Chapter 26 #2
The hand’s glorious progress halted abruptly as another knock sounded on the door. They looked at one another in alarm.
‘Who on earth?’ mouthed Martha. Thea shrugged.
‘Maybe Mrs Phibbs again?’ She whispered, before scooting herself up. They couldn’t be found like this. ‘I’ll go and check.’
She hopped out of the side of the bed, grabbed her own robe from the rail and slid it around her shoulders before positioning herself at the back of the door. Another knock sounded, startling her. Usually, Mrs Phibbs would say something to make her presence known.
‘Mrs Phibbs?’ she asked, a little loudly. To her horror, the door began to open. Reflexively she placed a foot behind it to halt its progress.
‘Just me,’ came a sing-song voice from the corridor. She relaxed a little. It was Cecily.
‘Ah Cecily,’ she said to one of her hostess’s eyes through the small gap in the door. ‘I was just about in bed and–’
‘Oh, are you not decent?’ asked Cecily, the half of her face Thea could see dropping. ‘I just thought I would check that you were alright.’ She paused. ‘After earlier. I think it is my place as hostess and I didn’t want anybody going to bed out of sorts.’
‘I’m fine, thank you,’ said Thea, relieved it might be this easy to dissuade their friend. ‘My apologies for the small outburst, but Mrs Fairclough and I are quite made up.’
Cecily nodded, but the half of her face didn’t move. ‘I know I shouldn’t say it, but she was quite inappropriate. She is only threatened by your cleverness.’
Thea snorted a quiet laugh. ‘I don’t think…’ but Cecily went on, her voice becoming a little quieter.
‘She is. And she was very rude to you, I thought. Mrs Henry told her so herself. Anyway,’ she brightened. ‘I thought it might be nice to make the most of the pleasant company while you are all here.’
‘Well,’ said Thea, glancing over at Martha who had sat up and covered herself up with the sheets. ‘I am decent I suppose, but–’
‘Excellent.’ While Thea’s attention was distracted by Martha, Cecily pushed her way in.
‘Perhaps we can have a nighttime tot or two?’ She held up a decanter of a liquid that Thea saw glint amber in the candlelight.
She suspected whisky. Cecily placed the container and two glasses on the dresser and then saw the set up on the table.
‘Oh, but I see you’re already set with tea.
’ She turned to look at Thea, now standing by the bed, and Thea saw her blink as her eyes travelled to Martha in the bed.
‘Oh.’ She said.
‘Ah,’ said Thea, trying to think quickly. Cecily looked between them, and Thea could almost hear her brain trying to make sense of the scene. Thankfully Martha was quicker.
‘I came in for Thea’s help in identifying a sample I saw today in the garden,’ she said sounding calmer than Thea knew she must be.
‘And I got a little cold so we thought we might do a little reading in bed, as Thea was already in her nightclothes. Mrs Jenkins brought us some tea from your kitchen, and we are most grateful.’
Cecily blinked at her, and for an awful moment Thea thought she wasn’t fooled. But then a smile cracked her face.
‘Well, I’m not surprised you’re cold!’ she exclaimed, trotting to the side of the bed and bending down. ‘You dropped your robe.’
‘So I did,’ said Martha with a forced chuckle, taking the garment from Cecily’s outstretched hand and putting it round her shoulders. ‘Much better.’ Cecily nodded her pleasure.
‘Now I do think I must join you in your research as we had such fun before when we did plants in Scarborough, didn’t we, and oh I do long for those times.
I’ll serve, shall I, and then we shall have a look.
’ As she turned to the teapot and began to pour, Thea glanced at Martha.
She saw the same sadness there as she felt, at this glimpse of the old, excitable Cecily who could be enthusiastic about people and plants, rather than weighed down by her terrible husband and responsibilities.
They shared a gentle smile of agreement before Thea quietly retrieved James Hill’s Exotic Botany from her trunk, placing it on the bed and hoping that Cecily didn’t notice it was a new addition to the scene.
‘A tot in them both?’ asked Cecily as she poured. She indicated the decanter on the table.
‘Yes please,’ they both said at once. Cecily delivered one tea to Martha and the other to the side table at Thea’s side of the bed.
‘I’ll just have it straight, I think.’ She poured herself a glass and then jumped into bed beside Martha.
The timbers creaked alarmingly, and Martha shot Thea a look of wary amusement.
‘Come on then, Your Grace,’ she said to Thea with a glowing smile, patting the bed next to her until Thea began to climb in, wrapping the robe more tightly around her.
‘Well, isn’t this fun!’, exclaimed Cecily, bouncing a little on the mattress out of her girlish excitement. ‘You two never fail to cheer me up. What are we looking at?’
She peered at the book on Martha’s lap as she settled down under the covers between the two of them, oblivious to what she had interrupted. Martha set down her tea stiffly and opened the book as Cecily leaned towards her to look more closely.
Suddenly Thea was alarmed as Martha almost jumped off the mattress and made a noise that sounded quite like ‘ahahoo!’ She stared at Cecily, and Thea stared at Martha.
Cecily’s giggle filled the room.
‘Sorry,’ she said, ‘cold hands I know. Although if you are a little chilly, Lady Foxmore, I do think you might consider wearing drawers.’