The Heart is Torn (6 page)

Henry Farrell did not stir in his bed throughout the rest of the day, and by early evening Beth was in the lowest depths of despair. Darkness had fallen.

The storm had abated considerably but was still holding sway. Leaving her father’s room for a few moments, she was descending the stairs on her way to the kitchen when the front door was opened and Nick entered, followed closely by two men. Beth’s spirits were instantly revived at the sight of her brother and she went forward quickly, but her steps lagged when she recognised Martin Cresse behind Nick.

‘What is Cresse doing here?’ she demanded.

‘He’s come with a clerk to make an inventory of the contents here,’ Nick said. ‘Peake has given the word that because Father has not agreed to give your hand in marriage, everything here is to be sold in part settlement of Father’s debts. I told you this would happen, Beth. All you had to do was marry Peake and we would have retained everything.’

‘Spare me the grizzling,’ Cresse said harshly. ‘I am about the lawful business of my master and have a warrant to carry out this examination. If you do not give me every assistance I shall report your conduct to Peake and you will be taken to court.’

‘I’ll attend to this,’ Nick said. ‘Don’t cause any trouble, Beth. We have had too much of that already.’

Beth turned on her heel, fighting down a bitter retort, and went into the kitchen. She sat with Rose, who had prepared a meal for her, and ate mechanically, paying little heed to the food, her thoughts running furiously through her mind as she endeavoured to find a way out of the trouble overtaking them.

She went back to her father’s room. Henry was lying still and pale in his bed. Nick came into the room and stood at the foot of the bed, gazing down at his father’s immobile features. Beth watched him intently, shocked that he could have gone over to Peake in the family’s hour of need.

6

Nick left his father’s room, and Beth gazed forlornly at his retreating back, but it was obvious now that her brother was trying to retrieve something for himself from this grievous turn of events, no matter what happened to his family.

She sat gazing at her father’s still face, wondering bitterly why such a dire fate should befall them. Her mother’s death had affected them all, but Henry had been unable to rise above his grief, and she could not bring herself to blame him for his weakness.

The bedroom door opened noisily and she started up to see Cresse standing in the doorway, smiling mercilessly. The little clerk was at his back, looking expectantly around the big man’s menacing figure.

‘What do you want?’ Beth demanded angrily.

‘We have to take account of this room. You chose to ignore the warnings I gave you about what was going to happen to your family, so now you have to face the consequences. You’re not feeling so high and mighty now, eh, Beth? Well, you can’t say you weren’t warned.’

He turned and beckoned to the clerk.

‘Make a note of everything, Jim. Peake would flay us alive if we missed a single item.’

Beth stepped forward, barring their way.

‘My father is very ill,’ she declared. ‘You will not come in here. Leave this room. Peake can take his pound of flesh, but Father will not be disturbed.’

Cresse reached out a large hand and pushed Beth aside.

‘You had your chance to avoid this,’ he rapped. ‘And even now it is not too late. Peake would be generous if you agree to marry him.’

‘Then go and tell him that I do agree to his terms. Tell him anything to stop this vile business.’

Cresse gazed at her for some moments and the ensuing silence clutched at Beth’s throat like a ghostly hand. Her heart was pounding, she felt light-headed, and was aware of what she was saying. But she had to end this situation here and now, and motioned for Cresse to leave.

‘Please go to Peake immediately and acquaint him with my decision,’ she said firmly. ‘I agree to marry him if he stops this awful business.’

Cresse grinned knowingly.

‘Don’t think you can say this and then change your mind later,’ he warned. ‘Jonah Peake is not a man to be trifled with.’

‘Please do as I say,’ Beth entreated.

Cresse motioned to the clerk and they departed. Beth stood at the top of the stairs and watched them descend. Nick was in the hall, and there was a whispered conversation. Then Nick glanced up the stairs, saw Beth’s motionless figure, and waved a suddenly friendly hand.

The trio put on their cloaks and departed swiftly. As Beth returned to her father’s room she heard the front door slam behind them, and to her distraught mind it sounded like the knell of doom.

She spent another seemingly endless night watching over her father, whose condition remained unchanged. Her heart cried out for Adam’s company, and early in the evening she was filled with hope that he might arrive. But by midnight her hopes had died and she faced the bleak night with uneasiness filling her.

At daybreak, she stirred herself to face what she knew would be a day of ordeal. She prepared for Jonah Peake’s arrival. Precisely at ten o’clock a coach drew up outside and he announced his presence. Rose admitted him, and he was divesting himself of his cloak when Beth descended the stairs from her father’s room.

‘Good morrow, Beth.’

Peake was in a cheerful mood, smiling broadly, but his cruel eyes did not display his joviality. They regarded Beth as if he were a cat and she a bird.

‘You are not looking too well,’ he observed. ‘I heard about your father’s accident. Is he any better now?’

‘Not a whit,’ she replied. ‘I am still waiting for him to regain his senses. He lies like a man who is already dead.’

‘You’ve had a change of heart since I saw you last. Cresse informed me that you are now prepared to accept my proposal.’

‘What would you expect, sending Cresse in here like a grave robber?’

‘I think you should stop right there and consider your situation. I am merely obeying the letter of the law in trying to recover your father’s debts, and it is only out of consideration for you that I have made this offer of wiping the slate clean if you marry me.’

‘What alternative do I have?’ she countered. ‘I know there is none so I agree to marry you, but I don’t have to pretend that I like it.’

‘Then let us go into the library and get down to business.’

Peake was irritated by her attitude.

‘I have prepared a paper containing my terms. If you agree to them then your father is freed from his difficulties. I will not press for payment of his debts and the manor will remain in your family until your father’s death.’

‘You have written that down? Am I worth that much to you?’ she asked in surprise.

‘I am merely being generous to my future father-in-law,’ Peake said and smiled. ‘When Henry Farrell eventually dies then the estate will come to me. Your marriage to me is merely buying time for your family. Is that perfectly clear to you? I don’t want a reversal of your agreement at a later date.’

‘I understand. You inveigled my father into gambling with you and drained his resources to the point where he has nothing left, and you are using his debts to lever me into marriage with you. But have you considered the situation you will bring about by stealing me from Adam Traherne? He is not the man to let you escape with your spoils.’

‘Adam Traherne poses no threat to me.’

Peake shook his head, his eyes gleaming, but for a moment he looked pensive, then smiled and shrugged. Beth suppressed a shudder as he reached out swiftly and caught hold of her arm. Drawing her close, he slid his powerful arms around her slender body, and Beth froze in horror, barely able to prevent her revulsion from showing in her stiff face.

‘You must try harder to pretend that you like me,’ he observed. ‘But your feelings do not enter into my consideration. I have you now and you will grow to like me.’

He led the way into the library and seated himself at the desk by the window. Beth stood at his side, her eyes blurred with unshed tears. Peake produced two sheets of paper which stated that he would make no effort to claim Henry Farrell’s debts if the intended marriage between himself and Beth took place.

‘This is legally binding in law,’ he declared, leaning back with a satisfied air. ‘Take your time reading it, and then sign at the bottom under the part which is your agreement to our pending marriage. I shall sign it as well, and you will keep one of the copies.’

Beth hardly read the document, her mind subservient to a ferment of conflicting emotions. She wished Adam could arrive at this very moment and rescue her from what was becoming a living nightmare. But Adam was overwhelmed by the misfortune resulting from Peake’s scheming and engaged in trying to overcome the evil being perpetrated. She signed both copies of the document and Peake seized them, unable to contain his satisfaction. The quill pen scratched as he added his signature, and then he flung one down on the desk and rolled the other and tucked it into a pocket.

‘You have the rest of the morning to pack your immediate possessions,’ he said vibrantly, his tone laced with triumph. ‘I shall send a woman who is well versed in nursing to attend your father night and day until his recovery. You will come to my house in Polgarron this afternoon at two-thirty.’

‘I cannot leave my father while he is in this condition!’ Beth said, appalled. ‘You have your proof that I intend to marry you, so you must wait until the situation clears.’

‘You will do as I say.’

An ominous note sounded in Peake’s voice.

‘You cannot help your father in any way except by obeying me. I have you in my grasp now, and if you have any sense at all you will realise that you are helpless. Don’t give me any trouble, sweet Beth, or it will go hard with your father.’

Beth shook her head slowly, but the hopelessness of her position was stark in her mind. She was following this course of action because there was no other way of protecting her father, unless she could get proof of Peake’s lawless activities and deliver it to Jeremy Traherne. Only success would bring an end to this nightmare so she steeled herself to go on.

‘Very well,’ she said. ‘I shall leave here as soon as the nurse arrives.’

‘That’s better.’

Peake arose from the desk and grasped her upper arms, drawing her into a close embrace. Beth saw his hated face only inches from her own and closed her eyes. She could feel his hot, rum-laden breath on her cheek, and fought against her distaste. He kissed her passionately. She tried to close her mind to what was happening, buoying herself with the knowledge that the sooner she discovered his secrets the sooner she would be rid of him.

Releasing her, Peake turned away. Beth followed him into the hall and was relieved when he fetched his cloak preparatory to leaving.

‘I have much to do,’ he said, ‘and very little time in which to do it. But I shall be at home in the early afternoon and will expect your arrival. Whatever you do, don’t disappoint me.’

Beth nodded, and was relieved when he departed. But the slam of the door echoed in her heart, piercing her with a grim reminder of the pitiless situation in which she found herself. She instructed Rose to pack her personal belongings in a trunk, then returned to her father’s room.

‘Oh, Father!’ she exclaimed. ‘Thank heaven you have no idea of what I am about to do. I hope this evil will be removed before you recover.’

She sat down beside his bed and rubbed Henry’s limp hands, gazing at his ashen face and praying that he would soon regain his senses.

The morning passed and Beth began to suffer the tortures of fear as the hour of her departure neared. When there was a knocking at the front door she tiptoed to the top of the stairs and saw Rose admitting a middle-aged woman, who set down a large box and began to remove her coat and hat. Nick entered the house at that moment, and Beth experienced a pang of hope that somehow he would be able to help her. As she descended the stairs, Nick smiled at her.

‘I’ve brought Mistress Appleyard, who will take care of Father now you are leaving,’ Nick said. ‘I’m glad you’ve come to your senses, Beth. It would have been terrible if Peake had taken possession of the manor.’

‘And that’s all it means to you,’ she responded bitterly. ‘I’ve saved the roof over your head and you give not a second thought to my plight.’

He shrugged.

‘It’s no use kicking against what has to be. If you’re ready, I’ll drive you back to Peake’s. I brought Mrs Appleyard, and have instructions to take you back with me.’

‘Will you stay here and watch over Father?’ she implored.

‘I can’t do that. Father brought this trouble down upon us, and he will have to face the consequences when he awakes. There is no way we can resist Peake so we have to make the best of it, and for you, marrying Peake is a small price to pay to save Sedge Manor.’

Beth went to the door and left the house without looking back. Descending the terrace steps, she entered Jonah Peake’s big coach. Nick and the coach driver carried down her trunk and stowed it aboard the coach. Then they departed. Beth sat silent on the trip into town, and when Nick attempted to converse with her, she pointedly ignored him until he finally gave up trying and lapsed into silence.

Rain lashed the coach as it halted at the front door of Peake’s mansion, which stood in the main street leading to the harbour overlooking Polgarron Bay. The house was surrounded by trees encompassed by a high wall, and iron gates shut off the driveway from the street. The driver humped Beth’s trunk into the house while Nick went ahead with Beth.

The housekeeper confronted them at the door. She was a tall, thin woman with a permanently sour expression on her gaunt face. Dressed in funereal black from head to toe, she sniffed as she gazed at Beth with bird-like brown eyes that were expressionless. Beth returned the gaze with a chill stare, not feeling disposed to be friendly.

‘This is Mrs Fetters,’ Nick said by way of introduction. ‘She has been the housekeeper here for many years.’

‘Miss Peake is in the drawing-room.’ Mrs Fetters spoke in an impersonal tone.

‘I am to escort you into her presence on your arrival. Follow me.’

The housekeeper crossed the hall to a door opposite, and Nick gave Beth a little push to get her moving in the same direction. Beth bestowed a withering glance upon her brother and followed the housekeeper into a long, well-furnished room that had two tall windows overlooking the bay. Glancing through the nearest window, Beth then looked around the room and saw a middle-aged lady seated in an easy chair beside a roaring fire. Jonah Peake’s sister was dressed in a plain dark-blue gown.

‘I am Matilda Peake and you are Elizabeth Farrell.’

She motioned with her hand and the housekeeper sat down on a seat by the window.

‘Come and sit by the fire,’ she continued in a tone which indicated that she would suffer no disobedience. ‘Jonah hoped to be here to greet you but had to go out on business, so we will wait together for his return. I must say that I am overwhelmed with shock at this turn of events.’

There was no warmth in Matilda’s voice, and her wrinkled face was impassive. Beth was finding it difficult to contain her displeasure. Accustomed to complete freedom of movement, she was irritated by the overcrowding sense of being confined against her will in this big house with its sombre atmosphere. But there was nothing she could do about the situation, and was aware that she had to make the best of it.