Page 12 of A Sense of Paradise
‘Very well.’ Pamela settled back into her chair. ‘Provided I am not keeping you from anything.’
‘I will let you into a little secret,’ Flora replied, leaning forward and speaking in the sort of mischievous whisper that she had never imagined employing with her straightlaced sister. ‘I am now my own mistress and if I choose to idle the time away, doing nothing other than pleasing myself, then I am at liberty to do so. Are you terribly shocked?’
‘I am envious, Flora. Mr Janson is as assiduous as Papa in ensuring that his wife is never without occupation.’
‘Stand up for yourself, Pamela. All the time you allow him to bully you—’
‘He doesn’t bully, not precisely.’
‘Well, I don’t intend to argue the point but I saw the manner in which Papa wore Mama down over the years and I suspect that Mr Janson does the same to you by expressing disappointment if your behaviour does not match up to his exacting standards. Just forge your own path. He will respect you more if you do, and I know you will not neglect your duties as a vicar’s wife.’
‘I will try,’ Pamela said, looking dubious. ‘But I am not like you. You have modern views whereas I…’
‘You think that your husband has ultimate responsibility for your conduct and that you should not be permitted to have thoughts and aspirations of your own. That is very sad.’
‘Well, I shall try to exert myself a little more. If I can secure a good position for Mr Janson then he will have to respect me for that.’
‘He should respect you regardless. You are his wife, the mother of his unborn child.’
Pamela fiddled with her gloves. ‘Yes, well…’
‘How are Nora and Judith? I am sorry that their prospects have taken a downward turn following our father’s disgrace. None of it is their fault.’
‘They have both moved to Hampshire with our parents and won’t hear a word said against them. As things stand there is nothing you can do to help them, but perhaps that situation will change in time.’ Pamela paused. ‘Papa is determined not to remain in disgraced seclusion for long. He is plotting something, although I could not tell you what. It’s just the odd thing I have overheard when I visit. He says he still has influential friends upon whom he can depend.’
‘I dare say that he does. He has never named the so-called gentlemen who attended his exorcisms and abused the poor person who was supposedly being rid of the devil, but you can safely assume that he has damning evidence of their participation. Something in writing, I expect. People are incredibly lax about that sort of thing. Anyway, if Papa assumes that he can depend upon them to restore his position within ecclesiastical circles then he is playing a dangerous game. If he attempts to manipulate them, he may not live long enough to enjoy his return to favour. The aristocracy are brutal when it comes to protecting their own.’
Pamela shuddered. ‘Funnily enough, I had reached the same conclusion.’
Their conversation was interrupted as Melanie burst into the room, her sky blue skirt rustling because she had yet to learn how to walk decorously. Part of Flora hoped that she never would.
‘Flora, you will never guess…Oh, I’m sorry, I did not…Pamela, is that you?’ Melanie stood stock still and blinked at her sister. ‘I would not have known you. You look very distinguished.’
‘And you look radiant,’ Pamela replied, smiling. Melanie glanced at Flora, obviously as flummoxed by the change in Pamela’s attitude as Flora herself was. ‘Living here clearly agrees with you.’
‘Oh, it does. How is Mr Janson?’ Melanie sat herself on the settee beside Flora and Zeus immediately removed himself from Flora’s knee and transferred himself to Melanie’s.
‘Traitor!’ Flora said, laughing. ‘As to Pamela, you and I will soon be aunts.’
‘Oh, how lovely.’ But Melanie still looked a little dubious.
‘Well, I really must be getting along.’ Pamela stood and pulled on her gloves. ‘Don’t forget what we talked about, Flora, and I hope to hear from you soon.’
‘You will.’
Flora rang the bell and this time Polly answered it and showed their visitor out.
‘What was that all about?’ Melanie asked, staring after Pamela’s departing form. ‘Has our sister developed a sociable disposition? It hardly seems credible.’
‘There are stranger things in heaven and earth,’ Flora replied, smiling as she misquoted Hamlet.
Chapter Four
Archie would ordinarily have taken to his bed after over-reaching himself physically, but Flora had made him realise that particular instinct was counter-productive. Why had not all the expensive so-called experts he had employed during the course of his long convalescence made him realise that inactivity simply reinforced his disability?
On the day after the wedding he divided his time between his steam room and swimming in the river that cut through his estate, fighting through the pain. The heat and exercise combined to ease his injured leg and hip, even though the cure made him curse like a sailor through gritted teeth. Pawson was required to drag him from the river when he had swum to the point of exhaustion.
‘Worth it, was it?’ Pawson asked as he dried Archie off after a hot bath and smoothed on the ointments that Flora had made up with her herbs to soften the scar tissue. Archie himself could hardly bear to look at the ugly scars, and only Pawson was permitted to see them.
