All Change: Cazalet Chronicles (27 page)

‘He’s worse than me. He can’t even eat.’

‘He’s hungry. You’re a bit late, my lady.’

‘Sorry, Nan.’ She took Spencer and suggested that her father followed her to her sitting room.

‘And you, Master Andrew, will go upstairs and wash yourself for lunch. Not just your hands, your knees as well.’

‘How can my knees have anything to do with lunch?’ they heard Andrew saying. ‘I don’t eat with my knees . . .’ His voice faded until they shut the door on him.

‘Dad, do settle down. The paper’s on the sofa table. They’ll soon be back.’

But Hugh could not settle. He wandered about the room, peering frequently out of the window that looked onto the drive. ‘I can’t understand how we missed them in the avenue.’

‘They probably went along the back drive – it’s quicker. Simon will have told them.’

‘And how far off is the hospital?’

‘Only about ten miles,’ she said off-handedly, trying to make it sound nearer.

Spencer was gulping his milk so fast that when she winded him, most of it came up again. It’s time I started weaning him, Polly thought. She was becoming tired of a life dominated by her breasts.

‘Do you want to wait for lunch until they come back, my lady?’

‘No, Nan, I think we’d better go ahead. But first will you send Eliza and Jane in to me? I’m very cross with them.’

There was a gleam of admiration in Nan’s eyes. ‘Quite right, your ladyship. His lordship’s too soft with them, the naughty monkeys.’

As Nan took Spencer, Polly said, ‘Shall we give him some Farex and honey? He can sit on my lap and I’ll feed him.’

‘Very good, my lady.’

Eliza and Jane arrived, still in their jodhpurs. They looked nervous. Hugh had tactfully left the room, and Polly had got off the sofa and was sitting very upright in a chair.

‘I’m very disappointed in both of you. You have behaved in a most irresponsible manner. You are two very selfish, stupid little girls. Laura might have been killed by your idiotic behaviour. Do you realise that?’

They shook their heads. When they looked at her she could see that she had shocked them. ‘Mummy, we never meant to hurt her – honestly.’

‘Of course you didn’t mean to. But you didn’t take the trouble to see that she would be safe. As it is, we don’t know how much damage you’ve done. When she comes back, I want you to apologise to Laura and to both her parents.’

‘We will, Mummy, we promise you.’

‘Right. And your punishment is no riding for either of you for the whole of half-term.’

‘Oh, Mum! That’s not fair! We promised Laura another lesson! After she fell off, she said she still wanted to ride.’

‘Did she indeed! Well, that will be up to her parents to decide. And before you go, I should like to remind you that you didn’t keep your promise to Simon.’

‘What promise?’

‘You tell me, Eliza.’

There was a pause, then Eliza said sulkily, ‘Not to trot.’

‘But, Mummy, we couldn’t stop her!’ Jane protested. ‘She dug her heels into poor Bluebell’s sides so of course he trotted. She was quite naughty, you know.’

‘All right. That’s enough. You must apologise to Simon, as well.’

‘Mum, I do think you should speak to Andrew about his sneaking. When he can’t find a true thing to sneak about, he makes things up.’

‘That will do, both of you. Do you know where your father is?’

‘He took them in the car. May we go now?’

When they had left, Polly went to the window that looked onto the drive and beckoned her father to come in.

‘It’s all right, Dad. Gerald took them. He knows the way, and he’s marvellous with nurses. Come and have some lunch.’

They got back at three. Laura had broken her right arm, and her left leg. She was in a state of high excitement. ‘I’ve got two bandages – hard ones that people can sign their names on.’

‘Laura was very brave.’

‘I was. Very, extremely, triffically brave.’

Gerald was carrying her into the kitchen where Jemima arranged a chair with sidearms and cushions, and Nan fetched a footstool for her leg.

‘They had to pull my bones together, and they told me it would hurt and it did – awfully both times – and then they did some ordinary bandaging, and then. . .’ she paused dramatically ‘. . . they put some soft white smeary stuff all over the broken bits and said we had to wait until it was dry, but I didn’t mind because Uncle Gerald kindly gave me a chocolate biscuit. And now the stuff is all hard. I have to have it on for weeks, so I won’t be able to have baths, and I never really cried – only about five tears, wasn’t it, Mummy? And Mummy held my hand all the time, and I trotted on Bluebell but I don’t think I can have another riding lesson until the stiff stuff comes off.’

‘Now then, Miss Laura, eat your lunch.’

Nan had put a dollop of shepherd’s pie in a bowl with a teaspoon. But Laura was not very good at eating with her left hand and the food went everywhere – rather like Spencer, Polly thought. The Farex, when she put a spoonful into his mouth, made him screw up his face with distaste, and he let it slide out. In the end Hugh fed Laura a few spoonfuls. She didn’t want food, and suddenly started sobbing. ‘I don’t want anything at all! I don’t want horrible pie!’

‘Reaction,’ Nan said audibly, if under her breath.

Hugh picked her up and, followed by Jemima, carried her away.

‘She needs a good rest, that’s all she needs. She can have her tea later. And you, Eliza and Jane, you shouldn’t stare at people. It’s rude.’

‘Rude,’ Andrew repeated, with some satisfaction. For the rest of the weekend, he was very good to Laura, playing Snap and Old Maid with her, and helping her to do a small jigsaw that had wooden pieces. Gerald converted a very old pram that had been bought for the twins into a makeshift wheelchair, and everybody wrote their names and messages on her casts. Jemima arranged one of the tea trays so that she had a place to put cards or the jigsaw, while Eliza and Jane took turns reading to her. She insisted on an expedition to feed carrots to the ponies, accompanied by her anxious parents. She stroked their velvet noses and tried to kiss Bluebell. But he tossed his head and cantered out of reach. When the carrots were finished neither pony saw the point of hanging about. Everyone apologised to everyone else, and everyone felt better for it.

‘You won’t forget about Uncle Edward and Diana, will you?’ Polly whispered to her father, when he hugged her goodbye.

‘I won’t, Polly, darling. I’m so proud of you.’ Then, with Laura ensconced in the back, he got into the car, and Jemima hugged Simon, which made him blush with pleasure.

PART SEVEN

NOVEMBER–DECEMBER 1957

RACHEL AND SID

‘The Duchy adored Gregory Peck.’

‘I know. I remember her saying once that she would gladly marry him.’

Sid had enticed Rachel to spend a week or so in London, on the grounds that they could enjoy going to the theatre, concerts and the cinema. But in spite of a fairly constant round of these pleasures, the visit was not going well. Rachel was restless, and constantly ruminating about Home Place: whether the builders, whose estimate Hugh had agreed to, had started mending the roof or not. Sid recognised now that her own pessimism might be because she felt so tired all the time. Quite soon after she had got up in the mornings, her back started to ache, and became progressively worse during the day. She managed to conceal most of this from Rachel, or thought she had, until the morning after they had seen
Roman Holiday
, when Rachel said at breakfast, ‘Sid, darling, I’m taking you to see Dr Plunkett today. There is clearly something wrong with your back, and I know that, left to yourself, you will simply suffer in silence. Your appointment is at ten thirty. And I am coming with you.’

She sounded so calm and determined that Sid could only feel grateful to have the matter organised for her.

When they were sitting in the waiting room (flock paper, a collection of incredibly dreary prints, and magazines), Rachel said, ‘Would you like me to come in with you?’

No, she wouldn’t. Just then, a nurse called her name, and Sid followed her, down a passage, to the doctor’s room. He rose from his desk to shake hands with her and then proceeded to ask a great number of questions, taking notes as she replied. He went into all of it: took her blood pressure (on the low side), her temperature (she had one, not high but he suspected always there), and finally he made her lie on his patient’s bed while he examined her back. Then he said, ‘Miss Sidney, I have an X-ray unit in the basement, and I should like to take some X-rays of your back. I should like them to be taken now, if that is agreeable to you. Yes?’

‘Yes. Only could I go straight down from here? I don’t want my friend to know.’

‘Of course. The nurse will take you and bring you back here when they have been developed.’

So the pictures were taken, and by the time she got back to his room he was looking at them. ‘Do sit down, Miss Sidney. I’m afraid we’ve found something.’

She had a tumour very near her spine. It was possible that there were others but they would need further tests to find out. ‘It’s a great pity that you didn’t come to us earlier, but there it is. I shall send you to the Marsden for more tests. Meanwhile, are you taking anything for the pain?’

She told him about the aspirin.

‘I think I can do better than that for you.’

He scribbled on a piece of paper and handed the prescription to her. She put it into a pocket. She felt stunned, unable to move or speak. Dr Plunkett was used to this, and he had learned to be kind about it. He got up from his desk and went to her. ‘I know it is something of a shock, but you must be of good heart. The cancer may not have spread.’

‘May I tell my friend that these other tests are for my heart or something? I can’t tell her the other thing. I simply can’t.’

‘My dear, you can tell her anything you like. Do you live alone, or are you sharing a house together?’

‘We share.’

‘Well, sometimes, you know, people are better off with the truth. But it’s up to you, of course.’

He shook hands with her and the nurse accompanied Sid back to the waiting room.

Rachel looked up from the magazine she had been trying to read, her face full of anxiety and affection. There were three other people in the waiting room, so she simply helped Sid into her coat and they left. They both thought they were smiling at the other.

‘What would you like to do now, my love?’

‘Coffee would be good.’ Her mouth was so dry that she could hardly speak.

‘Right. There’s a good place round the corner in Marylebone Lane.’ She hooked her arm into Sid’s and they made their way.

In the coffee place she asked for a glass of water and drank it all. Rachel, trying to sound casual, said, ‘How did it go?’

‘He was extremely thorough. Did an X-ray on my back. He wants me to have a few more tests, and he’s arranging that with a hospital. And he gave me a prescription for when I have pain. He was very kind. It all went very well.’

‘Oh, good.’ They were not convincing one another.

‘I think it means I’ll have to stay in London until I’ve been for the other tests. But you go down as we planned, and I’ll join you.’ If I could have just a little time on my own, she thought, I might manage to sort things out. Face it, if I have to, and find the right way to tell Rachel, the poor darling.