Far From Home

by Val Wood

  I’d forgotten about them, she thought, as she dropped a copper into a woman’s eager hand. How could I? Why did I not remember when I was desperate for my own independence that there were so many others in need? Her thoughts turned to the young girl Grace, who had so actively campaigned for women in poverty. She had then married Edward’s brother Martin, who had fallen in love with her. I wonder if she has given up that cause now that she is married to a rich man. It would be so easy to forget, she thought guiltily. Just as I have done.

  They walked from the railway concourse into the Royal Station Hotel, where they were to rest for a few days before proceeding to make their visits. Georgiana had written to Edward’s mother telling her of his death, and also to May so that she could make preparations for her marriage. She had also told them that she was journeying back, but she hadn’t mentioned Jewel, preferring to tell them in person.

  The hotel, though newly built the year that Georgiana and Kitty left for America, had been refurbished and decorated for the visit of Queen Victoria two years earlier. The manager proudly showed Georgiana and other special visitors the apartments which the Queen had occupied, and which had been furnished in a rich and sumptuous manner.

  ‘Nowhere in the world can you find an hotel finer than this,’ he exclaimed, pointing out the elegant pillars and arches and handsome glass roof above the entrance court. Georgiana, having seen the Astor and many other New York and Philadelphia hotels, agreed that the Royal Station Hotel compared very favourably in every degree.

  The next day she showed Jewel the old shipping town of Hull and found that she had, after all, a warm feeling inside her when she saw the familiar landmarks of the town and the choppy brown waters of the Humber. They walked down the shopping street of Whitefriargate, where the rich bought their fripperies and the poor queued at the workhouse door. She showed the child the ships in the old dock which had been renamed the Queen’s Dock since Her Majesty’s visit, and the golden statue of King William, and then she posted a short letter to Wilhelm telling him that they had arrived safely.

  ‘I like it here, Aunt Gianna!’ Jewel, more cheerful now that she was rested, skipped alongside Georgiana as they walked along the bustling Market Place which was crammed with canvas-covered stalls, and listened to the call of market traders as they competed with one another. ‘I could find my way in this town without getting lost. Not like in San Francisco. Papa wouldn’t let me go out on my own in case – in case – I got lost – Papa!’ she suddenly cried and, clinging to Georgiana’s hand, started to weep with great racking sobs and copious tears. ‘Papa! Where are you? Papa!’

  ‘Oh, Jewel! Don’t cry.’ Georgiana bent down to comfort the little girl. How quickly her laughter had turned to tears as she was reminded of her father. But she wouldn’t be comforted and she stood shaking and crying and rubbing her small fists into her eyes.

  They were jostled from behind by people who looked curiously at them. Georgiana moved Jewel against a shop window and, taking out a handkerchief, bent down again. ‘Come, darling. Blow. Be a brave girl.’

  ‘No.’ Jewel stamped her foot, shook her head and howled. ‘I don’t want to be brave. I want my papa!’

  ‘I beg your pardon!’ A man walking behind almost fell over them, and lifted his top hat in apology. ‘I’m so—’ His words faded away. ‘Georgiana? Georgiana! Can it be you?’

  She looked up and gave a sudden smile. ‘It can, Martin! It is!’ She put out her hand and eagerly he grasped it and bowed.

  ‘How extraordinary!’ he gasped. ‘Just amazing! Mother said, of course, that you were coming – but didn’t know when, so – to meet here—!’

  He laughed in his enthusiasm and she thought that he seemed more handsome, more lively and vigorous than she remembered him. Marriage obviously suits him, she thought. I was mistaken in thinking him sombre.

  Jewel tugged impatiently on her skirt as if to remind her of her presence and Georgiana looked down at her, as did Martin.

  ‘Your daughter?’ he asked. ‘I – didn’t know.’ There was a slight hesitation in his voice, though he smiled down at Jewel, whose face was wet with tears.

  ‘No,’ she said huskily. ‘Not my daughter.’ She put her arm protectively around Jewel. Suppose he rejects her, his brother’s child? Suppose he doesn’t acknowledge her because she was born out of wedlock? And she is half-Chinese. She was suddenly tense, concerned that Jewel shouldn’t be hurt again. ‘This is Jewel. Edward’s daughter.’ She stroked the little girl’s cheek. ‘Jewel,’ she said. ‘This is your uncle. Martin. Your papa’s brother.’

  ‘Edward’s daughter?’ he breathed. ‘But why didn’t he tell us? We heard nothing from him.’ A veil of anguish flitted across his face. ‘Mother said you’d written that – about—’ He hesitated, his concerned glance skimming from Georgiana to Jewel.

  ‘Jewel knows of her father’s death,’ she said quietly. ‘That’s why she is crying: she was just now reminded of him.’ Then she felt a joyous relief as Martin crouched down beside the child and took hold of her hand.

  ‘I’m very pleased to meet you, Jewel.’ His voice was low but Georgiana felt that he was battling with a strong emotion. ‘So very pleased. What a charming name. Is it an American name?’

  Jewel pressed her lips together, then shook her head. She blinked, teardrops clinging to her dark lashes, and stared back at Martin, who was gazing gravely at her. ‘Are you Papa’s brother?’

  ‘Yes.’ His voice was tight. ‘I am. We were great friends when we were young, but we haven’t seen each other in a long time.’

  ‘He’s dead now,’ she told him solemnly. Her mouth trembled and her tears overflowed. ‘And I wanted to see him!’

  ‘I know, darling.’ Martin’s words were choked. ‘So did I.’

  He held both hands out to her and she lifted her arms and put them around his neck. He stood and swung her up into his arms, then held her close while she sobbed onto his shoulder.

  CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

  ‘You must come home with me,’ Martin insisted. ‘We live in the High Street. It’s not far. Grace will be so pleased to see you.’ He patted Jewel’s wet cheek. ‘And so will our two little girls.’

  Jewel heaved a sobbing breath. ‘W-will I be able to p-play with them?’

  ‘Of course!’ He hitched her higher into his arms and looked anxiously at Georgiana. ‘You will come? Please.’

  ‘Now? Well, yes! Thank you. If it won’t be inconvenient.’ She wondered how his wife would react to having visitors calling without notice.

  His eyes sparkled as if he knew what she was thinking. ‘We have open house at all times. Grace doesn’t believe in calling cards.’

  ‘How is Grace? Is she coping well with her new life?’ She felt she had known him well enough in the past to ask an honest question.

  ‘She’s wonderful, Georgiana.’ He beamed. ‘I can’t tell you how lucky I am. She wanted to live in Hull, so we chose the High Street, which is near enough for her parents and old friends to call.’ He glanced significantly at her. ‘She doesn’t want to forget her beginnings, and,’ he added, ‘it is very convenient for my day-to-day activities.’

  He led her down the narrow Bishop Lane and into the High Street, where presently they stopped at the door of a tall substantial house. Martin put Jewel down, rang the bell and withdrew a key from his pocket. Before he could put it in the lock, the door opened and Grace stood there with a joyous look on her face. ‘Martin,’ she said excitedly. ‘What do you think—’

  How lovely she is, Georgiana thought as they gazed at each other. More than ever she was when I last saw her. She has matured into a beautiful woman, and she felt a small pang of envy for these two happy people.

  ‘Miss Gregory!’ Grace greeted her warmly. ‘How lovely to see you. Come in. Come in, please!’ She opened the door wide. ‘Martin? Did you expect—?’ She beamed with delight at Georgiana. ‘We heard you were coming back.’ Then she looked down at Jewel. ‘Hello! How do you do! Have you come to play
with our little girls?’

  Jewel nodded and started to unbutton her coat. ‘Yes, please. I’m called Jewel Newsom. What are they called?’

  ‘Elizabeth and Clara Newmarch,’ Grace answered. ‘They’re twins and they’re nearly five years old.’

  Georgiana bent down to Jewel. ‘Do you remember what your papa said to you before we left San Francisco? About your name?’

  Jewel stared up at her. ‘I shall cry again about Papa!’ she said petulantly.

  ‘Dear. Do try to remember,’ Georgiana urged.

  ‘He said I was called after a lovely lady in England.’

  ‘Yes, I know that.’ Georgiana was embarrassed. ‘But your other name? Your proper surname.’

  Jewel screwed up her face in an effort to remember. Then she looked up at Grace. ‘It was Newmarch, like your little girls.’

  Grace blinked and, glancing from Georgiana to Martin, murmured, ‘So whose child is she?’

  ‘My papa’s called Eddie,’ Jewel interrupted, and Georgiana considered that one thing Edward hadn’t taught his daughter was that she shouldn’t break into adult conversation. ‘And my mama is dead. Can we go and play now?’

  Grace put out her hand to her. ‘Yes, of course.’ She raised her eyebrows at Martin and he nodded at her implied query. ‘Come along then.’ She smiled. ‘Come and meet your cousins.’

  Martin and Grace insisted that Georgiana and Jewel should stay with them. Martin ordered the carriage and went to fetch her belongings from the hotel himself. Georgiana was introduced to the twins, who were slender and fair as Grace was, but with Martin’s dark eyes.

  She and Grace drank tea by the sitting-room fire and Georgiana told her of her life since leaving England.

  ‘Such an exciting life you have had, Miss Gregory. There was a hint of deference in Grace’s manner to Georgiana, as if she still considered her to be her superior.

  ‘Please call me Georgiana,’ she said. ‘In America I haven’t been called Miss Gregory for many years, except by people in New York, and one elderly Englishwoman whom I met on the voyage out.’ She recollected the eccentric Mrs Burrows with affection, and wished that she had had the chance to see her before she had sailed for England.

  ‘Most people at Dreumel’s Creek call me Miz Gianna.’ She laughed. ‘Old Isaac started it and it seems to have stuck.’ She paused and suddenly felt melancholy. ‘Except for Wilhelm,’ she murmured. ‘He always gives me my full name.’

  ‘And who is he?’ Grace asked. ‘A friend?’

  ‘Yes.’ Georgiana felt a lump in her throat. ‘My very dear friend. I miss him terribly. He’s so steady and sensible and – and caring.’

  Grace nodded and gazed at her. ‘Martin was my friend for a long time before he declared himself,’ she said quietly. ‘I was very young, but I could say or ask him anything. I trusted him completely but I never knew that he loved me.’

  ‘Oh, Wilhelm doesn’t care for me in that way,’ Georgiana said wistfully. ‘He loved his wife. She died in childbirth when they were newly married.’ She lifted her eyes to Grace. ‘He has never recovered from that loss, and I understand that. I too have loved and lost.’

  Grace rose from her chair and came to kneel by her side. ‘I am very sorry,’ she whispered. ‘That must be so hard for you. Is that why you have undertaken Jewel’s welfare? To fill a part of your heart?’

  ‘No.’ Georgiana struggled to compose herself. ‘I didn’t know that Lake had been killed when I agreed to look after Jewel. I promised Edward because – because there was no-one else,’ she explained in a rush.

  ‘But now there is,’ Grace said softly. ‘If you would desire it. We will take care of her and bring her up as our own daughter. We would be happy to. Martin would say the same, I know.’

  ‘But!’ Georgiana gazed at her. ‘She will be considered an illegitimate child! It will get out. There will be such scandal. I haven’t seen May yet, but I can guess what she will have to say about Edward and his daughter.’

  May had many things to say about Edward and even more about Jewel when Georgiana and the little girl visited her. ‘I wonder how many more children he has fathered?’ she said blisteringly. ‘Chinese! Indian? Who knows? There could be any amount! He was a loose fish, a Lothario, and I was unfortunate enough to marry him!’

  Almost certainly there was one more, Georgiana considered, as she remembered the lovely Sofia and her handsome son. But she said nothing about that and simply explained how Edward had changed, and that he had asked her to say he was sorry he had been found wanting as a husband, and sought her forgiveness. She fished in her reticule for the small leather bag which Edward had given her.

  She handed it to May and pondered that her cousin hadn’t improved in temperament since she had been away. She had become more peevish and querulous than ever.

  ‘What’s this?’ She snatched the bag from Georgiana. ‘Atonement? He took my dowry, you know!’

  ‘Of course I know,’ Georgiana answered sharply. ‘I was here at the time. This is to make amends! It’s gold.’

  May’s eyes widened. ‘Gold!’ She pulled the bag open. ‘How much is it worth?’

  ‘I don’t know the gold prices at the moment.’ Georgiana tried not to be caustic. ‘But it will be worth more than your dowry ever was.’

  Her cousin looked at her suspiciously. ‘Is there a proviso?’ she asked. ‘Because legally he didn’t have to return it. Women have no rights. You know that better than most after all your campaigning.’ Her pretty mouth curled into a sneer. ‘Didn’t make any difference, did it? Any more than that woman Grace, who married Martin, did any good with that silly book she wrote. The Emancipation of Women or some such thing. It was quite unreadable!’

  ‘We women have to try, May.’ Georgiana felt her patience ebbing away. ‘And people have read Grace’s book. She has told me that every copy has been sold.’

  ‘You’ve been to see them already?’ May flushed. ‘And what did Martin think of Edward and his philandering?’

  ‘They were sorry that he had died,’ she said softly, and reflected that May had not once shown any sorrow or asked about her husband’s life. ‘And they offered to have Jewel live with them.’

  ‘Good heavens,’ May exclaimed. ‘But the child is a bastard! How can they think of it?’ She shot a withering glance at Georgiana. ‘You were not thinking of asking me to have her, were you?’

  ‘Certainly not! She needs love and understanding.’ Georgiana was very conscious of Jewel’s presence. Surprisingly, the little girl was sitting quietly on a chair next to her without making any interruptions. ‘She has just lost her father, who was very dear to her.’

  ‘Hmph,’ May said grudgingly. ‘Well, I suppose the child can’t be blamed. But I can’t possibly have her. I’m about to be married. You can come to the wedding if you wish, Georgiana.’ She tossed the invitation casually into the conversation. ‘Only, don’t bring the child. People might think she’s yours, which would be very embarrassing for you as you are not a married woman.’

  ‘I would not be in the least embarrassed.’ Georgiana rose determinedly to her feet. ‘But I will not be coming. I wish you every happiness in your future life. I have travelled thousands of miles on your behalf in order to repay a debt of gratitude which I considered I owed your parents. Those obligations are now discharged. Goodbye, May. I doubt that our paths will cross again.’

  May opened her mouth to say something but Georgiana was already walking to the door, calling Jewel to follow her. Jewel slipped down from her chair and stood in front of May. ‘I’m glad you’re not my mama.’ Her almond-shaped eyes were dark and unfathomable and May shrank back. ‘I don’t like you.’

  Martin drove Georgiana and Jewel to meet his mother. ‘I’m concerned that she will be upset. Though she has always been stoical, I feel she has been holding back her emotions since you wrote to tell her of Edward’s death.’ He gave a little smile. ‘He was always our mother’s favourite; she used to spoil him when we were children.’
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  Mrs Newmarch greeted her cordially. Georgiana had known her socially and considered that she had aged in the last five years. ‘So good of you to visit, Miss Gregory. So very kind of you to write to tell us of Edward.’ She seemed not to take notice of Jewel, even though the little girl gave her a polite wobbly curtsy. She sighed and clutched her throat nervously. ‘I wish he had written from America. I worried so.’

  ‘He thought that no-one would want to hear from him in view of his behaviour.’ Georgiana sat down as she was bid and drew Jewel towards her.

  ‘We were angry, of course, when he went away. Were we not, Martin?’ She glanced at her son. ‘But a mother’s love is always there, my dear, no matter what, and he has been constantly in my thoughts.’

  ‘I haven’t got a mother,’ Jewel suddenly piped up. ‘She died when I was a baby.’

  Mrs Newmarch turned to her as if seeing her for the first time. ‘I’m so sorry to hear that, my dear. And your father? Do you have a father?’

  Jewel shook her head. ‘My papa is dead too, but before he died he sent me on a journey with Aunt Gianna to see Wilhelm and Kitty and baby Caitlin. And,’ she took a breath and gazed steadily at the old lady, ‘he said that one day I might go and meet my grandmama.’

  ‘Oh!’ Mrs Newmarch seemed perplexed. ‘And have you met her?’

  Jewel’s lips moved wordlessly.

  ‘Mother!’ Martin went to sit on the sofa by her side. ‘Mother. This is Jewel, Edward’s daughter. Miss Gregory has brought her home to us.’

  Georgiana shuddered uneasily. No! No! It isn’t like that, she thought.

  Mrs Newmarch looked intensely at Jewel. ‘But how can that be? Edward was married to May. She doesn’t have any children!’

  ‘No, Mama.’ Martin spoke patiently. ‘Not May. Jewel’s mother was called Tsui, but Edward was her father.’

  Mrs Newmarch beckoned to Jewel to come closer. She stroked the little girl’s long tresses which hung below her bonnet. ‘So dark and silky,’ she murmured. ‘Who was your mother, did you say?’