Page 47 of The Colonel's Ungovernable Governess
“The smallest,” Victoria said softly.
“How so?” Jocelyn whispered close to the girl’s ear.
“It has the carvings of fairies on it. Though fairies are not real, it was nice to pretend.”
“Our mother liked that one best also,” Vincent shared, “though Papa had the larger one built for her.”
Jocelyn made no comment, but she enjoyed sharing the moment with the children. She had never considered herself the ‘mother’ type, but she was truly enjoying these tender exchanges.
Within minutes, Mr. Jessie was circling the coach before a 16th century-style home. “Is it not spectacular?” Victoria asked.
“It is, sweetheart,” Jocelyn assured.
The first person out the door of the manor house was Mr. Darcy. The gentleman opened the carriage door to lift the children down and then assist her on the steps. Before Jocelyn could claim her bearings, Annabelle bounded from the front door to scoop her siblings up in a grand embrace, which Victoria had readily accepted, but Vincent had stood stiffly and did not return the gesture.
However, there was no time to soothe the boy’s anxiety before a well-dressed man, sporting a toothy smile exited and also spread his arms as if he expected a warm greeting. Victoria scampered into the man’s arms, but Vincent held his ground. Jocelyn stepped up beside the child, and, as if he also understood, Mr. Darcy joined the boy on his other side and placed a hand on Vincent’s shoulder in solidarity.
“Too old to hug your uncle?” the man asked, and Jocelyn immediately comprehended Vincent’s stern stance. She did not know the man, but she also feared him, nonetheless.
“It has been a long journey,” Jocelyn said. “I believe Lord Vincent is simply thankful to be able to stretch his legs.”
“And you are?” the man asked with a frown of disapproval.
“Miss Lambert,” Lady Annabelle responded. “The twins’ governess.”
“Ah,” the man said. “I have heard much of you.”
“Hopefully, someone spoke to my affection for the late Lord Babcock’s children,” she defended herself.
Thankfully, Colonel Fitzwilliam exited the house at that moment. “The twins adore her, and, if Lady Annabelle said otherwise, she is sadly mistaken.” He stopped before Jocelyn and bowed. “I am pleased you and the children arrived safely, Miss Lambert. I worried excessively for you and felt quite guilty for returning to my duties before you were completely settled at the Wood. It was very brave of you to set out to discover Lady Annabelle. I must apologize for my niece’s lack of contrition in this farce.”
Jocelyn noted how he chastised himself as much as he did the girl. “It shall sort itself out, sir. Thank you for sending Mr. Darcy after us.” She wanted to tell the colonel none of this was his fault, but there were too many people about to speak to the matter.
“Let us go inside,” Mr. Jennings instructed and turned to lead the way, but neither the colonel nor Mr. Darcy nor her nor Vincent moved. Perhaps it was Mr. Darcy’s hand still on the boy’s shoulder or that bit of readable stubbornness in Vincent’s stance that brought everyone to a halt. “Is something amiss?” Jennings asked.
Mr. Darcy responded, “Should we not practice precedence. This is the seat of the Earl of Babcock, not specifically that of the Jennings family. Fortunately, the current Earl of Babcock is among us and may lead us within.”
“The boy has not been named the earl by the House of Lords,” Jennings argued.
“Such is simply a matter of procedure. Lord Matlock has expedited Lord Babcock’s petition for succession; yet, even if Lord Vincent does not appear before the Lords for many years, he is still your brother’s son. Lord Stephen Jennings desired his son’s assumption of the title. Such is the wish of any man from the simplest shoemaker to kings. We all wish to leave behind something for our children.”
“What does a child know about a peerage?” Jennings demanded.
“My Lord Vincent,” Mr. Darcy prompted.
Vincent swallowed hard and his voice squeaked, but he said, “One claim of the Babcocks in England says the family was founded in A.D. 449 by a Saxon warrior serving with Horsa and Hengest, who assisted the English against the Picts and the Scots. Most of the people with the surname of Babcock are found in Essex.”
“Yet, our last name is not Babcock,” Jennings said with a slight snarl, indicating he tired of Darcy’s interference. Yet, the boy proved himself the better “man.”
Vincent huffed his displeasure, as if the child had lost his tolerance for his uncle’s lofty manners. “Until I claim my majority, marry, and produce a male heir for the earldom, you are my heir, and, therefore should be more aware of the familial lines so the Jennings’s claim to the earldom remains in place.”
“And you already know this history?” Jennings challenged.
“I set my mind to learn it,” the boy responded in tones that spoke of his quick irritation with this show of wills. “The grant of the original barony came about in the late 12th century. There were three brothers. One died in the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland. Another became a bishop. From the oldest, William Babcock’s son and grandsons inherited in succession. His efforts gave rise to a prominent Anglo-Irish family, but when one of William’s great-grandsons produced no heir, the barony went into abeyance.”
Jocelyn knew the boy was simply reciting what he had memorized, but she knew great pride in how he was facing one of his greatest fears. There was surely hope for him to have as normal of a life as the rest of them.
“In the 1500s,” the child continued, “the Babbington faction of the family had surfaced when John Babbington was made an earl. His son Ulick received a new creation in Yorkshire, but suffered a penalty for fighting on the side of James II. The earldom was not restored until 1705, a second creation occurred with the Jennings family becoming the lords of the Babcock earldom.”
