Miss Winbolt and the Fortune Hunter

But then he said, ‘But we’ve talked enough about me. These trees are truly splendid specimens. Are they oaks?’

‘Oaks? N…no! They are lime trees, I believe. There are one or two oaks scattered about the grounds, but they’ve been used as specimen trees.’

‘I saw a splendid old oak the other day. But sadly, it had lost one of its major branches.’

‘Oh?’

Sir William laughed. ‘In fact, I met one of your brother’s men there. A Will Darby. Do you know him?’

He knows, thought Emily. I’m sure he knows. But she suppressed any hint of fear and said calmly, ‘Of course I know him. He’s one of the grooms. Have you seen enough of the trees, sir? I think I’ve shown you the best of them.’

‘He warned me about a dangerous bull that was kept in the field where the oak grew.’

Emily put on a puzzled frown, then said, ‘Ah, yes! I think I know the one you mean. That would be Farmer Pritchard’s bull. Black Samson. Shall we turn back now?’

They turned and started to walk back towards the gate to the gardens. But her tormentor was not to be put off. ‘Of course I already knew about the bull,’ he went on. ‘I had seen it before when I was last in Stoke Shearings.’

This time the twinkle in his eye was even more marked. Was he playing some sort of cat-and-mouse game with her? Emily felt a spurt of anger. She was not about to weaken. She must keep her head and marshal her wits.

‘You’ve been here before? I can’t remember meeting you…?’

He went on, ‘I had a walk along the stream through the valley when I was last here, too. It’s a beautiful spot. You know it?’

Emily nodded.

‘Very steep sides to it, of course. I would have called on your brother, while I was staying in the village, but lost my way during the day, and…’ Emily stiffened. He shook his head and went on apologetically, ‘With one thing and another, by the time I got back to the inn it was too late.’

‘Really?’ she said with admirable indifference.

Her adversary was not deterred. He said, ‘I wish I had made the time now.’

The meaning was plain and she decided that this was the moment to stall him. ‘I am sure my brother would have made you very welcome, Sir William,’ she said primly. ‘So would my sister-in-law.’

‘And you?’

She gave him a smile full of insincere regret. ‘Alas, I was not here at the time. I…I was with my g-grandfather in London.’ She shouldn’t have added that last bit. She had stammered. Rosa had always said that she wasn’t a good liar.

The silence grew. ‘Now that does surprise me,’ he said at last.

‘Why?’ Emily asked with a touch of belligerence.

‘Because…’ He regarded her with amusement as she lifted her chin. Then he went on, ‘Because London would have been so crowded at that time of year. The middle of June, wasn’t it?’

‘No, the middle of May.’

‘Oh, yes. So it was. How did you know?’

‘How should I not know when I pay visits to my grandfather, Sir William?’

‘Quite! But how did you know that it was May when I was in the district?’

They had reached the gate at the end of the trees. Emily had never been so thankful in her life to reach a simple gate. ‘My sister-in-law will be wondering where we are,’ she said and hurried through, deliberately letting the heavy gate swing to behind her. It must have hurt when it hit him, but apart from a swiftly drawn breath he gave no sign, and soon caught up with her again. They were just by the entrance to the maze and she attempted to hurry past. He took her arm and stopped her flight.

‘But, Miss Winbolt! Isn’t this the entrance to the famous Shearings maze? You can’t have forgotten that Mrs Winbolt particularly wished me to see it. She would surely be disappointed if I said I hadn’t even ventured inside. Shall we go in?’

‘Oh, but I…’ Without quite knowing how he did it, Emily found herself being led into the maze, where they were soon surrounded by a high wall of hedges. But, she thought grimly, if Sir William Ashenden thought she was about to wander idly through the maze with him, he would find he was mistaken. The situation was far too dangerous for her peace of mind. She knew the maze inside out and had every intention of losing him as soon as she could. Within minutes she had taken a swift turn to the right, then another, then hurried along to the left. Slightly out of breath, she stopped and looked round. There was no sign of him. She waited a moment or two, then, smiling with satisfaction, she turned a corner to make her way out. Sir William was there, sitting on a bench that had been placed to rest the weary at the centre of the maze.

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