‘It’s true I couldn’t see Julia’s child left to die,’ Francis admitted. ‘It was weak of me, I dare say. But I could not stand to have to look on the evidence of her infidelity either. I could not contemplate raising another man’s child. So… I did the best I could for her.’
‘I knew it!’ Selena cried triumphantly. ‘I knew the moment I set eyes on Charity that she was the child Julia kept weeping for until she made me sick with her pathetic behaviour. I knew it could be no coincidence.’
‘And so you brought her here to torment me,’ Francis said heavily. ‘You simply could not resist letting me know that you had learned what I did out of compassion all those years ago and taunting me with it. Well, that only goes to prove that I am not the only one who lets my emotions rule my head. If I had left Charity to die that night, none of this would have happened, I grant you. But neither would it have happened if you hadn’t brought her here for your own damned amusement.’
I was shaking now, shocked by the revelation that Francis had known all along of my existence, had even, for all I knew, placed me with the Palfreys. Was there some longstanding connection between them? Was that how Jem had come to be involved with Francis and Selena’s gang? Surely, oh surely, my own dear Joshua was not mixed up in this too? Was that the reason he had been so slow to assist me? I could hardly believe it, and yet my whole world had shifted around me once more and there was nothing but quicksand beneath my feet.
‘Did you know of this?’ I asked Jem.
He ignored me, instead addressing Francis and Selena. ‘This is getting us nowhere. For the love of God, you two, put your differences to one side and quarrel about them later if you must. We have more important things to worry about just now. Tom Stanton for one.’
‘Tom Stanton?’ Selena said sharply. ‘What about Tom Stanton?’
‘You made a mistake with him.’ Jem said to Francis. ‘He is the brother of Roger Stanton, the riding officer you were forced to dispose of some little while back, and no friend to you, I’m afraid. Even now he is away seeking that old turncoat Jud Falconer with the intention of finding proof to set the law on you – and destroying our most profitable organisation.’
Francis was on his feet. ‘The devil he is! Why in God’s name did I trust him?’
‘Because you are a fool, Francis,’ Selena said tartly. ‘You are right, Jeremiah, if Tom is abroad trying to put a case together against us there’s no time to waste. He must be found – and dealt with without delay.’
‘I’ve already set things in motion,’ Jem said. ‘I warned the landlord of the Tinners’ Arms to be on the lookout for him, and he will organise search parties in his district.’
I drew a quick sharp breath. The Tinners’ Arms, where we had stopped for my pasty! Jem had pretended it was out of concern for me; in fact he had been mustering the troops. I had had a bad feeling about that place – and I had been right. Would that my intuition had warned me about Jem! But then, I conceded, it had – and I had taken no notice. I had wanted someone to trust so badly that I had ignored Tom’s advice to confide in no one. Now I had made things a thousand times worse, and placed not only my life in danger, but Tom’s too. Even now he was being sought by the evil landlord and his cronies, and when they caught up with him there was little doubt that he would meet the same fate as his brother before him.
‘So, the roads to the north are covered,’ Selena said. ‘We must alert those to the south and west and have the word spread along the chain. Make ready to leave at once, Francis. Tom must be caught before he gets what proof he needs and goes to the authorities with it.’
‘I’ll take the fastest horse I have.’ Francis took a step towards the door, then looked back at Jem. ‘Will you come with me, Jeremiah?’
‘Better not,’ Jem drawled. ‘My horses are tired. And besides…’ He nodded in my direction.
‘Oh yes, what are we going to do about Charity?’ Francis asked.
‘I’m afraid Charity will have to be dealt with, and I think you are the one who should deal with her, Francis – even if you do it twenty years too late. We’ll keep her safe for you, don’t worry.’ Selena smiled coldly. ‘My, you are going to be busy! When you have taken care of Tom, then you can take care of Charity. And Julia too. It’s high time she was disposed of – and if you cannot bring yourself to do it, even now, then I will. Charlotte is growing up – she will soon begin asking awkward questions.’
‘You are unbelievable!’ I cried, but once again they ignored me as if I was no more than a minor inconvenience.
‘Off you go now,’ Selena instructed Francis, ‘and do take care not to disturb Mrs Durbin. I had thought these long afternoon naps of hers were getting to be a nuisance. Today, though, I must say it is quite convenient.’
Francis made a hasty departure and Selena, Jem and I were left alone.
‘So, little Charity,’ Selena said with a curl of her lip. ‘How are we going to ensure you do not make any more mischief until Francis returns?’
‘She’s a spirited little thing,’ Jem said. ‘She always was. I very much fear she may try to run away again and raise the alarm.’
‘I agree. And after all we have tried to do to make her feel at home here, too!’ Selena mocked me. ‘Well, there’s nothing for it, I’m afraid. You seemed to want to seek out the company of your mother, Charity. Perhaps we should oblige you. I think we should lock you with her in the attic. Just until we can put a more permanent solution into operation, that is.’
‘Pity,’ Jem said, eyeing me speculatively.
I returned his gaze furiously. ‘How could you do this, Jem? How can you be involved with something so terrible?’
He shrugged. ‘Perhaps the riches to be made are an inducement.’
‘But it’s against everything you were brought up to honour!’ I cried. ‘What would your papa and mama say if they knew?’
‘They don’t know though, do they?’ he returned smoothly. ‘And once you have been dealt with there’s no danger they ever will.’
‘You are wrong there!’ I declared. ‘I’ve already taken Joshua into my confidence. If I disappear he is certain to begin asking questions…’
The moment the words were out I could have bitten off my tongue. A steely glimmer came into Jem’s eyes.
‘Oh dear. You don’t mean poor pious Joshua has to be dealt with too!’
‘You wouldn’t!’ I cried, horrified. ‘Not your own brother!’
‘I’m afraid you know very little about me, Charity,’ Jem said amiably. ‘I’ve grown too used to my comfortable lifestyle since I threw in my lot with Francis. I don’t think I would let anything – or anyone – rob me of it now.’
‘How did you come to get involved with them?’ I asked before I could stop myself.
‘Oh, a lawyer’s clerk makes very little real money,’ Jem said lightly. ‘I was looking to improve my prospects and the Merlyns at Penwyn Hall pointed me in Francis’s direction.’
‘The Merlyns!’ I exclaimed. The very friends Selena had been staying with when she employed me. ‘So you knew, even when I came here…’
‘That they were smugglers, yes. And I knew Francis was the one who arranged for you to be fostered by my parents. Papa told me one day, though of course neither he nor I knew the reason behind it. He believed Francis had found you on the beach the morning after the wrecking when he was searching for survivors, all in the name of humanity.’
‘Jem, you are evil. As evil as they are!’ I said spiritedly. ‘Be sure your sins will find you out.’
‘You sound exactly like Papa,’ he said languidly. ‘I am growing tired of you berating me, Charity. I think, Selena, that it is time we locked her in the attic where she has no one to castigate but her poor mad mama.’
He pulled me to my feet, twisted my arms behind me and forced me out into the hallway. I fought, kicked and screamed, and the commotion brought Mrs Durbin to the kitchen door.
‘Lawks, whatever is going on?’ The colour was high in her c
heeks, her mouth working.
‘Unlock the door, Mrs Durbin,’ Selena commanded.
‘But…’
‘The door! Charity is going to join Miss Julia for a while. And I’ll thank you to keep silent about it.’
Mrs Durbin looked flustered and unhappy but she did as she was bid. Too many years of obedience had conditioned her; she would not argue with the woman who was her mistress, whatever her personal feelings.
Jem pushed me into the darkness. The door slammed shut behind me and the key turned in the lock.
* * *
‘Nancy! Oh, it is so good to see you! I have missed you so much!’
Julia’s face lit up when she saw me. I did not know what to say. How could I tell her this was no ordinary visit? That all my efforts to save her from her prison had ended in disaster, with me making things a thousand times worse, and we were both now in mortal danger.
I did not know what to say and I did not know what to do. Indeed, what could I do? I was now as much of a prisoner as she was, at the mercy of the Trevelyans. The best I could hope for was that when Mrs Durbin came to bring us food – if she came! – I could persuade her to help us. If only she would leave the door unlocked, I could try to make my escape and go for help. Perhaps she would even raise the alarm herself. But my hopes were faint indeed. Mrs Durbin, though not a bad woman, was too afraid for her home and the livelihood of herself and her husband to go against Francis and Selena, and I could offer her nothing in the way of inducement.
As for Tom… I could not see that Tom could come to my rescue either. Jem had put it abroad that he was a threat to the organisation and he would be dealt with the moment he showed his face – if he was not dead already.
My stomach clenched at the thought. I tried to close my mind to it and could not. If Tom were dead then I could scarcely care what happened to me. But I must care – for Julia’s sake, and Charlotte’s too. Hopeless as it seemed, I must remain strong and resourceful. I must try to find a way out of this nightmare for the three of us.
It was almost dark already in the attic. With trembling hands I lit the lamps and began searching around for something with which I could defend myself and Julia. I would find no weapon, I knew, but there must be something…
My eye fell on the heavy pottery jug on her washstand. Brought crashing down on the back of an unsuspecting head it would cause quite a nasty injury. If I were to hide behind the door I might just be able to pull it off. The trouble was that Francis, Jem and even Selena were all considerably taller than me. If I was to have a chance of braining any one of them I needed to be taller…
I fetched Julia’s dressing stool and set it behind the door, then stood the jug beside it.
‘What are you doing, Nancy?’ Julia asked, puzzled.
I did not answer her directly. Rather, I set the spare easy chair facing hers with its back to the door so that, at first glance, it would not be apparent to anyone entering the room that no one was sitting in it.
‘If you hear footsteps on the stairs, Mama, I want you to stay seated in your chair as if you were talking to someone sitting opposite you,’ I said.
‘But you will be…’
‘No,’ I said. ‘I won’t be. But I don’t want whoever comes in at the door to know that. It’s a game,’ I added quickly, seeing her puzzled frown. ‘Just a game. But if I play it right, I hope to be able to take you away from here once and for all.’
‘Oh, Nancy, I don’t know…’ She looked doubtful.
‘Don’t worry about it,’ I said. ‘Just do as I say.’
Of course, it might be Mrs Durbin who came, I thought. If it were, I would not need to stand on the stool. She was much shorter than I. I did not relish the idea of cracking poor Mrs Durbin’s skull, but I would do it all the same. I could not trust her to help me and desperate situations called for desperate measures.
Then, keeping my ears strained for the first sound that would indicate someone was coming, I settled down to wait. How long it would be I did not know. But when someone did come I would be ready.
* * *
Perhaps an hour passed before I heard the click of the downstairs door being opened. Instantly I was on my feet.
‘Remember – just behave normally,’ I whispered to Julia.
The tread on the stairs was heavy – much too heavy for it to be Mrs Durbin. I did not have time to wonder whether I was relieved or not that it was not her. My heart was beating so hard against my ribs that I felt sure it would give me away. I climbed up on to the stool, the jug raised between my hands, tensed and waiting.
The footsteps came closer along the corridor. Suppose they both came - Jem and Selena – I thought in sudden panic. I had only one missile, only one chance…
A figure came around the door. I just had time to register that it was Selena before I brought the jug crashing down on to her head.
And it worked! It worked better than I had dared to hope. The jug shattered over Selena’s crown and she never even saw it – or me. With a little gasp that was almost a moan she folded up like a pack of cards and collapsed in a heap on the floor. Julia gave a little cry and shrank startled into her chair.
‘Not a word!’ I cautioned her sharply.
I checked on Selena. She was out cold.
‘I am going for help,’ I said urgently to Julia. ‘Wait here. I may be some time.’
As quickly and as quietly as I could, I made my way along the passageway and down the stairs. The door at the foot was ajar. Cautiously I peeped round. There was no one in the hall. I slipped out, scarcely daring to breathe. The key was in the lock; though all my instincts were to make a run for the front door, I took a moment to turn it and push the bunch of keys into my pocket. If Selena should regain consciousness I did not want her raising the alarm. Then and only then did I dash across the hall.
I had almost reached the front door when a thunderous knock at it brought me up short. Oh dear lord, there was someone there! And I had almost run straight into them! Now my escape route was cut off and, worse, the knocking would have alerted Jem.
I hesitated there in the middle of the hall, caught like a rabbit in the light of a poacher’s torch. Then the front door burst open.
To my utter amazement I saw Joshua standing there.
Twenty-Five
He was dishevelled. His eyes were wild. He looked as if he had ridden long and hard.
‘Joshua!’ I gasped.
‘Charity! You’re safe…’
A movement behind me – Jem emerging from the parlour. I heard it and at the same moment I saw Joshua’s face change, relief turning to horror.
To my utter amazement he thrust his hand into his pocket and pulled out a pistol, levelling it at Jem.
‘Stay where you are!’ he cried in a trembling voice.
‘Joshua!’ Jem said. He sounded startled but, to his credit, quite in command of himself. ‘What on earth are you doing?’
He started across the hall; Joshua’s finger closed on the trigger. He was shaking so much I braced myself for it to go off.
‘Stay where you are, Jem, or I’ll shoot! I mean it!’
Jem stopped short again, raising his hands placatingly.
‘Have you gone mad, Joshua?’
Joshua’s face was pale above his clerical collar, high spots of colour staining his cherubic cheeks. ‘I know all about you, Jem, and what you have been up to since you left home. Thanks to Charity, I’ve learned the truth.’
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ Jem blustered, still trying to placate the brother who faced him with uncharacteristic hatred and determination in his blue eyes.
‘Don’t play the innocent, Jem,’ he said, his voice harder now than I had ever heard it. ‘You payroll Francis Trevelyan’s smuggling gang, don’t you? Your clerical work is just a cover. I could hardly believe it when I first learned of it – my own brother, the very person I had told Charity to go to if she needed assistance – mixed up with these evil people. Well, you won�
�t get away with it.’
‘Joshua…’ Jem had turned white now; to have gentle God-fearing Joshua waving a gun at him and facing him with his misdeeds must be quite a shock to him, I realised. And it was all because of me.
‘I never expected to find you here, though,’ Joshua went on. ‘I came to warn Charity and take her away from this terrible place before I go to the authorities. And thank God I did! Get out, Charity, whilst I cover you.’
‘Joshua – I can’t!’ I cried. ‘Not without my mother!’
‘Joshua, can’t we talk about this?’ Jem.
‘The time for talking is long past,’ Joshua said. ‘Fetch your mother, Charity. We’ll take her with us.’ He waved the gun, indicating the parlour doorway. ‘Into that room, Jem, if you please, and don’t try to stop us.’
‘Very well…’ Jem was, I think, on the point of doing as Joshua said, when there was a sudden scream from the kitchen doorway.
‘Lawks, whatever…?’ It was Mrs Durbin, alerted by the sound of angry voices.
Momentarily distracted, Joshua half turned towards her and Jem took his chance. He lunged at his brother, knocking the gun from his hand and sending it skidding across the floor. Then, next moment, the two brothers were fighting, just as they had all those years ago on the cliff path after Jem had locked me in the fishing hut. Only this time it was no boyish scrap. This time it was in deadly earnest.
All around the hall they went, trading punches, and through the door into the parlour. First one had the upper hand, then the other, but with a sick fear in my stomach I had no doubt who would be the eventual winner. Jem was stronger than Joshua and fitter. He did not lead the sedentary life of a priest – and he was meaner of nature. In the last resort Joshua would be no match for him.
With a small sob I scrambled beneath the hall table to retrieve Joshua’s gun. Never in my life before had I held a firearm in my hands, nor ever wanted to. But now, with determination born of desperation I hooked my finger over the trigger. I would pull it if I had to. My life and Julia’s – and now Joshua’s too – depended on it.
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