Shadow on the Highway (19 page)

22.
A Son’s Duty

Ralph galloped ahead and I followed. My chest hurt, as if my heart had already been bruised too much. The nights were short at this time of the year and the sky was already lightening above us. When we reached the grounds of Markyate Manor we could see the shapes of pikes moving forwards on the other side of the hedge, and a great rabble of a regiment moving down the long drive.

Just the sight of all those men made my stomach turn to water. When we got around the side of the house Ralph reined in his horse.

‘Where is she?’ he said.

I signed, ‘Upstairs.’

‘You’ll have to show me,’ he said. He slid down and followed me.

We left the horses where they stood and raced across the cobbled yard in a few strides. The kitchen door was still swinging ajar. It seemed years since I had left.

Even as we opened the door from the servant’s stairs on to the landing, Ralph stopped, his head cocked, listening. His hand tensed around his sword.

‘They’ve got in already,’ he whispered. I went to the front window to look out. What was left of the formation was led by two cavalry officers with a Parliament standard, and a few more brought up the rear with a rolling cannon. The lawns were littered with covered wagons – the baggage train that went everywhere with the troops, carrying powder for the cannon and grain for the horses. Surrounding the wagons was a motley bunch of camp followers – women and old men with the tools of their trade – the barber-surgeon, the farrier, the gunsmith.

But it was not these that made my blood freeze in my veins. Everywhere streamed soldiers, running towards the house.

‘God in heaven,’ I said.

I threw open the door to the servants stairs with Ralph close behind, but we were too late. Three blood-stained soldiers were already on the way down. One of them rushed by us, dragging the quilt from the bed and a ticking pillow. He slit it with his knife shaking the feathers out on the floor in a cloud of brown and white.

Ralph was so shocked he could only stare. The man took up a candlestick from the side table and stuffed it into the pillowcase. They forced us to the side as they barged by, leaving us coughing in a sea of feathers. We hurried up towards the bedchambers.

The doors were splintered from their hinges. On the first floor landing a group of men already had Lady Katherine by the arms. Her forehead was bleeding and her eyes were wide with terror. A bearded infantryman was trying to lift her skirts, and the others were laughing, mouths jeering insults. A strong smell of drink and sweat accompanied them.

‘A little fun, gentlemen?’ said the bearded man to me. Of course, I was still dressed like a boy. Ralph was suddenly still. It was only then that I realised I knew him.

It was my father.

Ralph pointed his musket at him. ‘Leave her be.’

‘Ralph?’ Father let go of my mistress’s skirts and made to embrace him, but Ralph kept the musket levelled at him.

‘Keep away. Don’t dare touch me! I’m ashamed of you. Is this what you do? Terrify young women, rob and plunder, even in your own village?’

‘Come on now, Ralph, it was only a bit of –’

‘
“Fun” were you going to say? Would you like soldiers to do the same to our Abigail? Is this fun?’ He shoved his musket into Father’s throat.

‘Ralph!’ I cried
. ‘For pity’s sake!’ I dared not move, I thought he might fire. Father looked blearily into my face, and I saw the recognition dawn. ‘Abigail?’ His lips said my name, but then his eyes slid away. He could not look me in the face.

Some of the other men laughed, sniggered behind their hands. Lady Katherine was ashen, her head pulled backwards by the soldier who still had hold of her hair.

‘Leave go,’ Ralph said to him, ‘or I fire.’

Father looked down at the pistol and gave a nervous laugh, ‘You wouldn’t –’

‘She’s not the enemy, Father!’ I said. ‘It’s my friend Kate, one of my mistress’s serving maids.’

‘Serving maid, lady, what’s the difference? They’re all tarred with the Fanshawe brush.’ The soldier gave a vicious tug on Lady Katherine’s hair.

Ralph’s face was white with anger. ‘She’s my sweetheart,’ he said, ‘I love her.’

Father tried to save face by laughing and moving away but Ralph would not give up,
and kept his gun to Father’s throat. ‘Tell them to leave her alone,’ he said, ‘or I’m warning you I won’t be responsible for what I do.’

There was a
moment where father and son looked at each other like strangers, both unwilling to give in. I held my breath, not daring to move.
Please
,
for
mercy’s
sake
,
Ralph
,
don’t
shoot
, I prayed.

There was a
moment more, then Father sagged away from the gun. ‘Let her go,’ he said. The soldier clung on. ‘It’s an order,’ he snapped.

Ralph moved over and took hold of Lady Katherine by the arm. Her face was wet with tears of terror. I took hold of her other hand and wrung it tight.

‘We’re leaving now,’ Ralph said, ‘and I don’t expect to be stopped. My father will remind you that you are civilised men, not beasts. Isn’t that right?’

My father had lost all his bravado. He looked to be a sad, confused little man now. I wondered that anyone would take orders from him. Just as I was thinking this, a big-chested man entered the room
, and my father straightened up and saluted him.

The other man seemed calm. He had a lazy air of authority and the ragged bunch of men stood to attention. ‘What’s going on? Who are these women?’

‘Servants, Colonel Greene,’ said my father. ‘My son is escorting them to the village.’

‘And what’s happened to discipline?’

‘The men are just a little lively,’ my father said, not meeting his eyes. ‘Soldiers will be soldiers.’

The Colonel turned his attention to Ralph. ‘You are Chaplin’s son?’

Ralph nodded.

‘The one who has taken Cromwell’s shilling to join us?’

‘To my shame, yes.’ He gave the Colonel a look of flint. Then he bowed, and pushing Lady Katherine ahead of him strode out of the door. I followed, without looking back. Little did I know then, that it would be the last time I would ever see my father.

As we walked through the house we saw soldiers tearing it apart for anything of value. My legs felt as though they did not belong to me. We passed another soldier hauling the tapestry drapes from the window. He gave a final pull until the whole rail came down. He pushed past us with his prize, before Colonel Greene yelled at him from the top of the stairs, and he was forced to drop it sheepishly to the ground.

Ralph did not let go of Kate, his arm was around her waist, and I held her on the other side. As we passed through the yard, we walked by small knots of soldiers hunched in groups, dividing up the spoils of the house, arguing and cursing over tankards and candlesticks. Inside the manor, blurred shapes still ran past the windows. But we did not stop. Instinctively I moved closer to Lady Katherine as the men bawled at each other and snatched the spoils from each other’s grip.

When Lady Katherine turned to speak to me I saw she could not manage the words. She held herself upright as if afraid to let go, closed her mouth.

None of us spoke. We just kept on walking. We walked on until we came to the edge of the common, where Ralph stopped. The sky was pale and vast above us.

‘The birds are singing,’ he whispered.

‘Just like any other day,’ I said.

Ralph held out his arms and Lady Katherine fell into them as if she had waited for it all her life. He crushed her to his chest. I saw his lips murmur, ‘Safe now,’ over and over before I turned away embarrassed as he kissed her hair.

*

A long time later she came to touch me on the shoulder. ‘You saved me from…
’ She could not say the words.

When I held out my arms, her embrace was tight, like a sister.

After she let me go, I said to Ralph, ‘Where shall we go? We can’t go back to the Manor.’

‘Jacob will give us rest and a place to stay. He’s sweet on you, Abi. It was to please you that he persuaded his father to let me go. But on condition I signed up for the New Model Army. Jacob’s father thought it would help keep me out of trouble.’

That was a jest all right. But I couldn’t believe that, about Jacob. Ralph must only be saying it. ‘But what about Lady Katherine?’ I asked. ‘Is there room for her too?’

‘Don’t call me that, please,’ she said. ‘Plain Kate will do.’

‘She stays with me,’ Ralph said. ‘But it’s only one night. The regiment will be moving on tomorrow to go to Worcester, and maybe it will be safe then for you both to return to the Manor.’

‘I’m not sure I want to go back. It does not feel like I belong there
anymore. It’s all spoilt. The troops have destroyed what five generations have made. My mother would have wept to see it.’

‘Then it’s a mercy she can’t
,’ Ralph said, taking hold of her hand and interlacing his fingers with hers.

She smiled shyly, but then the smile was replaced by a worried frown.

‘What is it?’ Ralph asked her.

‘I was thinking about Grice.’

‘He won’t come back,’ Ralph said. ‘We met him on the road – left him where his so-called Royalist friends could find him. They know he’s a spy, and I don’t suppose they’ll show him much forgiveness.’

Lady Katherine’s face was still troubled. She let go o
f Ralph’s hand and stepped away. ‘But if word gets to my stepfather and my husband, they will –’

‘Let’s not talk of them,’ Ralph said firmly, drawing her back into his arms. ‘The sun is coming up and it’s going to be a beautiful day. Tomorrow will take care of itself, I dare say.’

23. Farewell

We spent the next day at Jacob’s cottage. Kate and I took Jacob’s bedchamber and he and Ralph slept downstairs in the kitchen where they could be ready with swords if any more trouble should come. Kate said they talked a long time, she could hear their voices murmuring below. I slept like I had not slept for months, with Kate next to me to hear for me, and knowing we were safe.

We rose again late in the afternoon, ready to eat and make plans. Jacob made us tell him the tale of the night’s events as we feasted on bread and barley soup. I was embarrassed, for I had only my boy’s clothes, and it made me aware of the shape of my legs, on display for all to see, and not hidden under skirts as they should be. I caught Jacob looking, so I sat down hurriedly and pushed my legs underneath the table.

Kate was pale and tired-looking, but composed.

‘I’m sorry, Kate, I will have to go with the regiment,’ Ralph said.

‘Do you have to?’ I asked.

‘I took Cromwell’s shilling as part of the bail, and failure to report counts as desertion. You know what the penalty is for that.’

The noose.

‘Give it back then,’ I said.

‘Once in your hand it is a pledge. It should only be a short campaign though, and our troops will win. When I was talking with… when I enlisted they told me that the Scots have failed the King, and that it will be over in a day. Never fear, you won’t be rid of me for long.’

I saw how he was careful not to mention my father as he spoke. My heart blessed him.

‘When is the muster?’

‘Dawn tomorrow in the town square.’

‘What will you do, Kate?’ I asked.

She traced a fingertip on the table and did not look up. ‘Last night I dreamt of my mother. She was walking in the rose garden at the front of the house. The sun was on the grass and the windows sparkled with light. I knew she wanted me to bring the Manor back to life. A resurrection, if you like. And then there are the tenants, like your mother. I will give them their cottages back, if after all that’s happened, I can sort out the mess and they want to come.’

Ralph had turned away, hurt.

She looked towards him and spoke up. ‘I’ll never forget the Diggers, but I know I’m not free to make a Digger’s life. My stepfather would kill anyone who came between me and Thomas’s affections. If he was to hear about Ralph – if anyone were to breathe a single word – then he would show no mercy. I’m going back to Markyate Manor not because I don’t care, but because I care too much.’

Ralph turned at this, and such a look of longing hung there that it made me blush.

*

The evening was spent in quiet conversation. Jacob had borrowed some clothes for us from the alms box at his father’s house, so that when the cock crowed the next morning both Kate and I had dressed by the candlelight in brown homespun and faded linen caps.

When it got light, a noise from outside drew Kate to the window. It was the baggage train setting off for the muster in the square. We watched the oxen and carts trundle by with their deadly loads of powder kegs and pikes. We were fascinated but sobered to watch it pass, with so many tented wagons like a great city on the move. We went downstairs to tell Ralph and Jacob, but they were already dressed and by the window.

‘The infantry won’t be far behind them,’ Jacob said
. ‘Are you ready?’

‘As ready as I will ever be,’ Ralph said.

‘Then best say your farewells whilst there’s time.’

Kate waited for him to embrace her, but he was suddenly awkward. He went to the door and opened it,
and stood on the threshold. Jacob and I exchanged glances. Neither of us would want to be in his shoes, preparing to put down his life for Parliament.

Kate approached him from behind,
and wound her arms around his waist until he turned and looked her gravely in the face. He seemed to see what he wanted, and smiling, lifted her off her feet and kissed her on the lips. When he put her down his eyes were full of unshed tears and he strode away in sudden haste, without even a word.

‘Keep safe!’ Kate cried after him.

We ran out into the street to watch his back as he went. We shouted, ‘Farewell! God Speed!’ waving our kerchiefs like frantic fools.

Kate was a long time coming in. Jacob and I had swept the hearth, washed the churns and collected the eggs by the time she came.

‘He will be alright,’ I said, to cheer her. I tried not to think about the musketeers that had marched down the road after him. And the fact that the King would have armed men just like them.

Kate
picked up an egg from the bowl and cupped it gently in her hand before placing it back. ‘I know I have no right to ask, Abi, but would you come back to the Manor with me? I don’t think I can manage without my friend.’

‘Like a companion you mean?’

‘If you’ll come. It will be hard, waiting for news. And there will always be work for you where I am – that is, if you want it.’ She looked down, as if fearing I might say no.

‘You mean you’ll be needing someone to scrub now the troops have gone,’ I said laughing.

‘No, no – I meant –’

‘I know,’ I said, softly, putting my hand on her arm. ‘I was jesting. Of course I’ll come. I would not let you go back there alone.’

So it was settled. Jacob’s father had heard of the disturbance and had gone over to the Manor, but had found it deserted. Nevertheless, we waited until late in the afternoon to go back. We did not want to meet any troops on the way, and we needed to make sure they had gone from the Manor. Jacob could not come with us as he’d promised to meet his father that afternoon. But he gave us a pack pony carrying provisions and other essential things he thought we might need.

‘I wish I could come with you,’ Jacob said.

‘We’ll be careful,’ Kate said.

‘I’ll ride over this evening, if it’s alright. And I was wondering – when you have a day off Abigail, whether we might walk out together.’

‘I’d love to,’ I said before wondering if I’d heard him right and before he could change his mind. He gave an almighty grin and I felt like my heart might boil over.

‘Just tell us which day, and she’ll be there,’ Kate said.

Jacob Mallinson had asked me out! I smiled then as if my cheeks might crack.

Kate and I walked to the Manor in the late afternoon heat, arm in arm. The building rose from the ground just the way it had, months before. Except that now it was familiar, I knew every inch of that house. I was the one who’d polished it and swept it and made it shine. And now it felt as though it could be my home.

We stopped about an acre away. We were both wondering what lay within, whether we could bear to see the shell of it. Kate set off towards the front door, then at the last moment turned to go in at the back. In we went, through the deserted kitchen, up the servant stairs and into the empty hall.

We stood in the silence. Sunlight streamed in over the dust formed by hundreds of tramping feet.

‘We’ll soon bring it back to how it was,’ I said.

‘No,’ Kate said
. ‘Not how it was. A new beginning, like the Diggers said. There’ll be no more orders from me, we’ll work together.’

My gaze took in the overturned chairs, the bare windows and the doors gouged with the marks of bayonets. Yet somehow it didn’t seem daunting.

I could not wait to get started. ‘Come on then, Kate,’ I said, ‘best roll up your sleeves.’