Montgomery Family 01 - Lost Pleasures Found (16 page)

Once the dance had ended, he returned her to her friends. Nelson was dancing with Mrs. Harrison, and they looked as if they were having a deep discussion. Melody hoped they would get together. Mary seemed just the right kind of woman for him. Of course, his parents would not be happy if anything were to come of this relationship. They were still pressuring him to marry Lady Penelope. Melody had met her at the Christmas party, and she really did not care for her at all and knew Nelson would be miserable if he were to marry her. Melody danced several more times with some of Henry’s friends. She had a very pleasant evening, but she was glad when everyone decided to leave.

The next morning, she got up and hurried through her morning ablutions, because her day was full. She remembered that she had promised her aunt she would come by for a visit today. She was also supposed to go to the orphanage and then for a drive with Weston at four o’clock. She went down to breakfast and had her usual toast and jam with hot chocolate. Helen was there talking excitedly about the ball. She had had a marvelous time and was supposed to go driving with a nice young man she had met last night. His name was Andrew Hamilton, and he was the Earl of Everwood’s heir.

Helen giggled and said, “Melody, he’s so handsome, and he dances divinely. I liked his sense of humor, and he was so polite. He told me he thought I was beautiful!”

“Helen, you’re very beautiful. I’m not surprised at all that he found you so. When is he picking you up?” Melody asked.

Helen sipped her tea, and then she said, “He’s going to be here at three o’clock, and Mother even approves of me seeing him. She told me he was from a very good family. Will you be here this afternoon when he comes to pick me up?”

“I doubt that I’ll be here. Remember we’re going to the orphanage at ten o’clock this morning. I’m going to see my aunt Miriam at one o’clock, and then I’m also going for a drive with Henry’s friend, Lord Weston, at four o’clock, so I have a very busy day ahead of me,” she said.

“Well, maybe we’ll run into each other at the park later this afternoon. If we’re going to the orphanage at ten o’clock, I had better hurry and get ready,” Helen said as rushed out of the room.

They went and picked up Mary and Susan and then went to the orphanage. Melody was so glad to see all the children again. Some of the children from last year had been adopted, and other children had arrived. While they were playing with the children, Melody pulled Susan to the side and asked, “How is Brandon? I felt so awful when my mother wrote and told me about Lily and the baby. I wish I could have been there to help console him. I’m sure he was devastated by it all.”

“I saw him right before I left to come to London, and he’s terribly morose and misses Lily desperately. I’ve tried to be there for him, but he doesn’t want to talk about it,” Susan said. “He’s even talked about moving somewhere else because the memories are so painful. I’m sure a letter from you would help him tremendously. You’ve always been so close.”

“I wrote to him right after I heard the news, but I haven’t written since then. What with Henry leaving for the continent and all, I’ve just had too much on my mind. I’ll write to him tomorrow. Well, if I’m going to get to my aunt’s on time, I need to leave.” As Melody left, she added, “Susan I’ll see you in two days.

Melody had a pleasant visit with her aunt. They planned on meeting at the Milton Musicale that they were both attending that evening. She rushed home and got ready for her drive with Lord Weston. He picked her up on time, and they drove to Hyde Park. It was a lovely spring day, and the drive was very enjoyable. “Thank you for asking me to go driving with you. It’s a lovely day, and all the flowers are so beautiful. I particularly enjoy the spring of the year. It’s hard to be blue when everything is so pretty.” Lord Weston was driving his phaeton, and it was obvious that he was a very good driver. She had never ridden in a high perch phaeton and was enjoying it tremendously.

“I’m pleased you could come for a drive today. Your husband has been my best friend since we were at Eton together as young boys. I wanted to go with him when his father bought Henry his commission, but since I’m an only child, my father refused. Of course, shortly after that, my father died, and then I inherited my title. I was so disappointed and a little envious of Montgomery. In some ways, I’ve lived vicariously through him, imagining that I was in the army with him. The army has been good for Montgomery, and he wasn’t looking forward to civilian life until he met you. You make him very happy,” Weston said as he pulled to the side to let an approaching carriage pass.

“He makes me deliriously happy, and I do miss him desperately. He has become my best friend, not just my husband.” They continued to drive through the park and ran into Helen with her beau. They chatted for a while, but then it was time to leave. She had had a very pleasant afternoon with Lord Weston, and they planned to do it again soon.

When Melody got home, she went to her room to rest before dinner, as she knew it was going to be a long night. When she woke up, she barely had time to dress for the evening and just made it downstairs in time for dinner. They arrived at the Musicale at nine o’clock, and they stayed there for several hours. Melody was exhausted when she finally made it to bed, and she fell into a deep sleep.

She remembered to write Brandon the next day, and she hoped her letter would cheer him up. She wrote about Henry having to leave to go fight Bonaparte and told him she was in London for a few weeks, but then she would be going back to Sanderford Park.

The next month went by very quickly. They went to either a ball or some kind of entertainment every night. She especially enjoyed the opera. When they went there,
The
Barber
of
Seville
was playing, and the soprano had a stupendous voice. Melody had always enjoyed singing, and she had a lovely light soprano voice herself.

She was very tired and was glad she would be leaving to go back to the country the next day. Nelson was going to take her and Kathryn, because he had some estate business he needed to take care of. She had no regrets about coming to town, but she was more than ready to go back to Sanderford Park.

They left the next day, early in the morning and were there by four o’clock that afternoon. Melody slept most of the way. She could not understand why she was so tired and sleepy all the time, and she had been nauseous lately. This was puzzling to Melody because she was rarely, if ever, ill. It only happened in the morning, and then she was fine for the rest of the day. Nelson had asked Melody to come to his study after she had freshened up. He had something he wanted to talk to her about, and she wondered what it was. She met Nelson, and he asked her to take a seat.

“I want to run something by you. I’ve decided that I’m going to ask Mary to marry me. We get along well, and her son is delightful. She’s very peaceful to be with. You’ve been spending quite a bit of time with Mary. Do you think she’ll want to marry me?” he asked.

“Nelson, I know she’ll want to marry you. She’s mentioned several times to me how much she has enjoyed your company. I think you’ll suit each other very well. Henry just knew she would be the right woman for you, and I wish you every happiness. You deserve to have someone in your life that you can care about. I know you loved Nora very much, but I’m sure she would want you to move on with your life. Have you told your parents about your decision?” she asked.

“I’ve decided not to mention anything to them until after I find out if Mary accepts my proposal. If she says yes, then I’ll tell them at that time,” Nelson replied. “I’m glad you feel this is a good direction for me to take. Mary is so pleasant that I know we’ll get along well. I don’t love her as I loved Nora, but I admire her tremendously, and I feel I could grow to love her in the future. I’ll be going back to London in a few days, and I’ll ask her then.”

“I hope you have a safe trip and please tell Helen to have fun. I just hope she can meet someone she can love and who will love her. I’ve grown so fond of all of you, and I appreciate all of you so much. Having you in my life has helped me deal with Henry leaving. I’ll be so grateful when all this conflict with Bonaparte is behind us and we can get on with our lives,” she said. “Well, I think I’ll go upstairs and rest before dinner. I’ll see you later.”

The next day, Melody received a letter from Brandon. He thanked her for writing and told her he was sorry that Henry had to leave her to go fight. He also told her that he was looking for another teaching position because the memories of Lily were driving him mad. Melody’s heart went out to him. She could only imagine how horrible it would be to lose your true love. Melody decided she would write Brandon occasionally, just to let him know she was thinking about him.

CHAPTER 12

Brussels, Belgium
May 1815

H
ENRY ARRIVED IN Brussels at the beginning of May. The passage over the English Channel was rough, and many of his men were seasick. It had been a grueling march ever since they had arrived in France. His men were very tired, and morale was extremely low. What was surprising was the amount of people that were arriving in Brussels. Many of the ton were setting up house, and there were balls, galas, and parties every night. The Duke of Wellington hosted many of them, himself. Henry did not feel like going to these events, but Wellington gave direct orders to all his officers, telling them they had to attend. During the day, they were scouting out possible battle sites and then dancing all night. Henry was missing Melody terribly. He almost wished he had brought her with him. He would have, had he known there were going to be so many of the ton here. Her letters were all that kept him sane. She must have been writing everyday, because he was receiving letters on a daily basis. They were always so cheerful, and he was pleased she had decided to go to London for the season, after all. Evidently, Helen and Melody had convinced his mother to let Kathryn come to London too. Henry was relieved that Melody was in London, because that way she would stay busy and would not miss him as much.

As May moved along, there were rumors flying everyday. Bonaparte was holding back and not taking the offensive. Wellington was waiting for Marshall Blucher to arrive. Henry wished they would just get this over with. The army was not holding the appeal that it once had. Everything was dependent on the seventh coalition. Bonaparte was trying to get some of the allied to change sides, and it looked as if he had been successful, because Marshall Ney had joined forces with him.

Henry was trying to write Melody everyday, but it was difficult to find the time, and he wanted to be positive in his letters; for the most part, he was. Sometimes, he did mention the morale problems and the level of boredom of his troops. After all, how many times could his troops practice drills without any action and without growing bored.

Thank goodness for Melody’s letters. They were always so cheerful, and it sounded as if she were having a good time. Her last letter stated that she had returned to Sanderford Park. Kathryn had come with her, because that had been the arrangement she had made with the duchess. She said she was tired of all the parties anyway and wanted the peace and quiet that she would find there.

Sanderford Park

May 1815

Melody spent quite a bit of her time, over the next few days, just catching up on her sleep. She spent every morning walking through the lovely gardens. They were as beautiful as she had known they would be when she walked through them last fall. Writing letters to Henry was something she relished, because it helped her feel closer to him. She was missing him a great deal, and now that she was back at Sanderford Park, she was missing him even more than she had in London. Nelson left to go back to town, and she hoped all went well for him. Of course, Mary would say yes, and then he would have to deal with the anger from his parents. Melody also spent part of her day with Kathryn, and she really looked forward to their time together.

As the days went by, she spent more time thinking about Henry. It had been almost two months since he left, and she missed him more each day. It was peaceful at Sanderford Park, and she was glad she had elected to leave London instead of staying for the entire season. She received a letter from Henry, two or three times a week, and she wrote him everyday. He told her they were playing a waiting game, and the troops were getting very bored, waiting around for something to happen. In his most recent letter, he told her that Napoleon had been able to amass quite a large army, and was moving toward Brussels. He told her he expected something to happen within the next couple of weeks, and he would just be glad when this was over so he could come back to her. She was still sleeping quite a bit, and the nauseous feeling was still there. She was beginning to wonder if something was wrong with her. She was so rarely ill that this was troubling, and she wished she had someone to talk to about it.

Brussels, Belgium

June 1815

It finally looked as if something was getting ready to happen. Rumors were flying all over Brussels, and Wellington was having meetings on a daily basis. The Duchess of Richmond’s ball was scheduled for June 15, and Wellington requested that all his officers attend. Late that evening, Wellington received a dispatch from the Prince of Orange, telling him that Napoleon was rapidly advancing. He quickly ordered his army to concentrate on Quatre Bras. Marshall Ney was advancing, and it was imperative that they hold this town. Henry and his troops were sent there in the early hours of the sixteenth. Henry knew they would finally see some action, and the morale of his troops would improve dramatically.

Napoleon attacked, and Blucher’s Prussian army was defeated at the Battle of Ligny on June 16. Wellington’s troops joined the Prince of Orange at Quatre Bras, and they successfully defeated the French troops there and secured the town by early evening, but it was too late to send help to Blucher. The Prussian’s defeat made Wellington’s position perilous, so he was not able to defend it against attack. The next day, he moved back his forces to the low ridge of Mont-Saint-Jean, south of a small village called Waterloo. Henry’s men were in the thick of it, and he had already lost some good men at Quatre Bras. He was given orders to hold the line. Napoleon went after the allied forces, and there was a brief skirmish in Genappe, but then there were torrential rains, so they had to set up camp for the night. The Waterloo position was a strong one, and things were beginning to turn for the coalition. Henry’s orders were to hold the ridge on Ohain road. The fighting broke out in the early hours of June 18. Henry and his men were back in the middle of the fighting again. He was fighting off several Frenchmen at one time and saw several of his men fall. A Frenchman with a bayonet came at him and plunged it into Jupiter’s flank, and he went down. Henry managed to jump clear, but the Frenchman was upon him. He felt the bullet tear through him, and as he was falling, his last conscious thought was of Melody and how much he loved her. His head hit something as he fell to the ground, and then he knew … no more.

Sanderford Park

Late June 1815

The weather was very warm, now that summer was here. It was hard to imagine that it was nearing the later part of June. Henry’s letters indicated that a battle was imminent. Each day, she hoped, brought her closer to the time when Henry could come back to her. It seemed as if it had been a long time since he went away.

On June 26, Nelson returned to Sanderford Park. He appeared very somber, and Melody wondered why. He asked her to step into his study with him and take a seat. She was getting very nervous, because he had a look in his eyes that did not make her feel at ease.

“Melody, you know how much I care about you. I’ve received some news from the continent, and I came here as quickly as possible. I wanted to be the first to tell you.” Nelson hesitated, and then he continued, “There has been a great battle … in a little place called Waterloo … We won … but there were terrible losses.”

“What’s wrong? Has Henry been hurt? Tell me what … what’s going on now!” she cried.

Nelson looked at Melody as he said, “There’s been a letter from Henry’s commanding officer and the Duke of Wellington … Henry … was shot down in this battle … Melody … Henry didn’t make it.”

Melody felt a ringing in her ears, and she lowered her head. There was an expression of total disbelief on her beautiful face. Nelson came over, sat down beside her, and took her in his arms. Melody was having trouble breathing, and she felt as if she were going to be ill. Tears were streaming down her face, and she was wailing in distress. She had never felt so much pain in her life. She cried, “No … No … this can’t … it can’t be true! There has to be some kind of mistake. I would feel it … I would know … here in my heart … if Henry were dead. I don’t believe you. Please … please tell me … this is not true!”

Nelson rubbed her back gently as he said, “Melody … his friend, Captain Hayden … he saw him get shot down during battle, when it was over, he looked for him and found … Henry’s horse dead and Henry’s body was next to Jupiter. His face … was damaged beyond recognition … , but one of your letters was on the ground next to him. It was Henry … there’s no doubt about it. I’m so sorry … so very sorry, just know … I’m here for you. Anything I can do for you … all you have to do is ask.”

Melody continued to weep, but she did not cry out any more. After a time, Nelson carried her up to her bed and called for her maid, Millie, and had her sit with her. Melody was inconsolable, and there was nothing anyone could do to take her pain away. Only time would do that.

They held Henry’s funeral on June 30. All his family and many of his friends were there. Melody was in a daze through it all. She was still having a hard time accepting that Henry was gone. Melody tried to keep the tears from falling, but it was impossible. She buried her head into Nelson’s chest as she sobbed. When they slid his casket into the mausoleum, she fell apart, and Nelson had to hold her up to keep her from falling. She did not understand how he could be dead. Surely, she would feel it in her heart if it were so. She knew she would have to accept this as fact, because Captain Hayden had been the one to bring Henry’s body back. He told Melody all that he had seen, and he was finally able to convince her that Henry was indeed dead.

Once the funeral and the wake were over, Melody cried constantly, and she was very distraught. That evening, Melody went to Nelson and said, “I want to go … to my parents. I can’t stay here … now that Henry … is gone. I need to be with my parents. Please, I beg you … please take me to my mother!”

Nelson gathered her in his arms and said, “Melody, we love you. Please stay here. I’ll take care of you. Henry would expect me to make sure you are all right. I won’t be able to do that if you go to Lincolnshire.”

As Melody sobbed, she cried out with extreme pain in her voice, “Please, I have to go to my mother now. It’s too difficult to stay at Sanderford Park where there are so many memories of Henry. I know that you and your sisters love me, and I love you, but please don’t ask me to stay.”

Nelson patted her on the back and said, “All right, Melody. If that’s what you truly want, I’ll take you to your parents. I’ll make the arrangements to leave in two days. Will that give you enough time to pack?”

“Oh, thank you! I’m sure Millie can have everything ready. Please understand, I do care about you and your sisters, but I have to go. I need my mother.” Melody laid her head on Nelson’s shoulder and sobbed because she felt as if her heart had been ripped from her chest; the pain was so excruciating. Eventually she calmed down enough to go back to her room.

Two days later, Nelson and Melody left for Lincolnshire. The trip was grueling because Melody was ill the entire trip and the weather was simply dreadful. Torrential rain fell everyday, so the trip took eight days instead of the usual five. Nelson could not get Melody to eat anything. On the third day, he said, “Melody, I’m very concerned about your health. You haven’t eaten anything for three days, and I can tell you’ve already lost some weight. Henry would not want you to grieve so.”

“Nelson, I just can’t tolerate food right now. Every time I do try to eat, I become ill. Isn’t there any way we can hurry this trip along? I … I … need my mother,” Melody cried.

“I’m sorry, my dear, but the weather is so terrible that we can’t push the horses; the roads are in horrible shape. Why don’t you lie down on the other seat and try to rest. Millie can sit over here with me.” Melody lay down and eventually cried herself to sleep. Each day was a repeat of the day before, and Melody felt as if she were living in hell and that she was never going to get home to her mother. Nelson was wonderful, but she had a terrible time being around him because he looked so much like Henry. Every time she looked over at him, she felt her heart break even more than it already was.
Oh
god,
when
would
this
trip
end?

They arrived in Lincolnshire, on July 10. Her parents came out to greet them. Her mother took her into her arms, and Melody began to cry copiously. She could not stop crying, and she looked as if she were ready to pass out. Nelson carried her upstairs, and her mother showed him where Melody’s room was. He gently laid her on her bed. She turned away from them and asked to be left alone.

Nelson and her parents went down to the parlor, and as they sat there together, he said, “She didn’t want to believe Henry was dead. It was only after Captain Hayden told her what he had seen that she began to believe. Just as soon as the funeral was over, she immediately requested that I bring her to you. She has been very ill the entire trip. I’m sure it’s from the strain she’s been under, but you might want to watch her closely.”

Mr. Canterfield-Smyth shook his head and sighed, then said, “Thank you so much for bringing her to us, my lord. We’ll take good care of her. I’m glad you were the one to help her. She respects you tremendously, and she has mentioned this in many of her letters to us. I know this has to be a hard time for all of your family. Please accept our condolences on your loss. I understand you were very close to your brother. How are your parents handling Henry’s death?”