The Sapphire Child (The Raj Hotel #2) - Janet MacLeod Trotter Page 0,31

have work to do,’ he said. ‘I’ll leave you ladies to talk in peace.’

As he went, Tibby said, ‘Tell me what is troubling you.’

‘Andrew confided in me about something else Gotley said, but made me promise that I wouldn’t tell his parents. He knew his father would be very hurt by it, but it preyed on his mind. It was about Esmie, you see.’

‘Esmie?’ Tibby queried.

Stella nodded.

Tibby touched her arm. ‘You wouldn’t be breaking your promise if you confided in me – but I shan’t force you if you’d rather not.’

Suddenly Stella longed to unburden herself to this kind woman.

‘It’s all been so upsetting for the Lomaxes,’ she said. ‘First Andrew being thrown out of school and then his mother blaming them for neglecting him and demanding that Andrew be sent to her for the summer.’ When Tibby gave her a nod to continue, Stella said, ‘I overheard them arguing about it – whether to allow Andrew to come to Ebbsmouth at all. I don’t think they trust Andrew’s mother not to turn him against them. For some reason they think she’ll say things that they don’t want Andrew to find out about.’

‘What sort of things?’ asked Tibby.

‘Something about their relationship.’ Stella shrugged.

After a pause, Tibby asked gently, ‘What was said about Esmie that made Andrew so upset?’

Stella sighed. ‘Awful things. Gotley called her a . . . a terrible name. The worst name you can give a woman.’ She dropped her voice to a whisper. ‘He called her a whore.’

‘How distressing,’ said Tibby. ‘Why would he say such a thing?’

Stella blushed as she repeated the words. ‘He said Esmie was Mr Lomax’s mistress – that they weren’t properly married and were living a sinful life. But I told Andy that was nonsense and that of course they were married.’

Tibby said nothing. She opened her cigarette case but then closed it again.

Stella went on. ‘I remember them coming back married after a trip to Delhi about the time he started school in Murree. Then they went back to Kashmir to start running The Raj-in-the-Hills.’

Tibby was staring out to sea. Stella waited for her to agree. Tibby cleared her throat and met Stella’s questioning look. Her eyes were full of sadness.

‘Tom and Esmie may live as man and wife,’ she said quietly, ‘but they aren’t married. They can’t be. Tom is still tied to Lydia.’

Stella gaped at her. ‘What do you mean, tied to Lydia?’

‘She won’t give him a divorce. I don’t want to speak ill of my sister-in-law but she has been very cruel to Tommy. I think it’s because she still wants to have a hold over him and deny him what he wants most of all – to be married to Esmie.’

Stella was shocked. ‘How awful,’ she said.

Tibby nodded. ‘And so unkind to her friend Esmie too. They used to be as close as sisters – went to school together. Did you know that Esmie saved Lydia’s life when she was kidnapped by Pathans?’

‘I don’t know all the details,’ said Stella, ‘but years ago the baroness – one of the residents at the Raj – showed me a newspaper article about Esmie being a heroine in the rescue.’

‘She certainly was. Esmie risked everything to lead an expedition into tribal territory to find Lydia and bring her to safety. And on top of that, my brother had to put up with Lydia’s philandering with a cavalry officer. She was trying to run off with him when she got kidnapped – left baby Andrew behind without a second thought.’ She grew more heated. ‘I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Lydia was behind the rumours about Tommy and Esmie not being married. From what I gather, she’s still in touch with the gossips of Pindi. If she knows that Esmie is living openly with my brother and posing as his wife, and she almost certainly does, then she’ll be terribly jealous.’

Tibby pulled up a handful of grass in agitation; her cheeks were red with indignation.

Stella was appalled by Lydia’s callous behaviour. ‘I should have told Esmie what Gotley had said about her to Andy – given her the chance to explain things properly to him before he left.’ She looked at Tibby in distress. ‘What if Andrew hears about it from Lydia?’

Tibby grabbed Stella’s hand. ‘None of this is your fault. You kept your word to Andrew. I can understand my brother’s frustration at not being able to marry Esmie – but by not being honest about their true relationship