Chapter 32

32

Cassandra swiftly became aware that her plan to provoke Lady Ashby into jealousy and thence into realising her true feelings for Captain Winterton – assuming those feelings to be loving ones – had disastrously misfired. She did not so much as set eyes on Leo that day until the party gathered for dinner, since he made no appearance at nuncheon and was absent from the Castle for the rest of the afternoon, which was an ominous sign in itself, if one paused to think about it, but she did spend time with Isabella, who was looking pale, tired and perhaps even a little unwell. She found it impossible to divine precisely what had happened, but clearly something had, and it could scarcely be anything good. She might have consoled herself with the supposition that Lady Ashby had become aware of her own tender emotions and mistakenly believed them unrequited – such tangled romantic misunderstandings being all too common, in her own experience – had it not been for Leo's prolonged absence, which was unusual and surely boded ill.

As Bastian had predicted, the afternoon was enlivened by several visits from ladies who had been at the assembly the night before; they came on the slenderest of pretexts or on none, and while some of them were well-bred enough to converse civilly and normally with their hostess, and with an animated Mrs Winterton and a rather subdued Lady Ashby, some shot obvious glances about the room, as if imagining that one of the young gentlemen might be concealed under a sofa or behind the heavy velvet curtains, and merely needed rooting out. A couple of them even ventured brazenly to enquire where the Countess's other charming guests might be, and would have entered into a discussion about precisely where Mr Welby's home was situated in Yorkshire and how large it was if Cassandra had given them the least encouragement. Presuming on the licence given by their remote family connection with the Wintertons, Mrs Peters – accompanied by her daughter Susannah, who was in high bloom and excellent spirits – was bold enough to ask where the dear Captain was that afternoon, as they had been so looking forward to seeing him again. ‘It is so good to see him returned home after so long away, for we have missed him, have we not?' Mrs Peters gushed. ‘I hope he intends to make his home permanently amongst us now and cease gadding about in London? I am sure we should be delighted to see more of him, would we not, Susannah?' Susannah assented with obvious sincerity that they would, and seemed to feel it necessary to ask again where dear Cousin Leo might be just now, and if his return could be imminent.

His mother made some smiling answer to all these rather pointed questions, even going so far as to agree enthusiastically with Mrs Peters that Susannah and her son had made a most handsome couple as they danced together last night, and as she spoke Cassandra surprised a brief expression of misery, rapidly suppressed, upon Lady Ashby's face. Once this round of visitors left, she was not astonished to hear Isabella say in a colourless voice that she found she had the headache and begged Lady Irlam to excuse her. Cassandra had the headache too, for that matter, but this deluge of guests was her own fault and she could not escape them without a display of gross incivility that would do her lasting damage in the county.

She was able to snatch a moment's conversation with Lady Carston as they waited to go in to dinner later; a lifted brow sufficed for that intelligent woman to respond, ‘I have no more idea than you do, but it certainly does not look promising. Poor Lady A looks fit to drop; I'll try to converse with her and find out what is the matter, for plainly you cannot. If I discover anything and can't find a moment to speak with you afterwards, I'll send a note by Louisa's abigail.'

It was a large enough group of persons that some constraint between two of its members, which both were trying hard to conceal, made little impact on the general success of the evening. Lady Ashby and the Captain were both quiet, initiating no topics of conversation but responding suitably when addressed, but Cassandra thought that most of the party remained blissfully unaware of this fact, always excepting her husband, who was a great deal more perceptive than most people would give him credit for, and had already been concerned about his cousin for weeks.

Lady Carston did not approach her hostess before the party broke up – earlier than usual, for everyone was a trifle fatigued – but a note was brought to Cassandra's chamber as promised. It was not very informative, merely saying:

She did not tell me anything, but my impression that she is most unhappy was confirmed. She spoke of leaving the Castle quite shortly and how it might be managed. I did not feel able to question her even a little, our acquaintance in reality being so very slight and she plainly resolved not to speak. I am sorry I do not have better news for you. J.

Cassandra showed the missive to Hal, who sighed and said, ‘I'm not surprised, though I am sorry. Leo spent the afternoon drinking with Bastian, Matthew and Tom in the village, and Basty said he was lifting his elbow more than he'd ever seen him do before; you must have observed that Leo is pretty abstemious as a general rule. My brother thought he was rather under the weather and out of spirits, and mentioned it to me; I fobbed him off with some jest about Leo not caring for all the attention last night, which God knows is probably true enough.'

‘I didn't know. Well, that sets the seal on it, I fear – they have quarrelled in some fashion, do you not agree? It seems most likely that he has declared his love at last and been rebuffed.'

‘Must have done. Don't look so worried, Cass – you know it was bound to happen soon enough, unless she changed her mind. It's not in the least your fault, and you were only trying to help.'

She rumpled his dark locks affectionately. ‘It's good of you to say so. But I fear I may have provoked some argument that might not otherwise have happened. They both look very sad.'

‘I could cheerfully bang their silly heads together,' said her lord robustly, seizing her hand and kissing it. ‘We still don't have the least idea how she feels about him, but I think you may be right that her affections are engaged – she looks more glum-faced than a falling-out with someone she doesn't care two pins for should call for.'

‘That may be true – in fact, I believe it is – but they are both looking so miserable that there can't be any reason to hope for a happy outcome. He has proposed, and been summarily rejected, I am quite sure of it. How provoking it all is!'

‘You must be right. Well, in any event, you've shot your bolt, Lady Irlam, and there's nothing more to be done. Some people can't be helped.'

His wife conceded that this was probably true, and found some measure of consolation in his strong embrace, as the Castle fell quiet, undisturbed by any nocturnal wanderings for once.