Tomorrow they would return to the main house and the rest of their lives.
They would be the same people living the same marriage.
But Vanessa tried not to think about it, nevertheless. When she did, it was with a vague, unnameable sense of foreboding.
They walked back up to the main house after breakfast the following morning under gray skies that threatened rain.
The house was deserted except for the servants and Mr. Bowen. All the wedding guests had been due to leave yesterday, and Lady Lyngate and Cecily had set off for London very early this morning. Vanessa and Elliott were to follow them tomorrow.
Vanessa explored her new bedchamber and dressing room while Elliott was in the study, consulting with his secretary and looking through the letters that had accumulated in three days.
But he was not there long. He tapped on Vanessa's door after less than half an hour and let himself in. 'It is huge,' she said, spreading her arms to the sides. 'At least twice the size of my room at the dower house.' 'Of course,' he said, shrugging. 'It is the viscountess's room.' The fact that she had moved into a totally different world had still not had time to strike her fully, Vanessa realized. 'I am going to ride over to Warren Hall to see how Merton is getting along with his tutors,' he said. 'Would you like to come? If so, we will take the carriage. It would probably be wise anyway. It is going to rain.' 'Of course I want to come,' she said.
Time had seemed suspended during their brief honeymoon. She had spared hardly a thought for her sisters and brother - or for anyone else. The dower house and the lake had been her world, and she and Elliott had been the only two people who existed in it.
Like Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.
Now suddenly she realized that three whole days had passed, and she was eager to see her siblings again.
By the time they arrived at Warren Hall the first few drops of rain were falling, and a gusty wind had cooled the air.
How fortunate they had been to have those three days of glorious spring weather, Vanessa thought. The change now made them seem somehow unreal and far away - as if they had ended weeks ago instead of just this morning.
Margaret was alone in the drawing room. She curtsied to Elliott and hugged Vanessa tightly. Their guests had left yesterday, she told them.
Stephen was downstairs in the library with one of his tutors, having returned late from a morning ride with Mr. Grainger and been soundly scolded for it. Katherine had gone out for a walk. 'Though I hope she comes home soon,' Margaret said, glancing at the window, which was spotted with rain. 'Before she gets a soaking.' She looked listless and a little pale, Vanessa thought as they both sat down by the fire and Elliott went off to the library. 'Are you well, Meg?' Vanessa asked. 'Is something wrong?' 'Absolutely nothing.' Margaret smiled. 'And you, Nessie? How /are /you?' Vanessa leaned back in her chair. 'Has the weather not been wonderful?' she said. 'The dower house at Finchley is /such /a pretty place, Meg, and the lake is lovely. We went boating and yesterday we picked dozens of daffodils without coming even close to denuding the bank on which they bloomed. We set a bowl of them in each room of the house. They looked quite splendid.' /'We,' /Margaret said. 'Is all well, then, Nessie? You have no regrets?
But you /look /happy.' 'Well, of course,' Vanessa said, 'real life is about to intrude. We will be going to London tomorrow, and I will be presented to the queen next week - a mildly terrifying prospect. And there will be numerous people to meet and places to go and… Well, and so on. But of course I have no regrets, you goose. This was something I wanted to do. I told you that from the start.' 'Oh, Nessie.' Margaret leaned back in her chair, looking weary again. 'If /you /can only be happy then /I /will be happy too.' Vanessa looked closely at her. But before she could ask her again what was the matter - clearly /something /was - the door opened and Katherine came inside, all bright eyes and rosy cheeks. 'Ho,' she said, pressing one hand to her bosom, 'I am breathless. I did not know whether to take shelter in the chapel when it started to rain or make a run for it to the house.' 'I take it you ran,' Vanessa said, getting to her feet. 'And now I am glad of it.' Katherine came hurrying across the room to hug her sister. 'I saw Viscount Lyngate's carriage outside the door and hoped he had brought you with him.' 'He did,' Vanessa said, smiling. 'I cannot tell you how handsome you both looked on your wedding day,' Katherine said as they took a seat. 'Did you enjoy the three days by the lake?' 'I did indeed,' Vanessa said, hoping she was not blushing. 'It is an idyllic place. I would have been perfectly happy to remain there forever. Did you enjoy having company for a few days?' Katherine leaned forward in her chair suddenly, her face lighting up with excitement. 'Oh, Nessie,' she said, 'you are not the only one to marry recently. Has Meg told you? A letter for Sir Humphrey and Lady Dew was sent on here from Rundle Park and fortunately arrived just before they left yesterday morning. /Did /Meg tell you?' 'She did not.' Vanessa glanced at her elder sister. She was sitting back in her chair, holding the arms, a half-smile on her lips. 'It was from Crispin Dew,' Katherine said. 'Oh, Kate,' Vanessa cried, 'he has not been /wounded, /has he?' But then she remembered how this conversation had started and darted another look at Margaret. 'No, nothing like that,' Katherine said. 'He has just /married/. She is a Spanish lady. There was a great deal of excitement here before the carriage left for Throckbridge, as you can well imagine. Though Lady Dew was sad that she had been unable to attend the wedding. As were Eva and Henrietta.' 'Oh,' Vanessa said, her eyes locked on Margaret's. Her sister looked back at her, that ghastly half-smile still on her lips. 'I have been teasing Meg,' Katherine said. 'I remember that when I was a girl she and Crispin used to be rather sweet on each other - just as you and Hedley were.' 'I have told Kate,' Margaret said, 'that I cannot even remember clearly what he looks like. And that was all /years /ago. I wish him every happiness with his new bride.' And then Stephen and Elliott came to join them in the drawing room and they all drank coffee and ate sweet biscuits and talked, among other things, about London, where they would all be settled within the next week.
They would not stay for luncheon, Elliott said when they were invited.
He had some business to attend to on his estate during the afternoon.
Margaret, Stephen, and Katherine all came downstairs to see their sister and brother-in-law on their way though they did not step out onto the terrace as the rain had settled into a steady downpour.
There was not one moment in which Vanessa might have had a private word with Margaret. Or if there were - they might have held back on the stairs and let everyone else move out of earshot - then Margaret pointedly avoided it.
One of life's great ironies, Vanessa thought as she climbed into the carriage and Elliott took his seat beside her. She had married him four days ago in order to leave her sister free to hope.
But now all hope had been shattered forever.
It would have been far better for Meg if Crispin Dew had been killed in battle.
One hated to think such a horrible thing, but even so… 'You are feeling homesick?' Elliott asked as the carriage moved off down the driveway. 'Oh.' She turned her head and smiled brightly at him. 'No, of course not. Finchley Park is my home now.' She held out her hand and he took it and held it on his thigh while they proceeded homeward in silence.
Would she be married to him now, she wondered, if Crispin's letter had arrived five or six weeks ago instead of just yesterday?
Or would it have been Meg sitting where she was now?
She could feel the warmth of his thigh through his pantaloons and her glove, and she was secretly glad that the letter had not come sooner.
How /could /he? How could Crispin Dew have treated Meg so shabbily?
She leaned slightly sideways and took comfort from the solidity of Elliott's shoulder. She swallowed hastily when she heard a gurgle in her throat.
15
VANESSA was still feeling depressed. It was not something she allowed herself to feel very often. There was almost always something to do, someone with whom to talk, something to think about, something to read that would elevate her mood. And there was almost always something to wonder at, something to smile over,
