By morning the sky had clouded over
and the grey light that filtered through lace curtains revealed the flaws that
all Lucy's efforts could not quite conceal There was a crack across the
ceiling; the wall-paper was faded; the fire had died, leaving only grey ashes
in the grate. Caroline, snuggling under a quilted satin coverlet, felt a chill
of loneliness. The room was so small, so closed in. She had a feeling that more
than walls confined her, the rules of a society that could bind her more
effectively than the strictures of either aunt. Maybe she had not chosen so
well, after all.
A gentle tap at the door, and Maureen
appeared. It was good to see her rosy, smiling face.
“Good morning,” Miss Caroline,” she
greeted, brightly, “I have brought you a dress to wear. 'Twas Miss Lucy's, but Annie let down the hem. Would you
like the fire lit?”
“Oh no, Maureen. When was I ever used to fires in my
bedroom? I'll get up.”
“Well, to tell you the truth, I don't
want to be on the stairs too much this mornin'.
HIMSELF'S not in the best fettle. There's a good fire in the breakfast room,
an' a good breakfast on the table ..... if you care to face him.”
“Is my sister there?”
“She is, an' Annie says that's a new
thing, for she seldom rises before eleven.”
“What's the matter, Maureen?”
“Divil a know I know. Annie says he gets moods, but this one's
blacker than usual. Even Miss Lucy's a bit quiet of herself. Annie thinks it's
because Hugh Ro’s gone. Not hilt nor hair of him to be
seen anywhere.”
“But Captain Seveny
wouldn't worry about him, would he?”
“No, unless he was plannin'
on givin' him the send-off himself. Maybe it was a gunk he got an' the
bird flown. Why would you think he'd go so quick?”
“Maybe he was tired playing jester.
Maybe he had other things to do.”
“You don't seem much surprised.”
“I'm not, Maureen. You see, I knew he
had gone. We're going to miss him anyway ..... tell me how you enjoyed the musical evening.”
“I liked it well enough, but it wasn’t
the same as the ceilidhes with everybody knowin' everybody an' all friendly. There wasn't the same
heart in it, but everybody tryin' to do the right
thing an' watchin' everybody else to see whether they
minded their manners. Manners! Some of them haven't such fine manners when the
light's off them.”
“Why do you say that?”
“I had my own time of it after you
left. This fine gentleman of a lieutenant took me up to dance. Very
condescending, he was, doin' me a great favour, an'
me noways keen to be asked at all. It was from me he
was expectin' the favours, after the party ended. He
overtook Annie an' me an' us walkin' home by the
short-cut. Japers Miss, a girl has to have her wits about her in the dark lanes
of the town ..... especially
when a gentleman has honoured her with his han' in
the dance. Like, you'd think he bought me or somethin'.
It's as well I had Annie with me; she knows them all, an' she knows what she's
worth as a lady's maid, so she's able to make her point. She did that last
night, an' no mistake, said I was her cousin an' I was no man's plaything. Gave
it to him right an' left, she did, an' me shakin'
like a leaf all the while.”
“What about the banshee wail; did you
forget it?”
“Oh miss, I
couldn't raise that in the town. I'd be locked up, true as goodness. Oh, you'll
not tell Miss Lucy about this, will you? She might tell HIM.”
“I won't say a word, Maureen. Our secrets
are our own. Precious little else is.”
It was a comfort to
have Maureen brush her hair. As she brushed, the girl chattered away,
talking of the previous night, mimicking the pretentious ladies of the company,
making faces in the mirror, flicking an imaginary fan, till Caroline laughed
and forgot all her loneliness. They drew closer together in their exile, each
conscious of relying on the other and both a little scared in spite of their
laughter. When Caroline appeared in the breakfast room, she looked happy and
serene in a fresh, flounced cotton dress of pale green.
Lucinda was seated at the tea urn.
Apart from being a trifle pale, she seemed cosy and serene in her pink velvet
wrap, her light hair becomingly tousled. Seveny wore
a rather strained expression. Nodding coolly to Caroline, he fell on his
kidneys and bacon as though he had nothing else in his mind. Lucinda smiled and
indicated a chair.
“I trust you slept well, Caroline,”
she said, gently. “You must have been tired.”
Caroline nodded. For a few minutes
they exchanged little pleasantries as Lucy poured tea and passed a warm plate,
urging her to eat the food which, indeed, was tempting on this rather chilly
morning. Presently Seveny laid down his knife and
fork and launched anew into the diatribe she had interrupted:
“These pernicious emissaries, under
various guises, move about the country, putting ideas into poor folks' heads.
They tell the labouring classes that they are treated unfairly
..... that they should own the land ..... should be free of their masters ..... that
they should take action. You know well enough how the poison has spread ..... how peaceful peasants
have taken it on themselves to defy law and order and disobey their employers,
and commit the most unthinkable depredations in the cause of so-called freedom.
Read any newspaper and what do you find? A catalogue of robberies, hold-ups,
arson, cattle-houghing, ambuscades. It has been said
that there is 'an open season for shooting magistrates'. Your Aunt Millicent
must have told you how her father lived with his gun primed and ready for the
“Of course she did, most tediously,
darling Gerard; but I still cannot see what all that has to do with Hugh Ro.
Can you, honestly?”
“I can prove nothing. I intended to
question him closely and have a watch set on his movements. I have no doubt
that he is sufficiently involved to merit being sent to serve in his majesty's fleet ..... the proper training
school for those who know no discipline but their own wild thoughts. As he has
escaped, I can only hope it will be for the moment. He ought, at least, to be
conscripted for the militia. We need men like him on our side, rather than on
the side of lawlessness.”
“Oh Gerry dear,” Lucinda said with a
sigh, “you are being very tiresome this morning. I cannot possibly follow your
flights of imagination at this hour. It is quite too exhausting. Last night's
entertainment seems to have upset you. You hate mixing with tradespeople,
don't you? You find their flattery tiresome.”
“Tiresome, but necessary. We are threatened on all sides, and
our ranks are seriously thinned to provide men for the war with
“Of course,” Lucinda agreed wearily, “I
should have thought our little entertainment pleased them mightily. I cannot
think how it would do otherwise. Ah me, how the twists and turns of politics
confuse my little head. I really cannot think .....”
“Then you must be guided by me. What
you did last night may have been amusing for you, and diverting for others ..... at the time. They talk
later. In future, I hope you will consult me before you choose casual
entertainers, and see that they are present purely to entertain. Any familiarity
sets tongues wagging.”
“Really! Why then, is it all right for Lord Ballinmore to engage wandering minstrels to amuse his
assemblies, to treat them like friends, feed them on the best and ply them with
poteen?”
“Lord Ballinmore
entertains as a private person.”
“Last night's assembly was private
..... strictly by invitation.”
“The invitations were rather lavishly
distributed, and the venue was a public place. We of the garrison are public
persons; we must behave in the best interest of the public, at least of the
loyal citizenry.”
“You sound exactly like Aunt
Millicent,” Caroline said innocently.
That was too much. Seveny
rose so suddenly that he overturned his chair. He did not reply but, kissing
Lucy as he passed, took an abrupt leave of the
breakfast table. His thunderous look alarmed Caroline. Lucy said nothing till
the hall door slammed; then she turned on her a languid smile.
“Poor dear Gerard,” she said sweetly, “he
must have had too much of Mrs Broker's rhubarb wine last night. It looked a
pretty malignant potion. I saw him gulp down to get rid of it. Of course she
re-filled his glass immediately ..... you should have seen his face.”
“I saw his face this morning. Have I
offended him?”
“No more than I did. Never mind his
moods, my dear. I have learnt not to. I can always win him round again. I have
the advantage this time. From now on he will be the sweetest husband on earth,
a perfect lamb; Lucy mustn't be upset; it might be bad for the baby.”
“Oh Lucy, you're really going to have
a baby?”
“Yes Caroline, I am. Just wait and see
what the news will do to Gerry. I'll be the most pampered wife imaginable. Why
so grave, Caroline?”
“I can't help wondering if Gerard
resents my coming.”
“Nonsense, my dear! Whatever you do, don't brood;
remember you have got to keep me cheerful and amused. You can begin now by
helping me pick out some baby garments. A most wonderful catalogue has just
arrived from