Epilogue

Lena stood at the window of their house on a Sydney hillside, with magnificent views across the sparkling waters of Port Jackson. She smiled inwardly. It beat the view even from Raby Hall. And Whitby? Well, that would always hold a special place in her heart, in spite of the trauma of her final days there.

She looked down into the well-kept garden in front of the house and saw Peter stand still and gaze up at the window. He waved and she raised her right arm in reply, then held up one-year-old William. Laughter lit up Peter’s face then and he waved again before blowing them both a kiss goodbye.

A few moments later he was lost from their sight, on his way to the office of Hustwick - Merchant for another day of hard work towards making their firm into one of consequence in Sydney’s thriving port.

Lena was happy for him. She hugged William to her, enjoyed his smile, kissed his forehead. Then she whispered in a wistful tone, ‘You’ll have a thriving business to inherit here, but one day I will tell you of your ancestry . . . of the Carnforth blood that flows in your veins only, and of the firm far away in Whitby that is rightfully yours.’