The House on Blackstone Moor (The Blackstone Vampires) (16 page)

“No!” I cried as I pulled away. I rushed out into the hall and just as I got to my door, I turned to see her still watching me, still smiling at me.

And then she said something very odd. She told me sadly, almost apologetically, “I thought you were ready…”

Dora had just come up
. She took one look at me and asked, “What is it, Miss, what’s wrong?”

Without saying one word, I pulled Dora into my room. “Dora!” I gasped. “She tried to have me, Mrs. Darton! She touched me and—”

Dora did not look surprised. “She’s like that is Mrs. Darton.”

I couldn’t believe my ears. “What do you mean?”

“She’s like that, that’s all. So will you leave then?”

I sat down feeling quite shocked. After all, I had just told Dora something I considered to be unbelievable and she was acting so matter-of-fact about it.

“I don’t know. I
should
leave.” Even as I said it I felt constrained
not
to leave. I was an orphan without anyone, where would I go? What position might I expect with my history? No, I would stay, what other choice did I have?

Dora was talking. “You should see sometimes at the club…”

“The
Club?
You mean the one in Manchester?”

Dora stared at me. “Well—that and other places…please Miss, I can’t say more. Please.”

“But you mentioned it yourself! Oh, please tell me!”

“I can’t, Miss, please take no notice. I beg you!”

What was this? What kind of home had I come into? “Dora, has she ever tried…”

Dora shook her head. “No, right particular she is…” she stopped speaking then as if she had changed her mind.  I wished her to go on but she didn’t. Instead, she told me she had duties downstairs. “Don’t let it trouble you, Miss. If you are firm she’ll get the idea. I’m sure she will.”

I watched her leave and stared at the closed door for quite some time.

Perhaps I wasn’t as highly regarded as I thought. Perhaps I had best take my lot and make the best of it; after all, if things got worse I could always go back to Marsh!

No, there was little choice for me. I’d stay and make the best of it.

Truthfully, I never knew such things existed—such fancies as Mrs. Darton had. The only thing I could recall were two women that lived near us in Notting Hill, two women my mother said were vile, unnatural creatures. When she said it I was frightened for I considered them to be monsters of some kind.

But despite that, I grew up believing all people had a right to exist although that right didn’t mean that they could force themselves…

I was startled by a knock. But it was only the children who had come to remind me about breakfast. “Please or we shall never have our lessons!”

“Yes, I’ll come,” I said, taking them each toward the stairs, and passing by Mrs. Darton’s room as quickly as possible.

We had breakfast and my eggs and toast were good, although they had one of those infernal meat puddings. When they urged me to eat some I shook my head and explained that it was far too heavy for me to eat at this hour.

“Well, have some paté then,” Simon offered.

I took some.  Actually
,
it was quite good. When I reached for more, Ada giggled and said I’d wind up eating meat puddings soon too, which drew a big grin from Simon.

Mrs. Darton came down later, just as I was taking the children to the nursery for their lessons. She looked sad, almost contrite. “Rose, if you’d like you may have the afternoon off, it’s such a fine day. Perhaps you and Dora might like a walk into town. Besides, you haven’t even left the grounds on your days off yet, have you?”

A look passed between us and I felt this was her way of apologizing.

“Thank you, Mrs. Darton, I think I shall.”

*

It was arranged that Dora would be off as well. She was pleased and said so. But before we left she said she needed to have some more tea as she felt chilled.

I thought that odd as it was such a lovely spring day. “Why, it’s full of sunshine, Dora—surely you don’t need to warm yourself up.”

She smiled and said she did. Then she laughed and shook her head. “You can’t walk in those, Miss. They shall fall apart!” She was referring to my shoes.

“Here, these are what you need. They’re clogs, Rose. A bit clumsy looking but better than something that would soon fall to pieces.”

We kept to the path such as it was—a crooked winding walkway of sorts that Dora said with emphasis was probably ancient.

It seemed to me we walked for ages, chatting a bit and then falling silent too until Dora pointed to a weather-beaten sign that said: EGTON ½ MILE.

We arrived at last. “So this is Egton,” I said.

“Just a Yorkshire village, but the views are nice from up there. You can see for miles!” Dora suggested, pointing toward a hill.

“What’s that up there? It looks like a church.”

“Yes, Saint something or other,
”
Dora replied.

“Do you want to go inside?” I asked.

She looked surprised. “No, not me. Not one for church.”

The bells tolled then and we both looked to see a man in black watching us. “That’ll be the vicar, I expect.”

“Old grumpy git,” Dora muttered.  “Sorry I took you up here.”

“You sound as if you know him.”

She shook her head. “Can’t say that I do, other than to say he’s a cross old bird and very unfriendly from what I heard.”

I turned once more to look at him and was surprised to see he was making the sign of the cross as if to bless me.

“There! You see? I told you it was beautiful,” Dora said. “Look, over that way that’s Huddersfield and in the distance that’s Wakefield.”

It was nice sitting there and gazing down at the world. We stayed and chatted for a bit but then Dora noticed two people she knew. “Come Rose, I’d like you to meet these two ladies.”

I looked to see two nearly identical looking middle-aged women dressed in matching clothes. They were smiling. “I venture to say you are the new governess!” one of them exclaimed.

Dora introduced me. “Misses Lodge, this is Miss Rose Baines and yes, she is the new governess.”

They both smiled and greeted me. “Both Mr. and Mrs. Darton are our dearest friends and the children are—” Here they paused. “Like our own niece and nephew.”

What funny women they were, I thought, nice if a bit eccentric and almost comical with their odd looking clothes that had to have been out of date by at least twenty years.

When they bade us goodbye and walked away, Dora explained, “Yes, they are ever so sweet but quite unconventional in their manner and dress. And they are so kind to me, speaking to me as if I were their equal. You see, they are more Mr. and Mrs. Darton’s sort than mine or yours for that matter.”

“Are those the ladies the children stay with sometimes?”

Dora nodded. “Yes, they do quite adore both children. They never married…” Dora’s voice trailed off and she looked sad.

“Well, it’s nice for Mr. and Mrs. Darton to have friends like that.”

“Oh yes!” Dora replied. “It most certainly is.”

*

We bought meat pies and had them as we walked along the High Street, although I would have preferred to sit and eat mine. My mother never thought it proper to eat and walk at the same time. But Dora seemed impatient to get about, explaining it was ages since she had been there.

The subject of Mrs. Sternwood came up and I mentioned that I hadn’t seen much of her of late. “Is she away permanently?” I asked hopefully.

“No such luck,” Dora answered. “In fact she is due back today. She had some business in Manchester I think. She’s a nasty old thing, isn’t she?”

I quite agreed.

Soon we got to speaking about Mr. Darton and she told me how much she respected him. Although I had a feeling that she was somewhat fearful of him.

“Has he ever been awful to you Dora, is that what it is?”

I didn’t think she was going to tell me. But she did. “Well he’s nice enough, it’s just he quite frightens me sometimes. I think he might have a temper and I don’t like that…it reminds me of some things I’d rather forget…”

I had a feeling I knew what she meant. “Feel free to tell me anything you like for sometimes it is good to share things, it frees the heart for other things.”

She began to cry then. “My father threw me out, Rose. I was pregnant and the boy left me and…!”

“Oh, Dora! I had a feeling it was something like that.”

As I hugged her to me I happened to notice a deep scar running along her neck. Perhaps her father had done worse to her than throw her out.

She told me a bit about the boy and how they met, but then she seemed to get quiet all at once.

I wanted to raise her spirits so I began to tell her things about the children to make her laugh. I was pleased to see her spirits pick up then.

“Come, Rose. Let us go about our day off. Is there anywhere you’d like to go?”

As I had no suggestion, she said she had errands to run and suggested we could meet up later if that was alright with me.

I quite agreed as I wanted very much to see that cleric.

St. Hubert’s Chapel. That was the name of it. He introduced himself as Vicar Hobbs. Rather than question me about why I’d come, he asked me into the rectory. “This way, if you care to follow me. God’s House is always open.”

The hall had the rich scent of wood and polish and something else—a trace of incense probably from Sunday worship. “We can talk in here.”

“Sit, please. Now before you go on, let me say I recognized her, the girl with you. And you say you work there as well?”

“Yes, I am governess there.”

He regarded me coolly for some moments. “How do you find working there?”

I told him that they were nice to work for. “And I do like the children.”

I thought the look in his eyes grew quite hard when I mentioned them. “And do you like everything else? Is everything else to your satisfaction?”

It seemed to me there was much implied by that question. I sighed. “I find myself wondering about so much…”

“Young lady, if you ever need to see me about anything at all, this church is always open to you. You won’t forget?”

“No, vicar. I will remember. I promise you.”

I thought him a nice man although I was troubled by what he said. Not the offer of consultation that was nice, if a bit confusing, as I did not see the need for it.

I further reasoned that perhaps he knew something of Mrs. Darton and that she and the house were therefore the objects of his disapproval. Whatever it was, I thought foolishly it had nothing to do with me.

*

The trek back to Blackstone House was fun for we chatted the entire way. Neither of us was tired. I said I felt as if I could walk for miles.

Dora smiled and told me it was the bracing air that was doing me a world of good.

At last we came in sight of the house.

“Look who’s there,” Dora said.

Mrs. Sternwood stood in the doorway. “She looks like the devil himself.” I expected Dora to laugh but she didn’t.

I barely acknowledged her, but as I passed her, she called after me. “You will dine with the children, Miss Baines, as Mr. and Mrs. Darton have an engagement in Manchester this evening.”

Was it my imagination or did she sound delighted that I was to eat only with the children as she saw it?

It was during the night that I heard the Dartons’ carriage drive up. I heard their voices in the hall and Mrs. Darton say, “Oh yes she is, Louis! Goodnight!” whereupon I heard a door slam.

Then just moments later, I heard soft knocking and Mrs. Sternwood’s voice quietly calling for Mrs. Darton.

I do admit I not only eavesdropped but
also
peeked to see Mrs. Darton open her door and Mrs. Sternwood step quickly inside.

I know now they were having an affair. I didn’t realize it then, innocent that I was. Thinking nothing of it I went to sleep.

Little did I know what drama would occur the next morning with me on center stage.

How life tricks us sometimes
, lulling us into a false sense of security when in fact danger is all around us, evil plotting, waiting for its turn. For evil is an opportunist that often manages to overtake fate and win. It is alas a dire truth I have sadly learned to recognize as truth.

It was plotting now and would soon win out to steer me into unchartered waters.

You see, there was no portent of things to come. No hint that everything would change or that I was about to enter the mouth of hell.

One would think there would have been a sign—an inkling, something
—
but alas there was not.

And so on that fateful morning, I washed and dressed. The water was cool but I preferred not to wait for Dora. Besides, most of the time the water she brought was tepid at best.