‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—’ Amy began, but Richard waved her apology aside.
‘I’m afraid midwives tend not to approve of doctors who have the impertinence to attend births, and some of them are not above embroidering the truth to support their case. The nurse who said those things to you was one such. It’s natural that you should be concerned, having been told such nonsense.’
‘She wasn’t a very nice nurse,’ Amy said cautiously.
Richard smiled. ‘I can quite believe it. Forceps, when used by a competent practitioner—and I believe myself to be one—can be a life-saving tool. It’s true that it’s likely to mean a degree of discomfort after the birth somewhat more severe than the usual, and a longer time of healing for Beth. But it’s a good deal better than the alternative in a case like this. If Beth were to endure a long or specially difficult labour, I’d be seriously concerned for her safety. I think it’s important that I attend her. I do urge you to use what influence you can to persuade her.’
‘But you think she’ll be all right if you’re there to help?’ Amy asked.
Richard hesitated longer than she would have liked. ‘I’ll do my best. Beth’s always been a healthy girl up till now, and that’s in her favour. But hearts are a difficult matter, especially when it comes to childbirth. Particularly if she has a big baby.’ He did not say aloud what Amy was sure they were both thinking: given David’s size, that seemed all too likely.
17
‘Excuse me, Miss Sarah, there’s a man here says he wants to see you.’
Sarah looked up from her desk to see Nellie in the doorway. ‘Is it Mr Taylor?’ Over recent weeks, Taylor had taken to calling every few days. Her consistent refusal to have him admitted to the house had not yet had the desired effect.
‘No, Miss—he says his name’s Hobbs. He’s not a smartly turned out sort of man at all. He come to the back door, as he should. Mrs Jenson’s been trying to get some sense out of him, but her and I can’t make head nor tail of what he’s on about.’
‘I don’t believe I know anyone of that name. But I’d better see him. Bring him through, please, Nellie.’
Nellie bobbed a curtsey. She disappeared, and was soon back with a frightened-looking little man trailing behind her.
‘Here’s Mr Hobbs, Miss Sarah,’ she announced.
‘Mr Hobbs, do come in,’ said Sarah. ‘Please, sit down.’ She indicated the chair in front of her desk.
For a moment, she thought the man might be about to take to his heels. But she saw him gather his courage and step into the room, then walk over and sit down. Nellie curtseyed again and left.
‘It’s very good of you to see me, Miss,’ Mr Hobbs said, his voice so low that Sarah could scarcely hear him.
‘Not at all. What is it you wanted to see me about, Mr Hobbs?’
It was some time before she could get anything intelligible out of the man. He would mumble a few words, then trail off and look at the floor. Sarah began to wonder if he was a simpleton, and if she should call Nellie back and have him escorted from the house. Then amongst his mumblings she caught the name “Taylor”.
‘What was that?’ she said sharply. ‘Do you have some connection with Mr Taylor? Did he perhaps send you?’
‘Oh, no, Miss. No, I expect Mr Taylor might be a bit put out about me coming here. He told me to say nothing about it, see—about you and him having dealings. But it’s the money, Miss. To tell you God’s truth, I don’t know where else to turn.’
Sarah could see that in his face. The man looked desperate; in fact he looked on the verge of tears. ‘Then you’d better tell me the whole story,’ she said, making her voice as soothing as she could. She was not happy about that reference to “dealings”, but she did not want the man to take fright. ‘Take your time.’
She saw Mr Hobbs take a deep breath to calm himself. ‘It was such a big order, you see,’ he began. ‘All the fittings for a whole row of houses.’
‘Fittings?’ Sarah prompted.
‘All the brass—taps, and door knobs, and lighting bits, and all. I’ve a foundry,’ he added belatedly. ‘Just a small one, but we do good work, though I says it as shouldn’t.’
‘There’s no reason you shouldn’t take pride in work well done, Mr Hobbs. Pray, continue. So Mr Taylor gave you a large order?’
‘Yes, he did, Miss. That was last year. I’d never had such an order—I thought we’d be properly set up after that. Mr Taylor told me there’d be a lot more work coming my way if we gave satisfaction. I wouldn’t be making much money on it, because I had to give him a good price. But it was an opportunity, see?’
An opportunity for Taylor to take advantage of an honest man, Sarah thought to herself. ‘Yes, I see how it was. Go on, Mr Hobbs.’
‘So I put the whole factory onto it. I turned down a few other orders, and I took on more men. I had to pay for the materials, and that took a bit of doing to get the money together. We all worked extra shifts for weeks—I had to work on the Sabbath more than a time or two, me and my oldest boy both. But we did it, Miss. We had the whole lot ready on time for Mr Taylor. No corners cut, either. All top notch.’
Sarah saw the man’s quiet pride in his workmanship, and respected him all the more for it. ‘Well done,’ she said.
Mr Hobbs slumped in his chair. ‘And that’s when the trouble started. They took delivery, and I sent my account at the end of the month. But I didn’t get no money, Miss. I gave them a while, I didn’t go bothering them as soon as it was a bit late. Then I started sending reminders, nice and polite, like.’
‘And they were ignored?’
‘Yes, Miss. Not so much as a word. After a bit I started going to see Mr Taylor, just to see if I could get to the bottom of things. He’d tell me it’d be the next week, then the next. I’d go and see him again, and he’d tell me the same.’
‘It sounds as if this has been going on for a good while, Mr Hobbs.’
‘Nearly eight months now. I saw him again six weeks ago—it was the first time I’d got in to see him for months, they’d been telling me he was away every time I went. I told him I had to have that money. That’s when he told me…’ Mr Hobbs looked nervously at Sarah. ‘He said he had dealings with you. He said you and him was coming to an arrangement. So if I was patient a bit longer, I’d get the whole lot that’s owed me, and there’d be more work to come. He gave me five pounds there in his office, and he said I could have a bit more in a week or two. But I haven’t seen him since. Every time I go there they tell me he’s out, or in an important meeting or suchlike. And they can none of them do anything about the money without his say so.’
With an effort, Sarah kept her voice mild. ‘What’s the total sum involved?’
‘Two hundred and thirty pounds—less the five pounds he gave me. I’m at my wit’s end over it. I’m behind with my rent on the factory, and they’re saying they’ll get the law on me for that. I’ll be turned out of the place. I’ll lose the whole lot. I’ve a wife and children, and I don’t know what’s to become of us all. I’m sorry, Miss, I don’t mean to cause you no bother. I just thought with you and Mr Taylor having dealings, you could maybe see your way clear to speak to him, and ask him to pay a bit more of what’s owing?’
The naked plea in the man’s face was almost too much for Sarah’s composure. Two hundred and thirty pounds. It was a small enough sum for her; she had spent close to a third of that amount on Amy’s gowns. But for this man it could mean ruination. And Taylor had used her name to deceive the man into trusting him.
‘I’m afraid you’ve been misinformed by Mr Taylor. I have no business dealings with him whatsoever. But please don’t distress yourself further over this, Mr Hobbs,’ she added quickly, seeing the man’s rising panic. ‘I believe I may have a solution to your present difficulties.’
She waited a few moments till she was sure Mr Hobbs had calmed himself sufficiently to take in her words. ‘I presume you have details of these transactions in writing?’ she asked. ‘The
original order, and copies of your invoices and other correspondence?’
‘Yes, Miss. My younger boy helps me with the accounts and all that. He’s very neat and particular,’ he added, a trace of pride discernible through his anxiousness.
‘Excellent. Now, let me explain what I want you to do. I’m going to give you a letter to take to my business managers—they’re the people that look after paying out money for me. I’ll write out their address for you. I want you to gather up all your papers regarding Mr Taylor, and take them along with you when you go and see them. All right?’ She waited for Mr Hobbs to nod his understanding.
‘When you call and see them, they’ll want to talk to you, then they’ll give you some papers to sign. One will be an account of your dealings with Mr Taylor, noting particularly the way he used my name to make you think he intended to pay you.’
‘I don’t want any trouble,’ Mr Hobbs said uncertainly.
‘I can assure you there will be no trouble. Not for you, at any rate. There’ll be another paper for you to sign. It will state that you’ve signed over Mr Taylor’s debt, so the money is now owed to me rather than to you. Once that’s signed, my people will give you the full amount you’re owed. Plus a little extra for the time you’ve been kept waiting. Does that sound satisfactory?’
Mr Hobbs was staring at her, his mouth open. ‘It sounds bloomin’ wonderful, Miss. I don’t know how I can thank you.’
‘There’s no need. But I strongly advise that you have no further dealings with Mr Taylor.’
‘I don’t need to be told that! Begging your pardon, Miss,’ he added hastily.
‘No, I’m sure you don’t.’ Sarah studied the lines worry had etched into his face, and she wondered when he had last eaten a meal in peace. ‘This letter will take me several minutes to write, Mr Hobbs. Would you like to wait in the kitchen in the meantime?’
‘Yes, Miss. As long as I wouldn’t be in anyone’s way.’
‘Not in the least.’ She rang the bell, and Nellie soon appeared. ‘Nellie, please take Mr Hobbs through to the kitchen while I finish what I’m doing here. Ask Mrs Jenson to give him some refreshments.’
Mr Hobbs rose from his chair. ‘Begging your pardon, Miss, but… why? I can’t thank you enough, and Mrs Hobbs is going to be beside herself. But why are you doing this for me?’
Sarah regarded him thoughtfully. ‘Because my father brought me up to respect honest tradesmen, and to see that they’re paid their due. It’s not within my power to do that for every tradesman in Auckland, but your particular case has become my responsibility. I’m only too pleased to be able to put right something of the wrong that’s been done here.’
‘Bless you, Miss,’ Mr Hobbs said fervently.
Sarah nodded her farewell, then began writing the letter for Mr Hobbs to take away.
After finishing that, she wrote a short note for the gardener’s boy to deliver. When that note reached its recipient, she would have a less than pleasant task. She would have to allow Mr Taylor to enter her house one last time.
*
Sarah watched Mr Taylor enter her study and stride across the room. His self-satisfied smile was, if possible, even broader than on his previous visit. Until she saw that smile again, Sarah had thought its power to irritate must have been exaggerated in her memory.
‘Sarah, my dear!’ he exclaimed. ‘You’ve been an elusive creature lately. I almost began to think you were avoiding me, until I got your note.’
The man was actually wagging his finger at her. Sarah stared at the gesture in horrified fascination, briefly lost for words. He dragged a chair in front of her desk and sat down, stretching his long legs out in front of him.
‘Well, let’s not speak of that,’ he said, as if bestowing a favour. ‘I’m here now, and we don’t want to waste any of our time together.’ He put his hands behind his head and leaned back, still gazing on her with a proprietorial air.
He was clearly waiting for her to speak. Sarah let the silence hang between them until she thought it must be obvious even to this man. Then she spoke, biting off each word.
‘I did not invite you to be seated.’
He let out a snort of laughter. ‘Oh, come now, my dear. There’s no need for you and I to stand on ceremony.’
‘On the contrary, there is every need for just that. I wish to have the appropriate forms observed.’
She held his gaze, and at last had the satisfaction of seeing that loathsome smile fade. ‘I’m afraid I must say you’re being rather a silly girl,’ he said, drawing himself up to a standing position. ‘Now, are you satisfied? May I sit in your presence?’
Sarah ignored the sarcastic edge to his voice. ‘No, you may not. I would prefer to conduct this meeting with you standing.’
It was a good deal more satisfying to observe his obvious discomfort. His eyes were now at a higher level than hers, but her desk was deep enough to give him no opportunity of looming over her. It required only a slight tilting of her head to keep him fixed with a hard stare.
‘Mr Taylor, it’s come to my attention that you have been claiming a relationship with me, and using my name to gain certain business advantages. I will not tolerate this.’
He looked startled, then annoyed. ‘May I ask where you’ve heard such tales?’
‘That’s of no concern.’ Sarah knew that correspondence relating to the transfer of Mr Hobbs’ account had been sent to Taylor’s office; it did not surprise her that he apparently remained ignorant of the matter. He probably considered such mundane matters as the payment of invoices to be beneath his notice. ‘What’s pertinent is that such behaviour is to cease at once. Do I make myself understood?’
The smile had returned. ‘But my dear girl, we do have a relationship! You can hardly deny that, given what we are to each other.’
‘I most certainly can, and will, deny any meaningful connection with you. Mr Taylor, I strongly advise you not to attempt any deception of this sort again. If you do, the consequences will be most unpleasant.’
She saw his smile harden. ‘And have you thought about the possible consequences of any falling-out between us, Sarah? Would you be quite happy with the details of your background becoming public knowledge?’
‘Why ever should that concern me? I’m fortunate enough to bear an honourable name that I attempt to be worthy of. And I believe that if my “background”, as you put it, became a subject for gossip, I would be considered an innocent party in the matter. Unlike yourself.’
His expression hardened further. ‘Perhaps you need to consider how others might be affected, my dear. Your experience of the world has been rather narrow till now, but I can assure you that in such matters society tends to judge a woman far more harshly than a man. Think how this whole business might affect Amy.’
Sarah felt herself give a start, and to her annoyance she saw that he had noted it.
‘I imagine you might want to have her come and stay with you again on some future occasion?’ he went on smoothly. ‘Amy might find herself somewhat uncomfortable in Auckland if her past became general knowledge. Especially if some of the more interesting details of her behaviour were noised abroad. I won’t sully your innocence with such things, but I rather think it would attract a good deal of salacious talk.’
Sarah had thought she was angry with the man before. Now, as she heard him threaten Amy, she felt as if she had never in her life till this moment known what anger was. She could feel her cheeks burning; the fact that she was sure he would take it for embarrassment rather than the fury it was angered her all the more. She made herself wait until her voice was under control before she spoke; she would not allow him to hear any tremble in it.
‘Mr Taylor, I could ruin you, financially and socially. If you ever misappropriate my name again—and if you ever attempt to harm Mrs Stewart, in even the slightest way—I will have not the least hesitation in doing just that. Please do not imagine that I am anything but serious in this.’
She rang the bell for
the maid. ‘And now I’ll ask you to leave my house. I don’t expect that we will meet again, other than by chance.’
She could see little outward sign that her warning had subdued his confidence. ‘But I expect we will, my dear,’ he said, before the maid arrived to usher him out and leave Sarah in blessed solitude.
*
It was to be a quiet Christmas at David’s farm. Late in the morning Frank brought Lizzie over for a short visit, leaving all the children except Benjy at home, but for the rest of the day Amy, David and Beth had the house to themselves.
With Richard’s permission, David had helped Beth out to the parlour to lie on the couch, and Amy brought their Christmas dinner through from the kitchen. Beth had little appetite for the meal; ‘I don’t think there’s room for anything else in here,’ she said, resting her hand on the mound of her belly. She had brightened a little when her parents arrived, but soon lapsed into the subdued state now common with her. Not long after lunch, she asked to be helped back into bed.
*
At Frank’s house it was noisy and lively. As well as his own children, Arthur’s household joined them for the occasion. After lunch they overflowed the parlour and spilled out onto the verandah. The children were forbidden to go further than the garden gate, dressed as they were in their Sunday best.
Lizzie gathered most of her guests into the parlour for the musical part of the afternoon, though Frank noticed that his older sons, along with their male cousins, contrived to stay out on the verandah where they could largely ignore the music.
Rosie played first. Reluctant as he was to acknowledge any flaws in his children, Frank had to accept that Rosie showed no special gift for music. “Energetic” was the kindest word anyone managed to find for her effort. Even Benjy seemed unimpressed, wriggling in Lizzie’s lap and beginning to grizzle by the time Rosie finished the thankfully short piece.
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