Hope - Lesley Pearse [67]
‘I’m a great deal more fortunate than some,’ Nell said stoutly against Hope’s shoulder, but the crack in her voice meant she was crying. ‘Will you do something for me?’
‘Of course,’ Hope replied.
‘It’s for Lady Harvey really,’ Nell said, withdrawing from her sister’s arms, dabbing at her damp eyes with her apron and sniffing back her tears. ‘What I’m going to tell you is a secret; you must promise me that you will never tell anyone?’
‘I promise,’ Hope said, wondering what on earth this secret could be.
‘Cross your heart and hope to die!’ Nell said.
Hope dutifully made the sign of the cross on her chest.
‘Right,’ Nell said. ‘I want you to go through the post in the mornings and retrieve any letters that look like this.’ She put her hand in her apron pocket and pulled out an envelope addressed to Lady Harvey. The handwriting was a bold script that was quite unlike any other handwriting Nell had ever seen. ‘Will yourecognize that?’ she asked.
Hope nodded. ‘What do you want me to do with them?’ she asked.
‘Just keep them safe until we get back, and don’t say a word to anyone about them,’ Nell said, her voice lowered conspiratorially.
Hope’s mouth dropped open in shock, for such a request could only mean one thing. ‘Has she got a lover?’
Nell put a warning finger to her mouth and looked over her shoulder nervously. ‘I wouldn’t call him that,’ she whispered. ‘He’s just her friend, but if Sir William was to see a letter from him it would cause her a great deal of trouble, and things are bad enough at the moment without that.’
‘Then why doesn’t she just write to him now and tell him she’s going away?’ Hope asked.
‘He’s a soldier,’ Nell said impatiently. ‘Letters take a long time to arrive.’
Hope knew there was no point in asking further questions because she could see by Nell’s tight expression that this was as much as she was prepared to reveal and she was worried sick at involving her younger sister in something she didn’t approve of herself.
‘Don’t worry, I can be as tight-lipped as you,’ Hope smiled. ‘I just wish it was you who was getting secret letters; that would make me very happy.’
Nell half-smiled, her dark brown eyes softer with relief. ‘You’re a good girl,’ she said, reaching out to stroke Hope’s cheek with the same affectionate gesture their mother had always used. ‘Don’t forget about tidying the gatehouse,’ she said, clearly reminded of her duty to her husband. ‘Will you do his washing too?’
‘Yes, that’s if I can beat Martha to it.’ Hope felt she had to try to make her sister laugh. ‘With you out of the way she’ll be fussing over him even more.’
Nell giggled, and for a second or two she looked like a girl again instead of a rather worn, tubby woman of thirty-one. ‘She’s welcome to fuss over him as much as she likes. But just remind her you can’t squeeze blood out of a stone.’
Hope gave Lady Harvey’s mysterious friend a great deal of thought over the next couple of days. As far as she knew, Captain Pettigrew was the only soldier who had ever been to Briargate, and he was certainly the only male visitor who always seemed to arrive when Sir William wasn’t there. Then there was that remark Rose had made years ago about Nell being flustered by him. It hadn’t made any sense before, but it did now. When Nell disapproved of anything she always wore that tight expression.
So it had to be him.
It was of course shocking that her mistress had a secret beau, but Hope had retained all the good thoughts she’d formed about the Captain on the day she found Cook unconscious. He was charming, handsome and dashing and she could well imagine that any woman, married or not, would like his attention. For him, Hope was quite prepared to intercept the letters and keep them safe.
The weather grew more wet and windy after Lady Harvey and Nell had left for Sussex. One night the wind was so strong an old oak tree in the garden came crashing down, narrowly missing the stables. The following morning Hope and Rose went