The Downstairs Maid

by Rosie Clarke

  ‘I’m glad I was there.’ Emily smiled at her. ‘We’re friends and we’ll see this out together. Just rest and try to forget what happened. He isn’t worth it.’

  Tears slid down Lizzie’s cheeks. She felt weak and sick and shamed and all she wanted to do was to hide her head under the bed-covers, but she knew she was going to have to face it all some time, because this wasn’t just going to go away.

  Chapter 42

  Lizzie was conscious of the bruise on her cheek when Sir Arthur called to collect her the next morning. She waited a little self-consciously as he told Emily that the cottage was hers for as long as she wanted it – and that she could store her things in his barn just as Christopher had, if she didn’t want to stay there.

  ‘There is a Dutch charger among the things in store,’ he’d told Emily. ‘It is slipware and I think very amusing, though to those who don’t understand it might look crude and rather ugly. I think it is quite valuable and I would be prepared to offer you fifty pounds for it. You might perhaps get more if you placed it with a London auction house.’

  ‘That is very fair of you to tell me, sir,’ Emily said. ‘I recall seeing the charger but I thought it rather naïve and a little ugly. I should probably have sold it in the market for a few shillings. Fifty pounds will be very acceptable – if you are certain you wish to buy it?’

  ‘I should be pleased to do so,’ he said, ‘though, as I told you, it may make more in auction.’

  ‘I would rather you had it. And I should like to store some things in the barn until I can find somewhere else to live.’

  Lizzie waited as they talked of Emily’s plans for the future. Then Lizzie kissed her cheek, thanked her for looking after her and went out to Sir Arthur’s automobile. He was driving a Daimler Phaeton with the fold-down roof up in place, because a cold wind was blowing. She shivered and he glanced at her, his expression reassuring.

  ‘No need to be nervous, Lizzie. Jonathan would have explained to your mama – and he blames himself for not being on time.’

  ‘Mama will not be pleased. I was already in trouble with her.’

  ‘Jonathan told me, but your crime was really not so very bad.’ Sir Arthur’s gentle smile made her feel better. ‘You ought to have been out before this, with friends of your own age, and it was unfair of your family to treat you as a child. You are a young woman, Lizzie, and it is only right that you want to try your wings … go dancing with a young man who was returning to the Front.’

  ‘Captain Manning was just a friend. We were not alone at the hotel – his friends joined us and we all danced with each other. It was harmless but I shouldn’t have sneaked out like that, because it led to another quarrel and Granny was upset.’

  ‘You mustn’t blame yourself for that,’ he said. ‘Lady Prior has a weak heart and it could have happened at any time. Besides, I think Lady Barton is more to blame. She quarrels ceaselessly with her mother.’

  Lizzie acknowledged the truth of his words. Lady Barton had blamed Lizzie, but she had been the one making a fuss, which had upset Granny. Even so, Lizzie knew that she should not have gone to the dance. It had been pleasant but not worth risking Granny’s life.

  Sir Arthur looked sideways at her once or twice as they drove to the manor. He told her about his plans for the future. His investment in the ill-fated mine had failed but he had made other sound investments and he expected to recoup his losses in time. He had set up a fund to help the smaller investors, who might have lost money they could not afford, because, he told her, he felt guilty for having sold them the shares in the mine, even though he’d believed it a wonderful opportunity at the time. It wasn’t his fault that the leases had been withdrawn, making the mine worthless. His agents told him that a corrupt minister had pocketed money to redirect the leases to another consortium, but he was unable to prove it. He ought, he confided to her, have stayed with the tried and trusted industries his grandfather had started up years ago.

  ‘It was an unpleasant lesson,’ he said, ‘but I am the wiser for it and I’ve done what I can to make reparation.’

  ‘You believed the leases were in place when you floated the shares.’

  ‘Yes, but I should have made certain,’ he said. ‘I shall not be as careless again, believe me.’

  Lizzie felt calmer as she listened to his business ideas. He was giving one of his properties to be used as a convalescent home and talked knowledgeably about the war and the likelihood that it would drag on for some time. Despite conscription obliging many young single men to go to war, the country had suffered terrible defeats over the past months and he could see no end to the conflict.

  ‘I volunteered but they gave me a job in logistics, which means I shall have to do some extensive travelling in the next few months. I should have liked to serve in the forces, but it was thought I would be of more use arranging the transportation of food and munitions.’

  ‘I read in the paper that they’re still having trouble with getting supplies to the troops on time. Perhaps you could make a difference.’

  ‘I’m certainly going to try,’ he said, hesitated, then drew into a lay-by and stopped the car. ‘My job means I shan’t always be around, Lizzie – but if I don’t come to see you, I want you to know that I shall be thinking of you. I’m much older, perhaps too old for a young girl like you – but I’ve come to admire you and … if you wouldn’t object I should like to take you out to a party myself. I would arrange for it to be the kind of party of which your mama would approve …’

  Lizzie’s cheeks were warm as she shot a shy look at him. ‘I should like that very much, Sir Arthur.’

  ‘I think we can drop the sir, don’t you?’ His smile warmed her. ‘I was a fool, Lizzie. I noticed you when I first came to the house but you seemed very young – and Amy bewitched me. I know now that I chose the wrong girl.’

  Lizzie’s heart slammed against the wall of her chest. She knew she was blushing but she couldn’t keep the happiness out of her eyes as she said, ‘I’ve always liked you very much, Arthur. I was very angry when Amy behaved so badly.’

  ‘It no longer bothers me.’

  ‘As long as she didn’t break your heart,’ Lizzie said and looked at him shyly.

  ‘If she did it is mended,’ he said. ‘I think I should like to get to know you better … if you would like that, Lizzie?’

  ‘Yes, I should,’ she said her heart hammering against her ribs. ‘Very much.’

  ‘We’ll take it slowly,’ he said and leaned forward to kiss her cheek. ‘I’m too old for you, my dear – but perhaps in time we might be more than friends?’

  Lizzie wanted to tell him she’d always loved him, but he hadn’t used the words yet so she wasn’t able to confess her own feelings, but she was growing more confident as he drove the rest of the way to the manor.

  Her father was waiting for them as they went into the house.

  ‘Go up to your mama, Lizzie. I’m not angry with you, but there is something you should know …’ His expression sent icy trickles down her spine. ‘The police telephoned me a moment ago …’ The chill increased as her father explained that the police had suspected Derek Black of being involved in the Bracknell girl’s murder but had no proof. Sir Arthur’s testimony prompted them to arrest him. However, he escaped and was chased down Bull Lane in Ely as far as the Cresswells, which was a part of the riverside. He’d then scrambled up the embankment to the iron railway bridge and tried to flee across it in front of a train. Tragically for him, his foot got caught in the rails and the train driver was unable to stop …’

  Lizzie turned faint and would have fallen but Sir Arthur supported her, holding her close to him. She turned her face to his chest and wept as she asked in a muffled tone, ‘Is he dead?’

  ‘I imagine instantaneously,’ her father said to her back. ‘The good thing is that this means your name can be kept out of it, Lizzie. The police wanted him for questioning about Miss Bracknell’s murder and he ran so they are presuming he was guilt
y – so her father will be told the case is closed.’

  Lizzie was sobbing. It was all so horrible. Cold shudders ran up and down her spine, as she realised that what had happened to Carla could so easily have happened to her. She wondered why Derek hadn’t strangled her when she wouldn’t give him what he wanted, but she would never know now because he was dead. She was shaking so much that Arthur drew her close and kissed the top of her head.

  ‘It’s all right, my darling,’ he told her. ‘None of this is your fault. Black brought it on himself and, if he killed that girl, as well as attacking other young women, he deserves his punishment. Had they caught him he would almost certainly have hanged.’

  Lizzie drew away, accepting his handkerchief. She half expected her father to rebuke her for weeping in Arthur’s arms, but she saw he was looking on indulgently.

  ‘I was hoping for a few minutes of your time, Lord Barton,’ Arthur said.

  ‘Certainly, Sir Arthur,’ Papa smiled. ‘Run along and see your grandmother, Lizzie. I must speak with Sir Arthur – and then I’ll talk to your mother.’

  ‘Thank you,’ Lizzie said, swallowing hard before giving Arthur a grateful look. She ran on into the house and up the stairs, along the landing to Lady Prior’s room. Her grandmother was propped up against the pillows, her eyes closed. She opened them and looked at Lizzie, relief flooding into her face as she held out her hand. Lizzie went to take the blue-veined hand in her own. ‘I’m so sorry to have worried you again, Granny.’

  ‘You were not to blame for what that wicked man did,’ Lady Prior said and she sighed. ‘Poor Lizzie. I should have given you a season myself while I was still able.’

  ‘It doesn’t matter. I think … Sir Arthur … he hasn’t asked me to marry him yet but I think … I’m sure he will. He will probably speak to Father about me and in time … I still love him …’ she finished with a laugh of delight.

  Her grandmother stared at her for several moments in silence, and then nodded her head. ‘He’s too old for you, of course. However, I know you love him and so I am pleased for you, dearest Lizzie. You will not leave us too soon?’

  ‘Oh, no, we’re taking things slowly, getting to know one another. Arthur will be travelling a lot for his job so I shan’t see him as much as I would like. It may be a few months … perhaps a year before we think of getting married.’

  ‘Why wait if you love him? There is a war on, my love. If he were younger I dare say he would have been called up before this …’

  ‘He volunteered but they asked him to take a desk job, overseeing the transportation of food and munitions to the troops. They still haven’t got it right, Granny. Supplies are delayed too often.’

  ‘Incompetence, as always. We must hope that Sir Arthur will make a difference.’ Lady Prior smiled. ‘Well, your mother will have the big wedding to plan that she missed with Amy. Perhaps that will put an end to her complaints for a while.’

  Lizzie nodded, taking her grandmother’s hand. She told her that she hoped she would be well enough to attend and the old lady declared that nothing would keep her from such an occasion. She would, she said, give Lizzie a large sum of money for her trousseau, which would be ordered in London.

  ‘If Mama will take me.’

  ‘If she is foolish enough to refuse, I’ll manage it myself somehow.’

  Lizzie laughed, because her grandmother’s determination had brought a sparkle to her eyes and she seemed stronger than she had since her attack. Despite Lizzie reminding her that nothing was actually settled, she was full of her plans for the future, Lizzie’s wedding gift and the list of people that must be invited and the shadow that had hovered at the back of Lizzie’s mind began to fade.

  When Lady Barton came in an hour later, it was obvious that Lizzie’s father had told her Sir Arthur intended to court her daughter, and she made no mention of the attack on Lizzie. Their talk was of the trousseau that must be bought and the reception that would be held at the manor, because no expense was to be spared for Lizzie. Sir Arthur would not be permitted to hold the reception at his home. Lady Prior was adamant it must be at the manor. She herself would oversee the arrangements and it would be a large, lavish affair.

  Lizzie gave up reminding them that she wasn’t engaged yet. As far as she was concerned the wedding could not come soon enough. Though she half wished that they would let her have a smaller wedding, but the two ladies were intent on outdoing each other with their plans and Lizzie slipped away at last to change for luncheon, happy in the knowledge that for once they were in perfect agreement.

  ‘Lizzie my dear,’ her father’s voice called to her as she walked along the landing, ‘a moment of your time.’

  Heart racing, she waited for him to come to her, but he was smiling. ‘I know nothing is settled yet – but Sir Arthur told me he hopes you will marry him – perhaps in a few months or so. I think this business over that rogue Black has made him realise that life is short, and he wants to make up for lost time.’

  ‘He hasn’t proposed yet, Father. We want to get to know each other better first … but I love him. I always have. When he asks me I shall say yes.’

  ‘Good. I wanted to make certain you were happy. I think it an excellent match for you, my dear. Sir Arthur was involved in a small scandal but that has been resolved to most people’s satisfaction. He has done all he can to put things right and that is enough for me. Your sister was not right for him, but I think you truly care for him.’

  ‘I love Arthur, Papa. I always have – but he wanted Amy and then he went away and I was lonely and unhappy.’

  ‘I should have insisted that your mother gave you a season, but everything is settled now, Lizzie.’

  ‘Granny and Mama are planning a huge wedding, which Granny is determined to pay for – even though I’ve told her we aren’t actually engaged yet.’

  ‘You will be soon I dare say. I shall give you what I can, of course, but Sir Arthur has assured me that he will make you a generous settlement.’

  ‘Papa …’ Lizzie sighed. Why was money so important to them all? She wouldn’t have cared if Arthur had nothing but a tiny cottage and his army wage. All she wanted was to be with him.

  ‘We must thank Mrs Johnson for her kindness to you,’ Papa said. ‘If she wished to return to her job here we might promote her to cook’s assistant.’

  ‘I think she intends to join a voluntary service,’ Lizzie said. ‘She is quite independent, Papa. I shall invite her to call and have tea with me. Perhaps we could help her in some other way?’

  ‘I don’t have a great deal of cash to spare – but I understand she likes antiques. Perhaps I might make her a gift of a pear-wood tea caddy or some such thing?’

  ‘I should think a piece of treen or something silver would be acceptable,’ Lizzie said. ‘She likes to collect things like that, Papa.’

  ‘Does she indeed?’ He frowned. ‘It sounds as if she has hidden depths. Very well, I shall find something that you may give her as a gift for saving you from further harm – though in a way it was her fault that that devil was there, lying in wait for you.’

  ‘No, Papa,’ Lizzie said quietly. ‘Please don’t blame Emily. I assure you that she has done nothing to encourage him. She hated him. He attacked her before she came to work here.’

  ‘Perhaps if she’d gone to the police then you would have been spared such a fright?’

  ‘Emily was concerned for her mother’s feelings at the time.’

  Her father nodded and walked on, leaving her free to go up to her room. As she changed into a pretty yellow silk afternoon frock, Lizzie wondered how the news of her uncle’s death would affect Emily. She’d hated her uncle but the tragic way in which he’d died would surely upset her terribly.

  Chapter 43

  When Sir Arthur told Emily the tragic news, she knew that she ought to speak to Ma. At their last meeting she’d sworn she would never speak to her mother again, and she still felt angry with Ma, but her conscience nagged at her. Emily had ha
ted and feared her uncle, but Derek had meant everything to Ma. His death must have hurt her terribly. She would be alone now apart from Emily’s brother Jack and it would not be easy for her to carry on running the pub in Ely alone.

  A part of Emily asked why she should bother with a woman who had made it plain she did not love her as a mother should. She’d stolen from Emily and taken Derek’s side against her. She did not truly deserve that Emily should visit her – she hadn’t even written when Emily married or when her husband died.

  Three times she decided to visit and changed her mind, but her conscience was uneasy and after a couple of months she decided that she must at least call and see how her mother and Jack were faring.

  Emily dressed in a simple grey dress and slipped on the coat she’d worn to Christopher’s funeral. She decided not to bother with a hat, but put a headscarf in her pocket in case it started to rain while she was out. She must visit her mother first but after that she would have to seek out the landlord of Pa’s old shop and tell him that her plans had changed. The pleasure she’d anticipated from running it with Christopher’s help had completely disappeared. She’d been disappointed when Christopher had decided to take Sir Arthur’s job although she could still have managed the shop with a little help, but now there seemed no point. Christopher’s mother’s evident dislike had made her feel she would like to go away somewhere and all she could think of was to join one of the volunteer services. She thought that after she’d visited her mother she would make the final arrangements for her departure.

  Emily caught the bus into Ely. She decided that she would speak to the landlord Mr Hadden first. He was entitled to ask for rent for the whole six months of the lease they had agreed if he chose, which would leave Emily’s slender funds much depleted. She hoped he might be able to let it again quickly and would charge her less, but when she spoke to him he looked annoyed.