An Impossible Confession (15 page)

She could have protested, for his conduct was pushy to say the least, but she wanted to escape from Ralph and so allowed herself to be spirited away toward the ballroom.

Huff-and-Puff walked with quick, short steps, and each one jerked another grunt from him. ‘Huh, huh, huh.’

The ballroom was a lofty chamber, its walls glittering with mirrors and richly gilded panels of plasterwork. The ceiling was coffered in gold and white, and from it were suspended two rows of priceless chandeliers. A line of French windows stretched down one wall, standing open to the illuminated terrace overlooking the
water gardens, and the other walls were tiered with crimson chairs and sofas from which those guests who weren’t dancing could survey those who were. A sea of people moved to the slow music of a landler, played by the orchestra high in an apse on the far wall.

The music was just coming to an end and as the dancers left the floor, the master of ceremonies announced a contre danse. This more lively measure was greeted with delight, and a surge of people hurried onto the floor. Huff-and-Puff propelled Helen into the melee. ‘Huh, huh, huh,’ he grunted, his fat little legs moving at the double as he hastened to take up his position. The orchestra struck a chord, and then launched into a jaunty country tune. The dancers swept happily to and fro, and round and round, and Helen could hear Huff-and-Puff all the time. ‘Huh, huh, huh.…’

As they danced, Helen glanced constantly around, wondering if at any moment she’d catch a glimpse of Adam. She’d recognize him immediately, she knew she would.

The contre danse ended, and a polonaise began. Huff-and-Puff relinquished her almost gladly to a Roman centurion, for the brisk country dance had quite exhausted him. The centurion was a strutter, putting Helen very much in mind of a chicken as he danced, for not only did he move around like one, he also jutted his head backward and forward like one too. The polonaise gave way to a cotillion, and the centurion to a Falstaff. Then there was another contre danse, a quieter one this time, and she was partnered by the Cyrano de Bergerac she’d noticed on arriving. She still hadn’t caught a glimpse of anyone who might be Adam, then while she was glancing around, a hand touched her shoulder.

She whirled around to see Ralph, who drew her angrily from the floor, ignoring her partner’s justified protests. ‘Madam, it’s evidently escaped your memory that I am your escort tonight.’

‘Oh, no, sirrah, it hasn’t escaped me at all!’

‘Good, because I’m about to place a demand upon your acting talents. I’m taking you to meet my father, who believes we are to be betrothed. You’d better make a convincing show of it, my dear.’ With a taunting smile, he drew her hand over his sleeve and walked her around the edge of the crowded floor toward the tiers of sofas and chairs facing the French windows.

St John Senior was not what she’d been expecting, for where his
son, was tall and well-made, he was small and rather frail. He had a fine head of silver hair, and behind his black satin mask his eyes were as bright as buttons. He was seated alone on a sofa, and made a very unlikely Bacchus. His wine-colored robes hung limply against his slight person, and the wreath of vine leaves around his forehead was a little skew-whiff, as Helen’s father had always said of something that wasn’t as straight as it might be. He rose as soon as he saw his son.

‘Ah, there you are, Ralph, I was beginning to think you’d
forgotten
me.’

‘I’m as ever the dutiful son,’ replied Ralph with a convincingly warm smile. ‘The delay was solely due to Miss Fairmead’s
popularity
in the dance, but I’ve secured her person at last, and present her to you now. Helen, my dearest, may I present my father, Mr Richard St John. Father, Miss Helen Fairmead, the lady who has so graciously consented to be my bride.’ As he said this last, he drew her hand to his lips, kissing the palm lingeringly.

It was all she could do not to shudder, but somehow she managed to smile, glancing toward his father. ‘Sir,’ she murmured.

St John Senior stepped quickly forward, taking her hand from Ralph and kissing it in turn. ‘My dear, how very glad I am to meet you at last. Ralph has told me so much about you. May I say how very charming you look tonight? I realize your face is hidden, but I do not need to see it to know you’re very beautiful indeed.’

‘You’re too kind, sir.’

The button-bright eyes were very sharp and shrewd behind his mask. ‘I shall return to Jamaica happy in the knowledge that Ralph has made a very wise choice, and yet I very nearly didn’t make the voyage here.’

Ralph looked at him. ‘You didn’t have to come at all, you know. I’m quite capable of handling your business affairs.’

‘I know, my boy, but one likes to keep one’s finger on the pulse of things, and it’s been a positive age since I was in England. I’ve found it all, er, most illuminating.’ Again the bright eyes rested on Helen. ‘My dear, will you honor an old man with a dance?’

‘Why, certainly, sir,’ she replied.

He nodded at his son. ‘I do believe you can amuse yourself with taking some supper in that room over there,’ he said, taking
Helen’s hand again and drawing it determinedly through his arm.

A minuet had been announced, and the dancers were taking up their positions. Helen and Mr St John joined them, but she was aware that his attention was not on the imminent dance, it was still on his son. Ralph remained by the sofa, but then glanced toward the supper room. After deliberating for a moment, he made his way toward it.

Mr St John immediately drew a rather startled Helen from the floor again. ‘Forgive me, my dear, the dance was but a ruse to get you away from my son, whom I suspect you dislike as much as I do at the moment.’

She stared at him, caught completely off guard.

He smiled a little, patting her hand. ‘Don’t look so alarmed, Miss Fairmead. It’s just that I’m not the fool my son likes to think me. We must speak privately, so I suggest we walk in the gardens for a while. Trust me, my dear, and at least agree to hear me out.’

For a moment she hesitated. Fear of Ralph’s reprisals made her reluctant to do anything that might antagonize him, but as she saw how earnest his father’s eyes were behind the mask, she nodded.

He glanced again toward the supper room door, but Ralph had gone inside and was nowhere to be seen. ‘Come, my dear, we’ll toddle outside without delay, for the coast appears to be clear.’ Taking her hand, he led her toward the French windows, and then out onto the brightly lit terrace.

C
hinese lanterns were suspended above the steps leading down from the rather crowded terrace to the water gardens. A long lily pond extended into the darkness, and on either side of it ran a rose pergola where the way was lit with more lanterns. A large fountain should have been playing halfway along the pond, but something had gone wrong with it, and some estate workers were busily endeavoring to put it right.

Not many people had chosen as yet to stroll outside, and Mr St John steered Helen along one of the pergolas to a quiet alcove directly by the water. ‘This will do, my dear, we can be private here.’

The ribbons on her gown fluttered as she sat down. The lily pond was like satin, with reflections shimmering in it, and from time to time a fish rose to the surface, causing ripples to undulate silently toward the alcove. The scent of June roses filled the night, and the distant melody of another landler drifted from the house. She could see the terrace, and the guests moving to and fro, their costumes bright in the lantern light.

Mr St John joined her and removed his mask. ‘Miss Fairmead, may I see your face? I much prefer to look into the eyes of the person I’m addressing.’

She removed the domino, and the jeweled mask flashed as she placed it on the seat beside her. For a long moment he studied her, then he smiled. ‘I was right, you are beautiful. You are also, I suspect, very honest and proper, and much put out by the situation my son is somehow managing to impose on you. You don’t wish to marry him, do you?’

She became a little flustered. ‘Sir, I.…’

He put his hand reassuringly over hers. ‘Whatever you say will be kept in the strictest confidence, my dear, and if you wonder how on earth I’ve guessed your secret, let me explain that from my place in the ballroom, I could see you quite clearly when my son dragged you from the dance. Your manner spoke volumes to me, Miss Fairmead, and confirmed what I already suspected anyway. I’m afraid I know Ralph rather better than he realizes, for he was spiteful and conniving as a child, and I’ve no reason to think he’s changed. But for all his sins, he’s still my son, and although I may not like him very much, I love him a great deal. It’s my duty to correct his faults before it’s too late, for I made a grave mistake in letting him come here from Jamaica, with a Mayfair allowance and no parental hand to curb his excesses. He regarded himself as free to do as he pleased, living a very wild life while all the time
writing
glibly proper and untruthful letters to me. He was too clever by far, and my suspicions were raised, the more so when he suddenly began to mention a possible betrothal and suggested a large sum of money would be necessary in order to purchase the matrimonial home. I decided it was time to put in an appearance here, and my sudden arrival rattled him, for it meant he had to produce the intended bride. Until then, I believe his conversations with your family concerning you had been merely idle exercises, but he quickly realized he was in a fix and needed the firm
suggestion
of a match with you. I think he was confident you’d accept the proposition – forgive me, my dear, but I gather you’re not a great heiress.’

‘That is correct, sir.’ She’d listened with great interest to every word, for his explanation clarified so much.

‘It didn’t take me long on my return to sniff the truth out about Ralph’s life here. The whispers were strong, concerning huge gambling debts, expensive affairs with actresses, and so on, matters of which he’s still confident I remain ignorant. The duns are upon him, and he needs desperately to convince me the betrothal is genuine so that I’ll come across with the necessary lifesaving cash, Am I right, Miss Fairmead?’

‘I – I think you probably are, sir.’

He seemed surprised. ‘Don’t you know?’

She hesitated. ‘Sir, I don’t wish to say anything that.…’

‘That might reach Ralph’s ears? Don’t worry on that score, my dear, for he will never learn a word.’

She drew a long breath. ‘I can’t tell you why he wishes to pretend that we’re to be betrothed, Mr St John, because he’s never told me why. I do know that it’s only to be temporary.’

He nodded. ‘Until I’ve handed over the cash and toddled
conveniently
back across the Atlantic.’

‘Probably. I really don’t know his reasons, sir, for I am definitely not in his confidence.’

‘Why have you consented to his wishes?’

She lowered her eyes. ‘I’d rather not say.’

‘Because you will compromise yourself?’ He smiled, patting her hand again. ‘Please tell me, my dear, for it will help me greatly if I know exactly what my son is prepared to do in order to have his own way.’

Reluctantly she looked at him again. ‘He knows that I’ve been meeting a gentleman who is more than a little
persona non grata
with my sister and brother-in-law.’

‘Lord Drummond?’

Her eyes widened. ‘Yes. How…?’

‘I’ve made it my business to find out all I can about the circle in which my son moves, and naturally the Prince Agamemnon affair came to my attention. Lord Drummond is the only man I know of who could be described as more than a little
persona non grata
at Bourne End, and since I happen to have had him pointed out to me, I know that he is the sort of gentleman a young lady like you might be persuaded to meet.’ He smiled at her.

She colored a little. ‘I love him very much, Mr St John.’ For a moment she was tempted to tell him the complete truth about the previous year’s racing scandal, but then she drew back from it. He was disillusioned about Ralph, but still loved him, and to shatter what was left of his affection seemed somehow to smack of a spitefulness worthy of Ralph himself. Surely it was sufficient that he knew what Ralph was doing to her personally, without revealing the extent of his malice toward Adam as well, including the threat to expose Lady Bowes-Fenton’s affair.

Mr St John was looking sadly at her. ‘So, my son says he will tell of your liaison with Lord Drummond unless you agree to this
temporary betrothal?’

‘Yes.’

He sighed unhappily. ‘He’s a grave disappointment to me, my dear. I had such high hopes when he was born, I wanted him to grow up into a man I could be proud of, and to whom I could safely relinquish my vast fortune. Instead, it seems he’s a
conniving
coxcomb, intent upon furthering his own selfish pleasures and desires at the expense of anyone who stands in his way.’

She didn’t reply, for Ralph merited such a description.

He gazed at the men working on the fountain. ‘Well, my son is about to have the tables turned on him, for I have the ultimate ace up my sleeve, which is rather appropriate since he appears to have been dealing from the bottom of the pack. At the correct moment, I will face him with my knowledge concerning his pressing debts, and I will offer to settle them for him on condition that he return immediately to Jamaica with me. He will not like that one little bit, for he loathes it out there, and if he refuses, as I fancy he will, then I will threaten to disinherit him.’

‘You – you’d go that far?’

‘Oh, yes, my dear, for he needs more than a mere rap over the knuckles. I’ll threaten to disinherit him,
and
leave him to stew in debtor’s jail. I fancy he’ll come around rather quickly to viewing Jamaica with an almost fond eye. It’s time to crack down on him, and to do it with a vengeance, for he has much to do if he’s ever to redeem himself in my eyes. I shall make immediate plans to leave, and I promise you he’ll be out of your life in a very short time.’

‘I don’t know what to say.’ She could hardly believe the complete turnabout. When she’d arrived at the ball she’d been under Ralph’s thumb, but now she was being freed, and instead it was Ralph himself who was going to be under a thumb.

Mr St John smiled a little. ‘Don’t say anything, my dear, for I’m only sorry you’ve been hurt by my son’s gross misconduct. I tell you this, if I hear of anything else he’s done, I’ll disinherit him anyway, for I cannot and will not endure behavior as disgraceful as his. You must realize that it will be a little difficult for me to say anything to him tonight, but the moment we return to the Golden Key I’ll confront him.

‘Now then, enough of my unpleasant offspring; let’s talk of you
instead. I may have spent many years in Caribbean oblivion, but I still remember that masked balls serve a very sovereign purpose, for they make possible forbidden meetings right under the noses of those who would forbid them. I cannot believe that you and Lord Drummond do not have such a meeting planned tonight.’

She colored a little. ‘At midnight,’ she admitted.

‘Then I wish you well, my dear, and I trust that only happiness lies ahead for you. I’m sure that if you love him, then he cannot possibly be guilty of misdeed, certainly not of an act that
threatened
to do such damage to Colonel Bourne.’

She glanced away for a moment, for although she now knew why Ralph had been so set upon a betrothal with her – he’d already told his father of a fictitious betrothal in order to gain sufficient money to ward off the duns – she still didn’t know why he’d turned so vindictively against Adam, or why he’d shown so little consideration for Gregory, who certainly had never harmed him, and who even now remained a loyal, if misguided, friend.

Mr St John took out his fob watch, which was concealed in his wine-red robe. ‘My dear, did you say your assignation with Lord Drummond was at midnight?’

‘Yes. Why?’

‘I rather fear it’s already five past midnight.’

‘Oh, no!’ With a gasp, she looked at her watch in her reticule. It said only a quarter to twelve. Dismayed, she rose to her feet, snatching up her domino and putting it on. Her watch, her wretched watch! When it was in need of winding it lost time, twenty minutes to be precise! Maybe Adam had already given up on her!

Mr St John caught her hand for a moment more. ‘No doubt we’ll meet again later, my dear, and when we do, rest assured that not by so much as a flicker of the eye will I reveal what has passed between us. Ralph will never know that I interrogated you, or that you conceded certain snippets of information. Good-bye for the moment, Miss Fairmead, I wish our acquaintance had taken place under more pleasant circumstances.’

‘I do too, sir.’

‘And I wish you every good fortune in your love for Lord Drummond.’

‘I will need every good fortune, sir, for although I love him, and I think he loves me, he doesn’t actually know who I am.’

Mr St John blinked with surprise. ‘Then your problems are far from over, my dear.’

‘I know.’

Gathering her skirts, she hastened back toward the terrace steps, leaving him sitting to reflect sadly on the unpleasant facts he’d unearthed about his son.

She paused on the terrace, glancing back toward the pergola and lily pond. Should she have told Ralph’s father absolutely
everything
? She lowered her eyes then, remembering the unhappiness in his eyes. No, she couldn’t have told him any more, it would have broken his heart completely.

Wending her way around the ballroom, she emerged at last in the entrance hall. Her heart was pounding, and she hardly dared look toward the clock, for fear he wouldn’t be there. Maybe he’d never kept the tryst, maybe he’d somehow stumbled upon her real identity and decided not to have anything more to do with her! Apprehension and doubt filled her in those few moments, but then she saw him.

He was dressed in a long white robe, with a wide crimson sash around his slender waist. There was a dagger and scimitar thrust into the sash, and on his head there was a crimson turban adorned by a glittering jeweled brooch. His unruly hair was completely concealed, and little of his face was visible because of a golden mask, but she knew him immediately.

A flood of joy washed gladdeningly over her, but the
apprehension
and doubt lingered on, for what would be the outcome of this fateful meeting?