Jenny nodded. "He's a Tulip. One of those Bond Street Beaus. They take fashion very seriously. Some of them know more about fashion than the ladies."
"What a ridiculous race of men. I shall never understand them." Ellen shook herself. "But let's put all that aside for now." She looked around. "It's been so long. It's so good to be home. Nothing has changed. How are you all?"
The fire was crackling cosily in the fireplace, and Jenny was rocking back and forth in her rocking chair with the baby in her arms. Jimmy and Melly, the two little ones, were playing quietly on the floor. Ellen looked at them fondly.
Even though she called them family, Ellen was not related to any of them.
Jacob Robinson, who had taken her in as his daughter after her own father's death, was not really her 'stepfather', but somehow it was an apt description of their relationship, which was one of affection and respect. Ellen could not remember ever having loved her biological parents as much as she loved Jacob and Jenny.
Jacob was a brilliant scholar and writer. He spent most of his days teaching and writing his literary treatises. He had recently achieved a modest kind of fame and was invited to the literary salons of the upper classes, but that didn't mean he was making any money. So when Ellen turned eighteen, she became a schoolmistress to help support the growing family. It was Jacob who had found the advertisement in The Times. She'd applied to Miss Hilversham's Seminary, and the headmistress, stern as she looked but kind-hearted underneath, had hired her immediately.
"And Drake?" Drake was Jacob's son from his first marriage and their only cloud of worry.
Jenny sighed. "Drake. They expelled him from Cambridge. Not even Jacob's status as a scholar influenced the decision."
Ellen sat up. "Oh, no! What happened?"
"I don't know the details. He was caught drunk on the premises and offended the Dean badly. Something to do with his wife, who, it turns out, he'd fallen in love with." Jenny covered her eyes with her hands.
Ellen groaned. "Of all the impossible things!"
"Don't ask. It is beyond words." Jenny placed the baby in the cradle. She smoothed and re-smoothed the paisley patterned blanket on her lap. "But that's not the worst of it. Jacob says he's seen Drake several times since."
Ellen leaned forward. "And?"
"Drake keeps asking him for money. He's gambled away all his savings. He says he's on the run from the law and that he'll be thrown into Marshalsea if he doesn't pay up."
"Oh no!"
Jenny looked at her unhappily. "It broke his heart, but Jacob had to say no. With the new baby and schooling for the little ones, we need to find a bigger house to live in. But rent is so expensive in London. Jacob was promised a bonus payment from the lectures he gives at the Royal Institution, but we haven't seen a penny yet. The truth is, we can't afford to pay Drake's debts. We just can't. There was a fight. They parted badly. We haven't heard from Drake since. He could be in jail by now, who knows?"
Ellen sighed. "And Jacob? How is he taking it?"
"You know how he is. Stoic. But beneath his brave exterior, his heart is breaking. He has been working very hard, though, and we have seen little of him. I'll take up embroidery again. It's the only way."
Ellen clasped Jenny's hands. "You are so brave and strong."
"Hush. Listen to me complain. I am otherwise happy with my life, you know?" She patted the edge of the cradle. "We're all healthy, and our home is warm and clean. I could not be happier. This is better than sitting in a small attic with ten other seamstresses, embroidery lace in a poor light. I consider myself very lucky to have escaped that drudgery when I married Jacob. Now I can choose my own customers and work as much as I like. Life is so much better now, Ellen."
Jacob returned late, and a tired smile lit his face when he saw Ellen. "Ellen, my dear. What a joy to see you after all this time."
He looked older than when she'd last seen him, and his hair had turned grey at the temples, which made him look more distinguished. Ellen embraced him.
"I am afraid the news I bear regarding Drake is not good," he said over supper.
Jenny folded her arms over her chest. "Don't tell me. They finally clapped him into debtor's prison."
Jacob didn't reply, but just hunched his shoulders and sighed.
"What can we do?" Ellen looked from one to the other.
"The banks have denied me credit. Not because they mistrust me, but because they mistrust Drake. He made it into the papers this morning."
There was silence. Jenny reached out to squeeze his hand. "We will find a solution," she said. "We always do."
"We always do." Jacob nodded.
Ellen remained quiet, her head spinning.
