Celia’s gown was champagne colored with floral lace details in a middle strip down the skirt. The sleeves were sheer with tiny leaves all over. The sash was a wide silk of a darker champagne tone that tied in a huge bow at the back. Handsome, as always. Celia’s taste was impeccable.
My gown was green satin covered with a white lace which panned out into a slight train in the back that sparkled with tiny intricate beadwork. There was braided green silk along the neckline and the sash was of the same color and material. We all wore long white gloves, the height of fashion. I finished my outfit off with the peacock bracelet from my mother’s box, and when Celia stood back she cooed over me, though I thought Li was the queen of that night. It was her engagement celebration, after all.
Celia twirled my hair into a bun at the back of my head with a few curls escaping at the sides. She wrapped the same green material from my dress around it and tucked the ends underneath. Li had pastel flowers in her hair, which had calmed down so much from the frizzy chaos it was just a few years before. Celia’s hair was not decorated, but she didn’t need a thing to accentuate her beauty.
When we finished readying ourselves, Li went to find a necklace from her room, leaving Celia alone with me. I told her I had finally finished the journal, and she asked if I had any further insight into Fleur’s father. I told her of my plan to visit Creeda to ask her about it. She agreed that it was a good bet she might know a thing or two. I suppose I could have asked Bernadine, but whenever I brought Fleur up to her, she waved her hand, called her a ‘
flighty little thing
’, and changed the subject. I assumed that she was embarrassed for her sister having given birth to her out of wedlock because she came from a similar situation herself.
When we went down to the party, Celia split off from us to greet her guests, and Li was accepting congratulations. The transformation of the garden was enchanting. There were lanterns with filigree details and colored glass which provided a charming low light. I did not feel sociable, and discovered a good hiding place behind a tree where I could still enjoy the music and not be bothered. The dancers floated by while I was enjoying my solemnity, sipping on a second light honey colored sweet wine... or was it my third?
Bernadine walked behind the trees carrying two of the decorated lanterns to light a darker portion of the garden and nearly walked into me.
“Me lady! Yeh gave me a fright, I thought yeh were a banshee!” She spoke loudly and smelled of wine, and I assumed that the staff was doing some celebrating of their own. She was fitting in well at Hilbourne, and Madame Bourdeaux, the housekeeper there, seemed to be thankful for the help.
“You have done a wonderful job on the decoration. Those lanterns are simply perfect!” I complimented her.
“Oh thank yeh, Lady Rhineholt, but the lanterns, they were the work of Madame Bourdeaux, she brung them back from that outlandish place where they grow the tea,” she said.
“Ah, I see. They are beautiful,” I replied and realized the wine was making me feel miserably warm.
“Yeh look like yeh might burn to death, I’ll be back with a drink that’ll cool yeh an’ yeh might savor that wine a little slower, me lady.” She winked at me and went indoors. She spoke loudly in her indulgence, and Julian must have heard us talking because he came around the tree just as Bernadine ran off.
I was not so disturbed by his presence after our conversation earlier in the day, and we stood silently together for a long time before he finally spoke.
“I wish I found a place to hide sooner.”
“This does seem to be the perfect spot,” I said.
Bernadine came back with a cool glass of something she called a
‘remedy for tomorrow’s headache’,
and I was not sure what she meant by that, but it was refreshing.
“That’ll do the trick, me lady. Now drink that all down.” She gave me a wink and stumbled off back toward the house.
“I see you even have special service behind this tree.” Julian said and we both laughed.
“Bernadine is wonderful. She has been with me, always. I think that my mother was close with her when she first arrived at Rhineholt. She knew so few people so far away from Germany,” I said. We were quiet for another moment, and I began to realize how much the wine was affecting me.
“I remember your mother,” Julian said after a moment. I turned to look at him.
“She was beautiful... like you. She came to stay with us here once or twice when I was a boy. I remember when she came to meet Hilda, before I went to India with my father.” He was facing forward as he spoke. I was looking at his profile intently.
“I only have one memory of her. She kissed the palm of my hand before she left to come to a ball here,” I said.
“I’m sorry you never knew her. Celia and my father, they have always spoken kindly of her... and your father, as well.”
I finished the drink Bernadine brought me, but I still felt dizzy. I was beginning to lean forward, and Julian grabbed me by the shoulders, laughing.
“How much wine have you had?” he asked.
“I’m not sure... I kept drinking them to cool down but I only got warmer and warmer. I’m so glad for Bernadine, she had me stop drinking the wine only a moment before you--” I stumbled into him, and he held me for a moment before he laughed again.
“Your nose is red.” He was smiling and supporting me with an arm around my shoulder.
“I’m still so warm...” I was fanning myself. He led me to a bench that sat a little farther from the party. It was very dark, and the trees seemed to be reaching for me as we walked toward the seat. I thought that I could feel the earth moving beneath my feet. When we finally reached the bench, I practically fell into it, and Julian kneeled in front of me. He held my face and looked right into my eyes.
“Tam?” I could hear him but I could not answer. The trees seemed to have eyes that were watching us and reaching out for me. They began to take on the shape of the dead.
The next thing I remembered, I was lying with my head in Julian’s lap while he fanned me.
“You fainted,” he said. “Don’t worry you were only out for a few minutes. Li was just here and she has gone to fetch you some water. You have only had wine?”
I sat up, not answering Julian’s question. I still felt severely dizzy. Bernadine and Li came back together with a wet rag to press on my forehead and a cool glass of water which I drank in one gulp.
“Oh Miss, that wine, it’s the devil’s drink!” Her breath smelled of alcohol, and I thought how ironic her comment was. They were all fanning me. I remembered the trees leaning in for me and becoming the familiar faces and it made me shiver.
“Can you stand?” Li asked. I tried to get up but the ground seemed to be rocking side to side and I fell back. I began to feel seasick.
“I’ll have to carry her,” Julian said.
“No, I can handle myself,” I said defiantly, and it was a little louder than I meant for it to be. Julian picked me up like a baby and carried me so that the guests would not see me in that condition. Bernadine followed, but she demanded that Li go back to the party because the guests would certainly miss her.
“Meet us back in her room with water,” Julian ordered Bernadine.
“Heavens no! Sir, yeh don’t expect me to leave her alone with yeh! She’s in such a way!” She sounded horrified.
“Go!” he ordered. I managed to nod at her and off she went.
“She’ll be the death of me!” I heard Bernadine say as she ran toward the kitchen.
“
No, she’ll be the death of
me!”
Julian said as he turned to go through a door sideways.
“You haven’t seemed to mind all the trouble before,” I said and leaned my head on his shoulder.
“When are you going to stop all of this nonsense?” he asked.
“When I have had my fill of your dissatisfaction,” I said.
“If that’s the case, you should just let me marry you.” He laughed, and I frowned at him.
“Then you would be dissatisfied
all the time?”
I asked teasingly. He let out a beleaguered sigh.
“Then I accept!” I said, and I kissed his cheek.
“Stop that.” He was really annoyed now, and we did not talk the rest of the way. When we reached my room, I was nearly asleep but I heard Bernadine’s steps as she ran up from the servants’ quarters and met us at the door.
“Ha!” she said as if she just won the race to protect my innocence, though Julian made it clear that his intentions were honorable.
He walked into the room long enough to place me on the bed, and then he turned and left saying, ‘
goodnight
’ to Bernadine but not to me. I realized that he really was upset by my repartee.
Bernadine helped me change into my dressing gown. She put me in bed and pulled the blankets up to my chin as she did so many times when I was a child.
“Miss--” She stopped short, “OH! Lady Rhineholt! I shall ne’er get use to that...” She pressed the cool cloth to my forehead.
“Shall I stay with yeh a bit, or bring yeh some more of that remedy?”
“My mother, she cared deeply for you,” I said wearily, and she was surprised at the comment.
“I read it in her journal. You were so dear to her.” I could hardly keep my eyes open.
She seemed saddened by the mention of my mother.
“Thank you, Miss.” She did not correct herself this time, and I think she saw me as that child again, tucked into the bed. She got up to pull the curtains and came back to touch my hands, which were folded on my stomach.
“Why did Camilla leave her?” I asked, and I was drifting off, but not before I saw a pained look on her face.
She did not answer and if she had, I was already asleep, but I think she would not have talked to me about her sister. That night was filled with many curious things, images of the trees reaching out to me and the room spinning round and round, until I awoke the following morning with only a trace of a headache.
CHAPTER 14
The next morning I was feeling much better. I slept well and Bernadine’s concoction did the trick, there was almost no headache. I was mystified. My embarrassment over the situation was hilarious to Li, and she laughed uproariously when I told her what I said to Julian as he carried me up the stairs to my room the night before.
“Tam! You are lucky he didn’t take your acceptance seriously since you are so against marrying the poor man!” She was giggling with me at breakfast. We managed to get up just late enough to miss most of the guests who were preparing to leave Hilbourne.
“I hope you know that I will not let you get out of coming to India with me,” she said and seemed truly concerned that I would not join her.
“I would follow you to the ends of the earth, dear friend.” I said, smiling, but she looked distraught.
“What is it, Li?”
“I am afraid. I’ve never been so far away, and it sounds like such a dangerous place. The people will be so different. A man at the party last night talked of them as uncivilized!” she spoke seriously. Li was really afraid of going to India.
“I don’t think an uncivilized people could develop a place as Julian has described, dear,” I said comfortingly.
“He even says that the people are pleasant and fascinating.” She gave me a slight smile, but I could see that she was still worried.
“I don’t plan to bring Dolly, but you will bring Bernadine and Fleur? Do you think that they would mind double duty?” Dolly was Li’s maid, who she took a disliking to right away. I said, ‘
of course
.’
“Leo says that the housekeeper here spent many years managing the plantation house, perhaps if I talk to her about it she might ease my mind,” Li conjectured.
“I think that is a good idea.” I changed the subject.
“I plan to go and see someone who lives near town sometime before the week is out. Would you care to come along?”
“Anything to get out of another dress fitting. Celia is positively running me ragged! I long for my nightdress all day long!” she joked. She was so good at making light even when she was worried. I was glad that I would be getting away from Hilbourne, and that I would be with her.
* * *
Leo offered to drive us into town in a jaunting car. Hilbourne was far enough away that we would all have to stay a night at the inn, and I was looking forward to being away from the Abbey. I had not gone into the library since Eckhardt’s death and even my room alarmed me late at night, to the point that I was considering moving to a different one.
Li told Celia she needed some things from the shops in town, and she agreed that the time away might be good for us both, though she would not be able to come along. Leo had things to do in the village, as well, so he would not be with us for most of our stay. I was glad that Li would be with me when I went to visit Creeda. If my suspicions of Fleur’s father were correct, I would be glad Li was there to talk it over with after. I also thought she might get a kick out of old Creeda.
We left early in the morning so that we would be able to spend the afternoon tea time at Aven Cottage. Leo wanted to stay there, but we were not able to write in advance and did not want to put Creeda out. When we cleaned up from the journey at the inn, we walked up the lane into the forest and then onto a path which led to the garden-surrounded house. Li commented on how enchanting the white aven flowers were. They seemed to be everywhere.
I knocked and to my surprise, Fleur opened the door. She was just as surprised to see Li and me standing on the doorstep, but she invited us in, and Creeda threw her hands up when she saw me. She came over and embraced both of us, and said how she just loved company. Creeda set about making tea, and Fleur sat with us while we waited.
“I wasn’t aware you would be visiting Creeda,” I said to her.