Unforgettable (Gloria Cook) - By Gloria Cook Page 0,19
give Mrs Mitchelmore more time to concentrate on all her happily self-imposed war work.
Mrs Mitchelmore had bristled with indignation. ‘Burden? I’ve never found anything in my life a burden, as you know. Whatever I’ve had to tackle I’ve come out the other end on the top, as you know. Don’t parade around like Lady Muck. You’re no use here at Faith’s Fare. You take twice as long as the other ladies in rolling bandages, and a serviceman’s sock will never be finished in your hands because you don’t know one end of a knitting needle from the other. You’re a spectacle in the WVS uniform, all bursting chest and wiggling posterior. Hop it. The Summer Fair has always been and always will be held at Petherton. Do I make myself clear?’
Honoria was not one to allow anything or anyone to dull her indomitable spirits. ‘Absolutely, old girl.’ She had pouted her full scarlet lips, her voice low and purring. ‘I’m not leaving the WVS today, not ever. Besides, I’ve supplied wool to my staff – reduced, I might add, to two middle-aged women now, I am not waited on hand and foot – and they are eagerly knitting away for the Forces, and for servicewomen too, we mustn’t forget them, must we? Your boring old Sedgewick allowed Petherton to get run down. It’s been dog-eared for years. Sawle House is larger than Petherton and is in fine fettle. Most of the lawn has gone for crops but it offers far more space and comfort than your grounds possibly could. Perhaps the villagers should be asked if they would like a break from tradition from where the fair is held. Don’t you think it would be for the best?’
‘Over my dead body! It would let Sedgewick down; he would turn in his grave.’
‘Maybe he would, but be careful, Esther, dear.’ Honoria had ended the spat with the same words she employed more than once to her sister.
Belle had speculated to Dorrie what those words might mean, but Dorrie always replied, ‘Just sibling rivalry, I’m sure, my dear.’
‘But we don’t know much about their background, do we? They both turned up in the village when Mr Sedgewick returned from London with Esther as his wife, years ago, but the women have never really talked about their past.’
‘We know enough, wouldn’t you agree? Mrs Mitchelmore gets things done and Honoria is free-handed. They’re a great benefit to the village.’
Dorrie was the most perceptive person Belle knew but annoyingly she wouldn’t be drawn into forming speculative gossip.
The only time Mrs Mitchelmore was addressed as Esther was by Mrs Sanders, who was Honoria to all her friends – and she had a lot of friends, Belle among them, because she was generous-hearted and unpretentious. Unlike her sister, Honoria never issued a bad word about anyone. Someone hearing about the sisters for the first time might think Mrs Mitchelmore was masculine and gauche. The truth was she was slim and cut a strong figure, in a leonine way.
Belle had learned from Charlie that he had been forced reluctantly to turn Finn Templeton away. ‘I felt really bad but we are already employing more workers than we can comfortably afford. So are all the farms until they take on casuals for harvest. I said I’d keep my ear to the ground for him but I’m not hopeful. Ex-military men usually come first, as they should.’ It turned out that Mrs Templeton had given birth to a baby girl that very day. Dorrie had telephoned with the news, and had since mentioned that Mrs Templeton was not recovering well from the birth.
Approaching the drab and desolate cottage, Belle felt guilty for not coming here before. The Templetons might favour their privacy, but since the baby’s birth others had sent them foodstuffs, garden produce and thoughtful little gifts. Young Finn Templeton had sought work from Belle’s husband, and she somehow felt she had let him down.
From his bedroom window Finn watched the young woman with a jaunty step heading towards the back garden – another kind local, carrying a laden shopping bag. The locals knew to drop things off at the back door and only one or two had tried to inveigle an invitation inside. Finn had made polite excuses not to allow anyone in, although each time he’d said his mother was sleeping it was the truth. Fiona rarely troubled to keep herself awake for more than half an hour at a time. Finn feared she would keep