Jessie's Promise

by Rosie Clarke

  ‘I’d better not give him any medication in case it interferes with the hospital’s medication,’ Jessie said. ‘But we might give him a little brandy if there is any around?’

  Brandy was fetched. Jessie was offered Maggie’s coat to save her going back for her own and the three of them trooped out, Captain Kendle carrying the lad while Carter opened doors and got the car ready to receive him. He had laid a blanket on the back seat of the Daimler and Jessie got in first. She sat with the injured lad’s head on her lap throughout the drive. He moaned a few times but the loss of blood had been severe and he was mercifully unconscious the whole time. Her heart ached for him. He couldn’t be more than fifteen and it was likely that he would be crippled for life.

  The drive seemed to take ages, but at last they were at the hospital and the young lad was transferred to a stretcher and rushed inside. Jessie watched as he was taken immediately to an operating theatre that had been alerted to receive him, her throat closing with emotion. That poor, poor boy!

  She turned as someone spoke to her and Captain Kendle offered her his handkerchief. Until that moment she hadn’t realised there were tears on her cheeks.

  ‘He’s so young,’ she said. ‘You know he could lose that arm, don’t you?’

  Harry nodded. ‘I’ve seen wounds like that in the trenches – and worse. Some of them recovered, some didn’t. We’ve done our bit, Jessie. I’ve sent word to his parents but I’ll bring them to the hospital as soon as I’ve got you back.’

  ‘Oh yes, thank you.’ He was thoughtful and kind. Jessie stared at him, her heart swelling with an emotion she had never thought to feel again. How could she ever have imagined he was cold? ‘I had better get back in case I’m needed.’

  ‘They can manage for a while,’ Harry said and his mouth compressed into a thin line. ‘This was an emergency. If he’d woken up and started pulling at the tourniquet we might have lost him before we got him here.’

  Jessie nodded but made no comment. She thought by his expression that he must have heard about all the trouble over her absence the previous day. To bring it up now would have seemed to criticise his wife, Jessie thought and maintained her silence.

  In fact the drive back to the house was mostly silent with only a few comments from Harry Kendle to Carter. Jessie could see that the captain’s face had assumed that remote, harsh expression it often wore and she wondered what was in his mind.

  Harry broke the silence when she was out of the car, going after her to catch her alone before she went into the kitchen.

  ‘I wanted to tell you, my mother’s illness makes no difference to my plans for next month,’ he told her. ‘If Mother is worse I shall arrange for a nurse to come in but hopefully it was a mild attack. My father will be here, of course. He is able to make any decisions necessary about her health.’

  ‘It is your decision, of course,’ Jessie said though her heart skipped a beat for pleasure. ‘If Lady Kendle is unwell again it might be better for her to go into hospital for a couple of days to have tests. I should imagine that could be arranged to coincide with the trip to London.’

  ‘Yes, that is an excellent suggestion if Mother would agree. I shall speak to my father.’ Harry smiled at her, causing her heart to do a rapid somersault. ‘I don’t know what we should do without you now. If Wylie’s boy lives it will probably be due to you.’

  ‘I’m sure you would have got him there in time somehow,’ Jessie said with a little shake of her head.

  ‘I’m not so sure of that. I must speak to Jethro Wylie. He will be frantic about his son by now.’

  *

  Jessie went into the kitchen, where she was met by the tantalising smell of baking and three pairs of curious eyes. Cook, Maggie and one of the gardeners were sitting at the table having a cup of tea and enjoying a gossip.

  ‘I telled young Jed to watch out with that there scythe,’ Ned Dobson said shaking his head sorrowfully over it. ‘But he be only a lad and they never listen.’

  ‘Will he be all right?’ Maggie looked anxious as she turned to Jessie. It was clear from her tear stained face that she had been crying. She wasn’t much older than the lad they had rushed to hospital and had a tender heart. ‘He won’t die, will he? I’ve never seen so much blood in my life.’

  ‘He did lose an awful lot of blood, but he’s in hospital now and they will save him and his arm if they can.’

  The mat that had taken the brunt of that blood had been scrubbed and taken outside to dry, but looking down at herself Jessie saw that the apron she was wearing over her uniform was stained with blood. She took it off and Maggie held out her hand for it.

  ‘I’ll put that in cold water for you, Jessie. I’m not sure it will come out but we can try.’

  ‘I had better go up to the children.’

  ‘You’ll have a cup of tea first,’ Cook insisted. ‘Nanny knows where you’ve been and she’s given the children their lunch. Would you like a drop of brandy to settle your nerves, lass?’

  Jessie refused with a smile. It wasn’t the first time she’d seen wounds as deep as Jed Wylie’s. In France she had seen men brought in with shattered limbs and half their face gone, but she hadn’t mentioned her experiences to Captain Kendle and she wouldn’t now. There were some things it was best not to talk about. The memories still haunted her dreams sometimes, though not as often as they had once.

  She drank her tea then went upstairs to the nursery.

  When Jack saw her he gave a whoop of delight and flung himself at her, hugging her waist as if he would never let go of her again.

  ‘I thought you’d gone,’ he said. ‘Nanny said you would be back but I thought she was just saying that.’

  ‘I had to go to the hospital with the gardener’s boy. He had cut his arm,’ Jessie said. ‘Didn’t I tell you I wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye?’

  ‘I know but I thought you had. Grown-ups tell lies. It’s all right now you’re back.’

  ‘Shall we go for our walk?’ Jessie asked and glanced at Nanny. ‘Will you let Lady Kendle know that the lad is in hospital and being cared for please. I know she was anxious.’

  ‘I was going to visit her when you got back anyway,’ Nanny said. ‘We enjoy our little chats these days. You get off, Jessie. It’s a lovely morning for a walk and it will do you and the children good after all the upset.’

  ‘Yes, it is a lovely day,’ Jessie agreed.

  She was feeling much better as she got the children ready for their walk. Jed Wylie was being cared for and there was no more she could do for him. The warmth of the sun was exceptional for the time of year and the children’s laughter brought a smile to her face, banishing the haunting memories of a period of her life that was best forgotten now.

  It was only as she returned from her walk just before lunch, and saw Captain Kendle standing in the yard at the back of the house, deep in conversation with the gardener, that the truth hit her.

  She was in love with her employer, Mary Kendle’s husband. She hadn’t meant it to happen, hadn’t thought it could because of her love for Robbie, but although Robbie was still there in her heart, Harry Kendle was wedged in there beside him.

  He turned and smiled at her and Jessie’s heart raced. This was the last thing she needed! She was such a fool! It was bound to cause her nothing but heartbreak.

  She loved Harry Kendle and she loved his children. She ought to leave this house as soon as someone could be found to take her place. It was the sensible way, the right thing to do. Jessie knew it but she also knew that she wasn’t going to leave.

  Not just yet. Not unless it became impossible for her to stay.

  Chapter Nine

  Christmas in the Kendle household meant a lot of extra work for Cook and the others. Mary Kendle had friends to stay, which meant that for four days they hardly had time to take a moment for themselves. However, they had a special supper in the servant’s hall on Christmas Day and exchanged small gifts.

  Jessie was given a box of scen
ted writing paper as a joint present from all the staff and she gave them the little boxes of sweets she had bought in Torquay.

  She had also knitted scarves for Jack and Catherine and she gave them both an orange and packets of sweets in their stockings, which had caused endless delight in the nursery, because their father had contributed small gifts when he’d learned of Jessie’s intention.

  They were taken to their grandmother’s room after breakfast and there they were given their main presents, which in Catherine’s case was a doll and clothes. Jack was presented with a very expensive model train set and various soldiers, but it was the stockings that had given them the most pleasure.

  Jessie had received a gift in the post from her aunt, and a book of poetry from Archie together with cards from various friends she had known before leaving London. However, when she went into her bedroom that night, she found a small package lying on her bed. Opening it, she discovered a box of exquisite lace handkerchiefs.

  The small card just wished her happiness and was unsigned, but she recognised Captain Kendle’s handwriting at once because of the sums he wrote out for his son. Jessie was quite sure who had put the gift there, and she felt a little tingle of unease. She had already received an extra three pounds in her wages as a gift from the family, and this was something special from Captain Kendle himself.

  He ought not to have given her the handkerchiefs, and she ought not to feel so very happy because he had!

  *

  Despite her determination not to give way to her feelings for Harry Kendle, Jessie found herself looking forward to the London trip and the three days she would spend in his company. She kept her fingers crossed that nothing would happen to prevent it and was reassured to learn that Lady Kendle had agreed to go into a private hospital for tests on her heart condition.

  ‘It will make things easier while you’re away, Jessie,’ she told her. ‘Sir Joshua is worried about me even though I feel quite well at the moment. But with Mary going away for two months…’ She smiled as she saw Jessie’s expression. ‘You didn’t know, of course.’

  ‘I thought it was just for a couple of weeks, ma’am.’

  ‘She is staying with friends in Kent for two weeks but after that she goes with them to their villa in the South of France. She went last year even though things were still difficult after the war, but she enjoyed it and that is all that matters. Mary needs something to take her mind off her problems and Harry doesn’t object. He could join her if he wished but he is too busy with one thing and another. He runs the estate, of course, but he also has workshops in Torquay. I don’t know if you knew that?’ Jessie shook her head. ‘He employs craftsmen who make rather lovely furniture. It’s all done by hand, time consuming and expensive. Mary thinks it’s a waste of resources; the money could be put to better use elsewhere perhaps, but Harry says the business is making some money and will do better when the country’s stabilised again. This war has turned us all upside down, Jessie. It seems that Harry has to run all the time just to stand still.’

  ‘Yes, I can see he must,’ Jessie said, understanding now why Captain Kendle was so often away from home. She found it interesting to learn about his business venture, of which she had known nothing previously. She was learning more about him all the time, and she liked what she heard; she liked it that he preferred to use craftsmen rather than resort to the production line to make more money.

  Lady Kendle and Sir Joshua departed the day before Jessie was due to leave for London, and Mary Kendle had gone to her friends two days before that.

  ‘We shan’t know what to do with ourselves,’ Cook had said. ‘It will be like a holiday.’

  ‘It’s always better when Madam is away,’ Alice told Jessie. She had come to her room to sit on the bed and watch her pack. ‘Will you get a chance to see your aunt while you’re in town, Jessie?’

  ‘Yes, I think so. Captain Kendle said I should go one evening. It’s easy enough on the bus when the children are in bed.’

  ‘You know your way round London,’ Alice said with a sigh. ‘It will all be new to me when I get there.’

  ‘You won’t leave yet, will you? I shall see you again before that?’

  ‘I shan’t go until the end of this month,’ Alice said. ‘But that’s the latest I dare leave it if I’m going to have an abortion.’

  ‘You haven’t changed your mind? I do wish you would, Alice. You don’t have to keep the baby but that’s up to you, of course.’

  ‘I’m thinking about it,’ Alice said. ‘I still think I want to be rid of it but I’ll see when the time comes. I shall have to leave this place anyway. I could never keep something like this a secret – they wouldn’t take me back if I went off for a week or two without saying why. Besides, I fancy my chances on the stage.’

  Jessie nodded. She saw no point in pressing the argument further. Alice would make up her own mind when she was ready.

  ‘I shall miss you,’ she said. ‘Perhaps we can meet one day? You can always write to me at my aunt’s house.’

  Jessie asked Nanny and the others if there was anything they wanted her to bring from town. Nanny and Cook both said no but Maggie wanted several small items and Jessie promised to get them for her if she could.

  She had wondered if Carter would be driving them all the way to London but was told that he would take them only as far as Torquay where they could catch the mainline train.

  ‘My father may need his services. Besides, Jack wants to go on the train,’ Harry explained when he came to the nursery to make the arrangements for the following day. ‘The children get sick in the car on long journeys and I think the train is a better way for them to travel. You can manage them, can’t you, Jessie?’

  ‘Yes, of course, sir.’

  ‘I thought you could.’

  Jessie was warmed by his smile.

  They travelled first class and were served lunch in the dining car. It was comfortable and pleasant and, apart from changing Catherine twice in the toilets, everything went smoothly.

  Mrs Carmichael was pleased to see Jessie again. She exclaimed over how well she looked.

  ‘The country air has brought colour to your cheeks, Jessie. Are you settling in well?’

  ‘Yes, very well, thank you.’

  Jessie gave the children their tea and tucked them up in bed. For once Jack was sleepy and his eyes closed almost as soon as his head touched the pillow.

  Jessie went to her own room to change and freshen up after the long and tiring journey. She put on an attractive green-and-white striped dress with buttoned sleeves and a white frill around the neck; it made her look younger than she did in uniform and she smiled as she looked at her reflection. There was something in her eyes, a light that had been missing since Robbie was killed, and she thought that that was a big part of the change Mrs Carmichael had seen in her.

  She was going downstairs for her meal when she met Harry Kendle. ‘Ah, I was just about to come up for you,’ he said. ‘I’ve asked Mrs Carmichael to lay supper in my study for us. I thought you would find that more comfortable than the dining room?’

  ‘But…’ Jessie stared at him uncertainly. ‘I eat with the staff at Kendlebury, sir.’

  ‘Yes, I know. It wouldn’t suit for you to dine with us there, Jessie. My father and Mary are sticklers for the old order, but here there are just the two of us so where is the harm? Besides, I want to talk to you about the children.’

  Jessie hesitated. It wasn’t right and they both knew it, but she found herself giving way. Just this once couldn’t matter.

  ‘Well, perhaps this once then.’

  ‘Tomorrow I shall be dining out with a business friend and you’ll want to visit your aunt. It’s only once, Jessie.’

  There was a note of pleading in his voice and Jessie was lost. She knew even as she agreed that this could be the beginning of something she would come to regret, but somehow she couldn’t find the strength to draw back.

  Supper had been laid on a small table pu
t up for the purpose, with a white cloth, good porcelain, silver and sparkling glasses. The meal consisted of fresh salmon, delicious creamed potatoes and slender green beans, followed by a wine syllabub in long fluted glasses. There was a crisp white wine that had been chilled to just the right degree to accompany the meal, coffee and chocolates to follow.

  Jessie enjoyed every morsel. She wasn’t in the least shy because Harry talked about the children most of the time, putting her at her ease.

  ‘Jack has another two years before he goes to boarding school,’ he told her. ‘I went when I was six but I hated it and ran away. My mother brought me home and hired a tutor. My father was disgusted. He thought me weak you see. He still feels the same.’

  ‘He can’t think that, not after what you did in the war.’

  ‘Yes he can and does,’ Harry said with a wry grimace. ‘But I’m used to it. I only mention my experience because I value your advice – do you think Jack is ready for a tutor at home?’

  ‘He is very bright, full of energy but still young. I can only give my own opinion but I would say the autumn would be soon enough.’

  ‘Let him have the summer to run free? I agree with you. So that’s settled. Jack can have a few more months of playing with you and Catherine, then I’ll arrange for him to have lessons in the mornings. The Vicar said he would send his curate and that will suit us all. He can come to the house at first and then when Jack is accustomed to the idea I’ll take him to the vicarage. There are a couple of other boys who have lessons there and it will get him used to the idea of boarding school.’

  ‘He will enjoy his lessons once he settles down. He is a very active boy and it will do him good to stretch his mind.’

  Harry nodded. ‘That leaves Catherine. Is she still improving in your estimation?’

  ‘Yes, I believe so. She is beginning to ask for the toilet, though we had an accident on the train but I expected that. However, she is talking much more than she used to – as you must have noticed?’