The Swan Maid

by Dilly Court

  The doctor wrote something on a printed form. ‘That’s settled then. I’ll send this to his commanding officer. No doubt he will make arrangements for the boy to be sent back to England on the next transport available.’

  Teddy opened his mouth to protest, but Lottie stilled him with a glance. ‘Don’t worry, Teddy. We’ll look after you.’ She turned to the doctor. ‘Could you let me have some laudanum for him? The pain keeps him awake at night.’

  ‘I’m sorry, but we’re running low on supplies and there are seriously wounded soldiers who are in desperate need.’ The doctor rose to his feet and shook her hand. ‘You’re a remarkable woman. The boy is lucky to have you taking care of him.’

  Lottie managed a faint smile. ‘I do what I can, Doctor.’ She placed her arm around Teddy’s shoulders and hurried him outside into the relatively fresh air.

  ‘It’ll be the workhouse for me if I goes back to London, miss.’ Tears trickled unchecked down Teddy’s freckled cheeks. ‘They might as well have shot me dead on the battlefield.’

  ‘I won’t listen to talk like that,’ Lottie said severely. ‘You are with me now, Teddy Miller. We are a family and we will stick together. I know what it’s like to be on your own at a young age, and I won’t let that happen to you.’

  ‘Why should you care about me?’

  ‘I was only a year or so older than you when my uncle sent me to work as a slavey in a coaching inn. I’ve had to make my own way in the world.’

  ‘But I want to be a soldier, miss.’

  ‘When you’re a bit older you can choose to do what you want, but for now I’m going to take care of you. We might not be related by blood, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be a family. What do you say?’

  He nodded. ‘I suppose so, miss.’

  ‘And you must call me Lottie. I’m not your ma, but I can be like a big sister, if you’ll have me?’

  ‘I’ve always wanted a brother,’ he said, attempting a grin and not quite succeeding.

  ‘Well, you’ll just have to put up with having an older sister and a baby sister, and Ruby can be an aunt. You’ll be the man of the family, Teddy.’ She took him by the hand and they made their way slowly back to the camp.

  Lottie had almost forgotten Lady Aurelia, but everything came flooding back to her when she saw Maggie Cole standing outside their tent. She was smoking a cigarette and the smell of Turkish tobacco mingled with wood-smoke and the pungent odour of lye soap from the washhouse. Maggie tossed the butt into the fire and hurried towards her. She came to a halt, staring at Teddy.

  ‘Who’s this?’

  ‘Miss Cole, may I introduce my young charge, Teddy Miller?’

  Teddy eyed Maggie suspiciously and then looked away.

  ‘Your charge? Are you mad? You seem to go round collecting waifs and strays, but to what end?’

  ‘Go into the tent, Teddy,’ Lottie said firmly. ‘Tell Ruby I’m back.’

  He hesitated, but it was an order and he obeyed, albeit reluctantly.

  ‘Never mind. Don’t tell me, I don’t want to know.’ Maggie caught Lottie by the sleeve as she was about to walk away. ‘I didn’t come here to give you a lecture. I came to pass on some information I happened to overhear, but don’t tell anyone you had it from me.’

  ‘What is it? Tell me, please.’

  ‘First thing this morning, I heard the major-general telling his wife that he had received a telegraph from Kadikoi informing him that Lady Aurelia had been seen on the road to Sebastopol. She was on horseback and leading a mule laden with luggage, so it looks as though she was on her way to join Lieutenant Gillingham at the telegraph station.’

  Lottie’s hand flew to cover her mouth and stifle a gasp of dismay. ‘Gideon is there, wherever it is, but if they’re near Sebastopol they are all in terrible danger.’

  Maggie took a pouch from her pocket and rolled another cigarette. She lit it with a burning twig from the campfire. ‘Aren’t we all, love? If a stray bullet doesn’t get us then cholera or dysentery might finish us off. I’ve got a bottle of brandy hidden in my room. If you feel like a tot you’re welcome to join me.’ She walked off, leaving a wisp of blue tobacco smoke in her wake.

  Ruby emerged from the tent. ‘I heard what she said, but it just confirms what you thought, doesn’t it?’

  ‘Yes, but I didn’t know where the telegraph station was situated. I’ve grown so accustomed to hearing gunfire that I hardly notice it at all, but they’re so close to the fighting it scares me.’

  Ruby laid a sympathetic hand on Lottie’s shoulder. ‘There’s nothing you can do. It’s up to the colonel now. She’s still his wife.’

  ‘Perhaps Gillingham will see sense and bring her to safety?’ Lottie said hopefully, although somehow she could not believe that headstrong Lady Aurelia would listen to the voice of reason.

  Later that day, Lottie was tending the camp-fire. A frisky wind sent the smoke spiralling up into the cloudy sky, and then changed direction, catching her unawares and making her cough. She stood up and stepped aside, but the breeze followed her as if playing a game of tag, and once again she had to move out of range of the suffocating fumes. The soot-blackened pot bubbled cheerfully, and the aroma of boiling onions whetted her appetite, but she knew that the soup would be thin and watery. The flatbread baked on a hot stone would be charred and hard to chew, but it was all they had. The small amount of rations Tom had given them would have to last, and Lottie was unsure how they stood now that Lady Aurelia had left the camp. Her eyes stung and she wiped them on her sleeve.

  As the wind dropped and the smoke cleared, she saw Tom Bonney coming towards her and she ran to meet him.

  ‘Any more news? Maggie told me that Lady Aurelia was seen on the road to Sebastopol.’

  He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a clean white handkerchief. ‘Are you crying, Lottie?’

  ‘No, it’s the fire. The weather is playing tricks on me.’ She accepted the hanky with a grateful smile. ‘Thank you.’

  ‘Keep it. I bought half a dozen from Mother Seacole. She’s doing a roaring trade down on the docks. We’ll have to travel further to get such luxuries when she finally opens her British Hotel on the road to Sebastopol. I must admit I’m curious to see what the place will be like when it’s built.’

  ‘I’d love to see it myself.’ Lottie dabbed her eyes. ‘What happens now, Tom? Will the colonel order Gillingham back to camp?’

  ‘That would seem to be the only answer. Lady Aurelia would be certain to accompany him, and Gillingham wouldn’t refuse a direct order.’

  ‘Has it been done?’

  He shook his head. ‘Not to my knowledge, but I’m not privy to the colonel’s plans.’

  ‘So what will happen? And perhaps more importantly, what will happen to us? Ruby is a soldier’s widow and it looks as though her ladyship has no need of me. Will we be sent back to England?’

  ‘I can’t say, but I’ll see to it that you still receive your rations. None of this is your fault.’

  ‘Then there’s Teddy. The army surgeon said he will be discharged on medical grounds. The poor child has nowhere to go and no family to support him. I’ve promised that I’ll take care of him.’

  Tom gazed at her, a frown creasing his brow. ‘That won’t be easy, especially if her ladyship has no need of your services. What will you do?’

  ‘I’ve been asking myself that, Tom. To be honest, I don’t know, but whatever happens Ruby and the infant will come with me, and so will Teddy. I won’t let them down.’

  ‘You are a remarkable woman. I’ll do everything in my power to make life easier for you.’ He glanced up at the sky. ‘It looks like rain again. I suggest you and your charges use Lady Aurelia’s hut for tonight at least. I’ll give you fair warning if I get word that she’s about to return, but there’s no sense in leaving a perfectly good quarter empty in the meantime.’

  ‘Do you really mean that? It would be wonderful.’

  ‘I do, and I’ll send a man to help move y
our things. Unfortunately I have duties to perform at the residence, otherwise it would have been my pleasure to assist.’ He glanced down at the simmering pot. ‘Is that all you’re having for supper?’

  ‘It’s more than we would have had if you hadn’t come to the rescue. We can manage, Tom. I know that the men fare less well than we do.’

  ‘The army are badly provisioned and the men suffer, but you are civilians and Ruby has a baby to care for. I’ll see to it that Mother Seacole adds to your rations. She’s a sutler who boasts that she can provide anything from a needle to an anchor, and I don’t doubt it.’

  ‘But she gives medical services and doles out refreshments to those who can’t afford to pay,’ Lottie protested. ‘Teddy might have lost his arm were it not for her.’

  Tom nodded and a smile lit his eyes. ‘You are loyal to those you befriend, Lottie. I admire that quality in anyone.’

  She turned away, conscious that she was blushing. ‘I mustn’t keep you, Tom. Thank you for everything.’

  ‘I’d do more to make your life easier if it were in my power, but now I must go or I’ll be in trouble with the colonel.’ He leaned forward and brushed her cheek with a whisper of a kiss. ‘Make yourselves comfortable for one night at least, maybe more.’ He hurried off, leaving Lottie to rush into the tent and break the good news to Ruby.

  That night and for many nights after, they lived in relative luxury in Lady Aurelia’s quarters. Ruby and Lottie shared the bed, sleeping head to toe, while the cabin trunk made a cosy cot for Molly, and Teddy had two palliasses piled one on top of the other on the floor near the fire. They were dry and warm at night, and Tom saw to it that they had their usual rations, supplemented by little extras brought to them by Mother Seacole’s servant.

  The pounding of cannon fire continued day and night, and there was still no news of Lady Aurelia or Gillingham, although Tom said that telegraphs had been flying to and fro. The colonel was tight-lipped and even Maggie had nothing to add. Mrs Fothergill kept her distance and there was nothing that Lottie could do other than wait and hope that all would be well.

  The army were getting ready for another major attack on Sebastopol. Lottie could feel the tension. The air buzzed with it as the men prepared to march. Teddy was restless and admitted that he was missing the soldiers who had become his surrogate uncles, although how many of them had survived the last encounter of the 97th was anybody’s guess. There had been no word from Lady Aurelia. Except for her belongings that remained in the hut, she might never have existed.

  With the departure of several more companies the camp was eerily quiet. Rain fell like tears, as if the clouds were weeping for the men who would die during the assault on Sebastopol. With little to do, Lottie spent as much time as she could helping Mary Seacole. She made tea for the wounded and offered comfort where she could. There were times when she was left to hold the hand of a dying man, and these were the hardest of all, but Mary was always there to offer support. Lottie’s respect for the larger-than-life black woman grew daily, and she understood now why the men called her Mother Seacole. Mary might be a shrewd businesswoman, as well as being skilled in treating all manner of ailments, but it was her generous nature and genuine compassion for the sick and dying that impressed Lottie the most. She would gladly have stayed in the Crimea to assist Mary in her British Hotel, which would soon be finished, but sadly this was not an option.

  Lottie returned to the hut late one evening, tired and dirty, but she felt satisfied that at least she was doing something useful. She was about to follow Teddy into the hut when she saw Tom Bonney approaching at a run. She froze to the spot. The expression on his face said it all.

  Chapter Fifteen

  ‘What is it, Tom?’

  He took off his shako and tucked it under his arm. ‘It would be better if you went inside, Lottie.’

  She clasped his arm, and her knuckles whitened. ‘It’s bad news. Tell me now.’

  ‘There’s no way of breaking this gently.’ He opened the door, avoiding meeting her anxious gaze.

  Lottie stepped inside. Her heart was pounding and she was finding it difficult to breathe. ‘Go on. Tell me the truth.’

  He cleared his throat. ‘The telegraph station came under attack late yesterday. Reinforcements were sent, but the building had been razed to the ground.’

  ‘But they escaped?’

  ‘I’m sorry.’ Tom held out his hand, but Lottie ignored the gesture and he dropped it to his side. ‘I am truly sorry.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ Teddy demanded. ‘What have you said to her?’

  Ruby leaped to her feet. ‘Is there no hope?’

  ‘All were lost.’

  ‘It can’t be true,’ Lottie said dazedly. ‘They can’t be dead. I’d know if anything had happened to Gideon. I’d feel it in here.’ She clasped her hands to her bosom. ‘It’s a terrible mistake.’

  Ruby pulled up a chair. ‘Sit down, love. You’ve had a terrible shock.’

  ‘I don’t believe it.’ Lottie sank down on the hard wooden seat. ‘I won’t believe it.’

  ‘Are you sure, Tom?’ Ruby asked anxiously. ‘Could there be a mistake?’

  ‘There wasn’t much left. I don’t want to go into details, but there were the remains of cap badges and this.’ Tom put his hand in his pocket and took out a blackened earring. The diamond winked in the sunlight, despite the coating of soot, and the ruby glowed darkly. ‘Colonel Dashwood identified it as belonging to his wife. He’d received information that Lady Aurelia and Gillingham were hiding out at the telegraph station, despite the lieutenant having had orders to return to camp.’

  ‘That’s awful.’ Ruby laid her hand on Lottie’s shoulders. ‘I don’t know what to say.’

  Lottie gazed up at Tom, desperate to see a glimmer of hope in his eyes, but there was no comfort in his desolate gaze. She shook her head. ‘They can’t be dead. They can’t be.’

  Next morning Lottie was summoned to the residence. The hope she had been harbouring had diminished during a sleepless night, and she felt as if her heart had been ripped from her body. She was an empty shell, going through the motions of living, but dead inside. Her feet were leaden as each step led her closer to a reality she had tried so hard to ignore, and the inevitable interview with the colonel.

  Tom ushered her into a small office. ‘Miss Lane to see you, sir.’ He bowed out of the room and closed the door behind him.

  Colonel Dashwood was staring out of the window. He turned slowly and she was shocked to see the change in him. His face was deathly pale and lines of suffering tugged at the corners of his mouth. ‘You’ve heard the news, of course.’

  ‘Yes, sir.’

  ‘You will understand that your services are no long needed, Miss Lane. I’ve given orders for you to be sent back to England on the first transport available.’

  Lottie had known this would be the case, but she could not take Molly without first telling him of her existence. A small voice in her head warned her not to say anything, but she owed it to Lady Aurelia to make sure that Molly had the best of everything.

  She cleared her throat. ‘Might I speak frankly, sir? I have something I feel I must tell you.’

  He sank down on the chair behind the desk. ‘What is it, Lane? Be quick, I’m a busy man.’

  She gave an account of Molly’s birth as briefly and succinctly as she could manage in the circumstances, although her voice broke occasionally as tears threatened to overcome her. She came to a halt, waiting nervously for his response.

  He rose slowly to his feet. ‘Get out.’

  ‘But, sir, don’t you want to see the child? She’s a beautiful baby girl with blue eyes just like her mother’s.’

  ‘I was warned about this,’ he said bitterly. ‘Cordelia Fothergill told me of her suspicions, but I refused to believe her. You’ve just confirmed that what she said was true, and you aided my wife in the wicked deception. I’ll have nothing to do with her little bastard, and you won’t get a penny from me.’
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br />   Lottie drew herself up to her full height. ‘That isn’t why I told you about the child, sir. I don’t want your money. I just thought you should know that you have a daughter.’

  ‘Daughter!’ He thumped the desk with his hand and stood up. Purple veins stood out in his neck and a pulse throbbed in his temple. His eyes narrowed. ‘I have no daughter. The brat is an orphan, and as such should be put in a home. I want nothing to do with it. You will vacate my late wife’s quarters immediately. Lieutenant Bonney will see that you have shelter until your passage home is arranged. Now get out and don’t let me see your face again.’

  Lottie left the office in a daze. She had not expected the colonel to be overjoyed, but she had hoped that his affection for his dead wife might lead him to feel something for her child.

  ‘Are you all right, Lottie?’ Tom’s anxious voice broke into her thoughts.

  ‘You must have heard what the colonel said.’

  ‘He’s very upset. Perhaps it was not the best time to break the news to him?’

  ‘I thought I was doing the right thing by Molly.’

  He opened the door leading into the courtyard. ‘We’ll go out this way. You won’t have to face the rest of the staff.’

  ‘I’ve done nothing to be ashamed of, Tom. I did what anyone would have done in the circumstances.’

  ‘I know that, and I respect you for standing by Lady Aurelia. I won’t speak ill of the dead, but things might have been different had she told her husband about the child in the first place.’

  ‘I suppose you think she ought to have convinced him that he is the father,’ Lottie said angrily. ‘She was too honest to do that. People can say what they like, but she loved Lieutenant Gillingham and he loved her. It’s just tragic that Molly has lost both her parents, but she’s got me. I won’t desert her.’ She followed Tom across the walled courtyard. Outside she found herself on the brow of the hill overlooking the camp. Soldiers were mustering, horses were being saddled and sunlight glinted on buttons, badges and bayonets. She shivered. ‘Thank goodness you’re not going with them. At least I know I have one friend here.’