Sweet Lass of Richmond Hill - Plaidy Jean. Страница 66

The Prince's eyes narrowed; but one did not of course discuss the King derogatorily with members of another nation. The Prince shrugged his shoulders and was content to talk of the friendship between himself and his brother.

As soon as supper was over—and Maria noticed that the Prince, who set the pace, had hurried it somewhat—he told his guests that he was all impatience to see his brother and that he was going to lose no time in leaving for Windsor.

It was a hint. They left, Maria only remaining.

'You will go to Windsor in the morning?' she asked him.

'In the morning! A fine way that would be to greet Frederick. No ... no. I am leaving at once, my love. I shall drive to Windsor tonight.'

'What ...in the dark?'

He laughed aloud. 'My dearest you cannot surely think that I'm afraid of the dark.'

She knew that it was no use trying to dissuade this self-willed boy, although she thought it would have been more dignified for him to leave next morning in befitting style.

He called for his phaeton and at once set out, driving himself at great speed through the night from Brighton to

Windsor.

* # #

They embraced. They wept.

'My dear Frederick, is it indeed you?'

'It is, George. And is this the Prince of Wales whose adventures have been startling all Europe?'

They began to laugh suddenly. 'Frederick, this is a happy day. You must tell me of your affairs.'

'Oh, you admit I have some. Then you do not think the Prince of Wales is the only one to have ... affairs?'

They were laughing again, embracing, weeping, examining each other.

'George, you've grown fatter.'

'So have you.'

'The curse of the family.'

'Never mind. It shows contentment.'

'You are contented George?'

'Never more in my life. You must come to Brighton. Wait till you see Brighton ... and Maria.'

'I can't wait,' declared Frederick.

The King was delighted with his second son. He talked to the Queen about him. 'He's not like his elder brother. Oh, no. There's a difference. You've seen it, eh, what?'

'No one could be quite like George,' said the Queen half admiringly, half resentfully. And she added: 'I should hope.'

'Frederick is a good boy at heart. He'll be able to give us some tales of battle, eh? I'm glad I sent him to Germany.'

The Queen looked dubious. The people hadn't liked it; and she believed that the Prince of Wales might have behaved a little better to them if they had not robbed him of the brother he had loved. And wouldn't the Duke of York have been able to learn how to be a soldier as well in England as in Germany? Now he was returned to them—and although he was their son, they hadn't seen him for seven years and that did, in a way, make him seem like a stranger.

'Frederick,' mused the King, 'he's the Hope of the House. That's how I think of him. You understand ... eh, what? Now that George seems bent on giving us trouble ...'

'George seems to have reformed a little under the influence of that ... of that...'

'He'd never reform. He's putting on a show. He knows how to act a part... the rip! No, Frederick is a good boy. He's done well in Germany; he'll do well at home. Come. We'll go to your drawing room. He'll be there now.'

It was not often that so many of the family were assembled. There were the six princesses, even baby Amelia, all standing solemnly about the Queen's chair awaiting the arrival of their parents; the equerries and some members of the household were there, and George and Frederick were together, deep in conversation, heads close, laughing as though no one else in the drawing room existed for them.

They all stood to attention at the arrival of the King and Queen; the Princesses curtsied prettily, including baby Amelia, who for once was too impressed by the glittering personalities of her two big brothers to assert her right to be the centre of attention.

The King and Queen took their places. Frederick stood by his father's chair, George by his mother's. The conversation was stilted. Why was it they never knew what to say to each other?

The Queen saw the glances which passed between her two sons—eyes raised to the ceiling, affecting to suppress yawns.

George was bored with his family. Could it be that Frederick —the King's Hope of the House—was going to be his brother's ally?

Oh why, why, thought the Queen, in this family is there always a state of war!

'We'll have some music,' said the King. Til swear you've heard some good music in Germany, eh, what?'

The Duke of York said that he had heard excellent music in Germany.

'Well we will try to give you some here.' He raised a hand and his equerry was at his side. He asked that the musicians be sent for.

'I doubt you've heard a better pianist than Cramer,' said the King. 'And Fischer is a genius with the hautbois.'

'I look forward with immense pleasure to hearing these gentlemen, sir.'

'And the rest of the band,' said the King with a smile.

The concert started.

Oh, God,' whispered the Prince of Wales to the Duke of York, 'did you think it would be so deadly!-'

'The music's good. It's the company.'

'You should come to Brighton.'

'So I've heard.'

'You shall come to Brighton.'

'When?'

'As soon as wc escape from this funereal gathering. Tonight .. . I'll drive you there in my phaeton. I'll take a bet with you. A thousand guineas. When you get to Brighton you'll find excuses why you must stay there.'

The King was frowning in their direction. Concert time was not the occasion for conversation.

But that evening the Prince of Wales drove the Duke of York down to Brighton.

'Frederick, this is the lady I want you to meet and love as a sister. Maria, my brother Frederick Duke of York and Bishop of Osnaburgh ... Now Bishop!'

The two brothers were laughing. 'You remember those cartoons of you, Fred. Maria, he was made a Bishop before he took his first tottering steps and the cartoonists always drew him balancing a mitre that was as big as himself.'

'It is a great pleasure to meet you, Madam,' said the Duke of York, bowing.

Maria replied with the regality of a Queen receiving visiting royalty that it gave her the utmost pleasure to see him and she trusted that he intended a long stay in Brighton.

'Wc have a bet on it,' said the Prince. 'He's going to be as reluctant to leave Brighton as I always am.'

'My God, George.' said the Duke of York, 'you have made vourself a pleasant place here.'

'Nothing to what I intend to make it. I'm going to show you round. Come on ... now. You shall inspect Marine Pavilion and I'll tell you of the schemes I have for the place.'

He slipped one arm through Frederick's and another through Maria's; but as they went from room to room and the

brothers shouted and laughed together and recalled to each other the ridiculous and tragic scenes from their youth Maria began to feel that she was a little less close to the Prince than she had been.

# # *

Frederick's coming did put an end to the halcyon days. Maria was still the Prince's 'dear love'; he must know that she was there to return to; but that did not mean that he wished to be in her company all the time.

Frederick was full of high spirits in which George joined; and this meant driving madly about the country, drinking, gambling, playing practical jokes on each other. Maria's dignity did not fit into this; and while the Prince wanted the home atmosphere he also wanted the sort of horseplay so beloved by his brother.

Maria was realizing the difference in their ages; never before had those six years seemed to represent such a gap. He seemed to her very childish, such a boy, and she thought regretfully of the days immediately following their reconc*' 1 'ition when he had seemed more sober and as though he had really grown up. But he was after all a lighthearted boy; and he must, she supposed, have his fun.