The Lady's Maid (37 page)

Josie stopped pacing and leaned over the fireplace
in
the vain hope that there might be a little warmth left in the pile of grey ash. Thinking of Kate, she sighed and shook her head at her own folly; she knew in her heart that her friend was innocent and guileless. It was she, Josie Damerell, who had ruined Kate’s chances of happiness with Harry. When she had fabricated the story of Kate eloping with Sam it had been done out of jealousy. Sam. His name was forced from her lips in a cry of pain that was almost too much to bear. He was gone and she might never see him again. She crumpled to her knees, wrapping her arms around herself and rocking backwards and forwards. How long she remained in that position she did not know, but a spasm of cramp in her leg brought her back to the present. Her limbs were rigid with cold but somehow she managed to crawl back into bed, and she huddled down beneath the covers. If what the Romany woman had said was true, then both she and Kate stood to lose everything they held dear. Josie closed her eyes. She could not do anything to bring Sam back to her, but she might be able to make reparation to Kate for the wrong she had done her. She drifted into a troubled sleep.

It was light when she awakened and she reached out for her father’s old pocket watch, which her mother had given her soon after his death. It was a little after six o’clock, and suddenly she knew what she must do. She rose from her bed and dressed herself without the assistance of a maid, donning her riding habit and boots. Throwing a cape over her arm she left her room, treading softly so as not to draw
attention
to herself. A sleepy hall boy opened the door to let her out of the house and she went to the stables.

Lawson emerged from one of the loose boxes, touching his cap. ‘Good morning, Miss Josie. You’re up bright and early.’

‘Yes, good morning, Lawson. I fancied an early morning canter. Will you have Sheba saddled up for me, please?’

‘Do you want one of the grooms to accompany you, miss?’

‘That won’t be necessary.’ Josie eyed him warily as he went off to carry out her instructions. She couldn’t help wondering how much the servants already knew, but Lawson was too well trained to show any emotion. It was only a matter of minutes, but it seemed like longer as she waited for her horse to be brought to the mounting block. One of the under grooms held the mare while Josie settled herself on the side saddle. Sheba pawed the cobblestones, eager to be off, and once they were clear of the stables, Josie rode her at a gallop across the parkland. The sun was struggling to come out from behind a bank of clouds and a brisk wind whipped her cheeks, tugging strands of hair from beneath her veiled top hat, but it was exhilarating and Josie’s spirits rose.

As she approached the cottage, she was aware of an unusual amount of activity. Blocking the lane, two vehicles were drawn up side by side. The cottage door was wide open and she could hear raised voices. Dismounting, Josie tethered her mount to the fence. As she hurried up the path she could see Squire
Westwood
and Farmer Coggins standing in the middle of the room. They appeared to be having a heated discussion. Molly was huddled in a chair by the empty grate and Kate was obviously trying to calm the situation.

Josie stepped inside. ‘What’s going on?’

Robert turned an angry face to her, scowling. ‘With all due respect, Miss Josie, this has nothing to do with you.’

‘You can’t speak to Josie like that, Father,’ Kate said angrily. ‘This isn’t her fault.’

‘Yes, Coggins,’ Squire Westwood said sternly. ‘Show a little respect.’

Robert shook his head. ‘Keep out of this, Squire, and you too, Miss Damerell. This matter is between me and this young woman.’

‘I’m still your daughter, Pa. I’m the same as I ever was.’

Robert shook his head and his expression softened as he looked at Kate. ‘I’ve done you an injustice, maidy. You are no kin to me and now the whole world knows it.’

‘No. I don’t believe you. The Romany woman must have made a mistake. I am your daughter. You loved me until Honoria came into the house. That woman has turned you against me.’

‘Have a heart, Coggins,’ Squire Westwood said, frowning. ‘You can’t expect me to believe this absurd tale.’

‘I should have known that the truth would out in the end.’ Robert’s face crumpled into lines of distress. ‘I am
sorry
, maidy. But it is true. My poor Bertha lost three babes soon after birth, and the last one was stillborn. Dr Smith said then that she would never bear another child, and, as if by a miracle, the Romany woman turned up at my door with an infant in her arms. She told me that the mother had died in childbirth and there was no one to care for the poor little mite.’ His lips trembled. ‘That baby was you, Kate. I laid you in my dead child’s crib and I never let on to Bertha. She believed you was her baby, and she loved you dearly.’

Josie made a move towards Kate, longing to comfort her, but Edmund edged her out of the way, placing his arm around Kate who burst into tears. ‘I l-loved her too. Now I have no one,’ she sobbed, leaning against his shoulder.

Molly covered her face with her apron and began to rock backwards and forwards in her chair, moaning softly.

Josie laid her hand on Kate’s arm. ‘You still have me, Kate.’

‘And I am here.’ Squire Westwood glared at Robert over the top of Kate’s head. ‘That was cruel, Coggins. I have known you for many years, but I always thought you to be a fair man.’

‘And I am, Squire. I do my best to be a good Christian, and I am still fond of the little maid, but I am married to a strong-willed woman, and she has pointed out the error of my ways. I have to atone for bringing a cuckoo into our nest. Kate has to leave and she must take young Molly with her, or I will never have peace in my home.’

Kate raised her head and her expression was bleak. ‘And you have a son now. You don’t need me.’

‘I have a son, and maybe another on the way, so my Honoria thinks, although I’d say it was too soon to be certain, but she assures me it is so. I have married a fertile woman and I have a new family to raise, Squire. You’ve offered for my girl, and I trust you to keep your word. I know if she goes with you that she will be well looked after.’

‘I will take her, Coggins. But you must understand that I cannot marry her now. I’ve given it a lot of thought since last night, and I realise that I can’t give the name of Westwood to someone whose origins are unknown. Even so, both Kate and Molly are welcome in my home. I’ll keep them in my employ and treat them well. You have my word on that.’

Kate drew away from him, dashing her tears away with the back of her hand. ‘And you said you loved me.’

‘I do care for you, Kate. But you must see my dilemma.’

‘Take his offer, maidy,’ Robert urged. ‘You won’t get a better one.’

Josie went to stand beside Kate. ‘Don’t listen to them. Men are all the same. They use us and then they discard us. I have no time for you, Farmer Coggins, nor you, Squire Westwood. If you really cared for this girl, nothing on earth would prevent you from honouring your proposal of marriage.’

Edmund’s bushy eyebrows drew together in a frown. ‘You are also involved in this scandal, Miss
Damerell
. I would be careful what I said if I were you. Your own position may be in doubt now.’

‘Aye, you’d best set your house in order, Miss Josie, afore you start acting high and mighty with honest working folk.’ Robert jammed his cap on his head. ‘I must be going. I’ve work to do.’

‘Don’t worry about me, Josie,’ Kate said, managing a smile. ‘I understand the squire’s concern, and even if he renewed his offer I wouldn’t accept.’

‘Come home with me, Kate. Whatever happens, I am still Miss Damerell of Damerell Manor. You will never be homeless while I have a roof over my head.’

‘If only Sam was here,’ Molly sobbed. ‘He wouldn’t let you men bully us poor girls. He’d stand up to you both.’

Robert shook his head. ‘I’ve said what I came to say. I’m sorry, Kate. I honestly wish there was something I could do for you, but my hands are tied. You and Molly must be out of the cottage by noon.’ He tossed a small leather pouch onto the table. ‘There’s enough there to keep you both in food and lodging for a week or two, until you find work. I can do no more.’ He went outside, closing the door behind him.

Squire Westwood turned to Kate. ‘I beg you to reconsider, my dear. Come and work for me, as I suggested originally. You can be a companion to my wayward girls, and you will be treated like one of the family.’

‘And he’ll be creeping to your room in the middle of the night, no doubt,’ Josie said, curling her lip. ‘Come home with me.’

Kate shook her head. ‘I can’t do that, not now, Josie.
You
will soon be married and then I would have to find somewhere else to live.’

‘I would take you with me.’ Josie knew in her heart that this was a lie. Even when she had a wedding ring on her finger she would never allow Kate near her husband. But she could not abandon her old friend, and her main aim at this moment was to save Kate from the clutches of Squire Westwood. It was obvious that he still wanted her, and for all his fine words, he was just a man.

‘I couldn’t impose on you.’ Kate turned her head away and her voice broke on a sob.

‘Harry won’t mind,’ Josie said stoutly. ‘He is as fond of you as I am, my dear.’

‘I couldn’t bear it, Josie. You know very well why.’

Molly jumped to her feet. ‘What about me? You two are so bound up in your own problems that you don’t give a tinker’s cuss about me.’

Josie stared at her and her heart gave an uncomfortable jolt as she saw a passing likeness to Sam. It might have been the tilt of Molly’s head, or the stubborn set of her jaw, or perhaps it was the sudden flash of anger in eyes that were so painfully like Sam’s that it cut her to the quick. She dug her fingernails into her palms to prevent herself from crying out with pain and longing. A bitter taste flooded her mouth as she remembered their parting words, but she had sent him away, and now she must pay for her cruelty and ambition. ‘I care about you, Molly. I want you to come with me as well as Kate.’

‘I will look after Molly.’ Kate drew herself up to her
full
height. She was deathly pale, but composed. ‘We will find lodgings in the village and I’ll look for farm work. It will be no hardship to me.’

‘Kate, I beg of you, don’t do this.’ Squire Westwood took a step towards her, holding out his hands. ‘Miss Damerell is wrong, and she does me a great injustice. I wouldn’t dream of dishonouring you with unwanted attentions. I really do care about you, my dear, and I can’t bear to think of you working like a common peasant.’

‘Whatever the accident of my birth, Squire, I’ve lived in a squalid mews in London working my fingers to the bone as a housemaid, and I’ve laboured on the farm like a man. I’m not afraid of hard work. Molly and I will do well enough on our own.’

‘Is there nothing that I can say to make you change your mind?’

She shook her head. ‘Nothing, sir.’

‘Then come with me, Kate,’ Josie pleaded. ‘Let me help you and Molly.’

‘You have your own problems to solve, Josie.’

‘You are a stubborn girl,’ Josie cried, losing her patience. ‘I’d wash my hands of you if I didn’t love you so much, Kate Coggins.’

Kate gave her a watery smile. ‘I am not Kate Coggins now, Josie. I don’t know what my name is. I don’t know who I am. Harry was right – I am Miss Nobody.’

Josie enveloped her in a hug. ‘You are my dear Kate. Nothing else matters. I regret every nasty word I ever said to you. I didn’t mean any of them.’

‘I know you didn’t, Josie. I love you too.’ Kate
hugged
her back, and then she pushed her gently away. ‘You have much to do also. If you are having difficulties at home, then you should go straight to Harry and tell him everything. He will understand.’

Josie nodded wordlessly. She wished that she was so certain of her fiancé’s love and understanding. She moved towards the doorway, desperate to escape. ‘Goodbye then, Kate.’ She let herself out of the cottage, stepping into the early morning sunshine. It was a relief to be away from the turmoil of emotions inside the small cottage, and she could think more clearly now that she was alone. Farmer Coggins had confirmed her suspicions that there was truth in the Romany woman’s words. Her family might be in denial, but there was one person who would not lie to her. She knew exactly what she must do.

Sheba whinnied at the sight of her and Josie led the horse to a tree stump, which she used as a mounting block. She dug her heels into the mare’s flanks and clicked her tongue against her teeth. ‘Walk on, old girl. Let’s go home.’

Although it was too early for those above stairs to have risen, the servants were already busy with their morning duties. Having left her mount in the stables, Josie entered the house through the trademen’s entrance. She found Hickson in the linen room.

‘Miss Josie, what are you doing down here?’ Hickson’s eyes were round with surprise and a hint of suspicion flickered in their cold depths.

This was just what Josie had planned; she needed to catch Hickson off her guard. She closed the door and leaned against it, folding her arms across her chest. ‘I want the truth from you, Hickson. You are the one person who knows what happened all those years ago, and you are going to tell me.’

Hickson’s sallow skin paled to the colour of whey, but she met Josie’s gaze with a defiant toss of her head. ‘Why don’t you ask your mother?’

‘You know very well that she’s terrified of losing everything, and you should be too. If my uncle Joseph throws us out, you will lose your position in this house, and my mother won’t be able to keep you on. I want the truth and I want it now. I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what you know.’

‘As I hear tell, the gypsy woman has already told you what happened.’

‘I want to hear it from your own lips, Hickson.’

‘Very well, since you force it out of me – it’s all true. Your mother could not conceive, and your father was desperate for an heir. Joseph was a wild young man, but he was handsome in those days and charming too. No servant girl was safe from him. Then one of the maids came to me in tears, confessing that she was with child. At first she refused to name the father, but eventually I managed to drag the truth from her, and she admitted that she had allowed Joseph to have his way with her. When I realised that the baby would have Damerell blood, I saw a way out for my lady, and she jumped at the chance of proving to the world that she was not barren and giving her husband an
heir
. It was easy enough to fool people into thinking that she was with child. Sir Hector was away in London for most of her supposed pregnancy, and she delighted in her condition, even though it was purely imaginary. I made a bargain with Zolfina, the girl’s mother, and, soon after you were born, I smuggled you into the house. After that it was simple.’