Chapter Thirteen
‘And mindful what is said’
It was an anxious Julia who awaited Gerald’s arrival the next day for their afternoon ride. Somewhat to her chagrin, he arrived full of high spirits as if nothing of consequence had occurred between them, and in a short time they were galloping together over the familiar countryside.
When they slowed to a walk, Julia turned towards him. ‘I visited Wentworth Hall yesterday and I saw your horse there.’
Gerald looked suitably startled. ‘What on earth were you visiting the Wentworth’s for? The family are up in London!’
Julia found herself considerably nettled. How dare he start questioning her! She leaned down the side of Athene as if to remove some grass from her stirrup and she took a moment to answer.
‘Caroline asked me to visit Mrs Carew, the housekeeper, who is looking after her parrot, Lockinvar, and make sure he is not pining in her absence.’
He burst out laughing and Julia threw him a withering look.
‘It is not that amusing. Parrots do pine and Caroline is much attached to him. Mrs Carew is fond of the bird and he seems quite happy. May I ask what you were doing there with the family all away in London?’
Gerald fiddled with his whip before answering. ‘I had some business with Sir Henry and he returned home so it could be completed.’
‘Goodness! It must have been important for him to return so soon as they have only recently left.’
He sent her a sharp look and then suddenly looked sulky.
‘Sir Henry has wanted to lease some of my land for some time now and finally we agreed on a price. It was his decision to rush back to complete the legalities. That’s why I was there yesterday.’
Thoughts raced through Julia’s head. It certainly seemed logical, and yet … He had not mentioned any third party and there was no carriage at the house or any other horse being exercised. Perhaps Sir Henry had brought the other gentleman down from London with him, but Mrs Carew had said that Sir Henry arrived alone.
Julia shot him a glance and could see he was out of humour and decided not to renew the subject. For a moment she thought of asking him about his experiences in India, but she remembered his reluctance to talk of his time there and instead mentioned the forthcoming marriage of the Royal dukes.
‘Bah, who really cares about those old fools.’
She was surprised by the vehemence in his voice. As if aware of her disapproval, he smiled and added, ‘At least they are not as bad as those useless Bourbons.’
Julia looked shocked. ‘Would you have Bonaparte in their place?’
The look he gave her was intense.
‘Yes, I would. The Emperor is a brilliant general and has done amazing things for the people of France. Why the Code Napoleon alone…’
He checked himself and gave her a rueful smile. ‘You will think this is traitor’s talk but apart from his enmity with England, which was fostered more by political intrigue, he did many great things and it would have been far better if the throne had been saved with a Regency for the King of Rome until he was of age to rule, than let those corrupt Bourbons back.’
‘The King of Rome is only a child! Why, he is back in Austria with his mother, the Archduchess Marie-Louise.’
‘Yes, while the cowardly Austrian Emperor keeps him a closely guarded prisoner instead of letting his nephew have his rightful inheritance to the throne of France.’
The ferocity in his voice astounded her.
‘As for his mother, that useless cow, oh pardon, Julia, but truly! She showed no loyalty to the Emperor, and has had an ongoing affair with one of her brother’s sycophants, Count Neipperg.’
Julia was amazed at his knowledge, despite the fact that most of the scandal sheets of the day carried such gossip.
As if reading her thoughts, he nodded his head and added. ‘Yes, I know a lot of it is gossip but it also happens to be true. There is a strong Bonapartist party in place and I shouldn’t be at all surprised to see that gouty old fool Louis XVIII overthrown.’
Julia checked Athene as she stumbled on a rabbit hole. She looked across at Gerald in wonder. So, he was a Bonapartist sympathiser! How could he be so stupid! And who would have thought Gerald Hamilton would be so intense about French politics?
He was certainly an ongoing revelation. However, she could not help but feel uneasy, for despite the peace with France since Waterloo, the thought of a Bonaparte on the throne of France was an anathema to her, and, she suspected, to most of the populace. Certainly the Bourbons left much to be desired in their past history, but the upstart Corsican had plunged all of Europe into war on a scale never seen before and the world was weary of it. No, the thought of that occurring again was too horrific to comprehend and she couldn’t understand why he was so blind not to see it.
‘Enough of this, let’s gallop,’ he cried, and off they went for half a mile before he slowed and reined alongside her. He kept up a light banter and acted so free of any formality or discord between them, that Julia’s reserve thawed and, despite herself, she joined in his good humour and found herself enjoying the outing exceedingly.
On their return to the stables, he proposed that they ride together again on the following day. She felt she should refuse just to let him see that she hadn’t totally forgiven him for his previous rudeness. No verbal apology had been forthcoming.
Instead, she found herself weakly agreeing. So it was with mixed feelings she left Athene with Jimmy and made her way back to the house to find Ridges hovering by the door.
‘Miss Farraday, I have spoken to Wyatt and he has agreed to meet with you. He will come tomorrow morning at ten o’clock. Is that suitable for you?’
Julia felt he looked worried and nervous, as if unsure that it would be wise for them both to meet.
‘Of course, Ridges. Thank you for finding him and arranging a time for me to see him.’
She smiled warmly, although inwardly she dreaded the encounter. Despite what she had said, Wyatt frightened her, but she was determined his employment would finish and somehow she had to know what his connection was with her great uncle. Why had he been left such a legacy? Why had he been in the house at that hour on that fateful night? These were the questions that kept gnawing at her and until she had some satisfactory answers to the riddle, Julia knew she would have no peace.
After an unsettled night, Julia awoke with a headache and a feeling of dread at the prospect of her interview with Wyatt. As the clock in the morning room struck the hour of ten, Ridges ushered Wyatt into the room. He seemed to fill the room with his malevolence and it took all her composure to rise from her chair rather than shrink down into it.
‘Thank you for coming to see me, Wyatt.’
She was pleased that her voice was steady and she forced her eyes to meet his.
‘What do you want from me?’ His voice was scornful, and there was the usual unpleasant sneer on his face.
She ignored his remark and spoke calmly.
‘I know you were a loyal retainer of my great uncle, Wyatt, and that he obviously thought highly of you by the bequest he made to you in his will.’
She took a deep breath and continued on. ‘I must confess I don’t completely understand the association you had with my great uncle.’
‘Nor you should. You are a newcomer here. You know nothing of this village or this house.’ He leaned forward, glaring at her, spittle at the corner of his mouth.
‘You know nothing of Mr Farraday, nothing!’
He was shouting now, looming over her, breathing heavily.
‘Of course, you are right,’ she added hastily. ‘That’s why I have invited you here today. Can you please tell me, of my great uncle, the things I don’t know.’
He looked at her in amazement and then gave an unpleasant laugh.
’Do you think I’m going to tell you about Mr Farraday’s doings? If you value your safety, the less a chit of a girl like you knows, the better. Do you understand?’
Julia felt he
r colour rise at his rudeness.
‘Can you please tell me what you were doing in the house on the night of my great uncle’s death?’
Wyatt stepped forward menacingly and Julia instinctively shrank back. ‘What business I had with your great uncle that night was between the two of us and is naught to do with you. However, if you think I caused Mr Farraday any injury that night, you are wrong. I have harmed more than a few in my time but what happened to him was an accident.’
‘How do you know it was an accident?’
‘Because no one in this house would harm the master, and he was found dead at the bottom of the stairs with his neck broke where he’d fallen, so if that’s not an accident, tell me what is?’
There was silence between them, broken only by the ticking of the clock and his heavy breathing. Julia felt defeated. There was obviously no point in continuing the conversation as he was so aggressive and determined to thwart her in every way.
Despite this, she felt he was telling the truth about her great uncle’s death and that he had no part in it.
‘If you want to know more about your great uncle you should ask your friend, Mr Hamilton.’
This was said with a sardonic look and Julia felt her heart skip a beat.
‘I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, Wyatt. However, I’ll remember your words and will indeed speak to Mr Hamilton. Do you intend to stay on in the village now that your circumstances have changed?’
Again he gave the same sly smile. ‘You’d like to be rid of me, wouldn’t you, Miss? Well, you’ll know soon enough, but until then, my plans are my own. Still, you won’t have me around here anymore and that should make you happy.’
She ignored this remark despite the immediate relief she felt, and instead said, ‘Thank you for coming today and I wish you every joy for the future.’
He gave her a look of pure hatred, turned and walked out of the room, leaving Julia trembling and no wiser about the events that had occurred in her great uncle’s time than before. Yet why had Wyatt spoken of Gerald Hamilton as if he was privy to secrets of the past? Well, she would certainly speak to Gerald and that would be a great deal pleasanter than having to deal with Wyatt.
Sinking into the nearest chair, Julia prayed fervently that she would never have to see the hateful Wyatt again.