Yesterday's Promise (52 page)

“Lord Brewster? I thought he went to London, to Scotland Yard.”

“No, Miss, he sent a telegraph at the train depot, then came home. He's been with Master Rogan.”

Evy smoothed her tawny hair into place, and after straightening her dress, she went to the stairway.

Rogan waited below. He had changed into a spotless white shirt and black trousers. He smiled and came up the stairs to meet her. Tucking her arm under his for support, he ushered her down the staircase as she gripped the banister.

“I talked to Anthony. He went to the cottage to have a discussion with me about you, but he left when he saw I wasn't there. He wanted to avoid you.”

“Avoid me? But why?”

“He wasn't ready to face you yet.”

They walked slowly together into the parlor, where Lord Anthony Brewster stood waiting below the portraits of the Chantry men. Evy's eyes strayed to the picture of Henry Chantry. She felt a bubble of suspicion and glanced quickly at Rogan. His confident gaze assured her. He escorted her to one of the comfortable chairs, and she sat down.

“Shall I leave you two alone?” Rogan asked Anthony quietly.

Anthony shook his head. “Do stay, Rogan. You should be in on this, although you know what I'm going to tell Evy.”

Rogan gave a nod of his dark head and stood behind Evy's chair. She felt his warm, strong hands on her shoulders.

Anthony drew in a deep breath, and looking down at his polished black shoes, he took a turn up and down the floor in front of the great fireplace below the paintings on the wall. Evy watched him, trying to remain calm, although her heart was thudding with each breath.

Anthony stopped before Henry's handsome portrait and gestured. “I can assure you, Evy, that Henry is not your blood father… I am.” He turned slowly and looked down at her. His face was taut, and his eyes anxiously searched her face.

Evy stared at him.
My father…Lord Anthony Brewster
.

“I won't ask you to forgive me, Evy. I don't ask anything of you, for I am keenly aware I don't deserve to.” He paced again, his shoulders stooping, then he threw them back and went on quietly, not looking at her, but at the carpet as he paced up and down.

“I loved Katie van Buren, and she loved me, but we knew Julien was against the marriage. For a time we planned to run away to America and marry and turn our back on diamonds and power…but Julien found out. He threatened me. Said if I went against his will that he would send me to prison. Yes…I stole diamonds from the mine when I was around seventeen…and I was afraid of Julien. Katie didn't know, and I didn't want her ever to find out. I was sent away to London to finish at the university and was taken into the Montieth family, where a relationship with Lady Camilla was arranged. I still saw Katie each summer, and she did not know about Camilla… I was unfair to Katie, but I told myself I couldn't give her up… I admit it was selfish and immature. I didn't know she was expecting a child when I returned to London one year later to work with Lord Montieth in the Parliament. Julien got in touch with me and told me not to return without Camilla… When I did go back, Katie had given birth to you, and Julien had already given you up for adoption to a missionary family serving at Rorke's Drift. I never saw Katie again.

“You know the rest of the story. Camilla never knew, and Julien was determined to make sure she never did. At first we expected children of our own, but when that didn't happen, Camilla grew quite unhappy. I approached Sir Julien several times with the idea of bringing you to Capetown and introducing you to Camilla, but he would have none of it.”

Julien, Julien, Julien
.

“Camilla learned from Inga that Katie van Buren had a child by me, but she could never be sure you were the mystery child until she came here to Rookswood. By then you were already a growing young lady, and she held back from telling you for several reasons. One of which was Sir Julien's presence. Another reason was a request from Grace Havering. She wrote to me several times through the years to ask that the secret remain. She begged Camilla when she was here not to tell you. Grace believed it would do you damage to know. I understand that she did tell you on her deathbed that Katie was your mother. By then Camilla was ill and confined to her room much of the time. She, too, thought it best to keep silent.”

And the silence remained as Evy sat there. She felt the pressure of Rogan's fingers on her shoulders.

“Was it the van Buren inheritance that kept Julien from letting the truth come out openly?” she asked. “He didn't want Katie to have an heir?”

“Yes. And the Brewsters. You're an heiress on two counts, Evy.”

“Three,” Rogan stated.

Anthony looked at him, and Evy turned her head. “Why three?”

“Because, darling, since returning to London, I've found out from my new lawyer, Mr. Billings, that Henry had also left half the gold deposit on his map to you. Some white diamonds as well. Billings is looking into the facts about how and why this escaped the old family lawyer, Mr. Scruggs. Scruggs died last month. He was eighty.” Rogan bent down and planted a kiss on her head. “And you could say you're an heiress on
four
counts, since you'll soon be Evy Chantry.”

Anthony had lapsed into melancholy silence. Could she forgive him? There was so much to forgive, and not just on his account, but also Julien's. How could she forgive such neglect, pain, and disappointment? And yet she knew that carrying such a heavy load of resentment would burden her and imperil the happiness that lay ahead with Rogan.

Could she forgive? Yes, as God's forgiving Spirit mended her heart and washed away the dark stains of the past, she could open her fists and let the anger of loss slip away. If she were to reach out to the future, she could do so only with hands that did not grasp the old hurts.

“I don't know about being a diamond and gold heiress,” she said quietly, “but today's treasure far outweighs the sacrifice and loss of the past.”

She got up from the chair and walked haltingly to where Anthony stood. “Knowing that I have a father today is a blessing I never dreamed I would realize. Let's leave all that's happened in the past and begin again.” Her eyes were moist, and so were his. They reached out at the same moment, and their fingers intertwined.

“Hello, Father. My name is Evy, and I'll be proud to be called your daughter.”

Tears suddenly coursed down his cheeks. He tried to speak, and when he could not, he threw his arms around her and wept.

In the happy days that followed, Evy wrote to Lady Camilla and thanked her for contacting Rogan at Fort Salisbury. “I look forward to seeing you again after these many years when I arrive with Lord Brewster—
my father
—and with Rogan. Rogan and I have our wedding day planned for a week before we sail for the Cape. I have gained so much in these last months—a father, a stepmother, and a husband. Truly God has been good to me. My health is also improving. Rogan has done so much to help me with special exercises. I am now able to get around with one crutch. Rogan insists I will walk on my own again someday.”

Evy also wrote to Arcilla to let her know they would soon be sisters by marriage. Arcilla sent a wire almost immediately after receiving the letter:

There had been no mention of Peter.

Even Lady Elosia had recovered from her shock and fainting spell to
actually show some enthusiasm for Rogan's wedding. Evy smiled to herself when she overheard Lady Elosia say to Mrs. Tisdale, “I always believed dear Evy was the perfect young woman for our Rogan. She will make him a far better wife than Lady Patricia. Such a temper! Tosh, the girl actually broke my French cherub—an heirloom, mind you. I cannot imagine dear Evy throwing things at Rogan. And he's so devoted to her. Such a handsome couple.”

There was more pleasant news. King's Knight was walking again, and Rogan believed he would be strong again in the next few months. Truly, as the days drew near, her wedding plans were turning brighter still. Wally's father, Harold, was building a modern carpenter shop on Grimmes Street. Beth and Mary Hooper were hanging up a homemade sign, which Wally had made, announcing their Hooper Detective Agency. Mrs. Hooper was even permitting the twins to have Wally over for an afternoon tea. And Wally told her that Digger had a new blue collar and a large bone from Gifford's meat shop.

Only one dark cloud remained on the horizon, foreshadowing events of the future. Anthony—her father—had told them at breakfast one morning that Scotland Yard had been unable to locate Heyden. Prevailing opinion was that he had somehow managed to get out of England by private ship and sail to Scotland. From there, Rogan believed he would return to South Africa. Evy feared they might cross paths with Heyden again.

The mystery concerning the whereabouts of the Black Diamond continued. The murder of Henry and perhaps even Vicar Edmund had as yet gone unpunished. Rogan, she knew, was determined to find Heyden in South Africa and bring him to justice. The idea was frightening, but she did not care to burden herself with it now. Today the sun was shining. She wanted to relish these happy times as much as possible.

At last Evy's wedding day arrived. She had ordered her wedding dress from London. It was of white satin and lace, and her veil trailed behind her, carried in procession by the Hooper twins. When Evy looked upon Rogan, her heart throbbed with joy and passion at the
young man to be her bridegroom. The ceremony took place at the parish chapel, and the entire village turned out for the joyous celebration. Even old Miss Armitage, now in her late eighties, showed up.

“I always told you to watch that scoundrel,” she told Evy. “And now you've gone and married him.”

Evy laughed, and then Rogan came up and led her away as her beautiful long dress masked her limp. With his strong arms for support, she was suddenly lighter. She found she was dancing the first waltz as though she had no need of crutches ever again. She had sprouted wings, and heaven was smiling down upon her.

Mrs. Croft looked on, beaming with as much pride as if Evy were her own granddaughter. She would be going with Evy and Rogan to Capetown. Adventure awaited them. Mrs. Croft said she was coming to keep them all out of trouble.

Evy looked up into Rogan's dark eyes as he smiled down at her. “You are beautiful, my dear Mrs. Chantry. Are you ready for our adventurous life in South Africa?”

I love you
, her eyes told him. “With you, darling, and with God directing our paths, I am as ready as I can be.”

He drew her closer, his embrace protective, his gaze warm and promising. “You're everything I want, Evy. With you, my life is just beginning. You're the one treasure that fills my heart. In all our days it will always be so.”

Evy's heart sang in harmony with his.
God be with us
, she prayed.
In all our days
.

Dear Reader,

Writers who enjoy researching history generally accumulate more information than can be incorporated into a novel. I have, therefore, found it practical to choose certain events from a rich and varied time period which were particularly representative but which did not always fall into a chronology. In
Yesterday's Promise
, I was able to condense into a manageable period some of the key events of history which shaped the struggle to form the nation called Rhodesia.

Rogan Chantry and others are now able to take us into South Africa's color and controversy, and though the time period is condensed, the history I have incorporated into the East of the Sun trilogy is accurate, the historical individuals are genuine, and the fictional lead players are representative of the times in which this novel takes place.