Heir to Greyladies

by Anna Jacobs

  ‘Oh, dear.’

  ‘And I must confess that I let slip your new name, even though we haven’t made it official yet. I’m hoping your stepbrother won’t find out where you are, but if he does, he may turn up here without consulting me. He seems a very forceful young man.’

  ‘He’s a bully.’

  ‘Yes. I can believe that. He slammed me against the wall as he threatened me, but unfortunately we were alone, so it’s his word against mine about that assault.’

  Reginald gave her a moment to take this in, then went on, ‘I’m trying to delay things until I can think of a way to help you, but I must admit, a solution doesn’t come readily to mind, not in law. I’ve refused to deal with him, since he isn’t your guardian, and that’s delayed matters a little. But he said he’d be bringing his mother to see me on Monday, and I’d better be there. I fear he may bring a legal representative, too. He said he’d already consulted his lawyer.’

  ‘Norris has a lawyer? Norris?’

  ‘So he said.’

  ‘He doesn’t usually have two pennies to rub together, and he’s always been a scruffy brute. Why would he need a lawyer, or even know one?’

  ‘He was well dressed when he came to see me, didn’t look to be short of money.’

  ‘Then he’s changed a lot since I knew him. I … don’t like the thought of that. What’s he been doing to make money?’ She thought for a moment, then said firmly, ‘If he and his mother try to take over Greyladies, I’ll have to run away again till I turn twenty-one. I’m not living with him again, not for anything on earth.’

  ‘We’ll try to find a way round this, even if it means paying them off. They might accept that.’

  She shook her head. ‘You won’t be able to. Why would they accept part of my money when they could have access to it all?’

  ‘Why indeed?’ He turned to Joseph. ‘What do you think, Mr Dalton?’

  ‘I don’t know what to think. Except that I don’t want Harriet falling into their hands.’

  The warm look he gave her as he said this made Miss Bowers stiffen and exchange quick glances with the lawyer.

  ‘I can’t do much more till I know exactly what they want,’ Reginald said. ‘But I’d suggest you be on your guard from now on. Don’t leave the front door unlocked, and tell Flora not to let strangers inside by the front or back doors. In fact, you’d better warn the servants about Harding and his mother.’

  Harriet felt numb with fear. Just when she’d been feeling safe and happy, they had reappeared in her life.

  ‘Would you like to stay to lunch, Mr Lloyd?’ Miss Bowers asked.

  She should have made that offer, Harriet realised in shame.

  ‘If you don’t mind, I’ll send for Stanley and his car, so that I can get home again. My wife and I have a family gathering planned for this afternoon. It’s our younger daughter’s birthday.’ He stood up.

  Harriet rang the bell and gave the order to Flora, then moved towards the door with him. There were sounds from the rear of the house of someone trying to crank up a car motor and after a couple of attempts, an engine started.

  The car came chugging round from the back of the house and Mr Lloyd got in, waving one hand as he was driven away.

  She didn’t realise she was still standing outside the front door, staring into the distance, till Miss Bowers touched her arm. ‘Come inside, dear.’

  She did as asked, but could only stare numbly at her two friends and ask, ‘What am I going to do?’

  ‘I’m not sure, dear, but between us we shall think of something, I’m sure. In the meantime, I’m going to show you the secret hiding place in this room, then if your stepbrother turns up unexpectedly, you’ll have somewhere to hide.’

  ‘I can’t hide in there till I’m twenty-one.’

  ‘No. But you may need to hide for an hour or two.’ She walked across the room to the fireplace. ‘This is how it works.’ She tugged at the carving on the overmantel and a section of the wooden panelling further along slid slowly sideways.

  Joseph went to investigate the aperture at once. ‘How exciting! I’ve read about secret panels, but I’ve never seen one. Dalton House didn’t seem to have any.’

  Behind the panelling was a small space about a yard deep and two yards wide, with a narrow bench along the back. It was just big enough for two people, if they didn’t mind being squashed.

  Harriet couldn’t resist going inside and Joseph left his chair to follow her, tripping on his way in and catching hold of her hand to steady himself.

  ‘Are you all right?’

  He grinned. ‘Nearly fell then. I do fall sometimes, but I don’t seem to hurt myself much, beyond the odd bruise, so you mustn’t worry.’ He lowered his voice, ‘Whatever I do, though, I’ll never be strong enough to protect you from people like your stepbrother. I regret that.’

  She returned his smile, and for a moment, forgot her worries in the pleasure of knowing he cared about her.

  ‘This is just one of the secrets of Greyladies,’ Miss Bowers said from the entrance to the hiding place. She could sense the invisible bond that joined them and wondered if they fully understood where their own feelings about each other were leading. She thought not. There was a naivety about them both. Well, not for her to wake Sleeping Beauty.

  ‘You can close the door once you’re in by lifting that lever at the side of the bench. And if you lift it again, the door opens.’

  ‘I hadn’t even noticed any difference in this panel,’ Harriet said.

  ‘It’s been cleverly done. Why don’t you try it out?’

  ‘Could we?’ Joseph asked.

  Harriet didn’t like the thought of being shut in such a small space. What if the door stuck and they were trapped in here? But Joseph’s face was alight with eager interest, and she couldn’t say no to him. ‘You do it, Joseph. You’re closer to the lever.’

  He seemed to have no trouble lifting it.

  ‘You must be stronger than you look.’

  ‘My arms are. They sometimes have to help my legs.’

  The door closed gradually and when they were sitting in darkness, she drew in a shuddering breath and reached for his hand. ‘I don’t like being shut in dark places.’

  ‘You’ll be fine. I’m here. Would you mind waiting a minute to see if there’s any light coming in?’

  ‘Not as long as you keep hold of my hand.’

  As their eyes grew used to the dimness, they began to see shapes faintly.

  His voice was quiet, but the sound of it comforted her. ‘There’s a draught coming from somewhere, so you’d be able to breathe easily, even if you get shut in here for a long time.’

  ‘I’m glad to know that. But I don’t think I want to come in here again, except in an emergency.’

  His head was close to hers and he couldn’t resist leaning forward and planting a gentle kiss on her cheek. ‘Your skin is as soft as I’d imagined.’

  ‘Oh, Joseph.’ She wanted him to do more than kiss her cheek and when he began to move his head away, she surprised herself by leaning forward to give him a quick kiss. She’d intended to kiss his cheek, but he was moving his head and the kiss landed on his lips.

  ‘Harriet.’ He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her back, as gently as he did everything else, but still, the kiss stirred a warmth inside her and made her long to kiss him again.

  But he pulled away, saying bitterly, ‘Sometimes it’s hard not to be a proper man. I shouldn’t be doing this.’

  ‘You’re proper enough for me.’

  Silence, then, ‘You deserve better.’

  ‘I don’t need better than you. Only I thought … well, the differences between us are so great.’

  He laughed, then. ‘You’re a rich woman, Harriet. The differences have turned round, and it’s I who am unsuitable, because I lack the means to support a wife.’

  ‘A wife! Me?’

  ‘Did you think I’d consider any lesser relationship with you?’

  ‘I did
n’t think you’d consider me at all in that way.’ She suddenly became aware that someone was banging on the entrance panel and calling out to ask if they were all right. ‘Oh, bother!’

  ‘We’d better open the door. And we’d better both think hard about … things. You really can do much better than me.’ He pulled the lever.

  She’d have refuted this hotly, but the door began to open just then and Miss Bowers peered in.

  ‘Did you have difficulty opening the panel again?’

  ‘We were letting our eyes grow accustomed to the darkness,’ Joseph said quickly, seeing Harriet was still upset. ‘We wanted to see if any light came in, and a little does, though from where, I can’t work out. Sorry if we worried you, Miss Bowers.’

  He gestured to Harriet to leave the hiding place first, and followed her, standing looking back inside it, then moving away towards his wheelchair.

  ‘We should check the locks on doors and windows and tell the servants to be careful who they let in from now on,’ he said.

  ‘And we need to hire another maid and a lad,’ Miss Bowers added. ‘We’ll ask Flora if she knows anyone. She’s a very sensible woman.’

  ‘Let’s talk to them straight away,’ Harriet suggested. ‘And you’d better come with us too, Joseph, because you’ll want to warn Frank as well.’

  She couldn’t help feeling bitter that Norris and her stepmother had even marred her joy in her new home.

  The two maids and Frank listened quietly, then Livvy said, ‘We won’t let any strangers in if we can help it, miss, you can be sure of that. But if your stepbrother is a big man, there’s only Frank to deal with him, and he’s not what you’d call a fighting man, is he?’

  Frank scowled at her.

  ‘The blacksmith’s youngest!’ Miss Bowers said suddenly.

  They all looked at her in puzzlement.

  ‘Do you mean Mickey? He’s a blockhead, that one,’ Flora said scornfully. ‘His father won’t let him near the forge.’

  ‘That’s because he’s clumsy. I think he needs to wear spectacles, but he won’t even try them. He’s all right when it comes to simple jobs, but if he needs to deal with something like hot iron, he’s a danger to himself. Still, he’s a big, strong lad and they’d be glad to find him a bit of regular work. I’ll go and see Mr Deems straight away. I’ve always got on well with him.’

  ‘You need a wardrobe and other things moving down to your bedroom, Mr Dalton. With Mickey to help Frank, that’ll be easy.’

  ‘My niece would be glad of a job as maid,’ Flora said hesitantly. ‘They won’t let her work away from home in a town, but they’d let her live in here at Greyladies, I’m sure.’

  Miss Bowers looked at her in surprise. ‘Phyllis? Is she that old already? My goodness, they do grow up quickly. Yes, she’d be good. I always found her a sensible child. Shall I pop in and see her mother?’

  ‘Tell her I sent you.’ Flora smiled ruefully. ‘As long as I don’t have to share a bed with her ever again.’ She glanced at Harriet. ‘Is that all right, miss? You don’t look happy. Should we have left it to you? Only you don’t know anyone round here.’

  ‘Oh, sorry. It’s not that. I just can’t believe I’m hiring so many servants.’ Harriet flushed.

  ‘That’s all right, then, miss,’ Livvy said. ‘We do understand. I’d feel just the same if I was in your place. But at least you’ve had a good education, so you’ll fit in well enough with the local gentry once the dust has settled. I heard you talking to Mr Dalton about some book you’d both read. Wonderful, it was, to hear you. I couldn’t even understand some of the words you both used, and you remembered more than he did.’

  She sighed. ‘I never can remember things if I’ve only read about them. If you show me, and I can get my hands on it, I’ll remember every detail, but if you ask me to find something out from a book, I’m lost. Them letters all seem jumbled up, somehow.’

  ‘Maybe you need glasses as well,’ Harriet suggested. ‘We’ll send you both into Swindon to get tested when things settle down, then I’ll buy you a cookery book, one full of new recipes.’

  ‘Well, I must say, I might enjoy being able to read a cookery book,’ Livvy allowed. ‘Even if I had to wear glasses to do it.’

  Miss Bowers beamed at them as if they were pupils of hers. ‘There we are, then. Now, I’ll go into the village this afternoon and pack the rest of my clothes while I’m there. If Mickey’s father agrees to him working here, he can bring my things back, and he can fetch yours too tomorrow, Flora and Livvy. We’ll take it in turns to go back and pack up, shall we?’

  It would all be so simple and pleasant, Harriet thought, if she didn’t have the threat of her stepbrother hanging over her. She didn’t know when she’d met a nicer bunch of people than her new servants and Miss Bowers.

  And Joseph. Oh, it was wonderful to be with him. And if he meant what he said … Her heart nearly skipped a beat at the thought of marrying him.

  Chapter Sixteen

  On Monday morning Norris and his mother took an early train to Swindon. She grumbled intermittently as the train rattled along, seeming to have no belief in the chance of them finding that Harriet had inherited anything of value, let alone the money he craved.

  ‘She couldn’t have, Norris. Her mother had nothing except a few mouldy old books.’

  Later, she said, ‘Son, I’m sure it was all stories that mother of hers made up.’

  And later still, ‘Them Latimers didn’t come to James’s funeral, did they, so why would they leave Harriet anything?’

  Her son made soothing noises each time and let her talk. He felt sure there would be something for them. He was developing a nose for money.

  Outside the lawyer’s office she stopped to ask, ‘Is my hat on straight?’

  ‘Yes. But Lloyd won’t care if it’s crooked.’

  ‘I’ll care.’

  ‘Well, it’s straight, though why you want to wear such a huge thing, I don’t know. It was ridiculous, going out and buying that specially to come here.’

  ‘It’s fashionable, what ladies are all wearing. It makes me feel I can face them.’ She patted the hat self-consciously.

  ‘Come on, then, Lady Winifred.’ He offered his arm and led the way in, saying in a low voice, ‘Move slowly and try to look confident.’

  This time an elderly clerk was stationed in the outer office. ‘May I help you … sir, madam?’

  ‘I’ve got an appointment with Mr Lloyd,’ Norris said.

  ‘Your name, please?’

  ‘Harding.’

  ‘Ah, yes. Mr Lloyd said he was expecting you.’

  The clerk’s words might be polite, but his expression was that of a person who can smell something rotten. ‘If you’ll take a seat, I’ll tell Mr Lloyd you’re here.’

  Norris debated pushing his way into the office, as he had last time, just to show he wasn’t going to be condescended to, but decided against it. He’d give things a try the legal way first, using polite words and acting slowly. But he wasn’t going to be patient for long.

  He glanced up at the clock. He wasn’t going to let them keep him waiting for long, either.

  There was the sound of footsteps and a burly man came out of the inner corridor. He looked towards Norris and his mother. ‘Mrs Benson? Mr Harding?’

  Norris stood up. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Mr Lloyd will see you now. This way, please.’

  Norris held out his arm to his mother, but the gesture was spoilt by the corridor being too narrow for them to walk side by side, so he gestured to her to go first, wishing she didn’t look so nervous and wasn’t wearing such a silly hat.

  The man led them into the office and Mr Lloyd stood up, staying behind the desk.

  I rattled him last time, Norris thought gleefully. ‘This is my mother, Mrs Benson, Harriet’s guardian. Mother, this is Mr Lloyd.’

  He gave them a tiny nod, but didn’t come out from behind the desk to offer his hand. ‘Please take a seat.’

  The ma
n who’d escorted them in pulled out a chair for the lady, but left Norris to fend for himself. When they were both seated, the fellow went to stand to one side of the desk, arms folded, scowling at them.

  Bodyguard, Norris decided. I could beat him easy, though.

  The lawyer’s tone was icy. ‘Before we discuss anything, do you have proof that you’re Harriet’s guardian, Mrs Benson?’

  Winifred scowled at him. ‘I’ve got proof that I married her father, which made me her stepmother. What other proof do you need?’

  ‘Proof that you were appointed her guardian.’

  ‘First time I’ve heard you need proof to look after your own children.’

  ‘That’s the point. She’s not your child. May I see your marriage certificate?’

  She fumbled in her bag and produced the brand-new envelope they’d bought to put the certificate in, leaning forward to slap it down on the desk. ‘Be careful how you handle that. It means a lot to me.’

  Norris hid a smile. His ma was angry at the way Lloyd was looking down his nose at her and had lost her nervousness. Good.

  Reginald made a big play of studying the marriage lines and showing them to the bodyguard. ‘I’ll just write down the details.’

  He seemed to take a long time to do that, Norris thought.

  The lawyer eventually gave the marriage certificate back to Mrs Benson. ‘Do you have a copy of your husband’s will?’

  ‘He didn’t leave one.’

  ‘Then some proof that you inherited his estate.’

  ‘I don’t have any proof, I just did. He was my husband, so everything came to me. No one else to inherit, was there? Anyway, that’s all water under the bridge now. What’s that got to do with Harriet?’

  ‘You weren’t actually appointed her guardian, so I’ll need to consult my client about your claim, and also ask advice from other lawyers.’

  ‘Her wages were sent to me by Mr Dalton, weren’t they? That’s proof he accepted me as her guardian, if anything is.’