Chapter 6 #2
There was gruff muttering and then footsteps.
Thea didn’t know where to put herself – she hadn’t considered that Herbert might be at home, let alone how he would react to finding a duchess in his back garden.
She slipped behind some bean poles and held her breath until she heard the footsteps receding.
Gingerly, she turned to leave, but then heard a voice behind her.
‘What are you doing in here?’ She froze.
‘Ah. Hello.’ She turned and looked down into the frowning face of Frankie.
‘Duchess?’ Frankie looked confused and not awfully pleased.
‘Your… never mind.’ She gave up on the title. ‘I was just…’
‘What are you doing here?’ Frankie said again.
‘Ah…’ Thea wasn’t used to being spoken to like this, but felt caught off guard and wasn’t sure why.
‘My friend is with Doctor Speckle for her… for a tincture, and I thought… I’ll just go.
I can see it’s a bad time.’ She turned but an arm caught hers.
It was unheard of to be touched by a commoner.
Too astonished to react, Thea looked at Frankie’s hand, then back at Frankie, who didn’t seem to care.
‘Come and see,’ she said. ‘While she gets her piles sorted.’
Thea faltered. ‘How did you know it was…?’
‘Kit asked for Datura leaf and Echinops stem earlier. That’s his most recent idea for piles. Came from Ethiopia.’
Thea followed Frankie’s hasty, short strides as she struggled to keep up with the gait and the conversation. ‘Is it safe?’
Frankie shrugged. ‘Let’s see how your friend is later.
’ She turned with a cheeky grin that would rival one of Harriet’s and led Thea to a little terrace with two wooden chairs and a table at the north edge of the garden.
Frankie bypassed the comfort of a seat in the late summer sun and motioned to a plant in a large pot flanking the cobbles.
She said nothing but looked at Thea intently.
Thea understood that she was being tested.
She looked from Frankie to the plant and back.
The gardener who had first touched her, and now was challenging her, presumably at plant identification.
Her eyes narrowed a little in acceptance of the task, and she peered closely at the yellow flowers and pinnate foliage.
‘Cassia?’ she asked. Frankie nodded. ‘Not easy to flower,’ said Thea, wondering if Frankie was just looking for compliments. She’d lost hers last year when Elton had forgotten to take it inside during the cold London season.
‘Not hard, but look more carefully,’ said Frankie. Thea stepped closer and did as instructed, noticing a thin, green pod emerging from a short stalk on the stem.
‘It’s seeding,’ she exclaimed with pleasure, and turned back to the gardener.
‘It is,’ was all Frankie said, but she crossed her arms and beamed. It lit up her face with a joy Thea hadn’t seen in her until now. Thea took a step towards her.
‘That is unheard of,’ she said, keen to nurture Frankie’s joy. For some reason, she felt privileged to be allowed to see it.
‘So I understand,’ said Frankie – not arrogantly, but with an air of self-confidence Thea wished she possessed herself.
‘You know this has been cultivated for some time in England,’ said Thea. ‘First by the Duchess of Beaufort on the Badminton estate.’ This sparked Frankie’s attention. ‘She was one of the great growers of the last century but only flowered it. There was no seed.’
‘Good for her,’ said Frankie, looking pleased.
‘And good for you,’ said Thea. She eyed the still smiling Frankie, wondering why she had been let into the secret.
‘I didn’t think many people had,’ said Frankie.
‘But Mr Gordon wasn’t sure.’ Then Thea realised that while Frankie might be excellent at her craft, her knowledge of the wider growing world was limited.
Thea had access to anyone she wanted, even if they didn’t value her contribution.
She felt a strange pride that she had been able to offer a little insight and sought to nurture their connection.
‘Would you tell me how you did it?’ she asked.
Frankie nodded, but her eyes darted round the garden.
‘Shall we have a seat?’ asked Thea, gesturing at the table and chairs in front of them.
Frankie looked horrified. ‘Herbert wouldn’t like that.’
‘He did seem a little… out of sorts,’ said Thea, choosing her words carefully. ‘But surely you are allowed a sit down?’
‘Not on these chairs,’ said Frankie. ‘And only twice a day.’ Thea raised an eyebrow, feeling a little surge of rebellion.
‘Then I shall insist that you sit with me, and he can deal with The Duchess of Hartford if he dares.’ She injected just enough haughtiness into her voice to make Frankie grin.
They both sat, and Frankie told her all about the cultivation of the Cassia, the mix it was planted in and its careful positioning near a warm wall on a southern aspect.
‘Frankie!’ came a shout as Frankie was outlining the quantity of bonemeal she had applied in August. ‘Where the devil are…’ Herbert must have spied her, and Frankie shot to her feet.
‘What the hell are you doing? If I’ve told you once I’ve told you–’ the voice stopped as Herbert rounded the corner, hand outstretched as if to take Frankie by the collar.
‘Oh. Your Grace,’ he acknowledged, with anything but grace, Thea thought.
She stood and drew herself up to her full height, for once keen to demonstrate her rank.
‘My apologies, Dr Herbert,’ she said politely.
‘I had asked Frankie to sit with me and she refused until I absolutely insisted. I was too keen to hear about the Cassia which I am excited to see is seeding.’ She and Frankie shared a knowing glance, and that little bit of rebellion inside her grew.
Dr Herbert looked from her to the yellow plant.
‘I should prefer her to concentrate on plants of consequence to medicine,’ he said, before turning back to Thea.
‘Whilst it is a delight to see you, Your Grace, I trust you have taken all of my gardener’s time that you need?
’ She understood that she was being dismissed, and while she could have asserted her status, she had made her point and wished to cause no further problems for either Frankie or Speckle.
She nodded her assent and then turned her back on him, throwing Frankie a wink.
She saw Frankie smile before Dr Herbert flicked his head in the direction of the glasshouses.
‘There is dirt on the path by the pool.’ Frankie scurried away without a backward glance.
‘Your Grace,’ he said again, nodding at Thea before guiding her back down the path towards the house.