New Boss at Birchfields (18 page)

Briony
’
s brows were furrowed as she continued on
her way. The only bright spot was the mildness of the day. Abergour was enjoying one of those lovely calm autumns which so often happen in the Highlands of Scotland. The trees were a riot of colour, and when she came to the gate of Birchfields she could see the Shetlands in their paddock. The two boys must have pitched in and added the ponies to their own workloads, for the little animals were obviously well cared for.

As usual she turned towards the tack room, this time half expecting it to be locked, but the door was already open and she wrinkled her nose at the smell that came to meet her. Someone was already making up a mash for a horse.

She entered to find Blane stirring a huge pot on the stove.

He turned and surveyed her.
‘
So you
’
re back! Fully recovered, I hope!
’

He seemed in excellent humour, and Briony, considering Hettie
’
s final speech to him, was taken aback. Had he forgotten that she had been forbidden to return to the Riding School, or did it simply not matter to him what Hettie said?

She decided to reply in an equally casual manner.
‘
There was really nothing much the matter with me. I stayed in more to satisfy Hettie than anything else—she was so fussed and upset.
’

He nodded.
‘
Yes, I think Hettie
’
s bark is worse than her bite. If you stick to your guns she won
’
t be able to do much about it. After all, you
’
re a big girl now, and capable of making your own decisions.
’
He turned back to stirring the mash.
‘
Has a horrible smell, this stuff,
’
he remarked after a moment,
‘
but it
’
s just what the doctor ordered—or rather the vet—a nice hot mash with molasses added!
’

His words only added to Briony
’
s discomfiture. The picture was only too plain. Not only the two boys had
been shouldering her share of the chores, but Blane himself had had to pitch in. But what did it mean? Was this a temporary thing, meant to fill in until her return, or had he decided that the School could very easily dispense with her assistance?

She waited awkwardly and then said,
‘
I—I suppose it
’
s all right, is it?
’

He turned his head.
‘
All right? What on earth do you mean?
’

‘
I mean, it
’
s all right for me to come back and start again?
’

‘
And why should it not be right for you to come back?
’

‘
Well, I mean, about Hettie
—’
she began.
‘
You see,
I overheard what she said to you, and—When she
’
s in a bit of a temper she flies out and says anything that comes into her head, and she doesn
’
t seem to understand that I can
’
t sponge on her. She seems to think I could live quite happily with her, without having a job, or earning anything.
’

‘
Yes, your godmother is a very warlike little woman,
’
he agreed.
‘
And I must say when she lived here at Birchfields I found her a great trial. But since our last encounter my estimation of her has gone up.
’

‘
What?
’
Briony could scarcely believe her ears.

‘
It
’
s true, she told me off in no uncertain manner. But at least this time her remarks made some sense. I could see she had your welfare at heart. She would fight for you like a tiger, if any danger threatened—or rather like a hen for her chick.
’

Briony looked at him speechless. This was the very last reaction she had expected from the hot-tempered Blane. Then, at the realisation of what this meant, she drew a deep breath. That Hettie and Blane should ever have the slightest understanding of one another was something she had not dared to hope for.

‘
And now,
’
he continued briskly,
‘
let
’
s take this
opportunity while the mash cools a hit to have a chat. We always seem to be too busy for the social graces, don
’
t we?
’

Reluctantly Briony seated herself near the table and he pulled forward a chair on the other side. Now for it, she was thinking. How quickly his affable manner would disappear when he caught sight of his precious book!

But his first words astounded her.
‘
Well, and how does it feel to be the heroine of the hour?
’
he demanded.

‘
What?
’
she exclaimed, her voice rising in astonishment. At the same time she could not help feeling a certain amount of relief that she was to have a few moments
’
respite before breaking the news to him.

He regarded her steadily with those amazingly penetrating eyes for a long moment and then said,
‘
Apparently it hasn
’
t struck you that you made yourself quite ill when you got lost and had to spend most of the night in the quarry when you weren
’
t even properly dressed for the weather. I believe that by giving your jacket and cap to Sandra you saved her life. Apart from that, you kept her spirits up. She knew that help was close at hand and that she would soon be collected. Senga spotted the cap right away.
’

At the mention of Senga
’
s name Briony remembered the book of Scottish ballads, so tattered and mud
-
stained. It seemed to be burning a hole in her shoulder
-
bag,

With a sigh she slipped the bag from her shoulder and slowly began to unzip it, thinking as she did so that this approval, which felt like balm to her, would disappear fairly quickly when Blane
’
s eyes fell upon Senga
’
s precious gift. How was she going to break the news to him tactfully? she wondered.

‘
Something else happened that day,
’
she began carefully.
‘
Do you remember you lent me a book of Scottish ballads?
’

He nodded.
‘
Yes, of course.
’

‘
And you told me to take great care of it,
’
she rushed on a little desperately.

He frowned a little impatiently.
‘
Yes, I remember. What about it?
’

‘
Well, you see, I had it in my jacket pocket. But I put
the jacket round Sandra and
—’
she pulled out the
brown paper wrapping and opened the book out dramatically in front of him,
‘
this is what happened to it.
’
She saw his expression change and the familiar hard glaze seemed to settle on his features. She closed her eyes for a moment. Now for it, she was thinking. She waited shrinking as she anticipated the harsh cold words she knew could so easily overwhelm her with misery.

‘
Put it away,
’
he said shortly.
‘
Don
’
t let me see it ever again.
’

With a shaking hand she replaced it in her bag. One thing was clear, and that was that the destruction of the book meant even more to him than she had feared. He must hate her for what she had done.

But when he spoke again he had changed the subject completely.
‘
I think it
’
s time we made the final preparations for this treasure hunt,
’
he said.
‘
Senga tells me the children are eager to have it now. If we delay too long they
’
ll only lose interest. If you feel up to it I wonder if you would help me to choose prizes for the winners. It should be easy to get something suitable in Aberdeen.
’
Briony hesitated for an instant. She was already in Senga
’
s bad books. If she were to travel into Aberdeen with him to select prizes for the children, surely Senga would resent it bitterly.

Although the thought of an outing with him made her heart beat a little faster, she said reluctantly,
‘
I—I don
’
t think I
’
d better.
’

Blane tested the warmth of the mash, then looked up with that swift, keen, assessing glance that she knew so well.
‘
And why not, may I ask?
’

What could she say that would sound convincing? she wondered.
‘
Oh, I
’
ve so much to do
—
so much to catch up with after being off. The tack room should be tidied,
and
—’
She stopped, aware that he didn
’
t believe a
word she was saying.

‘
And why should Johnny not do some of the straightening up?
’
he enquired with an air of feigned surprise.
‘
After all, that
’
s what I employ him for, apart from his other duties.
’

Briony gave a light laugh which, even to her own ears, sounded highly artificial.
‘
Oh, you know—a woman
’
s touch and all that!
’

‘
Rubbish!
’
he said curtly.
‘
And now I don
’
t want any arguments. You
’
re coming to Aberdeen with me and that
’
s that! Unless,
’
he added suavely,
‘
you prefer to give in your notice?
’

She glanced at him apprehensively. That was the last thing in the world she wanted—to be left helpless again, and living on Hettie
’
s charity. But she knew Blane well enough by now to know that his words were not to be taken lightly.

‘
Well,
’
he demanded impatiently.
‘
Are you, or aren
’
t you?
’

‘
Yes, of course I
’
ll come,
’
she said.

‘
Well then, why not let
’
s start off immediately?
’

She glanced down at her shabby jeans in dismay.
‘
But I couldn
’
t possibly go in these clothes,
’
she told him.
‘
I
’
ll have to go back to Amulree and change.
’

He glanced at his watch.
‘
All right, but don
’
t be too long. If there
’
s one thing I can
’
t stand, it
’
s hanging around while a woman titivates herself.
’

As she hurried towards the cottage Briony felt resentment grow. This wasn
’
t the way he would have treated the
soign
é
e
Senga, who always looked the height of sophistication. But then, she told herself, her appearance could hardly be of any interest to him. She was only his hired employee, to obey his demands without question.

She found Hettie, trowel in hand, busily gardening as she approached the cottage.

Hettie stood up, her eyes angry.
‘
You sneaked away this morning before I was up
—’
she began.

‘
I
’
m perfectly all right,
’
Briony protested.
‘
And I can
’
t remain an invalid for ever, you know. I simply have to work for my living.
’

‘
So you
’
re back with that man again,
’
Hettie said bitterly.

‘
Yes, and very lucky to have my job,
’
Briony said firmly.
‘
And now, Hettie, I
’
ll have to rush. He has asked me to go into Aberdeen with him, to pick prizes for the treasure hunt.
’

As she saw Hettie open her mouth to object, she hurried along the brick path and ran upstairs.

A
s she opened the narrow white wardrobe in her room her heart sank. There was no doubt about it, there was no possible chance that she could compete sartorially with the elegant Senga. And she had the unpleasant conviction that, even if her clothes were the smartest and most expensive in the world, she would never achieve Senga
’
s air of sophistication. The village milkmaid, that
’
s me, Briony thought wryly.

She reached down a russet brown dress that brought out the highlights in her hair. It was splashed with a broad zig-zag design of white, and with it she wore white sandals and matching handbag. As she surveyed herself critically in the long mirror on the back of the wardrobe door she decided that a dash of colour was needed. From one of the drawers of the tallboy she took a scarf of bright coral chiffon and tied it in a careless knot to the handles of her handbag.

She hesitated. Should she take a coat? But she had no coat that went well with her outfit, and as the day was as warm as summer she decided not to bother.

When she went downstairs she found Hettie waiting for her, her lips drawn tight in disapproval.
‘
Why has
that man asked you to go with him into Aberdeen?
’
she began.
‘
It strikes me as a very strange idea. After all, it
’
s not part of your duties to buy prizes for the children. It seems to me he has a great cheek to think you
’
re at his
beck and call, and
—’

‘
I couldn
’
t refuse,
’
Briony broke in.
‘
I want to keep this job. Apart from everything else, I like it. It
’
s
interesting and
—’

‘
I don
’
t deny that you like being with animals and having an outdoor job,
’
Hettie conceded.
‘
But in my opinion there
’
s something more to it than that. If he
’
s as helpless as all that, why doesn
’
t he let Jean McPhee do his shopping for him, instead of choosing a pretty young girl like yourself? It all sounds to me extremely fishy.
’

Briony laughed.
‘
Now, Hettie, that
’
s utterly ridiculous! If you think he
’
s smitten you
’
re completely mistaken. I
’
m not his type at all. As far as I can see, he
’
s very interested in Senga MacNeil. And she
’
s more than keen on him, I can assure you.
’

Hettie put her hands on her hips and surveyed Briony challengingly.
‘
In that case, why did he not ask her? After all, she
’
s responsible for the children, isn
’
t she?
’

‘
Yes, but all the same I don
’
t think she
’
d care to go shopping for them,
’
Briony remarked.
‘
I mean, it
’
s just not her line of country.
’

‘
Too grand, I expect!
’
Hettie put in sarcastically.
‘
So he makes a slave of you! If you
’
d any pride, Briony, you
’
d tum him down.
’

Briony gave a little moue of resignation.
‘
I
’
m afraid when it comes to holding my job I
’
ve very little pride,
’
she admitted.
‘
Anyway, it will be a change from grooming ponies and teaching children how to ride.
’

But Hettie was unappeased.
‘
All I can say is I
’
ve never known a man yet who didn
’
t like to make up to a pretty girl, so whether he
’
s keen on Senga MacNeil or not is beside the question. You just watch out for yourself this afternoon, that
’
s all!
’