The Christmas Wedding

by Dilly Court

  ‘If you don’t mind, miss, I’d like to call her after you. What did you say your name was?’

  ‘It’s Daisy, and I’d be honoured to have the little mite named after me.’ Daisy was deeply touched and she smiled through tears of exhaustion. ‘We’ll make you comfortable and then perhaps you can get some sleep.’ Daisy glanced round the room. ‘Is there a cradle for the baby?’

  Linnet drew her aside. ‘We’ll leave the little one with her ma while I take a drawer from the chest. It’s only the rich people who can afford cradles and the like.’

  A vision of the nursery in Queen Square flashed through Daisy’s mind and she felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment. She had not meant to sound patronising, but she was only just beginning to understand the gulf between those who had and those who had not. The Greens were definitely from the latter group, and another mouth to feed would only add to their problems. She acknowledged Linnet’s advice with a nod and, having made Mabel comfortable, Daisy went downstairs to comfort the children.

  Alfie was alone in room, seated cross-legged on the floor in front of the hearth where the log fire had burned down to little more than ash. He leaped to his feet when he saw Daisy.

  ‘Is Ma dead? It’s gone so quiet.’

  Daisy wrapped her arms around him. ‘Your mum is fine and so is your new sister. I was hoping to make a pot of tea for your mother, or perhaps some hot milk.’

  Alfie shook his head. ‘There ain’t no tea, miss. No milk neither. I gave the last of it to the young ’uns before they went to bed.’ He jerked his head to the space under the stairs where the children lay top to toe on a thin mattress, covered by an equally thin and threadbare blanket.

  ‘Is your dad still outside?’ Daisy struggled to contain a feeling of anger that roiled in her stomach. If the children’s father had enough money to get himself so drunk, he could have spent it on necessities for his family.

  ‘Yes, miss. I left him there, the drunken old bastard.’

  ‘I’d better go and take a look at him.’ It was not something Daisy wanted to do, and it would serve him right if she left him to freeze, but her conscience would not let her rest until she was satisfied that the children’s father would live to support them.

  ‘Wait a minute,’ Alfie said hastily. ‘It’s pitch-dark outside. There should be just enough oil left in the lamp to light the way.’ He picked up an ancient lantern and struck a match on the hearth. There was not much of the wick left, but it gave out sufficient glow to light their way in the tiny back yard. As Alfie had said, his father lay prostrate on the ground with frost forming all around him. Daisy bent down to feel the pulse in his neck, as Toby had once shown her how to do.

  ‘What’s his name, Alfie?’

  ‘It’s Joe.’ Danny prodded his father’s side with the toe of his boot. ‘Wake up, Dad.’

  Daisy used all her strength to turn Joe onto his back. She slapped his cheeks. ‘Open your eyes, Joe.’

  He groaned and curled up in a ball, muttering something unintelligible.

  Daisy took the lantern from Alfie and held it high enough to cast its beam around the tiny yard. ‘We need some water. Where is the pump?’

  ‘It’s in the back lane, miss. We share it with the rest of the cottages.’

  ‘Fetch some water.’ Daisy handed him the lamp. ‘I’ll stay here and try to wake him up.’

  Alfie hurried off and she watched the lantern bobbing up and down as he walked. She shook Joe and slapped his cheeks, calling his name, but he was very drunk and unresponsive. She waited until Alfie returned with the bucket of ice-cold water.

  ‘Give it to me and stand back, Alfie.’

  His eyes gleamed in the lamplight. ‘Let me do it, miss.’

  ‘No, you’d only get into trouble when he sobers up. I’m going to enjoy this.’ Daisy took the heavy bucket and tipped the contents over Joe’s head.

  He coughed and, swearing loudly, he struggled to a sitting position.

  She dropped the bucket and stood arms akimbo, glaring at him as he tried to stand. ‘You have a baby daughter, Mr Green. Mother and baby are fine, no thanks to you.’

  Joe scrambled to his feet and stood there, swaying and cursing as he shook the water from his hair. Daisy turned her back on him and returned to the house. Her stomach heaved at the stench from the candle and a pile of rotting vegetable peelings in the tiny scullery, but she managed a smile for Alfie.

  ‘Go to bed now. You’ve done more than enough tonight.’

  ‘Will Ma be all right, miss?’

  ‘She just needs rest and good food, and I’ll do my best to see that she gets both. It’s very late, so I can’t do anything now, but I promise I’ll be back in the morning.’ Acting on impulse, she leaned over and dropped a kiss on Alfie’s matted hair. She looked up as Linnet came downstairs carrying a pile of blood-stained towels. ‘I’m going home. Are you coming with me?’

  Linnet nodded. ‘Yes, but what about this washing?’

  ‘We’ll take it home with us.’

  ‘Hattie will complain.’

  ‘She’ll grumble even more when I raid the larder for food for these poor children, but somebody has to help them, and it doesn’t look as if he’s going to be much help.’ Daisy jerked her head in Joe’s direction as he lurched into the room and slumped down on his chair by the embers of the fire. Daisy turned to Alfie, who was staring nervously at his father. ‘If your dad lays a finger on you I’ll …’ she hesitated, eyeing Joe warily as he raised his shaggy head to glare at her.

  ‘You’ll do what?’ he demanded angrily. ‘Interfering bitch.’

  Daisy thought quickly. ‘I’ll tell Squire Tattersall and we’ll see what he has to say.’

  Joe’s expression changed subtly and he responded with a grunt.

  ‘Would you really tell the squire?’ Linnet asked as they left the cottage and headed for home.

  ‘No, of course not, although it would serve Joe right if I did, but it had the desired effect. Most people in Little Creek seem to be scared of Squire Tattersall.’

  ‘Except Dr Neville and Jay.’

  ‘Yes,’ Daisy said thoughtfully. ‘Except those two.’

  After a few hours’ sleep, Daisy was up and dressed, and went downstairs to the kitchen to find Linnet and Hattie having an argument about the Greens’ washing.

  ‘Once we start that sort of thing we’ll have half the village thinking they can bring their dirty clothes here for us to see to,’ Hattie said crossly.

  Daisy sent Linnet a warning look. Hattie could be very stubborn and needed to be handled carefully. ‘The poor woman only gave birth last night. She needs our help.’

  ‘Yes, and that wastrel of a husband was dead drunk,’ Linnet added. ‘He’s a real toper, Mrs Cribb.’

  ‘And I agree with you in general, Hattie,’ Daisy said earnestly. ‘But surely we can make an exception this time.’

  Hattie sighed and picked up a saucepan. ‘I suppose it won’t hurt, just this once. But you’ll have to light the fire under the copper, Linnet, and see to the bedding. I’ll make some porridge for the little ones, but he’s not to have a mouthful.’

  Linnet picked up the soiled sheets and hurried to the wash house while Daisy raided the larder for supplies.

  ‘And you must have some breakfast, too, Daisy,’ Hattie said firmly. ‘Heaven knows what your aunt and uncle will say when they know you were out half the night delivering a baby. It’s not the sort of thing an unmarried young lady like yourself should see.’ She added a generous helping of sugar to the mixture. ‘Poor little mites, having a drunken father. Men like that deserve to be tossed into prison and the key thrown away.’

  ‘That wouldn’t do the family much good,’ Daisy said with a wry smile. ‘At least he keeps a roof over their heads.’

  ‘For how long?’ Hattie demanded. ‘If he’s as bad as you say he’ll drink all his wages, and his wife and the nippers will end up in the workhouse. I’ve seen it happen before, Daisy, and there’s nothing you can do abo
ut it.’ She stood with arms akimbo, her lips pursed. ‘You can take one of the loaves I baked this morning, but …’

  ‘Make sure that brute doesn’t get any.’ Daisy chuckled and kissed Hattie’s plump cheek. ‘You don’t fool me, Hattie Cribb. You’ve got a heart as soft as butter, and I will make certain that the children and their mother are fed first. Anyway, I don’t think there’ll be much left for Joe, and he probably feels too poorly to eat anyway.’

  ‘I hope so,’ Hattie said fervently. ‘But I don’t know what the missis will say when she finds out what’s been going on. She won’t like it, Daisy. I’ll tell you that for nothing.’

  Hattie was right. Eleanora was not amused and she told Daisy so at breakfast. ‘We can’t feed the whole village,’ she said crossly. ‘I’ll do my bit with the local ladies, and some beef tea and a few cakes are not going to put us in the poorhouse, but you must stop giving food away, and I forbid you to go out in the middle of the night to deliver babies. I never heard of such a thing, Daisy.’

  ‘I’m sorry, Aunt Eleanora,’ Daisy said patiently. ‘But the boy was desperate and he’s Jack’s friend. I didn’t know what else to do.’

  ‘That’s another thing.’ Eleanora wiped her lips on a table napkin. ‘It’s high time young Jack went home to his parents.’

  Daisy knew this was true, but she was fond of Jack and she would miss him. ‘Yes, Aunt.’

  ‘I mean it, Daisy. I’m not a mean woman but we aren’t made of money. Now that your uncle has retired from the business we have to be careful with our expenditure.’

  ‘I didn’t realise that money was tight.’ Daisy’s appetite suddenly deserted her and she pushed her plate away. ‘I’m a burden on you both and I should look for another position.’

  ‘I didn’t mean that,’ Eleanora said hastily. ‘You are family, my dear. Money doesn’t come into it.’

  ‘I’m a grown woman, Aunt. I need to earn my own living.’

  ‘Nonsense, Daisy. You are an attractive young lady. I saw the way the squire was ogling you, and he’s a great catch. If you married him you would want for nothing and, speaking selfishly, we would be assured of having the lease renewed. Your uncle apparently knew about the lease, because he handles all our financial affairs. He was confident that we could get it renewed cheaply.’

  ‘And you would if I agreed to marry the squire.’ Daisy met her aunt’s gaze with a straight look. ‘I love you both, but that’s asking too much.’ She rose to her feet. ‘I think it’s time I returned to London, Aunt Eleanora. I’ll stay with Toby while I look for work.’

  ‘You can’t do that, Daisy. You can’t live in bachelors’ quarters even if you are sharing rooms with your brother. It’s not the done thing, my dear.’

  ‘I can’t see that it would matter to anyone but you and Uncle Sidney, and you know I wouldn’t do anything to disgrace the family name. No, Aunt, my mind is made up. I need to get a job and London is the place I know best. Perhaps I can train as a nurse, or even a doctor. I seem to have a leaning for that sort of work.’

  Eleanora uttered a faint shriek. ‘A doctor? Heaven help us – women can’t be doctors, Daisy. It’s against nature and I don’t really approve of nursing, although it is a little more respectable now, thanks to Miss Nightingale, but there are no women doctors.’

  ‘I think you’re wrong there, Aunt. There’s Elizabeth Blackwell, who qualified as a doctor in America. I read about her in the newspaper when she visited London a few years ago. Times are changing and we have to change with them or be left behind.’

  ‘I think you’d be heading for a dreadful disappointment, Daisy. Consider the squire’s offer. You would be a lady with a beautiful home and a carriage at your disposal.’

  ‘I’d rather die than marry that man. Everything you say makes me even more determined to make my own way in life. I’m sorry, Aunt, I love you and Uncle Sidney dearly, but I am not going to be swayed in this. I’m going back to London.’

  Chapter Twelve

  It was an easy decision to make in the circumstances, but there were things that Daisy had to do before she left Little Creek. The first was to ensure that Jack’s parents were well enough to take care of him at home. Later that morning, accompanied by Linnet, Daisy called on the Fox family. She was pleasantly surprised to find Mary Fox up and about, and doing her chores in an effort to make the dilapidated cottage into a comfortable home. There was no sign of Lemuel, which was a relief as his glowering presence made Daisy feel ill at ease.

  ‘Of course I want my boy home,’ Mary said eagerly. ‘I’m much better now, thanks to the medicine that Dr Neville gave me before he went up to London. I hope he comes back soon because we need him here.’

  ‘Miss Marshall is going to London to train as a nurse.’ Linnet beamed at Daisy. ‘She’ll come back to Little Creek and look after us all.’

  ‘I don’t know about that,’ Daisy said hastily. ‘I might not get accepted as a probationer.’

  Linnet shook her head. ‘There’s no doubt in my mind, miss. You’re clever and you’ve got learning. I can read and write and add up sums, but that’s an end to it. Jay is the clever one in our family, even if he did go wrong.’

  ‘We don’t talk about him, even when your pa isn’t around, Linnet.’ Mary shot an anxious glance over her shoulder, as if expecting to see her husband standing behind her. ‘You know how he disgraced the family, even though I have to say he’s a good boy at heart.’

  ‘It was that Squire Tattersall who put him in prison, Ma,’ Linnet said darkly. ‘He’s a bad man and he’ll be the ruin of all of us.’ She shot a sideways glance at Daisy. ‘You’ll be safe from the old devil in London, miss.’

  ‘What do you mean by that?’ Mary demanded. ‘Watch your tongue, my girl.’

  ‘It’s all right, Mrs Fox,’ Daisy said hastily. ‘The squire has been making his presence felt and I want to put distance between him and me. It’s as simple as that.’

  ‘Forgive me for saying so, but you don’t want to get mixed up with that person.’ Mary clasped Daisy’s hand. ‘Go to London, and keep away from the squire. He’s ruined many a young life in his time.’

  ‘I’ll be leaving later today.’ Daisy nodded and forced a smile. ‘That’s why Jack must come home, Mrs Fox. His arm is healing nicely and he needs to be here with you. I’ll miss him, though.’

  A slow smile lit Mary’s blue eyes, reminding Daisy forcibly of Jay. ‘My Jack is a good boy, and I’m grateful to you for looking after him while me and his dad were poorly.’

  ‘Where is pa?’ Linnet asked anxiously. ‘He hasn’t gone off sermonising again, has he?’

  Mary cleared her throat nervously. ‘My Lemuel is a lay preacher, Miss Marshall. He goes round the villages spreading the word of God, when he’s well enough to face the walk. He’s sincere in what he believes, but he does get carried away sometimes.’

  Linnet pulled a face. ‘You could say that, Ma. The truth is that Pa thinks we’re all sinners, especially the brother whose name I’m not supposed to mention.’ She leaned over to kiss her mother on the forehead. ‘I’d best get back to Creek Cottage. Hattie will be cross if I stay out too long.’

  ‘Come again soon, dear.’ Mary raised her hand to stroke her daughter’s hair. ‘Your father misses you and Dove, even if he doesn’t know how to show his feelings.’

  ‘I must go, too.’ Daisy backed towards the door. ‘Please tell Jack that I’ll come and see him when I return from London.’ She let herself out into the early spring sunshine and took a deep breath of fresh air. The fusty smell of the cottage would linger on her clothes for some time, but it was not for want of effort on Mrs Fox’s part, and Daisy wished with all her heart that she could do something to make life better for the people of Little Creek. She had only been invited into a couple of the cottages, but it was obvious that Squire Tattersall was a bad landlord and he had no sympathy for his tenants or their families.

  ‘Are you coming back to Creek Cottage, miss?’

  Linnet’s voic
e broke into her thoughts and Daisy turned to her with a start. ‘I’m sorry. I was miles away. I think I’ll go for a short walk and say goodbye to Little Creek.’

  ‘When are you leaving, miss? If you don’t mind me asking.’

  ‘There’s a train at two o’clock. Now I’ve made up my mind I don’t want to wait around.’

  ‘You’ll need me to help you pack.’

  ‘I won’t take too much with me this time. After all, I might be unsuccessful and have to return in a day or two. Anyway, whatever happens, it will be good to see my brother again.’

  ‘I’d better not waste any more time or I’ll be in trouble.’ Linnet hurried off in the direction of Creek Cottage, leaving Daisy to walk on at a more leisurely pace.

  She had no particular plan, but it was a fine day and the birds were singing as if they knew that spring was not far off. She followed the creek as it wound its way through the wood, and as she emerged from a thicket of brambles and hawthorn bushes she came across a sight that brought her to a halt. Up to their knees in the fast-moving water, her uncle and Lemuel Fox were standing midstream, casting their lines. She wondered if Lemuel would tell his wife that he had been fishing instead of preaching to his flock, and she stifled a giggle. She was about to retreat when she trod on a fallen branch, which snapped, sending a sound like a pistol shot echoing across the water.

  ‘Who’s there?’ Lemuel demanded angrily. ‘You’ve frightened off the fish.’

  Daisy emerged from the cover of the bushes. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t see you until too late.’

  ‘What are you doing here, Daisy?’ Sidney demanded, reeling in his line. ‘Is something wrong?’

  ‘Not at all, but I’m glad I came across you.’ Daisy moved to the water’s edge, balancing precariously on the slippery bank. ‘I’ve decided to return to London and look for work.’

  Sidney waded towards her. ‘This is very sudden, my dear.’ He gave her a searching look. ‘Has this anything to do with our visit to the manor house? I noticed how quiet you were on the way home, and quite honestly I didn’t like the way the squire treated you. I would have said something, but your aunt told me to be quiet.’