Sally James (10 page)

“Is she here now?” Mary asked, her spirits unaccountably falling as she heard this.

“No, she has gone to Milsom Street, and will no doubt be there all morning! But here comes Mrs Grafton.”

Caroline was approaching, and expressed her surprise at the meeting. Promises were made that they would call on Mrs Ward, and then Mary and Caroline left, planning to walk in the gardens beside the river.

They had barely turned towards the Abbey, however, before Mary halted, clutching at Caroline’s arm.

“What is it?” Caroline asked.

“Mr Knowle. Over there, looking into that shop window. I do not believe he has seen us. Let us turn away, I cannot face a meeting with him at this moment! There are too many of our acquaintances suddenly appearing in Bath!”

It was too late. As she spoke Mr Knowle turned, saw them, and with a beaming smile crossed to greet them.

Chapter 6

“My dear Mrs Grafton, and Miss Wyndham! How opportune a meeting. I was proposing to call at your lodgings, although I had little expectation of finding you there at this hour. I trust that the treatment is effective, Mrs Grafton, and you are feeling more the thing?”

“Indeed yes, Mr Knowle. I have not had a severe headache since I arrived. But what a surprise to see you here!”

“Not an unpleasant one, I hope. I am on my way to my new living and spent last night here, intending to see you today. Mr Grafton entrusted me with messages and a letter.”

“How kind of you to trouble with that,” Caroline said, taking the small packet he produced. “I hope it has not inconvenienced you at all?”

“Not in the least. Apart from the pleasure it gives me of seeing you both, I wished to halt for the last night within a short distance of my final destination, so that I can arrive there in good time. I must finish my journey tomorrow and hoped, if you had no other engagements, that you would dine with me at my hotel tonight?”

As it happened they had no other engagement, and after a quick glance at Mary, Caroline accepted for them both. Mary had not yet spoken apart from greeting Mr Knowle, for she knew he had sought them out in order to press for an answer to his proposal, and despite much thought she still could not make up her mind finally to accept him. Now she made an effort to behave normally and asked after some of the parishioners he had left.

When they seemed to have no more to say on that head, he suggested that if they had time he would enjoy seeing the Abbey in their company, and so they retraced their steps past the Pump Room while Mr Knowle told them he had long wished to see the site of the church where King Edgar had been crowned so many hundreds of years ago, but he had never before visited the city.

They admired the lovely carvings on the West front, and then entered the Abbey to look at the interior, afterwards walking round to inspect some of the tablets erected to the memory of former illustrious inhabitants of the town. Mr Knowle explained reluctantly that he had another message to take from Mr Johnson to an old friend of his who lived in Henrietta Street.

“I wonder if you could give me directions?”

“We will walk with you as far as Pulteney Bridge,” Caroline offered, “and then it is on the far side, off Laura Place.”

“How exceedingly kind of you.”

They set him on his way, and then returned to their lodgings to rest before the dinner hour.

“You did not object to my accepting his invitation?” Caroline asked anxiously. “I do not like the man, but felt it would be churlish to refuse, as he is a stranger to the town.”

“It was polite, but I beg of you, Caroline, do not make any excuse to leave us alone, for I know he will want an answer and I have not yet decided what I can say to him!”

“If it takes you so long to make up your mind, then you cannot love him,” Caroline declared. “You would not hesitate if you really loved him, so why not end his hopes and refuse him?”

“I did, when we were at home, but since he had accused me of dalliance with Sir Ingram, and I grew angry, he would not accept that as final, and I confess, when he came back and craved my pardon, I had not the heart to do other than say I would consider it. Caroline, it is not so simple! I do like him, as a friend, even though he appears stiff at times. He - he says that love would come, and many people do, I am aware, marry without such feelings in the beginning. If I were to marry him, my father could live with us and would have congenial company.”

“You do not marry for the benefit of your father!” Caroline pointed out with some acerbity, and Mary reluctantly laughed.

“No, but he has always been a consideration. I could not leave him alone! And I have begun to think of what I will do when he is gone. We have so few relations, none that would be able to receive me into their homes, and I cannot envisage myself living with Matthew and Teresa, provided he eventually marries her!”

“Indeed not! Or with whomsoever he marries. But why should you regard Mr Knowle as your only alternative? Jonathan has been attentive, and he is not the only man to have paid you compliments.”

Mary shrugged. “Politenesses, all of them, and meaningless.”

“Nonsense, child! You have lived so secluded a life that you have met few men of the world, and cannot know what your effect on them is! Added to that you are reserved, and they find it difficult to get on easy terms with you. That is why I think you like Mr Knowle, for you have known him for so long, and he is so puffed up with his own consequence that he is not afraid of you!”

“Am I so awe-inspiring then?”

“No, shy, merely. I am conscious that it is very impertinent of me to offer advice, but I love you and cannot bear to see you ruin your life. Do not accept Geoffrey Knowle, Mary! He is not the right man for you!”

“Who is?” Mary queried, amused, and not at all offended by her friend’s remarks.

“I think you know, except you will not allow yourself to entertain the notion,” Caroline said, and then quickly excused herself, saying she wished to lie down for an hour, but in reality to give Mary an opportunity of considering her remarks.

Mr Knowle put himself out to be entertaining, and had ordered an excellent meal of roast capons, a ragout, mutton cutlets and a rabbit pie, with trout and side dishes of peas and salads. Fruit tarts, cheese and a syllabub followed, and he had also obtained excellent wines from the hotel’s cellar.

They ate in his private sitting room, and when the waiters had removed the covers he apologised that they had nowhere to withdraw.

“I am not one to wish to sit drinking after a meal, however,” he laughed, and explained that he had ordered tea to be brought in half an hour.

“It has been very pleasant,” Mary said, and he smiled at her fondly.

“I am hoping I can persuade you both to drive over to see me in my new home before you leave Bath. It is less than a dozen miles, and if you drove over in the morning we could have an early dinner, and you could return before dark. Perhaps Matthew would escort you. I had not realised that he was in Bath also.”

“Have you seen him?” Mary asked in surprise.

“Yes, although he did not see me. I was returning from my visit to Mr Johnson’s friend and when I entered Laura Place I saw him on the far side, talking with a young lady. I could not be sure, for she had a scarf about her head, but it looked remarkably like the young lady who stayed with you at Appleacre. Miss Standish, was it not?”

“Yes, she is in Bath,” Mary admitted.

“Is she staying with you? I really had not understood that you knew her so well.”

“No. She is here with her mother and a great aunt, who is taking the waters.”

“And Matthew? I assume he came to bear you company. I would have invited him this evening had I known earlier that he was here. Seeing him was such a surprise, but I did not care to intrude on them, and the notion did not occur to me until I had walked on over the bridge. Very slow of me, I fear!”

“Matthew lodges in Lansdown Road,” Mary said evenly.

“Then he will no doubt accompany you. Let me see, next week might be rather too soon for my housekeeper, and I ought to spend the first few days getting to know my parish. Shall we make it the week after next, on the Thursday. Would that be convenient?”

Unable to think of an excuse for refusing the invitation, and uncertain of her reasons for resisting the idea, since it provided an opportunity of seeing this house which might soon be her home if she accepted Mr Knowle, Mary agreed. It was settled that they would drive over on the day proposed.

“If Matthew has other plans I am sure my cousin would be happy to escort us,” Caroline added.

Soon afterwards the tea was brought in and then, with good wishes expressed by all, Mr Knowle conducted them down to the carriage Caroline had ordered to fetch them.

On the following morning Mary met Teresa in the Pump Room. She was looking decidedly put out, and Mary enquired what was amiss.

“It is most unfair that because Ingram has heard spiteful gossip he refuses to permit me to go on the expedition we had planned to Wookey Hole, and I had been so looking forward to it!”

“Wookey Hole? Is that not the ancient cave near to Wells? I would have thought it too far to drive there and back in one day.”

“That is the difficulty. A party of us had arranged to go, and we were to remain the night in Wells, where there is an excellent inn, and ride back on the following day. Now Ingram says that there is no one to chaperone me, for mama does not ride, you see. We will not be able to go - unless - I have it! Would you and Mrs Grafton come with us? Mama thinks highly of you, and Mrs Grafton is a respectable married lady, so that would satisfy the old cats of Bath! Even Ingram could not object if you were to join the party. Oh, Mary, dear, please say that you will!”

Mary smiled at her, grateful Teresa had refrained from saying that she, at her age, would make a suitable chaperone.

“It is a tempting plan,” she said slowly. “I cannot speak for Caroline, and it would mean she missed her treatment for two days. I do not know whether that would be wise.”

“We can ask her when she comes. But do come across to mama and put the idea to her.”

Mary accompanied her to where Mrs Standish and Mrs Leigh sat, with Mr Morris hovering about in the background, and Teresa excitedly explained her new plan. Mrs Leigh smiled at Mary approvingly.

“Well, if Mrs Grafton will also go, I think Ingram can be content. Besides Teresa and Matthew there will be a family of two girls, friends of ours, their brother and a cousin. They suggested that Teresa joined them and she has given us no peace since!”

“It will be such an agreeable expedition,” Teresa said persuasively.

“I cannot imagine why you should want to see inside dirty horrid dark caves,” Mrs Standish shuddered.

“We also propose to visit Wells Cathedral, and that will be most informative,” Teresa remarked. “Mr Morris has been telling me all about it.”

“A very impressive example of Cathedral architecture,” Mr Morris contributed.

“Mr Morris has offered to accompany the party,” Mrs Leigh told Mary, “but Ingram would not permit her to go without an older woman to chaperone her. With you and Mrs Grafton there he can be content. You both have a great deal of sense.”

Caroline appeared at that moment and was instantly appealed to by Teresa. Seeing that Mary was willing to join the expedition she made no objection, saying she had been feeling so much better since being in Bath and to miss the treatment for just two days would not matter in the least. It was arranged that the rest of the party would call for Mary and Caroline early on the following morning and then they parted, Teresa beaming happily at Mary as she bade her goodbye.

Somewhat to Mary’s surprise, when they met the others it was to find the party enlarged by the inclusion of Sir Ingram himself and the Wards. Mary found herself watching Sir Ingram as he rode beside Belinda up into the hills surrounding the town, unsure of whether these additions to the party were an improvement or not. Certainly it would relieve her of most of the responsibility for Teresa, but she found his company disturbing, and Belinda’s vivacity irritated her unduly.

Teresa, unlike the high spirited Belinda, was sulking, apparently because of her cousin’s presence, and responding shortly to Mr Morris’s valiant attempts to converse with her.

Mary had been surprised at Mr Morris’s unexpected ability as a horseman. He had appeared, exceedingly elegantly attired, mounted on a nervy chestnut which had sidled and fretted restlessly as they had negotiated the town. Mr Morris had been unperturbed, paying the animal no more than the minimum of attention, and yet controlling it where many other riders would have been defeated. Once out of the town he had led them in an exhilarating gallop, and Mary had further admired his masterly control over the animal.

Matthew was carefully avoiding Teresa, and his prudence no doubt contributed to her peevishness. He came to ride beside Mary and Caroline, and Mary tried to distract his attention by commenting on the scenery and asking what he knew of the caves they planned to visit. He was exceedingly well informed.

“They have been worn hollow by the river which runs through them. Men are supposed to have lived in them many hundreds of years ago, and skeletons have been found, as well as pottery and tools and jewelry. There are huge stalagmites and stalactites, and one of them is called the Witch of Wookey.”

“What a peculiar idea,” Caroline commented.

“I suppose it is because long ago there was a witch who lived in the caves, and the local people had to ask the Abbot of Glastonbury to aid them in getting rid of her. I do not think it is known what he did, but she apparently disappeared and people may have thought she had been turned into this stalagmite.”

The party had set out very early, but it was well into the afternoon before they had covered the eighteen or so miles to the caves. Leaving their horses at an inn some way from the entrance, they walked upwards through the valley, exclaiming at the magnificence of the tumbling river gushing along its rocky bed, with the overhanging trees crowded into the narrow defile.