Sweet Lass of Richmond Hill - Plaidy Jean. Страница 23

'His Highness is in a very sad state.'

Maria had taken the Duchess to her drawing room, which was very elegant though of course very small and by no means to be compared with Devonshire and Carlton Houses.

'I have been thinking of what will be best for me to do and 1 have come to the conclusion that if I went away for a while he would turn his attention to someone else.'

She spoke in a matter-of-fact voice. What a calm and sensible woman! How different from that dreadful actress who had

imagined herself on a stage all the time. Georgiana remembered how that vulgar little upstart had tried to wrest from her—Georgiana—the title of leader of fashion. The thought infuriated her even now, to think of that woman parading herself in the Mall or at the Pantheon and the Rotunda in her outrageous costumes ... all in an endeavour to make people look at her instead of at the Duchess of Devonshire.

Georgiana smoothed the velvet of her skirts made specially to her own design. No fear of Maria Fitzherbert being so foolish. She was really what one would call a very nice, sensible woman. No airs—complete sincerity. Georgiana had seen that her mission would be in vain; she had had a lurking suspicion that if Maria were offered a large enough reward she would have succumbed and she would have been the one to discover it and so bring happiness to the Prince. But no. Maria was sincere in her determination not to enter into an irregular relationship with the Prince.

'Wherever you went he would follow/ said the Duchess.

'Not if I went abroad. He cannot leave the country without the King's consent. I have lived a great many years of my life in France. I was educated there and when my second husband was ill I took him to Nice. We lived there for almost a year. I have friends in France. I speak French as well as I speak English. So ... it seems a natural choice.'

'And when do you propose to go?'

'Within the next few days. I have in fact made all my arrangements.'

'Heaven knows what the Prince will do.'

Maria smiled, a little sadly Georgiana noticed, and she said quickly: 'You are fond of him?'

'How could I help it?' Maria was by nature frank. 'This has all been so ... flattering. And he has been charming to me. I have been surprised that one in his position could be so ... so humble ... so modest... and so kind.'

'You sound as though you are a little in love with him.'

'If circumstances were different...'

'Ah/ said the Duchess promptly. 'If he were in the position Mr. Weld or Mr. Fitzherbert had been in ... you would not hesitate.'

'No,' said Maria, 'I would not hesitate. Yes, I am fond of him. It is impossible not to be. He has great charm. He is so young ... and I...'

'And your husbands have been so old. Oh, Maria, how cruel is fate. If only he were Mr. Guelph with a pleasant estate in the country all could end happily.'

'My dear Duchess, how kind you are to concern yourself with our affairs.'

'Is there nothing that can be done?'

'Nothing. The Prince is pressing me to become his mistress. I could never agree to that. It is against my beliefs ... my religion. I could never be happy in such a position and therefore nor would he be. I have thought a great deal of this. It saddens me. I shall miss him sorely, but I know that my best plan is to leave the country. In time he will turn his attentions to someone else ... and then I shall return.'

'My dear Maria, what a noble creature you are! How I wish that you were a Protestant German Princess. Then I think His Highness would be the happiest man alive.'

Georgiana went straight to the Prince.

'I have seen Maria. I have very bad news for Your Highness. I had better tell you at once. Maria is planning to leave the country.'

The Prince wailed in his anguish.

'She is leaving in two days' time. That gives us a very short space for some action.'

'Georgiana, she must not be allowed to go. She must not.'

'We'll have to think of something. Never fear, we shall. Charles and I will put our heads together. But one thing I have discovered; she will never be your mistress. You'll have to have some sort of marriage.'

'I'd marry her tomorrow.'

Oh dear, thought Georgiana, I'd better see Charles at once.

'Don't go to her today/ pleaded Georgiana. 'You might drive her into leaving earlier. We have a day or so to think of something.' He looked so desperate that she said: 'But she is in love with you. That much she has admitted.'

'Georgiana!'

4 Oh yes. She couldn't hide it from me. She is very unhappy to leave you. But it's this religion of hers. She can't live in sin. She'd rather be miserable for the rest of her life than that. That's the situation.'

'But she loves me! She loves me! She has told you this, Georgiana, dear, dear Georgiana. What did she say?'

'That you were charming and modest and irresistible. In fact I suspect that is why she is running away ... because she is afraid that her reserves might break down.'

'But this is the best news I have heard for weeks.'

'She is leaving, remember, for France.'

'She must be stopped.'

'How? You cannot stop one of His Majesty's subjects from leaving the country unless you have a very good reason for doing so.'

'A very good reason! I shall die if she goes.'

'His Majesty would not consider that a valid reason,' said Georgiana tersely, 'because Your Highness would not die. You would only be brokenhearted.'

'And you think that is not a good reason?'

'I ... I would change the laws of this country to make you happy. I was talking of the King.'

'Damn the King!'

'Treason! And His Majesty's damnation has nothing to do with our problem. We have two days in which to think up a plot. And I believe we are going to succeed. There is one indisputable fact which brightens the whole situation to my mind.'

'Georgiana, dearest friend, what is it?'

'Mrs. Maria Fitzherbert is in love with His Highness the Prince of Wales.'

'Oh, Charles,' cried the Duchess, 'how good of you to come so soon. I am distracted. I fear that the Prince is capable of anything ... simply anything.'

'By which, dear Duchess, you mean marriage?'

'That is exactly what I mean.'

'It would have no meaning. You've forgotten the Marriage Act. Besides, the woman's a Catholic. That in itself is enough to lose him the throne.'

*I know. And so does he. But he does not care.'

'He behaves like a child.'

'Or a very romantic lover/ said the Duchess softly.

Fox burst out laughing. 'You know, do you not, that the woman is a Tory.'

'I know it,' said the Duchess sadly.

'A Tory and a Catholic. My God! It might be a plot of His Majesty's to plague us if it wasn't even more plaguing to him.'

'Do you think he knows what is happening?'

'He successfully manages to shut himself away in his Palace of Purity at Kcw, and is more interested in how his farmers make butter than how his son makes love. The Fitzherbert must become his mistress by some means. Then in the natural course of events the affair will come to its logical conclusion.'

'But she holds out for marriage.'

'That's the point. We've got to make her give in.'

'She is adamant, Charles. I've spoken to her. It's her religion, I really think he is capable of following her to France.'

'He can't do it. It's impossible for the Prince of Wales to leave the country without the King's consent.'

'He's capable of anything. He has never been so mad about any woman before, Charles. Let's face it. Pcrdita was the nearest, but he never talked of marrying Perdita.'

'She didn't hold out long enough. Perdita was a fool.'

'Well, Maria Fitzherbert is not. And the fact that she really means what she says enslaves him more than ever. He senses her inherent virtue, Charles. It confirms his belief that she is the only woman with whom he can be happy. \ou know the Prince. Gambling, jokes, racing, prizefighting ... he enjoys them all; but his dominating passion is for women.'