Rosie decreed that the hat must be emerald green. It really was rather enchanting and everyone agreed that it suited me admirably. There was an ostrich feather—half green, half cream, which shaded my eyes.
“Perfect!” cried Jago.
“Yes,” agreed Rosie. “You are right.”
Rosie wanted to give me the hat as a present, but Olivia insisted on paying for it. When I saw the price I was a little alarmed. I was clearly not rich enough to shop at Rosie’s establishment.
I said I must pay for the hat myself, although I should be impoverished for some time to come; but at last Olivia won the day. She wanted to give me a present, she said, and would be very hurt if I did not accept this hat which was clearly meant for me.
Before we left I had a word with Rosie.
“I’d like to talk to you … sometime,” she said.
“Oh … what about?”
“Something … Could you come alone?”
“Is there something wrong?”
She lifted her shoulders. “I’d like to talk … all the same,” she said enigmatically.
I said I would make sure of seeing her again before I went back to Cornwall.
We went back to the house.
Olivia asked Jago if he would care to stay for luncheon and he accepted with enthusiasm.
Two days later the christening took place. It was a solemn and moving occasion. Naturally Aunt Imogen was present and she was quite affable to me though somewhat aloof. I felt a new responsibility. This little child was my goddaughter.
I was so proud and went out and paid more than I could afford for a silver porringer on which I had her initials engraved.
I spent a good deal of time in the nursery. I think Nanny Loman found me rather a nuisance but she bore with me patiently because no doubt she thought I should not be there long; but Olivia was delighted with my interest in her baby.
“It makes me very happy,” she said. “I feel safer now. If anything happened to me you’d be there to look after Livia.”
“What do you mean … if anything happened to you?”
“Well, if I wasn’t here.”
“But why shouldn’t you be here? You’re not likely to pass over Livia to her doting godmother, are you?”
“I mean if I wasn’t here …”
“If you were to die, you mean?”
“Yes, that.”
“My dear Olivia, look at you! Plump, revelling in married life … with a doting husband and a perfect baby … what are you talking about?”
“I know I’ve got all that … but it just occurred to me.”
“That’s like you, Olivia. You’re always afraid good things won’t last for you. I thought you’d got over that.”
“I have. Life is good. But I was just thinking … that was all. Forget I said it.”
I kissed her.
“It’s done me a lot of good to see you, Olivia. Things have worked out well for you and you deserve all the happiness there is. May you always be as happy as you are now.”
“I’d like you to be happy too, Caroline,” she said wistfully. “Jago is very attractive. I think he likes you.”
“He does … along with the entire female population that is not too old or ill-favoured.”
“You are cynical.”
“It suits me to be.”
“Your time will come.”
I patted her hand. I thought the conversation was drifting towards danger.
I said: “I shall have to think of going fairly soon.”
“Stay,” she begged; and I said I would for a few more days.
I did go to see Rosie. I was determined to do that. Ethel knew me now and I was taken straight to Rosie’s room.
She greeted me warmly. She made me sit down and once more she sent for wine.
She talked a little while before getting down to the reason why she had asked me to come.
She had progressed rapidly since she had seen me, and she had been moderately comfortably off then. She had told me that Robert Tressidor had been obliged to help her to independence, but that was not good enough for Rosie Rundall or Rosie Russell. She had had good friends. They had invested for her. They were men who really knew what they were doing and her capital had increased. She had had a gentleman friend who had advised her and helped to set her up in business.
“No strings for Rosie,” she said. “I wanted everything my way and in time I bought him out. This is my empire now. I’ve another place like this one … or almost. Not quite as grand yet, but that’ll come and I’ve got plans for another. Dresses as well as hats … accessories and things.”
“Rosie, you have genius!”
“Not me. I’ve got loads of common sense though. Oh … and something else … energy. I say to myself, ‘You’re going to do this, Rosie. No matter how hard it is, you’re going to pull it off.’ And then I have to. It’s the way I’ve always worked.”
“I am so pleased for you. Do you ever see any of the people who were in the house when you were a parlourmaid?”
“Oh yes. I keep in touch. That’s how I know what I know. I have other sources though. In the beginning I had to keep a few things dark —just till I got going. Then I thought, To hell with it. I’m myself and that’s what I’m going to be. Where I am nobody’s going to pull me down. Oh yes, I prefer to keep in touch with the people I knew in my less comfortable days. That’s how I get to know what’s what.”
“What do you know?”
She hesitated. “I wondered whether I should talk about this. I’m not sure. I don’t know what can be done about it either.”
“What are you trying to tell me, Rosie?”
“Well, Robert Tressidor must have left Miss Olivia well off.”
“He did. Most of the money went to her.”
“There were charities and things. They got a good share.”
“Yes, they did. But Olivia had the bulk. She is quite rich, of course, and she has the house and the house in the country. She runs a big household … just about the same, I imagine, as when her father was alive.”
“Well, I have friends. They come and see me now and then. I’m the sort who’s been able to keep my friends. I always liked the independent life. Some of those jaunts of mine I used to enjoy but most of them were a matter of business. I don’t need that sort of business now. Sometimes I have a steady gentleman friend … but it doesn’t mean all that much to me. What I was saying I have kept a lot of my friends and that’s how I hear things.”
“It’s not like you to take so long to get to the point, Rosie.”
“I know. I’m just wondering. I don’t want to put a word out of turn. I could be quite wrong. Well, the fact is, that husband of your sister’s … he’s playing the tables pretty recklessly. I heard that he’d got to be pretty rich to keep up that sort of play.”
“Oh … I see,” I said blankly.
“I know what can be lost in some of those clubs in a night. It’s a mug’s game. I couldn’t speak to Miss Olivia about it. I thought you might be the one to mention it.”
“It’s a horrible situation. Jeremy Brandon … gambling her fortune away. What will become of Olivia?”
“I don’t suppose it would get all that bad. She may have money of her own which he can’t touch.”
“He’d get round Olivia. She couldn’t keep anything back from him. I feel rather alarmed.”
“It may be only a rumour.”
“What can / do about it, Rosie?”
“I don’t know. I wondered if you might speak to him.”
“Me! Speak to him! You know what happened between us.”
“He threw you over when he knew there was no money. I reckon he’s a real gambler.”
“I couldn’t bear it if anything went wrong for Olivia. She’s so happy.”
“Well, perhaps it’s one of those storms in a teacup. I just thought I’d put you in the picture.”