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“And I’ve no quarrel with that,” Mr Fletcher said. “Edith and I were of one mind on that subject. But if Bella’s little fantasies, as you call them, are to prevent Julia marrying, well, I don’t like that one little bit.”
“Nothing will prevent the marriage, sir,” James said at once. “Not unless Julia cries off, for I certainly shall not. It does mean a longer betrothal than either of us might wish, however. We must wait until Michael is safely married.”
“But even then there is no guarantee that you and your heirs will be removed from the inheritance,” Will said. “At what point will Sir Owen give his consent? When your brother marries? When his wife is with child? Or must you wait until he has two sons? It could be years — or never.”
“Not never,” James said. “I cannot tell you when my father will relent, but sooner or later he will.”
“And you do not feel that this is the moment to rebel against your father’s strictures?” Will said with a mischievous grin. “Fathers are not always right, after all, and a son must eventually learn to be his own man.”
Mr Fletcher smiled at him, and acknowledged it.
“It may be so in your family,” James said heavily, “but Sir Owen is a stickler for duty and obedience. He gave up his own much-loved career in the army to return home when his elder brother died, and he has never given less than his best for his family and the estate. He has made difficult decisions in recent years, as you are all too aware. Michael and I both live in dread of disappointing him in some way. Mother… well, Mother is different, less rational about certain things, but Father is soreasonable.He would never force either of us, or the girls either, into a distasteful marriage, nor did he push me into a career for which I am patently unsuited. He is the most accommodating of parents, in general. So when hedoestake a stand, I cannot ignore his wishes, and I am sure you would think the less of me if I were to do so.”
“Certainly,” Mr Fletcher said, “for I myself was forced to decide between obedience and my own desires, long ago. I chose obedience then and I still think it was the right thing to do.”
“Then you understand my position,” James said. “Julia and I must perforce wait a little while for our perfect happiness.”
Mr Fletcher sighed heavily. “That’s all very well, and I like a son who honours his father as much as the next man, but my concern is Julia. She’s always gone her own way, and she may not want to wait indefinitely.”
The icy chill around James’s heart tightened its grip. “Then so be it. I must do what I believe to be right.”
“That is all any of us can do,” Mr Fletcher said. “Shall we re-join the ladies? I think it’s time we had a family discussion about this, and decide what we can do.”
“There is nothing to be done,” James said despairingly.
“Let’s see about that, shall we?” Fletcher said.
~~~~~
As a young girl, Julia had once climbed a mountain, or perhaps it was no more than a large hill, but it had seemed very large and very high to her childish self. She had been obliged to walk and scramble a great distance before reaching the top, where Great-uncle Rowley had assured her there would be a fine view. And then, just as they trudged wearily up the last rocky slope, the mist came down and the view was gone.
Julia felt rather the same way now, as though she had come through a trying ordeal to reach some promised prize, only to have it snatched away at the last minute. She was too stunned to be angry with Lady Plummer, who might easily have spoken earlier when the marriage was first mooted, instead of waiting until it was all agreed and everyone seemed happy with it.
The long evening had been got through somehow. James was too well-bred to allow his feelings to interfere with civility, so he made conversation as if there was nothing in the world amiss. When he looked at Julia, she saw a softening in his eyes, and his voice changed, too. Had he always been that way with her and she had simply never noticed it before? Or perhaps it was a new development, but she decided that she liked it. Such obvious signs of his affection made her feel cherished and special. Pa had always loved her, of course, and told her so, but he loved all of them equally. James was the first person who loved her more than anyone else in the world. It was a strange feeling for someone who had always been a free spirit, going her own way and asking for nothing.
The four sisters, even Bella, gathered on the big bed that Rosie, Angie and Julia shared to discuss the dramas of the day. Julia had little to say. She would be married soon or late, and no amount of speculation would change the course of events. But the others waxed eloquent on the injustice of it all, and so Julia let them speak as they would.
“It is so unfair,” Angie said. “First Mrs Reynell, and now this. You are so unlucky, Jules.”
“Poor Julia,” Rosie said tearfully. “To have found happiness only to have it snatched away again at once.”
“It has not been snatched away yet,” Bella said. “Only postponed. You will just have to be patient, Jules.”
“Not my strongest suit,” Julia said, pulling a face.
“Oh, but for Mr Plummer!” Rosie cried. “Such a charming man, and so in love with you… you can be patient for him, surely, sister? Poor, poor Mr Plummer.”
“And poor me,” Bella said robustly. “You will not leave me out of your lamentations, I hope Rosie, for I believe I am the worst maligned here.”
“So you are, dearest,” Rosie said, weeping afresh. “It is cruel of Lady Plummer to say such horrid things about you and blight poor Julia’s prospects.”
“It blights your prospects, too,” Bella said. “And Angie’s and Will’s. One madwoman in the family casts a taint over everyone. You will all be viewed with suspicion in London, you know.”
Angie gasped with horror as the full implications sank in. “No!We would not… would we?”
“Very likely,” Bella said. “But it is quite all right, Angie. I know what I have to do.”
24: A Quarrel
