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Authors: Elizabeth Edmondson
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electrical?’ He bent down to look at a nearby socket. ‘This all looks rather ancient.’
Ben, who’d followed them into the hothouse, said, ‘Yes, my lord, all the wiring needs replacing. His lordship, his late lordship, I should say, was going to have it done, but it wasn’t so easy after the war.’
Polly said, ‘Pops will be at those electrics, you wait and see.’
‘If you’re interested in the wiring here, talk to Mr Jonquil, at the estate office,’ Freya said. ‘He’ll have plans of all the circuits and so on.’
Gus said, ‘I’d like to see those. Worn wiring is dangerous; this needs attending to before there’s an accident.’
Scene 7
Freya had turned her cousins over to Mrs Partridge and taken Last Hurrah out for some exercise. So she wasn’t at the Castle when her aunt, Lady Priscilla Veryan, rode into the stable yard on her big hunter. She dismounted and handed the reins to Ben, who looked appreciatively at the big bay and ran the stirrups up the leathers.
‘Will you be long, my lady? I’ll put him in a loose box.’
Lady Priscilla found Gus in the Great Hall. He was standing beneath the head of a huge stag, looking without enthusiasm into its mournful glassy eyes. She regarded him for a moment and then said, ‘You must be Augustine.’
He swung round, surprised. ‘Why, yes. I’m sorry . . .’
‘No need to look at me like that. I’m your aunt, Priscilla Veryan.’ She held out a hand and looked at him appraisingly. ‘Yes, you have a look of my brother about you. Welcome to Selchester. I know you met my husband in London; I’m sorry I couldn’t be there.’
Mrs Partridge, clutching a feather duster, emerged from the shadows. Lady Priscilla pounced. ‘Ah, there you are, Mrs Partridge. We’ll have tea in the library. And tell Lord Selchester’s daughters to join us. Come along. My husband called you Gus, do you prefer that? I dare say Augustine wouldn’t do in America.’
She made it sound as though America were some outpost of the Empire. Gus knew better than to resist this force of nature and silently followed his aunt towards the library.
She went over to the window, looked out, and said, ‘We’ll have snow within the next week,’ and then turned her attention back to her nephew. ‘So, how do you like the Castle? This must have come as a shock to you. Good thing that the Earldom isn’t going to die out after all. Although you’ve only got the two girls, not a boy.’
Gus wondered if he should apologise for the lack of an heir, but he pulled himself together and said, ‘Yes. Quite unexpected. And the Castle is extraordinary. I never in my wildest dreams imagined I’d ever live in such a place.’
Lady Priscilla eyed him appraisingly. ‘Dreams, or nightmares? Is the old part of the Castle getting to you? You Americans are so modern in your outlook. Still, you’ll have to get used to it. Freya doesn’t mind roughing it in her tower, but nobody can pretend that the Castle is comfortable. At least you don’t have a wife to complain and make matters worse. You lost your wife. In the war, was it?’
‘During the war, yes, but her demise was nothing to do with the hostilities. She suffered from TB.’
Lady Priscilla pursed her lips. ‘I hope your girls haven’t inherited a tubercular tendency.’
‘They are perfectly healthy.’ He wasn’t sure how to take this new relative. He was finding relatives as a whole quite difficult to get used to. It wasn’t just the hovering presence of his dead father; it was all the rest of them. He’d liked Sir Archibald, Lady Priscilla’s husband. But hadn’t he said that they had three daughters and four sons? A large family, and more to add to his list of new cousins.
Lady Priscilla changed the subject. ‘How do you get on with Sonia? She’s behaving very badly. You don’t want to stand any nonsense from her.’
Gus wasn’t going to express his opinion of Lady Sonia to her aunt, so he just said, ‘I had the
Ben, who’d followed them into the hothouse, said, ‘Yes, my lord, all the wiring needs replacing. His lordship, his late lordship, I should say, was going to have it done, but it wasn’t so easy after the war.’
Polly said, ‘Pops will be at those electrics, you wait and see.’
‘If you’re interested in the wiring here, talk to Mr Jonquil, at the estate office,’ Freya said. ‘He’ll have plans of all the circuits and so on.’
Gus said, ‘I’d like to see those. Worn wiring is dangerous; this needs attending to before there’s an accident.’
Scene 7
Freya had turned her cousins over to Mrs Partridge and taken Last Hurrah out for some exercise. So she wasn’t at the Castle when her aunt, Lady Priscilla Veryan, rode into the stable yard on her big hunter. She dismounted and handed the reins to Ben, who looked appreciatively at the big bay and ran the stirrups up the leathers.
‘Will you be long, my lady? I’ll put him in a loose box.’
Lady Priscilla found Gus in the Great Hall. He was standing beneath the head of a huge stag, looking without enthusiasm into its mournful glassy eyes. She regarded him for a moment and then said, ‘You must be Augustine.’
He swung round, surprised. ‘Why, yes. I’m sorry . . .’
‘No need to look at me like that. I’m your aunt, Priscilla Veryan.’ She held out a hand and looked at him appraisingly. ‘Yes, you have a look of my brother about you. Welcome to Selchester. I know you met my husband in London; I’m sorry I couldn’t be there.’
Mrs Partridge, clutching a feather duster, emerged from the shadows. Lady Priscilla pounced. ‘Ah, there you are, Mrs Partridge. We’ll have tea in the library. And tell Lord Selchester’s daughters to join us. Come along. My husband called you Gus, do you prefer that? I dare say Augustine wouldn’t do in America.’
She made it sound as though America were some outpost of the Empire. Gus knew better than to resist this force of nature and silently followed his aunt towards the library.
She went over to the window, looked out, and said, ‘We’ll have snow within the next week,’ and then turned her attention back to her nephew. ‘So, how do you like the Castle? This must have come as a shock to you. Good thing that the Earldom isn’t going to die out after all. Although you’ve only got the two girls, not a boy.’
Gus wondered if he should apologise for the lack of an heir, but he pulled himself together and said, ‘Yes. Quite unexpected. And the Castle is extraordinary. I never in my wildest dreams imagined I’d ever live in such a place.’
Lady Priscilla eyed him appraisingly. ‘Dreams, or nightmares? Is the old part of the Castle getting to you? You Americans are so modern in your outlook. Still, you’ll have to get used to it. Freya doesn’t mind roughing it in her tower, but nobody can pretend that the Castle is comfortable. At least you don’t have a wife to complain and make matters worse. You lost your wife. In the war, was it?’
‘During the war, yes, but her demise was nothing to do with the hostilities. She suffered from TB.’
Lady Priscilla pursed her lips. ‘I hope your girls haven’t inherited a tubercular tendency.’
‘They are perfectly healthy.’ He wasn’t sure how to take this new relative. He was finding relatives as a whole quite difficult to get used to. It wasn’t just the hovering presence of his dead father; it was all the rest of them. He’d liked Sir Archibald, Lady Priscilla’s husband. But hadn’t he said that they had three daughters and four sons? A large family, and more to add to his list of new cousins.
Lady Priscilla changed the subject. ‘How do you get on with Sonia? She’s behaving very badly. You don’t want to stand any nonsense from her.’
Gus wasn’t going to express his opinion of Lady Sonia to her aunt, so he just said, ‘I had the
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