The pool of St Branok

"It can be very distressing," he said. "It's so strange and upsetting at first. One gets over that. One realizes that there is no virtue in being upset and shaking one's head in pity and doing nothing about it. This place grows on you. Frances is one of the most wonderful women I have ever met. She never sits down and groans about inequality ... she does something practical. Of course, everyone could not do it, I know. Frances has her private income ... so has Peterkin. They are a good team. Theirs is a good marriage ... perfect I should say ... except that they have no children. Yet if they had I suppose this work would suffer. On the whole I would say theirs is one of the few perfect unions."

"You admire them very much, don't you?"

"I do. Everyone must... . Once they get used to Frances' rather stringent manner they must know that beneath it lies the proverbial heart of gold."

The very mention of the word "gold" always took me back to Golden Creek ... Ben washing his hands in the stream and discovering the presence of the precious metal. But for that he might be free now.

I said: "I think she is wonderful, too."

"You'll come again. You'll get caught up in it. I come two or three days during the week. I'm what Frances calls one of her casual laborers. What she likes is full-timers like the Honorable Jessica. You know her?"

"I met her when I arrived."

"Oh yes, Jessica is the right-hand woman. She's dedicated, and we should all like to be but for commitments."

"Have you many commitments?"

"An estate to run. Fortunately close to London ... which makes it easy for me. It is just outside Hampton. I have a son and daughter. So you see I cannot give myself entirely to the cause."

"I understand."

"Your daughter must be a great compensation."

"Oh yes."

"I find that with Alec and Fiona. I lost my wife, you see."

"Oh, I am sorry."

"It was some four years ago. A riding accident. It was so sudden. She was there in the morning ... and by night time she was gone."

"What a terrible tragedy!"

"Well, these things happen all the time. It is just that one doesn't expect them to happen to oneself!"

"How old are the children?"

"Alec is ten, Fiona is eight."

"So they remember."

He nodded sadly. Then he smiled. "Well, this is gloomy talk. Would you like some more cider? I am sure I could find some."

"No thanks," I said.

When we took back our plates and tankards and washed them in the kitchen we saw Frances.

"There's trouble," she said. "Billings is up to his tricks again." She turned to me. "We get cases like this all the time. But this kind makes me mad. It's where young people are concerned."

"Fanny again?" asked Timothy Ransome.

"Yes. I don't know what we can do. I'd like to get Fanny away ... but there's the mother. She doesn't want to leave him." She wrinkled her brows. "Billings drinks. He's not so bad when he's not drinking, but he can't resist the gin palaces. You know what they say: 'Drunk for a penny and dead drunk for tuppence.' Well, he's dead drunk most of the time. Emily Billings is a silly woman. She should leave him. But she won't. He's the second husband and seems to have her completely under his spell. Fanny was the daughter of the first marriage," she explained to me. "He was a builder and fell from the scaffolding. There was no compensation. That's one of the things we're working on. In the meantime ... Emily married Billings and her troubles really started."

"There are so many similar cases," said Timothy Ransome.

"True. As far as Emily's concerned I'd say All right, if you won't leave him take the consequences. It's the child ... Fanny. She's a bright little thing. I could do something for her. But I can't take a girl of fifteen away from her home. Emily would stand by him in a court of law. She'd deny anything. He could almost kill her and she'd say she had fallen down the stairs. But it is Fanny. From what I hear there is danger of sexual abuse. Emily knows it and tries to hide it. It was something Fanny said that gave me the clue. I just can't put it on one side. I have to do something because of Fanny."

"It's a problem," agreed Timothy Ransome. "If there is anything I can do ..."

"I'll call on you, never fear. Angelet, you have been thrown in at the deep end, as they say. If it hadn't been for all this blowing up this morning, I could have shown you round properly."

"Don't worry about that. I want to see how everything works. I'm getting a real insight."

"The carriage is coming for you at four, I believe."

"Yes, they insisted."

"Quite right, too. You'd never get a cab here."

"Had I known I would have taken you home," said Timothy Ransome.

Frances answered for me. "Another time, Tim. I feel sure Angelet will come again."

"I shall," I said. "Perhaps on Friday if Rebecca goes to Morwenna."

Timothy Ransome said: "And on Friday I shall be here. I'll see that you are returned safely to your home."

Frances beamed on us both.

"Very well. I shall see you on Friday. I promise I shall find plenty for you to do."