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Leon’s voice was gentle as he spoke.
“Maggie, this is Iris. Iris is my wife – we were married a few days ago, in London. She will be living here with me, now.”
The girl whirled to face him, wobbling on her feet as she did so.
“NO! She cannot! This is our home, and no interlopers are welcome. Send her away!”
Iris swallowed. This was, it seemed, going to be harder than she had thought. At that moment, Lady Greenleigh hurried up to them, closely followed by a grey-haired woman with a kind face who looked, Iris thought, to be exhausted. This must, she deduced, be Mrs Withercombe. Lady Greenleigh went to Maggie and gently took her hand.
“Maggie dear, you mustn’t say such things. Iris will be staying – she is Leon’s wife – he can’t just send her away, and nor should he. You will have to be a good girl, and share your home with her.”
Maggie glowered at her mother, and Iris could see that co-operation was unlikely.
“I will not!”
“Maggie, you have no choice – unless you wish to come to live in the Dower House with me?”
Maggie flinched, as if the words had been a physical blow.
“No! I can’t… not there… It’s… It’s not green…”
Iris considered this strange proclamation. Maggie wore only green clothes – was there more to that than just her choice of attire for the day? And what did she mean by those words with respect to the Dower House?
“Then you must cope with Iris being here.”
Maggie lifted her chin, looking for all the world like a slightly demented five-year-old who had been denied their favourite treat. It was a shocking thing to see on a woman of twenty-five or so. Mrs Withercombe stepped past Iris, with a quietly whispered, “I’m sorry, my Lady,” and went to help Lady Greenleigh lead Maggie into the house.
Silence fell for a moment, then footsteps on the gravel made Iris turn. Lina approached, looking white with shock.
“My Lady… what will you do?”
Iris wanted to run away, to hide from the terrible revelations of the day – but she could not. And, truth to tell, the situation had just invoked her innate stubbornness. She would not be forced away from her rightful place.
“Go on as I had intended to, Lina, and make this my home. Now please continue – make sure that all of the luggage is taken to the right place, and that we have all that we need. I am sure that Belling can help you find the Housekeeper if anything more is needed. I will see you later – when I come up to change.”
Lina straightened her back, obviously braced by the fact that Iris appeared unafraid.
“Yes, my Lady.”
She turned back to Belling, who stood waiting with a small cluster of footmen near him, each carrying a trunk. Iris released the breath she had been holding.
“That was well done, my dear. And thank you for your forbearance. That was far from the manner in which I had hoped to introduce you to my sister, but now it is done. I apologise for her actions, and her words. She does not truly see the world sensibly anymore.”
“I can see that her… condition… is rather worse than I expected from your description. But… why was she out here?”
“In spring and summer, when the leaves on the trees are green, we can get her to come outside, and walk in the gardens. She is better when she does, she seems stronger in the days when she goes outside regularly, even if she cannot walk any great distance.”
Iris nodded, her mind catching on the word green, again. Why did green matter? She did not understand, and she had the feeling that the coming days would bring many things which seemed beyond her comprehension, at least at first.
“I see. Where are they taking her?”
“To her rooms – the upper floor of the west wing is all Maggie’s domain. They will get her settled, and Mrs Withercombe will see if she can get Maggie to eat. Then, after we have dinner, if Maggie is still awake, I will need to go up and play for her, to lull her into rest. There is a small parlour up there, with a pianoforte just for that purpose.”
“So… I will not have your company? Will your mother…?”
“Mother will go back to the Dower House, immediately after dinner. I am afraid that I will need to leave you alone, until we get Maggie to sleep.”
Iris took a very deep breath, and for the first time, felt the prick of tears threatening. She would not allow this to affect her so – that would be to let Maggie win. But she had never felt so alone in her life. She could not deny poor crazed Maggie her brother’s company, yet she felt abandoned by him, nonetheless. She would manage, and late tonight, perhaps they could talk, and she could learn more of this strange house that was now her home.
