The Accidental Marriage (8 page)

He soon took his leave, and went back to fretting about the lack of letters from Angelica. Some time ago he had written to ask her whether she wished to make an extended round of visits to their relations, and if so, where did hers live, so that he could make plans.

He told himself he would hear soon, and forced himself to concentrate on the work he was doing for Lord Castlereagh.

* * * *

I’ll never see him again, Julia thought as she watched him walk away. Then she turned to more pressing concerns. Somehow she had to force Fanny to face reality, and set off on the long journey to England. They had three days in which to make plans.

In desperation Fanny had suggested asking Frau Gunter to shelter them, but Julia poured scorn on the idea.

‘She would not speak to us, let alone share her apartment with us,’ Julia insisted. ‘Let me make arrangements, Fanny, before we run through all the money Frederick left you. It wasn’t a generous amount.’

Fanny shook her head. ‘Let us wait one more day. He might come back. He left her once. It must be just infatuation.’

Frustrated, Julia went to fetch the girls, who were spending more time with the Pryce children while she was needed to keep Fanny company.

‘She won’t agree to go,’ she said to Mrs Pryce. ‘Nothing I say will persuade her to make the effort to arrange the journey. I truly believe she imagines we can remain in this apartment.’

‘Well, Mr Pryce and I have been thinking. He must go back soon, for Lord Castlereagh will need his support in Parliament. So would Fanny come with us?’

Julia looked at her, hope in her eyes. ‘She might,’ she said. ‘That’s very kind of you. I’ll talk her into it, if I have to talk for days and night on end till she is exhausted.’

‘Then let us think about the practicalities. There are seven of us, with my maid and Mr Pryce’s valet. The coach will hold eight, but no more in comfort. Though the children are small, they take less room. What I suggest is that Edward’s valet, Spicer, travels in the second coach, with the luggage, and if you did not mind, you and Maggie could travel with him. Miss Jenkins will help to keep Fanny’s daughters amused, and my maid Bessie can help Fanny. I can’t do without either of them. Mr Pryce may have to do without his valet for a while,’ she added, and laughed.

‘But, won’t the coaches travel together?’ Julia asked. ‘We only brought one, there was room for the luggage as well as us, so I don’t know how it is arranged.’

‘We will try to keep together, but it isn’t always possible. With your and Fanny’s luggage as well as ours, and if Fanny is like me, there will be far more going back than we brought with us, that coach may be too laden to keep up. We cannot afford to delay if we are to reach London in good time. Don’t worry, Williams is a very reliable coachman, and Spicer is totally trustworthy. He will have funds to pay your shot at the inns. What do you say?’

‘It sounds an ideal solution,’ Julia said slowly. ‘All we have to do is persuade Fanny. Will you come back with me and add your arguments to mine?’

* * * *

To Julia’s relief, Fanny raised few objections, which the energetic Mrs Pryce soon disposed of. An hour later she departed to make arrangements, and inform her spouse he would in all likelihood have to manage without his valet for much of the three weeks or more it took to reach London.

Julia and Maggie set about packing, The children, who had been subdued since their father had left, became very excited when told they were going home, and travelling with their friends Amelia and Charlotte. They did not understand, until the two coaches were at the door, that Julia would not be travelling in theirs.

Paula began to cry. ‘I want to go with Aunt Julia,’ she sobbed, clinging to Julia’s hand.

‘I’ll be right behind you,’ Julia said, lifting her into the coach. ‘You can wave to me out of the window. And we will be together every time we stop for food, or to sleep.’

Time enough, she thought, for Paula to discover they might not be able to keep up with the lighter, faster coach. Luckily Fanny had divided the money Frederick had left her and given half to Julia.

‘We don’t want to be beholden to Edward Pryce,’ she said, ‘so you can pay for your and Maggie’s accommodation, and if we are separated you have money for emergencies.’

‘I have most of what you have given me as salary,’ Julia protested. ‘Why should you pay more?’

‘I brought you here, it’s my responsibility.’

There had been no opportunity to say farewell to Sir Carey, and in one way Julia was thankful. Seeing him would only reawaken silly longings. She had effectively made the break the last time they had met.

As they drove out of Vienna she looked back for the last time at the magnificent buildings. It had been a magical time, an experience she would never forget, something she could never have dreamed of a few months ago.

There was still snow on the ground, but on the roads it had been beaten down, and the horses had no difficulty keeping their feet. They were to go by way of Linz and Passau, then across Germany and through the Low Countries. It was over seven hundred miles to the coast, and then there would be the crossing, and the final journey to London.

Elizabeth Pryce had promised, if they were separated, as seemed likely, to keep Fanny with her in London until Julia could rejoin them there. She would deal with what happened then, whether Fanny would want to go to Greystones at once, or remain in London. There was little point in fretting. Or in worrying about what Frederick would do. Would he try to divorce Fanny? Was he so infatuated with his wretched Countess Tania that he might wish to marry her? If he did, Fanny would need to be provided for, and Julia could foresee endless problems, as well as more heartache for her sister.

She settled down to enjoy the wintry landscape, the river valleys they followed, the snow-covered trees on the hillsides, and the pretty villages they passed through.

After they passed Linz, the coaches drew apart. On the next night Julia’s party halted at a large inn as darkness fell, to discover that the first coach had passed through two hours before.

‘So we’re on our own from now,’ Spicer said. ‘I must say it’s pleasant not to have to start work the moment we reach an inn, washing linen, ironing coats and starching cravats.’

Maggie giggled, and looked apologetically at Julia. ‘Like a holiday,’ she said. ‘Of course, Miss Julia, I’ll be helping you.’

‘I’m accustomed to looking after myself, Maggie. You have a holiday too.’

* * * *

Maggie and Spicer had initially been wary of Julia, but she soon put them at their ease, and they chatted together about the country they passed through, and their impressions of Vienna. Julia was amused to discover they knew almost as much as she did about the negotiations, and the disputes which had arisen among the participants.

‘Did you know they put lots of people as spies?’ Maggie asked, giggling. ‘One of the maids at Lord Castlereagh’s house told me these servants, the spies, were supposed to go through all the waste paper baskets every day, and send anything they found which might be interesting to the chief man. Hager, I think his name was.’

‘If they knew this, what did they do?’ Julia asked.

‘Oh, someone had to stay up late burning everything.’ She giggled again. ‘It’s a good job we didn’t have need for extra servants.’

‘But we had nothing to hide,’ Julia pointed out, and shivered. The notion of being spied on in such a way disturbed her. Did the Austrians know in advance what the other Ministers were planning? Was it always like this when different countries were trying to make treaties? If Lord Castlereagh’s people went to the trouble to burn their papers, presumably it was.

They passed through Passau, and a week after they left Vienna were approaching Nuremberg. Though cold, it was a bright, sunny day, and Spicer had decided he would prefer to ride on the box with Williams. No doubt he found Maggie’s chat tedious, and wanted to be away from it. Maggie usually found plenty to chat about. If it wasn’t the scenery, or the weather, she would talk about Vienna. Occasionally she mentioned Sir Frederick, saying how terrible his behaviour was, then she would look apologetically at Julia and change the subject.

‘I’m sorry, Miss,’ she said the first time it happened. ‘I forget you’re my mistress’s sister.’

Julia reassured her, saying she deplored his behaviour too, but she hoped he would remember his duty and return to his family soon, so it was best not to talk about it. She did not want Maggie to become so partisan in defence of Fanny that she risked upsetting Frederick, and she had soon discovered Maggie found it difficult to conceal her feelings. She might remain silent, but she had a very expressive face, and from the way she had glared at one of the pot boys who spilt ale on her gown, Julia could imagine how she would look at Frederick.

* * * *

Lord Castlereagh had finished giving the Duke what information he had, and in mid-February was preparing to set out for England. Sir Carey, who had hoped to travel with him and be reunited at last with Angelica, was disappointed to be asked to stay on for a while, since his knowledge of what had been happening, though unofficial, could prove valuable. He supposed it was true, in that people might talk more freely to him as he was not part of the official delegation.

It was some time since he had seen any of Lady Cunningham’s party, and he wondered whether they were also suffering from colds. As he was passing their apartment on his way home one morning he decided to call.

Klara opened the door and smiled at him, but did not invite him to step inside, as she usually did, for she knew he was always a welcome visitor.

‘Is Lady Cunningham in?’ he asked, and Klara shook her head.

‘They left,’ she said. ‘My mistress is back home.’

‘Left? You mean they have moved to another apartment?’

‘Oh, no, they have gone to England. With Herr Pryce and his family.’

‘All of them?’ he asked blankly, and then chastised himself as a fool. Of course they would all have gone, What did he expect?

‘Yes, all of them,’ Klara said cheerfully, and began to shut the door.

‘Did they leave a message?’ he asked, and she smiled and shook her head as the door finally closed.

He stared at it, then turned away. Of course they would not leave him a message. He was just one of many acquaintances. Perhaps they had left in haste, and would not have had time. He would have liked to say farewell. It was unlikely they would meet in England, but he felt a nagging curiosity to learn what happened, whether Sir Frederick tired of his Russian mistress, and whether Lady Cunningham forgave him and took him back.

What would Julia do? She was good with children, and he could imagine her as a governess far better than he could as a companion to some crotchety old lady.

He went on to his own rooms, to find a letter from Angelica waiting for him. He slit it open eagerly. It had been several weeks since he had heard from her, and he was anxious to hear how she was.

* * * *

It was almost dusk, and they were passing through a pretty village, planning to stop soon for the night at a large inn a few miles ahead.

‘We stayed there on the way here,’ Spicer informed Julia.

Maggie was exclaiming at the brightly painted cottages, and the snow which still covered the ground, when the coach tilted alarmingly. Julia looked out of the window and saw they were about to descend a steep slope towards a ford at the bottom of a little river valley.

She hung out of the window, watching anxiously. It was bitterly cold, and she was thankful for her warm cloak with the hood. The slush they had been driving through was hardening into icy ruts. One of the horses slipped, but managed to regain his feet. The coach slowed to a crawl, and they reached the bottom of the slope without mishap. On the opposite side of the river the road rose more gently, and Julia breathed a sigh of relief. If it had been equally as steep the horses might not have been able to pull the coach up it.

She glanced down at the water, very shallow here in the path of the ford, but immediately downstream it seemed to dive into a deep pool, where it swirled and eddied round huge boulders.

They had almost reached the far side, and the horses were out of the water, when Julia heard an ominous cracking sound, and before she could think what it was the coach listed sideways, only prevented from toppling over by one huge boulder.

Maggie fell against Julia, and the door swung open. Because Julia was holding onto it she managed to break her fall, and cling onto the side of the coach, but Maggie, screaming, fell past her, and vanished into the swirling waters of the downstream pool. Julia could not have described exactly what happened next. She was only aware of the luggage, torn from the roof of the coach, falling past her, and being hit by the odd corner as the trunks slithered into the river.

In the midst of the confusion she thought she heard Williams shouting, and then the coach was being dragged along by the terrified horses. She clung on to the wildly swinging door, but it was being torn away from the hinges. Julia glanced desperately over her shoulder, and saw that within moments she would be smashed to pieces against the boulder.

There was only one thing to do, and Julia, taking a deep breath, let go and dropped into the icy water.

They were almost at Frankfurt when Fanny accepted the truth. For some days she had tried to persuade herself that the constant nausea she was suffering was no more than the result of the indifferent food they often had at the inns, combined with the jolting of the coach. But she had been pregnant too often to mistake the signs now. Her brief reconciliation with Frederick had been fruitful.

She didn’t know whether to be pleased or otherwise. Several times in the past she had conceived, only to lose the child a month or so later. Would it happen again, and if so, would she be relieved or sorry? She loved her children and would have liked a large family. But if she carried this one to term, bringing up another child when the future was so uncertain, and she didn’t know whether Frederick would ever return to her, was a daunting prospect. On the other hand, it might prove to be the longed-for son and heir. If that happened, would Frederick come back? If he did, how would she treat him?