The Brynthwaite Boys: Season Two - Part One

by Farmer, Merry

  “I don’t know,” Lawrence said. “I assume the building was repossessed by whatever bank held Hoag’s mortgage.”

  “He owned the building,” Matty said, forcing herself to stand straight and face what was happening. “No one would have repossessed it.”

  Lawrence stared at her. His anxious, longing look was gone, replaced by a new kind of determination. “I’ll telegraph Rev. Albright to find out who is in possession of the shop and the flat above it now.”

  “Would someone be cruel enough to play this kind of a joke on poor Matty?” Mother Grace asked. “Did you have any enemies? Anyone who would blame you for Hoag’s incarceration?”

  Matty shook her head. “We kept ourselves to ourselves.” Thinking about the problem logically settled her into a calmer place.

  “I’d say Bobbo was involved,” Lawrence said, rubbing his chin. “If Bobbo hadn’t been found dead well over a month ago.”

  Mother Grace narrowed her eyes. “One man found dead, and now this?” She held up the cloth doll’s head. “With Elsie’s foretelling on top of it all?”

  “It wasn’t a foretelling, was it?” Matty asked. “Just a child picking out stones she likes.” She’d never wanted to doubt her new faith so desperately.

  The room went silent for a moment. Lawrence and Mother Grace exchanged looks. “Perhaps Matty and the children should come stay with me in the forest for a time.”

  “No,” Connie answered, stepping forward. “I want to stay with Lawrence.”

  Elsie whined and squeezed Lawrence’s leg tighter.

  “We shouldn’t make any decisions until we know what’s going on,” Lawrence said, though Matty was certain he agreed with Mother Grace’s suggestion. Whether he thought they should go away because of some threat or because he needed time to himself was another matter.

  “If something is wrong,” Matty said, “and if we are in danger, perhaps we should stay with Mother Grace. Or perhaps we should go somewhere else entirely.”

  Lawrence pushed a hand through his hair, thinking. “Willy could stay at the hotel. He might be safer under Jason and Flossie’s protection than he would be here.”

  “But Jason is leaving for London today,” Mother Grace said. “Marshall as well.”

  Matty’s heart sank. She’d been so happy when she’d learned that things were progressing with the Pycroft girls’ custody case. Learning that Jason and Marshall were leaving earlier than planned had felt like a good thing. Now it made her feel like they had fewer friends at a time when they needed them the most.

  “We won’t know anything until I find out from Rev. Albright who might have been able to get their hands on Matty’s things,” Lawrence said. He reached for the box that the doll’s head had been sent in from where Connie had placed it on the table and extended his hand for Mother Grace to give him the head. “I’ll take these things into town and consult with Constable Burnell.”

  “He doesn’t like you,” Matty said.

  “True, but he likes crime even less. He might have some insights,” Lawrence said.

  Matty nodded, but the fear wouldn’t leave her heart. “Do what you need to do. In the meantime, we’ll try to carry on.”

  “Good girl,” Mother Grace said, smiling at her. “That bread won’t bake itself. And unless we act fast, this decoction will overheat and spoil. Connie?” She gestured for Connie to rejoin her at the stove.

  Slowly, too slowly for Matty’s liking, things returned to normal. She moved back to the table and continued with her bread. Lawrence managed to pry Elsie off his arm and sit her in the chair Mother Grace had vacated. She stared at the stones as if she could see something in them that the rest of them couldn’t. Matty found herself wishing that Elsie would predict a happy future for them instead of the doom she felt was waiting around the corner.

  Flossie

  Flossie hated packing trunks for traveling. She’d wept as a girl through the whole process of packing her tiny suitcase to leave home and take up a position as a maid in a faraway estate. Her face had burned with shame as she’d packed her things to leave Crestmont Grange and the humiliation she’d seen there. But there was a unique sort of misery that came with packing Jason’s things so that he could leave for London.

  “I’m not going to need so many shirts, am I?” he asked, peeking over her shoulder as she nestled all of his shirts but one into the trunk. She would keep one at home for herself, to sniff like a lovesick girl when she missed him.

  “There’s no telling how long Lady E will keep you down there,” she said, grimmer than usual.

  Jason made a scoffing noise. “I’ll be back within a month. The trial is the first week of January. We’ll win and be on the next train home.”

  Flossie sent him a sidelong stare. “Do you honestly believe that?”

  “Yes, of course.” He looked back at her as though she were the mad one.

  Flossie planted a fist on her hip. “Even with Mr. Bligh’s lawsuit against you?”

  Jason’s face pinched to a frown. “That man is a nuisance and a thorn in my side.”

  “And he’s suing you for assault,” Flossie added.

  “He deserved what he got.” Jason marched out of their bedroom and into the suite’s main room.

  “Nevertheless,” Flossie called over her shoulder, returning to packing. “The damages he’s asking for are considerable.”

  “Maybe to him,” Jason said from the other room. “To me it’s an annoyance at best.”

  “Then why not pay him and be done with it?”

  “Because I refuse to let any man get away with raising a hand to you,” Jason said. He came back into the room with a fair-sized, tray-like box packed with small Christmas gifts.

  “What have you got there?” Flossie asked as she tucked several pairs of Jason’s trousers into the trunk.

  He met her question with a sheepish smile. “They’re for you.” He handed the box to her. Flossie took it, glancing at him in question. “I’m sorry I won’t be here to celebrate our first Christmas together, especially with our baby on the way,” he said, looking like a miserable schoolboy. “And so, I’ve gotten you a gift for every day that I’ll be gone, from now to New Year’s.”

  Flossie burst into a smile. “Thank you, Jason. That’s so sweet of you.” She set the box down on an empty space on the bed, then turned to kiss him.

  All was forgotten for a moment as his arms closed around her and the heat of his body infused her. His lips were soft against hers, but she could tell from the tension in his body and the way his fingertips dug into her as though he didn’t want to let go that he was anxious. She kissed him back, trying to convey comfort without words.

  “I’ve packed your gift along with the rest of your things,” she said with a mischievous wink as she stepped back to resume her work. “You’re to open it on Christmas Day, and then you’re to telegraph me to tell me what you think.” She was looking forward to hearing what he thought of the new coat with hidden pockets she’d labored to sew for him.

  “Aren’t you going to open today’s gift?” Jason asked as Flossie resumed packing.

  “There’s one for me now?” She turned back to him with a smile.

  “Of course,” he said. “I’d shower you with gifts every day, if I didn’t think you’d throw them all back at my head and call me a ninny for spoiling you.”

  She laughed, lifting onto her toes to kiss his cheek. Then she reached for the box, pulling it closer. Every one of the gifts was labeled with a number. Flossie chose the one for that day and plucked it from the box. It was a small, oval box tied with a red ribbon. With a smile for Jason, she pulled the ribbon off and opened the box.

  “Oh, Jason, you shouldn’t have,” she said, breathless as she stared down at the glittering, heart-shaped ruby pendant, embellished with diamonds, strung on a gold chain.

  “It’s my heart,” he said, a maudlin shine to his eyes that made Flossie worry he might cry. If Jason was near tears, then he was far more anxious abou
t his trip than he was letting show. He took the pendant and chain from the box and motioned for her to turn around so he could fasten the chain around her neck. “I want you to keep it on at all times so that you and I both know you have my heart with you, no matter how far away I might be.”

  “That might be the most beautiful and sentimental thing I’ve ever heard you say,” she said, blinking away her own, threatening tears.

  “I know. It’s preposterous,” he sighed. When the chain was around her neck, Flossie turned to him and found him smirking at himself.

  “You’re just a big softy at heart,” she said, slipping into his arms to kiss him once more.

  For a moment, Jason seemed to melt into her, indulging in their embrace. But all at once, he stiffened and stepped back. “I have things I need to do before I leave,” he said, not quite looking at her. “And if I’m not careful, I won’t be able to leave at all.”

  Flossie took him at his word. He hurried out of the room, and she heard him leave the suite altogether. Her smile and feelings of love vanished, leaving nothing but worry in their place. He was more and more on edge with every day that passed. The incident with Bligh had only made things worse. He’d been beside himself when the notice of Bligh’s lawsuit had been delivered a fortnight ago. It was a terrible time for him to go back to London, especially with all that London represented to him.

  She finished packing his things, hating every moment of the exercise. But it had to be done, and she had other jobs to do besides. The world didn’t stop turning and the Dragon’s Head didn’t stop running simply because she and Jason were unhappy with the lot they’d chosen for themselves. As soon as the trunk was packed, closed, and locked, she headed down to the lobby to ask Reggie to fetch it.

  “I can do it, Miss Flossie,” Willy said, breaking away from a new arrival, whose suitcase he was set to carry up to one of the rooms.

  Flossie laughed at the boy’s eagerness. Willy was one of the few things—besides her own baby—that gave her or Jason joy these days. “It’s far, far too heavy for you to lift, dear,” she said, ruffling Willy’s hair as she walked to the desk. “But I’m sure these lovely new guests would be more than happy to have you carry their things upstairs.”

  The man checking in smiled at Willy, then nodded at Flossie. It was a huge, positive change from the way people like Crimpley had treated Willy when he’d first arrived.

  “A letter came for you, ma’am,” Daniel told her as he turned to fetch a room key for the new guests. “A personal one, by the looks of it. Not hotel business.”

  “Oh?” Flossie slipped behind the counter to the set of cubby holes where hotel mail was sorted. Her and Jason’s box was full, as usual, mostly with business matters. But she quickly found the letter Daniel had mentioned, and her heart sank. “Thank you, Daniel.”

  All it took was a glance to see the letter was from her sister, Betsy. As if she needed something more to worry about. She carried it into the office, searching for a letter opener and slicing it open.

  “Dearest Flossie,” the letter began. “I don’t know why you’ve stopped writing to me and will only write to our parents now. It doesn’t seem right or fair somehow. Papa and Mama will never tell you the truth about how things are here. I’m certain they’ll lie and tell you everything is rosy and that they have no problems at all. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m afraid their delusions about their situation is what has caused you to stop sending money, but Flossie, we’re desperate.”

  Flossie let out a heavy sigh, sinking into the desk chair. She scanned the rest of the letter while rolling her new pendant between her fingers. So much for sending Betsy a message by not sending her anything at all. After finding out how deviously her sister had deceived her all through the summer—a fact which was backed up by several inquiries Flossie had made to neighbors at home and friends of her parents—she’d hoped that simply ignoring the issue and stopping the flow of money would end things. But Betsy was persistent. Flossie would have to address the matter directly, call her sister out for her lies, and put her foot down.

  And yet, it felt hypocritical, in a way, to deny her sister the money she was always asking for. Flossie raised the pendant to her lips and kissed it. The simple piece of jewelry was likely worth more than her sister could earn in a year. Jason had made clear to Flossie that whatever he had was hers, unconditionally. She could afford to give her sister a fortune, set her up in whatever city she chose, and change her life forever. But Betsy was the kind of person who would always find a way to ask for more, even when she had plenty. At the same time, Betsy was family. Surely that meant Flossie had some sort of obligation to her.

  She sat back, staring at nothing as she mulled over the problem. Christmas was only weeks away. Perhaps she could use that as an excuse to give her family everything they needed, even if her parents had repeatedly written to her that they were happy and didn’t need anything.

  “What is the meaning of this?” Lady E’s angry voice drifted in from the lobby. “He was supposed to be ready by now.”

  Flossie rolled her eyes and pushed herself to stand. The one benefit of Jason and Lady E leaving for London was that Lady E would be well and truly out of Flossie’s hair for a while. And with the pregnancy-induced exhaustion Flossie had been pushing through for the past month, that would be far more of a blessing than she could have hoped for.

  “Lady Elisabeth.” Flossie smiled at the woman she was increasingly coming to despise as she swept into the lobby. “I believe you’re early. Jason wanted to tie up a few loose ends with his York hotel before he—”

  “I don’t care what he wanted to do,” Lady E snapped. She turned to Polly—ever-present at her side—and nodded. “I want to leave for the train station now so that we’re the first people to board when the train arrives.”

  Flossie exchanged a glance with Polly. Her one-time friend had her chin tilted up, showing that she was thoroughly on her mistress’s side. Flossie checked the watch pinned to her bodice, noticing too late that her ruby pendant stood out like a star against the white of her blouse. She should have tucked it under her shirt. Then again, she was tired of pretending she didn’t love Jason more than anything, and vice versa, when Lady E was around.

  “The train doesn’t arrive for another three hours, my lady,” Flossie said, fighting to keep her professional smile. “Would you care for tea?”

  Lady E looked as though she might say yes, but before she could answer, Jason strode into the room from the back hallway.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked with a frown. “We’ve got hours yet before we need to leave.”

  “I want to go now,” Lady E said, staring him down. “I hate waiting.”

  “Tell that to the British rail system,” Jason grumbled. He strode up to Flossie’s side, his focus still on Lady E. “You’re the one who insisted on spending Christmas in London. You’ll soon find that that means waiting for everything—trains, traffic, queues at shops and the theater. London is nothing but waiting.”

  “It won’t be for me,” Lady E insisted, tilting her head up. Her eyes narrowed as she glanced to Flossie, zeroing in on the pendant. “What’s that?” she asked, marching forward.

  The wave of perfume hit Flossie before Lady E came close enough to reach for the pendant. Nausea struck so hard and so fast that Flossie panicked and clapped a hand to her mouth. She searched desperately for something to be sick in.

  “Here, ma’am,” Daniel said, stepping forward with a small rubbish bin from behind the desk.

  Flossie staggered toward him and heaved up the contents of her stomach into the bin. She didn’t know what was worse, vomiting or the embarrassment of doing it in the hotel lobby with people looking on.

  “What’s the matter with her?” Lady E asked, backing away. “It’s not contagious, is it?”

  “For you?” Jason snapped. “Most definitely not.”

  Lady E turned a peevish look to him. A split-second later, realizatio
n dawned in her eyes. A moment after that, her face went red in fury. “How dare you?” she seethed.

  Jason’s brow shot up in a look of genuine confusion. “I beg your pardon?”

  “How dare you, you disgusting, lecherous man.” Lady E approached him, the color in her face mottling with pale rage.

  “Perhaps we should discuss this in the office,” Flossie managed to say in a weak voice. Daniel had taken the bin away and handed her a glass of water from the pitcher kept behind the desk.

  Jason nodded to Flossie, then glared at Lady E. “In there, now.”

  “Don’t order me around like I’m one of your staff,” Lady E said, but marched into the office anyhow.

  Flossie swallowed hard as the strength of her perfume threatened to make her sick again. She waited until Lady E and Polly were well into the room before following. Jason brought up the rear, shutting the door behind him.

  “Yes, Flossie is pregnant.”

  “How dare you do this to me?”

  Jason and Lady E spoke at the same time, then glared at each other in silence.

  Flossie broke the tense silence by saying, “I can assure you that this will in no way affect your plans.”

  Lady E glanced to her, eyes wide with rage. “Not affect my plans? But of course it will.”

  “I don’t see how,” Jason said, moving to stand supportively by Flossie’s side. “You said you wanted to live in London. Flossie lives in Brynthwaite and will give birth to our child here. The two worlds will never meet.”

  “You weren’t supposed to do something as horribly underhanded as impregnating your….” Lady E waved a hand at Flossie, her lips pursed as though she wanted to say “whore” but knew it would mean the end of everything if she did. She finally let out a sharp breath and dropped her shoulders. “If you could have held your filthy lust in check until after we were married, then everything would have been as it was supposed to be. But how can I pass this child off as my own if it was conceived out of wedlock?” She curled her lip and nodded to Flossie.

  “This child,” Jason said, his fury barely contained, “my child is none of your business. He or she will be loved by its parents regardless of when or how it was conceived.”