by Dilly Court
‘Cassy, love. They told me that you’d been here every day. I can’t believe that you’ve come all this way to find me.’
‘We almost gave up,’ she said, halfway between tears and laughter. ‘You wretched boy, Bailey.’ She pulled up a stool and sat down beside him. ‘We’ve been travelling round India for over a week, looking for you and Ollie, and this was our last chance. You’re looking so much better than when I first saw you.’
‘Liar. I look like a death’s head on a mopstick. I was allowed to shave myself for the first time this morning and I hardly recognised the face looking back at me from the mirror.’
She put her arms around him and gave him a hug. ‘You’re alive, that’s all that matters.’ She would not have admitted it for the world, but his gaunt appearance still shocked her, and the hand that clutched hers was dry and brittle, like a bird’s claw. ‘You’ll soon be up and about, dearest Bailey, and then we’ll take you home where you belong.’
He reached up to stroke her hair. ‘I’ve dreamt of this moment for so long,’ he murmured, his eyes moist with unshed tears. ‘All the time we were out there in the foothills it was blazing hot in the day and freezing at night. The only thing that kept me going was the memory of how you looked when we parted. It seems like years since that day in December.’
‘I knew that there was something wrong weeks ago. I had nightmares about bloody battles and I was certain you were in danger.’
‘That’s the trouble with being in the army,’ he said, with a shadow of his old humour. ‘The enemy keeps trying to kill you.’ His smiled faded and his eyes darkened. ‘How is Oliver? They won’t tell me a thing.’
‘He’s still unconscious, Bailey. I don’t think it’s just the fever, but the doctors don’t say very much.’
‘He took a bullet in the back, Cass. I carried him as far as I could each day, but then the fever got me and I don’t remember very much until the patrol came upon us. I was never so glad to hear a cockney accent, I can tell you.’
A polite cough made Cassy look round to see Jones standing behind her. ‘I think that’s enough for today, miss. You don’t want to tire the lad out now, do you?’
Cassy rose to her feet. ‘No, of course not. I’ll go and find out how Ollie is.’ She turned to him with a smile. ‘Perhaps I could have some more time with Corporal Moon later today?’
Jones nodded his head. ‘I’m sure the doctors won’t object to that, miss.’
‘Feel free to visit me any time, miss.’ One of the recuperating privates gave her a wink and a smile. ‘A beautiful young lady’s cool hand on me fevered brow would be just the ticket.’
Bailey raised himself on his elbow. ‘Wait until I’m stronger, Figgis. You won’t be so full of yourself then.’
Cassy leaned over to drop a kiss on Bailey’s forehead. ‘I’ll be back later, I promise.’ She left the ward accompanied by an appreciative whistle from Figgis.
‘You’ll have to excuse the men if they’re too forward, miss,’ Jones said apologetically as he escorted her along the corridor towards Oliver’s room. ‘They don’t see too many pretty faces on the ward.’
‘I wish I could do more to help,’ Cassy said with feeling. ‘I’m so sorry for them.’
‘You done enough by just coming to visit. Young Moon will get better twice as fast now he’s seen his lady love.’
‘It’s not like that,’ Cassy murmured. ‘I mean, we were childhood friends.’
‘If you say so, miss.’ Jones stopped outside Oliver’s room and opened the door. He scowled at the punkah wallah, a boy of six or seven, who was sitting cross-legged on the floor, fast asleep. ‘Wake up, you lazy little sod.’ He poked him with the toe of his boot and the boy opened his eyes with a start. ‘What d’you think you’re paid for?’ Jones demanded. ‘Get on with your work.’
The boy began working the cord with renewed vigour and Cassy gave him an encouraging smile. She would have liked to put Private Jones in his place and tell him off for bullying a young child, but she sensed that any intervention might make matters worse for the punkah wallah. She frowned, but Jones seemed oblivious to her feelings, and uninterested in anything other than exercising his authority. He opened the door, standing aside to allow her to enter.
‘There you are, miss. Captain Davenport is as well as can be expected today. The doctor says it might be some time afore he comes to, so don’t let it upset you. I seen plenty of cases where men have been out for the count for days, even weeks, and then suddenly opened their eyes, sat up and asked for a steak and kidney pudding.’
Cassy tiptoed into the darkened room. The blinds were down and it was almost unbearably hot even though the punkah was now moving the air with its gentle swaying motion. She gazed down at Oliver’s immobile features and a shiver ran down her spine. He was deathly pale and his face had the frozen look of a marble effigy. Pa had warned her that the doctors did not hold out much hope of a complete recovery. The attack of fever was comparatively mild, but the injury to his spine was more serious. They had to face the fact that he might never walk again. It had come as a terrible shock. She could not imagine someone like Oliver living life as a cripple, and she had prayed every night for his full recovery.
She took a seat on the chair at his bedside and held his hand. She had felt self-conscious and slightly silly at first when talking to someone who could not hear a word she said. But after a while it had come naturally to her and she chatted to him as if he they were seated opposite each other in the tearoom all those years ago when she was just a child. She had already told him everything that had happened since he left London, including the exhibition of Jack’s paintings, and her plans for opening a shop selling work by the men from the home. She was beginning to run out of things to say, but somehow she managed to keep up her one-sided conversation.
At noon Cade arrived to take her back to the hotel for lunch, and over the meal of curried goat he told her of his plans to have Oliver moved to a hospital in Bombay as soon as he was fit to travel. ‘He’ll get the best medical attention that money can buy,’ he assured her. ‘And I’ve spoken to Colonel Fitzhugh about the possibility of buying Bailey out of the army. After everything he’s been though, I think the boy should return to England with us. There’s no doubt that he saved Oliver’s life, putting his own at risk in the process.’
Cassy stared at him with her fork halfway to her mouth. ‘But I’d assumed he would come with us anyway. I didn’t think they’d make him return to active service when he’s been so ill.’
‘He’s a soldier, my love. He can’t come and go as he pleases, but I’ll do everything I can to purchase his release.’
It had never occurred to Cassy that they would go home without Bailey. She could hardly believe that the army would be so rigid in its rules that it would make a sick man return to duty. The prospect of losing him for a second time made her feel quite desperate. She had not realised how her feelings towards him had changed, and how much she loved him, until she thought she might never see him again. How could she have been so blind as to ignore the truth that her heart had been telling her? For a while she had been dazzled by Ollie. He was undeniably exciting and fun to be with, and when he kissed her she had been lost in the thrill of his embrace, but it was only now that she realised the feelings she had for him did not consume her body and soul. She was desperately sad to see him laid low by his injuries and she willed him to recover, but he was not her reason for living. She hoped he would understand.
She continued to spend as much time as possible at the hospital and Bailey’s condition gradually improved. He was allowed out of bed, although still very weak. In the mornings, before the sun was high in the sky, they took short walks in the hospital grounds or sat for a while beneath the banyan trees watching the monkeys skittering about amongst the branches. Although he never spoke of love, she was certain that Bailey felt the same as she. Words were unnecessary when two souls were inexorably entwined. The look in his eyes and the touch of his hand t
old her everything she needed to know.
It was still the wet season, and when the skies darkened and the monsoon rains drummed on the roof, sending up sprays of water and clouds of steam as it hit the ground, she sat with Oliver and held his hand. It was over a week since their arrival in Deolali and he had not regained consciousness, but on this particular day he had been restless and Cassy had stayed with him longer than usual. She bathed his brow with a damp flannel and had turned away for a moment to replace it in the bowl of water when she felt a slight movement from the bed. Dropping the cloth she spun round to find Oliver staring at her.
‘Ollie,’ she whispered. ‘You’re awake at last. Can you hear me?’
His cracked lips parted in an attempt at a smile. ‘Cassy?’
She leaned over to embrace him. ‘Oh, Ollie. You’ve come back to us.’
‘What day is it?’ he asked faintly. ‘Why am I in bed?’
She laid her finger on his lips. ‘Don’t try to talk, my dear. You’ve been very ill and you mustn’t excite yourself.’
‘Where am I?’
‘You’re in the military hospital in Deolali. Bailey is here too.’
He made an attempt to raise his head and failed. ‘I – I can’t move.’ His lips trembled and his eyes were wide with fear. ‘Cassy, I can’t move my legs.’
‘Don’t try, Ollie. You’re weak, that’s all. I’ll go and fetch the doctor.’ Rising swiftly to her feet she backed away from the bed. ‘Don’t worry; everything is going to be fine now.’
It was not, and she knew it, but she must not let him see that she was scared. ‘I won’t be long.’ She hurried from the room and broke into a run as she reached the corridor. She almost barged into the young doctor who attended Ollie as he emerged from a side ward. She grabbed him by the arm. ‘Captain Davenport is awake, doctor. He spoke to me, but he can’t move. You must go to him right away, please.’
‘I will, of course, but it would be best if you weren’t present. I saw Corporal Moon in the dayroom earlier; you might like to wait there.’ He strode off, leaving Cassy staring after him.
Her first instinct had been to go with him but her second and more pressing need was to find Bailey. She ran the length of the corridor to the dayroom where she found him playing draughts with one of the other convalescent soldiers. He looked up but his smile faded when he saw her agitated expression, and he rose slowly to his feet. ‘Cassy, what’s wrong? Is it Ollie?’
She hurled herself into his arms. ‘He woke up, Bailey. He spoke to me.’ Halfway between tears and laughter, she clung to him as she had when she was a little girl in need of comfort. But the look in his eyes made her draw away and she was conscious of the soldier staring at them with a knowing grin. She felt the blood rush to her face. ‘I – I’m sorry. I was just so pleased that he’s come round after all this time.’ She fumbled in her reticule for a handkerchief to no avail. ‘I’m just happy.’
‘Of course you are,’ Bailey said, taking her by the arm and leading her out onto the veranda. ‘I’m glad too. He’s a good chap.’
‘But he couldn’t move,’ Cassy said urgently. ‘Bailey, I think he’s paralysed. He’ll end up in a Bath chair just like the men in the home. Poor Ollie.’
He took her by the shoulders, looking deeply into her eyes. ‘You don’t know that for certain, Cass. You’re jumping to conclusions. Wait until the doctors have seen him.’
‘Yes,’ she said, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. ‘You’re right, as usual. We will just have to wait and see what they say.’
The medical men shook their heads and could give no explanation as to why Captain Davenport was paralysed from the waist down. As far as they could tell, the bullet had not shattered any of his vertebrae, but it was impossible to gauge the true extent of the internal damage. They could not say for certain if he would ever walk again, but they were not optimistic. It was left to Cade to break the news to Oliver. Cassy waited in the dayroom with Bailey and she could tell by the tense expression on her father’s face that it had been a harrowing time for both of them.
‘He took it well enough, all things considered,’ Cade said, mopping his brow with a handkerchief. ‘I told him that I’m making arrangements to get us all back home. As soon as we get back to Bombay I’m going to book tickets for the voyage.’
Belinda was waiting for them at the railway terminus in Bombay. Cade leapt off the train before it had come to a halt, taking the platform in long strides to sweep her into his arms in an embrace that made the other travellers stop and stare. Cassy watched from the train window and this time she was not embarrassed by her parents’ demonstration of their love for each other. She met Bailey’s eyes and he smiled. There was no need for words between them.
‘What’s going on?’ Oliver demanded. ‘What are you two staring at?’
Cassy turned away from the window. ‘I was just thinking how lucky my parents were to find each other again.’
‘They make a handsome couple,’ Bailey said with a nod of approval as he hefted the Bath chair onto the platform. He climbed back into the carriage. ‘Ready, Captain?’
‘As ready as I’ll ever be. I’m sick of being pushed round like a baby in a perambulator.’ Oliver hooked his arm around Bailey’s neck. ‘The doctors wouldn’t give me a straight answer, but I’m determined to walk again. I’ll do it, Cassy, I swear to God I will. With you at my side I can do anything.’
Bailey said nothing as he set him down in the chair. Cassy willed him to look at her but he walked away, calling for a coolie to take their luggage.
‘You’ll do it, Ollie.’ Cassy hoped that she sounded convincing. ‘You’ve done wonderfully well so far.’
He caught her by the hand. ‘I know I’m a wreck of a fellow but I love you with all my heart, Cassy. What I mean to say is, I don’t expect you to stand by me unless you really love me.’ He released her with a sigh. ‘I’m putting it badly, but I don’t want you to stay with me just because I’m a cripple.’
She met his anguished gaze and she knew that to tell him the truth would be the cruellest blow yet. She had allowed him to think that she returned his love, and now she must pay the price for her cowardice. She looked for Bailey amongst the milling crowd of passengers, station officials and coolies, and felt the unmistakeable tug at her heart as she spotted him standing by the entrance with her parents. He seemed to sense her intense gaze, as he looked round and waved to her. Grasping the handle, she wheeled the Bath chair towards the exit. She longed for a quiet chat with her mother, but consoled herself with the fact that there would be plenty of time to talk when they were settled into the hotel where they would stay until Cade had booked their passage to England.
Belinda broke away from Cade as they approached and she took Oliver’s hand in hers. ‘Ollie, my dear boy. How are you feeling?’
‘Never better, Stepmother,’ Oliver said, grinning. ‘You’ll have to forgive me for not rising to greet you.’
Belinda touched his cheek with the tips of her fingers. ‘I’m glad to see you haven’t lost your sense of humour, my dear.’ She turned to Cassy. ‘Darling, you look tired. You must be exhausted.’ She wrapped her arms around her daughter, holding her close.
‘I’m a bit tired, but how are you, Ma? Are you feeling better now?’
‘I couldn’t be better.’ Belinda’s eyes sparkled and a delicate flush coloured her cheeks. ‘You can’t imagine how happy I am to see you, and Bailey too. You’re both safe and that’s all that matters.’ She slipped her hand through Cade’s arm. ‘I have some very exciting news to share with you all, but it will have to wait until later when you’re all settled into the rooms I’ve booked for you at the hotel.’
‘Let Bailey push me, Cassy,’ Oliver said, holding up his hand. ‘I want you to walk beside me.’ He glanced up at Cade with a challenge in his eyes. ‘We had an understanding before I left England, sir. When I’m back on my feet I intend to ask you for your daughter’s hand in marriage.’
‘Ollie, not now, please.�
�� Cassy felt a cold shiver run down her spine as she met Bailey’s questioning gaze. She wanted to deny it, but they were standing in the middle of the busy station concourse and her mother was staring at her wide-eyed.
‘Is this true, darling?’
‘I’ll go and find a couple of carriages.’ Bailey strode out into the sunlight, leaving Cassy to face her parents.
‘I think we should discuss this later,’ Cade said, patting Oliver on the shoulder. ‘It’s early days yet, old man.’
‘What do you say, Cassy?’ Oliver demanded, twisting his head to look at her. ‘Come round here where I can see you properly.’
‘Pa’s right,’ Cassy said in desperation. ‘This isn’t the time or the place, Ollie. We’ll talk about it when we’re settled in the hotel.’
That evening at dinner in the grand hotel dining room, the atmosphere was tense even though Belinda kept up a stream of idle chatter. She gave an amusing account of life in Government House illustrated with vignettes of her experiences as a guest at some of the official functions. Cade watched her with an adoring look in his eyes, which made Cassy feel even worse about her relationship with Oliver. He was staring moodily at his plate, pushing the food around and eating very little although the meal was delicious. He had been obliged to put on an ill-fitting suit that the tailor had made for another client who had left it unclaimed with the bill unsettled, but it was the best that could be done at short notice. He was patently unhappy and although Cassy’s heart went out to him, she could not seem to shake him out of his depression. She stole covert looks at Bailey who was also looking uncomfortable, although she thought proudly that he looked extremely handsome in the evening suit that her father had insisted on loaning him. They were of a similar height and stature and the garments could have been tailored especially for him.