by Jude Bayton
“Until tomorrow,” he said softly.
I RECOGNISED MANY OF THE landmarks on our way to Kendal, for I had accompanied Evergreen not so long ago. But where the town had brought joy and a happy day of shopping, visiting the gaol brought me low.
The constabulary was a dreary old building, and though the attached gaol had been added on in later years, it was shabby, dismal, and unclean. Dominic preceded me through the myriad of locked gates until we finally arrived at a row of cells. The air was damp, and there was an odour of unwashed bodies and unsanitary conditions borne in the air.
As the young constable stopped in front of the first metal door, I composed myself and fought against the acid in my throat, bobbing in protest at the disgusting smell of the place. He pulled a large circlet of keys from his belt and banged on the door.
“Step away, Billy, you’ve visitors here.” He unlocked the door and then pushed it open. “In you go then, an’ mind you don’t upset him. He kept us up half the night with his shoutin’.”
Dominic nodded assent, and I followed him into the cell.
Billy lay on his side upon a narrow cot, his arms wrapped around bent knees which he hugged to his chest. At the sight of Dominic, he sat up, and I was shocked at how thin he had become. The robust chubby boy I remembered had been replaced by a hollow-cheeked youth, and the light in his eyes was snuffed.
“’Tis you, Dom,” he said, getting to his feet. The brothers embraced, and the sight was so moving I swallowed hard to compose myself.
“Look, Billy. Miss Jillian has come to see you like I promised. Do you remember her?” Dominic gestured to where I stood. The boy stared at me for a moment with a puzzled expression on his face.
I smiled broadly. “Hello, Billy,” I said. “I wanted to come and tell you I have visited your cows and they look very well.”
He blinked. “Did you see ’em babies too?”
“Yes,” I reassured. “They are getting very fat and growing taller each day.”
“I miss ’em, I do.” He looked crestfallen, and at once, I felt guilty.
“Do not be sad,” I said with as much assertion as I could muster. “They will still be there when you come home.” I caught Dominic’s quick glance my way and understood he was chastising me for making false promises.
“Billy,” Dominic said. “Miss Jillian wants to ask you some questions. Would you mind?” He led his brother back to the bed, and they both sat down. “I know you’ve had to talk to a lot of people. But Jillian is my dear friend, so that makes her your friend as well. Please talk to her because she’s trying to help us.”
“Tired of talkin’, Dom. Makes my head hurt, it does.”
“I understand. But Billy, you know I wouldn’t ask you unless it was really important.”
Billy nodded, and Dominic looked my way. There was a small wooden stool over by one wall. I set it near the bed and sat down. I had to look up to meet the stares of the Wolfe brothers, but I thought it a good idea to have my head lower than Billy’s—I would seem less intimidating that way.
“Billy. I want to talk to you about your work at Hollyfield.”
He gave a nod.
I smiled. “I know you work very hard for the LaVelle family.”
Another nod. “That Victor, I like him—he’s da number two. Right, Dom?” He looked at his brother.
“Yes, Billy.”
“Are you friends with the rest of the family?” I said gently. “Or the other people who work at Hollyfield?”
Billy gave a little grin. “I like that pretty girl who dusts an’ mops. She’s got yellow hair an’ sometimes gives me a biscuit from the kitchen.”
“That’s lovely,” I said. “She is nice to do that. What about the other ladies at the House? Do you know Miss Marabelle?”
He nodded. “Her face is always sad,” he said. “An’ she don’t say much to me.”
“And Miss Evergreen?” I added.
Billy’s expression changed entirely, and his demeanour became agitated. His eyes started to look around the cell, not settling upon anything in particular. The mention of his half-sister’s name had provoked a strong reaction.
“Does Miss Evergreen ever speak to you, Billy?”
He did not reply.
“Come, Billy,” prompted his brother. “’Tis all right to talk to Jillian like you are talking to me. Don’t be afraid.” He squeezed his brother’s hand.
Billy’s eyes met mine, and at once, I saw how troubled they were. What was this then? Something had definitely happened to make him so reluctant to speak of her.
“Please, Billy, it is so helpful if you can answer my questions. You won’t get in any trouble by talking about Miss Evergreen to me. I promise.”
Billy licked his lips. “She don’t like me,” he said. “She calls me bad names.”
I steeled myself. I could not show how his words affected me. The time for empathy would come later. “What sort of names?” I asked.
“She says I’m stupid an’ a fat idiot. She don’t want me near the house.”
Dominic stiffened—this was difficult for him to hear. I hoped he would remain quiet.
“Why do you think Evergreen says those nasty things, Billy?”
“Cause, she don’t want to be my sister. She only likes Perry an’ Marik and Dom. She don’t like Miss Marabelle neither. I heard her shoutin’ at her I did.” He looked at Dominic as though he had just told him a secret. Dominic said nothing but put an arm about his brother’s shoulders.
“Is Miss Evergreen mean to anyone else?”
Billy looked as though he was thinking hard. Then he gave a sly grin. “Well, I thought she was being mean, ’cause it looked like she was tryin’ to squash him. But then he started laughin’, so I thought she was ticklin’ him instead.” Beside him, Dominic frowned. I pressed on.
“Who was it you saw her with, Billy?”
“She was playin’, and her top come down. An’ he just laughed an’ tickled her as well. I ain’t never seen Miss Evergreen have so much fun. He must be her best friend.”
“Who was she playing with?” This time it was Dominic who asked.
Billy turned to him and grinned. “Jareth. They was rollin’ on the ground getting’ grass stuck in her hair. They were havin’ fun until they saw me.”
“What happened then?” I asked, holding my breath.
Billy’s face grew frightened. “He’s a big bully. He did chase me through the woods, an’ I got away, an’ he never caught me. I hid near the bunnies.”
“That was clever, Billy,” I said. “Were you scared the blacksmith would come and find you later?”
“I were at first, but I never saw him. Then she come an’ seen me in the woodshed after that day. She called me bad names, an’ I was frightened she might tell on me.”
“Miss Evergreen?” I prompted.
He nodded vigorously. “I never hurt her ever, but she said if I told about the blacksmith ticklin’ her, she’d tell Victor I hurt her. Said I’d get in lots of trouble an’ be sent to the madhouse and then she’d kill all the baby bunnies too.” His eyes grew teary, and he looked at his brother. “Don’t let her kill the bunnies, Dom. They're just little babies.”
“The bunnies are safe,” Dominic said quickly. “No one has hurt them, Billy.”
I had an idea. “Peggy Nash is looking after the bunnies, Billy. You know Peggy, don’t you?”
“My friend.” He smiled. “Gives me honey drops an’ I like ‘em.”
“Do you remember the last time you saw Peggy?” I continued.
He thought for a moment, and I knew it would be hard for Billy to parse time into real events, but it was worth a try.
“We was lookin’ at the bunnies.”
“She sounds like a nice friend. Were you looking at the bunnies with Peggy before the bully chased you, or was it after the bully chased you?”
“Oh, it were after. Peggy saw me an’ I was out of breath. I told Peggy the blacksmith’s a bad man an’ he chased
me. She don’t like him neither. He calls her names too.” He looked at Dominic. “Did you bring me humbugs, Dom?”
Dominic gave me a swift look conveying the questioning needed to be at an end as he rummaged in his pocket and handed Billy a small twist of paper containing several of the flavoured sweets. As the boy sucked on the mints, he looked at the book I had brought him and told us how much he liked the pictures of the train.
I kept quiet for the remainder of our visit. I watched closely as Dominic calmly conversed with the boy showing such dedication towards him. What other man would be so kind?
At length, Dominic rose to go. I left the cell first to allow them privacy as they said their goodbyes. Neither of us spoke until we stepped back into the fresh air with the gaol behind us.
“I cannot believe Evergreen has been so cruel to your brother.” It burst out of me before I could censor my tone. I was angry with her for picking on a boy who was unable to defend himself or articulate his feelings.
“It is typical of her,” Dominic said in a monotone voice. “She has always been frightfully nasty to anyone she is jealous of.”
I stopped in my tracks. “Jealous? Evergreen jealous of your brother? That’s a ridiculous notion.” Dominic was not thinking straight. I caught back up with him. “I don’t understand your meaning.”
“’Tis simple.” He said as we moved aside to allow a woman with several children room to pass on the pavement. “Evergreen has always detested seeing another as the recipient of her father’s attention. She disliked Marabelle for the same reason. It incenses her that Victor acknowledges Billy, because in her eyes he is a simpleton and unworthy of that privilege.” He grasped my arm and guided me across the street towards where we would wait for the Ambleside coach.
“Yet you do not sound affected by her opinion, Dominic?” And he did not. There was no outrage, He was curiously quiet.
“I have long since stopped being shocked by the behaviour of women like Evergreen. Remember,” he added. “I was in London while she was the toast of the town. Nothing she does surprises me.”
“Even her affair with Jareth Flynn?”
This time he stopped, and I did the same. I looked hard at his face and saw a mixture of emotion pass through his eyes. Something shifted inside me. What was this about?
“It appears our blacksmith was a target for many bored and lonely women in Ambleside,” he said. “That Evergreen partook is no surprise to me. What bewilders me is that she would be so careless. It was a similar affair which brought her to Hollyfield in the first place. If Victor ever finds out about Flynn, he will no doubt send her away and she’ll lose her inheritance.” He began to walk again. “Come Jillian. I see our coach; we must hurry else we will miss it.”
THE CARRIAGE WAS FULL, AND NEITHER one of us had much to say as it rumbled through the countryside. When we arrived in Ambleside, Dominic invited me to eat lunch with him, and we made our way to a tearoom across from the pub.
We ordered cheese sandwiches and a pot of tea. The place was quiet, and we were seated out of earshot from the other patrons.
“Thank you for visiting my brother,” Dominic said earnestly. “The gaol is no place for a lady, and I know how abhorrent you found it.” He reached over the table and took my hand. “The way you questioned Billy was both compassionate and brilliant. You instinctively seemed to know the best approach. I am pleasantly shocked by how open and responsive he was to your gentle coaxing.” His eyes shone. “Well done, Jilly. Well done indeed.” He released my hand.
“Thank you,” I replied. “Billy is a bright boy—his brain just uses information differently than most. I kept that in mind while I spoke with him.”
The waitress brought over our plates of sandwiches. We thanked her, and she left us to it.
I continued, “Billy’s memory of being with Peggy confirms everything she told me about seeing him the day Jareth died. I think Jareth chased Billy away when he was caught with Evergreen. He must have gone back to the boathouse and that is when an altercation occurred. One which made him lose his watch and then ultimately, his life. Billy was nowhere near the boathouse; I just wish we could convince the authorities. It is obvious someone else murdered the man. Lord knows he had enough enemies.”
“This situation gets more complex at every turn.” Dominic sipped his tea. “I wish we could confide all we know to Victor. I would welcome his expertise to sort it all out.”
“Then perhaps it is time you were honest with him? What of Evergreen’s threats to Billy? You cannot ignore what she said to him. At some point, you will have to tell Victor everything we know. Keeping secrets now is simply not worth it. You must put everything on the table if you want to prevent your brother from being found guilty. I know we do not yet have all the answers, but surely this information is sufficient enough to cast doubt for the jury.”
“You are right,” he agreed, yet his brow furrowed. “But I do not relish having to tell the man his daughter has been cavorting with a blacksmith and that his son loves another man. It will devastate him, Jillian. Victor is a strong and resilient person, but he is only human.”
“Who is only human?” We both glanced up at the unexpected interruption. Evergreen LaVelle raised one eyebrow as she stared at Dominic, and I wondered how much of our conversation she had overheard.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“WHY MY UNCLE, OF COURSE,” I said quickly. “We were speaking of his growing affection for our housekeeper. Dominic just finished telling me he thought Uncle Jasper was softening as he aged. I implied we humans are not meant to be alone. We crave the companionship of others. Wouldn’t you agree?”
Evergreen rolled her eyes. “Goodness, Jillian, what a lot of rubbish. Honestly, you do think the oddest things.” She scanned the table. “This is rather cosy. I had no notion the two of you were this well acquainted.” She gave a malevolent smile.
“Ah,” Dominic replied. “Miss LaVelle isn’t always privy to everything going on in Ambleside, after all.” His voice was stern.
“Oh, stop,” she pouted. “I was passing and saw you through the window. I wanted to ask if you had received your invitation from the Mountjoys?” She glanced first at me and then Dominic. We must have looked blank.
“To their dinner party!” She sounded exasperated. “Really, where have you both been? The invitations were delivered today. It is this coming Saturday. Doesn’t that sound marvellous?” Her lovely blue eyes shone.
“No. It seems inappropriate considering recent events,” Dominic said disdainfully. “Surely you do not plan to attend. You are in mourning after all.”
“Nonsense,” she snapped. “It’s not as though Marabelle was a close family member, is it? Besides, we have to go. Wilkie Collins has accepted an invitation for the weekend, and the dinner is in his honour.”
“The author, Wilkie Collins?” I could not help responding. He was a brilliant writer.
“Yes, who else?” she replied flippantly.
A figure appeared at the window—it was Perry. He knocked on the glass and waved, then gestured to his sister to hurry. Evergreen rolled her eyes. She turned to leave and then paused to look back at me. “Jillian, call on me in the morning, please. There is something important I wish to discuss with you.”
Before I could respond, she disappeared in a whirl of skirts. Dominic stared out of the window watching her retreating figure, his expression guarded. I fastened my eyes upon her, and the image of Jareth Flynn formed in my mind, then Billy. My emotions were mixed now I had learned more of who Evergreen LaVelle really was. I was unsure if I even wanted to be her friend.
I WALKED HOME RE-EXAMINING THE remainder of my conversation with Dominic after Evergreen had left the tearoom. He was adamant we refrain from telling Victor everything, at least for a few more days. He reasoned we should have more proof, see what else there might be to discover first. I disagreed. But this was his decision—Billy was his brother, not mine.
Upon arriving home, Uncle Jasper called
out a cheery hello, closely followed by a chuckle which sounded very much like Mrs Stackpoole’s laugh. I left them to themselves and went up to my room and sank down onto my bed with a sigh. What a strange day. My first and hopefully my last experience visiting a gaol, and then the subsequent information from Billy to think about. It confounded me. All at once I felt drained of energy. A light breeze wafted in through my open bedroom window, and I closed my eyes.
I awoke and found I had slept through the entire afternoon. I rose and hurried downstairs, where Mrs Stackpoole prepared dinner. She cooked mashed potatoes, fresh peas and beef rissoles, with rhubarb and custard for pudding. I ate heartily.
Uncle Jasper showed me our invitation to the Mountjoy’s dinner. Our conversation fastened around the subject of Wilkie Collins, the famous author who would be in attendance. Though I did not relish going to the same location where I’d witnessed Marabelle’s death not ten days hence, I was enthralled at the notion of meeting a writer of such renown. No doubt Mr Collins was a friend of Louisa’s. I would be so honoured meeting the man who had penned a book with the same title as the pendant in my pocket. The Moonstone had been a thrilling read from start to finish. I still had my copy, and with thoughts of reading it once again, much to Mrs Stackpoole’s, and Uncle Jasper’s surprise, I excused myself and had an early night.
AFTER LUNCHEON THE FOLLOWING day, I was alone in the house when I heard a carriage stop outside. I opened the door and found Evergreen standing on the step.
“Evergreen? What brings you here?”
Without answering, she pushed none-too gently past me and marched straight into the parlour. Fortunately, Uncle Jasper was out on the hills, or she would have made him jump out of his skin.
“I suppose you think yourself too important to do my bidding now, Jillian?” She rounded on me angrily as I followed her into the room.
“I beg your pardon?” I was taken aback by her venomous tone. “Is something amiss, Evergreen?”
“Amiss?” She rounded on me. “Oh, indeed it is. Do you not recall accepting an invitation to Hollyfield House for this very morning? Yet you saw fit not to come? I waited for two hours, and still, you did not appear. I presume there is good reason you did not send word to tell me you had changed your plans?”