Chapter 9
Hollystone Hall, Buckinghamshire
18th December, 1812
It was nearly five by the time the Durand party arrived at Hollystone Hall for the Duchess of Haverford’s house party, and clearly, they were not the first to arrive. There were two other carriages in the driveway, both in various stages of being unloaded. A handful of footmen in navy blue livery with bright gold buttons were doing the heavy lifting, while a white-capped and aproned woman in dark gray stood outside the entrance directing them to the proper rooms.
“Hollystone Hall must be nearly as large as Windsor Castle!” Louise, who had been restless and fidgety for the past three hours, when they had stopped for a meal at an inn, had been peering anxiously out the window since they first passed through the gates of the grand estate.
“It will need to be,” said George as he stepped through the open door and dropped to the ground, “what with all the dozens of guests who will be staying here. I expect the house will be bursting at the seams.”
“Nonsense, Papa. Just look at the size of this place! I expect there are hundreds of rooms, just like what Maman always told me of the Château d’Aumale.”
George rolled his eyes at Vanessa and she grinned. Louise had come a long way in the past three months since Vanessa and George had taken her in hand. Much of her bitterness had disappeared; she seemed content to be a solicitor’s daughter and no longer envisaged herself to be better than those around her. But one couldn’t expect her to forget her heritage, and neither George nor Vanessa wanted that.
George gave his arm to the ladies as they vacated the coach: first, Louise; then Cotter, Vanessa’s maid; and finally, Vanessa, who smiled into his eyes as they joined arms and followed Louise into the grand Jacobean house, where the butler took their coats and hats.
“Tea is being served in the Blue Drawing Room,” announced the housekeeper. “Her Grace will be down soon, but Miss Grenford—that is Her Grace’s young relative and assistant—will give you a proper welcome.”
Vanessa nodded at Louise. “Ah, yes, we met her at Miss Clemens’s, did we not? I thought her a very sensible and amiable young lady. It will be delightful to see a familiar face among all of the high-ranking strangers who will be present.”
Louise shrugged. “I don’t care about that. The important thing is that Blanche will be here, and her cousins, and we shall have heaps of time to explore the house and grounds. I can’t wait to show her my new gown for the ball. My first ball!”
Vanessa and George exchanged a glance. Louise was not yet out and would not be for over a year, but since her cousins were being allowed to attend, and this being a special circumstance, a charity ball, neither could see any reason to deny her. Vanessa felt she had sincerely repented of her unruly behavior, and what she needed was supervision and guidance, rather than severe punishment.
The three of them had been frequently out and about as a family since Vanessa and George’s engagement was announced, and Vanessa was happier than she had ever been. Her love for George deepened every day, and she was pleasantly surprised at how gratifying it was to have a “little sister” again, after Genie’s marriage. In fact, she often marveled at how much fuller and more complete her life had become after she’d found a family of her own. She still had her fulfilling work at the Foundling Hospital, but now she had others to share it with.
“Ah, Miss Sedgely, so happy to see you again! And Miss and Mr. Durand as well.” Miss Grenford met them at the door of the drawing room door. “Welcome to Hollystone Hall! And please accept my felicitations on your upcoming marriage! Has the date been set yet?”
“Thank you, Miss Grenford. It’s not official yet. But we intend to announce it on the night of the ball,” responded Vanessa, glancing at George with a secret smile.
“It won’t be too long now,” George said, reaching around to hug her to him. “Can’t be soon enough for me. I didn’t realize how lonely I’ve been these past years, until Vanessa came into my life.”
Louise had raced off to greet her cousin, and the efficient Miss Grenford had them introduced to the other guests in the room and plied with tea and biscuits before they knew what she was about.
Among the guests there before them were: the Earl of Hythe and his sisters, Sophia and Felicity; Lord Adrian de Courtenay and his sisters, Lady de Courtenay and Miss Miranda; and, of course, Lord Nicholas Lacey and his daughter Blanche. Other guests who had arrived earlier were resting in their rooms, and still others were arriving later on in the week.
The lighthearted chatter came to an immediate stop when the Duchess of Haverford herself joined the company.
“Greetings! I am so pleased you could all be here today. This house has never seen so much activity, not in all the time His Grace and I have been its keepers. We have many activities planned for the next fortnight, and if you have a few suggestions of your own, please feel free to see my cousin, Miss Cedrica Grenford. I am happy to announce we have already received a significant number of subscriptions for our cause—the education of women and girls—and we expect to see even more before the fortnight is over.”
The Duchess had a twinkle in her eye when she greeted Vanessa and George. “I hear I am to offer you congratulations,” she told them. “I’m pleased to tell you that you are not the first and will hopefully not be the last affianced or recently wed couple to attend the party. A little mouse tells me that romance is in the air—and there will be no shortage of mistletoe, I assure you!”
She put a hand on George’s shoulder. “I’ve no doubt you would enjoy seeing Capability Brown’s sketches of the landscaping he did back in 1771. That man was a master, an absolute master. And I must say the end result is quite pleasing in winter as well, but truly magnificent in the warmer months. You must come back and visit us then, of course.”
Then, turning to Vanessa, the duchess added. “I’m sure you will wish to visit the local orphanage with us on Christmas Eve. Were you able to bring some gifts for the children?”
“Yes, indeed, Your Grace. Thank you for sending the message. Louise—that is, Mr. Durand’s daughter—and I knitted socks and caps and purchased books and toys we thought they might enjoy.”
“Excellent! Excellent!” said the duchess as she moved on to greet the other guests.
“I’m impressed,” said George. “The duchess has done her homework, to know of my interest in landscape gardening and yours in foundlings.”
Vanessa nodded her head in the direction of Miss Grenford. “I believe we have Her Grace’s very competent assistant to thank for that.”
20th December, 1812
The second morning of their visit dawned sunny and unseasonably warm, so Louise and Blanche and her cousins Alice and Celia decided to explore the extensive grounds. Miss Grenford recommended that they stay within view of the house for the morning, but that the head groom should be able to provide mounts for them in the afternoon if they wished to go beyond.
There really was much to explore, Louise discovered. The fountains were drained for the winter, but the classic statuary was much to be admired. Louise saw her father and Vanessa embracing in the rose garden and, after rolling her eyes, smiled to herself and thought how wonderful it was that her father was happy again and that Vanessa was all affability and not at all like a wicked stepmother. Perhaps she might even have a step-sibling or two before long. Louise anticipated becoming a big sister with a great deal of pleasure. Having a family of one’s own was rather nice, she thought.
“Mee-ouw!”
Louise stopped in her tracks, finding herself underneath a large beech tree.
“Mee-ouw!”
Casting about for the source of the sound, her eyes finally made out the presence of a small gray and white kitten on a branch about ten feet off the ground.
“Meee-ouww!” The kitten seemed to be demanding to be rescued.
“You’ve quite a shrill voice for such a tiny creature,” said Louise. “Not very sensible, are you? You might have thought you were brilliant to have managed to climb so high, but what now? Too afraid to come down again, are you?”
“Meee-ouww!”
“I believe that kitten is screaming at you,” said Blanche, as she reached Louise’s side.
Louise grinned. “I believe you are right,” she said, “a cheeky bit of fur, don’t you think?”
“There are half a dozen or so kittens running around the house and gardens,” said Alice. “I wonder if Papa will let me have one.”
“Well, you can’t have this one,” Louise said, at the same time tying up her skirts between her legs. “He found me, and I’m keeping him, so long as the duchess allows it.”
“She’s going to climb the tree!” said Celia. “I hope she doesn’t get stuck up there with the silly kitten,” she added with a chuckle.
Louise pulled herself up to the lowest branch, and carefully got to her feet while clutching the upper branch where the kitten was perched with her hands.
“Here, kitty.”
The kitten didn’t budge, but stared at her with its clear gray eyes.
“Well! You asked to be rescued, didn’t you? Here I am.”
“Mee-ouw!”
“What a silly fellow you are!” Louise reached over and carefully plucked the kitten off the branch. But as soon as she brought him close to her chest, he dug his claws into her coat, which was not quite thick enough to absorb them.
“Ouch!” she complained. “You are going to have to learn some manners, you know. Scratching someone upon first acquaintance is quite rude.”
One hand firmly supporting the kitten, she leaned her back against the trunk of the tree and slowly slid down to a sitting position on the lower branch, then hopped down to the ground.
“Now, let’s have a look at you. What a pretty little fellow you are!”
He was charcoal gray on top with striped ears and legs and a white throat and underbelly.
He seemed to be content to rest in her arms and look up at her with his curious eyes.
“I think he likes you,” said Alice.
“Of course he does. She just rescued him,” said Blanche. “Are you really going to keep him, Louise? I wonder if I could have one too. Let’s go back to the house and find the rest of them.”
“I want one, too,” said Celia.
“Don’t be silly,” chided her sister. “You have two cats at home.”
“Not in London. And they aren’t kittens anymore either.”
Duke’s daughters, thought Louise, shaking her head as she walked across the lawn with her kitten in her arms.
“Griswold,” she said. “His name is Griswold.”
“Are you sure it’s a boy?”
Louise frowned and turned the kitten over to check its white underbelly. “How can you tell?”
Blanche ran her finger down the kitten’s nether regions. “It’s a boy,” she pronounced. “Hello Griswold. Pleased to meet you.”
And for the remainder of the house party, Louise and Griswold were inseparable.
31st December, 1812
“I can hardly believe we shall be returning home tomorrow,” complained Louise as Cotter was making last-minute adjustments to her hair. “I shall miss Blanche, and Celia and Alice as well.”
Vanessa, resplendent in a gold silk gown with an ivory overdress, leaned in closer to the mirror to attach her diamond earrings. “You shall see them soon enough, darling. I daresay they will come to the wedding. And it appears that Blanche’s father and Grace de Courtenay will be tying the knot soon as well.”
Louise clasped her hands to her chest. “Isn’t it marvelous? Love is all over Hollystone Hall. Besides Papa and you—and that was already settled before we arrived—there is Uncle Nicholas and Lady de Courtenay, Miss Baumann and Mr. Halevy, Lady Sophia and Lord Elfingham, Lord and Lady Somerton, and Mr. and Mrs. Woodville, not to mention the chef and Miss Grenford.
“And then there’s Griswold and me,” said Louise with an impish smile. “Come here, Griswold, my love, and let me give you a kiss.” Rising from her chair, she walked over to the chair on which he was curled up, and picked him up and bussed him on the nose.
Cotter squealed. “Don’t let him anywhere near your gown, miss. His claws will put holes in that lovely silk and ruin it forever.”
“Of course he will not,” scoffed Louise. “But I won’t give him the chance. This is my first ball, you know.” She put Griswold back down on the chair and patted his head.
Vanessa smiled. Louise was looking very pretty in a light blue gown with embroidered flowers at the hem and gold ribbon at her waist and sleeves. She wore her mother’s gold tiara trimmed in sapphires, gold earrings, and a set of pearls around her neck.
“I know you won’t.” Vanessa turned to face Louise and cocked her head to one side. “I never knew your mother, of course, but I have seen her portrait in the parlor, and I believe you look very much like her, Louise. I’m sure she would be very proud of you.”
Louise’s eyes filled with tears. “I hope she would,” she choked out. “I believe she would, now. Do you believe she is up in heaven watching us, Vanessa? I like to think so. I talk to her sometimes.”
Vanessa took her hand. “I’m sure she is, Louise. And you should continue to talk to her. I do the same with my paternal grandmother who died when I was seventeen. And I still feel her presence in my life.”
A knock sounded at the door, and Cotter hurried to admit Mr. Durand. George was looking quite handsome in his dark blue Weston jacket, matching trousers, gold waistcoat, and neckcloth tied in a perfect Mathematical. He bowed low before his two ladies.
“Breathtaking. Simply breathtaking. I shall be the most envied gentleman in the room.” He took Vanessa’s hand and kissed it, while treating her with a heated gaze that caused her to feel somewhat over-warm. Then he gave a long look at his daughter and whistled. “You look so like your mother, my dear. So beautiful… and quite grown-up. What ever happened to the little moppet who used to love digging worms for bait?”
Louise rolled her eyes, but Vanessa could see she was pleased.
“Shall we be on our way, ladies?”
“You know,” George said to Vanessa as they made their way to the ballroom, “I shan’t be willing to let her go for years yet. Perhaps twenty-five? And even then only to a very steady sort of fellow, perhaps someone older and more experienced.”
Louise giggled. “I can hear you, Papa.”
Vanessa grinned. “His age cannot possibly be of any import. Why, from what I’ve heard, you yourself were a steady sort of gentleman at quite a young age.”
He gave her a quizzical look. “Alas, I am young no longer. Are you certain you wish to wed an old man such as I, Vanessa?”
Vanessa squeezed his hand. “An old man? Don’t be ridiculous! But I do wish to wed you, my love, at whatever age you may be.”
“Forty,” said Louise unnecessarily, “He’ll be forty on February 14, 1813, the day of your wedding. But you are much younger, so I shall expect to have siblings straightaway. A sister and a brother, I think. Shall I help you with names? I’ve always thought Désirée to be a pretty name. As for boys, I haven’t thought of those, but I should be happy to put my mind to it as soon as may be.”
Vanessa and George looked into each other’s eyes and burst out laughing. Finally, George took out a handkerchief and wiped his eyes with it. By this time, they had reached the ballroom.
“We have a ball to attend first, my dear. And then a wedding. But Vanessa and I will be grateful for your assistance when the time comes.”
He nodded to the footman, who opened the door to the glittering ballroom and announced them.
“Mr. George Durand, Miss Vanessa Sedgely, and Miss Louise Durand.”
And the three of them entered the room to greet the New Year and their future lives together.