Whisper Of Darkness

by Anne Mather

  ‘What is he going to let you know about?’ asked Anya curiously, but Paul only gave her an impatient stare.

  ‘Probably tomorrow,’ he said, continuing his thread. ‘How about coming down to the pub tomorrow evening for a drink? We could talk it over.’

  Anya was wide-eyed by now, and Joanna felt a little irritated by his persistence. ‘I think it would be better if you let us know if you have any success,’ she declared firmly. ‘I’m sure Mr Sheldon would appreciate it.’

  Paul shrugged, but he had to accept her decision. However, after he had gone Joanna still had Anya to contend with.

  ‘He fancies you, doesn’t he?’ she remarked slyly, and Joanna guessed the terms were Mrs Harris’s, not hers.

  ‘Mr Trevor is going to try and find a housekeeper for us,’ she replied flatly. ‘That’s all. Now, you can help me carry the china out of the cabinet in the living room. I want to wash it before I put it back.’

  ‘Daddy won’t like that,’ observed Anya sagely, accompanying her through the door, and Joanna felt the familiar pangs of frustration.

  ‘Why not?’ she argued, despising herself for doing so, and Anya grimaced as she offered her opinion.

  ‘We don’t get involved with the people around here,’ she said, experimentally snapping her fingers. ‘And you know how angry he was when he found you were at the Trevors’. I don’t think he’ll be very pleased at you asking that man to find someone to work here.’

  Joanna felt her temper simmering, and knew it was because Anya was saying all the things she herself had suspected and determinedly squashed. ‘I didn’t ask him,’ she replied now, jerking open the door of the cupboard and almost dislodging a piece of Wedgwood. ‘He offered. And I should have thought your father would be only too relieved to think that his problems might soon be over.’

  Anya shrugged. ‘You’ll see,’ she said, with an annoying smirk, and for the first time for days Joanna could have willingly slapped her.

  As it happened, Joanna was not around when Jake returned. After cleaning out the cupboards and restoring polish to the floor surrounding the worn carpet, she had decided to wash the curtains, only to discover they were out of soap powder. The generous amount of washing she had done in the last few days had exhausted their supply, and it was something she had forgotten to put on the list Jake had taken with him. Some time, she hoped he would invite her to accompany him on one of his trips to the town, but she doubted it would happen in the near future. There was an alternative, of course. She could ask to borrow the Range Rover and drive herself, and as she intended to discuss Anya’s wardrobe in the not-too-distant future, she was hoping to persuade him to allow her to take the girl with her.

  For the present, however, only the village store could supply her needs, and as Anya seemed quite happy to continue looking through the science magazines, she walked to Ravensmere alone. This time she made no mistake in the directions Matt had given her, and she eventually came down the lane into the village feeling reasonably pleased with her efforts.

  The village store was a comprehensive one, encompassing a post office as well as a greengrocers and general dealers. Because of the demands of tourists in the area, it was quite well equipped, and Joanna carried her basket round the adequately stocked shelves with an unusual feeling of independence. Since leaving London she had not entered a shop of any kind, and she realised how much she had missed it.

  The girl at the till she guessed to be the daughter of the owner of the store, and she stared at Joanna rather curiously as she unloaded her shopping beside the small checkout. Joanna passed the time of day with her, but refused to be drawn into conversation after Anya’s gloomy forecast of Jake’s reactions. However, she emerged from the store aware that she had been very thoroughly inspected. She surmised that Paul had told them about her presence at Ravengarth, and as there were few visitors in the area at this time of year, she could hardly be expected to keep her identity a secret.

  She was crossing the main street on her way back to Ravengarth when a dark green vehicle braked to a halt beside her. She glanced round carelessly, imagining it to be a delivery van, and then halted uncertainly as she encountered Jake’s hard unyielding features.

  ‘Get in,’ he commanded, thrusting open the door of the Range Rover from the inside, and with a helpless shrug she complied, not altogether sorry to be relieved of the unaccustomed weight of her shopping bag.

  Jake waited until she had closed the door behind her, and then put the vehicle into gear, setting away rather aggressively. The tyres spun on the slightly damp road, but Joanna, noticing his set face, refrained from saying anything which might aggravate an already volatile situation. She didn’t know whether he had encountered her by accident or design, but either way he was not pleased, and she waited in slightly nervous anticipation for him to speak.

  ‘I thought I made it clear that I do not wish you to shop in the village,’ he said at last, his voice harshly controlled. ‘It seems you take a delight in doing those things I ask you not to do, and I do not intend to be made a fool of by a girl little older than my own daughter.’

  ‘I’m not making a fool of you,’ she protested, turning to look at him. ‘I needed some soap powder, so I came to get some. Why shouldn’t I? I’m not a prisoner. I do need some freedom. Just because you have some mistaken idea that people care——’

  ‘We won’t discuss it,’ he overrode her brusquely. ‘So long as you’re in my employ, you will confine your shopping expeditions to Penrith or Keswick, and as we’re on the subject, it is not part of your duties to do the washing.’

  ‘Then who is to do it?’ Joanna retorted, incensed by his inflexibility, but he merely shrugged.

  ‘There’s a laundromat in Penrith——’

  ‘Laundromats are not for garments that need careful attention.’

  His mouth hardened. ‘And do the living room curtains need careful attention?’

  Joanna hunched her shoulders. ‘You’ve been home.’ It was a statement, not a question, and he inclined his head.

  ‘As you say.’

  ‘And Anya told you where I was?’

  ‘As I wanted to visit the vet at Heronsfoot, it was only a short detour.’

  Joanna glanced quickly through the windows and realised that in her anxiety she had not noticed they were not on their way back to the house. So he was taking her with him, she thought, trying to be offhand about it, but her churning stomach refused to respond.

  ‘Where is Anya anyway?’ she asked, concerned what she might get up to without supervision, but Jake had taken control.

  ‘She’s all right. I left her helping Matt build a bonfire,’ he retorted, and she breathed a sigh of relief that she had this short respite.

  ‘Besides,’ he added shortly, ‘I wanted to talk to you, and now seemed as good a time as any.’

  Joanna sighed, her elation at this unexpected outing evaporating somewhat. ‘I know. You want to express your objections to me cleaning the house.’

  ‘That, of course,’ he retorted curtly, ‘but there is another matter which has to be disposed of—this penchant you have for interfering in affairs that don’t concern you.’

  ‘What?’

  Joanna was confused, and he turned his cold amber eyes in her direction. ‘Don’t pretend you don’t understand, Miss Seton. Anya has told me about young Trevor’s visit this morning, and some arrangement you have with him if he succeeds in finding a woman to work at Ravengarth!’ Joanna gasped. She might have known that Anya would not let such a heavensent opportunity escape her, and while it was not unreasonable that she should have told her father about the housekeeper, it was obvious she had been listening at the door long before she chose to make her entrance. How else could she have known about the bargain Paul had suggested? He had certainly not repeated it in her hearing.

  ‘Paul offered to ask one or two people in the village whether they would consider working at Ravengarth, that’s all,’ she declared tersely. ‘I think it was kin
d of him. After all, you’ve had no luck in obtaining a housekeeper, and at least if one of the village women does come to work for you, she won’t be requiring accommodation.’

  Jake turned to look at her once again. ‘And you think that is a recommendation?’ he asked bleakly. ‘Are you not aware of the talk there’ll be in the village right this moment, now they know Mrs Harris has departed?’

  Joanna’s face burned. ‘Does it matter?’ she exclaimed, unable to sustain his searching gaze. ‘As you persistently point out, I am young enough to be your daughter!’

  ‘But you’re not my daughter,’ he snapped, forced to halt as they reached the sliproad on to the motorway. ‘And the longer you remain at Ravengarth, the more convinced I become that your staying is a mistake.’

  Joanna sank back in her seat as if he had struck her. It was obvious, he was only keeping her on because of the minor success she was having with Anya, and she guessed that if he could find some older woman to do the job she was doing she would be dismissed, just like Mrs Harris. It was a daunting thought, and it successfully destroyed what little exhilaration was left to her. She remained silent during the remainder of the journey to Heronsfoot, and stayed in the Range Rover while he went into the vet’s. What was the point of getting involved? she asked herself bitterly; he was determined to maintain the barrier of detachment with her, just as he did with everyone else.

  He wasn’t long, and presently he came striding back to the vehicle, tall and disruptively masculine in his black leather jacket and corded pants. His shirt, one of the coarse grey shirts she herself had washed and ironed, was open at the throat, exposing the strong column of his neck, and with the breeze ruffling the smooth dark hair, he looked dark and disturbing.

  His eyes met hers as he pulled open his door and got inside, levering his long length behind the wheel. For a heart-stopping moment they looked at one another without either fear or aggression, and Joanna’s lips parted on an involuntary breath. She didn’t want to break that unguarded contact, and it was Jake who leant forward and deliberately started the engine before she could say anything.

  Heronsfoot was a village similar to Ravensmere, but as it was just off the motorway it was considerably busier. There were several shops and a café Joanna had seen as they drove through, and now, hardly aware of what she was saying, she used them as a delaying tactic.

  ‘Is—is there a pharmacy here?’ she exclaimed, as he swung away from the kerb, and heard the sudden intake of his breath as he was obliged to answer her.

  ‘There’s a chemists,’ he amended shortly. ‘Why? Is there something else you want?’

  ‘Yes.’ Joanna thought furiously. ‘I—er—I need some nail varnish remover.’

  ‘Nail varnish remover?’ Jake applied his brakes reluctantly. ‘Can’t it wait?’

  ‘Until when?’ she enquired ironically. ‘You’ve just told me I mustn’t shop in Ravensmere.’

  His lips thinned, but he pulled into the kerb again, and indicated the small leaded-paned shop window opposite. ‘Don’t be long,’ he advised, with an impatient gesture, and grateful for the reprieve, she pushed open her door, deliberately leaving her purse behind.

  The chemist was a young man, and he smiled understandingly when she confessed that she had left her money in the car. It wasn’t every day he had such an attractive young woman in his shop, and he watched the unconscious swing of her hips as Joanna sauntered across the road again and tapped on Jake’s window.

  ‘I’ve forgotten my purse,’ she said innocently, as he wound the window down. ‘Could you possibly come and pay for it for me? It will save me having to unpack all those things.’ She pointed to the shopping bag on the back seat of the vehicle.

  Jake hesitated, looked as though he was going to object, and then thrust open his door. Joanna watched him triumphantly, then turned and walked back to the shop with him following. She was well aware of the café only two doors further along, but when they emerged from the chemist a few moments later she pretended a spontaneous exclamation.

  ‘Would you mind if we had a cup of tea before going back?’ she asked, depending on that unguarded moment to win the day, and was bitterly disappointed when he strode across the road.

  ‘If you want a cup of tea, get it,’ he advised shortly. ‘I’ll wait for you in the Rover, but don’t be long.’

  Joanna pursed her lips. ‘I don’t have any money.’

  ‘Then you’ll have to do without, won’t you?’ he retorted, evidently deducing what she had had in mind, and with a feeling of impotence she came back to the car.

  ‘I wanted to talk to you,’ she said half sulkily, as he pulled away, but Jake did not immediately answer her. He drove in silence until they were clear of the small town, and then he said harshly:

  ‘I do not like being made a fool of, Miss Seton.’

  Joanna flushed. ‘That wasn’t my intention.’

  ‘No?’ He glanced sideways at her. ‘But you didn’t really want to go to the chemists, did you? Your real objective was the café. I should tell you, I do not take tea in cafés, unless it’s unavoidable.’

  Joanna sighed. ‘If you’re about to tell me your appearance is responsible——’ she began, and then broke off in dismay when he brought the Range Rover to an abrupt halt.

  ‘We will have no psycho-analysing here, Miss Seton,’ he snapped savagely, turning in his seat so that the heat of his breath was tangible against her temple. He made an impatient gesture before continuing: ‘I thought I knew why you came here. I believed what my sister told me. But it becomes more and more apparent that you’re not satisfied to simply get on with the job for which you were employed. I concede that you’ve had some small success with Anya, and for this reason I’ve tried to be tolerant, but I will not permit the kind of familiarity between us you seem bent on promoting.’

  Joanna stared at him, at once aghast and resentful of his perception. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ she muttered, her lower lip jutting. ‘Just because I forgot my purse and you had to help me …’

  ‘You didn’t forget your purse,’ retorted Jake coldly, reaching round into the back and extracting the offending article from the top of her shopping bag. ‘It was a little trick to get me out of the car. Well, you succeeded, but that’s all. Do you understand?’

  Joanna held up her head. ‘When I came here, Mr Sheldon,’ you talked of me being too—imaginative; has it occurred to you that you might be the imaginative one, not me?’

  Jake’s mouth hardened perceptibly, and the air around them moistened and condensed on the windows. The fast-misting panes enclosed them in an atmosphere of isolation that was almost claustrophobic, Joanna felt, cutting down her surroundings to the leather-seated interior of the car, her vision to the scarred lean face of the man beside her.

  ‘You invite violence, do you know that?’ he snapped, tugging angrily at the hair at the back of his neck. ‘You’re not dealing with some youth, enamoured by the flattery of your interest! You and I have to work with one another, that’s all. Anything else is out of the question.’

  Joanna was astounded now, as much by his effrontery as by her reactions to it. ‘You have no grounds for making such an outrageous statement!’ she protested incredulously. ‘Just because I’m trying to create the kind of situation where we might—discuss matters that affect us both——’

  ‘Like Trevor finding a housekeeper for us, you mean?’ Jake overrode her coldly, and she pressed her lips together.

  ‘I’ve told you. Paul had your best interests at heart——’

  ‘Yours, you mean,’ he corrected her bleakly. ‘I may be disfigured, but my eyes are as good as anyone else’s. I know why—Paul is suddenly so helpful, and it has nothing to do with me or Anya.’

  Joanna was incensed. ‘Jealous, Mr Sheldon?’ she jeered, unable to hide the derision in her voice, only to freeze into immobility when his hands imprisoned her shoulders, pressing her back against the dark green leather of the upholstery. He was much close
r now, only the length of an arm away, and a bent arm at that. The tawny amber eyes held her frozen gaze with the expertise of the snake with the rabbit, and her heart seemed suspended by the expression in their depths.

  ‘This is the moment you’ve been waiting for, isn’t it?’ he said suddenly, and she realised in dismay that he was taunting her now. ‘We’ve all seen those old movies, haven’t we? The heroine mocks the hero one time too many, and he responds in the age-old way of all heroes.’ His lips twisted. ‘Only I’m no hero, Miss Seton, and I fear you’re not the stuff of which heroines are made either. You’re trembling—I can feel it. Why? Isn’t a little romantic diversion what you’re missing? Isn’t that the reason why I’m being flattered by all this unwarranted attention?’

  It was awful, but she could think of nothing to say in her own defence. ‘You—you’re a brute!’ she got out chokingly. ‘Let go of me! You have no right to treat me like this. How many times must I tell you, I only wanted to talk!’

  His narrow-eyed gaze held hers for a moment longer, grew speculative, then pensive, and finally moved down over the delicate planes of her face to the vulnerable uncertainty of her mouth. And she was vulnerable, she realised with a pang. Weak, and vulnerable, and pathetically inexperienced. The young men she had known had not prepared her for the complexities of Jake’s character, and her little charade seemed puerile in the face of his denunciation.

  ‘What did Marcia tell you about me?’ he demanded roughly, making no move to release her. ‘What manner of man did she say I was? I suppose she told you about Beth, and the accident—and why I’m living the life of a country yokel?’

  ‘She didn’t—that is—I don’t know your sister,’ protested Joanna desperately. ‘It was Aunt Lydia who—arranged everything.’

  ‘Lady Sutton?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Jake’s eyes narrowed in disbelief. ‘But you’ve heard about my wife, haven’t you? And the reasons why I left London.’

  ‘Mr Sheldon, I don’t think——’

  ‘What don’t you think?’ he overrode her a little cruelly. ‘That it has anything to do with you? No, I’d agree with you, it hasn’t. But you’re here—and perhaps I feel the need to talk to someone.’