Song of the Spirits (30 page)

William wanted to make a retort, but they had reached the house by then and stopped the horses in front of the stables. Gwyneira led her mare in without a second thought and began to unsaddle it. The stableboys had probably left to celebrate with those who had helped put out the fire. The two of them could be grateful, though, that the house servants had not joined the impromptu party.

William saw to his horse himself, wanting nothing more than a bath and a quiet evening with his wife. She, at least, could almost certainly be counted on to treat him with deference. Gwyneira retired early, and if Kura insisted on sitting at her grand piano for hours, William did not have anything against a private concert. He could drink whiskey while she played—and paint a mental picture for himself of the pleasures they would share in the bedroom later that night. In that arena, there were no problems at all. Every night with Kura was a revelation. The more experienced she became, the more refined her ideas for making him happy. She had no shame, loved with all her senses, and offered up her lithe body in ways that sometimes made even William blush. Yet her joy in loving was completely innocent and free. In that respect, she was a child of nature. And a natural talent.

Gwyneira held the door to the manor house open for William and tossed off her drenched coat in the vestibule. “What a day. I think I’m going to pour myself a whiskey.”

For once, William agreed with her, but they did not even make it as far as the liquor cabinet.

Because instead of hearing the expected piano music and song emanating from the salon, they heard soft voices and heavy sobbing.

Kura was hunched over the divan in tears. Heather Witherspoon was desperately trying to calm her.

William let his gaze wander searchingly over the scene. On the coffee table in front of the sofa were three teacups. The women had evidently had a visitor.

“You wanted this!” When Kura caught sight of her grandmother, she leaped up and glared at her, flushed with rage. “You wanted this! And you helped!” This last comment she directed at William. “You never wanted to go to Europe. None of you wanted me… me…” Kura began to sob again.

“Kura, behave like a lady,” Miss Witherspoon said, more sternly this time. “You are a married woman, and this is completely normal.”

“I wanted to go to England. I wanted to study music,” Kura complained. “And now…”

“You wanted William more than anything. You told me so yourself,” Gwyneira declared curtly. “And now you should get ahold of yourself and explain to us why you suddenly don’t want him anymore. This morning at breakfast, you still looked happy to me.” Gwyneira poured herself a whiskey. Regardless of what kind of mood Kura was wallowing in, she needed a pick-me-up.

“Really, dearest.” William had not the least desire for further complications on this catastrophic day, but he sat down next to Kura nonetheless and tried to put his arms around her. He thought she might ask why he smelled like smoke and was covered in soot, but Kura didn’t notice a thing.

“I don’t want to… I don’t want to…” She sobbed hysterically. “Why weren’t you careful? Why did you…” She extricated herself from William’s embrace and began to beat on his chest.

“Collect yourself,” Miss Witherspoon ordered her. “You should be happy instead of raging about. Now cease this crying and inform your husband of the news!”

Gwyneira took a different approach. She turned to Moana, the Maori housekeeper, who had just come in to clear away the tea set.

“Who came to visit, Moana? My granddaughter has fallen to pieces. Did something happen?”

Moana’s entire wide face was beaming. She, at least, did not seem perturbed. “I not listened, mistress,” she explained happily. She then lowered her voice as though to tell her a secret. “But was Miss Candler. Miss Witherspoon send for her, for Kura!”

“Francine Candler?” Gwyneira’s troubled expression brightened. “The midwife in Haldon?”

“Yes!” sobbed Kura. “I hope you’re all happy! You’ve managed to pin me down to your damned farm! I’m pregnant, William. I’m pregnant!”

William looked from Kura weeping, to Miss Witherspoon embarrassed, to Moana excited. Lastly, he looked at Gwyneira drinking her whiskey, who had a look on her face like the cat that finally got the canary. Then she returned his gaze.

William Martyn realized that at that moment Gwyneira McKenzie forgave him everything.

W
hile William Martyn was securing his position on Kiward Station, Elaine O’Keefe and Thomas Sideblossom’s wedding was taking place in Queenstown.

The atmosphere was a little tense, however, especially when the bride’s mother had to join the groom’s father for an obligatory waltz, during which Fleurette O’Keefe acted as though she were being forced to dance with an oversized weta. At least that was how Georgie put it, earning a reprimand from his grandmother Helen. Ruben found the remark quite apt, though he noted that Fleurette had never really feared touching the giant bugs—unlike John Sideblossom.

Ruben, however, enjoyed his dance with Thomas’s still-green stepmother. Zoé Sideblossom was hardly twenty years old and was indeed very pretty. She had curly golden-blonde hair, which she wore up for the wedding, since otherwise it would have fallen to her hips. Her face was aristocratic—pale and symmetrical—her eyes a deep brown that seemed to detract from her hair and complexion. The young woman was polite and well-bred. Ruben could not confirm Leonard McDunn’s judgment that she was beautiful but ice-cold.

When it came to beauty, though, the bride shone above the rest that day. Elaine wore a sumptuous white gown with a wide skirt that was so tightly corseted at the waist that she could hardly eat a bite of the wedding feast. Her face seemed to shine with an inner light, and her hair gleamed beneath her lace veil and a garland of white flowers. James McKenzie assured her that he had never seen a lovelier bride, except for perhaps Gwyneira, and for Elaine, that was the nicest compliment she could have received. After all, the last bride her grandfather had seen was Kura. Elaine’s wedding was on par with
Kura’s in both size and grandeur. George Greenwood had come with his whole family—no doubt in part thanks to Jenny’s urgent pleading, as she was eager to pursue her acquaintance with Stephen. They hadn’t been out of each other’s sight since the Greenwoods had arrived.

“Well, I guess we know who the next bride will be,” James McKenzie teased Jenny’s proud father.

“I would have nothing against it,” George said. “But I think the young man wants to finish his studies first. And Jenny is still very young—though that doesn’t seem to stop them.”

Thomas and John Sideblossom behaved irreproachably throughout the festivities. John even managed an almost-polite greeting to James McKenzie. Fleurette had feared the worst. John, after all, had been the one to corner her father and drag him to court back in his livestock-thieving days. Though James had his own reasons for hating the groom’s father, Fleurette had much more faith in her father’s ability to control himself. He kept his distance from John Sideblossom, especially as the evening advanced and the whiskey began flowing in streams. Though Fleurette knew that John could imbibe prodigious amounts without anyone being able to tell, she nevertheless kept a watchful eye on his alcohol consumption that night. He behaved quite well, though, only strengthening his grip on his wife’s arm from time to time when she dared to talk or dance with another man.

Inger—who had turned down the role of Elaine’s “maid” of honor due to her large stomach—noticed that Thomas Sideblossom was behaving similarly with his new wife. He did not let Elaine out of his sight, and he became increasingly possessive as the night went on. Elaine, by contrast, was almost acting like her earlier self. She was boundlessly happy about the successful party, the kind and admiring looks of the guests, and all the compliments she received. But naturally, she was very nervous, as well. Her wedding night loomed ahead of her, after all, and Thomas had booked the largest room in Helen’s hotel.

The old Elaine had always expressed her anxiety through unceasing chatter. She simply talked and laughed away her fear. That evening, she tried to do just that. The restraint she had shown since William’s
scandalous departure was gone. Elaine joked with Jenny Greenwood and her brother, let Georgie tease her, and allowed Søren to lead her in a dance.

Thomas quickly put a stop to that, however. Smiling coolly, he stepped between the pair, who were happily horsing around on the dance floor.

“May I steal my wife away from you?” he asked politely, but Søren could see the serious expression in his eyes.

The young Swede tried to maintain his jocular tone.

“Like you said, she’s yours!” he said amicably, releasing Elaine and bowing to her formally. “It has been a pleasure, Mrs. Sideblossom.”

When Elaine heard her new name for the first time, she was so delighted that she did not even notice Thomas’s bad temper.

“Oh, Thomas, isn’t the party wonderful?” she babbled breathlessly. “I could keep dancing forever.”

“You’ve danced enough,” Thomas remarked, leading her ably through a waltz while ignoring her attempts to lean into him affectionately. “And with enough men. You’re not behaving in a ladylike manner, and it doesn’t suit you. It’s time we retired.”

“Already?” Elaine asked with disappointment. She had hoped there would be fireworks. Georgie had implied as much, and her parents likewise knew that she had always dreamed of fireworks at her wedding.

“It’s time,” Thomas repeated. “We’ll take the boat. I already talked it over with my father.”

Elaine knew that was the plan. She had also learned that Jenny and Stephen had spent the whole morning decorating the boat with flowers. The nocturnal boat ride was supposed to be romantic, and Elaine was looking forward to it, but she was nevertheless saddened to think that she would not be taking Banshee along to Lionel Station. The mare was looking after her foal, a beautiful little stallion. The black pony was stocky and sound, and he could have made the journey to Lionel Station alongside his mother without any trouble. Thomas thought the mare and her foal would hold up the trip, but Elaine did not see it that way, since the party would not be moving all that quickly anyway.
Her father was sending a freight wagon with her trousseau and a few purchases the Sideblossoms had made, and Zoé would be riding in a coach. On the largely unpaved paths between Queenstown and the farm, the coach would, in fact, hold them up a good deal more than a strong cob foal and her mother. Thomas, however, persisted in his opinion, and Elaine relented. John could bring the mare after his next visit to Queenstown. On this trip, Elaine would be accompanying Zoé in her comfortable chaise.

Elaine said good-bye to no one. Only Inger smiled encouragingly at her as Thomas led her to the boat hung with flowers. The ride down the river that followed was very romantic—in part because fireworks were being set off at Nugget Manor. Elaine was delighted by the colorful cascades of light and the showers of stars bursting above the dark trees. She could hardly restrain herself from singing the praises of the lights reflected in the river.

“Oh, what a wonderful idea, Thomas, to watch the fireworks here on the water, just the two of us! Hasn’t it been a wonderful evening? We should make love right here, out in nature like the Maori do. My grandmother Gwyneira tells such romantic stories. When she was young, she always rode along when the sheep were being herded and… Oh, I would like to do that too, Thomas! I’m so looking forward to life on the farm, with all the animals, and Callie is a wonderful sheepdog. You watch, Callie and I will do the work of three men.” Elaine radiated with joy and tried once again to snuggle close to Thomas, as she once had with William. He pushed her away.

“What an idea! Sheepherding! You’re a woman, Elaine. It is out of the question for you to go fooling around in the stables. Really, I hardly recognize you today. Has the champagne gone to your head? Now move over to your seat and sit still until we get there. This exuberance of yours is unbearable.”

Elaine withdrew, soberly, to the bench across from Thomas.

But then music coming from the riverbank broke the tension between the young couple. The boat was just passing the landing by Stever Station. Elaine’s Maori friends, who had returned to the area
for the upcoming herding, had gathered on the river to serenade the newlyweds.

Elaine recognized a
haka
, a sort of musical play in which the action was represented in dance while men and women sang and played traditional instruments, including the
koauau
, the
nguru
, and
putorino
flutes.

“Oh, can’t we stop, Thomas?” Elaine asked enthusiastically. “They’re playing for us.”

Then she saw the twisted expression on Thomas’s face. Anger? Pain? Hatred? Something seemed to be unleashing a rage in him that he was having difficulty controlling. She also detected a strange hint of fear.

Elaine drew back into her corner of the boat as Thomas seized the oars with a taut face. Though the river’s current was strong enough to carry them, Thomas rowed on urgently.

Elaine had a thousand questions, but she remained silent. Thomas was very different than she had thought, and she was slowly beginning to dread their wedding night. Up until then, she hadn’t been overly anxious about it. After talking with Inger and Maren and, moreover, after William’s caresses, she considered herself almost experienced. For some time now, she had let herself think of William again—almost without spite. She remembered his caresses and his kisses fondly. She had been more than willing to be touched and had become wet from excitement. That had been embarrassing for her at the time, but Inger had assured her that it was completely normal and made lovemaking easier for women to bear. As she had sat next to Thomas admiring the fireworks, she had felt that same warmth and wetness below, but the sensation had passed. What if Thomas did not succeed in arousing her again later? Did he even want to do so? At the moment, it looked more like he wanted to tear someone to shreds.

Elaine pushed the thought firmly away. Of course Thomas would take her in his arms, caress her, and be tender to her. And then she would be ready for him.