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- Herausgeber: Allison & Busby
- Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
- Serie: The Honeyfield Series
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016
1916: Bella is working as a Voluntary Aid driving ambulances in England when she gets engaged to Philip, on leave from fighting in France. His family strongly disapprove of her but the two of them are happy together.Georgie, Philip's sister, is in trouble having broken her engagement and fled from her bullying family. Who can she turn to for help when she needs it most?When the worst happens, Bella must manage on her own, though there are shocks and dangers she did not foresee ahead. Thankfully, Philip's best friend Tez, injured in France, steps in to offer assistance. Can he also help Bella build a new life?
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A Stranger in Honeyfield
ANNA JACOBS
Contents
Part One
Chapter One
April 1916, Wiltshire
Isabella Jones, better known to her friends and fellow VADs as Bella, put on her best clothes ready to meet her fiancé’s family for the first time. She had been working as an ambulance driver in the Voluntary Aid Detachment for the past year, attached to this convalescent hospital near Swindon, playing her part in the war effort.
Matron had given her the weekend off for such an important visit and was standing at the front door taking a breath of fresh air as Bella went out to wait for Philip.
‘Enjoy yourself, Jones. You don’t often ask for time off and you did an excellent job of cheering up Captain Cotterell while he was recovering here. Congratulations on your engagement.’
‘Thank you, Matron.’ She couldn’t hold back a sigh.
‘What’s wrong?’
‘It’s the right thing to go and meet his family, but I don’t think they will be at all pleased to meet me.’
‘Toffee-nosed, eh?’
‘Yes.’ Bella knew Matron understood how she felt because the older woman also came from a humble background, unlike most of the nurses in the VAD. Bella had only been accepted into the organisation as a cleaner at first, but later she’d applied to train as a driver and had discovered how much she loved driving.
‘What does your mother say about the engagement?’
‘She’s not best pleased either. She says no good ever comes of marrying outside your own class.’ Her mother had grown very sour since she’d been widowed and nothing seemed to please her these days. And since her daughter had turned twenty-five without getting married, she’d begun to hint that as Isabella was turning into an old maid, it was her duty to care for her mother in her old age.
Bella missed her father dreadfully. She’d tried to get on with her life, which she knew he’d have wanted, but she could never go back to live with her mother again, not now she’d tasted independence.
‘I think after the war that sort of class snobbery will change,’ Matron said. ‘I don’t suppose we’ll get rid of it entirely, but it won’t matter as much, not after the men have fought together and the women worked together here on the home front. Anyway, enjoy yourself today. You’ve worked hard and earned your little holiday.’ She turned and went back into the hospital.
Would it feel like a holiday? Bella wondered. It felt more like an ordeal to her.
Philip’s car drew up in front of the convalescent hospital just then and she ran across to greet him. They’d known each other such a short time, and yet it felt as if she’d known him for ever.
He got out of the car to give her a hug and twirl her round, as he always did when they met. When he put her down he studied her face. ‘Nervous?’
‘I’m afraid so.’
‘Me too. But I won’t have them insulting you, so if necessary we’ll leave.’
‘We couldn’t do that!’
‘Oh, yes, we could. But let’s hope it isn’t necessary.’
Just over an hour later he stopped for a moment outside the gateway of a country house. It wasn’t a stately home, but it was large and beautiful, like a picture in a magazine, which only made her feel worse.
‘Westcott,’ Philip said in fond tones, taking one hand off the steering wheel of his Ford Model T to gesture towards it.
‘It’s a lot bigger than I’d expected.’
‘Too big. It costs the earth to maintain. Never mind that. Remember what I said: it’s me you’re marrying not my family and certainly not the house. It’s not as if I’ll be inheriting it. My parents and my elder brother are snobs. They don’t approve of me, let alone you. When I became an engineer, they were horrified because it’s not a gentleman’s profession.’
He still didn’t set off again and she waited patiently.
‘My father won’t be there. He never is. He left a message at the barracks to tell me he’d have to stay up in London today to attend a meeting but he wishes us well.’
‘But you sound to have plenty of other relatives.’
‘I doubt we’ll have much to do with any of them after the war, Bella my darling. But when a Cotterell gets engaged, there’s always a family gathering and I want to give them the chance to do the right thing by you – publicly, at least. If they don’t, well, I’ll know where we stand and I won’t be coming back here again. I have some wonderful friends, people I was at boarding school with, like Tez, who’ll make you welcome into our circle.’
She couldn’t think what to say, so made a murmuring noise to show she was listening.
‘At least you’ll like my sister, I can guarantee that. Georgie and I have always been close. Well, we’re twins, aren’t we? Spencer is ten years older than us, so we two always stuck together because he was a bit of a bully.’
The door opened and an elderly maid greeted Philip fondly, gave Bella a perfunctory smile and took her coat and hat before showing them into the drawing room.
‘Mother’s over by the fire,’ he whispered. ‘The one standing up talking to her is Spencer.’
Adeline Cotterell was seated in a huge armchair chatting to her older son and about a dozen people were clustered in pairs and trios round the edges of the room, with two much older women sitting on a sofa. All of them looked stiff and unfriendly; no one smiled at the newcomer.
Philip’s usually smiling face had turned into a stone-like mask.
Mrs Cotterell made no effort to greet Bella with more than a brief nod accompanied by, ‘Miss, um, Jones.’
The older woman had spoken in terms of icy disdain. Bella had read the phrase in books but she’d never encountered such an attitude in real life before. She didn’t flinch but stared calmly back at Mrs Cotterell. She was as good as any of them!
Philip reminded his mother that he and Bella had got engaged and were there so that she could be introduced to his family, but Mrs Cotterell said only, ‘Hmm’.
He seemed to be waiting for her to do something, but she stayed silent. ‘I’ll take her round to meet everyone, then.’
He introduced Bella first to his elder brother. Spencer was standing at the other side of the fireplace and he too stared at her scornfully. He looked like a haggard, much older version of Philip, but without the kindness and joie de vivre usually there in her fiancé’s eyes. She already knew that Spencer had failed his medical for the army, though not why. He merely nodded at her before turning his head away.
Looking angrier by the minute Philip went on to introduce her to the two elderly cousins on the sofa. Both women followed Mrs Cotterell’s lead and greeted her as ‘Miss, um, Jones’.
No member of his family addressed any remarks to her, other than repeating her name.
By now, Bella was just as angry as Philip, but she too kept control of her feelings. These people could be as uncivil as they liked but she had vowed to behave impeccably, whatever happened. Her father would have been horrified by these people’s bad manners. He’d always told her a pauper could be as courteous as a king and she would prove that today.
She’d hoped to win over Philip’s family by good manners and pleasant behaviour, so that she would at least be tolerated by them, if not liked. It was already obvious that this wasn’t going to happen. They had decided in advance to dislike her.
Philip gave her arm a quick squeeze of sympathy as he took her across to meet his sister, who said, ‘I’m really happy to meet you,’ in a low voice.
He left her there in the bay window in response to his mother’s beckoning forefinger. ‘Look after my Bella for a moment, Georgie, there’s a dear.’
His sister looked suddenly terrified, which puzzled Bella. But Philip had already left them to return to his mother’s side.
Georgie said in a low voice, ‘I wish I could get to know you properly, Bella, because I can see how much you and Philip love one another.’ She hesitated then added in a rush, ‘I’m not trying to be nasty, but someone needs to warn you: they won’t let him marry you, whatever he says or does. And Mother always gets her own way. That’s how I came to be engaged to Francis Filmore, the one standing behind Mother. She threatened to throw me out without a penny if I didn’t do as she told me and I don’t come into my annuity till I’m thirty so I’d have nothing.’
She glanced quickly across the room at the tall, older man who had been introduced as Francis Filmore and it wasn’t a loving look, then turned back to Bella. ‘Stay away from this miserable place and keep Philip away too. He deserves a happy life after all he’s been through during the war.’
There was silence for a few moments as Bella tried to take this in, then a voice said, ‘Georgina, your aunt wishes to speak to you.’
Georgie froze, then took her fiancé’s arm and walked across the room like a marionette whose strings were being pulled by someone else. She didn’t offer a word of farewell. The man stared right past Bella as if she didn’t exist.
Which left her standing on her own, surrounded by people who had either turned their backs on her or were staring at her as if she was some new species of wild animal.
After a few minutes’ low-voiced argument with his mother and elder brother, Philip strode back across the room to Bella, looking furious. He took her arm and tugged her towards the door, saying loudly, ‘You won’t wish to stay with such ill-mannered people, my dear, any more than I do.’
In the hall he asked the maid for their coats and waited, foot tapping impatiently, until these were brought.
‘Your sister said—’ Bella began.
‘Shh.’ He waited till they were outside to say, ‘I thought I could rely on Georgie to be polite.’
‘She was. She even said she was sorry she couldn’t get to know me. And she warned me that your family wouldn’t allow us to marry.’
‘Georgie meant that my mother will try to stop it. Mother made that very plain to me just now. She feels entitled to rule her children’s lives, but I’ve told her I’ll choose my own wife. They’re all terrified of her, even poor Georgie, because she can be very nasty. Were you afraid?’
Bella considered this for a moment or two, then shook her head. ‘No. I was angry more than anything else, darling. Besides, I shall probably never speak to her again, and she has no say in what I do with my life.’
‘That’s what I’ve told her. Several times. So let’s plan to get married on my next leave, eh? To hell with the lot of them. I shall be proud to have you as my wife.’
‘Are you sure? I don’t want to come between you and your family.’
He helped her into his car. ‘You behaved perfectly. I was so proud of you and how dignified you looked. My family don’t matter any more to me, my darling. There’s only Georgie I really care about and once she marries that vicious brute, I won’t be allowed to see her. I know she doesn’t love him. She should break off the engagement and run away, and so I’ve told her several times.’
‘Maybe she can’t afford to.’
‘I haven’t mentioned it before but strangely, my twin sister and I were left a little money by our grandmother and Spencer wasn’t. Her choice who to leave it to, I suppose. It’s just a few hundred pounds a year, not a fortune.’ He grinned. ‘My mother resents the independence it gives us and the fact that Spencer got nothing! Georgie got our grandmother’s jewels as well. They must be worth a packet but won’t be given to her till she marries. They’re just sitting in the bank till then and she has to ask the lawyer if she wants to “borrow” them for a party.’
‘She said the money doesn’t come to her till she’s thirty.’
He looked at her in surprise. ‘That’s not so. It’s like mine, came to her at twenty-five.’
‘She seemed very sure it was thirty.’
‘I’ll have to have a word with her next time I come back on leave. If you see her before then, tell her to check that with the lawyer.’
‘Perhaps Georgie doesn’t want to break off relations with her family.’
‘Ha! Strange sort of family we are. I’m not sure Georgie and I have relations with our mother, really. She didn’t bring us up, but left that to Nanny. I always feel as if Mother is a stranger whose face I recognise. If Nanny were still alive, I’d take you to meet her and she’d give you a great big hug. You’d have liked her and she’d have liked you.’
He went to crank-start the car and drove away, sending gravel scattering as he turned on to the main road.
It was a while before he spoke again, so Bella waited, giving him time to calm down.
Eventually he turned to her and smiled more normally. ‘I’m jolly glad I met you, my darling. Let’s find somewhere to buy luncheon, then go back to your lodgings and make mad, passionate love.’
She smiled back at him. ‘Let’s.’ Thank goodness for an understanding landlady, and lodgings so close to the hospital. If she hadn’t found Mrs Sibley, Matron would have squeezed her into the crowded dormitory shared by the other VAD drivers. She’d been in a place like that before and didn’t enjoy being treated like a schoolgirl.
Things seemed so different in wartime. How could you deny the comfort of your body to a man who was not only your fiancé but who might be killed at any time once he went back to France? Besides, she enjoyed making love and feeling close to him.
As she waved him goodbye, she forced herself to smile. Philip had survived more than two years of war, having been one of the first waves of volunteers. A lot of those brave lads were dead now, or maimed.
How many more young men must give their lives for their country?
A few weeks later, Bella watched through the window for the postman and ran out to meet him when he stopped at the house where she had lodgings. Thank goodness she was on a late shift today.
‘Is there a letter for me?’
He smiled. ‘Yes, Miss Jones. He’s written to you again.’
She sighed in relief. Philip usually wrote every day, but occasionally had to miss a day or two when his regiment was in action. This time there hadn’t been any letters from him for three whole days. To make matters worse, she’d had a strong feeling that something was wrong, the sort of feeling you got sometimes when the man you loved was in danger.
But it was Philip’s own handwriting on the front of the usual army envelope, not that of a stranger. Oh, thank goodness! Her heart gave a great lurch of relief and she plopped a quick kiss on the smudged address.
The minute she was back in the house she tore the envelope open and froze in sheer terror because the single sheet inside it wasn’t from Philip!
She knew then, oh yes, she knew what the feeling of doom had meant! She had to take a few deep breaths before she could face reading the letter.
Dear Miss Jones,
I regret to inform you that your fiancé, Captain Philip Cotterell, was killed yesterday. He was shot in the head and died instantly, so he could have felt no pain.
Philip and I were at school together and have served in the same regiment ever since we enlisted. He asked me to let you know personally if anything happened to him, because of course, the official letter will go to his family, as next of kin.
Philip was buried with comrades who fell and I’m sure he will lie at peace here in France.
My sincerest condolences
Aaron Tesworth, Captain
Bella let out a wail of anguish and burst into sobs so loud her landlady came running. It was a few moments before she could weep more quietly and try to explain what was wrong.
In the end Mrs Sibley took the piece of paper from her hand and read it, then put her arms round Bella, rocking her to and fro and letting her sob into the flour-stained pinafore, murmuring ‘There, there’ as if she was a little child in need of comforting.
But there was no comfort to be found.
After that Bella waited in vain to hear from Philip’s family. Why hadn’t they written to her about his death? There might not be a funeral, because the new regulations followed those of Marshall Joffre of 1915 forbidding repatriation of bodies. The soldiers had fought together, often becoming as close as brothers, and they were to lie together in death, no longer separated into officers and other ranks.
Given the lack of body, many families held some sort of memorial service and even placed a marker in their family cemetery plot to remember the dead person.
Surely the Cotterells would know that she’d want – no, need to attend anything of that sort? How far were they prepared to carry their rudeness and hostility?
In the end she booked a phone call at the local post office and rang them. ‘May I please speak to Mrs Cotterell?’
‘May I have your name, please?’
‘Miss Jones.’
‘Ah. Sorry, miss. I’m afraid madam is not accepting calls at this sad time. May I take a message?’
‘Perhaps I could speak to Mr Cotterell, then?’
‘I’m afraid the master is in London.’
‘Miss Georgina, then.’
‘Miss Cotterell is not taking any phone calls either.’
‘Is there to be a memorial service?’
After a hesitation the maid said yes.
‘Could you tell me when it is to be held, then?’
‘I’m sorry. I couldn’t take it on myself to do that, miss. Invitations have already been sent out to those who are involved.’ She put the phone down.
Bella stared at the earpiece in shock, then hung it back on the ‘candlestick’. It had been four days since the letter from Captain Tesworth arrived and she hadn’t received an invitation. Surely they wouldn’t – they couldn’t be so cruel as to exclude her?
When she sat down and thought about it, she grew angry. Which was better than weeping.
But only just.
Chapter Two
Aaron Tesworth, better known as Tez, let out a long, shuddering sigh as he stared down at the bandaged hand, feeling dizzy at the speed with which it had happened. Two of his fingers gone, just like that. He looked up at the doctor, noting the lines of weariness on the poor man’s face.
‘What will happen to me next?’ he asked.
‘We’ll send you back to England and they’ll assess the damage.’
‘And what do you think they’ll say?’
‘It’s not for me to—’ He broke off. ‘Unless you’re left-handed, you may have a chance of getting a desk job in the army.’
‘I am left-handed. Very much so. The teachers were unable to eradicate the fault.’
‘Ah. Then you’ll very likely be given a medical discharge – an honourable discharge, of course. If you ask me, you’re one of the lucky ones. How long have you been serving?’
‘Almost since the beginning.’
‘Then you’ve definitely done your bit. Go home, Tesworth. Find a nice woman to marry and get on with your life.’
A voice called, ‘Doctor! Come quickly!’
‘Good luck.’ And he was gone.
Tez sat staring down at the heavily bandaged hand.
When he looked up, a nurse was standing beside him.
‘Let me find you a bed, Captain.’ She gently eased him to his feet. ‘Lean on me.’
‘I can walk by myself, thank you.’ But he did feel light-headed and distant as he followed her to a small tent with INJURED OFFICERS written on the canvas in wobbly capitals.
An orderly came forward to take over from the nurse. With impersonal efficiency, he showed Tez which bed to use. ‘They’ll probably ship you out in the morning, sir,’ he said as he helped Tez to bed. ‘If you give me directions to your tent, I’ll retrieve your belongings and make you more comfortable. Tomorrow, once we’re sure of the time, I’ll help you get ready to leave.’
And that was it. As suddenly as that, Tez’s war had ended. And he was never, ever coming back to Verdun. He’d lost too many friends here, as well as his two smallest fingers on his left hand.
Unlike poor Philip, he would be able to carry on with his life. If he could think what to do with it. To lose two fingers was fairly minor, but the doctors weren’t sure yet how well that hand would function, whether it might have nerve damage and be fairly useless. He might have to train his stupidly clumsy right hand to take over.
In the middle of the night, delayed pain woke him abruptly and it took all his willpower not to cry out. As it began to ebb, it occurred to him that he might, with a bit of luck, be back in time for Philip’s memorial service.
It would be good to say a last farewell to his best friend.
Bella hastily wiped away the tears as Matron came into the storeroom. ‘Sorry.’
‘What are you sorry for, Jones? Grieving? You have a right to do that.’
‘I was crying because I can’t find out when Philip’s memorial service is to be held.’
The older woman grew still. ‘Hasn’t his family invited you?’
‘No. And they must be deliberately keeping it quiet. There are no notices in the papers that I can find. They haven’t answered my phone calls, though I’ve got through to a maid each time, so they must know I’ve called.’
‘Leave it to me. I know a few useful people.’
It was kind of Matron to try to help, Bella thought listlessly. But what was the point? She’d still have to get to Upper Westcott and the village wasn’t on a railway line, so was difficult to reach without a car.
She went off for her lunch break, but couldn’t force any food down, just sat stirring it about on the plate.
One of her fellow drivers peered into the room, then came rushing across to her. ‘Matron wants to see you straight away, Jones. You’re to hurry.’
Bella ran across the rear yard to Matron’s office, expecting to have to drive an emergency patient to a London hospital for life-saving surgery. It wouldn’t be the first time.
Matron looked up from her desk. ‘Ah! There you are. I’ve found out that your fiancé’s memorial service is to be held this afternoon.’
‘Today! Then I’ve no hope of getting there in time.’
‘On the contrary. I’ve got you a lift there and back. One of our newly arrived injured officers is a friend of your Philip and is going to the service, representing his mother, who knows the Cotterells. Her chauffeur is coming down from London to drive him there and back. They live in Gloucestershire, near Malmesbury, don’t they? He’ll be happy to take you as well.’
‘Who is it?’
‘A Captain Tesworth.’
‘He’s here? Philip spoke of him often, called him Tez, said they’d been friends since school. What sort of injury has he suffered? Wouldn’t he be better in an ambulance?’
‘No need for that. He’s lost two fingers but is otherwise all right. He’s just come here so that we can keep an eye on the hand. They can save the rest of his fingers as long as the hand doesn’t get infected. The doctor prefers to have someone who knows first aid with him, says he’s still in shock about his injury.’
‘I’d better go back to my lodgings and change quickly into more suitable clothes.’
‘I think you should go as you are, proudly wearing the uniform of someone serving her country. An ambulance driver’s blue uniform and cap may not look as pretty as a nurse’s uniform, but you ask the men whose lives you’ve helped save what they think of your work.’
Bella’s confidence was boosted by these bracing words and she managed a misty smile. ‘Thank you, Matron.’
‘Good girl. Remember, you can hold your head up in that uniform whoever you’re facing, however snootily they behave. Go and tidy yourself up, then wait at the front of the building for the car. It’ll do you good to get a bit of sun on your face.’
It was only after Matron had gone back inside that it really sank in that she would be facing a hostile group of Cotterells again. She wasn’t looking forward to that.
Bella had been sitting on the wall waiting for only ten minutes when a car drew up. An orderly came to the front door to see who it was.
The chauffeur got out and called, ‘Captain Tesworth’s car.’
‘I’ll bring him out,’ the orderly called back.
In other circumstances she’d have been happy to meet Philip’s best friend and thank him for writing to her. Was his injury enough to keep him out of the war? For his sake, she hoped so.
‘Captain Tesworth is giving me a lift,’ she called.
‘Miss Jones, is it? Right you are.’ The chauffeur hurried round to open the rear door for her just as the captain appeared at the top of the steps.
‘Help the captain in first. I can get in on my own.’ Bella opened the other door and took her place on the rear seat behind the driver. Her companion nodded to her as he was helped in. He looked white and weary, poor man, and his left hand was heavily bandaged and in a sling.
‘Thank you for letting me share the car, Captain.’
‘My pleasure.’ He leant against the seat back, his head slightly turned towards her. ‘I’m Aaron Tesworth.’
‘Yes. But everyone calls you Tez.’
‘Did Philip tell you that about me?’
‘Yes. He thought a great deal of you.’
‘And I of him. So you’re Bella. You made him very happy.’
‘He was a wonderful man. He made me happy too.’
They both fell silent as the car pulled away, remembering Philip.
‘I’m glad I could help you get to the service today. I hope you won’t hold it against me that I had to send you the bad news.’
‘I was grateful that you did. His family hasn’t been in touch with me at all.’
He looked at her in shock. ‘You mean – they didn’t even let you know about him being killed?’
‘No. Philip must have told you they don’t approve of me.’ When he nodded, she added, ‘That was putting it mildly. They were openly hostile at the family gathering, presumably to put me in my place.’
‘I’m so sorry.’
‘Thank you. I’d better warn you that when I telephoned the maid told me the service is by invitation only … and I haven’t been invited. So there may be a fuss when I turn up. But if you let me out of the car in the village, I can walk the rest of the way, so that you’re not involved when I push my way in, and then you can pick me up on the way back.’
‘I wouldn’t dream of it. We’ll walk into the village church together, though I’m more likely to need to lean on you than to be able to offer you the support of my arm. But I can offer you my moral support, if needed. That at least I can do.’
‘I don’t want to damage your relations with your family’s friends.’
‘The Cotterells aren’t close friends of ours, never have been, which is why Mother is sending me in her place. It was Philip and I who had the close friendship.’
The captain sighed and leant his head back against the seat. ‘Sorry. I’m still a bit woozy. This injury only happened a couple of days ago, or was it three?’
‘Well, I’m not in the mood to chat, so why don’t you rest quietly for a while?’
‘I think I will.’
As he fell asleep, his head settled gently on her shoulder and she left it there.
Philip had done that a few times, so tired when he came home on leave that with the best will in the world, he hadn’t managed to stay awake all night and enjoy every minute of being with her, as he’d intended.
She had to fight to hold back the tears those memories brought, but she’d promised herself to show no weakness in front of the Cotterells, so she blinked furiously and refused to give in to the raw anguish of her grief.
As the two of them entered the church an usher moved forward with a list in his hand. ‘May I have your name, sir?’
‘Tesworth.’
He crossed it off and turned to Bella.
She was proud of how calmly she said it. ‘Miss Jones, Captain Cotterell’s fiancée.’
His look of horror was unmistakable. ‘But … but …’
Captain Tesworth grasped her arm firmly with his good hand. ‘Miss Jones is with me.’
‘I’m afraid Miss Jones hasn’t been invited to the service today.’
Just then three other officers joined them in the vestry.
Tez turned to greet them. ‘Just in time, chaps. Did you know, they’re trying to turn away Philip’s fiancée, who is, apart from her relationship with him, also serving in the VADs as an ambulance driver?’
They stopped short and gaped at her and then at the usher, who was bright scarlet now.
‘Is there some problem?’ A tall, thin man came across the back of the church to join them.
Francis Filmore, Bella remembered, Georgie’s fiancé. He looked even more snooty today. And was his breathing always a bit raspy?
It took him a minute to recognise her, then he said harshly, ‘You were not invited to the service, Miss Jones. Kindly leave at once.’
The four officers glanced at one another then at Filmore. Their scornful glances seemed to ask why he was not in uniform.
‘Are you really trying to turn her away?’ one demanded.
‘She hasn’t been invited.’
‘She shouldn’t need a formal invitation. She’s his fiancée, dammit.’
‘His mother doesn’t recognise that relationship, especially now.’
More glances and the four of them moved to form a protective circle round Bella.
‘Come and sit with us,’ one of them said. He turned to move to the front of the church, but Filmore continued to bar the way.
It happened so quickly that Bella could never afterwards quite work out how it’d been done, but suddenly Filmore was lying on the floor and the four officers were shepherding her past him.
There was a gasp of outrage from the front of the church and Adeline Cotterell stood up. Georgie remained seated beside her mother, tugging at her arm and looking unhappy.
‘You! Jones woman! You were not invited!’ Mrs Cotterell shouted.
A gasp ran through the congregation.
‘I have invited her,’ Tez said loudly.
‘But she isn’t—’
Mrs Cotterell broke off, flinching as the four officers reached a pew three rows behind hers and stood glaring at her.
‘If she leaves, so do we,’ Captain Tesworth said loudly. ‘But I’ll make sure people know about your petty and spiteful behaviour.’
After a few more moments of silence, Mrs Cotterell turned her back on them and sat down without another word.
‘This pew suit you, Miss Jones?’ one of the officers asked.
Bella nodded, concentrating on holding up her head and not betraying how humiliated she felt by this reception.
The red-haired officer followed one of the men into the pew, speaking loudly as he gestured to Bella to join him. ‘Miss Jones should really be sitting at the front with the rest of the family. Still, we’re not responsible for other people’s bad manners, are we?’
She slid along the pew after the two officers, leaving Tez to take the aisle seat. Philip would have wanted her to be with him for the final farewell, she told herself. That was what mattered.
Mrs Cotterell’s voice rang out equally loudly. ‘The impudence of it! Such a vulgar young female! We can all guess how she trapped my son.’
The other guests had been murmuring to one another, but none of them had made any effort to intervene.
Georgie mouthed ‘Sorry’ to the newcomers before turning back to her mother. There was the sound of a low-voiced argument between the two women.
Where was Philip’s father? Bella wondered. Surely he ought to be here today? Philip had said his father was engaged in important war work, but in London, not in France, so surely he could have come here for a short time.
‘Are you all right, Miss Jones?’ Tez asked gently.
‘Yes. And thank you, Tez. I mean Captain Tesworth.’ Bella heard her voice wobble and couldn’t go on with her apology.
‘I prefer my friends to call me Tez, and I hope I can count you among them now.’
She smiled and nodded, then turned to the other side to say, ‘I’m more grateful than I can say for your help today, gentlemen.’
‘I can’t believe they’d insult someone who’s serving her country!’ The red-haired officer was still speaking so loudly he must have wanted to be heard.
A few people turned from the other side at the front to stare at her and the whispering began again. From the staccato nature of some sounds, more arguments were taking place.
‘Ah! There are the others.’ Tez got up and beckoned to two men in uniform who’d just entered the church. Before they sat down in the pew behind his, he quickly told them what had been happening.
With looks of outrage towards the front of the church, they each turned to Bella and loudly offered her their condolences on her sad loss.
‘Bit of luck that enough of us are on leave at the moment to attend,’ one of the newcomers said. He had a livid scar across one cheek and looked exhausted, but when there came the sound of someone else arriving from the rear of the church, he turned round then got to his feet. ‘I’ll go and have a quick word. You stay there, Tez, old chap.’
By the time the service began, eight men were sitting around and behind Bella, which was a great comfort. She bowed her head and prayed for Philip’s soul, then, as the service ended, she prepared to listen to the eulogies.
Spencer Cotterell moved to the lectern at the front, speaking woodenly, mouthing platitudes but not offering any anecdotes or expressions of affection for his brother.
‘And now—’ the minister began, moving towards the front again.
But Georgina Cotterell got up and moved to stand at the lectern before anyone could stop her. ‘I want to share my own thoughts about my dear brother with you all this one last time. Being a twin is something very special, and no one knew Philip as well as I did. He would have been glad to see you all here today, especially his fiancée, Miss Jones, who made him so happy in the months before he died.’
Her mother rapped a silver-headed walking stick on the wooden floor to gain her attention. ‘Georgina, come back here this minute. You’ve said more than enough.’
She shook her head and continued, ‘I’m proud of his military service, but I shall miss Philip all the years of my life. We were—’
Filmore stood up and moved purposefully towards her, one arm outstretched. ‘Come along, Georgina, there’s no need for this. You’ve said your piece. Do as your mother asks.’
For a moment she stared at her fiancé and you could have heard a mouse breathe in the church, so quiet had it become. Then she held up one hand, palm outwards to stop him going on. ‘I haven’t finished.’
He glared at her, looking questioningly towards Mrs Cotterell.
‘Come and sit down, Georgina,’ she called. ‘Stop making a spectacle of your grief. Leave that to those who know no better.’
Georgina clutched the lectern as Filmore once again tried to pull her away. ‘Sometimes you have to stand up and be heard.’
She had to kick him in the shins to make him let go of her and she shouted the next words at the congregation. ‘What I’ve seen today, the shocking way Miss Jones has been treated, has made my mind up for me. It is an insult to my dear, brave brother not to have invited his fiancée to his memorial service. And I can be no less brave than he was, so I’m about to take an important step, to which you can all bear witness.’
Now she turned to face Filmore, who was still standing by her side. She edged quickly to the other side of the lectern and continued loudly, ‘I shall not be marrying a man who has treated me unkindly today and not respected my grief.’ Taking off her engagement ring, she hurled it at Filmore’s face.
As he ducked instinctively the silence was still so absolute that the ring could be heard tinkling as it hit the floor and rolled on.
He reached out and grabbed her arm. ‘You are not yourself, Georgina.’
She tried to shake him off, but he was holding her more firmly this time. She was looking afraid of him now. ‘You’re hurting me. Let me go!’
Two of the officers stood up. ‘Can’t resist rescuing a damsel in distress,’ one of them said loudly.
They marched to the front, saluted briskly and the same man said, ‘Do you wish to go with this chap, Miss Cotterell?’
Again she tried to free herself, but in vain. ‘No. I do not.’
‘Let her go, you.’
‘She’s my fiancée and I will thank you not to interfere.’
‘She just gave you your ring back, so she’s not your concern now, what?’
There was quite a hubbub from the congregation, but Mrs Cotterell said nothing more. She continued to sit stiffly upright with a look of outrage on her face and the way she was looking at her daughter was a threat in itself.
The two officers moved to either side of Georgie and with a nod of thanks, she went with them to the second pew full of military.
Filmore bent to pick up the ring and returned to his place next to Mrs Cotterell.
What on earth was going to happen now? Bella wondered. But she was glad Georgina had broken with that man. Philip had hated him, hated the idea of the marriage, blamed it all on his mother’s nagging.
Chapter Three
The service ended and Georgina sobbed openly as a cloth-covered board bearing bouquets of flowers and a stone plaque were lifted and carried out. Four of the officers moved forward to help perform this final service and the minister looked at them uncertainly, then gestured to them to take their places.
Hearing the other woman’s agonised weeping for her twin made Bella weep too. This time she didn’t attempt to stop the tears rolling down her cheeks, couldn’t have done.
As the pall-bearers paused for a moment just beyond their pew, Georgina moved sideways to grab Bella’s arm. ‘Walk with me. Please.’
As they fell into place behind Mrs Cotterell and her son, Tez and another officer also slipped out of the pew to walk behind them. Was it really necessary to form a protective barrier between them and Spencer? Bella wondered. But the others knew so much more than she did about the people here today that she simply did as Tez and Georgina wanted.
Mrs Cotterell ignored the two younger women completely and continued to move slowly forward on the arm of her son. Her face was like a pale shadow beneath the heavy black veil which she’d pulled down from the crown of her hat.
Bella found it impossible to hold back more tears as the minister spoke the final words at the graveside and the plaque was lowered to a place that had been prepared for it among the family headstones. She waited till the others had sprinkled earth on the ground in front of it to pick up a handful as her own token.
‘Stop her! Don’t let her defile his grave!’ Mrs Cotterell cried suddenly from the other side of the hole. ‘She’s nothing but a whore!’
Bella made no attempt to respond to this gratuitous insult but tossed down her own handful of earth in tribute to the man she’d loved. This ceremony seemed unreal, like the worst of nightmares, but she wasn’t going to be drawn into an argument, whatever they said or did. Not now, not with poor Philip’s body lying in France and this plaque the only sign of his life left to his family in England.
As people began to move away, Georgina clutched Bella’s arm again. ‘What am I going to do? Where can I go? Mother will make my life unbearable if I go home.’
‘I’m sure my landlady will let you stay with me for a few days. You can share my room and I can lend you some money, if you need it.’
‘Thanks, but I drew some money out of the bank yesterday. I had a feeling I’d need it. My main worry is to find somewhere to live, a place where my mother can’t get to me. I daren’t even go back to the house for my clothes.’
Bella didn’t know what to suggest, but if Philip’s sister needed help she’d do anything she could.
The red-haired young officer who had been standing nearby moved closer. ‘Couldn’t help overhearing. Don’t know if you remember me, Georgina?’
‘Philip always called me Georgie and so should his friends. I hate being called Georgina. Only my family and Francis do it.’
‘I’m Harry Lewison. You and my sister were at school together and you stayed at our house a couple of times. Penny’s married now but her husband is away a lot, serving in the navy. She’s staying in the depths of the country in a cottage belonging to a distant relative who has a farm. She’s finding it very quiet and I’m sure she’d welcome some company.’
‘You’re Penny’s brother. Of course. That’s why you looked familiar.’ She stood there indecisively. ‘What do you think, Bella? Should I see if Penny can take me in for a while?’
‘You’re absolutely sure you want to be done with your engagement, Georgie?’
‘Oh, yes! More sure of that than anything else.’
‘Then from what Philip said about your mother, you definitely can’t stay at home any longer. And staying with your old school friend will be better than staying with me, where there isn’t a spare bedroom and I can be transferred at any time.’
‘You’re right.’ Georgie blinked furiously. ‘I don’t know why I’ve grown so timid. I used to think for myself. Thank you for helping me today.’
Bella got out her notebook, scribbled her present address down and tore the page out. ‘This will always find me. My landlady, Mrs Sibley, is a darling and even if I’m transferred, she’ll forward any letters.’
Georgie took the paper and shoved it in her handbag. ‘Thanks.’ She hesitated, then gave Bella a hug. ‘Thanks for everything today. Please stay in touch.’
‘I’m glad to help.’ Bella turned to Tez. ‘Is there any chance you could take Georgie to see if this Penny can give her a bed for a few nights?’
Harry intervened again. ‘No need. I’m going to spend the night with my sister and can drive you there, Georgie. But we’d better leave straight away. Looks like that Filmore fellow is bringing in reinforcements.’
‘Mother’s lawyer is away in London. That’s his partner, Mr Marley. I’ve not had much to do with him but he’s probably just as much on her side as Mr Polbrook. Let’s go quickly.’ Georgie turned to flee.
Bella grabbed her arm. ‘Wait. It’d be better to face them now and make sure the lawyer realises you’re leaving of your own free will.’
‘I never thought of that.’ But Georgie still looked terrified.
And Philip’s mother looked icily furious.
Mrs Cotterell came up to them, accompanied by Spencer and a silver-haired man in an old-fashioned high-collared shirt. Filmore followed them and stood slightly to one side, the scowl still painted on his face.
‘I’m making allowances for how upset you are today, Georgina,’ Mrs Cotterell said. ‘You don’t realise what you’re doing. You must come home and lie down till you feel better. We’ll get the doctor to give you something to calm you.’
Spencer said nothing, but the look he gave Georgie promised retribution not support. Bella was surprised to see the lawyer looking from him to his mother in faint puzzlement. Wasn’t he part of this?
Her mother’s remarks seemed to stiffen Georgie’s spine. ‘I am upset, very, at the loss of my twin. But I know perfectly well what I’m doing today. I didn’t want to get engaged to Francis in the first place, but you persuaded me, Mother, and he seemed kind. However, as soon as I had his ring on my finger, he changed and started ordering me around as if I was nothing. Telling me not to speak at my twin’s funeral was the final straw. I do not wish to marry Francis and nothing you say or do will make me change my mind.’
Filmore stepped forward. ‘Don’t say anything you’ll regret, Georgina. We can discuss everything later. Your mother needs your support today of all days.’
Georgie scowled at him. ‘There’s nothing to discuss. I won’t marry you. As for my mother, she has Spencer to support her. He’s always been her favourite. He doesn’t even have to go away to fight, because of his poor health. I’m going to make a new life for myself from now on and maybe I’ll join the VADs too.’
‘You’ll never manage on your own,’ her mother said scornfully. ‘You’ll dither around and get into debt because you’ll need to find a job. And with your lack of skills, you’ll only earn a pittance. You’ve always had an unstable temperament and you need your family’s support.’
For a moment Georgie seemed to hesitate, then she shook her head again. ‘That’s not true. And I have enough money to go into lodgings. One room will be paradise as long as I have it to myself.’
‘You’ve been persuaded to act foolishly by these people who turned up today. Poor Philip made some very dubious friends in the army and—’
‘I haven’t been persuaded by anyone. Philip’s friends never came near me, didn’t speak to me till I
