03 - Murder at Sedgwick Court (9 page)

‘What if,
’Jemima interrupted, speaking slowly, ‘we didn’t have to wait? What if I could
get my hands on some money now, what then?’

Vera and
Rose did not hear any more of their conversation, or indeed how Felix had answered
Jemima’s question. The scene they had just witnessed made Rose think of Cedric
and the many intimate words that they had exchanged. How she wished that he was
walking beside her now and that they could escape to some secluded part of the
grounds to exchange confidences.

‘Poor
things. They seem very much in love, don’t they?’ Vera said, obviously moved by
their plight.

Rose
wondered whether it made her think of her dwindling relationship with Theo. She
could not imagine that he had ever spoken to Vera so tenderly, particularly given
the way he had snubbed her company this morning. Perhaps Vera was thinking the same
thoughts, certainly she appeared on the verge of tears.    

‘Let’s
walk on to the lake,’ suggested Rose hurriedly.

She
thought it unlikely that they would encounter anyone there other than the odd gardener
or estate servant. In this however, she was to be sadly mistaken.

As soon
as she heard the first sounds of laughter, Rose knew they should turn back.
Vera, however, thought otherwise and quickened her stride.

‘Vera, no
…’ But Rose’s words trailed off into silence.

The
effect of her words seemed only to encourage Vera onward. For there was now a
grim, determined look on the woman’s face that indicated she would not be
swayed. Indeed, if anything, she increased her pace so that Rose was now
running to keep up with her. For a moment Rose wondered whether to shout out some
form of a warning, to give the others sufficient time to disappear, or at the
very least, stand apart. But she had hesitated for too long and now it was too
late. For Vera had turned the corner so that the hedge that had obscured her
vison was now behind her and the inevitable scene, the one that she had both most
feared and obdurately refused to believe was possible, was now playing out
before her eyes.    

Rose
turned the corner and saw the scene as if through Vera’s eyes. The man was Theo
Harrison, but not the staid country doctor that she knew. He might resemble him
physically but there the similarity ended. This man seemed relaxed and younger,
and was playfully chasing Emmeline Montacute beside the lake, he laughing, she
giggling and shrieking hysterically, as if it were all the most marvellous
game. And for them it was, because even as the two women looked on, Emmeline
stopped running and turned and Theo catching up with her, pulled her towards him
until they collapsed into each other’s arms.  

Rose tore
her eyes away from Theo and Emmeline and looked at Vera, who was trembling and
staring in disbelief. For a moment, Rose did not know whether Vera was going to
faint or march over and confront her fiancé. But in the end she did neither.
For the doctor and the heiress, with eyes only for each other, and thus totally
oblivious to the presence of the interlopers, had walked on. Vera, after
staring at their retreating backs a moment, clenched her hands and, ignoring Rose
completely, turned on her heel and ran back to the house, every now and then
stumbling blindly, but nevertheless persistently carrying on.

‘Careful,
Vera, you’ll break that glass if you’re not careful,’ Lavinia said, ‘they are
rather precious, you know. They’ve been in the family for generations, haven’t
they, Ceddie? By the way, is your headache better, Vera? You must be awfully
hungry missing luncheon. I did ask cook to send up a tray, but when it came
back, she said it had been barely touched.’

‘I’m
afraid I wasn’t very hungry. I feel better now, though,’ answered Vera, staring
forlornly at a bit of the carpet. They were standing in the drawing room having
cocktails before dinner. It was the first time that she had come down from her
room since the incident at the lake and, although Rose was relieved to see her,
Vera had barely spoken a word, and seemed unnaturally calm given the
circumstances. Lavinia, having done her hostess duties as she perceived them,
seemed unconcerned and taking Rose by the elbow steered her to another part of
the room out of earshot.  

‘Really,
Rose, Vera is being very silly. If Theo were my fiancé, I wouldn’t put up with
such behaviour.’

Rose
blushed and was glad that, with the exception of Cedric, she had told no one
about the scene at the lake.

‘He’s
making a fool of her,’ Lavinia carried on. ‘If I were Vera I wouldn’t stand for
it. I’d take him aside and tell him what’s what. But knowing Vera she won’t do
that. She’ll just look at him with those sad, doleful eyes and be a martyr, or
else things will get too much for her and she’ll cause a scene which will be
very embarrassing for all of us. And Theo won’t think any the better of her for
it. She’ll drive him away.’

Unlike
Lavinia, Rose felt more sympathetic towards Vera and her plight. As she stood
regarding her she was aware of a tangible tension in the room, which seemed to
emanate from the woman like a perfume. Vera had moved and was now standing at the
very edge of the room, on the periphery between the drawing room and the hall
as if she were in two minds whether to come back in or turn around and walk
back to her room or out of the house. She was staring fixedly at Emmeline and clutching
at the top of an occasional table positioned just inside the door, having
abandoned the wine glass which stood discarded on the table. Her hands were
clenched, Rose noticed, and her knuckles had gone quite white.

How
highly strung she is, Rose thought. It won’t take much to send her over the edge.
She’s like a spring that is waiting to unravel, and instinctively she moved
towards her and took Vera’s hand before she could do damage to the table top
with her fingernails.

For a
moment, Vera just stared at her, a blank expression on her face as if she did
not know where she was, or what she was doing. Perhaps she saw in Rose a
kindred spirit, or a compassionate one at least, for the next moment she was
venting the emotions and feelings that she had been keeping bottled up inside
her all day.  

‘Look at
her! You have to applaud her, don’t you? The way she manages to keep them all
enthralled. Why, they’re hanging on her every word. Even that strange fish,
Felix, is rather taken with her I fancy.  And look how much she is enjoying all
the attention. I think that’s the worst of it, don’t you? You’d think she’d be
used to it by now, wouldn’t you? Instead she behaves like a child let loose in
a sweetshop. Men must flock to her wherever she goes. Beauty and wealth, what a
very winning combination. Do you ever feel how unfair it all is for women like
us, Rose? How can we possibly compete with the likes of Emmeline Montacute?’

‘Vera …’

‘And she
has Theo quite bewitched. Just look at the way he is looking at her. Oh, it’s
enough to make one sick, it really is. Before she arrived, Theo and I were quite
content you know, in a quiet, unassuming sort of a way. She doesn’t care that
he and I are engaged to be married and have been for simply ages. She doesn’t
care that he’s mine. That doesn’t bother her at all. Perhaps it amuses her, to
take a man away from another woman. And it is not as if she will want anything
to come of it. She won’t want to marry a country doctor, or even a fashionable
doctor, come to that. Oh, if only Theo were not so very weak. I-I don’t think I
can bear much more of this.’ Vera snatched her hand away from Rose’s and
stifled a sob by putting her handkerchief to her mouth.    

Rose
looked around quickly. All the while Vera had been talking, her voice had been
rising and becoming shriller. However, standing apart from the others as they
were, no one else appeared to have noticed. Or at least if they had, they were
pretending not to have done. How wretched Vera looked. Her unhappiness was making
her ill. It can’t go on like this, Rose thought, Vera becoming more miserable
by the hour. She felt annoyed with Theo Harrison for putting his fiancée in
this position. How could he behave so inconsiderately? Could the doctor really
be so mesmerised by Emmeline Montacute that he was oblivious to the distress he
was causing to the woman to whom he was engaged? The sooner Cedric spoke to
Theo the better, and Rose made a mental note to remind him after dinner.

‘Theo is
behaving very badly,’ she said aloud to Vera. ‘He must realise how unhappy he
is making you. But if you are so very miserable, must you bear it? Why don’t
you think up some excuse and leave? If you hate it all so very much, why stay?’

‘Must he?
I don’t know. I don’t believe he realises and even if he did, I don’t think he
cares. And we don’t discuss such things, he and I. It’s all rather awkward, you
see, and then again I can’t seem to get a moment alone with him.
She’s
always
there. It’s as if he’s forgotten I am here, as if I’ve faded into the
background and he can’t see me. Perhaps I have become invisible to him. Do you
think so? I couldn’t bear it if I had. Oh, I know that the sensible thing would
be to leave, but I just can’t do it, I tell you, I can’t. And while I’m still
here, there’s a possibility that he’ll come to his senses, isn’t there?’

Vera
turned away to stare at Theo and Emmeline. Her timing was unfortunate in that
she caught them at that moment being particularly flirtatious towards each
other. Emmeline had her hand on Theo’s arm as if she were trying to draw him
towards her, and she must have spoken to him very quietly for he bent his head
towards her as if trying to catch her words. She giggled suddenly and Theo
grinned. Vera flinched as if she had been struck. She spat out her next words
through clenched teeth, saying them with such hatred and fury, that they sent a
shiver down Rose’s spine.

‘How can
they? I hate them, I tell you I hate them! I wish they were dead!’

Looking
around desperately, Rose noticed that Lavinia too was bristling around the
edges, for the count also appeared a little taken by Emmeline. Unlike Vera, Lavinia
was not content to remain on the edges, but instead did her best to infiltrate
the little group of Emmeline, Theo, the count and Felix, and to some success.
The count immediately switched his attention to include her and soon her
laughter filled the air to rival Emmeline’s. And all the while Vera looked on
and sought refuge in her glass rather than following Lavinia’s example and
joining in.

Once dinner
was over, Lavinia had given the signal for the ladies to depart the dining room
and leave the men to their port and cigars before they joined the women in the
drawing room for coffee. Cedric had always enjoyed this time after dinner. It
was an opportunity for the men to relax and talk more easily and freely among
themselves, and on subjects of little interest to the women. This weekend, however,
was different and he sighed, for he had found that the present company of men,
consisting only of the three of them as it did, was not inclined to linger in
the dining room.

For one
thing the count seemed disinterested in male company and conversation, and
Harrison too, who had in the past enjoyed this tradition of male camaraderie,
appeared eager now to re-join the ladies as soon as was politely possible. As a
consequence, the business of cigars and port was unusually rushed and, after a
short while, the port was carried into the drawing room.

Tonight,
though, Cedric was keen to prolong the ritual in so far as the doctor was
concerned. Breaking with tradition he suggested to Count Fernand, who looked
distinctly bored at the prospect of staying behind, that he re-join the ladies.
It was Cedric’s intention that he and the doctor would follow shortly. As Theo
Harrison looked at him quizzically, Cedric played over in his mind what he
wanted to say and the approach to take. It seemed to him that he was obliged to
adopt the role of the older man, even though in reality Theo was probably some
eight or ten years his senior. He sighed. The whole business was going to be damned
embarrassing and awkward for both of them, but he supposed he was resigned to
that.

Cedric
rose from his seat and began pacing the room so that he would not be obliged to
look the other man in the eye. He also felt that by standing while the other
man was seated gave him the upper hand.

‘Look
here, Harrison,’ Cedric began, without preamble, as soon as they were alone. ‘I
daresay you’ll think it none of my business and all that, and I feel dashed
embarrassed raising it, but anyone can see you’re infatuated with Emmeline
Montacute, and that it’s making Vera damned miserable.’

‘Now,
look – ’, began Theo angrily, going a deep shade of crimson.

‘I
appreciate that under normal circumstances it would be none of my business what
you get up to,’ Cedric interrupted hurriedly, having anticipated that the
doctor would make attempts to protest. ‘But while you’re staying in my house
I’ll ask that you refrain from making Vera upset. I will not have my guests
made miserable.’ He glanced at the ceiling a moment, before carrying on quickly
in case he lost his nerve. ‘And besides, Vera is an old friend,’ he paused, ‘as
of course are you.’ He sighed. ‘Dash it all, can’t you see how it’s putting
everyone on edge? For goodness sake, Harrison, think what you’re doing. Is
Emmeline Montacute really worth losing your head over?’

‘I
suppose you think I should concede defeat now and throw in the towel,’ Harrison
answered, bitterly. ‘I would have thought you of all people, in love with a
shop girl as you are, might appreciate how it is to love outside your station.’

‘I do,’
replied Cedric coldly, resenting the way in which the doctor had referred to
Rose. ‘But I’m not engaged to marry someone else. I’m not saying that nothing
can come of it, of course I’m not, but what I am saying is that you must consider
Vera in all this. If you feel so strongly about Emmeline then you owe it to
Vera to tell her and break off your engagement.’

Theo
glared at the table, and clutched the bottle of port with one hand, his face
white with barely concealed fury.

 ‘Are you
aware that Vera saw the two of you down by the lake this morning?’ continued
Cedric more gently. ‘How do you think that made her feel? Why do you think
she’s kept herself shut up in her room all day?’

‘She
s-saw us? Oh, my God!’

It was as
if the doctor had received a sharp slap across the face. For his expression
immediately changed, and now a look of anguish crossed his features. Almost
trembling, he buried his head in his hands.

‘I thought
she was going for a walk in the gardens, not by the lake.’ Theo groaned and
then raised his head. ‘Oh, you’re right, of course you’re right. I’ve behaved
like a cad, I know. I didn’t mean to hurt Vera, but I couldn’t help myself. I
can’t explain what I feel for Emmeline. I don’t even understand it. All I know
is that I have never felt this way about a woman before, and I doubt that I
ever will again.’

Cedric
felt a touch of compassion. ‘You need to resolve the situation one way or the
other, old chap,’ he said more kindly than he’d spoken before, coming over and laying
his hand briefly on the other man’s shoulder. ‘Otherwise I’m afraid I’ll have
to ask you to leave.’  

Having anticipated
that Theo would be annoyed with him after his interference in what was after
all essentially a private matter, and fearing that Vera might be tempted to
make a scene, Cedric had entered the drawing room with a topic of conversation
in mind that was likely to engage his audience without leading to ructions.

‘I say,
Lavinia, why don’t we take everyone to see the maze tomorrow.’

‘The
maze? Oh, Ceddie, that’s a wonderful idea,’ squealed his sister, clapping her
hands in delight. ‘Oh, Emmie, you’ll simply love it,’ she said, turning to the
heiress. ‘And it’s just as good to do in the winter as in the summer, because
the maze is made of privet or yew, or something like that, isn’t it, Ceddie?’

‘Box,’
said her brother. ‘It’s a hedge planted maze and the hedge is box. We’re jolly
lucky that it wasn’t destroyed when the natural landscaping and sweeping views
were introduced at Sedgwick in the eighteenth century. But Lavinia’s right,
it’s just as dense in winter as it is in spring or summer. It was based on the
maze at Hampton Court Palace, you know, although not as big, of course. Even
so, the hedges are still about six and a half feet tall and two or three feet
wide.’

‘My
goodness!’ exclaimed the count. ‘And how much area does it cover, this maze of
yours?’

‘About a
third of an acre all told. Takes about a quarter of an hour or so to reach the
centre, providing one doesn’t take a wrong turn of course.’