On the sixth morning after the fateful telephone call, Flora was awoken from a drugged sleep by a tap-tapping on the window. She raised her head and saw a baby thrush that must have fallen out of its nest in the old chestnut tree by the window. The ledge had saved its fall, but in its hysteria, it was in danger of toppling off as it hopped about and squawked for its mother.
‘Coming, little one,’ she whispered, as she carefully opened the window and managed to take the tiny thing into her hands. ‘There, there,’ Flora crooned to it. ‘You’re safe now. We’ll get a ladder and have you back with your mother in no time.’ With the bird cupped in her hands, she walked downstairs to the kitchen, where Teddy and Louise were sitting together at the table.
‘Mother, you’re up! I was just about to bring you some tea,’ Louise said.
‘Never mind that. This poor little thing has fallen from the nest in the chestnut tree. Teddy, can you get a ladder so I can climb up and put it back before it dies of shock?’
‘Of course, Mother.’
Louise looked at Teddy, who winked at his sister as he stood up. ‘She’ll be all right now,’ he mouthed as he left the kitchen to follow his mother outside.
The funeral took place in the church on the estate and was well attended by villagers, friends and family. Archie had been a popular and well-respected figure locally, and Flora sat between her two children, smiling through her tears at the eulogies delivered by his RAF colleagues from both wars. During the service, Flora dug deep for every ounce of strength and courage she possessed. Her week of solitary mourning had at least allowed the torrent of grief to pour out of her and, in turn, she was now able to support her children in their own pain. Her life – or at least, her main source of happiness – may have been curtailed forever. But her children still had theirs to live. And she would not let them down.
The day after the funeral, Mr Saunders, the family solicitor, paid her a call. After the normal round of condolences, they got down to business.
‘You may be aware that Lord Vaughan has not rewritten his will since 1921,’ began Mr Saunders, taking a neat pile of papers out of his ancient leather briefcase. ‘I am presuming that he still wished the estate to go to his son, Teddy?’
‘I . . . can only presume so,’ said Flora, feeling a guilt-induced band close tightly across her chest.
‘Then I will set the wheels in motion to transfer such as discussed into Teddy’s name. Sadly, as there is no legal document to grant you a home on the High Weald estate, I must also advise you that it is within your son’s legal rights to, er, turn you out. Not that he would do that, I’m sure, but I have known such situations to occur before.’
‘I will speak to Teddy about his wishes,’ said Flora tightly. ‘I am sure that we can resolve it between us. I have only one question for you, Mr Saunders: if my sister Aurelia had only given birth to Louise – in other words, a female – or if Teddy had died in the war,’ she added quietly, ‘what would have happened then?’
‘Well now, things would get complicated. We would firstly search for a male heir to the estate. And, on finding none, Louise would almost certainly have been granted a tenure of High Weald until such time as she produced a son. When he came of age, he would inherit both the lands and the hereditary peerage. If she had given birth to a daughter, that daughter would be granted the same tenure until a male heir was produced. Unless, of course, one of Lord Vaughan’s sister’s daughters produced a male before her. Et cetera, et cetera.’
‘I see.’
‘As you might have gathered, we can only thank the heavens that there is a direct male heir.’ He gave a dry chuckle. ‘I know numerous families who are bereft of one, due to the two wars devastating generations of fathers and sons. You are lucky, Lady Vaughan. The true bloodline can still continue at High Weald, when many families in a similar situation have not been granted the same easy transition.’
‘I wonder, Mr Saunders, whether it would be possible to at least give Louise a portion of the estate? She is soon to be married, and her husband is not a rich man. As a woman myself,’ Flora said carefully, ‘I do not feel that the fact she is female should preclude some form of claim on her family estate. Especially as she is Teddy’s twin.’
‘I agree, Lady Vaughan. The rules on such a thing are archaic and I only hope that, in the fullness of time, women will have an equal right to both land and titles. However, I am afraid that this will now be a matter for your son to decide. I’m sad to say that neither of you have any jurisdiction over what happens to the High Weald estate. It is irritating indeed that your husband did not live to rewrite his will. You must now fall on the mercy of your son. And so must his sister.’
‘Thank you for your advice, Mr Saunders. No doubt you will be in touch with me and Teddy.’
‘From now on, all communication from me will bypass your good self and go directly to Teddy,’ replied Mr Saunders as he stowed away his papers in his briefcase. ‘Once again, my condolences for your loss. Your late husband was a very good man. Let us hope his son can be a worthy successor to his legacy. Good day to you, Lady Vaughan.’ With a deep sigh that indicated the gossip about Teddy must have spread across the neighbourhood, Mr Saunders took his leave.
Flora sat where she was, staring through the window into a garden that would no longer be under her watch. And realised that Archie, through noble intentions at the time, had as good as signed away Louise’s genuine claim through her bloodline. And despite his recent murmurings of Teddy’s unsuitability to the role of taking over High Weald as his heir, there was absolutely nothing to be done without exposing Archie’s original deception.
She was at least grateful that she had had the sense to keep the majority of her inheritance from her real father in secure investments, originally with the advice and help of Sir Ernest Cassel. In the years since, she had taken a knowledgeable interest in stocks and shares and her funds had weathered the ups and downs of the volatile financial markets well. In short, she was a wealthy woman.
And Home Farm itself was already in the process of being transferred into Rupert and Louise’s names. Archie had signed the authorisation for the transfer of deeds, ready for the young couple to move into after their wedding in August. Surely Teddy could not object to that?
Flora knew that the fact that she could even consider he might only underlined the gravity of the situation.
She sat down that night with Teddy and Louise and related the conversation she’d had with Mr Saunders. She watched Teddy’s expression carefully, and was comforted to see vestiges of both grief and relief.
‘Well, Rupert and I will be extremely happy over at Home Farm,’ Louise said brightly. ‘It’s a sweet place and I’m sure that we can make it homely.’