The Christmas Wedding

by Dilly Court

  Daisy silenced Nick with a warning look. ‘That sounds lovely.’

  The rest of the afternoon passed off pleasantly enough, but Daisy was still angry with Nick and he treated her with a hint of reserve. Their argument over Jay had left her feeling ill at ease in Nick’s company. Perhaps she did not know him as well as she had thought, but at least it had had the effect of taking her mind off Julian’s sudden reappearance, albeit temporarily.

  When Daisy returned to the lodging house she left Minnie and Ivy heading for the parlour, still chatting about the lovely time they had had in ‘Vicky Park’ and giggling like a pair of schoolgirls. Daisy made an excuse of needing to change her shoes and she went straight to her room, where she unlocked her jewel case and took out Julian’s ring. The diamond sparkled in the early evening sunlight that filtered through the haze of city grime and bird droppings on the windowpanes. It was a pretty thing and the most expensive piece of jewellery she had ever possessed, but it held no sentimental value now. She wrapped it in a handkerchief and tucked it into her reticule. Tomorrow morning, first thing, she would take it to the shop and leave it with Jonah, making him promise to keep it for Julian Carrington. Ordinarily she would not have entrusted him with anything of value, but she knew Jonah well enough to be certain that he would not do anything to offend a possible client, and if there was one thing that Jonah Sawkins respected it was money and the Carrington name.

  Daisy sat on her bed and sorted through the textbooks that Sister Johnson had given her. Her unexpected falling out with Nick had upset her more than she had imagined possible, but, if anything, it had made her even more determined to follow a career in medicine. The men in her life all seemed to have feet of clay, and at the first sign of trouble they crumbled to dust before her eyes. Nick’s possessive attitude was the biggest disappointment of all. She selected a book on general ward hygiene and skimmed through the index, but the silence in the room was unnerving. It was oddly quiet without Minnie’s constant chatter, but she was probably relating the events of the afternoon to anyone who was prepared to listen. On the way home Minnie and Ivy had been making plans for another such Sunday outing, and Daisy suspected that they were both sweet on Toby. She sighed and turned back to her selected book.

  Next morning Daisy was assigned to the outpatient department. She was sent to fetch the patients and take them to the appropriate cubicles where the doctor examined them while she stood by ready to assist. The clinic had gone smoothly enough and she went to find the last person in the waiting area, but it was Nick who rose to his feet, clutching a large bunch of violets.

  ‘Are you ill?’ Daisy asked warily.

  ‘No, I came to apologise for my behaviour yesterday. I realise it was unforgiveable, Daisy. You are your own woman and I am a clumsy fellow who can’t put his feelings into words.’ He held out the flowers. ‘Would you accept these with my apologies?’

  She could feel everyone staring at them and she hurried him into an empty cubicle. ‘There was no need for this, Nick, but the flowers are lovely. Thank you.’ She took them from him and buried her face in their soft purple petals, the scent reminded her of the woods near Creek Hall.

  ‘Am I forgiven?’

  ‘Yes, of course. Perhaps I was a bit hasty, but let’s forget it, shall we?’

  ‘Gladly. I’ll try to curb my tongue in future.’

  She smiled. ‘I think you might find that rather difficult.’

  ‘I’m going to be very busy for the next two or three weeks, but perhaps we could go to the theatre some time, or I could take you to dinner.’

  ‘I’d like that, but I intend to spend much of my spare time studying. I want to get my qualifications as soon as possible.’

  ‘I have to go now, Daisy. I put off a very wealthy patient to come here and I’ll be in trouble with my employer if I don’t get back within the hour.’ He kissed her briefly on the cheek. ‘I’ll see you very soon.’

  ‘I hope so, Nick.’ She opened the curtains and stood for a moment, watching him as he walked purposefully towards the main doors. She sniffed the violets again and their scent was intoxicating. She found a small glass and filled it with water, arranging the flowers carefully to show them off at their best, but the sound of Sister Johnson bellowing her name brought her back to the present. She left the violets on a shelf and went to answer her superior’s summons.

  Later, when she was allowed to take a break for lunch, Daisy retrieved the flowers and took them to Hilda, who seemed to have been improving slowly, but Daisy was concerned to find her lying down with her face to the wall.

  ‘What’s the matter? Are you in pain?’ Daisy placed the violets on the bedside locker.

  Hilda turned a tear-stained face to her. ‘They say I got to have me leg amputated. It’s not healing properly.’

  Chapter Nineteen

  Daisy clutched Hilda’s hand. ‘I’m so sorry, Hilda, but if the doctors say that, you know it must be for the best, hard as it might seem.’

  ‘But how will I earn me living? I’ll be a cripple and me and the nippers will have no choice but to go to the workhouse.’

  ‘I won’t allow that to happen,’ Daisy said firmly. ‘The children are safe and happy in the country, and when you’re well enough to travel I’m sure we can arrange for you to join them.’

  Hilda shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks. ‘But what then? Who’s going to support us, and what work can a one-legged woman do?’

  ‘Please don’t upset yourself, Hilda.’ Daisy leaned over to brush a lock of hair from Hilda’s damp forehead. ‘Everything will be all right, I promise you that. We’ll find a way somehow.’

  She looked round to see Minnie approaching followed by a more senior nurse.

  ‘Good afternoon, Mrs Begg. I’ve come to give you something to calm your nerves,’ Minnie said with a bright smile. She shot a wary look at her superior.

  ‘Help the patient to a sitting position, Nurse. You can’t pour the medication down her throat while she’s supine.’ The senior nurse’s fingers twitched impatiently.

  ‘I’ll help you, Nurse Cole,’ Daisy said hastily, and together they managed to get Hilda propped up on the pillow and able to drink the mixture.

  She pulled a face. ‘That tastes blooming horrible.’

  ‘We’ll be taking you to theatre in a few minutes,’ Minnie said gently. ‘You mustn’t worry, Hilda, you’re in good hands.’

  ‘There’s no time to chat, Nurse Cole.’

  The senior nurse marched off with Minnie following at a slower pace, and Daisy stayed with Hilda until the medicine took effect and her eyes closed.

  ‘I’ll try to be here when you come round,’ Daisy whispered. ‘It will be all right, Hilda. I promise.’ But as Daisy left the ward she knew that life for Hilda would be far from easy.

  She managed to snatch a brief conversation with Minnie at their afternoon break, and she learned that Hilda’s operation had been successful – her right leg having been amputated below the knee. Daisy forgot about food and hurried back to Hilda’s ward. She reached her bedside just as Hilda opened her eyes.

  ‘You’re going to be fine,’ Daisy said gently. ‘The operation went well.’

  ‘I can still feel me toes.’ Hilda focused her eyes on Daisy’s face. ‘Did they save me leg?’

  ‘Don’t worry about that now.’ Daisy looked up as a senior nurse appeared at her side. ‘I’m just going, Sister.’

  A faint smile creased the older woman’s stern features. ‘Don’t worry, Nurse Marshall. Stay as long as you like. Mrs Begg has come through the operation very satisfactorily.’ She walked away to speak to another patient, who was calling for her attention.

  Daisy gazed down at Hilda’s ashen face. If life had been hard for the Begg family before the tragic accident, it was not going to be any easier in the foreseeable future, but if there was anything that could be done to help them she would do her very best to see that they were not condemned to the dreaded workhouse.

  For the ne
xt couple of months Daisy concentrated all her efforts on work and study. She saw very little of Nick, and although she bumped into Toby almost daily in the hospital he was working long hours with little time to socialise, much to Minnie’s disappointment. Hilda recovered slowly and at the beginning of June she was able to walk with the aid of crutches, but what seemed to terrify her most was the prospect of being discharged from hospital. Daisy tried to visit her daily, and she made an effort to sound hopeful, but quite what Hilda would do was another matter. It was unseasonably hot and the hospital wards were filled to capacity with diseases caused by overcrowding and poverty. Beds were needed desperately and Hilda was due to be discharged, although she still had nowhere to go.

  Daisy had thought about asking Mrs Wood if Hilda could stay in Fieldgate Street for a while, but the only rooms as yet unoccupied were on the top floor and Hilda would never be able to negotiate the stairs. The alternative would be, if it were possible, to take her to Creek Hall, where at least she would be well cared for and she would be reunited with her children. Daisy mentioned this to Toby when they met one afternoon in the outpatient department.

  ‘I don’t know,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘Nick’s had word from Mrs Bee that there’s an outbreak of cholera in the village. I saw him last evening and he told me that he’d given up his position in Harley Street and he was leaving today for Little Creek.’

  Daisy stared at him in dismay. ‘Cholera! But Dr Snow proved that horrible disease was passed on by contaminated water. Surely that can’t be true in the country?’

  ‘I only know what Nick told me, Daisy. He obviously thought it serious enough to go there as a matter of urgency.’

  ‘In that case I need to make sure that Aunt Eleanora and Uncle Sidney are keeping well,’ Daisy said anxiously.

  ‘They have Hattie and Linnet to take care of them.’ Toby gave her a searching look. ‘You aren’t thinking of following Nick to Little Creek, are you?’

  ‘It might be a false alarm,’ Daisy said slowly. ‘Perhaps it’s an isolated case. As a matter of fact I was going to ask permission to take Hilda to Creek Hall. The poor woman is desperate to see her children, and terrified that they will all end up in the workhouse.’

  ‘I’m sorry for her, but I don’t see what you can do about it, Daisy.’

  ‘I haven’t got a plan, I just feel responsible for her in some way. If Sister Johnson allows me to take Hilda to Creek Hall I could go and see Aunt Eleanora and Uncle Sidney. I’d like to make sure they’re all right.’

  Toby threw up his hands. ‘I know that look, Daisy. You’ll go whatever happens. I’m not certain if it’s the village you love or the village doctor, but I think you need to find out.’

  ‘You’re talking nonsense. I owe it to our aunt and uncle to make sure that they’re safe and well, and I do care about the people who live in the village.’

  ‘And what do you say about Nick?’

  ‘He’s a friend, and if there is a serious problem he’s going to need my help. I’ve made my mind up, Toby. I’ll leave as soon as I can make the necessary arrangements.’

  Sister Johnson had not been encouraging when Daisy asked for time off, explaining that she intended to take Hilda Begg to recuperate in the country where she would be with her children. Then, seeing that this argument was getting her nowhere, Daisy mentioned the outbreak of cholera, expressing her concern for her aunt and uncle. Anxiety made her eloquent and Sister Johnson agreed that she could take Mrs Begg to Creek Hall, but if Daisy chose to remain in Essex she would lose her place as a probationer nurse. The prospect brought Daisy close to tears, and as if to prove that she had a heart, Sister Johnson gave Daisy three days’ compassionate leave.

  With their bags packed and Hilda seated on a chair in the waiting area, Daisy was about to step outside to hail a cab when a familiar carriage pulled up at the main entrance of the hospital. She recognised the coachman and the footman who leaped down from the box to open the door, but it was too late to turn and run. The woman who alighted from the luxurious equipage was none other than Agnes Carrington, who possessed the eyesight of a hawk, and she had spotted Daisy even before her feet touched the ground. She sailed towards her with her full skirts swaying like a bell. She was smartly dressed in a lavender silk gown, and her bonnet was trimmed with pink roses, which matched the spots of colour in her otherwise pale cheeks. Her expression was anything but friendly.

  ‘So, I’ve caught you, young woman. Mr Sawkins said I would find you waiting for payment.’ In a dramatic gesture she tossed a leather pouch at Daisy’s feet. ‘There are your thirty pieces of silver, you Jezebel.’

  ‘I think it was Judas who received the money, Mrs Carrington. But I really don’t know what you’re talking about.’ Daisy glanced over her shoulder, anxious to see if any of the hospital staff were listening, but to her relief they were all too busy to take any notice.

  ‘You always did act the innocent. I thought that my son was safe from your wiles, but it seems that you won’t leave him alone.’

  A cold shiver ran down Daisy’s spine. Someone had been telling lies about her, and if it was not Julian, there was only one other person it could be. ‘I can’t imagine what Jonah Sawkins told you, or how you came to be in contact with that man, but you’ve obviously been fed a pack of lies.’

  ‘Mr Sawkins brought me the ring that you’d tried to sell him.’

  ‘I did no such thing,’ Daisy protested. ‘I gave him the ring to pass on to Julian. It was obviously a mistake to trust Jonah, but I wanted nothing more to do with your son and I told him so.’

  ‘That’s not the way Mr Sawkins put it, Miss Marshall. He said you’d sent him to Queen Square to beg Julian to see you, and when he refused you instructed Mr Sawkins to sell the ring.’

  ‘That’s not how it was, but I can see that whatever I say you’ll choose to believe someone like Jonah. Did you think to ask Julian?’

  ‘My son has returned to Paris, thank goodness. He’s far away from your scheming, which is why I came here today. Take the money and leave my son alone.’

  The temptation to throw the money at Mrs Carrington was almost overwhelming, but Daisy knew that it would do nothing to change her former employer’s opinion of her. For reasons best known to himself, Jonah had put the final seal on her involvement with the Carrington family, but she was not going to allow him to win. Instead, she bent down and picked up the purse.

  ‘I will take this, because the ring was mine to sell, had I so wished. Jonah Sawkins was supposed to return it to your son, but I have a purpose for this money and I know where it will do the most good.’ Daisy held her head high as she walked to the edge of the kerb where a growler had just dropped off a fare.

  ‘I have a crippled lady I need to take to Bishopsgate Station, Cabby. Would you wait for a few minutes please?’

  He tipped his hat and grunted assent, and Daisy retraced her steps, walking past Agnes Carrington without a backward glance. She wanted nothing more to do with that family. Julian had proved himself to be weak and feckless – she was well rid of him. There were more important matters to hand and one of them was Hilda.

  With Daisy’s help and a pair of wooden crutches, Hilda managed to cope with the journey to Little Creek, although it was clear to Daisy that she was in a great deal of pain. Earlier that morning Daisy had sent a telegram to Creek Hall, giving the time of their arrival, and Billy was waiting for them at the station with the horse and trap. Hilda was pale with fatigue and lines of suffering were etched on her face, but she did not complain even when Daisy and Billy had a struggle to get her onto the trap. Not a word passed her lips when the vehicle bounced over the ruts in the country lanes, but her knuckles whitened as she clutched the wooden side rails and she closed her eyes.

  Daisy had hoped that Nick might be at home when they finally arrived at Creek Hall, but it was Dove who came hurrying to greet them and Mrs Bee was standing in the doorway with a welcoming smile.

  ‘Where are my babies?’ Hilda dema
nded weakly.

  ‘Judy and Molly are at school in the village,’ Dove said in a matter-of-fact voice. ‘And the two little ones are taking a nap. Mrs Bee thought it best to keep your arrival a surprise.’

  ‘The girls shouldn’t be in school,’ Hilda protested. ‘They might catch the disease.’

  ‘We’re trying to carry on as usual,’ Dove said hastily. ‘The doctor said it was all right for them to attend classes. Mr Massey, the schoolmaster, is a very capable person and so far none of the children have been taken ill. ’ Dove hooked one of Hilda’s arms around her shoulders. ‘Lean on me, Mrs Begg. Billy will take the other side and Daisy will hold your crutches. We’ll get you indoors and make you comfortable.’

  Daisy followed them into the house. ‘Are there many cases of cholera locally, Dove?’

  ‘My father is very ill and Ma is nursing him, but your aunt and uncle are well, and Mrs Marshall said that Jack can stay with them for as long as it takes Pa to recover.’

  ‘Most of those affected live in the cottages owned by the squire,’ Mrs Bee said angrily. ‘Dr Neville says the creek has been contaminated by overflowing privies. Thankfully our supply comes direct from a spring.’

  ‘Where is the doctor? I need to see him,’ Daisy said urgently.

  ‘He’s doing his rounds in the village.’ Mrs Bee eyed Hilda warily. ‘I’ve put you in one of the downstairs rooms, Mrs Begg. I haven’t had time to give it a proper spring clean, but I dare say you’ll be comfortable enough.’

  Hilda nodded tiredly. ‘I’m very grateful to you, I’m sure, but I don’t intend to impose on you or the good doctor any longer than necessary.’

  ‘Come and sit down, my dear.’ Mrs Bee’s tone softened and she ushered Hilda into the kitchen. ‘A cup of tea and something to eat will perk you up, and then the little ones will wake up and find their mama here.’ She guided Hilda to a chair at the table.

  ‘What will they think when they see me like this?’ Hilda’s voice shook with suppressed emotion.