Fairfield Hall (45 page)

Charlie shook his head. ‘Not about that, no, but he’s always asking about Mother and whenever she comes to school he’s the first to reach her.’ He grinned. ‘He
beats both me and Bertie.’

Edward chuckled. ‘So, there’s no animosity between you and your cousins?’

‘None at all. We’re great pals. Always have been and I don’t think anything will alter that,’ Charlie had answered confidently.

But now, as Charlie followed Theo into the school canteen where parents waited to greet their offspring, he was trembling. And, beside him, Bertie seemed just as anxious. They were both to meet
the formidable woman for the first time that they could remember.

Dorothea was smiling as the three boys approached her, her gaze alighting and remaining on her son. ‘My darling boy,’ she gushed. ‘How proud I am of you. And
are these two of your friends?’

Dutifully, Theo kissed his mother’s cheek and then turned to make the introductions. ‘They are, Mama, but they’re also my cousins.’ He gestured towards each of them in
turn. ‘Bertie and Charlie.’

Dorothea’s face was thunderous as she stared at them both. ‘What – are – they doing in – this school? They have no right to be here, especially’ – she
glared at Bertie – ‘
him
! I shall have words with the headmaster.’

Theo shrugged with deliberate nonchalance. ‘Their fees are paid.’ He paused and looked his mother in the eyes as he added quietly, ‘By the same person who pays mine.’

Her face turned purple and she opened and closed her mouth, fishlike, two or three times before grabbing Theo by the arm and hauling him away from the other two boys, but not far enough so that
they couldn’t hear her words. ‘You will not associate with them in any way. Do you hear me?’

‘I hear you, Mama, but I’m afraid that is not possible in a school of this size. Besides, they are my friends – my best friends – and I intend it to remain that
way.’

Dorothea gasped. ‘You are wilfully disobeying me?’

‘If you choose to see it that way, then, yes, I am.’

‘How dare you?’

‘I dare because I know that you have been unfair to both Aunt Annabel and especially to Charlie. He is Uncle James’s son.’

‘How dare you?’ she began again, but Theo went on, ‘Just look at him, Mama, really look at him. He’s a Lyndon all right. He has brown hair like me and his eyes and the
shape of his nose are just like Uncle James’s.’

‘Be quiet, you stupid boy. Don’t you realize what you’re saying? You’re throwing away your inheritance – everything I’ve worked for . . .’

Theo calmly raised his eyebrows. He was behaving like a boy far older than his sixteen years. Standing up to his mother was not easy but he had promised himself he would do it. He hadn’t
wanted it to happen yet, but circumstances had forced him to take a stand now and really, he thought, perhaps the sooner she knew his thoughts and feelings, the better.

But she was still adamant in her scheming. ‘You are the rightful heir to the Earl of Fairfield and the estate. Just you remember that. Not that – that woman’s bastard. He is
not
your uncle’s son. He will be disinherited.’

Theo stared at his mother. ‘So,’ he said slowly, ‘Charlie’s not been disinherited yet, then?’

‘Steps are being taken, I promise you. But – it’s difficult.’

Theo shook his head. ‘But I don’t want to inherit something that isn’t rightfully mine.’

Her grip tightened until her strong fingers were hurting his arm, but he steeled himself not to flinch. ‘It
is
yours. I’ve raised you to know your place in the world.
You
are the next Earl of Fairfield.’

Theo shook his head and said softly. ‘No, Mama, I am not. I know it and – so do you.’ With a mature composure that Dorothea had never seen in her son before, Theo faced her
with a steady gaze. She almost flung him away from her and turned away, marching angrily towards the door out of the canteen. As she passed close to a master, she almost shouted at him. ‘I
wish to see the headmaster.
Now!
’

The three boys, standing together, watched her leave the room, ushered out by a puzzled and somewhat worried master.

‘Oh dear, what do you think she’ll say to him?’

‘No more than he already knows, I shouldn’t think,’ Theo said, seemingly unperturbed by the confrontation with his mother. He laughed and put his arms around the shoulders of
his two cousins. ‘Come on, let’s go and find some of this tea and cakes they’ve been promising us.’

Moments later, Theo was piling his plate high with sandwiches and cakes but the other two found that their usual healthy appetite had utterly deserted them.

Over the next few days the three boys awaited the summons from the headmaster, but it never came and at the end of the autumn term they travelled home separately. Luke arrived
in the carriage to take Theo home to Fairfield Hall, whilst Annabel came to pick up both Charlie and Bertie.

‘Isn’t it a bit silly that I’m going right past his door and yet you have to go several miles out of your way to take Bertie home?’ Theo remarked to Annabel when they met
on the driveway in front of the school. Luke stood a short distance away, embarrassed at seeing his former mistress and unsure what he should do. But Annabel, ever mindful of the awkward position
in which the people of Fairfield – and especially the servants at Fairfield Hall – found themselves, merely nodded and smiled at him before turning her attention back to the three boys
and their luggage.

‘I don’t mind,’ she said. ‘But I’ll drop Bertie off on the outskirts of the village as usual. I don’t want to cause trouble. Now, let’s get these trunks
loaded.’

‘Mam and Granny would love to see you,’ Bertie said. ‘You could come to our house. Couldn’t she, Theo?’

After the older boy’s stand against his mother, Bertie and Charlie had an even greater respect for their cousin. They’d always looked up to him, but now they were in awe of his
bravery.

‘I don’t see why not. It’s a free country, Aunt Annabel.’

‘I’ll think about it,’ she promised as she kissed Theo’s cheek and held him close for a few seconds. Far from being embarrassed, the boy hugged her in return. ‘See
you next term,’ he said cheerfully, but as he turned towards Luke and the waiting carriage, he saw Bertie and Charlie struggling to lift their trunks onto the back of Annabel’s
carriage.

‘Luke,’ he called. ‘Give us a hand, would you?’ Annabel felt a little thrill as she heard Theo address the man by his Christian name and not by his surname as was the
custom of the Lyndon family. Perhaps the boy was already beginning to make his own decisions, even though at the moment it was in small, but to Annabel significant, matters.

Luke hurried forward and lifted the trunks easily. Then he turned towards Annabel. ‘’Tis good to see you, m’lady. Are you keeping well?’

‘I am, Luke, thank you. And how is everyone at Fairfield Hall?’

‘All fine, m’lady, thank you. The old lady is rather frail now, though,’ he added with a smile. ‘Either me or Thomas take her to the garden when the weather’s warm
enough. She still manages to walk most times.’

Goodbyes were said again and soon the two carriages were bowling down the driveway and travelling for some distance in the same direction.

‘Why did Luke call you “m’lady”, Mother?’ Charlie asked.

‘Because I suppose, in his eyes, I am still Lady Fairfield.’

‘And are you really?’

‘Legally, probably, yes, but at home I don’t choose to use the title.’

Charlie and Bertie glanced at each other, silently asking the same question. Shall we tell her what happened? Charlie gave a little nod and together they recounted the confrontation between Theo
and his mother.

‘Oh dear,’ Annabel said worriedly, when they had finished their tale, ‘I do hope Theo won’t be in dreadful trouble when he gets home.’

Dorothea would never forget what had happened. It still rankled and made her nag James all the more to move things forward.

‘It’s time you took legal advice, James. I don’t know why you’re procrastinating. Annabel left you. You have every right to divorce her for desertion. And you should take
steps to disinherit her bastard son.’ James flinched, but Dorothea was not done yet. ‘Can’t you take it to the courts or even to the House of Lords? There must be
some
way
to stop someone from inheriting a peerage to which they have no right.’

James was torn. His longstanding affair with Lady Cynthia had withered and died. They remained friends, but hardly ever saw each other. Now, there was nothing in his life except the Army. He
still could not summon up enough interest in the estate to take an active part and as long as Jim Chadwick ran things satisfactorily and the estate was prospering – which he did and it was
– James saw no reason to give up the life he loved. But to his surprise, he missed Annabel. Even after all this time, he almost expected her to be there waiting for him when he came home on
leave and, despite the relatively short time they’d spent together, he realized that she had wound herself into his heart. He regretted his hasty decision in driving her out and he lamented
the fact that he probably had a son and legitimate heir to his title and lands whom he’d refused to recognize. He was sorry that he’d allowed his sister to feed his jealousy with her
tales. She had dominated him all his life – indeed, she had dominated both the brothers in their childhood even though she’d been two years younger than Albert. James sighed whenever he
thought about it. It was such a pity Dorothea had not been born the eldest boy.

‘I’ll make some enquiries,’ was all James would promise his sister and Dorothea clicked her tongue in exasperation. It was the only answer she ever got from him. Surely, after
over ten years of separation something could be done? But the truth was, though Dorothea would not and could not face it, James didn’t want to divorce Annabel.

‘If you don’t do something, James, that boy will fight for his inheritance when he comes of age. His mother will see to that.’

James raised his eyebrows. ‘
His
inheritance, you say?’

‘You know what I mean,’ she snapped, though she vowed to choose her words more carefully.

James refused to say more. Instead, he turned away, went to sit with his mother for an hour or so, had a brief chat with his nephew when he arrived home from school that afternoon, and then left
to return to camp without another word to his sister.

Dorothea decided not to refer to the argument with her son and she greeted him as usual with the words, ‘You have a long holiday before you. Don’t let Christmas get in the way of
your duty. Make sure you use the time wisely. Chadwick will take you around the estate and make sure he shows you the accounts.’

Theo smiled inwardly, happy to agree to his mother’s demands. He regarded himself as custodian of the estate until such time as his cousin could take up his rightful place. It saddened
Theo that Bertie, who Theo believed to be the rightful heir, could have no claim on it whatsoever. But there was something he could do for Bertie and he planned to start his campaign the very next
day.

Early the following morning, he saddled the horse he used whenever he was home from school and rode down the long drive after breakfast and took the road leading to Blackbird Farm.

‘Good morning, Mr Chadwick,’ he greeted the farmer as he stepped into the byre where Jim and his farm workers were busy with the morning milking.

Jim, his forehead against the flank of a cow, twisted round to look at him. ‘ ’Morning, Master Theodore. What brings you here?’ Jim stood up and carefully moved the full bucket
of milk away from the cow’s restless feet. As he saw the boy more clearly, he said, ‘My, you’ve grown.’

‘I was wondering if I might have a word with you, Mr Chadwick, but I don’t want to interrupt your work.’ Theo glanced longingly around the byre breathing in the smells and
sounds of the milking shed.

‘We’re almost done. The lads can finish off. Would you like some breakfast?’

Whilst he’d already had his at home, the ride had made him hungry again and Theo said, ‘That’d be very kind of you.’

‘Come along then, Master Theodore, no doubt the wife can find enough for an extra mouth.’ Briefly – as he often did – Jim remembered the time when they couldn’t
even feed themselves let alone an unexpected guest. He thought of Annabel almost every day and thanked the Good Lord for her timely arrival in their midst. Where would they all have been by now, he
wondered, without her?

‘Please, won’t you just call me “Theo”?’

Jim paused a moment before saying, ‘If that’s what you want.’

‘I do, especially,’ he grinned, ‘as I have a favour to ask.’

Jim chuckled as he opened the back door of the farmhouse and ushered Theo inside, calling, ‘Mary, another one for breakfast.’

Mary Chadwick’s eyes widened when she saw who their visitor was, but she made no fuss and merely placed more sausages and bacon into the frying pan, cut more bread and broke two eggs into
a basin to cook last of all.

‘Sit down, Master Theodore,’ she said. ‘You’re very welcome.’

‘Theo. Please call me “Theo”.’

‘Theo,’ Jim began, ‘has a favour to ask us. Go on, lad.’

‘I was wondering if you could find work somewhere on the estate for Bertie Banks during the school holidays. And – and I’d like to help out too. I don’t need to be
paid,’ he added swiftly, ‘though I think perhaps Bertie might be glad of the money.’

Jim scratched his head. ‘I don’t see why not, Master – I mean, Theo. We can always use an extra pair of hands on the estate, especially on Home Farm.’ The older man
stared at the young boy wondering how much he knew – or understood – about the family feuding.

Theo returned his gaze steadily as he said quietly, ‘I don’t want to be treated any differently to any of your workers, Mr Chadwick, and certainly not as the future lord and master
because – by rights – I shouldn’t be.’

Mary almost dropped the plate of food as she placed it in front of him. She turned wide eyes to her husband for his guidance. Jim sat down at the table and picked up his own knife and fork as
his two workers came in the back door, removing their boots before they padded to the table in just their thick socks.