It was the last time Drake brought an animal to show her, but it did not matter. Spring had arrived and the garden and grounds offered up their booty to aide her recovery and bring colour into her life. He brought her peach blossoms, apple blossoms and the flowers of the rhododendrons and Sweet Williams. She could not touch them or smell their honey-like fragrance, but she appreciated their fragile beauty and that Drake had thought of her sometime during the day.
And then there were the nights he came bearing nothing and those were the visits she liked best of all. She would look down from her window to find him waiting, his hands in his pockets and his collar turned up to ward off the night-time chill, and he would tilt his face upwards, his dark eyes would look upon her, and he would smile. Fine drizzle, heavy rain and bitter cold nights that heralded mornings of biting frosts, did not deter him. He would always come to see her — and she would smile too and feel fulfilled.
When Drake left, Evelyn’s new, self-designed regime would begin. She spent the long dark hours exercising her mind and body, with the aim of passing time and strengthening her weakened muscles. By the morning she was exhausted and, under the watchful eye of her daytime nurse, she would spend large parts of the day sleeping. This was the only way she could tolerate her enforced bed rest. Her young teenage body no longer wanted to kick and scream in frustration one minute or want to die the next. She escaped to her dreams, dreams that were filled with Drake.
Her only other ally was the servant, Tilly. A tentative friendship formed, built on need and empathy. Whenever the nurse left them alone, Tilly would help Evelyn consume the high fat diet. Glasses of milk, milk pudding and fatty meat were hastily shared and although it was not every day, as the nurse did not always leave the room when Tilly arrived with a tray, it helped. On other days Tilly smuggled in extra candles, a book, or something small and tasty from the kitchen to tease her palate. Such precious gifts were slipped between the hair and spring mattresses and brought out at night to help pass the hours.
However, the most precious gift Tilly brought Evelyn was news of Drake for she often mentioned his visits to the kitchens. Evelyn eagerly listened and later, when left alone, recalled and re-examined each word she had heard. Hearing snippets of his day through Tilly brought Drake closer to her, yet she remained too wary to share her own friendship with Drake to Tilly. She had to remain content to see Drake’s kitchen visits through Tilly’s eyes, eyes that appreciated his looks as well as she did.
Chapter Fourteen
Turning up his collar, Drake looked up at the sky. He was glad to see that although it was thick with cloud, there was no sign of rain. This week the walk to Perran would be a dryer one than his last, which had left his clothes sodden and his mother worrying he would catch a chill. For the most part, Drake enjoyed the weekly walk to his mother’s house. In total the journey took over an hour, which was as long as the time he spent with his mother, but it gave him precious respite away from Carrack Estate, work and study and some peace to think about Evie.
He had not gone far from the bothy door, when he heard Tilly calling to him. He wanted to ignore her and keep walking, but he did not have the heart to do so. Besides, she might have news about Evie. He turned to look at her. Unusually, she was dressed in what looked like her best hat and coat.
‘I thought I could walk with you to Perran,’ said Tilly, smiling brightly as she approached.
Abel appeared to lounge against the bothy door.
‘And why would you be going to Perran today?’ he asked Tilly, as she walked past him.
‘Because I have every other Sunday afternoon off now,’ answered Tilly, still smiling at Drake.
Abel frowned and followed her. ‘Since when?’
‘Since you last decided to wash, Abel Hicks.’ Her retort stopped him in his tracks. Her smile widened further as she approached Drake. ‘Fancy some company, Drake?’
Drake’s heart sank a little. He liked Tilly, but he wasn’t sure he wanted her company right now. He had seen her yesterday as he delivered the supplies to the kitchen. They had chatted, as they usually did each morning, and he had gone away content he had found out all he could about Evie without asking too many questions. Now Tilly wanted to walk with him and theirconversation would naturally turn to other things unrelated to the goings-on within the walls of Carrack House.
‘I didn’t know you had relatives in Perran.’
‘There is a lot you don’t know about me,’ said Tilly, looking up at him through her lashes. ‘Besides, it would seem silly not to walk together when we are going in the same direction.’
Drake felt Abel’s stare burrowing into his head. ‘Abel doesn’t look too happy,’ he said, lifting his gaze over her head to look at him.
‘Abel never looks happy.’
They both looked back at him. He scowled at them, before turning and walking away. Tilly had a point, Abel only laughed when it was at someone’s expense. Drake smiled. Tilly, taking it as his consent, immediately fell into step beside him. He noticed that her smile grew even brighter than it had been before and her head held a little higher. She quickly filled the silence with idle chat that required no response and Drake, who usually used the journey to think, found it was now impossible to do so. It felt strange to be alone with a young woman. His visits to the kitchen meant they saw each other often, but he hadn’t really considered Tilly a friend up to now. If someone saw them, they would think they were walking out together, which they weren’t. Yet, he had the feeling that his agreement to her company had set a new precedent that he could not easily change without hurting her feelings. And he did not want to hurt her feelings, as she was kind to Evie when Evie most needed a friend. He might as well make the best of the situation he had found himself in. He looked at Tilly as she walked beside him and tried to concentrate on what she was saying.
* * *
Doctor Birch declared Evelyn cured on the 19th March, four months after Drake’s first visit, just over six months after DoctorBirch first diagnosed her with nervous hysteria, an affliction, he often said, the female gender was particularly prone to.
Ironically, it was her female body that provided the key to her release, for on the 19th March Evelyn Pendragon experienced her first menstrual flow. Innocent of such things, Evelyn thought she was dying when she discovered the scarlet stain on her sheets. Doctor Birch, however, had no such concerns. In fact, he was delighted, explaining to the nurse that the reproductive organs were intimately entwined with the emotional and mental health of a woman. The appearance of her monthly curse, he explained, was a sign that her womb no longer wandered about her body and that stability had been restored. Evelyn silently lay between their exchanges, daring to hope that her torture was coming to an end.
‘Evelyn has finally passed through the dark phase of emotional instability and emerged a young woman,’ he later told her parents, ‘and she appears the healthier for it, for her eyes are bright, her muscles are strong and her motivation to spend time downstairs again is unquestionable. She is cured and her treatment is a worthy subject for a paper. In fact, I will submit it for publication to the Journal of Mental Science, which is one of the best resources around. I shall not mention her identity, of course,’ he added as an afterthought as he accepted a glass of port.
The nurse provided the knowledge that Evelyn lacked. At the age of fifteen, she was now a young woman, she was told. Childhood, and all that went with it, was behind her. Lost forever, thought Evelyn sombrely, but at least the treatment would now end.
Her cure did not bring about instant freedom for her, but each day brought it a step closer. She was allowed to dress, read openly, embroider and receive visitors again. Her parents were the first to come to her room. Silver threads in their hairand lines of worry on their faces had aged them. Was it her confinement that had caused the changes or simply the passage of time? She wondered how she must look to them. Did they see the change in her outlook on life? Did they see cynicism in her eyes when they looked upon her?
They entered the room with a mixture of caution and curiosity, as if she was a bearded lady in a sideshow they had just paid money to see. The conversation that followed was painfully polite, with no hugs or loving words to soften their first meeting. Her mother fidgeted. Her father constantly cleared his throat with stifled coughs. Evelyn quickly realised the cause of their unease.
‘Do you fear I may suddenly relapse?’ asked Evelyn boldly.
Her parents had the grace to look embarrassed, although they attempted to deny it. Evelyn looked to the window and longed to be outside.
‘We have missed you, Evelyn,’ replied her mother. ‘It is difficult to know . . .’ Her mother’s voice faded into embarrassed silence.
