An Introduction To The Eternal Collection Jubilee Edition (113 page)

Sometimes she had doubted if such a man really existed yet when the, morning sun woke her, streaming through the windows of the chaise, she knew that for the first time in her life a man’s name trembled on her lips. She felt alight with happiness and, pulling-down the window, took deep breaths of the fresh, salty air. In the distance she could see the first glint of the blue sea

She gave the driver of the post-chaise instructions to drive to Mandrake and added that he was to take her, not to the front door, but into the stable yard. If he was surprised, he did not show it and he gave Caroline the impression that it was all a matter of indifference to him, and that he was only concerned with his own return to Sevenoaks. All the same she was anxious to keep her identity hidden from anyone who might inform Lord Brecon of her destination.

Accordingly, when she drove into the stable yard at Mandrake and her father’s old groom came hurrying out to see who could be arriving, she jumped out of the chaise and drew him to one side.

“Reward the man well, Harry,” she said, “give him breakfast and send him about his business. On no account tell him who I am. If he enquires inform him I am an unimportant guest in the house, or one of the upper servants, it matters not.”

“Very good, m’lady,” Harry said, and then added with the familiarity of an old servant “Oi reckon yer ladyship has been up to one of her pranks again.”

Caroline did not deign to answer this, but stepped with dignity towards the back door. On reaching it, however, she moved swiftly and with the obvious desire not to be seen along the long corridors until she reached some narrow stairs which led to the upper rooms

She hurried up them and finally reached her own room without encountering anyone save an under-housemaid whom she sent in search of Maria. The latter, a young country girl who had looked after Caroline for the last two years, came hurrying to her in a few seconds’ time.

“M’lady,” she exclaimed. “But we were not expecting you. I thought you were in London. You could have knocked me down with a feather when I was told your ladyship was here in this very house. I thought I must be a-dreaming. Are you real, m’lady? For I assure you I am in so much of a dither that I am not certain whether ‘tis your ladyship or a ghost.”

“No, it is I, Maria, and now help me out of these things.”

“Oh, m’lady, your gown! Whatever have you been doing to yourself?”

“Sh, Maria. Ask no questions, but throw it away before my mother sees it. It is beyond repair. Now give me one of my muslins and make my hair as tidy as possible.”

Half an hour later as the Marquis of Vulcan was coming out of the breakfast-room, he was surprised to see his daughter, bright-eyed, fresh, and exceedingly pretty in a crisp white muslin tied with blue ribbons, descending the grand staircase.

“Caroline!” he exclaimed ‘Where have you sprung from? I had no idea you were here.”

“Good morning Papa,” Caroline said, dropping a curtsey and then holding her face up to be kissed. “Say you are pleased to see me, for I vow I am enchanted to see you.”

Lord Vulcan put his arms round her and held her close.

“You should have sent us word,” he said. “Why are you home? From all reports you were enjoying the giddy whirl of high Society.”

“I wanted to see Mama,” Caroline answered, “and you too, of course, Papa dear.”

“As it happens I was just writing to you,” Lord Vulcan said. “The letter would have gone to you this very day. I had news to impart.”

“News?”Caroline questioned.

“Yes,” Lord Vulcan replied. “Come into the library Caroline. I have something to tell you.”

He linked his arm through his daughter’s and drew her into the big library which overlooked the sea. The room was brilliant with sunshine and Caroline sat herself on a cushioned window-seat. It had been a favourite place of hers as a child and as she sank down on the seat she gave a sigh of utter content.

“It is good to be home,” she murmured. “What is your news, Papa?”

“It concerns your mother,” Lord Vulcan replied.

“Mama?” Caroline questioned quickly. “She is not ill, is she?”

“No, not ill exactly but she is not really well,” Lord Vulcan answered, his handsome face grave. “You remember when she was laid up last winter with a tiresome cough which the doctors could not cure. Well, I had Sir Henry Halford the King’s physician, down from London last week, and he advised that your mother should have a change of air, and indeed a change of environment. He is anxious for her to spend a month or so in Italy and then perhaps a little time by Lake Como. I am taking his advice, Caroline, and your mother and I leave next week for the Continent.”

“Oh, papa!” Caroline exclaimed.

“I was afraid you would be rather surprised,” Lord Vulcan smiled.

“But if Mama is ill, I must go with her.” Lord Vulcan shook his head.

“No, Caroline, though it was to be expected that you should suggest it. To begin with, Sir Henry desires that for the first part of the journey she shall have complete freedom from all anxiety and secondly, to be honest with you, we are rather looking forward to going away alone together. Much as we love you, Caroline, and our two boys you are none of you very restful people.”

“Well, really!’ Caroline exclaimed, then she laughed. “A second honeymoon, Papa, is that the idea? It is a little late in the day when you have a daughter of’ seventeen and two large sons at Eton.”

“We do not feel it is too late, nor that we are too old,” Lord Vulcan replied with dignity. “In fact we are both eagerly looking forward to an elopement from our responsibilities. Besides, I have never been able to take your mother abroad until now. The war lasted so long and when first it was over, there always seemed to be children to interfere with our plans.”

Caroline made a little grimace,

“What a nuisance we must be to you.”

“On the contrary, you have been a great joy to us, but you have given us moments of apprehension. And that reminds me of something I want to ask of you Caroline. I want you to promise not to upset your mother in any way.”

“Upset her? Why should I?”

“Because the one thing that disturbs her is the thought of leaving you behind. She has worried incessantly at not being able to go to London to entertain for you your first season. We feel sure that your godmother is doing it admirably and that Cousin Debby is a good chaperon but at the same time your mother and I would have liked to be with you. That, as you know, has been impossible owing to her low state of health, and now I have had some difficulty in persuading her to take Sir Henry’s advice. She was afraid to leave England because of you, Caroline. To tell the truth she is quite certain you will be up to mischief if we are not around to keep an eye on you.”

“Papa, that is monstrously unfair,” Caroline cried.

Lord Vulcan, with a twinkle in his eye held up his hand.

“No, Caroline. If you think of it, you will admit you have caused us a great deal of anxiety these past years and now that you are launched on the world, it is only to be expected that we should worry about you.”

“There is no need,” Caroline began haughtily and then was silent.

“All I ask,” Lord Vulcan continued after a little pause as if he waited for Caroline to say something more, “is that, if you are in any trouble before we leave, you either keep it to yourself or confide in me. Your mother is not to be worried. Is that understood?

“Yes, Papa.”

“And now perhaps you would like to relate to me why you have come back so unexpectedly.”

Caroline hesitated. She looked out to sea and debated within herself whether she would tell her father or not. Then, as she pondered, she thought how enraged and angry he would be when he heard of the trick that Sir Montagu Reversby had played on her. Her father would be furious, she could be certain of that, in fact he might even consider it his duty to call out Sir Montagu or, if not, to fight a duel on her behalf, to horsewhip him. Lord Vulcan would not hesitate to go to any extremity where his honour and the honour of his family were concerned.

He was proud and at times extremely autocratic if people went against what he considered the correct and decent code of chivalry. It would be amusing, Caroline thought, to see Sir Montagu cringing before her father and yet all this would take time. If Lord Vulcan were to go to London, it would be unlikely that he and her mother could leave next week for the Continent. No, in this matter and on this occasion she must be both silent and unselfish.

With a little sigh she turned towards her father.

“I have nothing, to tell you, Papa,” she said. “I just had an overwhelming desire to see you and Mama. Perhaps it would be more honest to say that I was homesick and so – I came home.”

“Cousin Debby is with you?”

“No, Papa.”

Lord Vulcan frowned.

“You came alone?”

“Yes, Papa. I decided on the spur of the moment.”

“Now, Caroline, you know that I do not allow you to travel about alone.”

His voice was angry, but before he could say more Caroline had sprung from the window-seat and put her arms round his neck.

“Pray do not be vexed with me,” she pleaded, her soft cheek against his. “I know if was wrong of me to come, but I wanted to see you, and Cousin Debby, nice though she is, would have taken an age. There would have been days of packing and preparations before I got to Mandrake. As it is, I left last night and I am here this morning. Forgive me, Papa, and we will not tell Mama for fear it would worry her.”

“Caroline, you are a sad romp,” Lord Vulcan sighed, but she knew by his tone that she had appeased him.

“It is no use your telling me that things are right,” he continued, ‘for I know full well something is wrong. I can feel it in the air, but I will not force your confidence, my dear.”

“I will look after myself.” Caroline promised. “Don’t worry. You know, Papa, I’m beginning to find out that you are a bit of a humbug.”

Lord Vulcan raised his eyebrows.

“Humbug?” he asked.

“Yes,” Caroline replied firmly. ‘You see, when I lived here at Mandrake, I thought you the best, the most handsome and the most exemplary man in all the world but when I got to London I found out that once you had been an inveterate gamester, a dead shot, an incomparable whip and a fascinator of every lady, young or old, in the whole of the
beau-monde.
Now is that not the truth?”

Lord Vulcan laughed.

“Who has been telling you stories, Caroline?”

“A large number of people. If I do anything the least out of the ordinary, they shrug their shoulders and say, “What else can you expect from Justin’s daughter?”

“Caroline, you little devil, you are making it up,” Lord Vulcan protested, but he was laughing all the same.

“It is true, I swear it,” Caroline replied. ‘Papa, you had a prodigious reputation.”

“I will not lie to you, Caroline,” Lord Vulcan said. “I was not entirely blameless at one time, but that was before I met your mother.”

“And afterwards?” Caroline asked.

“I fell in love, my dear, and my whole life was changed. I have been a very happy man and a very fortunate one.”

Caroline was silent for a moment, and then she said in a very small, quiet voice,

“How does one know when one is in love?”

Lord Vulcan stood up and looked down at her then he put out his hand and taking her chin between his fingers, turned her little face up to his.

“Listen, Caroline,” he said, “I will tell you when you know you are in love, when you feel that any sacrifice is worthwhile for another person, when you feel that no deed of bravery is too great to perform, no risk too great to be taken on their behalf when you would die for them, or better still, live to serve them. That, then, is love.”

Caroline’s eyes met his fearlessly and then, as he released her, she looked, out to sea. The sun pouring through the windows glinted on her shining hair and a sudden smile transformed her whole face.

“So that is love,” she said softly and turning, she ran from the room.

3

The Honourable Mrs. Edgmont read the letter she held in her hands a second time, then folded it and dropping her lorgnette, went in search of Caroline. She found her playing the spinet in the ante-room to the silver drawing-room. When Caroline saw her cousin and chaperon enter the room, she jumped up and ran towards her.

“You have had a letter from my godmother?” she said. “I saw it when the post arrived. What does she say, Cousin Debby?”

“That is precisely what I have come to speak to you about, Caroline,” Mrs. Edgmont replied in a grave voice.

Caroline sighed.

“When you talk to me in that voice, Cousin Debby, I know there is something amiss. Tell me quickly.”

Mrs. Edgmont looked flustered. She was a small grey-haired woman who, a quarter of a century earlier, had been married for only a few months before her elderly husband died of a complaint of the chest, and the brief period of her marriage had left so little mark on her that she invariably seemed the personification of a spinster.

She was quiet, precise and well versed in all that a lady should know of deportment and good manners. At the same time she had a sweetness of nature and a kindliness which made her young relations really fond of her. She was a distant cousin of the Marquis of Vulcan and therefore well born, and she had such an exemplary character that no one more suitable could have been found to act as chaperon to Caroline.

Besides, Mrs. Edgmont had been left in constrained circumstances and she was exceedingly glad of the emolument which the Marquis paid her, and which enabled her to live in comfortable circumstances once again. At the same time she was terrified that she might fall short of her duties. Caroline was so high-spirited, and indeed on occasions so mischievous, that Mrs. Edgmont went in hourly fear and trembling of what she would discover next.

Her hand shook now as she opened the Countess of Bullingham’s letter.

“Your godmother,” she said to Caroline, “is vexed, my dear.”

“About my leaving London?” Caroline asked.

“It was ill-bred, you know, to depart without explanation or farewell.”