When all the high-ranking positions go to the Roman Catholics you’ll lose your place, like as not. And
you, Mannington,’ he turned to a plump man stuffed into a blue brocade coat, ‘how will you feel if Mannington Hall is confiscated
and given to some trumped up papist who has caught the King’s attention?’
The man recoiled. ‘That would never happen!’
‘Wouldn’t it? Remember all the confiscations during the civil war?’
Then Beth noticed Cecily walking away on Harry de Montford’s arm and she heard no more of the conversation. The way Harry
deMontford looked at Cecily made Beth uneasy; she began to push her way through the crowd to follow them. Noah, however, reached
Cecily first and firmly led her back to her sister.
Darkness was falling outside and the candles were being lit. Gradually, people began to leave and soon Lady Arabella joined
them, her eyes glittering with suppressed excitement as she simmered with the latest scandals.
It was time to go. The coachman was sent for and they went out into the night. The street was bustling as ladies kissed their
friends and climbed into their carriages while knots of men stood in the street exchanging loud goodbyes.
An orange-seller caught Beth’s arm and thrust an orange into her face. ‘Oranges! Lovely oranges!’ she shrilled. On an impulse
Beth rummaged in her pocket and found a few coins to exchange for one of the fruit. She would give it to Johannes as a gift.
Link boys lit the way to where their coachman waited for them and Noah handed the ladies into the carriage.
The twins lingered in the street, laughing and chatting to their acquaintances until Lady Arabella called sharply to them.
Full of good cheer and burnt wine, they climbed into the carriage, rocking it about on its straps and slamming the door too
hard.
The coachman cracked his whip and they rolled away.
‘Well!’ said Lady Arabella. ‘What excellent news! There were some who decried me when I married Sir George since he is Catholic.’
She narrowed her eyes and gave a small self-satisfied smile. ‘But I reasoned that since the King is a Catholic, too, it could
only be a matter of time before the old religion would be in the ascendant again. And so it has proved. I live in the sure
and certain hope that once the King’s son is born there will be considerable scope for advancement for Sir George.’
But what would that mean for the rest of us, wondered Beth.
Chapter 6
In the morning Beth drew back the heavy damask bed curtains to find that a fire had already been lit in their bedchamber and
warm water and Castile soap laid out for them.
A little while later she came down the imposing staircase to find Noah in the hall, sketching the carving on the wall panelling.
‘I like to keep a reminder of interesting details,’ he said, ‘for when I’m designing a new building.’ He lowered his voice.
‘Some of the detailing in this house is a little fulsome, in my opinion. I prefer more restraint.’
‘May I see your sketchbook?’ asked Beth, curious.
Noah handed it to her and she turned the pages carefully, interested in the variety of sketches: some vivid and quickly executed
in charcoal and others worked in more precise detail in pen and ink. She felt a strange sense of relief that his work showed
a high level of competence. It would have disappointed her if his drawings had been clumsy and unskilled. She returned it
to him with a smile. ‘There is a vivacity about your sketches that is very pleasing,’ she said.
‘Praise indeed, from one as skilled as yourself.’
A door closed upstairs. Lady Arabella came down, fetchingly dressed in a ruffled dressing gown and embroidered slippers. Her
blonde hair had been curled and her face carefully painted.
‘I will take my breakfast downstairs today,’ she said. ‘The twins are still asleep.’
‘Joshua certainly will have a thick head after the considerable quantity of wine he drank last
you, Mannington,’ he turned to a plump man stuffed into a blue brocade coat, ‘how will you feel if Mannington Hall is confiscated
and given to some trumped up papist who has caught the King’s attention?’
The man recoiled. ‘That would never happen!’
‘Wouldn’t it? Remember all the confiscations during the civil war?’
Then Beth noticed Cecily walking away on Harry de Montford’s arm and she heard no more of the conversation. The way Harry
deMontford looked at Cecily made Beth uneasy; she began to push her way through the crowd to follow them. Noah, however, reached
Cecily first and firmly led her back to her sister.
Darkness was falling outside and the candles were being lit. Gradually, people began to leave and soon Lady Arabella joined
them, her eyes glittering with suppressed excitement as she simmered with the latest scandals.
It was time to go. The coachman was sent for and they went out into the night. The street was bustling as ladies kissed their
friends and climbed into their carriages while knots of men stood in the street exchanging loud goodbyes.
An orange-seller caught Beth’s arm and thrust an orange into her face. ‘Oranges! Lovely oranges!’ she shrilled. On an impulse
Beth rummaged in her pocket and found a few coins to exchange for one of the fruit. She would give it to Johannes as a gift.
Link boys lit the way to where their coachman waited for them and Noah handed the ladies into the carriage.
The twins lingered in the street, laughing and chatting to their acquaintances until Lady Arabella called sharply to them.
Full of good cheer and burnt wine, they climbed into the carriage, rocking it about on its straps and slamming the door too
hard.
The coachman cracked his whip and they rolled away.
‘Well!’ said Lady Arabella. ‘What excellent news! There were some who decried me when I married Sir George since he is Catholic.’
She narrowed her eyes and gave a small self-satisfied smile. ‘But I reasoned that since the King is a Catholic, too, it could
only be a matter of time before the old religion would be in the ascendant again. And so it has proved. I live in the sure
and certain hope that once the King’s son is born there will be considerable scope for advancement for Sir George.’
But what would that mean for the rest of us, wondered Beth.
Chapter 6
In the morning Beth drew back the heavy damask bed curtains to find that a fire had already been lit in their bedchamber and
warm water and Castile soap laid out for them.
A little while later she came down the imposing staircase to find Noah in the hall, sketching the carving on the wall panelling.
‘I like to keep a reminder of interesting details,’ he said, ‘for when I’m designing a new building.’ He lowered his voice.
‘Some of the detailing in this house is a little fulsome, in my opinion. I prefer more restraint.’
‘May I see your sketchbook?’ asked Beth, curious.
Noah handed it to her and she turned the pages carefully, interested in the variety of sketches: some vivid and quickly executed
in charcoal and others worked in more precise detail in pen and ink. She felt a strange sense of relief that his work showed
a high level of competence. It would have disappointed her if his drawings had been clumsy and unskilled. She returned it
to him with a smile. ‘There is a vivacity about your sketches that is very pleasing,’ she said.
‘Praise indeed, from one as skilled as yourself.’
A door closed upstairs. Lady Arabella came down, fetchingly dressed in a ruffled dressing gown and embroidered slippers. Her
blonde hair had been curled and her face carefully painted.
‘I will take my breakfast downstairs today,’ she said. ‘The twins are still asleep.’
‘Joshua certainly will have a thick head after the considerable quantity of wine he drank last
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