Fragrant Flower (13 page)

When Azalea stood up she realised that she and Kai Yin Chang did in fact look very much alike.

“Two Chinese girls!” Kai Yin Chang said as if she read Azalea’s thoughts. “No one think you English!”

“I am very happy to be Chinese,” Azalea smiled.

There was a sudden light of mischief in Kai Yin Chang’s eyes.

“We play joke on Mr. Chang,” she said. “I introduce you as Chinese friend.”

“No! We had better not!” Azalea cried quickly, but she was too late. Kai Yin Chang had run from the room. When she returned she said,

“Servants say Honourable husband in room. Come with me. We surprise him!”

She drew Azalea by the hand and because she did not want to spoil Kai Yin Chang’s excitement she did not protest.

They ran across the courtyard into another part of the house, which Azalea saw contained even more wonderful treasures than those in Kai Yin Chang’s apartments.

There was a servant standing outside Mr. Chang’s room, the door of which was made of black walnut, ornamented with magnificent gold carving.

He opened it, and pulling Azalea by the hand, Kai Yin Chang moved forward.

“You make obeisance like me,” she whispered.

Inside the door she sank onto her knees putting her head on her outstretched hands. Azalea did the same.

“Honourable husband, I beg permission to introduce Honourable friend,” she heard Kai Yin Chang say.

“You have my permission, wife,” Mr. Chang replied.

Azalea glanced sideways out of the corner of her eye at Kai Yin Chang.

She was raising just her head and then her body until she was kneeling on the ground.

Azalea followed her example.

Then as she looked a little shyly at Mr. Chang, wondering if he would immediately penetrate her disguise, she realised he was not alone.

Sitting beside him on a carved ebony chair was Lord Sheldon!

Chapter Five

For a moment Azalea was unable to move – then, frantically, she hoped Lord Sheldon would not recognise her. But Mr. Chang saw immediately that his wife was playing a trick on him.

He rose to his feet and bowed to Azalea.

“It is a very great honour for you to enter my humble house,” he said. “Whether you come as Miss Osmund or as ‘Fragrant Flower’ you are always welcome!”

Azalea was suddenly very conscious of her Chinese dress and that Lord Sheldon was staring at her in his penetrating manner which always made her blush.

Before she could speak Kai Yin Chang exclaimed in mock exasperation,

“You guessed! You guessed who she was! Honourable husband too clever to be deceived! Very disappointing!”

Azalea would have withdrawn from the room, but as she turned away, embarrassed and uncertain of herself, Lord Sheldon said to Mr. Chang,

“I wonder if it would be possible for me to speak alone with Miss Osmund?”

“But of course, my Lord,” Mr. Chang replied. “My house is yours!

“I am sure Miss Osmund would like to see your beautiful garden,” Lord Sheldon said. “And so should I. I am told it is one of the sights of Hong Kong.”

“You are very gracious,” Mr. Chang replied.

Leading the way he made a gesture to invite Azalea to follow him.

There was nothing she could do but obey. At the same time she longed to run away – to hide – to change herself back into her own clothes and, most of all, not to have to talk to Lord Sheldon alone.

Yet she was well aware that to argue or protest would merely make her appear ridiculous and would insult him quite unnecessarily in front of Mr. and Mrs. Chang.

She therefore followed her host across another beautiful courtyard and along a passage until they reached a door which led out into the garden.

Mr. Chang opened the door and Azalea and Lord Sheldon walked onto a veranda beyond which lay the garden.

As they appeared they disturbed a number of birds moving about on the grass. They rose as one flock into the air and there was a dazzling glimpse of blue feathers.

“The blue magpies!” Azalea exclaimed.

“Let us hope they bring us luck,” Lord Sheldon said. Azalea smiled remembering what she had said about them on the ship to Mrs. Chang. Then she said almost beneath her breath,

“I need luck!”

They walked side-by-side down a twisting path edged with sweet-scented flowers.

Azalea had read that Chinese gardens were unusual because of their unique, unsurpassed landscaping.

She had been told that even a small and uninteresting piece of ground could, by skilful arrangement, be given an impression of space and beauty. But in a large acreage on the side of the Peak, Mr. Chang had created a poem of imaginative delight.

There were clever groupings of rock-work, high bridges over ponds covered with water-lilies, small streams and cascades which produced an element of surprise.

The flowers and shrubs were arranged in a harmony and colour that was almost indescribable.

Roses, hydrangeas, peonies and azaleas, many of the dwarf variety, made a carpet of colour on the ground, while creepers of every hue hung from the boughs of trees and from the eaves of exquisite little pavilions.

Apricot, peach and orange blossom gave the garden a fairy-like quality and the magnolia trees were pure white against the blue of the sky.

“It is lovely! More lovely than any other garden I can imagine!” Azalea exclaimed.

They had moved a little way from the house to stand looking at the pink-and-white water-lilies on the silver surface of a pond.

“It
is
very beautiful!” Lord Sheldon agreed, “and so are you in your Chinese costume!”

She looked at him in surprise because the compliment was unexpected – then, seeing the expression in his eyes, she looked quickly away again.

She was trembling.

“I have to see you, Azalea,” Lord Sheldon said. “You must realise that.”

“It is – impossible!”

“But why? Why must you go on pretending that there is nothing between us?”

“There can be nothing!”

“Why? Why? Ever since I have known you, Azalea, you have presented me with insoluble problems, with questions to which I do not know the answers. It cannot go on!”

There was silence for a moment while Azalea clasped her fingers together, her eyes on the water-lilies.

“Your skin is like a magnolia!” Lord Sheldon said. “I know now what has been puzzling me about you before.”

He paused but as Azalea did not speak, he went on,

“It is because you wear clothes of the wrong colours. The pink of that tunic gives you purple lights in your hair and makes your skin as beautiful as the petal of a flower.”

“You should not – say such – things to – me,” Azalea answered in a low voice.

“Why not?” he enquired. “Why should I not say what any other man would say if he had the chance?”

“Because I must not – listen. You know that my uncle and aunt would disapprove.”

“I am quite certain they would disapprove much more of your being here alone with me in a garden belonging to a Chinese gentleman,” Lord Sheldon said with a hint of laughter in his voice.

“They are my friends,” Azalea said as if he challenged her.

“You could not have chosen better,” Lord Sheldon answered. “Mr. Chang is a very remarkable man. I had heard about him when he was in England and he was one of the first people upon whom I wished to call when I reached Hong Kong. However we met first on the
Orissa
.”

“Why did you wish to meet him?” Azalea asked because she was curious.

“I wanted Mr. Chang’s opinion on how the Colony is run,” Lord Sheldon replied, “on the reforms that the Government is trying to put into practice, but most of all I needed his help personally.”

He saw the surprise in Azalea’s eyes and smiled.

“You are not the only person who admires Chinese beauty. I wish to add to my collection of paintings, jade and pottery. There is no one here more knowledgeable than Mr. Chang.”

“I saw some of his treasures in Mrs. Chang’s apartments. They were even more exciting than I thought they would be.”

“You must get Mr. Chang to tell you the history of some of the pieces he owns,” Lord Sheldon said. “And perhaps one day I will be able to tell you about mine.”

There was a note in his voice which made Azalea quiver as if she vibrated to strange music, then she said quickly,

“That is – something that will never – happen. I must be frank with you, my Lord – and tell you that we can – never even be – friends.”

“Why not?”

The question was sharp.

“Because my aunt would never allow it, and you have already offended my uncle by supporting the Governor.”

She made a little gesture with her hands.

“That is immaterial where I am concerned, but for reasons I cannot tell you I am not allowed to have even an acquaintance with any – man – let alone you.”

“Why me particularly?”

“Because you are too grand – too important. But even if you were not – I should be kept – away from you. As you must realise by this time, I may play no – part in my aunt’s – social life.”

“I am well aware of that,” Lord Sheldon answered. “I instructed the Governor’s secretary to be quite certain that you were invited to the garden party this afternoon. When your aunt refused on your behalf I guessed you would seize the opportunity to visit your friend Mrs. Chang.”

“You came here to look for me?” Azalea asked in astonishment.

“It was one reason, and the most important one, for my visiting Mr. Chang for the second time since my arrival.”

Azalea said nothing and after a moment Lord Sheldon continued,

“Look at me, Azalea!”

It was a command, and although she wished to disobey him, she found herself unable to do so.

Then as she turned her head to look up into his face she could see him silhouetted bare-headed against the pink blossom of an almond tree. It seemed to give him an almost magical appearance.

There was something different about him from other men, she told herself.

It was not his good looks, it was not his air of distinction or authority – it was something else, something that she knew the Chinese would have found when they looked beneath the surface.

“Can you really believe, Azalea,” Lord Sheldon asked in his deep voice, “that we can walk away from each other and forget what our lips have said, not in words, but in a kiss?”

Azalea felt the colour come into her cheeks and she could not take her eyes from his.

“It is – what we – have to do,” she whispered.

“Tell me why. Tell me the truth, Azalea.”

“I cannot. It is not my – secret.”

“Secrets! Secrets!” Lord Sheldon cried with a note of anger in his voice. “You surround yourself with them, and yet I am convinced there is no necessity for them. No one’s eyes could be so innocent or so pure and hide anything of which they need feel ashamed.”

Azalea gave a little sigh.

He put his hands on her shoulders and turned her round to face him.

“Tell me what you are hiding. I have to know.”

Azalea shook her head.

“It is something I can never tell – anyone, least of all –
YOU
.”

“Do you really think you can silence me with such a statement?” he asked. “I shall find out the truth, Azalea.”

“No!” she cried, and twisting herself out of his hold she said violently, “Leave me alone! There is nothing you can find out – nothing you will learn. Nothing! Just go away and forget about me!”

“And will
you
forget
me
?”

She wanted to answer him defiantly but it was impossible. The words stuck in her throat. She knew she could never forget him.

She knew that because he was so near her heart was beating suffocatingly in her breast and she was conscious of the weakness he always evoked in her. At the same time she had an inexpressible yearning to feel his lips once again on hers.

She thought for one wild moment she might ask him to kiss her and then walk out of her life as he had walked into it.

But she knew that if he put his arms round her she would cling to him, her whole body would respond to his and that wonderful magic would occur between them which would override all the wisdom and sense of her brain.

“I want you I, I want you!” she longed to say.

Then she knew that he would never understand how desperately he disturbed her – how every nerve in her whole body was tense because of him.

Suddenly she gave a little cry.

“I must go back! It is getting late! If they find I am not in the house when they return they will begin to ask questions.”

Lord Sheldon drew his gold watch from his pocket and glanced at it.

As if it told him there was no time for argument he said quietly

“I will take you home.”

“You cannot do that – ” Azalea began.

“I will drop you near Flagstaff House, and you can walk up the drive. I think it unlikely that your aunt has left the Governor’s party so early, but one never knows!”

“I must change,” Azalea cried.

She hurried away through the garden, glad that her feet had not been bound like Mrs. Chang’s so that she could move quickly when it was necessary.

Kai Yin Chang was waiting for her just inside the garden door.

“You have happy talk?” she asked.

“It is late!” Azalea replied. “I must change and hurry back. If my aunt finds I have been out she will be very angry.”

“She not know where you go,” Mrs. Chang said comfortingly.

In the bedroom Azalea slipped out of her beautiful pink tunic and put on her tight corset and elaborate underclothes which seemed in contrast very hot and restricting.

“When you come again?” Kai Yin Chang asked.

“As soon as I can.”

Then Azalea gave a little cry.

“What is it?” Mrs. Chang asked.

“I have just remembered that tomorrow my uncle is taking my aunt and the twins to luncheon in Renown Bay. They will start early and as he has some troops to inspect over there they will not be home until late.”

“Good news!” Mrs. Chang exclaimed. “You come here.”

She thought for a moment and then she added,