Zemindar (74 page)

‘Now do you see what you have done, Mr Roberts? You’ve scared the poor little creature out of her wits. You really have no business to go around spreading alarm in this fashion. Surely we all have enough to contend with?’ Kate spoke wrathfully, while I comforted Emily. Mr Roberts, honestly surprised at being taken so seriously, stood up in some confusion.

‘My dear Mrs Flood, forgive me. I had no idea that you could still be in ignorance of the true position. I was just making plain the facts as I see them, and I certainly had no wish to add to your …’

‘Yes, yes, Mr Roberts, but I think we have had enough hard facts for one morning. I am sure you are needed somewhere else.’ And without further ceremony, Kate opened the door and ushered him out, still apologizing.

‘Hush now, Emily! He’s a fussy little man and can’t see the wood for the trees. Don’t cry, child. There is absolutely no way of knowing how many men are on the other side of the wall; no responsible man would even hazard a guess, so pay no attention to Mr Roberts.’

Kate sat down again. ‘Sure, and don’t I know ’em. They’re all alike, these know-all, fussbody civilians, and never a one of ’em has laid eyes on any angry man. Figures! Statistics! Information! They never reckon on such a thing as fighting spirit! And what’s more, there is one fact that our Mr Roberts is doing his best not to face, and that is that he is plain scared himself!’ She sniffed her disapproval. ‘So cheer up now, Emmie. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about, believe me. We’ll manage without Sir Henry if we have to, and without Mr Roberts’s forty thousand men too. Irresponsible creature that he is!’ She sniffed again.

‘I hope there is really no truth in the other matter he mentioned,’ I said.

‘Oh, couldn’t be, woman dear. Just Mr Roberts again; though, mind you, old Buggins is almost as much of an alarmist himself. The Nana Sahib would never descend to treachery. Remember he was a friend of ours. To fight us is one thing. But treachery? Never!’

‘What were you saying about Oliver? Is he really in Cawnpore?’ Emily asked through her handkerchief as she wiped her nose.

‘Toddy-Bob said he might have gone there, but just for a few days. On some business he had to attend to in regard to Hassanganj, I suppose,’ I replied, deliberately vague.

‘Then he’d have been with General Wheeler, Laura?’

‘Not he! You should know him better than that, Em. Can you see him joining the military? In anything?’

‘Well, I do hope not, because if there has been trouble in Cawnpore, then he might be involved in it.’

‘Never! He is undoubtedly safe in Hassanganj and happily reconciled to remaining there until all this is finished. He must know that he could not get through the city to reach us, and so remaining in Hassanganj would be the commonsense thing to do. He’ll turn up in due course, when all the unpleasantness is over.’

‘Oh, I do hope so! And I wish he was here now, even though I know I sound selfish. I really do; I’d feel so much safer if he were here.’

My tone to Emily had been robust and reassuring, but my mind was far from quiet on Oliver’s account. What if, despite his avowed opinions and probable desires, he had somehow become involved in the trouble at Cawnpore? And what if there truly had been treachery on the part of the Nana Sahib? What if …?

But such conjecture was fruitless, and I resolved not to harbour any hypothetical anxiety to add its weight to my actual burdens.

That evening, Sir Henry Lawrence was buried in the churchyard on the river side of the enclosure, sewn up in a grey blanket and in a common grave with eleven other men who had died during the day. Not even for him was there room for a separate grave, or time or labour to dig one. The barrage continued without interruption during the brief service. No bugle sounded as they laid Sir Henry to rest so hurriedly, no solemn roll of drums, no Last Post, no fusillade of honour. Only the rifles and round shot and shell blast of the men whom he once had commanded—on both sides of the barricade.

George Barry, thinking they would prefer it, had arranged for all three Hassanganj volunteers, Charles, Toddy-Bob and Ishmial, to serve together at Fayrer’s battery, but the day after the death of Sir Henry Lawrence Toddy-Bob dropped in to tell us that he had ‘fixed himself up’ at Gubbins’s battery instead and, since he would have to sleep there, we would be seeing rather less of him. I was careful not to enquire how Toddy had managed to bring about this transfer; his transactions, of whatever nature, were generally better left severely to him; but I did ask why he had wanted it.

‘I thought you had no use for Mr Gubbins, Tod?’ I said. ‘Why the sudden desire to fight at his battery?’

‘Well, and that’s true enough, Miss Laura; ’e’s not a character as I can admire personal like, not knowing the amount of rumours and such like as is going about regardin’ him, ’specially now. You’ve ’eard that ’e’s kickin’ up a ruckus about Sir ’Enry appointing Major Banks to take over from ’im?’ I nodded. ‘And, Miss Laura, did you know that it was ’e who nagged Sir ’Enry into going out to Chinhat? Told ’im it were ’is duty to make an example of the pandies as were comin’ from Cawnpore, ’e did. Sir ’Enry, they say, didn’t like the idea at all, not knowin’ just ’ow many of them there would be, like, but ’e went out because old Gubbins pushed ’im to it. And look what ’appened then!’

‘That’s the merest gossip, Tod,’ I said sternly. ‘We have no business to believe such things. It won’t do any good to rake it up now that it’s finished.’

‘Oh, but it ain’t just gossip, Miss Laura! I knows a chap as was at the Residency steps when Sir ’Enry galloped in after the battle, and ’is first words were—and this is true, so ’elp me, Miss Laura—’is first words were: “Well, Gubbins has had his way and I ’opes ’e ’as ’ad enough of it!” Them’s ’is words exact!’

‘Then why ever are you so anxious to protect his house?’

‘Simple, Miss Laura. Because of what’s in it!’

‘Oh, Toddy!’ I said more in sorrow than in anger, while Emily giggled.

‘Well now, Miss Laura, you knows ’as ’ow I wouldn’t do anythin’ dishonest, like. But it’s come to my notice that a man can come by a fair amount of stuff at that battery, and all quite legitimate. Buggins hands out cigars and sugar and even beer, so they tell me, and I got to thinkin’ there was no use passin’ by such an opportunity. Never knows when we might need a little somethin’ extra, for the nipper perhaps or if one of us got took sick, so it’s best that I should be there. That’s all.’

‘Well, it’s a good safe place, I gather, and Mr Gubbins was in a position to provision it adequately, so I hope you will be happy there. But don’t forget us, Tod. We’ll miss not having you here.’

‘Gawd love you, no, miss. I shan’t forget you. Not till the Guv’nor gets in leastways, and after that, well, I’ll be free to mind me own business. Not that it’s any ’ardship keepin’ an eye on you, mind, but a body gets to feel a bit tied all the same.’

‘You feel tied to—me?’

‘Yes, miss, only natural as I would.’

‘But how … why …?’

‘Because the Guv’nor says ’as ’ow you was to be the special care of me and Ishmial. ’Spect he figured as ’ow Mr Charles would do right by Miss Emily, but you had no one, like,’ he finished lamely.

‘Well, that was very good of Mr Erskine, Toddy, and I appreciate his thoughtfulness, but please believe yourself as free as air. I am only too happy to exonerate you from all responsibility for my welfare.’

‘That’s as may be, miss, but the Guv’nor ’asn’t said so, and I’d a deal sooner wait for the word from ’im.’

‘Well …’

‘Oh, no trouble, miss! Leastways, I’d sooner put up with you than the trouble the Guv’nor would make for me if ’e were to find as ’ow I’d neglected me duty. So if you don’t mind …?’

‘Well, so long as you want it your way. At least we understand each other, and I’ll try not to be too much of a burden.’

‘Thank you, miss.’ And Toddy touched his cap and swayed off with his rolling gait, clutching his bedding roll to his bosom.

‘Well, that’s one mouth less to feed,’ I said as he disappeared. ‘I hope Mr Gubbins’s largesse will come up to his expectations.’

‘And how truly considerate of Oliver Erskine to give you
two
nursemaids!’ remarked Emily acidly. ‘Perhaps if he had known just how little comfort my husband would be to me, he might have let me have a share in one of them at least.’

‘Oh, Emily, it’s no good adopting that attitude, surely? Charles can’t be here more than he is, and that’s all there is to it. You must face up to it. We are as protected as anyone can be in this building and he knows it; you can’t expect him to keep running in to see how you are doing every hour or so.’

‘I have seen him for precisely forty-five minutes in the last twenty-four hours, Laura. I think he owes me more time than that.’

‘And, Emily,’ broke in Kate quietly, ‘I think you owe him more understanding … and indeed more sympathy. Use your imagination, girl! Have you any idea of what it is like trying to snatch some sleep, fully clothed, with a gun firing no more than a few feet from you every few minutes?’

‘Then why doesn’t he come and sleep here like a decent Christian?’

‘Oh, you make me lose all patience, Emily! Do you think he wouldn’t if he could?’

‘Yes! Yes, I do think just that! I think he would much prefer to remain with the other men, in the … the excitement and … and companionship, than come here and have to remember his responsibilities as a husband and a father. He is just selfish!’

‘Kind Lord Jesus, forgive her!’ prayed Kate in exasperation. ‘Emily, you are coming up for a good painful jolt, and I’ll be glad to see you get it. And that’s the truth.’

‘Oh, of course, it’s always I who am in the wrong! I must always pay for other people’s mistakes, mustn’t I? I’ve heard it all so often, from Charles and Laura and you, Kate, in your own way. I’m giddy and thoughtless and spoilt, and life has always treated me too kindly. Well, it’s not treating me kindly now, is it? And it hasn’t treated me kindly ever since we stepped on to that wretched boat to come out here. Nothing has gone right for me since—nothing! Charles doesn’t care for me, doesn’t even consider me as he should, and I’d like to have seen you, Kate Barry, having a baby in Hassanganj without even a proper midwife; and then that dreadful journey when we expected to be killed every minute, and now this! I didn’t ask for any of it. I wasn’t brought up to deal with these things, so it’s not my fault if I can’t. And … and it is, it
is
up to Charles to see that I don’t suffer too much, whatever you say, Kate. I …’ But here she burst into tears of tired indignation, and ran into the other room where the beds were, to weep in private.

‘Lord, now what have I done?’ said Kate contritely.

‘Nothing more than I have wanted to do for some time,’ I replied. ‘It won’t do much good though. But perhaps a good cry will clear the air for a while. We mustn’t be too hard on her, Kate. She has had a harder time than you realize, and she is very young.’

‘Weren’t we all—once?’

‘But we didn’t have to put up with this!’

‘You’re right. I must learn to hold my tongue. All the same, m’dear, it was rather charming of Oliver to appoint Toddy as your bodyguard, now wasn’t it?’

‘Yes, it was. I only wish Toddy didn’t let it weigh him down so.’ And we both laughed.

She went back to her own quarters soon afterwards, and stayed away all next day to allow the upset to be forgotten. Emily was silent and sullen, and when Charles came in that evening pleaded the customary female headache and retired to her bed sooner than have to entertain him.

‘Something the matter?’ he whispered as she went. Everything said in the one room could be heard in the other.

I shrugged and shook my head with a finger against my lips.

‘Oh!’ he said, understanding, and then in his normal voice, ‘Well, I can’t be bothered with what’s going on here, but we have one more serious worry, which will give you something else to think of, Emily.’ Hearing her name, Emily came to the communicating archway and listened.

‘Mining! The devil only knows why they want to go to the trouble of mining when one good assault would have them inside in no time, but if you girls hear anything unusual underfoot, you’re to report it immediately, understand?’

‘Mining? But what is it? I don’t understand,’ Emily objected irritably.

‘Mining is mining—digging tunnels, burrowing if you like, under the ground till you think you are in the right spot to effect a breach. Then a barrel of powder, a fuse, a match and—whoosh!—up goes the tunnel, defences and all and, with any luck, you have your breach in the defences. That’s all it is. Simple. And it could be deadly. So keep your ears open; not that I expect you’re in a position to hear much in this place. But you never know.’

‘What can be done about it?’ I wondered. It seemed an intricate method of attaining a simple end, for I still did not realize what effect a breach would have, though I had a vivid mental picture of the defences themselves.

‘We’ll have to countermine. Drive our own tunnels towards the pandies’, and blow theirs in before they can damage ours.’

‘But how will we know where they are?’ I objected.

‘We’ll hear ’em, that’s how. As I said, you must listen for them, picks tap-tapping away at the earth, that sort of thing.’

‘Much chance we have of hearing anything in this racket,’ I pointed out, and set to work to prepare a meal.

The siege had been in progress for two or three days before I realized that the noise of gunfire would never stop. For some reason, mostly ignorance of how such matters are normally conducted, I had expected peace at night, at least after the initial effort, and perhaps a lull at midday, as though the combatants would keep normal working hours. But the firing never ceased and seldom even diminished by night or day. The pandies knew our weakness and their own strength, and it stood to their benefit to allow us no respite. If what Mr Roberts had said was true, if there were really between 40,000 and 60,000 men ranged against us, they could afford to man their guns every hour of the twenty-four. For us it was a different matter. And now this new threat of mining considerably increased the already acute sense of insecurity.