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Authors: Catherine King
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noticeable swelling.
‘It cannot be yours, Edgar? Look at her. Barden assured me she was a maid but –’ Mrs Collins shivered, ‘she is showing already.’
‘How dare you accuse me so!’ Beth protested. ‘Of course my child is Edgar’s.’
But Mrs Collins continued to fret. ‘I should have had a physician look at her. You never know with orphans. She could have lain with any number of passing tradesmen.’
‘Madam, you insult me! Ask your son. He knows I was a maid when he brought me here as his bride. Edgar?’ Beth turned to her husband to support her and to her surprise he did.
‘Calm yourself, Mama. The girl speaks the truth. I canswear she was a maid on her wedding night.’ Beth tried not to show her distaste as she wondered how many maids he had lain with before her. He went on, ‘The child is mine and, oh don’t you see, Mama, if the child is a boy he will secure the Redfern line. This will work in my favour. His lordship must receive me now.’
Redfern? Lord Redfern? So it
was
Redfern Abbey they had been referring to. It was the biggest and wealthiest estate in the South Riding with a reputation for having a hundred servants. However, she realised from Edgar’s comment that his recent visit, despite the advantage provided by her dowry, had not had the intended outcome. The family rift had not been healed.
Mrs Collins’s eyes gleamed for a second. ‘A son, certainly, will be welcome for the succession. But Lord Redfern will wish to see the child and, heaven forbid, its mother. She is not a lady and his lordship may not approve of her.’
‘He will not involve himself. His lawyers tell me he is firm in his views. He has tried to disinherit me and cannot because Grandmama’s marriage was legal and so was yours. I am the heir and Milo has ensured the legal people have the documents to prove it.’
Beth noticed Mrs Collins’s eyes glaze over and her mouth began to work at unspoken words. The woman was obsessed by her quest to restore her son to Redfern, and she, Beth, had become a pawn in her plan. ‘They will want to see the birth,’ Edgar’s mother said. ‘What shall we do?’
Edgar began to speak soothingly to his mother. ‘I shall tell him she is too delicate for the journey. They will understand that I do not wish to take any risks with a possible heir to Redfern Abbey. You are tired from your journey, Mama. Why don’t I take you to your chamber for a rest?’
Edgar had forgotten she was there as he reassured his mother and they moved away wrapped up in their own thoughts. Beth smoothed her hands over her swelling. She might be carrying the heir to Lord Redfern! She could hardly believe it. Edgar was the current heir. Yet in spite of an invitation to a shooting party, he had not been received by the present lord so his grandmother’s behaviour was not forgiven. But, Beth realised, her child would make a difference to her status at High Fell Farm. She smiled to herself and stroked her small stomach again.
When Edgar ordered her to his bedchamber after dinner that evening she echoed his own words and responded, ‘It is not wise, sir. I do not want us to take any risks with our unborn infant.’ And, oh joy, he accepted her reasoning. Moreover, he left on horseback the following morning to convey his news to Lord Redfern’s lawyers and wait around hoping for a thawing of relations. Beth watched him ride away and thought that married life at High Fell would not be so bad, after all.
Beth liked being with child. She felt it had gained her status in the household and, somehow, made her more comfortable in Abel’s presence. She could accept his offers of help to carry a pail of milk or climb over a stile without uneasiness or guilt. She had her child to think of now and the safety of her child must come first.
Abel went down to Settle again for men and materials to repair the bridge. A letter came for Mrs Collins from Edgar to inform her he was staying in the South Riding for the
‘It cannot be yours, Edgar? Look at her. Barden assured me she was a maid but –’ Mrs Collins shivered, ‘she is showing already.’
‘How dare you accuse me so!’ Beth protested. ‘Of course my child is Edgar’s.’
But Mrs Collins continued to fret. ‘I should have had a physician look at her. You never know with orphans. She could have lain with any number of passing tradesmen.’
‘Madam, you insult me! Ask your son. He knows I was a maid when he brought me here as his bride. Edgar?’ Beth turned to her husband to support her and to her surprise he did.
‘Calm yourself, Mama. The girl speaks the truth. I canswear she was a maid on her wedding night.’ Beth tried not to show her distaste as she wondered how many maids he had lain with before her. He went on, ‘The child is mine and, oh don’t you see, Mama, if the child is a boy he will secure the Redfern line. This will work in my favour. His lordship must receive me now.’
Redfern? Lord Redfern? So it
was
Redfern Abbey they had been referring to. It was the biggest and wealthiest estate in the South Riding with a reputation for having a hundred servants. However, she realised from Edgar’s comment that his recent visit, despite the advantage provided by her dowry, had not had the intended outcome. The family rift had not been healed.
Mrs Collins’s eyes gleamed for a second. ‘A son, certainly, will be welcome for the succession. But Lord Redfern will wish to see the child and, heaven forbid, its mother. She is not a lady and his lordship may not approve of her.’
‘He will not involve himself. His lawyers tell me he is firm in his views. He has tried to disinherit me and cannot because Grandmama’s marriage was legal and so was yours. I am the heir and Milo has ensured the legal people have the documents to prove it.’
Beth noticed Mrs Collins’s eyes glaze over and her mouth began to work at unspoken words. The woman was obsessed by her quest to restore her son to Redfern, and she, Beth, had become a pawn in her plan. ‘They will want to see the birth,’ Edgar’s mother said. ‘What shall we do?’
Edgar began to speak soothingly to his mother. ‘I shall tell him she is too delicate for the journey. They will understand that I do not wish to take any risks with a possible heir to Redfern Abbey. You are tired from your journey, Mama. Why don’t I take you to your chamber for a rest?’
Edgar had forgotten she was there as he reassured his mother and they moved away wrapped up in their own thoughts. Beth smoothed her hands over her swelling. She might be carrying the heir to Lord Redfern! She could hardly believe it. Edgar was the current heir. Yet in spite of an invitation to a shooting party, he had not been received by the present lord so his grandmother’s behaviour was not forgiven. But, Beth realised, her child would make a difference to her status at High Fell Farm. She smiled to herself and stroked her small stomach again.
When Edgar ordered her to his bedchamber after dinner that evening she echoed his own words and responded, ‘It is not wise, sir. I do not want us to take any risks with our unborn infant.’ And, oh joy, he accepted her reasoning. Moreover, he left on horseback the following morning to convey his news to Lord Redfern’s lawyers and wait around hoping for a thawing of relations. Beth watched him ride away and thought that married life at High Fell would not be so bad, after all.
Beth liked being with child. She felt it had gained her status in the household and, somehow, made her more comfortable in Abel’s presence. She could accept his offers of help to carry a pail of milk or climb over a stile without uneasiness or guilt. She had her child to think of now and the safety of her child must come first.
Abel went down to Settle again for men and materials to repair the bridge. A letter came for Mrs Collins from Edgar to inform her he was staying in the South Riding for the
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