‘You might be our stepfather,’ Molly said curtly, ‘but we don’t need you to tell us what to do.’

Judy stepped in between them. ‘Aren’t you a bit concerned about what Mr Tattersall just said? If he sells the manor house and the estate we’ll lose our jobs.’

Wilfred’s smile faded into a frown. ‘I don’t think he was serious. I’ve known Jay since he was a boy. He wouldn’t do a thing like that. It’s all talk, so stop worrying and join the party or people will think you don’t approve of me marrying your ma.’

‘Heaven forbid,’ Molly said sharply. ‘We can’t have that.’ She shot a meaningful look at her sister. ‘Let’s eat before those greedy pigs scoff the lot.’

Despite the tempting dishes laid out on pristine white tablecloths, Judy found that her appetite had deserted her. She managed to greet her mother with a hug and a kiss on the cheek, and she was pleased to see her looking blissfully happy, but there was a nagging doubt at the back of Judy’s mind. She could not agree with her stepfather when it came to Jay’s sudden announcement: he had not been making a wild claim. Jay had been deadly serious and the outlook for everyone at Creek Manor was bleak. When Dr Neville approached her later, she could tell from his expression that he agreed with her.

‘What will you do, Judy?’ he asked in a low voice. ‘Jay is quite capable of going through with his plan to sell the place.’

‘Jack wants me to accompany them to Australia.’

‘It could be a good opportunity for you, I suppose,’ Nick said doubtfully. ‘But Jay is a wild card. You never know what he’ll do next. You and Jack could find yourselves in a worse situation than if you remained here.’

‘That’s what I’m afraid of, and it’s the other side of the world. We might end up penniless and friendless.’

‘It’s your decision, but I could always find work for you at Creek Hall. I couldn’t pay you very much, but you could live in, and I know that Mrs Bee would feed you like a turkey cock.’

‘But I’m not a nurse.’

‘It would be more like the work you were asked to do at the London Hospital. Even though you had such a brief time on the ward, Dr Godfrey was very impressed with the way you set about the most menial task without a word of complaint. What do you say, Judy?’

‘Would you mind if I didn’t give you an answer right now?’ Judy eyed him warily. She did not want to turn down the offer outright, but her whole world had just turned upside down and she was not in a position to make such a decision.

Nick smiled and nodded. ‘Of course. Perhaps we’d all better wait and see. As I said, Jay is unpredictable. He might be saying things simply to create a stir.’ He glanced over Judy’s shoulder. ‘My wife is beckoning to me. I’d better go and see what she wants.’ He strolled off to join Dove, who was standing in a small group with Sidney and Eleanora Marshall, Daisy and Marius.