by Lucy Langton
He lingered with the ladies, chatting about anything of interest, and he was glad his sister was able to respond positively. He felt a bit relieved before his exit.
Isabel stayed with Lady Beatrice throughout the day. When her condition deteriorated, she had to sleep over in her room, using the chair as her resting place. It was not an exciting experience; however, she preferred to keep vigil watching over Lady Beatrice than relaxing in her room.
Chapter 21
That night ...
Mr. Fredrick, the barkeeper at the tavern, stood at his doorpost, worried. It was past midnight, and all his customers were gone. Even the ladies of the night had retired to the inn with their respective customers. He was left with only his wife. His children were on the other side of the tavern, which they used as their home with the maid, and the shop assistant had gone to bed.
Mr. Fredrick was arranging the chairs and performing general arrangements for the next day because customers usually started trooping in as early as seven in the morning. The wife, a chubby, short woman, was arranging the kitchen and putting everything in order for easy accessibility. He had been on the lookout for one of his best customers, Lord William Gregory. It had been more than six weeks since he last set his eyes on him. Several of his customers had come to ask him about the man; contrarily, he could not supply any concrete answer as to why he’d quit coming.
He rested a chair on the round table which could contain four chairs at most. He was weak and weary from the day’s work, and his body yearned seriously for the bed. However, he was used to going to bed by one and waking up by five for the next day’s stress.
He lackadaisically pulled out one of the chairs, and sat upon it, placed his elbow on the table and covered his slightly bent forehead with his palms. His wife, noticing him from the kitchen, came out.
“Jolly, what is the matter with you?”
“Nothing, my dear.”
“It cannot be nothing, and you stay this way. Would you not prefer going to bed?”
“I’m contemplating doing that. However, I have something bothering me.”
The wife placed her hand on his shoulder, looking him over. Then, she asked him what could be the problem.
“Do you remember our notorious customer known for fighting and maiming his victims?” he asked in low tone, even though no one was within earshot.
“Are you talking about Lord William Gregory?” The wife smiled.
He nodded.
“Who does not know him in this tavern? He has been scarce these days,” she added.
“Exactly what I’m thinking about!” he remarked.
“Who knows what has happened to him? Could he have fought somewhere and been killed?” the wife asked.
“I fear for the worst, though. But I don’t think someone could kill him. He is a very brave man.”
The wife nodded.
“We really miss him. If only I knew his abode, I would have gone to know how he is faring.”
“Now that you don’t know, can we go home now. Tomorrow we continue?” the wife cajoled him, placing a kiss on his forehead.
He got up and returned the kiss lightly on her lips as both of them walked home together, leaving the rest of the work till morning.
Chapter 22
The guests arrived at the estate before noon. They were ushered into the living room and welcomed by the Baron, who was visibly excited to meet his longtime friends. Of course, there were exchanges of hugs and handshakes. Then, an introduction of the guests and host. There were crackles of laughter, jubilations, and merry countenances. Thomas Moore’s The Last Rose of Summer was playing in the background, entertaining the guests. Wines were served by the butler who was dedicated to his duty and made sure everyone got his or her orders. It was a grand reunion.
One of the guests was Mr Berkley, a medical professional who was one of the eggheads in the medical field. He was known both far and wide as a doctor who never lost any patient because of his vast knowledge of modern medicine. How happy Lord William was when he found out that his friend, Mr. Berkley, was among the guests. As the wise man that he was, he decided to kill two birds with one stone by informing him of his sister’s health condition and asking him to prescribe medications suitable for her ailment.
As the drinks were going on, the Baron took Doctor Berkley aside and had a little discussion with him. The host looked a bit aggrieved, despite his composure. When they got back to the living room, he sent for his sister and her companion to come down and greet the guests, an offer they accepted wholeheartedly. Lady Beatrice managed to get up from the bed and hand in hand they walked down the stairs to the living room.
The Baron walked up to them at the entrance, held his sister by the hand, and announced, “Hello, everyone! If you could remember my sister, Lady Beatrice. She is the one standing beside me. And there, is her companion, Lady Isabel.” He pointed towards Isabel gleefully.
There were rounds of applause and rejoicing. The ladies went around greeting the guests. The hall was filled with a mixture of laughter and fun. Everyone was so happy to be there. After a while, they all began to dance to the tune of Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Rage Over A Lost Penny. The guests paired themselves, and those without wives danced alone. Beatrice and Isabel opted to go back to their rooms but were held back by the Baron. He offered to dance with Isabel who accepted the offer, while Beatrice preferred to sit and watch.
After dancing for a few minutes, Lady Beatrice signaled to her brother to release Isabel so that they could go back. He obliged and escorted them upstairs. He held Isabel by the waist and led them upstairs with the sister leading the way. Isabel felt the heat of his body as he held her, her mind veering towards eroticism.
They got to the doorpost, and Beatrice pushed the door open, and they entered. He closed the door behind him and broke the silence.
“My Lady, I have spoken to Doctor Berkley concerning your health, and he would love to meet you and take a look at your body,” he said.
“What exactly did you tell him about me, My Lord?” she demanded, looking him straight in the eyes.
“My Lady, even though you try to brace up, you still look pale and worn out,” he said to her. Wrapping his arms around Isabel, he asked her, “Did you notice what I’m talking about?”
Isabel nodded, casting a friendly glance at Lady Beatrice.
Lady Beatrice felt defeated and obliged to his request. Her heart was beating faster than before, a sign of her being scared of the outcome of the visitation. Her body still ached and her eyes, dry, but she wanted to be as strong as she could be. She looked pleadingly at her brother as if begging him to help her condition.
He understood her and said, “Everything is going to be fine. We are all doing it for your good. Can I leave now? The guests have somewhere they are heading to, a ball. I would like to let in the doctor now to release them early.”
“You have my word, My Lord,” Lady Beatrice replied.
The Baron disentangled from Isabel, hugged his sister, and headed downstairs.
Both ladies stared at each other, with Isabel feeling sympathetic about the situation. Lady Beatrice began to weep softly. Isabel felt compassion for her and reached out to her. She embraced her and assured her that all would be well. They were locked in each other’s arms when the knock came on the door.
“The door is open,” replied Isabel.
Both men came in. Doctor Berkley was tall, young, and handsome, his beard a bit shorter than that of the Baron. He greeted the ladies as they released their hold on each other. He requested that Lady Beatrice should sit down, of which she hesitantly did.
He took a thorough look at her and requested to the know the kind of food she was taking, the time of sleeping, how much she exercised her body by walking around the estate and other questions connected to her health. He was supplied with the answers as he asked them. He took a look at her again, focusing more on her eyes. He checked her fingers for blood levels and her joints for any clue. He couldn
’t see anything that pointed towards the solution to her condition.
She sat still, praying that the cause of the problem could be ascertained. Her body ached seriously, and she felt so weak and feeble. She cast a look at Isabel, and she nodded assuringly with a smile. She smiled back feebly and looked at her brother. He looked concerned and worried but smiled at her. Not knowing what to say, they held each other’s gaze.
Instantly, they were interrupted by the doctor who announced regrettably that there was nothing he could see nor understand. The Baron felt defeated and disappointed about the whole thing. He stepped forward and looked at his sister himself. He found nothing, even though it looked odd as he, lacking any medical knowledge, did so.
The doctor further said that he would leave and return in a fortnight to determine her state of health. He assured them that all was, by all means, going to be well and instructed that aromatic vinegar should be given to her often as it contained some medicinal elements that could help to cure her ailment, in its worst state, and reduce the risk of it getting worse.
Everyone thanked him profusely for the job done and the solution he proffered. He took his leave, accompanied by his friend. They went downstairs and joined the other guests who were having their lunch. After that, the Baron took them around the estate, showing them his material acquisition. They were pleased with him and wished him well. One of them, Joey, teased him and asked him when he would get married and join the club. That triggered laughter because the irony of it was that Joey himself was not married yet. They talked about many things, their jobs, marriages, youthfulness, and other things. By past three, they mounted their horses and carriages and left, bidding the Baron a great day. He was also glad to have them to grace his house with their presence.
In the evening, he decided to go to the apothecary store to purchase the vinegar as requested. Not that he could not send any of his servants, but he wanted to do it by himself, a sign of how significant his sister was to him. He was not going to fold his arms and watch things go wrong again. He knew how much she meant to him and was never going to let her down. He left the estate with the instruction that everyone should focus on their duties.
The ladies, on the other hand, sat in the room and talked about many things. Isabel tried her best to cheer Lady Beatrice up with different amusing stories. She told her about her experience with the horses and how she used to watch the horses mate and bring forth a pony. She also talked about her childhood fantasy of a husband. She wanted to marry a Knight and always acted in a polite manner whenever her father’s friends who were knights graced their manor with their presence. She enjoyed following her father to the sporting arena where they performed some rehearsals on their different fighting skills. She was enthusiastic about, especially, the clashing of their swords and dodging skills.
Beatrice was filled with awe because hers was a direct opposite of Isabel’s adventure. She hated Knights, especially their swords. She only loved to hide amongst the lilies and enjoyed their company. They gave her comfort, while Knights gave her goosebumps and made her tremble with fear each time she set her eyes on them. She had unconsciously associated the identity of the Knights with the sword and felt that whoever fought with the sword was not a human being to be reckoned with.
However, one of the sets of people she adored were the nuns. She fell in love with their piousness and the way they walked with poise and elegance, clasping their hands with the rosary. They walked as though they never belonged to the earth, but were aliens sent to guard the people against evil. Another thing she loved about them was their voices. Whenever they sang at the abbey, it sounded like the host of heavens had come to dwell among the inhabitants of the earth. She tried to sing like them when she was young but lacked their kind of sonorous voices. She loved music but was unfortunate to learn while she was young because she always feared that she was not bestowed upon with a great voice by divinity.
She actually told Isabel all her childhood fantasies, and they laughed and cogitated over them. After spending the day in the company of each other, Isabel went to her room, thinking of what else she could do for Lady Beatrice for her health had become a concern to everyone in the manor house. However, she was glad the sickness did not withhold her from being loquacious.
***
Isabel, the companion to Lady Beatrice, sat on the armchair in her room. She just came in from Lady Beatrice’s room, distraught and perturbed by the circumstances beyond their reach over Beatrice’s state of health. Each day that passed by saw her condition deteriorating and looking hopeless. Doctor Berkely had repeated his visitation and after examining her condition could not arrive at any meaningful conclusion. That meant that no one could establish the cause of her sickness, determine the cure, and forestall its further occurrence. Initially, it was just fatigue and body aches. Then, she began to lose appetite and only ate when forced to eat. That was quite comprehensible because she was not known to be a voracious eater.
The one that called for greater attention was her incessant sleeping and coughing. Initially, they feared for the worst and negative thoughts crept into Isabel’s mind. She prayed to God to show her mercy. For the first time since she became a companion to Lady Beatrice, she prayed her rosary and asked Mother Mary to come to the aid of Lady Beatrice whom she had taken as a sister she never had.
Isabel raised her head a little and rested it on the edge of the chair, thereby facing the roof of the house. She saw a spider spinning its web and going about its business as if the world revolved only around the world of the arachnids. She watched it for a long time and sighed. She knew that by the time Rachel came to clean up the room the next day, it would be resting in the wastebasket, the place prepared for erring spiders. She chuckled and intermittently realised herself, then, sighed loudly.
Isabel was supposed to meet Lady Beatrice at the room, as usual, but felt withdrawn for no reason, though it could be that she wanted her to rest and be left alone. She thought about the Baron. She had not seen much of him that day. He only came in the morning to check on his sister; then, she saw him going through the estate with his hands crossed at the back. She did not see him again. However, she felt he was not within the manor house because she didn’t as much as hear his voice. She inhaled the air and expelled it, then yawned, a sign of tiredness and boredom.
Within a short while, she slept and woke up later when she heard a rap on the door. She went for the handle of the door, opened it, and beheld Rachel standing before her. She opened it enough to let her in. Rachel shook her head and mumbled something like ‘never bother about that.’ Then, she said, “The Baron asked me to call you, My Lady.”
“I hope all is well?” asked Isabel.
“I think so, My Lady. He only sent me to you.”
“Alright. Tell him that I am on my way.”
Rachel left immediately. Isabel got up a few minutes later and left the room, heading downstairs. Not sure of where he was, she checked the living room and didn’t find him, then she headed towards his room. Halfway, she heard him call her at the dining room.
“My Lady, look this way,” he said, his voice a bit louder than normal.
“Alright, My Lord,” she responded.
He was eating some fruit salad when she came to him. He told her to have a seat, and she grabbed one of the seats opposite him. He called out to Rachel, who was a short distance away from them. She responded and came to him, and he asked her to serve Isabel her own plate of fruit. She sized Isabel up and walked away without responding to her master’s instruction.
Isabel, not surprised by her actions, laughed inwardly and concentrated on the Baron opposite her.
“You look so pale, were you asleep?” he asked her.
“Yes, I was. Though I had woken up when the maid came to fetch me,” she replied, removing imaginary dirt from her right eye.
“That’s right. How is Lady Beatrice faring?” he asked.
“She is faring well, My Lord. She is currently sleeping, tha
t was the reason I left her alone,” she replied, not looking his way but focusing on a painting above his head. A way of averting his gaze.
