AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He smiled ruefully. “Good. That means you’ll think before you act, except with the toast. Or maybe you’re cleverer than I thought? Have I just been thoroughly manipulated?”
She was horrified. “No! Of course not! How can you—” She stopped because he was genuinely laughing. “Oh…” She looked at him with a little awe, and the realization that while she was away in America he had grown up so much. She smiled back at him.
CHAPTER
Seven
LATER THAT MORNING, Jemima left to visit Rebecca. It was an hour when it was acceptable to call on people with whom you were friends, but not close ones. In such engagements, a certain formality had to be observed. She could meet with Rebecca, but she wanted to be cautious should Bernadette and Tobias Thorwood be in.
She chose a dress carefully from among the few she had brought with her. Its soft blues and greens suited her very well, but more than that, the cut was elegant, very fashionable, and very flattering, especially to her slender frame. She found herself walking with grace, and a smile.
The Thorwoods were staying for a month at one of the best hotels in London, one in which it would be beyond Jemima’s means to spend even one night. But since she had no desire to, she could look at it without even minor envy. As it transpired, Tobias was not in, and Bernadette was preparing to visit an old friend herself.
Jemima was shown up to the Thorwoods’ suite, where Bernadette welcomed her, but with some awkwardness. Jemima could not tell from the almost enamel-smooth face what her feelings were. She was in her early forties, having married young and had her only child at the end of the first year. She was very slender, delicately so, and wore her fashionable heavy silk dress and flowing jacket with great flair. Her thick hair was an ordinary shade of brown, but her eyes were green, clear and startling, almost mesmerizing.
Rebecca, slight and pale, stood beside her. Only her eyes reflected her pleasure at seeing Jemima.
“How kind of you to call, Mrs. Flannery,” Bernadette said with a cool smile, immediately taking control of the situation. “Of course! You were born here, weren’t you! Is your family well?”
“Yes, thank you,” Jemima replied. This was a ridiculous conversation, considering what they both knew. “Are you finding London pleasant?”
“As much as can be expected,” Bernadette replied. “Considering what brings us here.” A tightness filled her face for a moment, and then she forced it away. “I’m sure we shall come another time and it will be very nice.”
“I’m sorry…” Jemima felt compelled to apologize, and then resented it.
“Hardly your fault, my dear,” Bernadette replied. “She was well over seventy.”
Jemima’s complete incomprehension must have been clear.
“Rebecca’s godmother, May Trelawny,” Bernadette said patiently. “She died. Rebecca is her goddaughter; she has no children. It is our sad duty to settle her affairs.”
Jemima glanced at Rebecca and saw not only a deep grief in her face, but something else: an indecisiveness, a sense of trouble. She saw no way to rescue the situation.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I was so concerned with Rebecca’s general spirits, I forgot for a moment about Miss Trelawny. I came to visit Rebecca. I have never forgotten how kind you all were to me when I first arrived in Washington. I would like to take her to some of the quieter, more charming places in London and show her the same friendship. A walk in one of the parks, perhaps. We do not need to meet anyone…”
“I doubt she will wish to, but it was generous to offer,” Bernadette replied. It was clearly a dismissal, even though Rebecca herself was standing beside her.
Jemima’s mind was racing, trying to decide whether she should mention the arrest of Philip Sidney. Did Bernadette know? She was sure Tobias must, but he might not have told her. That would mean he had not discussed it with Rebecca either. That was deeply troubling. Were they going to conduct an investigation without asking her opinion at all? Would it all be done around her, about her, but never seeing or hearing her, as if she were a small child? Was that really the best for her?
Everything in Jemima rebelled. Rebecca would not be able to tell her experience, or deny anything said about her that was not true! And if Sidney were the sort of man who would break into her room at night, rip her necklace from around her throat, and all but assault her, he certainly would not hesitate to lie.
“Are you sure…?” Jemima began.
Bernadette raised her eyebrows, wrinkling her otherwise perfect brow. She was obviously unused to having her wishes or judgment questioned.
Jemima turned and smiled directly to Rebecca. “Are you well enough to go for a walk? You still look so tired. But I promise we will not go far…”
“It’s the perfect time to take a walk, and I would love to get some fresh air,” Rebecca said. “Your parks are so beautiful. I shall get dressed immediately. Ten minutes and I’ll be ready. Perhaps we will find somewhere for luncheon. It’s a little early for it, but I haven’t eaten for ages.” And without waiting for Jemima’s reply, or giving her mother a chance to argue, she turned to her bedroom and disappeared behind the closed door.
Bernadette gave in with a certain amount of grace and commanded that Jemima look after her daughter. She then excused herself to prepare for her own calls.
* * *
—
JEMIMA AND REBECCA walked together toward Hyde Park, about a quarter mile from the hotel. The sun was hot and bright, the roses in their second flush. The neatly planted flower beds were dazzling with blooms, reds and dark blues, towering delphiniums, salvias, wide-eyed pansies in every color possible. The grass on the other side had been recently mown and smelled wonderful.
The breeze was light, and as they moved along the path, they were one moment in the sun, the next the shade, and then the sun again. There was the sound of distant laughter, shouts of children playing, and the crunch of gravel under their feet.
