Chapter 3

Rachel sat at her dressing table watching her maid through the mirror. Rachel was slowly brushing her hair in silence. She missed the usual talk between her and Sarah but there was something wrong with her maid. Sarah looked occupied. Her hair was as neat as ever and her clothes freshly pressed but as Sarah turned from straightening the bed her face had a look on it that Rachel had never seen before. Rachel frowned slightly and put down her brush. She turned and looked at Sarah.

“Sarah, what’s wrong?” Rachel asked. Sarah jumped slightly and looked at Rachel.

“Nothing,” she said as she got out a light green dress for Rachel to wear.

“There’s something wrong Sarah, what is it?” Rachel said.

“Nothing, Miss.” Rachel rolled her eyes, “Will you be getting dressed soon?”

“I’m not dressing until you tell me what’s wrong,” Rachel said.

“Mrs. Dalton won’t like you appearing at her tea party with only your undergarments on,” Sarah said, trying to get Rachel’s mind off the topic but it didn’t work.

“Sarah, you went to visit your family yesterday didn’t you?” Rachel asked.

“How did you know?” Sarah asked. Rachel smiled slightly.

“Well, you came home smelling like you’d rolled around in a ditch. That and you were a lot quieter then usual,” Rachel said, “You’re always really quiet when you get back from there but this time it’s different,” Sarah looked at the floor. Rachel went over to the younger girl and made her sit on the bed. Rachel sat next to her.

“What’s wrong?” Rachel asked.

“My father is ill and he won’t accept my help. He calls it charity,” Sarah said quietly.

“That’s ridiculous, a girl wanting to help her father isn’t charity,” Rachel said quickly.

“To my father it’s the same thing. He’s supposed to support me, not the other way round, or that’s how he thinks,”

“That’s how many men think,” Rachel said. Sarah sighed and played with a bit of lace from the dress that lay in her lap. “What’s wrong with your father?”

“I’m not sure. They can’t afford a doctor,” Sarah said. Rachel nodded and looked at Sarah. She considered Sarah more of a sister then hired help. She reached across and pulled Sarah into an embrace.

“We’ll sort something out,” Rachel said, “I know what it’s like to lose parents,” Rachel felt the shadow falling over her mood again as she thought of her parents. They sat on the bed holding each other for a few moments, each thinking of their parents. Rachel let go of Sarah suddenly and stood up.

“Help me into the dress. I think I have gained some weight since I last wore it,” Rachel commented casually

“There’s no way you have gained weight Rachel,” Sarah said, sensing the need to change topic of conversation.

“I’m sure I have,” Rachel said, “Come on of Mrs. Dalton will send someone up to get us soon,” Sarah smiled slightly and helped Rachel to do up her corset, which currently clung to her body untied. Rachel felt her breath becoming progressively shorter as the corset got tighter and tighter. She hated wearing them but it was something that Mrs. Dalton insisted in Rachel wearing at her tea parties. “You won’t attract men otherwise,” she’d say but Rachel had had plenty of interest from men without her corset on. She closed her eyes for a few moments as Sarah finally finished doing up the corset. It felt as though a giant had her chest in an iron grip. Rachel started to take short shallow breaths. Sarah gave her a curious look as she went to get the dress to put on Rachel. The dress was black and fitted to completely hide Rachel’s figure. The black was to represent her mourning her mother. Neither Rachel nor Sarah knew how long Rachel had to wear the mourning regalia but Rachel would not wear it for long at the request of her mother. Before Rachel’s mother had died, Rachel had been told by her mother to only wear mourning clothes for a short period of time. Sarah, also, had been ordered to only wear mourning colours for as long as Rachel did. Sarah started to help Rachel into the dress when there was a knock at the door. Sarah and Rachel looked at each other for a few moments before Sarah went to answer the door.

“Master James,” Sarah said with a startled tone. Rachel looked over to where her brother stood in the doorway. James started blushing slightly.

“Ah, Rachel, would you like to come for a walk with me. Oh sorry! I hadn’t realised you weren’t ready…” He looked down the corridor. Trying to look anywhere other then the room. Rachel pulled on her dressing gown quickly.

“Sorry Miss, I thought it might be Mrs. Dalton,” Sarah stammered.

“It’s quite alright Sarah, I’ll finish getting ready then I will talk to you, James,” Rachel said. James nodded quickly and closed the door. Rachel looked at Sarah slightly bemused. Sarah just stared at the floor and apologised.

“Sarah, it is alright, James is my brother, you have not done anything wrong,” Rachel said.

“Still, he is a man Rachel,” Sarah said. Rachel rolled her eyes and took her dressing gown off again.

“Help me get changed, we cannot keep my brother waiting now can we?” Rachel asked cheekily. Sarah blushed and managed a small smile.

James stood in the hallway by the front door. Mrs. Dalton had all her lady friends in the drawing room where they were currently having tea and scones. He could hear their chatter and laughter from where he stood. Women were loud when they were in groups. They were also very intimidating, that was probably why James had not yet approached a woman. He was far too scared to single one out. James pulled his scarf from around his neck as he began to feel the heat of the house. He’d already removed his long brown coat. While wearing it, it would have reached to his knees but at that moment it was folded over one arm. His booted feet shuffled slightly on the floor as he looked up the stairs. Would his sister ever be ready? After a few more minutes of waiting his sister finally made her way down the stairs. She wore a lovely white hat and a white scarf, which would have been perfect if she wasn’t wearing mourning clothes. Behind her Sarah held not only Rachel’s coat but also her own coat.

“Sorry I was so long James,” Rachel said.

“No problem at all,” James said quickly. Rachel looked at him strangely before allowing Sarah to help her into the coat. Sarah then started to put her own coat on when James took her coat and held it for her.

“Thank you,” Sarah mumbled. James gave her a smile then turned to Rachel, who’d caught sight of her reflection and was fixing her hat. James put his own coat on then wrapped his scarf around his neck several times.

“New coat?” Rachel asked James curiously.

“Yes, I needed a new coat this winter, my old one was looking a little shabby,” James told her.

“It suits you. Where are we walking to?” Rachel asked. James looked at Sarah hesitantly for a moment then opened the door.

“Somewhere where we can talk privately,” James said.

“Oh, would you like Sarah to stay behind then?” Rachel asked as she halted half way out of the door.

“If possible, it is a rather private matter that I’d rather not share right now,” James said. Sarah nodded and closed the door behind Rachel and James. James and Rachel spoke about people they knew and how James had been coping without Rachel or Sarah as they walked through the streets of London. Soon they found themselves at one of the entrances of Hyde Park. Behind them stood the magnificent red bricked Royal Albert Hall. The air was filled with the sounds of children playing, musicians practicing their instruments and carriages making their way up and down the roads.

“Lets find a bench in the park then we can talk,” James said.

“What do you want to talk about?” Rachel asked irritably as she took her brother’s arm and followed him across the road.

“It is about something mother and father left us,” James said. Rachel turned to look at James then nodded. In the park children ran past them with hoops in front of them and a few small dogs at their heels. Nannies pushed pushchairs with young crying infants in them and there was even the odd couple enjoying the winter’s day out in the park. Rachel had to stop suddenly to avoid being hit by a ball of snow that had come out of nowhere to her left. She looked to her left to see a young boy, not much older then eight run over to her and bow his head slightly.

“Awfully sorry ma’am, I didn’ mean ter nearly hit yeh,” He said. Rachel was about to say something in reply when a girl about Rachel’s own age came scurrying up to the boy and clapped him around the ears.

“What did I tell yeh bou’ talkin’ to those who don’ wanna talk to yeh?” She snapped at the boy. She turned to look at Rachel and James and bowed her head slightly. “Awfully sorry bou’ ‘im. ‘E’s jest recovered from a cold, see, an he’s awfully anxious an ‘appy to be out,”

“It’s alright, honestly,” James said. James tried to start walking again when Rachel stopped him. “What is it Rachel?” He sighed. Rachel crouched down and looked at the boy.

“How old are you?” Rachel asked.

“Eight year’s old Ma’am” the boy replied as he puffed out his chest. She reached into her purse and held out a small silver coin. “Go buy yourself and your…sister?” Rachel said uncertainly as she looked at the girl.

“Aye,” the boy said,

“Go buy yourselves some hot drinks,” She said. The boy grinned and ran off, his sister running after him shouting his name.

“That was nice of you,” James said. Rachel smiled and continued walking.

“So what did you want to tell me?” Rachel asked as they came to a weathered wooden bench. The continuous exposure to the wind and rain and sun had turned it a grey brown colour. Rachel glanced at the seat sceptically for a moment before sitting down next to her brother.

“The seat is perfectly stable,” James said with some amusement in his voice.

“I know, but you never know what you may sit on,” Rachel said. “So what were you saying?” Rachel asked as she looked at James.

“Oh, I found a message left to us by father.” James said, reaching into a pocket inside his coat.

“A message?” Rachel asked, “How did you find it? No one has been in the study for years.”

“I know. When mother died, on her deathbed, she told me of a book in the study that contained a secret,” James’ voice had suddenly gone very quiet so Rachel had to lean in to listen. “The book was hollow and contained this envelope,” He pulled out the envelope, “It’s got a message in it but it doesn’t say anything. Well, it does but it is in a different language. I don’t even recognise the symbols. I can only figure that it must be from outside Europe because as far as I know the majority of Europe use an alphabet that resembles the English one,” James said as he looked at the front of the envelope. Rachel took it and held it in her hands. She ran her fingers gently over the writing on the front. Her father’s handwriting. She remembered years of copying this handwriting when she’d learnt to write and read. She smiled softly when James touched her arm, causing her to start.

“Rachel,” He said softly.

“Sorry, what do you think it says?” She asked.

“It tells us about whatever mother and father were keeping secret. It’s a message to us that we can’t read. Someone has the other half of it though. See, the message is torn right here,” He said taking the envelope suddenly and getting the letter out. Rachel watched as James pointed out the frayed edge. After Rachel took the letter and looked at it carefully. The symbols reminded her of something she’d seen before. She’d seen some of these symbols before, somewhere in the London house. “You don’t recognise it do you?” He asked.

“I recognise them but I have no idea where they could be from, only that it looks like something mother and father would have brought back from their travels.” Rachel said as she looked at the paper again. James took the paper and looked at it carefully again. Now that Rachel had mentioned where she might have recognised it from a small memory was stirring at the back of his head. Rachel shivered as the cold went through her clothes. She pulled her coat around her a little tighter and looked at her brother.

“Might we go home now, it is very cold,” She asked. James jumped slightly and nodded once he’d registered what Rachel had said.

“Yes, it is cold. We can’t have you catching one can we?” He said as he put the letter back into his coat pocket. Rachel smiled and allowed James to help her to her feet. She put her arm through his and followed him all the way back to Mrs. Dalton’s warm home. The door was opened by the footman dressed in a dark blue waistcoat over a white shirt and a pair of black trousers. He let Rachel and James in without a second glance and took their coats from them. Rachel led the way to the parlour where Mrs. Dalton were entertaining her lady friends that she went to the races with. The racing season had long ended so now they spent their evenings and weekends in each other’s homes talking. Rachel was often forced to attend these as it was improper for her to go anywhere else unchapperoned. Rachel thought it long, boring and cumbersome but she tolerated it. Occasionally it meant she could go to a dance or a ball that she would otherwise not have been invited to. The moment Rachel and James appeared in the room the ladies fell silent. Each one was as old and all had the same type of scowl on their faces. Rachel saw a faint look of disapproval on the faces of the women who did not know James.

“Good morning,” Rachel said quietly. James gave the ladies a polite bow and a forced smile.

“James, I did not know you were coming,” Mrs. Dalton said with surprise.

“I needed to talk to Rachel about something important regarding my parents, I am done now, however,” He said. Mrs. Dalton nodded and turned to her friends.

“Ladies, may I introduce James King, young Rachel’s brother,” Mrs. Dalton said. If Rachel hadn’t know Mrs. Dalton all her life she would have thought that Mrs. Dalton was proud of being able to introduce James to the ladies. The ladies all looked at each other and whispered amongst themselves. James began to feel uncomfortable being in the room with them so he excused himself and left the house, claiming he had other important things to attend to and that he hoped Rachel and Mrs. Dalton would accompany him for dinner that night. With a sigh Rachel sat down among the older ladies and picked up a cup of tea that hadn’t been touched. The lady next to her, Mrs. De Gaul, sipped her tea. Mrs. De Gaul’s family had been a highly respected family in France before the French Revolution. They had been forced to flee France and escaped to England during the revolution where they now had a comfortable life. Mrs. De Gaul only had one daughter who was married but that didn’t stop her trying to make matches for the rest of her family.

“So, how old is young master King?” She asked Mrs. Dalton.

“He has just turned twenty,” Mrs. Dalton answered, “Studies Medicine at Oxford. Of course, he has been forced to come home for the last few weeks but he is an extremely promising doctor, or so I’m told,” Rachel fought the urge to roll her eyes. She knew what was going to happen. The ladies were going to start discussing her brother and any possible marriage prospect.

“So he won’t be marrying until has started his own practice?” asked Mrs. Simmons, a plump woman with a curly mop of brown hair on her head and sparkling brown eyes.

“Probably not,” Mrs. Dalton said.

“Has he got anyone in mind as to who he may marry?” Mrs. De Gaul asked.

“I do not think he will marry into a French family if that is what you are trying to ask,” said Mrs. Kalmer-Lewisham with good humour. Mrs. Kalmer-Lewisham was Gordon Lewisham’s mother and was the only woman in the group without a permanent scowl. Whenever one saw Mother and son together one began to wonder what had happened. Mrs. Kalmer-Lewisham was very beautiful, she had been a renowned beauty when she was Rachel’s age. Why she chose to spend her days with Mrs. Dalton and her friends was beyond Rachel.

“You would know!” Mrs. De Gaul said back, “You only have a son to marry off, and even then you needn’t worry about who he does marry,”

“Oh on the contrary, I will ensure my son marries a girl that is his equal,” Mrs. Kalmer-Lewisham said.

“I hear that Gordon is awfully close to Rachel here,” Mrs. Simmons said as she motioned towards Rachel, who had been sitting quietly between Mrs. Dalton and Mrs. De Gaul. She put her cup down and felt her cheeks begin to turn red.

“Oh, we were,” Rachel said quietly,

“They were but James King and I quickly put a stop to that. Rachel is far too good for my son, besides, we can only have one beauty in the family, Rachel would be competition,” Mrs. Kalmer-Lewisham said with a small smile to Rachel.

“Besides, Rachel’s marriage was in the process of being arranged by her mother before she died,” Mrs. Dalton said. Rachel turned to look at Mrs. Dalton with an expression of surprise. She had not known about this! Who was she supposed to be marrying? Why hadn’t her mother mentioned it? Rachel and Sarah had picked up some strange things from Francesca King in her last few weeks, like she was trying to plan something but they never thought it would involve either of them.

“She was?” Rachel asked.

“Rachel dear, could you go and inform Sarah that we intend on going to your brother’s house for dinner,” Mrs. Dalton said quickly. Rachel scowled slightly but did as Mrs. Dalton told her to. She had just closed the door behind her when she pressed her ear against the door.

“She didn’t know?” Mrs. De Gaul asked.

“Of course she didn’t know, Mrs. King was planning on telling her nearer her birthday.” Mrs. Dalton said.

“But that is in June,” said Mrs. Kalmer-Lewisham

“Yes, I know, well, the marriage has been cancelled now that dear Francesca is dead, God rest her soul,” Mrs. Dalton said. Rachel put a hand against the door and stared at the doorframe. She felt suddenly cold inside. The mention of her mother had been unpleasant enough but with the added information that she was going to be married had numbed her. She let her arm fall to her side and turned to see Sarah. Rachel nearly cried in surprise but she managed to control herself at the last moment.

“May I help you Miss?” Sarah asked with a bemused expression. Rachel looked at Sarah for a few moments, the fifteen year old girl was like her sister despite the differences. They’d only known each other for four years but that seemed to be enough to bring the two girls close. Rachel chose to tell Sarah what she’d found, they had no secrets between each other.

“Help me change my clothes, I think I have mourned my mother enough,” Rachel said. Sarah looked at her in surprise.

“But it has only been a week,” Sarah said breathlessly. She was shocked with Rachel’s sudden decision. Rachel ignored Sarah’s last statement and began to walk up the stairs. Mrs. Dalton’s ugly pug followed her up the stairs as if to keep an eye on her.