The Kent Heiress

by Roberta Gellis

  Roger looked worried, but he said nothing. If Elvan could convince Sabrina to try again to make the marriage work and get her pregnant, the problem would be enormously complicated. Probably then Sabrina would have to settle for a half-life as his wife. But she had resisted him for more than a year already. Still, he might not have been trying to pacify her since he believed she was either trapped or content. There was no need to raise the question immediately, however. Roger knew he would have time to warn Sabrina of that trip, and he was convinced Elvan would not try to force her.

  “It’s all right, Leonie,” Sabrina said. “If I agree…no, let’s not be silly. Obviously I am considering seriously going to Portugal, but I will want assurances, William.”

  “Oh, God,” he said with disgust, “for all I care, you can hire ten lusty footmen and have them surround you whenever we are in private. Surely you don’t believe I would attack you in public?”

  Sabrina could not help smiling. “I don’t mean assurances that you won’t be violent, William. I want assurances that you won’t use my agreement to come with you against me in the matter of dissolving our marriage and that you will really, very seriously, consider the advantages of a quiet annulment, for which I am ready to bear the blame, over a vile exposure of our private lives in a divorce suit.”

  “Of course I will consider it. I have said so already,” William replied, far too readily.

  “It will have to be a formal agreement,” Roger said dryly. “I cannot prevent Sabrina from doing what she thinks best, but I will advise her most strongly not to go without a written statement of intention. You understand, this will not bind her, or you for that matter, to any particular action. It will merely protect Sabrina if you should wish to deny this conversation.”

  William was really furious. For one moment it almost looked as if he might attack Roger physically; however, that would have been futile in every sense. Although Roger was at least ten years older, he was stronger and more fit. With an effort, William recovered his temper. He realized that the formal statement could do him little harm. After all, St. Eyre and his wife were already witnesses that, the conversation had taken place. In any case, his purpose was to convince Sabrina she would be better off remaining married to him, not trapping her into a situation that would make her desperate and dangerous.

  “Very well,” he said, “if Sabrina will come to Portugal and behave in public as my wife, fulfilling the duties necessary, I will sign your formal agreement.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  The weather was dreadful, which was unfortunate both for William’s dignity and for his plans to use the voyage from England to Portugal to convince Sabrina that she was being foolish. Unthinkingly, William had explained arranging separate cabins for them by saying that Sabrina was afflicted by sickness at sea. He had forgotten that Sabrina had never been seasick. She had extensive experience with pitching and rolling boats, having been for some years a “fisherman’s child” and sailing on Philip’s yacht.

  Since William was not equally resistant, the high seas encountered during the passage inconvenienced him more than his wife. The captain of the ship made no remark of this, of course but it amused him to see Sabrina, bright-eyed and pink-cheeked, her silver-gilt hair charmingly windblown, appear for every meal no matter what antics the ship played.

  There were a number of others unaffected by the playful behavior of the ship and the sea. Two were Portuguese merchants, who made the passage to England so frequently that they could almost have sailed the vessel themselves. Sabrina found them delightful and useful companions. They taught her enough Portuguese to communicate simply and told her some rather astonishing facts about Portuguese history, such as the practice of marrying niece to uncle when the male line failed in the royal family.

  Although Sabrina made no comment, she privately thought it was not very surprising that Queen Maria was quite mad and that her son, the Prince Regent João, was neither remarkably intelligent nor capable of clinging to his own opinions. No matter that she disapproved, Sabrina was sincerely interested, and her absorbed attention was an irresistible inducement to the gentlemen to enlarge on their reminiscences. Both bewailed the days of the Marquês de Pombal, the favorite of the preceding monarch, Maria’s father, who, they sighed, had done more than enrich himself by taking full advantage of his position.

  Admittedly, Sabrina thought, as she listened, the Marquês de Pombal seemed to have been an excellent choice for a favorite. When Lisbon had been destroyed in 1755 by a severe earthquake—half the city turned to rubble and thirty thousand dead—he had seized the opportunity not only to restore Lisbon but to remake Portugal. The city had been rebuilt completely, all except for one old lection that had survived intact. In addition the paralyzing power of the Inquisition was broken, the Jesuits driven out of the country, and the administration of the country reformed along more liberal and less corrupt lines. Pombal had not stopped there. He had fostered agriculture, built new roads, improved communications, and encouraged industries and trade. Everything was done that could make the country self-sufficient.

  Unfortunately this renaissance did not long survive. When his patron died, Pombal was cast aside by Queen Maria (also married to her uncle), who was a religious fanatic and already slightly unbalanced. Before long the death of her husband and her eldest son had driven her incurably insane, but she had ruled long enough to permit the Church to reestablish its hold in Portugal. The accession of Prince João as regent had prevented a total return to the stranglehold of the Inquisition on all life, but matters were now tending more and more in that direction. Dom João was strongly influenced by his wife, Carlota Joaquina, who was almost as much of a religious fanatic as his mother.

  The merchants were particularly explicit about this point because personal worries were involved. They feared for their business, which was largely with Britain—a country of heretics. Sabrina blinked at that and uttered a mild protest. England had no love for Papists; in fact, it was the question of liberalizing the restrictive laws against Catholics that had brought down the previous government. However, religion had nothing to do with business. In recent times, at least, trade was pursued with total impartiality and enthusiasm whether the partners were Papist, Protestant, or pagan.

  There was more to it than that, Sabrina realized when she thought over the various conversations. Without being specific the two kind gentlemen seemed to be delivering a word of warning. She would not be a favorite at court this time, Sabrina knew. Also, William had not instructed her regarding what or whom he expected her to cultivate.

  This was a disturbing thought, but she put it aside. It was really quite natural for William to avoid any discussion with her that was not absolutely necessary. When he had become more adjusted to the idea that she wanted an annulment, life would be easier. Besides, the poor man had not expected to be so seasick. Could the sickness be a device to avoid her? If so, for what reason? Sabrina shrugged her shapely shoulders. She would be on guard and so would Katy, but she couldn’t imagine what William might intend.

  Actually, he intended nothing dire. Although his original purpose of using romantic, moonlit nights on shipboard to soften Sabrina’s heart had been foiled by the weather and by bouts with seasickness, the reason William had not instructed Sabrina was that there was nothing for her to do. He had found, once his own briefing started, that Canning’s remark had been mere casual pleasantry and in fact, the foreign minister either had not really been considering what he was saying or had not been in possession of all the facts of the case. Carlota Joaquina had a strong influence on her husband, it was true. Ordinarily such a situation was a natural for Sabrina, who would ingratiate herself with the regent’s wife or her ladies or both. This time however, Carlota Joaquina’s unnaturally intense religious prejudice would probably preclude all but a formal relationship.

  William had said nothing about this discovery because he had no intention of leaving Sabrina behind. In England, supported
by her doting foster parents, her intentions of dissolving their marriage would only harden as she slipped back into the role of a single girl. William considered Sabrina an almost ideal wife. Even if she persisted in the lunacy of refusing to sleep with him, he did not mind. Bodies were two a penny, but women with Sabrina’s ability in the diplomatic sphere combined with great beauty were few and far between. She would be, as she grew older, and more experienced, even more valuable, and William intended to use every device he could discover to keep her.

  One plan came to his mind immediately when he discovered Sabrina was not likely to be warmly received. He remembered how depressed she had become in Prussia when she was excluded from the court and its entertainments. There he had neglected her. He regretted it now, although he had not really had much choice, but possibly that was what had decided her on the idea of an annulment. In Portugal she would be in a similar situation, but he would be able to spend more time with her. Also, she would not be invited to social functions on her own due to the rigid conditions of Portugal. She would be dependent on him, and he would win her back on his own terms.

  They landed in Lisbon in the middle of May. The passage up the Tagus was lovely, the hills clothed with the fresh green of late spring and the white city climbing upward on them. For the first two weeks they were housed in the British embassy. It was more convenient for William, who had a good deal to discuss with his superior, Lord Strangford. Naturally, Sabrina was not present at the diplomatic conferences, but the problems were so serious that it was impossible for Lord Strangford or William to dismiss them from mind. Thus, since Sabrina was as interested as the men in the political situation, it was soon discussed as eagerly at the dinner table and tea table as in the offices.

  It was unfortunate for Sabrina’s peace of mind that the Portuguese situation was tied so closely to the war in East Prussia. As early as 1802, Bonaparte had decided dismember Portugal. First he tried to force the small country into war by sending as emissary Marshal Lannes, the crudest and least educated of his generals. Although Lannes deliberately offended and humiliated the Portuguese, they did not fall into the trap of pitting their puny strength against Bonaparte’s temporarily idle legions. Prince João simply complied with Bonaparte’s demands to dismiss the anti-French members of his council.

  By 1804, Bonaparte had replaced Lannes with Junot and was demanding that Portugal declare war on England. This, however, the prince regent was unwilling to do. England was the market for most of Portugal’s grain and wine, and the long coastline of Portugal was dreadfully vulnerable to attack by a sea power. Fortunately for Portugal, through 1805 and 1806, Bonaparte was so deeply embroiled in his campaigns in Germany and Austria that he did not push his demands.

  Now, however, Portugal’s safety, hung on Russia’s ability to resist the French. If the war continued in East Prussia and Poland, no more pressure would fall on Portugal. There would be no need for William and Lord Strangford to do anything except wait. If the Russians defeated Bonaparte, it might be worthwhile for England to encourage Portugal, and Spain, too, to attack France. If Bonaparte defeated the Russians, the situation would become critical. Almost certainly, Bonaparte’s attention would return to the Peninsula as soon as Russia ceased to oppose him. However, if enough time had elapsed for Castlereagh to have reorganized the armed forces, Britain might be able to send help.

  The defense of Portugal was not impossible. With the British navy to protect the coastline and to land forces if necessary, the major cities could be defended. The northern portion of the country was so mountainous, native troops would have a marked advantage against foreign invaders. The terrain in the south was more suitable to Bonaparte’s type of war, but it was strategically far less important and was vulnerable to attack from the English held base of Gibraltar.

  The problem Lord Strangford and William discussed most frequently was not how to defend Portugal, but how to make the prince regent willing to defend it. At the present time he was doing his best to ignore both the threat from France and the threat from England. He was too terrified of the British navy and his own merchant class to yield to the urgings of the French and close his ports to England, confiscate English goods, and imprison all British citizens. On the other hand, he was too terrified of the French to set his generals to readying the army for defense, which the British envoys kept pressing him to do.

  Three days after arrival Sabrina had been presented at court. The reception she received was cold and formal. Sabrina could not be certain whether this was owing to the disfavor of the pro-French advisors, whether it was Carlota Joaquina’s particular feeling against heretics, or whether it was simply Portuguese manners to which she was not yet accustomed. In the next week the fact that the icy reception was intended, not an accident of manner, was confirmed. Instead of the rush of private invitations and cards that were customary when a new face appeared on the diplomatic scene, Sabrina received but two invitations to court functions, and only one visiting card was left.

  Having left Sabrina to stew in idleness for a week, William suddenly became as attentive as when he had first courted her. He accompanied her on her hunt for a house; he took her to the theater and for rides to examine the astonishingly beautiful scenery, at court functions he remained by her side, including her carefully in the stiff conversations. While they were still resident in the British embassy, Sabrina had little choice but to accept these attentions. When they were alone, she tried to explain to William the fixity of her purpose, but he laughed and would not listen.

  There are none so deaf as those who will not hear, Sabrina thought exasperatedly. Even after they were settled in their own house, and Sabrina was free to refuse her husband’s escort, he persisted. He merely smiled indulgently at her and told her she was childishly cutting off her nose to spite her face, punishing herself rather than him by moping alone. It was useless to say again that she had rather read a book alone than go to an entertainment with him; he would not listen.

  Sabrina continued to be surprised by the amount of time William seemed able to devote to courting her. Usually in a tense diplomatic situation he was far too busy, at least during the day to woo a woman. Even when chasing most desperately, William usually confined his romancing to the evening hours. Eventually she reasoned that out, too. Although the situation was poised on a knife edge, the British could not do much until they had news of the way the war was going in East Prussia. The actions necessary in response to victory, defeat, or stalemate were so different that it was not even possible to “pave the way”.

  Having talked over the possibilities and settled their plans of action for each eventuality, William and Lord Strangford could only wait.

  Despite the hostile climate of the court itself, William was not excluded totally from Portuguese society. Those who had been put out of favor by Bonaparte’s pressure were willing to receive the British envoys. Lord Strangford himself could not accept these invitations because such acceptance might betoken a conspiracy against the government or an insult, but a lesser personage like William could accept and did quite eagerly. The prince regent might have bowed before Bonaparte’s pressure, but he did not have to like doing it or feel any great attachment for the men he had been forced to appoint. It was thus entirely possible that those now out of favor had more unofficial influence on Dorn João than his ministers.

  The situation between William and Sabrina remained static for the next two weeks, although William began to show resentment at Sabrina’s steadfast indifference to him. However, toward the end of June there were two significant changes—William suddenly acquired the sleek, satisfied look of a tomcat that is the accepted suitor, and the weather turned very hot. The first change Sabrina accepted with real pleasure, knowing that William was on the hunt again. The second she was only marginally aware of because she hardly left the cool, thick-walled house during the day until William changed his polite invitations to angry and insistent demands. He now needed his wife as a cover for his sed
uction.

  Actually, Sabrina was not at all averse to assisting him. She was not spiteful and, now that she no longer believed herself in love with him, had no objection to her husband’s philandering. She knew he would not be taking advantage of innocent maidens, that it was most likely that the woman he pursued was as hard and cynical as he was inconstant. It was rather amusing to watch. However, willingness to assist her husband fix his attention elsewhere was not all that was needed. When Sabrina agreed to accompany William to an al fresco party, she found the weather had become her enemy. In spite of a parasol and a large, shady hat, the southern sun struck at her. She could barely see in the brilliant light, and the heat turned her sick and dizzy.

  She tried to explain this to William when he remonstrated with her angrily for being sullenly silent, but he did not believe her. He insisted she was only making an excuse to spite him. Although Sabrina knew the accusation was untrue, she was not certain that it was entirely the heat that had affected her. She had been in her period of flux. This did not usually inconvenience her, but it was not impossible that it was her condition rather than the sun that was at fault. She had little experience with real heat. Most of her childhood had been spent in Ireland and on the island off Scotland, both notably cool and rainy. England, too, seldom suffered high temperatures, and there everyone hid from the heat on dog days.

  Thus, when William insisted she go on a picnic on the twentieth of June, Sabrina agreed without much protest. She took what precautions she could, the hat and parasol again and also lavender water to dab on her temples and wrists and a vinaigrette holding smelling salts in the event she felt faint. And, although she was an excellent horsewoman, she suggested that she go in the carriage, to which William agreed with such enthusiasm that Sabrina guessed his inamorata was going to ride. In spite of all precautions, Sabrina had all she could do not to faint on the way. On arrival, however, she collapsed and gave everyone a dreadful fright because she could not be revived for a long time.