The Balmoral Incident (18 page)

Rowena was now spending most of every day with us. That her new friend had apparently taken over Faith’s part in Meg’s life, I was thankful for indeed. My only fear now was that this would be another parting to dread when we left at the end of this week, with Meg insisting that Rowena come to Edinburgh with us.

To my relief that did not seem likely when I discovered that Rowena was devoted to her Romany mother, Yolande. Since Olivia and Faith’s departure, they brought us meals each day and carried off our washing, two domestic duties I was glad to relinquish, particularly the latter. Laundry facilities had been omitted from the cottage, for the obvious reason that the King’s important guests were not expected to soil their hands with such menial tasks, and with lesser mortals like ourselves, lines of our undergarments blowing in the wind would definitely
lower the tone of the estate and be severely frowned upon.

Yolande had never identified herself as Rowena’s mother before her friendship with Meg and I remembered that I had seen her talking to Lily, who she of course recognised as a fellow servant in the higher echelons as lady’s maid. But although our children were friends she would never cross the invisible boundary between employer or mistress and servant, one that I hoped to eliminate completely once the success of the suffrage movement was achieved and all women were equal!

I wondered what she and Lily talked about. Then I realised that they observed the same boundaries, perhaps the castle influence made rigid by Queen Victoria (with the exception of presentable ghillies like John Brown), and although those daunting, self-effacing measures such as darting into cupboards at the approach of royalty were still observed, Lily, who was silent with us, evading eye contact, talked freely to the stable boys, and if Bobby was to be believed, did a lot more than talk.

Thoughts of Lily reminded me that she had, according to the stable lads, been good with horses and Rowena too had a way with animals, part of her second sight, this extra sense, according to Meg who, observing in awe, said: ‘Animals, even quite wild ones, come to her. I have to be very quiet and she lets me watch her feed the birds, blackbirds and blue tits, they come down and sit on her hand to take crumbs. Those adorable red squirrels, oh I’d love to stroke them, like she does. They aren’t afraid of her at all, but they are terrified of me, Mam. It isn’t fair,’ she said resentfully.

I remembered that maybe it wasn’t all animals; I said
she had been wary of Thane at first. Meg agreed. ‘She was scared of big dogs, but they’re the best of friends now.’

And as Mabel put it, ‘What do those children see in That Dog? He’s not a little lap dog, he’s twice their size – as big as my pony,’ she added referring as she did these days to Hector.

I thought I’d seen the last of Alice von Mueller after our brief interview when I had to confess that her domestic problem was out of my sphere of activity as a lady investigator. However, after walking back to the castle with Vince, an evening stroll I enjoyed, I saw Alice approaching.

Although her greeting was polite and casual, I had a distinct feeling that she had been lying in wait for me. It did not take long for her to come to the point.

‘I know you were unable to help me, but matters have changed since we spoke together.’ She took a deep breath. ‘You see, my husband is trying to kill me.’ Pausing dramatically, she waited for my response which I could not frame in more than two words:

‘Surely not.’

She nodded vigorously. ‘Oh yes, yes! I know he wants to get rid of me, and it seems that it would be easier here than taking me back to Munich.’

Kill her at Balmoral Castle, now that seemed a weird solution. Had she no idea of the complications that would ensue?

She indicated the garden seat we were walking past. ‘Can you spare me a few moments, please Rose?’ The sky was darkening with more than approaching night.
A strong breeze indicated storm clouds brewing over the horizon. ‘I will be as quick as I can.’

We sat down together and I noticed that she looked pale and frightened.

‘I have known for a long while that Hermann hated me for being English. He could not abide the idea of spending his life with a woman from the country he despised, the country that should be ruled over not by your King Edward but by his beloved cousin the Kaiser.’

She paused and I said: ‘That could never be, Alice. Even if we didn’t have Edward, there is the next in line—’

She held up a hand. ‘Oh yes, I am aware of that. I have tried to tell him, but you see, he is quite deranged. Quite mad.’ She shrugged. ‘Whoever is your king does not greatly concern me, but my life does. And now that he has taken the children away from me, he wants to be free to marry this other woman, his mistress. And the only way is to kill me first.’

She looked towards the castle. ‘He will not do it himself, of course, but he has already made an attempt.’ A shuddering sigh. ‘Last night on this very spot, on my way back to our lodging, I was attacked.’

‘You were attacked – here?’ I repeated.

‘Yes. A man leapt out from among the shrubs over there and tried to strangle me. I struggled, I was terrified.’

This was very startling news especially when I thought of Mabel’s recent attack.

‘What was he like, this man?’

‘I never saw his face. I knew he was tall and strong and grabbed me from behind, his arm about my throat,’ she said with an illustrating gesture, ‘like this.’

‘But this is terrible, Alice! How did you get away?’

‘I was very fortunate. A young couple were approaching. They were laughing and he heard them too. He let me go, and darted away.’

‘So they never saw him either. I hope you reported it.’

She shook her head. ‘No. What use would it have been? No one had seen. I knew Hermann was behind it; he has plenty of willing servants to do his dirty work. So what was the use, Rose?’

I had to agree with her there.

‘What are you going to do now?’

She shrugged. ‘There are just a few days left and I will pretend nothing has happened with Hermann. But I have made my mind up. I cannot go on living with him. Now that he has taken my children, I have no reason to go back to Munich. I intend to stay here.’

‘Have you family in England?’

She laughed for the first time. ‘Yes, Rose, I have, but I am not going back to them. I have met a Scottish gentleman, who has a place in Argyll. He once visited us. We became friends and when he saw how vilely my husband treated me, he realised that I was living with a madman and has offered me sanctuary.’

‘What kind of sanctuary? Is he one of the shooting party?’

I could see more ominous clouds than a mere storm gathering at such a prospect.

She smiled, radiant for a moment, and laughed again. ‘No, he declined the invitation – for obvious reasons. He said that he would be tempted to shoot Hermann. But I have sent him word to expect me.’ She took my hand.
‘This is our farewell, Rose. Will you tell Olivia when you see her that I will be in touch? And wish me well in my new life.’

I hoped she was right about her Scottish gentleman and that in due time things would sort themselves out to her satisfaction. At the moment, though, the whole situation filled me with misgivings.

As we parted and I made my way back to the cottage I had a lot to think about. Was her attack, as she thought, instigated by her husband? The alternative was even more terrifying.

I thought of her description. A tall strong man, unidentifiable. But curiously enough the method of his attack also fitted Mabel’s assailant, and all pointed steadily in one steady direction.

We had a madman at large. And what if his ultimate target was to kill the King?

Jack’s unexpected appearance just two days before the games put things in quite a new perspective.

I had a disturbed night troubled by anxious dreams about Alice and her England-hating husband. Meg was still abed as usual when I came downstairs and Mabel’s breakfast dishes were in the sink. Thane was usually waiting to greet me but not this morning. He lay asleep by the peat fire.

‘Are you being lazy too?’ There was no response. I went closer. He was lying very still on his side. As I bent over him I noticed he had been sick. I had never known him ever to be sick in Edinburgh. If he was, never in the house.

There was something terribly wrong. My heart raced as I bent over him. I stroked him gently.

‘Thane, Thane!’ I said. He moved his head as if it took considerable effort and opened one eye, an eye that seemed glazed over.

And I knew what was happening. Thane was dying.

I screamed. The door opened and Mabel appeared.

‘What on earth is wrong?’

‘Thane’s been poisoned,’ I cried.

‘What nonsense, Rose. All animals get sick. Only to be expected. I’ve told you before, That Dog should be in the kennels with the others. It put me off my breakfast, I can tell you. How can one eat in a kitchen full of dog sick? I wasn’t going to clear it – quite revolting.’

At that moment, I knew I hated her. I wanted to strike her and I knew what it felt like to have murder in one’s heart, as all the little resentments, all her silly remarks and her snobbery boiled up inside me. I felt my hand rise to strike her as she stood, her back to me by the window which she had thrown open for fresh air.

Thane moaned and that brought me to my senses and saved her from being struck down. Then suddenly Mabel was no longer of any importance. Only my Thane dying on the floor beside me mattered.

I had to find someone and at that moment I heard the motor coming down the road. Vince was on his way past. A miracle, I thought, as I rushed out into the road.

‘Something’s happened to Thane!’ He took one look at my face, switched off and followed me inside, knelt down beside Thane, sniffed and looking up at me said: ‘Poison. I’ll take him into the vet.’

Meg appeared, alerted by all the noise. She took one look at Thane and cried: ‘That rat poison!’ She began to sob. ‘I tried to keep an eye on him … Oh, he’s not going to die, Uncle Vince. You can’t let him die.’

‘I can’t do much for him, Meg. I’m only a doctor for humans not animals. I’m taking him to the vet, he’ll do what we can for him.’

It seemed as he spoke that Vince hadn’t any great hopes, trying to lift him up, a very large deerhound almost as big as me. Between us we managed to get him out and into the back of the car, lying on the floor wrapped in a blanket.

‘I’m coming with you.’

‘Me too!’ sobbed Meg.

‘No. There isn’t room.’ Vince said sternly and I realised that two hysterical females was the last thing he needed. ‘Try to stay calm, the pair of you.’

‘Where are you taking him?’ cried Meg.

‘To Ballater.’ And I remembered that this was Vince’s day for collecting drugs, like laudanum known as ‘ladies’ medicine’, for use at the castle as he went on: ‘We have a great vet there, takes care of all the King’s dogs.’ And he drove off.

I led Meg back into the house, still sobbing, aware that if he died then I would blame myself for bringing him here, away from Edinburgh, from his home. Obviously the secret of his survival – for I had once seen him shot, get up and walk away – that secret lay in the depths of his origins in Arthur’s Seat. His magic, if you like, could not be sustained, it didn’t work in an alien place.

Trying to calm Meg, I thought of all our years together, how he had saved my life so often and now I was helpless. I could do nothing. And I thought of his loyalty and protection for Meg and me, and how miserable he must have been here in his restricted life.

Meg sat at the table shivering. ‘That rat poison, Mam. That’s what did it. Why didn’t we just keep the rat? He wasn’t doing us any harm. And Thane would still be alive.’

‘Meg,’ I said sternly, ‘Thane is—is still alive.’

‘But he’s going to die. I know it!’

‘No, darling, this vet that takes care of the King’s dogs, Uncle Vince says—’

She shook her head. ‘But Thane’s not like them. He’s not an ordinary dog. You know he isn’t.’

I put my arm around her. ‘I know. But he’ll be all right. We must have faith.’

She looked up at me as if she’d never heard the word before. The nuns hadn’t got very far with her religious education. I said: ‘Magic, then. You believe in magic, don’t you?’

She nodded and said: ‘Will it take long before Uncle Vince brings him back?’

‘Maybe an hour or two.’ I had no idea but knew we couldn’t sit around and wait for news. Vince had said as he drove off that it might take a while for the vet’s treatment to work. Neither of us could eat so I offered her one of some forbidden chocolate bars, the very special treat that she loved and craved. She unwrapped it and I said: ‘Are you seeing Rowena today?’

She looked at me as if she had forgotten their almost daily meetings and shook her head. ‘Her mother gives her a cookery lesson this morning.’ I gathered that Yolande was obviously hoping to train her daughter for duties in the royal kitchens.

Which was just as well today. Rowena was fond of Thane and our distress would be infectious. I could not have dealt with two hysterical girls in floods of tears.

I crumbled up some bread. ‘Here you are.’ Anything to distract her. ‘Don’t forget the birds. They’ll be waiting.’ Her after-breakfast task.

I wanted to clean up and just hoped that Mabel would stay upstairs in one of her huffs and not come in to lecture me on That Dog or I would most certainly do her an injury.

And I had an idea of how to fill in those dreaded waiting hours. Meg had always wanted to go across to the little island with the monument Queen Victoria had set there. It wasn’t an island at all really, just a raised bit of land in the middle of the river, a kind of peninsula, but it had lots of trees and Meg was sure it was a magic glen. Doubtless shades of Sir Walter Scott’s ‘Lady of the Lake’ that I had been reading to her.

It was a lovely, sunny morning, the earth smiled, oblivious of our anguish. When I told Meg my plan, she brightened. How would we get across?

‘Remember that little rowing boat moored on the shore?’ I said, wondering if it was still there and more to the point, seaworthy.

Meg clasped her hands. ‘Do let’s go, then.’ She frowned. ‘Oh Mam, will we be back in time for Thane?’

I said Vince had hinted at afternoon, and as neither of us had eaten, we could take a picnic.

Ten minutes later, with thankfully no appearance from Mabel, although she watched us leave from her window, Meg said: ‘Should we ask her to come along?’

‘No,’ I said firmly, ‘there wouldn’t be room in the boat.’

We walked through the wood down to the river path and there was the boat: dilapidated, ancient and unused. I sighed: if needs must.

Meg stepped in and took up one of the oars. ‘Rowena would have loved this.’

I was always very careful with Rowena and her overprotective mother. If she got a scratch on her or a tear on her pinafore, Meg would shake her head and say: ‘Her mother will be in such a state.’ I hated to think of that state if Rowena had returned thoroughly soaked.

With an oar each we set off. There was quite a swirl on the current and the water had looked a lot smoother than it felt. I looked across at the little island and was glad it was a journey of about thirty yards, remembering my tendency to seasickness.

At last we wobbled onto dry shingle and pulled the tiny boat after us, fastening it to an overhanging branch of a tree.

‘There has been a castle here once,’ Meg said, ‘look at all the stones. Do you think people lived here before they built the castle?’

I thought that very unlikely as it had only been an island since the river changed its course. The reason for the monument was that it most probably brought the Queen treasured memories of Prince Albert and the love story of a truly romantic couple.

‘That boat might well have been theirs,’ said Meg.

True enough. It didn’t look as if it had had much use in the present king’s reign. And on further thought, if I had always had doubts about bringing Thane over, then for such a large man it would have been somewhat hazardous.

The scene was certainly very pretty but there was this air of desolation, of neglect. No one ever came here any more. Not nearly grand enough or big enough for King Edward and his society. He liked his romance taken in luxury and I couldn’t imagine him bringing Queen
Alexandra, even without their six children, for a pleasant outing without a stream of servants carrying the picnic.

I was very glad to see Meg’s appetite had returned and every time she frowned and asked the time and mentioned Thane I insisted that we were not to worry, that the King’s vet was very clever and doubtless lots of other dogs much smaller and more fragile than Thane had been poisoned and survived.

I hoped that was true.

As always, the sun seemed to be on shift work. After a fleeting appearance, work done, it now retreated. The sky had greyed over and we decided it was time to get back and continue our vigil in the comfort of the cottage.

Except … except that there was no boat! At least, there was no boat on the overhanging branch. It was bobbing merrily about in the middle of the river. Far out of reach and completely inaccessible.

We were marooned.