartbreaking than to love a man, who had a dozen other women fawning on him, flattering him and telling him how irresistible he was.

  ‘I suppose that wherever the Duke goes, he leaves broken hearts behind him.’

  She could remember hearing that his marriage was not happy and she then wondered if it was because his wife was jealous, although there might be less obvious reasons that kept him away from Ireland.

  ‘I don’t really understand it,’ she told herself, ‘but when I fall in love I want the man I marry to love me and not be interested in any other woman.’

  Then she thought perhaps she was asking too much.

  Her father and mother had always been blissfully happy together, but when she thought of other people she had known, they never seemed to be so content.