I said to them: "Teresa is back. She may be a Little shocked. I want you all to be very careful. Don't refer to the mishap unless she does. Is that clear?"
"Yes, Miss Grant. Yes, Miss Grant. Yes, Miss Grant."
There was even an understanding affirmative from Charlotte. That little bit of authority had worked wonders.
"You three ride very well," I went on. "You happen to be especially good horse-women." I was looking at Charlotte, who turned pink with pleasure. "You must understand that everyone cannot be as good. Their talents might lie in other directions."
I passed on. I did not think Charlotte would taunt Teresa with cowardice if she refused to ride for a while. I really did believe that I had got through to her because of her love of horses-in a small way perhaps but it was a beginning. I fell to thinking then that many people behaved badly through a desire to assert themselves, and when their success was acknowledged there ceased to be that necessity. It was a point I should like to discuss. Certainly not with Daisy Hetherington but with Eileen Eccles, Aunt Patty ... and it might be interesting to hear Sir Jason's views.
Daisy was waiting for me.
"Oh, Miss Grant, do sit down. What an unfortunate thing to happen! And there of all places ..."
"It was better than happening in the isolated country," I reminded her. "At least we got Teresa attended to very quickly."
"I gather it is only bruises."
"No bones were broken. She was lucky. Of course she is shocked."
"Sometimes I wish I had never taken Teresa Hurst."
"She is a very pleasant girl."
"She seems to have some fixation for you, Cordelia. Be careful. These obsessions can become tiresome."
"The fact with Teresa is that she is lonely. She feels unwanted because of her home situation. By the way she is very depressed about the summer holidays and I, rather rashly I'm afraid, promised to take her home with me if all were agreeable."
"Take her home!" cried Daisy. "My dear Cordelia!"
"It seemed a good idea in the middle of the night when the poor child was so depressed, and after what had happened I promised ..."
Daisy smiled slowly. "It was extremely good of you and I am sure Patience would raise no objections."
"Then I have your permission?"
"My dear Cordelia, nothing would please me better than to have the child somewhere else for the summer holidays. It is an added burden when they stay at school ... and not worth the price they pay for it. Imagine ... the child here all that time and no others of her age. And a responsibility. As far as I am concerned I would give a whole-hearted Yes. There are the parents."
"They are in Rhodesia."
"I am thinking of the guardians here. The cousins ... I will write to them and ask for their permission for Teresa to stay with you. I will tell them that your aunt with whom you will be staying is an old friend of mine and I can vouch for Teresa's being in the best possible place, since she cannot be with her own parents."
"Oh thank you, Miss Hetherington. Would you mind if I went to tell Teresa right away. She is so anxious."
"Yes. And there is one other thing, Cordelia. I was uneasy about your spending a night at the Hall."
"I know you were and it was good of you to be concerned."
"I feel as responsible for my staff as I do for my girls ... Did you dine with Sir Jason?"
"Yes."
"He has a reputation for being rather ... free with women."
"I can well imagine that."
"I hope he was in no way offensive."
"No. As a matter of fact after dinner Mrs. Martindale called. I left them and went to Teresa to relieve Mrs. Keel who had kindly offered to keep vigil while I ate."
Daisy was obviously relieved.
I went straight to Teresa.
"The first hurdle is over," I said. "Miss Hetherington gives her whole-hearted consent. There now remain the cousins. She will write to them today."
"They will say "Yes please." We have nothing to fear from them. Oh, Miss Grant, I am going to spend my summer holidays with you and Aunt Patty!"
A Summer Interlude
WE had heard from the cousins and they were delighted with the arrangements and expressed assurance that as Miss Grant was so highly recommended by Miss Hetherington, she would take good care of Teresa.
"As if they cared," said Daisy. "You can read the relief oozing out of their words."
Aunt Patty wrote that she thought it was an admirable suggestion and Teresa could have the room next to mine. She had made curtains of sprigged muslin-delphinium blue in colour-and a bedspread to match. Very pretty but Violet said they wouldn't stand up to the wash. Trust Violet! She could not wait to meet us at the station.
I showed the letter to Teresa who from then on dreamed of a room with delphinium blue sprigged muslin curtains.
She had not mounted a horse since her accident. The general opinion was that she should, but I told Miss Hetherington that she had had a great shock and that she was seized with trembling every time the subject was broached, and we did not yet know the full effects of her fall. So we decided that we would let Teresa have her way.
Charlotte and her cronies did not taunt her as I feared they would. It might have been that my words had had some effect on them or perhaps they were too excited about the coming break.
I saw nothing of Sir Jason. I heard that he had gone to London and I began to realize that there had been nothing of any great significance in our encounter. He had been ready to turn it into what he would call an adventure-just a light-hearted passing affaire; and as I had not responded with enthusiasm, he, preferring easier conquests, had not thought it worth while to pursue the project. I was ashamed of myself for thinking so much about him. I must stop thinking of it. I must dismiss the incident in the courtyard as I had tried to in the case of my encounter with the stranger in the forest. One had to accept people's idiosyncrasies and try not to find a reason for them when it was quite impossible to know what was going on in other people's minds. As for allowing oneself to be disturbed-even faintly-by a man of Jason Verringer's reputation, that was the utmost folly. I would proceed to forget all about him.
The rest of the term slipped by and as soon as we were in July the girls talked of little else but the coming summer holidays-the longest of the year and the most looked forward to.
The day came when we steamed into the station and there was Aunt Patty in a biscuit-coloured creation covered with blue-and-yellow flowers perched on her head. I watched Teresa's eyes shine with excitement, and I knew that Aunt Patty was going to live up to my picture of her.
"Oh there you are." I was held in that lavender scented embrace which brought back memories. "And this is Teresa."
Teresa was caught up in Aunt Patty's arms.
"Well, here we are in Moldenbury. Violet's in the dog cart. She wouldn't leave the horse. Tom will take your bags. Here you are, Tom," she said to the railway porter. I couldn't help smiling. It was typical of Aunt Patty to be on friendly terms with everyone in record time and she seemed as at home here as she had at Grantley. "Here we are. Vi! Vi! You can leave the horse and come and greet our girls."
Violet looked just the same as ever, with her brown hair escaping from a brown hat which looked more sombre than it actually was in comparison with Aunt Patty's glory.
"The girls are here, Violet. This is Teresa."
"Hello, Teresa," said Violet as though she had known her all her life. "And Cordelia." We embraced rather emotionally. I was very fond of Violet and I knew she was of me.
Violet drove the dog cart and Teresa and I sat opposite Aunt Patty as we jolted along the lanes.
Aunt Patty talked all the time. "You'll love the house. Not Grantley, of course. We had a big house before we came here, Teresa. It seems such a change, but for the better. There's something about small houses ... they're warm and cosy. Do you remember how the wind used to whistle through those windows at Grantley, Cordelia? My goodness, you felt as if you were going to be blown sky-high. Nothing of that here at Moldenbury, even though the wind howls and it can do that sometimes ... we're as warm as toast. Do you like toast, Teresa? I'm rather a one for h. There's nothing like a round of toast with the butter well soaked in. We always stand it over a basin of water, don't we Cordelia? Just as my grandmother used to do. I'm a bit of a one for old customs, Teresa. Old ways are best, my grandmother used to say, and somehow I think she's right."