Chapter 8
“Master William, what are you doing outside of the nursery? Miss Rosenberg will be very worried if you go missing, and you know Sir Jasper doesn’t like children running about the place………”
Billy was just going to grin and say, ‘Uncle Xander, what are YOU doing here’ – but like Billy, Xander was dressed in 17th century clothes – those of a footman…
“Come along, I’ll take you back to the nursery, oh goodness, lets hide, don’t say a word!” Xander pulled William quickly behind a huge urn on a stand when he heard the loud angry tones of the ‘Lady of the Hall’, Lady Drusilla D’Evarle admonishing one of the servants
“And ‘My Angel’ (as she called her fiancé, Sir Jasper) is NOT to be disturbed, don’t let the fire go out in his room, and he is to be taken a draft of well water at five o’clock, is that clear?”
“Yes ma’am”
“WELL GO – I’m sick of your wretched face!”
“Yes ma’am, sorry ma’am!” the hapless servant girl scurried off
Lady Drusilla carried on past the long gallery to her own apartments, and Billy looked up at Xander
“Come on then Master William, let’s go take you back to Miss Willow, and don’t run off again, else the Lady’ll have your guts for garters”
When they entered the nursery, Miss Willow Rosenberg was bending down looking in a cupboard; she stood quickly, flush faced
“Oh William – there you are! How many times have I told you not to run off – If Lady Drusilla sees you out of the here, we’ll both be in great trouble!”
She then smiled at the footman and said,
“Thankyou Mr Harris, I am indebted to you for your kindness”
“Oh think nothing of it Miss, the Lady of the house is no friend of – ahem, well I better move on” He bowed his head to the lady and left.
Willow came up to William and squatted down
“William, I implore you – please don’t run off again, we are here only as a kindness of Sir Jasper, with your father away and your mother ill – “
“I want to see mama” William was quite shocked at his own voice, that and the fact that he called his ‘mom’ mama – mam-mar as he pronounced it…
“William, I have explained, it isn’t known what disease your mother may have – it could be contagious and – “
“No! No – I know what it is, I know – they’re poisoning her – Sir Jasper wants to kill her AND my father so he can have the Hall all to himself!”
Willow went white and stood wringing her hands – she turned to the child
“William – what on earth has come over you! How could you say such awful wicked things – god will punish you for such wickedness as this, we are here out of Sir Jasper’s kindness!”
Willow indeed said those words, but in reality she agreed with the child – but a child of his tender years could come to such a notion was beyond her…she had her suspicions at her dear friend Elizabeth’s sudden illness…Sir Jasper’s pending nuptials to the Lady D’Evarle…
William stamped his foot
“I want to see my mother! I want, I want, I want!” He threw himself on the floor in a tantrum and started to cry…
The nursery door was flung open and in strode Sir Jasper; Willow blanched and shrunk backwards, hiding the toddler in her high chair
“And just WHAT is all this noise – get up child – I SAID, GET UP!”
“No, I shan’t, and you won’t make me, I want to see my mother!” William said
“You’ll see the strap to your hide young man – Rosenberg, bring him to my study IMMEDIATELY!”
At the nursery door, Lady Drusilla looked positively evil towards the child, and she stopped Sir jasper leaving, caressing his cheek with the back of her hand
“Punishing the brat will have to wait my darling...I’ve instructed the groom to ready our horses My Angel – and think of your health – (she turned and looked at William giving him an evil stare) You are only here out of the kindness shown you by your uncle – do you think he actually wants the snivelling brats of his no-good weak brother cluttering up his house?”
“It’s NOT your house, it isn’t and never will be, and I shall prove it!”
Drusilla pretended to faint at the child’s words and Sir Jasper had gone a funny purple colour with sheer rage
Willow dashed forward to ‘help’ the Lady Drusilla, who stopped her with an evil look
“Don’t even THINK of putting a hand on me- you’re nothing but a servant as far as I’m concerned!”
“I am Lady Elizabeth’s best friend, and have a title of my own – I am not a servant-“ Willow began, only until Lady Drusilla cut her short
“A title – (Drusilla gave an evil little laugh) your parents died penniless and have paupers graves – a title indeed! And I shall be glad when you and the brats and the scrap upstairs (meaning the Lady Elizabeth, William’s mother) are gone from here and My Angel and I can live here in peace!”
The couple left the nursery, and Willow dabbed her eyes and sat heavily on a chair
“Oh William – you’ve really done it now – we shall be thrown out on the streets – we don’t know when your father will be back from the war, and how can we pay for medicine for your dear mama then – and where shall we stay?”
William stood slowly and said,
“Don’t worry Miss, I know where I can get some money, and don’t worry, I will protect you!” William said this with such maturity and conviction, that she almost believed him………
Willow drew the child towards her and stroked the back of his head and hugged him
“Oh William, you are a child, seven years old – “
“I can help you, honestly Miss Willow, you mustn’t be afraid, I’m not, I’m not afraid of Sir Jasper, and I’m not afraid of Lady D’Evarle”
“Oh William, but you must, you must be very afraid, for they hold the key to our very survival!”
“Excuse me miss” One of the maids stood in the doorway, gave a little curtsey
“Yes?” Willow asked
“His Lord and Ladyship are going riding now, and his Lordship instructed me to tell you that you are to bring Master William to his study at 5pm for his punishment – that’s it Miss”
Willow nodded sadly, and the maid left
William looked out of the window, and saw Sam, the head stable groom lead out a great chestnut coloured steed, and a smaller piebald mare from the stable block, and he waved down to him. Sam smiled up at him and William didn’t feel scared at all…………………………
***********
At a few minutes to 5, Willow, having put little Elizabeth to bed took William by the hand
“I’m sorry I’ve got to do this William”
“I’m not afraid, come on”
William walked boldly down the long gallery and upon reaching Sir Jasper’s study; he boldly knocked on the door himself
A servant opened it to reveal Sir Jasper and the Lady D’Evarle billing and cooing, she sitting on the arm of his chair. Lady Drusilla positively beamed when she saw them – it faded somewhat when she saw the child didn’t look afraid in the slightest…
Sir Jasper stood, and began to pace menacingly back and forth in front of William to intimidate him, and he snarled,
“Right, for your rudeness and insubordination, you will apologise to Lady Drusilla”
William stood and said,
“If I was rude to you, MISS Drusilla, then I apologise, for it isn’t the way I was bought up”
“Why you little – Lady Drusilla, LADY!” Sir Jasper spat out
“Forgive me Sir Jasper, you and this woman are not married yet, so the title ‘Lady’ isn’t proper” William said truthfully Willow blinked and swallowed, and tried not to show the fact that she was shaking like a leaf… she could see that William was making things worse for himself…
“He is right you know, Jasper…you can’t punish the child for telling the truth…” all eyes turned onto an older man sitting writing at another desk
Sir Jasper’s jaw ticked and he clenched his fists and said,
“Thankyou Wolfram, when I want your opinion………just get on do what I pay you for………damnable lawyer!”
Drusilla was angry.
“Now just you listen – you are here only on my say so, is that clear – I could-”
William spoke up again
“You can do nothing, Sir Jasper. Until my father and mother are both dead then this house belongs to me, by right of accession – if I die, THEN the hall will be yours – you gambled away your right to this house and yours and my father’s father, the late sir Giles cut you out of the will, so in fact, it is YOU that is here on MY say so”
Sir Jasper was practically purple with rage, and Drusilla stood, racing to her ‘beloved’
Wolfram the lawyer looked up from his books, his surprise at the child’s knowledge shocked even him!
“My Angel! Calm yourself, please – you’ll have your heart malady return! You wicked, wicked child, I shall personally see to it that you be punished for this!” she raised her hand to strike William, but Willow was too quick and grabbed her wrist
“Strike him in anger and I shall see the Archbishop – he is William’s god father”
Sir Jasper started to pant, and Drusilla looked stricken
“Oh no, noooo-ooo, my Angel! Help me god damn you!” She hissed at the lawyer, who slowly got up and came to her aid, helping her to seat Sir Jasper.
“Come on, let’s go” William said turning to a smiling Willow. Walking down the long gallery back to the nursery, Willow could hardly contain herself
Once in the room, she closed the door and keeping her back to it she said,
“William – you were magnificent! I was sure I was going to have to be up with you the next few nights bathing wounds from a savage beating!”
“I TOLD you, I am not afraid!”
“But – well how do you know of such things?”
“I sneaked down in the night, and read Wolfram’s papers – Sir Jasper is trying to cheat my father out of what is rightfully his – he’s getting the lawyer to see that there are no legal loopholes that may default that happening! You see Sir Jasper has debts, gambling debts – one is for £7,000 about half the value of this Hall. It’s to Lord Athelborough, on the Burleigh estate”
Willow was shocked! How could a mere child of seven years old understand such words and law, when she barely understood them herself!
“A walk I fancy – will you come with me?” William asked
When they got to the stable block, before they turned the corner, they could hear Sam talking away cursing and damning Sir Jasper to hell and back, when they DID round the corner, a sorry sight met their eyes
The beautiful chestnut steed stood quivering, steam coming off his back, snorting and whinnying, his flanks shaking, he had nasty raised welts criss-crossing his beautiful coat where he’d been whipped.
Sam touched one of the whip marks and the horse almost reared and nodded his head furiously
“There, there, boy…it’s alright………calm now…I said hold him steady lad! I’d like to jump on HIS back and whip him to kingdom come – shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near – there, there lad…shush”
The stable boy coughed and nodded to indicate behind Sam, who turned sharply, it was with relief he saw who it was, and not Sir Jasper…
“Oh goodness! What on earth – oh the poor animal!”
Willow came forward by the horse’s head and helped the stable lad to hold him steady
“Sir Jasper…evil brute – look what he did to this beautiful creature! It’s HE that should be horsewhipped! There, there boy, steady now, nearly done…nearly done…”
“What is that?” Willow asked, nodding towards the container grimacing at the foul smelling ‘ointment’ Sam was putting on the horse’s wounds
“Oh this, not much good, it’s a mixture of goose fat, turpentine and white lead – it should keep the flies off the open wounds, don’t want them going bad ways…okay lad, you can put him back in the stable now”
“I think he must have imagined he was whipping me” William said
“Oh, and what you be doin’ then Master William?”
“Telling Sir Jasper some truths!” Willow smiled and walked with Sam telling him what happened
“Can I give the horses some apples?” William asked
“Yeah, but not too many, gives them the shit- sorry ma’am gives them bad bowels, just one each”
William walked off to the tack-room where the apples, and riding gear was kept.
Holding his palm flat with the apple on it, the first horse, a young black stallion called ‘Thunder’ eagerly came towards the treat and ate it off William’s hand. William patted the white blaze down his nose and whispered to him – the horse whinnied softly and nodded, like he understood the child.
“………I barely understood what he was saying – but that lawyer, Wolfram confirmed that the child was right – indeed, Sir Jasper had a fit of apoplexy I thought he was going to explode!”
“Good on the child! I wished the old bastard had exploded – shouldn’t be allowed around animals – he kicked out at one of the pregnant bitches a few weeks back – she lost the pups…”
“Love animals, don’t you Sam”
“Yes Miss I do, they don’t let you down like humans…I wish the master was back, the REAL master, Sir William, now HE knows how to treat an animal, always checks with me first to see if the horses are okay to ride and that…how’s the Mistress, Lady Elizabeth, is she getting better?”
Willow turned a pair of haunted eyes on Sam then she looked down
“Ah, tis a shame, struck down just like that…I thought she had a healthy constitution!”
“That’s it though, we all did…Sam…if I tell you something………no, no it doesn’t matter, it’s too preposterous!”
“Go on Miss, try me!”
“Well, goes without saying that nothing must be said in front of Sir Jasper or that woman he calls his fiancée”
“No friends of mine – not after what he’s done to poor Prince………”
“William has this notion that they…oh gods forgive me if this isn’t true…he thinks…well…he thinks that they might be poisoning her!”
Sam looked at Willow
“Crossed my mind too – and I think he’s just about evil enough to do it – that woman of his is too – I wouldn’t trust her as far as-“ having treated all the horses to an apple each, William walked back to Willow and Sam…
“Oh William! Have you given the horses their treat?”
William nodded and said,
“Yes, and now I’m going into see mama”
“Well goodbye Sam, I hope Prince will recover soon”
“Miss Willow, Master William” Sam tugged his forelock and watched as they left.
********
“Mama…mama, are you asleep?” William asked gently taking his mother’s hand
The lady Elizabeth struggled to open her eyes. Her pallor was very pale, her eyes sunken and her cheeks hollowed out
“Will-William, is that you?” Her voice was thin and cracked
She turned to reach for a drink of water
“NO! Mama, listen to me – you MUSTN’T drink anything they give you, do you understand – you MUSTN’T!” He turned his gaze to his governess and nanny and said,
“Miss Willow, will you get mama some milk please – from the nursery, I know it’s fresh and safe to drink”
After all that had happened today, Willow decided to do the child’s bidding without question, and she gathered up her skirts and turned to go to the door
“But don’t let anybody see what you bring” Willow nodded and left
“William…have you heard from your dear papa………”
“No word has reached me yet mama, but I know he is safe and will soon be home, and you will be well again”
She lay in bed, frail, indeed it seemed a supreme effort just to drag air into her lungs
“Tis stuffy in here mama, I shall push back the curtains and open a window, but stay covered, you don’t want to catch a chill”
Buffy smiled, and with a little effort, she smoothed his cheek cupping it in her small hand
“My little Doctor…taking care of me”
“Mama, promise me that you will not drink anything anybody other than I or Miss Willow gives you – even Rosie or the other servants, get rid of it anyway you can, I fear…well - I’m sure that-“
Willow re-entered the room with a goblet of milk.
There was a knock at the door, and Willow guiltily turned away holding the milk in front of her, her back to the room so the servant couldn’t see anything.
“Time for your medicine, Miss Elizabeth”
William’s eyes implored his mother, and Willow said,
“Thankyou Sarah, leave it on the side please”
“But the Mistress Drusilla said I must watch her drink it”
“And as the only ‘true’ master of this house while my mother draws breath, you will take orders from me and not her!” William said, and this startled the maid into curtseying.
“We’ll see she gets it – now run along” Willow said
“But, well, what shall I say if she asks if I watched her drink it, the Lady Drusilla was very insistent”
“You can tell her…” William was interrupted by Drusilla entering his mother’s bedchamber without knocking…
“Well, did she drink the draft, did you do as I – OH!” The sight of Willow and William as well as Sarah the maid in the bedroom caught Drusilla by surprise
“You may go, Sarah” William said, and looking with frightened eyes, Sarah looked from Master William to Drusilla, and gave a quick curtsey and fled the room
“What do you want?” William asked
“Why, to see how your dear mama is of course!” Drusilla said lightly, trying to sound innocent
“YOU came to see that she’d drank the ‘medicine’, didn’t you?!
Drusilla coloured up and went to the window and made to close it.
“Ridiculous, I am as concerned as you are for your mother’s health – this window should be closed, goodness she may catch a chill!”
“Leave the window alone” William said
“Now just you listen, I am not going to be spoken to by-“ Drusilla flustered
“Sit down…now, as you are so anxious to see my mother better, perhaps YOU should try her medicine”
“WHAT – Don’t be ridiculous child -th-that medicine is for your dear m-mother – to help her get better, I couldn’t possibly!”
“Well, I was thinking…the doctor cannot decide which illness my mother has…so in my concern for YOU and your health in case this mysterious malady is contagious, I insist on you taking this draft, after all, we can always send for more, can’t we?”
Drusilla panicked, for she knew very well that was in the goblet she’d given the maid to administer, wasn’t what the doctor had prescribed……
“I insist” William said, passing her the goblet
Drusilla began to pant a little, looking at the goblet with frightened eyes – then suddenly she seemed to steel herself, and stand up straight, took the goblet – then suddenly came over with a ‘fit of the vapours’ and fainted, the liquid poured out of the goblet onto the rug as she fell delicately to the floor in a heap………
Willow and William exchanged a glance, but said nothing, Drusilla’s guilty reaction had practically proved her guilt and their suspicions…
Ignoring the ‘fainted’ Drusilla to fend for herself, William said,
“Pass me the milk please Miss Willow…can you help mama drink, hold her head for me………just a few sips mama…”
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