A Village Scandal

by Dilly Court

  ‘I have, as it happens. I don’t trust that Mrs Jones, so I spent an hour last evening, copying it out in my own hand, as well as the one listing the names of the guests.’ Mrs Ralston passed two sheets of paper to Daisy. ‘But I don’t see what we can do.’

  ‘Leave it with me. I have an idea, and there are only a few days until this party, which I foresee being a disaster.’

  That evening when the children were tucked up in bed, Daisy, Mary and Hilda sat round the table in the cottage kitchen, frowning over Mrs Ralston’s barely legible handwriting.

  ‘It’s lucky I’ve known Ida for so many years,’ Mary said, chuckling. ‘I used to tell her that her writing looked as if a spider had fallen into the inkwell and crawled across the page.’

  ‘Even so, most of these things are impossible to get round here, especially at such short notice.’ Daisy sighed and ran her hand through her hair, which she had unpinned and allowed to cascade over her shoulders. It was such a relief to be away from the manor house and able to relax with her mother-in-law and Hilda. They had been through so much together and now there was an even stronger bond between them. Daisy knew that she could not think of letting them down, no matter how badly she was treated up at the big house. No doubt it would give Marjorie enormous satisfaction to evict them from the small cottage that they had made their home, but Daisy was not about to give her the opportunity to carry out her threat.

  ‘Cook could make better dishes than those anyway,’ Hilda said stoutly. ‘I’d back Mrs Pearce against Mrs Salt any day.’

  Mary shook her head. ‘I know, but it’s Marjorie Harker we’re up against.’

  ‘You’re right there,’ Daisy said, nodding. ‘Marjorie is a very stubborn woman. She refused to give up even when Cook told her that the village shop couldn’t get any of the exotic foods she wanted. She said she would send George to purchase them from Fortnum and Mason, but I wouldn’t trust him to post a parcel, let alone travel back to Little Creek with a hamper filled with expensive foodstuffs. Anyway, he’d probably get lost in London and we’d never see him again. That, at least, would please James.’ Daisy pulled a face. ‘Those two don’t get on.’

  ‘That’s as maybe, but it seems to me that Mrs Harker is trying to be something she’s not.’ Hilda reached for the teapot and refilled their cups. ‘Some people don’t know their place, that’s all I can say.’

  ‘She’s trying to prove that she would do well as the wife of a future brigadier, and she’s out to find rich husbands for her daughters.’ Daisy leaned her elbows on the table, gazing thoughtfully at the two lists. ‘I recognise some of the names she’s written down, and I’m certain those people live in London. I can’t imagine them travelling all this way for an evening’s entertainment.’

  ‘They’d do better down at the village pub with Constable Fowler singing “Little Brown Jug” and accompanying himself on the grand piano – he’s got a lovely voice, as you’ll remember from the wedding party,’ Mary said, giggling. ‘Do you think madam would approve?’

  Hilda nearly choked on a mouthful of tea. ‘We know that Mr Keyes plays the concertina, and Fuller plays the fiddle. I’m sure the London guests will never have seen or heard the like.’

  ‘Well, it might come to that,’ Daisy said, laughing. ‘But seriously, I need to check how many guests have actually accepted, and if any of them are staying the night.’

  ‘I don’t think there is enough linen in the cupboard to make up all the beds.’ Mary frowned. ‘But that’s not my problem now. I’ll leave that worry to the two housekeepers. How are they getting along?’

  ‘It’s not easy,’ Daisy said, sighing. ‘The trick is to keep them apart as much as possible.’

  ‘Better you than me.’ Mary sipped her tea. ‘Maybe you could bring us a lump of sugar tomorrow, Daisy. Speak nicely to Cook and I’m sure she’ll oblige.’

  ‘I will, but I’ll have to wait until Mrs Salt isn’t within earshot. I don’t trust that woman – she’s mean.’

  Hilda drained her cup and stood up. ‘Well, I wish I could be there to help you, Daisy, but Mrs Harker has told me and Mary very firmly that we aren’t welcome at the big house. Although she might change her mind when they’re rushed off their feet. Anyway, I’m going to my bed and I just hope Judy doesn’t kick too much tonight. I’m black and blue from where she’s so restless.’

  ‘It’s not for ever, Hilda,’ Daisy said hastily. ‘And if Marius makes a good profit we might be able to leave here sooner. The money he paid to charter the Lazy Jane has settled the most urgent debts.’

  ‘He might make off with the ship and you’ll never see a penny.’ Hilda paused at the foot of the narrow staircase. ‘You don’t know the man, Daisy. They ain’t all honourable gents like Jay.’ Hilda trudged up the stairs, her shoulders hunched and her head bent so that Daisy could not see her face, although she suspected that Hilda was remembering her own late husband’s failings.

  ‘Poor soul,’ Mary said softly.

  Daisy rose to her feet. ‘Perhaps I’d better go after her.’

  ‘No, dear. She’s better off upstairs with her nippers. They’re the one thing that’s kept her going since the accident. She’ll be all right.’

  ‘How did you get to be so wise, Mary?’ Daisy sank back on her chair.

  ‘I don’t know about that,’ Mary said with a wry smile. ‘After more than twenty-four years married to Lemuel I learned how to survive. We’ll come through this, all of us, and you’re a strong young woman. Jay would be proud of you.’

  ‘He’s not dead, Mary. I just know it. He’ll come home one day, and if he doesn’t then I’ll go looking for him.’

  Daisy arrived at the manor house even earlier than usual next morning, and she went straight to Marjorie’s bedchamber. She knocked on the door and it was opened by Ada Wendell, who stared at her in surprise.

  ‘What do you want this early? I’ve just brought madam a cup of coffee. I brew it myself, just the way she likes it.’ She barred the doorway. ‘Come back later.’

  ‘No,’ Daisy said firmly. ‘This is urgent and important. I need to speak to Mrs Harker now.’

  ‘Who is it, Ada?’ Marjorie called faintly.

  Daisy was in no mood to be trifled with and she pushed past the maid. ‘Marjorie, I need to speak to you about this soirée you’ve planned. It’s in less than a week, unless you’ve forgotten.’

  Marjorie pulled the covers up to her chin. She looked small and helpless as she sat propped up by several pillows, with a white lace cap pulled down over her ears.

  ‘This isn’t the right way to behave, Tattersall. Can’t you see I’m still in bed?’

  ‘Of course I can, but you need to stop pretending that everything is fine and listen to what I have to say.’

  ‘Ada, show Mrs Tattersall out. I’ll see her in the morning parlour after breakfast.’

  ‘Miss Wendell, if you take a step nearer I won’t be responsible for my actions,’ Daisy said angrily. ‘Go away and come back in fifteen minutes. I am going to speak to your mistress and I’m not leaving this room until she listens to me.’

  ‘What shall I do, ma’am?’ Ada backed towards the doorway.

  ‘Go away as she says,’ Marjorie said wearily. ‘Say what you have to say and then leave me in peace, Tattersall.’

  ‘Your demands regarding the menu are impossible to meet. That’s the first thing, and the second is that I need to know how many people are coming, and who, if any, are staying the night?’

  Marjorie slid further down the bed, almost disappearing beneath the starched white sheets. ‘I don’t know,’ she said in a small voice.

  ‘You don’t know how many people are coming?’

  ‘Not exactly.’

  ‘But you have a list of those who accepted your invitation.’

  ‘Not really.’

  Daisy sank down on the nearest chair. ‘Heaven help us. What do you mean by that? Do you know who’s coming or don’t you?’

  ‘Stop shouting at me, Tatters
all. I can’t deal with these matters when I’ve only just awakened.’

  ‘Well, you’d better give it some thought,’ Daisy insisted. ‘Can you give me a rough idea how many have accepted? Is it twenty couples, as on your list?’

  Marjorie shook her head.

  ‘Fifteen?’

  ‘No, I don’t think so.’

  ‘Ten couples, then? That would make life easier, even if you don’t remember their names.’

  ‘Not ten, exactly.’

  ‘Have any of them replied to your invitations?’ Daisy asked suspiciously.

  ‘Not yet.’

  ‘But that means no one is coming. You must cancel.’

  ‘I can’t,’ Marjorie said miserably. ‘My guests are looking forward to the entertainment. I can’t tell them it’s not going to happen. They were promised a social event to remember, and my husband’s promotion depends on whether or not Major-General Tighe-Martin adds his recommendation. If he does then the others will follow. And Mr Carrington seems quite taken with Charity and she with him. This is a disaster – what will I do?’

  Chapter Nine

  Daisy stared at Marjorie Harker in amazement. This scheming but pathetic creature had caused upset and misery to two households in her crusade to further her own personal ambitions. Daisy did not believe for a moment that Colonel Harker was desperate for promotion. She knew Charity was a romantic girl who dreamed of true love, while Patience was only happy when she was in the stables or out riding. Even so, Daisy felt a stirring of pity for Marjorie, who had tried desperately to climb the social ladder, but seemed to have become stuck on the bottom rung. With no such ambitions herself, Daisy could see that Marjorie had gone about it in quite the wrong way, and antagonising people who might have been able to help her was not the best start.

  ‘What do you want me to do, Mrs Harker?’ Daisy said calmly. ‘Shall I tell the guests that due to unforeseen circumstances the party has been cancelled?’

  Marjorie covered her face with her hands. ‘I’ll look such a fool. It’s not just the social gathering that will have to be cancelled.’

  ‘What else have you promised?’

  Marjorie peeked at her through her fingers. ‘I might have mentioned a fishing trip for the gentlemen, and perhaps a treasure hunt for the ladies.’

  ‘How important is all this to you, Marjorie?’

  ‘I wouldn’t be able to face my husband or his company again if this were to become general knowledge. My girls will look foolish and be left on the shelf, or they’ll become part of the fishing fleet, and that’s a disgrace in itself.’

  Daisy stared at her, puzzled. ‘The fishing fleet?’

  ‘Young women who would otherwise end up as spinsters are sent out to India to find husbands. It’s been going on for a hundred years or more, but I’d rather that my girls didn’t marry into the army. It’s a hard life for military wives, as I know very well.’

  Despite her frustration, Daisy’s curiosity was aroused. ‘Was that how you met Colonel Harker?’

  ‘No, not exactly.’ Marjorie eyed her over the edge of the coverlet. ‘My grandparents were wealthy and they expected Mama to marry someone of equal wealth, but my father was just a clerk with the East India Company in Leadenhall Street. They met by chance and it was love at first sight, but they were forbidden to marry and so they eloped. I think they were happy enough at first, but Mama had been used to the good things in life and we were poor. She wanted better for me and she persuaded Papa to take a position in the Bombay office. It was on the voyage out that I met Roland, and we were married by the army chaplain soon after we landed.’

  ‘That sounds very romantic,’ Daisy said tactfully.

  ‘I was so young, and I knew nothing of life, but I did my duty and I followed my husband from one army post to another, living in miserable married quarters and suffering from the heat and poor sanitation. I lost five babies before Charity was born, and then I had Patience.’

  ‘I don’t understand. You are a wealthy woman, so why did you put up with a life like that?’

  ‘My parents succumbed to typhoid fever, and when my grandparents died within months of each other I inherited a fortune that enabled me to bring my daughters back to England. We moved into Four Winds, which had belonged to my family for many years. I want them to marry well, but I really don’t want them to be army wives.’

  ‘I understand, but that doesn’t help us out of the present situation.’

  ‘Felicia Tighe-Martin will tell everyone if this goes wrong. She’s the sort of woman who would take pleasure in destroying my reputation, and my husband’s chances of promotion would be forfeit.’

  Daisy had been prepared to be unsympathetic and had expected a stream of excuses, but now she experienced a genuine feeling of empathy. Her own background was not dissimilar to Marjorie’s – they were both from respectable working families, and they were ambitious, although in different ways. Daisy would not have chosen to be the lady of the manor, although she was quite happy to take on the role and enjoy the privileges it brought, but there were also responsibilities, and she did not take these lightly. She could see that Marjorie was in a genuine state of distress, and she knew she must put aside her own feelings.

  ‘Will you leave this to me?’ Daisy said gently. ‘I know this means a great deal to you, so I’m willing to help.’

  Marjorie’s grey eyes opened wide. ‘You are? But what can you do?’

  ‘If you are prepared to leave everything to me, including the choice of food, and the guests, I’ll do what I can to make the party a success.’

  ‘You’d do that for me? After all the indignities I’ve inflicted upon you.’

  ‘Well, we can’t have your girls sent out on the fishing fleet, can we?’ Daisy smiled and left the room. She knew exactly what she was going to do, but there was very little time left to make the necessary arrangements. For the first time since Jay’s disappearance she felt she had a purpose in life and she went straight to the kitchen and called all the servants together.

  There was a great deal of shuffling and whispering as the kitchen staff and chambermaids elbowed each other in an attempt to get to the front. George and James stood at the back with Molesworth, who glared at them if they made the smallest sound, and the two housekeepers stood side by side, giving each other covert glances.

  ‘Ladies and gentlemen,’ Daisy began, receiving a few sniggers from the upstairs maids, who were silenced by a glowering look from Ida Ralston. ‘I have an important announcement to make. We have a crisis on our hands and I want us all to work together.’

  ‘Are we at war, madam?’ George grinned cheekily and was immediately elbowed in the ribs by James.

  ‘No, George, not exactly, although this is a matter of some urgency and only you can save the situation – all of you. Everyone is just as important as the next person. As you know, Mrs Harker was planning a large assembly, but there have been complications. It’s going ahead but it will be slightly different from what was planned. Mrs Ralston and Mrs Jones will work together to make sure the house is ready to receive a large number of guests – we’ll say forty or fifty provisionally. Bedchambers will be aired and beds made up for those who need to stay the night – I leave that to you, ladies. The great hall will be made ready for dancing and the dining hall will be set up ready for the supper.’

  ‘But we can’t get the ingredients that Mrs Harker requested, madam,’ Mrs Pearce said plaintively.

  ‘No, that’s true, and so we’re going to provide a supper fit for a queen, by using your best recipes and produce from the estate. I trust Mrs Pearce and Mrs Salt to work together to make this feast the talk of the county, and everyone must give a hand. Mr Molesworth will be in charge of the wine, ale and cider, and anything else he considers suitable.’

  Molesworth cleared his throat. ‘Might I ask who will be attending, madam?’

  ‘I’ll let you have the guest list as soon as it’s ready.’ Daisy looked round at the expectant faces and smiled. �
�If we all work together we can make this the best social event that Little Creek has ever seen. Thank you all.’ She left the kitchen to a round of applause.

  Molesworth followed her into the great hall. ‘Shall I inform the outdoor servants, madam?’

  ‘Yes, of course. We’ll need flambeaux lit to guide the carriages, as it will be dusk when they arrive, and unless there’s a full moon it will be pitch-dark when they leave. The grooms will have to be on hand to show the coachmen the way to the stables, and refreshments will be laid on in the tack room for them. We need everything to be perfect.’

  ‘It will be done, ma’am.’ Molesworth’s eyes twinkled although his expression was carefully controlled, as always.

  ‘And another thing, please, Molesworth. Would you send for my horse to be saddled and brought round to the front entrance? And I’d like Jack Fox to ride out with me.’

  ‘Really, madam? Jack Fox – he’s just a boy.’

  ‘And I want him with me.’

  ‘Certainly, madam.’ Molesworth hurried off just as Marjorie’s maid appeared from the direction of the back stairs.

  ‘Miss Charity is calling for you, Mrs Tattersall,’ she said breathlessly. ‘And Miss Patience isn’t in her room. I think she might have gone to the stables.’

  ‘Tell Miss Charity that she’ll have to dress herself this morning, Ada, and I’ll deal with Miss Patience when she returns from her morning ride.’

  Daisy took the stairs two at a time, hitching up her skirt. At last she was doing something positive and it was a challenge that she would enjoy. She had been forced to give up her room for the guests, but she had been allowed to keep her clothes in a tiny bedchamber on the third floor, just below the attic rooms where the servants slept. The room was sparsely furnished but adequate, although the iron bedstead with its thin, flock-filled mattress did not look welcoming, and so far she had not had to put it to the test.

  Daisy changed into her riding habit, safe in the knowledge that the nipped-in waist flattered her figure, and the severe cut of the jacket made her look even more feminine. She was on a mission and nothing was going to stop her. She tucked her hair into a snood, and fixed the smart little hat, based on a gentleman’s topper, in place. A quick glimpse in the mirror gave her further encouragement and she left her room with a feeling of growing confidence. She was about to take to the stairs when Julian called out to her.