The Scarlet Ribbon
Page 20
He stepped aside for an elderly lady as she made her way to prayer, smiling at her as she passed, and looked back into the church once more, before making his way back down the path and on to the street. Pannier in hand, he continued his walk to his home in St Patrick’s Close, which was only a short distance from the church, the song in his heart taken up by the birds in the trees and from there to Heaven.
During his walk home, James Quinn wondered what Carissa and Daniel would be doing, and what time his good friend Andre would arrive with Avril and their year-old baby girl Lisette.
The trees still had a canopy of leaves, even though these were drying and nearly ready to fall and carpet the streets, and James gazed as the sunlight made them transparently beautiful. He turned the corner, walked towards home, and came to a stop: the morning’s ethereal flights of fancy were extinguished when he saw three carriages outside his house.
The second would be Laurence Stone’s, whom he’d invited to lunch to meet Andre, but whose was the third? He hurried towards the front door, eager to discover who else was here and to meet again with Andre and Avril, when he was halted by the banging at the lower front window. He looked through the window and saw a small infant beaming at him. He crouched down and held his hand against the child’s tiny one, glass separating them. The baby girl gave him a gappy, gummy smile and it suddenly dawned on him that this must be Lisette. He smiled back.
He straightened up, waved to the child, and went to go inside to greet his friends. His hand had just reached for the doorknob when the smile of welcome left his face and he felt a gnawing, growing thought expand in his head. Heart thumping, legs trembling, James Quinn walked back to the window and crouched down again, kneeling on the cold ground, not minding that his knees were in the dirt or that his coat was trailing on the ground. Lisette was delighted to see him again, to continue the game, and she placed her small hand on the window pane once more. He held his shaking hand against hers, glass separating them.
The baby girl gave him a gappy, gummy smile and he saw that Lisette was the image of Daniel. He smiled back.
24
To ensure a safe voyage by sea
Take from all of these a large dried sprig: lavender, sage, thyme, lemon balm, hyssop and peppermint, and add a handful of cloves of garlic. Place in a jar and cover with apple cider vinegar and put a lid on the top. Let the jar sit in a cool place for six weeks and then strain off the herbs and garlic and pour into a vessel with a stopper. Take the mixture several times daily, add a drop to your food, and put some of the liquid on a soft cloth and clean around you. It is sure to ward off any illnesses, large or small.
Quinn Household Recipes and Remedies Book
* * *
To say that the lunch was strained was putting it mildly, thought James as he waved off Laurence Stone.
His mentor had made small talk before getting deep into discussion with Andre about man-midwifery in Paris, and his plans for New Orleans. Catherine and her father, though uninvited, filled any gaps in the conversation and James blessed their untimely arrival. Catherine smiled at James across the table, eyebrow raised in question as she looked from Daniel to Lisette. All James could do was shrug in return. Sir Alan seemed very interested in the American venture; he was no doubt hoping to find another way to make his money grow.
Peg cosseted the children, Avril chatted contentedly, but it was Carissa that James was most worried about. He saw her confusion and hurt as he engaged in easy, light-hearted conversation with Avril and made much of Lisette, who was very taken with Daniel. James sighed and turned to go back inside when Andre came out with Lisette in his arms and Daniel by the hand.
‘Let us take a walk. You look like a man who could do with the wise advice of myself,’ he joked.
Inside the house, Avril sat and rested by the fire, telling Peg of the current fashions in Paris, while Sir Alan dozed. Catherine saw Carissa’s face set in anger and walked over to her.
‘Carissa, dear,’ she said sweetly, ‘may I have a word with you?’
Carissa followed Catherine into the hallway.
‘Carissa,’ she began, ‘there was no need to sit with a face like thunder over lunch. You put me quite off my food.’
‘How can you say that?’ Carissa hissed, ‘I would be a fool not to see that the Frenchwoman’s child is also James’s!’
‘Lower your voice and stop making such a scene, you silly little girl! Do you really think you are good enough for James?’
Carissa’s face crumpled and Catherine softened. ‘I am sorry, Carissa, I did not mean that. It is this pregnancy; I feel so tired and often agitated. But come, does it really matter if Lisette is James’s child?’
‘I suppose next you will be telling me that he is also your child’s father!’ started Carissa, and then stopped as she saw the truth in Catherine’s eyes. ‘Oh no, say it is not true!’ she pleaded and hung on to the Englishwoman’s arm.
‘Carissa,’ Catherine put her arms around her.
‘I knew it!’ Carissa whirled out of Catherine’s grasp. ‘And you are all content to make a complete fool out of me.’
‘Carissa, dear, it was not like that.’
‘I saw him, did you know that?’ her finger pointed at Catherine, and it trembled. ‘I saw your husband Edward at the picnic. He was with Charles, holding his hands; I knew it was not right.’
‘My husband may love me less than his male friends,’ Catherine shrugged, ‘it does not matter to me. We are very close. He was delighted that he did not have to cover me to obtain an heir, hopefully a son. Unfortunately, I have discovered that my money covers his gambling debts. Again, what does it matter? We have a good life together and most importantly I have a legal father for my child.’
‘You are very cold-hearted, Catherine Cavendish!’ Carissa turned to go.
‘Don’t you mean Countess? Carissa, not so fast. Do not cry, dear, or make me cut your stays and bring you the smelling salts so you get over your fit. This is real life; we women must use our wiles to get what we want. If you still want James, you must fight for him, especially as he saw you so unhappy at the table.
‘Calm yourself, take a deep breath, dry your eyes, put on scent, do your hair again, and greet him with a smile as if none of this matters. And by the way, he does not know he is father to my child. I would prefer to keep it that way.’
‘So,’ said Andre.
‘So,’ replied James, shoulders slumped in dejection.
‘James,’ roared Andre, ‘your face is a picture!’
James watched his friend dissolve into laughter and couldn’t help but laugh along too.
‘Carissa,’ he began.
‘Carissa will be fine, James. If she wants to be with you she will, surprise child or no.’
James eyed his friend sheepishly, putting his finger between his collar and his neck. ‘I didn’t know. I knew that something was amiss the day that Avril and I parted at Notre Dame, but I had no idea what it was.’ He cleared his throat.
Andre smiled and put his arm around James. He handed Lisette to him. ‘Avril told me about that. I met her not long after your departure. You may have provided the seed to enable Lisette to grow, and in that respect she is your daughter. But she is mine more than yours,’ and he picked Daniel up in his arms.
‘She is beautiful,’ breathed James.
‘You know,’ said Andre, pausing for a moment, ‘if you were to come with us we would all be one big happy family.’
‘To New Orleans?’
‘Where else? New Orleans: new, exciting, full of adventure. We could become the Gregoires of America, my friend.’
‘What about the rest of my family?’
‘Bring them all – even Peg, marvellous woman – in a year’s time, when Avril and I are established.’
Lisette, tired, snuggled into James’s chest and closed her eyes. He bent his head over hers and revelled in the smell of her wispy baby hair.
‘Come, James, we could be happy there. Daniel, wo
uld you like to go on a big ship?’
‘Yes! Like Robinson Crusoe?’ he stumbled over the words and both men laughed, the child joining in.
‘But I hate travelling by sea with a vengeance,’ said James.
‘Come now, no excuses. The trade winds would be at our backs; it would be a fine crossing. What do you say?’
James Quinn looked at his children and then Andre.
‘I think we could be happy there,’ he smiled.
Historical Note
Some of the characters in The Scarlet Ribbon are fictional, but Gregoire the Elder and Gregoire the Younger taught at the Hotel Dieu. William Smellie, called Smyley in this book, was a prominent man-midwife in London. Bartholomew Mosse and Fielding Ould were man-midwives in Dublin.
The medical procedures, case notes, and remedies related here are historically accurate. In the eighteenth century, the practice of man-midwifery met with criticism and opposition.
The King’s Head, still a pub, and Lynch’s Castle, now a bank, are in Galway city. The Claddagh, Spanish Arch and St Nicholas’ church are also in Galway. St Auden’s church and St Anne’s church are in Dublin city. The Hotel Dieu is in Paris, just beside Notre Dame. After its demise in 1859, the site of The New Spring Gardens, Vauxhall, London, was divided up into 300 building plots. During the Blitz, the site was cleared, and is now a park.
Copyright
First published in 2012
The History Press Ireland
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This ebook edition first published in 2012
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© Derry O’Dowd, 2012
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