The Pride of the Peacock (21 page)

“Yes, I’m determined to live until I see you two married. Tell me, Jess, have you thought any more about it?”

“I have thought a great deal.”

“Of course you have. You’re going to wake up and live now. You’ll have to keep your eyes on Joss. He’s a favourite with the women.”

“It’s too much to ask, Ben. Now then, are you going back to the Dower House life? I’d rather go to the penitentiary, that I would. That grandmother of yours … she’s like vinegar now. What’ll she be like in ten years’ time … gall, bitter aloes … She’s not like a wine that’ll improve with age.

You’ll love the excitement of it. The Company . Fancy Town . It’s in your blood. You’ll come back here to Oakland now and then . It’ll be a wonderful life. “

I was silent, and he went on: “Look, Jess, you’ve got to grow up … if you’re going out there. Lite’s lived in the raw there. But it’s life. That’s the great thing. I can see you at Peacocks. Has Joss talked to you of Peacocks?” I shook my head.

“He will. He loves the place. This will be yours, too. Just think of that. When you come to England you’ll be the lady of the manor. I wonder what the old lady of the Dower House is going to say to that! I’d like to see her face .. that I would. Just think of your little ‘uns … playing on these lawns, in the copse, just as you would have done if you’d had your right There’s one thing I have to tell you, Ben. If I did marry him, I couldn’t … I couldn’t live with him as his wife, and that means that your idea of the little ones on the lawn would simply not be possible.

I’m sure that in these circumstances the whole thing falls through.

”

I had expected dismay, but there was nothing of the sort. Ben laughed so much that I feared he would exhaust himself.

“fou^cnow, Jessie,” he said when be had recovered from his laughter, ‘you’re enlivening my last days, you are. You never fail to please me.

So you’ve made up your mind to marry him, have you? “

“I didn’t say that. I’ve just told you why it’s impossible.”

“Listen. I want you two married. I knew Joss would agree. There was too much to lose. I could only rely on the pride of my Peacock. As to the other little matter, well, I’m ready to leave that to Joss.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Ah, danger signals! I’ll leave it like this. I’ll see you married, and I’ll die hoping that one day you two are going to see what’s staring you in the face and that is that you were meant for each other. It’s the looker-on that sees the best of the game, and I’m a very observant looker-on. I’ve lived every minute of the days God gave me. I’m like a cat that’s had nine lives. I’m coming to the end of my ninth now, but I’ve picked up a lot in those lives and I know what I am talking about. So it’s settled, is it? I accept your terms and you’ll accept mine. I want a nice wedding in the church … so that everyone knows.”

That will take a little time. 8 “I reckon I’ve got that little time left to me. I just won’t go until I’ve seen you and my boy Joss joined together in holy matrimony.”

“Ben,” I said, ‘if you love us, how can you ask so much of us? “

“It’s just because I do love you both that I’m making this bargain.

Years ahead when you and the family are visiting England and you’re sitting on those lawns, the like of which you don’t see outside this green land, there’ll be the shade of old Ben looking on with contentment because it’s all come about as he meant it to. I’ll be here . and I’ll be at Peacocks . a happy ghost who saw what should be and did his little bit to make it come about. “

“You’re tired, Ben,” I said.

“Happy tired. A good sort of tired to be. And don’t forget, in years to come, remember me.”

“I’m never going to forget you.”

“And you’ll be grateful to old Ben, I promise you.”

I kissed him gently and slipped away.

I knew as I went out of Oakland Hall that I was about to bum my boats.

“I had accepted this incongruous situation. I was going to many Joss Madden.

I don’t know what Joss said to my grandmother. He was in the drawing-room with her, my grandfather, and Xavier for

an hour. From my bedroom window I saw him stride across the lawn to the bridge. He walked as though the place already belonged to him.

Maddy was knocking at my door. They wanted to see me in the drawing-room, she said.

As I entered I was aware of the change in their attitude towards me. I had become important, but my grandmother was not going to show me her gratification too readily.

“So,” she began, ‘you have clandestinely been meeting this man from the wilds. “

“If you mean Mr. Josslyn Madden, it is true I have been meeting him.”

“And become engaged to him! He did not ask our consent before asking you, which would have been the proper thing to do. But I suppose we cannot expect good manners from people brought up as he must have been.”

“He has been educated in England.”

She grudgingly admitted that she realized this saving grace.

“Of course, after all we have done for you we might have expected a little gratitude. When our terrible tragedy was brought upon us-‘ She sent a venomous look towards my grandfather, who nodded in a rather jaunty way, I fancied’ we had to prepare ourselves for our great sacrifice. Our daughter disgraced us and now Miriam has committed herself to a life of penury ” I always thought she endured that here.

”

“Compared with what she was accustomed to before our fortune was wantonly thrown away, Miriam once lived in grace and dignity with her family.” She laughed. ” TMow this cottage. I believe she scrubs the floors.” She shivered.

“No matter. Don’t let us distress ourselves by even mentioning Miriam’s folly. The fact is that you should have kept me informed. After all we did for you, giving you a home …”

“And selling the silver salver and the George IV punch bowl.”

She smiled-very rare with her and this was an indication of her true feelings.

“At least you have spared us the humiliation of seeing you scrub floors and living in abject poverty. I only hope this offer is genuine. You will not, I hope, in convenience us as your mother did.

If it is genuine, all may not turn out too badly. But I must let you know that I am displeased that you should associate with people who have been no friends to your grandfather. However, I can see the hand of fate in this. We have suffered great misfortune. We lost Oakland .

and if this man is telling the truth, he will Ill >AUI-1-UUtBC U1UC1lL UlC lltlll, . lylm. — –
— __ ___—will live there.p>

“

I thought she was like an eagle about to pounce on its prey. Oakland Hall coming back to the family . and through me!

I couldn’t help being thrilled that I was doing this. I knew then that if a way out was offered me, if Ben said he had been joking after all, I wouldn’t want to take it. The extraordinary fact was borne home that I wanted the excitement of marrying Joss Madden-providing of course that we kept to that all important clause which he had laughingly acknowledged he would respect and which Ben had thrust aside as though he did not believe it was important.

Xavier spoke then.

“Mr. Madden has told us that he has asked you to marry him and that you have accepted. We understand he is Mr. Henniker’s heir and that Oakland as well as property in Australia will pass to him. They ask for no dowry for you, but Mr. Henniker will make a settlement on you of Blueberry Farm, which as you know went to him with the Oakland estate. The management of this will be left to me, so it is in a measure as though that land has been returned to us. It seems to be a very satisfactory arrangement.”

My grandfather’s eyes looked watery.

“It’s almost like Oakland coming back to us through you, Jessica,” he said.

My grandmother would not be left out of the conversation.

“In spite of your deception, this seems to have turned out better than we could have expected,” she said.

“I hope your children will be born here. Perhaps we could get Mr. Madden to change his name to Clavering.

That has been done before in the family. “

“I know that would be quite impossible.”

My grandmother waved the matter aside as though that was something she would deal with later.

“We must be practical,” she went on.

“It must be a wedding worthy of the old days before we were reduced to this. I think we should sell the silver candlesticks so that we can do everything as it should be done. As you know the candlesticks were given by William IV to Jeremy Clavering in 1832, and they are worth a great deal.”

Then please don’t sell them on my account. “

“It is not on your account but for the good name of the family. Oh dear, how I wish you could be married from Oakland itself.”

“Never mind. Mother,” said Xavier, “perhaps Jessica’s daughter will be.”

“Pray let us get her married first before we mention such things,” said my grandmother, forgetting that a moment before she had done so.

I had never seen her look so pleased, and the knowledge that it was due to me seemed very ironical.

The next Sunday, Ernest, officiating for the Reverend Jasper Grey, read out the banns.

Ben seemed to recover quite a bit. It was obvious that he was delighted, and his pleasure seemed to give him a new energy.

“So they read the banns,” he cried.

“So there was no opposition from the family. I should think not. See what this means to them.”

My grandmother had engaged a dressmaker and I was to have a white satin wedding gown-the best possible satin from Liberty. My grandmother made a journey up to London to buy that and other materials on the proceeds from the silver candlesticks.

“I hope William IV won’t haunt you in his displeasure,” I commented.

“You are much too flippant,” was her retort.

“You always were. You will have to be more sober when you marry.”

“I can’t change my nature. Grandmother,” I said.

She sighed, but even she could not criticize me too much, considering the change I had brought about in the family fortunes.

I stood for hours while the seamstress, her mouth full of pins, fitted my dresses, for I had to have a trousseau besides the wedding dress.

“We don’t want people in Australia to think we’re savages,” said my grandmother. She was determined that I should go not only adequately but elegantly clothed.

The banns had been called twice and the excitement at the prospect was beginning to be replaced by apprehension. Joss Madden had to spend a week in London negotiating some business and I felt easier in my mind when he was not there.

When he returned, however, he seemed determined to spend a good deal of time with me.

“Doing his courting,” as Ben described it to my chagrin.

Joss said: “We’d better get to know each other as this wedding is imminent. How good are you on a horse? You’ll have to ride a great deal in Australia.”

I said that I had been taught to ride but had little opportunity of doing so. There had been a pony, but when that died it had not been replaced. We only had one horse now which Xavier used.

There’s a small stanie ai-v-‘o^wm, ^-riding. I want to see what you can do. ” 1 immediately felt resentful, objecting to his patronizing manner. He chose my mount, a brown horse with a frisky look in his eyes which made me somewhat apprehensive. Our pony had been of about thirteen hands, and I had never ridden a better steed. I was about to protest when I caught his eyes on me amused a little triumphant, so superior and arrogant-every inch the peacock. I mounted uneasily. He said: These horses need exercise.

They’re too fat. Riding here is different from riding in Australia.

You’ll have to get used to the difference because you’re lost without a horse in the Bush. “

“Is this house Peacocks in the Bush, then? ” It in its own grounds and Fancy Town is about two miles away.

Surrounding all this is some pretty wild country. You’ll need to feel as much at home in the saddle as you do on your own two feet. ” My equestrian knowledge was not great, but it was obvious even to me that he chose the finest horse in the stable for himself.

As we walked our horses side by side I could feel his eyes on me appraisingly my posture, my hands, my heels, everything . and that smile which I hated played about his lips.

“In other words,” he was saying, ‘you could loosely say that we live in the saddle. “

“Have you a good stable at Peacocks?”

“It would be hard to find a better in Australia.”

“Naturally,” I commented.

“Oh yes, naturally.1 ” So you ride everywhere? “

Tes, everywhere. There are Cobb’s coaches which ply between the big dties. I rarely use them. You’ll find the country different out there, I can tell you. “

“I expected to.” This . why, it’s like a garden. You don’t go far without some sort of habitation. And these little fields and roads .

oh, it’s very different. “

“So you have said more than once Then I must apologize for repeating myself.”

“A common fault,” I said lightly, to remind him that he was not without them, which I was sure he imagined himself to be.

“Pray let us get her married first before we mention such things,” said my grandmother, forgetting that a moment before she had done so.

I had never seen her look so pleased, and the knowledge that it was due to me seemed very ironical.

The next Sunday, Ernest, officiating for the Reverend jasper Grey, read out the banns.

Ben seemed to recover quite a bit. It was obvious that he was delighted, and his pleasure seemed to give him a new energy.

“So they read the banns,” he cried.

“So there was no opposition from the family. I should think not. See what this means to them.”

My grandmother had engaged a dressmaker and I was to have a white satin wedding gown the best possible satin from Liberty. My grandmother made a journey up to London to buy that and other materials on the proceeds from the silver candlesticks.

“I hope William IV won’t haunt you in his displeasure,” I commented.