deceptively calm blue eyes. Now he turned and engaged Miss Hurst in conversation at the precise moment that she was about to invite herself to join the party. Caroline slipped her arm through Annabella’s, and steered her away across the lawn.
The gardens at Mundell were indeed very fine, Annabella thought, for the rich green lawns were dotted with tall, shady trees and ornamental shrubs, whilst the flower borders were a riot of colour on this summer afternoon. They chose a bench in the shade of a huge oak tree, and Caroline turned to Annabella with a smile.
‘So how can I help you, my dear? How did this sad estrangement come about?’
Annabella sighed. ‘I never knew Alicia very well,’she said. ‘You are no doubt aware that she is seven years older than I, and when I was a child she was away at school, and then she went to London for her Season and…’ her eyes dropped from Caroline’s kind blue ones ‘…our father forced that hateful match with George Carberry! I know that she wrote to me several times after Carberry died, but our father would never let me see the letters. I believe he threw them away unanswered, or returned them. I once saw one on the hall table when one of the maids had accidentally left it lying there. I was about to open it when he snatched it from my hand and sent me away to my room. I would have written to her myself if I could, but I could not find her direction!’
‘Alicia wondered if that was the case,’ Caroline said calmly. ‘I think she realised that that was none of your doing. But then you met again, did you not, a couple of years ago? I understood that your father indicated to Alicia that you would like a London Season under her aegis?’
‘Yes, but it was not at all as Alicia might have imagined!’ Annabella’s anguished green eyes met Caroline’s. ‘I discovered that our father had used me to bring her to Greyrigg, spinning the tale about a Season as bait! In truth, what he really wanted was to entrap her in his business dealings again, or force her into a second marriage! But I swear that I did not know that until the very day of her visit!’ She shook her head. ‘He never confided in me, you see, barely spoke to me at all from one week to the next, if the truth be told! Oh, he thought he knew me, thought that I was like him because I kept quiet and always agreed with him on the rare occasions he did tell mea little of his plans! But I knew nothing of his designs for Alicia, I swear it!’
Caroline was frowning. ‘I believe you, but—’ She broke off and started again. ‘Forgive me, but I think Alicia believed you were party to his plans because you seemed so at ease with him, so complaisant.’ Caroline looked uncomfortable. ‘The way she described your behaviour—’
‘Oh, I can well imagine what she said!’ But Annabella’s bitterness was directed against herself, not her sister. ‘I played a marvellous part, you see, Lady Kilgaren. I was so mercenary, so insincere! I modelled myself on Lady Grey, my future sister-in-law, and she is the most affected creature I know!’ Despite herself she gave a little giggle. ‘Oh, I was dreadful! My conversation was larded with ‘la’ and ‘lud’ and I am sure I gave my sister a complete disgust for me! It fooled our father, who knew me too little to realise it was all pretence! He just thought that I was jealous of her.’
She looked up and met Caroline’s look directly. ‘And so I was, in truth! Alicia is so elegant, so assured, so much as I would wish to be! But that’s nothing to the purpose! All the time I was waiting for my chance to warn Alicia without alerting our father’s suspicions, but it was hopeless! He would not leave me alone with her and he had already threatened that if I did not aid his plans he would punish me—’ She broke off, closing her eyes briefly for a moment. ‘In any event, Alicia did not need my help! But, of course, she left Greyrigg believing me to have connived at his
The gardens at Mundell were indeed very fine, Annabella thought, for the rich green lawns were dotted with tall, shady trees and ornamental shrubs, whilst the flower borders were a riot of colour on this summer afternoon. They chose a bench in the shade of a huge oak tree, and Caroline turned to Annabella with a smile.
‘So how can I help you, my dear? How did this sad estrangement come about?’
Annabella sighed. ‘I never knew Alicia very well,’she said. ‘You are no doubt aware that she is seven years older than I, and when I was a child she was away at school, and then she went to London for her Season and…’ her eyes dropped from Caroline’s kind blue ones ‘…our father forced that hateful match with George Carberry! I know that she wrote to me several times after Carberry died, but our father would never let me see the letters. I believe he threw them away unanswered, or returned them. I once saw one on the hall table when one of the maids had accidentally left it lying there. I was about to open it when he snatched it from my hand and sent me away to my room. I would have written to her myself if I could, but I could not find her direction!’
‘Alicia wondered if that was the case,’ Caroline said calmly. ‘I think she realised that that was none of your doing. But then you met again, did you not, a couple of years ago? I understood that your father indicated to Alicia that you would like a London Season under her aegis?’
‘Yes, but it was not at all as Alicia might have imagined!’ Annabella’s anguished green eyes met Caroline’s. ‘I discovered that our father had used me to bring her to Greyrigg, spinning the tale about a Season as bait! In truth, what he really wanted was to entrap her in his business dealings again, or force her into a second marriage! But I swear that I did not know that until the very day of her visit!’ She shook her head. ‘He never confided in me, you see, barely spoke to me at all from one week to the next, if the truth be told! Oh, he thought he knew me, thought that I was like him because I kept quiet and always agreed with him on the rare occasions he did tell mea little of his plans! But I knew nothing of his designs for Alicia, I swear it!’
Caroline was frowning. ‘I believe you, but—’ She broke off and started again. ‘Forgive me, but I think Alicia believed you were party to his plans because you seemed so at ease with him, so complaisant.’ Caroline looked uncomfortable. ‘The way she described your behaviour—’
‘Oh, I can well imagine what she said!’ But Annabella’s bitterness was directed against herself, not her sister. ‘I played a marvellous part, you see, Lady Kilgaren. I was so mercenary, so insincere! I modelled myself on Lady Grey, my future sister-in-law, and she is the most affected creature I know!’ Despite herself she gave a little giggle. ‘Oh, I was dreadful! My conversation was larded with ‘la’ and ‘lud’ and I am sure I gave my sister a complete disgust for me! It fooled our father, who knew me too little to realise it was all pretence! He just thought that I was jealous of her.’
She looked up and met Caroline’s look directly. ‘And so I was, in truth! Alicia is so elegant, so assured, so much as I would wish to be! But that’s nothing to the purpose! All the time I was waiting for my chance to warn Alicia without alerting our father’s suspicions, but it was hopeless! He would not leave me alone with her and he had already threatened that if I did not aid his plans he would punish me—’ She broke off, closing her eyes briefly for a moment. ‘In any event, Alicia did not need my help! But, of course, she left Greyrigg believing me to have connived at his
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