Читать книгу Being Elizabeth - Barbara Taylor Bradford - Страница 14

EIGHT

‘I’ve got good news and bad news,’ Robert announced, looking across at Elizabeth from the doorway which linked their adjoining offices. ‘Which do you want first?’

Straightening in her chair, glancing at him swiftly, Elizabeth said, ‘Why do you ask? You know I like the bad news first.’

Robert strolled into the room, handed her the manila folder he was carrying, and sat down in the chair opposite her.

‘What is this?’ she asked almost warily, and did not open it. Instead, she placed it on the desk. She looked at him intently, his eyes on her, her own filled with sudden concern.

‘It’s a copy of the note your half-sister wrote to her … about-to-be husband Philip Alvarez, just after she had transferred all that money to him. When I say copy, I do mean the copy Mary made for herself. In other words, it’s the same as the original, which undoubtedly he still has. Why wouldn’t he have it?’

Elizabeth opened the folder, read the note quickly, recognizing Mary’s handwriting at once. Her face settled into grim lines. The note was short, but its style was saccharine. And sickening. She closed the folder. Fool! Fool! Mary had been the biggest fool. And she had been duped by Philip.

Elizabeth closed her eyes for a moment, steadying herself. ‘So she did give him the money as a wedding present,’ she finally murmured, and shook her head. ‘I won’t get it back, Robin, will I?’ she asked in a miserable voice.

‘No, you won’t, I’m afraid. I suppose in his mind it’s a … well, like a … dowry.’

‘She gave him practically everything she had, you know. Cecil told me her personal bank account is virtually empty.’

‘So he explained to me, too. And you’ll just have to write the money off, you’ve no alternative,’ Robert felt bound to point out. ‘But look here, since we’ve found the contracts for the Marbella Project there’s no question in my mind, or Cecil’s either, that we can sue Alvarez and his company.’

‘In my opinion we won’t get that money back either! Mary created nothing but havoc, and her ventures with Alvarez were fraught with danger. He might be called the great tycoon, but it’s an empty title.’

‘That’s true. But I feel certain there’s less of a mess than we originally thought. There are many problems, but the auditors are making good progress and Cecil’s sorted out a lot. And so have I. We’re stopping the downward slide. There’s only one way to go, and that’s up.’

She nodded, agreeing with him silently, but her face was glum.

Robert leaned over the desk and, gazing at her with his sparkling dark eyes, he said, ‘Don’t you want to know the good news?’

Her face instantly brightened; he could always manage to cheer her up. ‘I do, yes. Tell me, Robin.’

‘I’ve arranged for us to go away for the weekend.’

‘But I can’t go away! Don’t be ridiculous. I’ve too much work, and so do you, Robin!’

‘You can go away, and so can I. And we’re going. We both need a break. The last two weeks have been hellish, and we’ve worked non-stop. It’s been bloody relentless, actually. I’m tired and so are you. I know you are.’

‘I’ve never seen you look better, Robin Dunley!’ she cried, her voice rising, sounding indignant. ‘Very handsome, dashing and debonair, this morning. You don’t look tired one bit.’

‘But you do, Elizabeth. Your face is whiter than ever, you have a pinched look, and there are dark circles under your eyes. For the past two weeks we’ve been cooped up here in these offices until all hours. It’s not healthy. We should get back to exercising and riding.’

She knew Robert spoke the truth. He never spoke anything else, and he had her welfare at heart. She was tired, bone-tired, if the truth be known. Glancing at the calendar on her desk she saw that it was Thursday, December fifth. Sunday the eighth was circled in red … that was the day she had promised to have tea with Aunt Grace Rose. Monday the ninth was also circled … that was the day of the board meeting. The thought of this, and the board members who were coming, prompted her to ask, ‘Where were you thinking of going, Robin?’

‘Waverley Court.’

‘Waverley Court! But it’s closed!’

‘No, it’s not. I spoke to Toby Watson last night, and he told me you had instructed him to keep the central heating on low all through winter because of the pipes. He gushed about how warm and cosy it was, said all he had to do was put a match to the fires, which were already laid, take off the dust covers and send Myrtle shopping for groceries –’

‘You called the caretaker!’ Elizabeth spluttered, astonished.

‘– and I told him to go ahead,’ Robert finished.

‘Go ahead? What do you mean?’

‘I said he should send Myrtle shopping for groceries. We’ll need food, Elizabeth, whilst we’re staying there.’

For a moment she was utterly bemused, then recovered herself, and exclaimed, ‘Cecil has arranged some meetings tomorrow, and I have to be present, must be, actually.’

‘He’s changed the meetings. They’ll be held next week. He agreed with me you need a few days off.’

‘You also spoke to Cecil!’ She looked at him askance.

‘I certainly did. I’ve taken charge for once, and I’m making damned sure I look after you for a few days. So stop arguing.’

Sitting back in the chair, Elizabeth was lost for words, but finally spoke, found herself saying, ‘I will have to be back in time to have tea with Aunt Grace Rose on Sunday afternoon, Robin. She’s looking forward to it … I wouldn’t want to disappoint her.’

‘Then we shan’t.’ He grinned, knowing he had won, then jumped up and went round to her side of the desk. He pulled her to her feet, said, ‘Come with me for a moment, I want to show you something.’

Nodding, suddenly no longer resistant to him, she allowed herself to be propelled from her office into his. Holding her hand tightly, he led her to the credenza which stretched along one entire wall in his office.

‘Look at this. Isn’t it beautiful?’ He slid his hand over the highly polished wood, and went on, ‘This looks like one piece, but actually it’s two credenzas sitting side by side, from the Regency period. Just look at the mahogany, the sheen on it … isn’t it gorgeous, Elizabeth?’

‘Yes, the wood is extraordinary, and so are these two pieces. They’ve been here for donkey’s years … I remember how my father used to admire them.’

‘They were bought for this room by a man called Will Hasling. He was your great-grandfather’s best friend, and this was his office.’

‘How interesting. I didn’t know that.’ She looked at him in puzzlement. ‘Why are you suddenly bringing my attention to them?’

‘Do you remember how I was sorting through a lot of keys last week?’

She nodded. ‘Hundreds and hundreds.’

‘Ever since I took possession of this office, after Mary’s assistant Neil Logan went on sick leave, I have attempted to open the cupboards in the credenzas. But I’ve had no success. None of my keys fit. Until last night.’ He put his hand in his pocket and brought out a small old brass key, showed it to her.

‘This is the one that opened the cupboard doors. It’s not the correct key, it doesn’t belong to the credenzas, but somehow it fits these locks. So I didn’t have to have the locks removed, and so saved a lot of damage to the antiques.’ As he was speaking, Robert opened the cupboard doors, and pulled out a drawer. ‘The folder I gave you was in here, under a pile of magazines, newspapers, and other folders. Neil Logan more than likely has forgotten about the file, and where he put it. How is he, by the way?’

‘I spoke to his wife the other day, and she told me his nervous breakdown wasn’t really that at all. His doctors think he has the beginnings of dementia. I told her not to worry, that I was retiring him on a pension. She was very relieved.’ Stepping closer to the credenzas, Elizabeth looked at the set of interior drawers, and glanced up at Robert, asked, ‘Was there anything else in these … of importance?’

‘No,’ he answered. ‘Just the note I gave you.’

‘I’m glad you persevered with your keys.’ Elizabeth laughed unexpectedly. ‘And I’m glad you’re taking me to Waverley Court. When are we going?’

‘This evening,’ he answered firmly, laughing with her, adding, ‘And don’t start arguing with me again.’

When you stay away from a beloved house for a while, you sometimes forget its beauty and what it means to you. And that’s the way it was with me. Earlier this evening, when Robin and I arrived here in Kent, I remembered that Waverley Court has been a special place for me for as long as I can recall. Kat made it into a home for me, and over the years I learned every part of it by heart … all the little corners, and secret places, hidden rooms, and parts of the garden that are mine and mine alone. I love the gazebo, and the stretch of beach that faces towards the English Channel where I used to go as a child with Kat, and she would point out the lights of France, twinkling in the far distance as if they were beckoning to me. Waverley Court is at its best in spring and summer, but even in the autumn and winter the grounds are beautiful. Kat and Blanche, with the help of Toby, used to make the downstairs rooms spectacular at Christmas. There was always a big tree hung with glittering ornaments and tiny fairy lights; sprigs of holly sat atop paintings and a bunch of mistletoe was tied to the chandelier in the front hall. Christmas. It would be upon us in a couple of weeks now. Perhaps we could come down here, Robin and I, and have an old-fashioned Christmas in Kent. I shall suggest it to him. I think he might enjoy that. I know I would. I want to spend Christmas with him. Robin is the only family I have, the closest to me.

‘I bet you slept well,’ Robert said, staring at Elizabeth across the breakfast table on Friday morning. ‘Being in a room one knew as a child is always … comforting, wouldn’t you say?’

‘I did have a good night’s sleep,’ Elizabeth answered. ‘And naturally I love my old room, but I was just dead tired last night. I could hardly keep my eyes open over supper.’

Robert grinned. ‘Aren’t you glad I persuaded you to come to Waverley Court?’

‘Persuaded me! What a cheek you have, Robin Dunley. Commandeered me would be more like it.’

‘Sometimes I have to do that, just as I did in the past,’ he shot back, his grin intact.

She smiled, made no comment.

Robert said, after a moment, ‘Shall we go riding this morning?’

Her head came up with a start, and she seemed puzzled. ‘There aren’t any horses here.’

He looked at her for a long moment, and then that wicked grin she knew so well spread across his face. ‘Yes, there are. Two. One for me and one for you, Crimson Lass and Straight Arrow. They arrived this morning. I had brother Ambrose send them. So how about it?’

Surprised and delighted, she laughed and jumped up. ‘I can’t wait. What a clever idea of yours … Come on, let’s go and get changed into our riding togs.’ She gave him a sly look. ‘Since you must have made the arrangements with Ambrose yesterday, I know you brought yours with you.’

‘I did.’ He rose, followed her out of the breakfast room, and crossed the entrance hall. Together they climbed the stairs, and when they came to her room, he said, ‘I’ll meet you in the stables in ten minutes.’

Robert galloped on, chasing Elizabeth, hard on her heels. She was riding hell for leather, approaching the highest fence on the property, and his heart was in his mouth. He was afraid for her, certain she wouldn’t clear the fence properly, that the horse’s hooves would catch against it, and that she would be thrown. And injured.

Always intrepid and fast, when they were youngsters, he realized she had become an even more fearless rider since those days, and was not against taking risks. Since they had set out, over an hour ago now, she had raced across the fields surrounding Waverley Court, following the trails they had opted for as children.

Suddenly the fence was there! Right in front of her. Robert held his breath, praying she would clear it. And she did. The young mare, Crimson Lass, sailed over lightly, took it like a dream and landed perfectly. A feeling of absolute relief swept through him, and he took the fence himself, as easily as she had. He galloped on after her, shouting, ‘Elizabeth! Wait! Stop!’

She did so, finally slowing, and turned around in the saddle. ‘What’s wrong? Are you not all right, Robin?’

‘I’m fine. Even though you almost gave me a heart attack a moment ago.’

‘I did?’ She looked at him oddly, and frowned. ‘How did I do that?’

‘I thought you were pushing Crimson Lass too hard, that she wouldn’t make it, and that you would be thrown.’

She smiled a trifle smugly. ‘You must trust me, Robin. You see, I’ve become quite a good horsewoman since we last rode out together … so long ago.’

‘So I see.’ He looked at his watch, changed the subject. ‘Shall we go back to the house? It’s already twelve-thirty. I’m hungry, aren’t you?’

‘We’d better make for home. Myrtle told me lunch would be at one o’clock prompt.’

They turned their horses and cantered side by side across the meadow in silence. It was a beautiful day, crisp and sunny, and the Kent sky was a soft cerulean blue, intersected with puffy clusters of white clouds. The red-gold leaves had not fallen yet and there was a beautiful, burnished look to the stands of trees which lined the edge of the meadows, and the woods still retained their russet and golden autumnal hues. As they rode on, Robert thought of the times he had spent here when he was a boy, how his father had driven him down to Aldington so he could keep Elizabeth company. He felt a sudden, unexpected yearning for those boyhood years gone by, when the world had been so very different, somehow nicer, better, to his way of thinking. Everything in its proper place … all of his siblings joyful, happy and still alive, and his parents, too. Sorrow struck at him hard, darkened his handsome face, and the pain of his losses made his heart clench.

After a moment, he straightened in the saddle, and looked ahead. He was clever, determined, ambitious, and an optimist … he must not look back into the past, but ahead … and he must keep on going … going forward …

Elizabeth interrupted his meandering thoughts when she said, ‘Robin, would you come to Stonehurst Farm with me this afternoon? I want to go over there and have a look around.’

‘I’ll come with you, yes, of course. What did Kat have to say about it?’ he asked, his interest sparked.

‘That it’s in perfect condition, thanks to the caretaker Briney Meadows. In fact, she went as far as to say she thinks it’s worth a small fortune. The gardens have been kept up by Alison Harden over the years, and it’s still something of a showplace. The gardens were spectacular, Robin, if you remember? We went there constantly to be with Aunt Grace Rose. She did love us so. You said she was a hoot, your favourite adult.’

‘She made us laugh with her wry sense of humour, and she let us eat anything we wanted … fruitcake, chocolate mousse and custard tarts, and once you and I ate a whole trifle. She was aghast.’

‘Don’t remind me!’ Elizabeth laughed. ‘I was the one who was sick afterwards. Little Greedy Guts, that was me.’

Robert shook his head and scowled. ‘Not you, Elizabeth, you never ate enough, and Kat was always complaining you were too thin.’

‘Oh, I know, she was a bit of a fusspot, wouldn’t you say? Just like you are.’

‘I’m not a fusspot!’ he protested, sounding not only indignant but slightly injured.

‘You were just now worrying that I couldn’t jump a little fence, that I’d break my neck.’

‘Kat and Cecil and everyone else would have my guts for garters if anything happened to you when you were with me. And you know it,’ he pointed out, still indignant.

Elizabeth merely grinned and, wanting to tease him, she spurred Crimson Lass forward, galloping ahead as fast as she could.

Elizabeth and Robert were both carried back in time as they walked around Stonehurst Farm with Briney Meadows later that afternoon. The caretaker had worked there for fifty years and had known them when they were children.

In every room the windows sparkled, the floors shone, the antiques gleamed. The carpets were fresh, looked newly cleaned, and there was not a speck of dust anywhere. Nothing was out of place; the house was perfect.

‘I feel as if I were here only yesterday,’ Elizabeth said, turning a beaming face to Briney. ‘It’s exactly the same as it was when I was a little girl.’

‘Aye, it is indeed, Miss Turner, but then Miss Grace Rose is a stickler, she always kept it up, and made sure we did. She was a perfectionist in those days, and she still is. On the phone to me all the time, issuing orders.’

‘I didn’t know she still took an interest in the house, Briney,’ Elizabeth said, sounding surprised, looking at him swiftly.

‘Oh, she does, Miss Turner! It’s thanks to her supervision that the house has been very well maintained and cared for over the years. And the gardens as well. I’m sorry that Alison, the gardener, isn’t here today. She’d be proud to show you around, and the sunken garden is looking lovely at the moment. You see, it’s a bit of a mild winter this year, so far anyway.’

‘We noticed the gardens when we drove in,’ Robert remarked, ‘and they’re spectacular – all those lovely shrubs and bushes and the copper beeches … just breathtaking.’

Briney nodded, beaming, obviously pleased by this praise, and as he stood there looking at Robert he remembered the boy he had been and Briney smiled inside. Now here he was, a grown man, so tall and handsome, and before he could stop himself he blurted out, ‘No frogs in your pocket today, sir, eh?’

Robert threw back his head and roared with laughter. ‘What a good memory you have, Briney. I was rather keen on frogs when I was a schoolboy, wasn’t I?’

‘That’s a fact, sir. You found them fascinating, and you were always fiddling around in the pond. There was many a time I thought you’d fall in.’

‘You caught a tadpole for me there once and put it in a jam jar,’ Elizabeth interjected. ‘I bet you don’t remember, though.’

‘’Course I do … it was a gift for you, one of my first.’ He chuckled as they stepped out onto the front steps. ‘And how on earth could I forget that most glorious tadpole?’

Elizabeth laughed, and said, ‘Thanks for showing us around.’ She shook Briney’s brown gnarled hand and went outside.

‘My pleasure, Miss … you both make me feel young again … bring back memories, that you do.’

Robert grasped Briney’s hand firmly and shook it. ‘Yes, it’s been a bit of a trip down memory lane for all of us, Briney. Take care now.’

Briney waved as they walked towards the flagged terrace, and they waved back before striking out towards the sunken garden.

At one moment Elizabeth said, ‘I noticed Briney didn’t mention Mary, but then I’m not really surprised. Toby said they didn’t like each other, and he mentioned that Briney was respectful to her but kept his distance.’

‘He’s a nice old chap, the salt of the earth,’ Robert responded and then looked at her, frowning. ‘I wonder why your aunt Grace Rose is so involved with the house? You once told me she had given it to your father.’

‘That was my understanding.’ Elizabeth shrugged. ‘Maybe she just loves it because she grew up there, and lived there as an adult, and after her marriage to Charles Morran. Incidentally, Kat’s right. I think the property’s worth a small fortune.’

‘Do you plan to sell it?’ Robert asked.

‘I don’t know. I can’t very well live in all these houses, now, can I? Stonehurst Farm is beautiful. However, I’ve always loved Waverley Court the best, and it does happen to be closer to London. I can’t sell Ravenscar, you know. It’s entailed, and must pass to my heirs when I die.’

‘Hey, no talk of dying today! You and I have a lot of living to do yet, my girl!’

‘That’s true, we do, Robin. Together.’

He threw her a surreptitious look, but made no comment.