The Victory (31 page)

Instead she said, 'What a wonderful thing it is, my lady,
the change that's come over his lordship. I'd swear he's even lookin' younger! A blessed thing it is, to see a gentleman
taking proper care of his house and his lands. And Parslow
says that Mr Thorn says there's to be a grand ball on St
Stephen's day, my lady, for the whole county. Ah, sure, God,
what a grand sight that'll be, you and his lordship, side by
side, receivin' together at the top of the stairs!’

Lucy grunted. 'I just don't understand why he's done it
all.'

‘For you, my lady, to be sure,' Docwra said.

‘
Very romantic,' said Lucy. 'You've been reading novels
again. That will do, Docwra. I want to get out now.’

When Lucy was dressed, as there was still plenty of time
before dinner, she thought she had better go and see Miss
Trotton, and warn her, in case no-one else had thought to do
so, that Bobbie Chelmsford and Lady Barbara's children
would be arriving the following day.

The nurseries occupied the whole top floor of the west
wing, consisting of a large day-nursery, two smaller night-
nurseries, and a number of rooms for governesses, tutors and
servants, so that, apart from the provision of food, the chil
drens' quarters were self-contained. Miss Trotton reigned
there supreme, with a large staff under her, and her own
private sitting-room as well as a bedroom.

Lucy found them all in the day-nursery. It was a long
room, shabby but comfortable, with windows looking west
over the gardens, giving it all the afternoon light, and a good fire at either end. Here the children played, did their lessons,
and ate their meals.

When she entered they were divided into two groups
around the two fireplaces. By the nearer fire were Polly
Haworth and Lucy's elder daughter Flaminia, usually called
Minnie, who, judging by the pair of globes to hand, were taking a geography lesson of Miss Trotton. Lucy's glance
noted that Polly, who was ten now, seemed to have grown still more beautiful since she had last seen her, while Minnie, very
like her father with her reddish curls and green eyes, had
grown chubbier.

At the far end of the room was her younger daughter,
Rosamund, tall for her seven years, plain, freckled and sandy-
haired; and her son Roland, aged five and just out of petti
coats, looking so like Lucy herself that it gave her an odd
feeling, as if the reflection in a mirror had taken on a life of
its own. They were listening to a story; what was odd was that
it was being read to them by Robert Knaresborough. Roland
was sitting on his lap, and Rosamund on the floor, leaning on
his knees, and there was about them such an air of ease and
accustomedness that Lucy knew without asking that it was a
scene which that room had often witnessed.

Miss Trotton and the elder girls had risen, and as Robert looked up from the book, Lucy waved a hand at him not to
disturb himself.

‘
I heard you had arrived, your ladyship,' Miss Trotton said.
‘Girls!'

‘
Aunt Lucy,' Polly said, curtseying gracefully, and Minnie,
looking to her cousin for a lead, bobbed, and moved her lips
in a soundless greeting. Minnie was not clever, and was rather
shy, but since babyhood she had adored Hippolyta, obeyed
and copied her in everything, and as Hippolyta was both
clever and sensible, Minnie got by very well.

‘
I came to tell you, Trotton, that you are to expect some
additions to your charges tomorrow.'

‘
Yes, your ladyship, it was mentioned. Lord Chelmsford is
coming, and Master and Miss Morland, I believe.'

‘
Quite right. Colonel Morland's regiment is gone abroad at
last, and Lady Barbara naturally doesn't want to spend
Christmas alone.’

Her cynical eye suggested that the real reason was that
Lady Barbara didn't want to spend Christmas at her own
expense.

‘Naturally, your ladyship,' said Miss Trotton with complete understanding.

‘
And how is everything? Are the children well? Do they
behave themselves?'

‘
Yes, your ladyship. We have had a very healthy year, after all the colds at Easter, and everyone is coming along very well
at their lessons. We have learned some new pieces to perform
for you, if you should have the time to indulge us.'

‘
Yes, later perhaps,' Lucy said vaguely, her eyes going
irresistibly to the group at the far end. ‘Trotton, isn't it time
Roland had a tutor, now that he's been breeched?'

‘I have mentioned it to his lordship, but he has not yet told
me what he has decided. Of course, Mr Knaresborough has
spent a lot of time with Lord Calder recently. He has been
teaching him to ride, too.’

Trotton met Lucy's eyes, and a number of questions and
answers flitted rapidly between them.

‘
That is kind of him,' Lucy said. 'But not satisfactory. Lord
Calder must have a proper tutor. I'll speak to his lordship.'

‘
Yes, your ladyship,' Miss Trotton said. Lucy nodded to her
to continue with her lesson, and walked down the room to the
other group.

The warmth of the fire and the soothing process of being
read to had evidently lulled Roland almost to the point of
sleep. His eyelids were drooping, he was sucking his thumb,
and his head was lolling against Robert's shoulder in the most
comfortable and accustomed manner. Rosamund, her face
rosy from the heat of the fire, was kneeling facing him, with
her arms on his knees and the point of her chin resting on her
arms, evidently deeply absorbed in the story. She looked up
crossly when Robert stopped reading.

‘
What is it you're reading?' Lucy asked. 'It seems to be
having a very different effect on your two listeners.’

Robert looked faintly alarmed. 'It's from a book of history
stories, ma'am. Quite educational, you know.'

‘
It's about King Charles the Martyr,' Rosamund supplied,
glaring up at her, 'and we were just getting to the execution.’

Lucy ignored this. 'It's very kind of you to take an interest in the children, Robert. I had no idea how much at home you
were here.'

‘
Oh — well ...' He evidently didn't know if he were being
thanked or criticised. 'It's a great pleasure to me, ma'am. I
never had any brothers or sisters, or really anyone to play
with, when I was young. I usually come up here at this time of
day, and read to them, or play a game. I hope — I hope you
don't disapprove?’

Lucy wasn't quite sure what she did feel about it. Surprise,
yes; amusement; a slight touch of jealousy, perhaps, that her
children evidently liked him so much? She felt she didn't want
Robert Knaresborough teaching her son to ride, but on the
other hand the idea of living here at Wolvercote in order to do
it herself bored her. There could be no harm in it, surely, she
argued with herself. He was a well-behaved boy, with pleas
ant manners, and she had guessed enough about his
oppressed upbringing to feel sorry for him. If he had found a
more congenial home here at Wolvercote, why should she
deprive him of it?

‘
No, I don't disapprove,' she said. 'Please go on with your
story. I just came up to speak to Trotton. I don't wish to
disturb you.’

She turned away and left them, and before she had
reached the other end of the room Robert had resumed his
reading, and they had all, she was sure, entirely forgotten her.

*

The man who replaced Admiral Latouche at Toulon was
Pierre Villeneuve, a young officer who had joined the navy
during the American war and had been the only French
captain to get his ship away unscathed from the Battle of the
Nile. His appointment was a factor in the decision of Admiral Nelson not to go home on leave, despite the arrival in Decem
ber of Their Lordships' permission.

On 19 January 1805 the Toulon squadron was off station,
anchored under the lee of Maddalena Island, which lay
between Sardinia and Corsica, renewing their water supply at
her streams. The wind had been freshening all day, and the
sky to the northwest was darkening with an approaching
storm, and no-one was in a hurry to leave the shelter of a
comparatively safe anchorage. Six bells in the afternoon
watch had just struck, when two frigates appeared on the
horizon, running down to them fast before the wind.

Lookouts on every ship identified them almost simul
taneously as their own
Active
and
Seahorse,
which had been
left behind to keep watch on Toulon, and as soon as the signal
flags could be distinguished against the background of black
clouds, the reason for their presence was understood. The
message flying from
Active's
masthead was: 'Enemy fleet has
put to sea'.

By the time the commanders of the frigates were on board
the
Victory, the
rest of the squadron's captains had been
summoned, so that all could hear the news and receive their
orders together. The
Active's captain
reported that Ville
neuve's fleet, eleven of the line and seven frigates, had left
Toulon two days ago on the evening tide, heading south. The frigates had remained with them until that morning, and then
had left them to make their report to the Admiral.

After the long, wearisome blockade, the news that the
French were out at last was like champagne to the spirits.
Within two hours the orders had been given and the squadron
had raised anchor and was under way, passing through the
narrow channel between Maddalena and the north-east tip of
Sardinia and out into the open sea. The French fleet, Nelson
determined, was heading either for Naples, Sicily, or Alexan
dria.

But as soon as they were clear of the island, the full force of
the wind came hurtling down on them. By nightfall, a gale was raging, which forced them to remain hove-to for three
days, and it was almost a week before any enquiries could be
made about the French fleet. The information was all
negative: they had not been seen in Sardinia, and they had not landed in Sicily. 'Unless they have gone to the bottom,
they are in Egypt,' said Nelson, and the squadron set sail for Alexandria.

‘
It's like '98 all over again,' Haworth heard The Anchovy
remark to Mr Webb when they arrived off Alexandria on 7
February and found no sign of the French. They set sail
again, this time for Malta, and arriving twelve days later
learnt that, as in '98, the fault had been in overestimating the French. While the English squadron had ridden out the storm in safety, the French fleet had been thrown into disarray, had
lost some spars, and had run for shelter back to Toulon,
where they had been ever since.