Page 88 of Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure
“I’ve often wondered about him,” Tommy said. “He always seems to have enough money, but he doesn’t actually go out fishing much. I know he has that speedboat he takes people out in, but there haven’t been many visitors this year.” He gave Ellie a questioning glance. “So do you think he’s a smuggler? A black marketeer?”
“I don’t know what to think,” she said. “I only know he keeps things in the locked shed, and apparently this is all right with the owner.”
“But we’ve never met this owner, have we?” Tommy asked.
“I understood he lived in Paris and his affairs are handled by Monsieur Danton,” she said. “But maybe it’s just his attorney who lives in Paris. Who knows where the actual owner lives. I’ve often wondered ...” She paused.“About the viscount. Could it be that he is the son of the duke who bought this villa for his mistress? I didn’t like to ask him, and he didn’t offer the information. But it would make sense—his father bought this whole piece of land on the hillside and built two properties, side by side.”
“I suppose it would,” Tommy agreed. “He’s a funny chap, isn’t he? One never knows when he’s here. He never mixes with us at all. Brings his own servants. Has his provisions shipped in from outside, and yet one understands that he’s quite young.”
“He is,” Ellie said. “I would think maybe late thirties, early forties?”
“You’d expect his family to want him to marry,” Tommy said. “And produce the heir.”
“He did clarify that for me. He’s the second son, and there already is a satisfactory heir from his brother. He has interests elsewhere, so I gather.”
“Really?” Tommy looked amused. “Well, I never. So is he here for the duration of the war, do you think?”
“I really don’t know. Possibly. He does have a house in Paris he can’t go to now.”
“You’d think he’d want company, wouldn’t you?”
“I have lunch with him quite often,” Ellie said. “For some reason he has taken to me.”
“Of course he would,” Tommy said. “You are the least judgemental person in the universe. He’d feel comfortable with you.”
Ellie considered this comment later. It was nice of him to say that, and she had to admit that it was probably true. She had brought Dora here, even though for all she knew Dora could have been a demanding and critical old woman. She had brought her cleaning lady, treating her as an equal, which most of her peers would not have done. And she had embraced Tommy and Clive, and the viscount.
So I do have a few good qualities,she thought.I must tell Gerard when I write to him again.
Chapter 36
Life in Saint-Benet continued unchanged and untouched throughout the winter of 1941. Ellie felt as if she was in a sort of no-man’s land, safe enough for now, with good conversation with kind and witty men, and yet holding her breath as if waiting for doom to fall. England was still being pounded. She had received no word about her sons since France was invaded. At night she lay awake worrying about them, worrying about Jojo, missing Dora.
“I’m so glad she died before any of this happened,” she said to Mavis, who came up to visit once or twice a week. She no longer volunteered to help with housework, as the two men kept everything immaculate.
Mavis nodded in agreement. “I reckon you gave her a lot of happiness those last years of her life,” she said.
“We gave her. You too, Mavis. She became very fond of you.”
“God rest her soul,” Mavis muttered. “Louis has me going to church every Sunday now. He’s determined to make a good Catholic of me. I must say I like the idea of praying to saints. Louis says God is often too busy, so you can put the call through to one of his workers instead. It turns out there is a saint for everything—lost items or even headaches.”
“Is there one to take care of my boys?” Ellie asked. “I worry about them all the time.”
“I reckon you could ask the Virgin Mary herself about that,” Mavis said. “She was a mother who worried, after all.”
“It didn’t stop her son from being killed, did it?” Ellie said.
When Mavis got up to leave, Ellie made up a basket of produce, eggs and cheese. Mavis shook her head. “I won’t take this for myself, if you don’t mind. Or I’ll take it for others that need it more. The Belfonts’ child is not doing well. He had scarlet fever, and now he needs building up again. So I’ll take them the eggs and maybe some of your goat’s milk?” She paused, thinking. “You know, I was thinking, maybe we could set up a little food exchange. I’ll handle it ... see who needs food in the village and who has extra to spare.”
“I’m happy to contribute,” Ellie said.
“Well, Louis is already doing this sort of thing—lending tools, fixing things in return for some onions or a bottle of wine.”
“Mavis, you never cease to surprise me,” Ellie said. “If those people at home could see you, the life and soul of Saint-Benet, they’d never believe it.”
Mavis gave a shy smile. “Sometimes I can’t believe it myself,” she said. “It’s having Louis beside me. It makes all the difference.”
And so the village food bank was set up. Ellie took down cheese and honey and got fish, onions and wine in return. She wrote to the abbot, not too frequently, and received friendly replies. There were plenty of storms that battered the front windows and made the palm trees dance, but also plenty of rain that produced good spring crops. It seemed almost embarrassing to be in this beautiful haven with enough to eat. From the snippets of news, they gleaned Britain was being heavily bombed and the invasion could happen any day. Ellie worried about her sons, wished she had some way of writing to them or getting news of them. Were they even still alive? Colin flying for the RAF? Would he still think it was quite a lark? And where was Richard now? She hadn’t heard from either of them in ages since the Germans occupied France. She also wondered about Lionel. If the Germans came to his part of theworld, she was pretty sure he’d cooperate, welcome them, just as long as they left him and his bank alone.
