Rupert could feel the anger rising in him and he replied tersely, ‘That, of course, is a matter I shall be discussing with my father, sir, at an appropriate moment.’

‘Quite so,’ agreed Sir James with an approving nod. ‘Well, I must be going. Please pass my compliments and condolences on to your mother.’ And with that he half raised his hand, turned away and went out into the hall.

Another old family friend came up to bid him farewell, and Rupert managed to suppress the anger Sir James had aroused in him to shake the man’s hand and thank him for coming to pay his respects.

Rupert knew that some of his anger was due to guilt. Now that there was no Justin between him and the title, he felt trapped. He had never wanted the title, or the trappings and duties that went with it. He had been completely happy in his own selfish way with no one to consider but himself. Now, all of a sudden, the title, with all that went with it, had been thrust upon him; there was no escape. The only bright light on his immediate horizon was Hélène; now he could offer her far more than before, and though he felt sure that the title would be of little importance to Hélène herself, he was certain it would be of great consequence to her parents, paving the way to their acceptance of a formal betrothal sooner rather than later.

Hélène was so precious to him he wished he could go to her straight away. He hoped she had got his letter and that he would soon have her reply.

Chapter 31

The day after the funeral Lord and Lady Devenish took their leave, and with their going the whole household at Pilgrim’s Oak seemed to relax a little. Rupert and Fran privately discussed the situation as it now stood, and Fran pulled no punches.

‘You’ve seen how our parents have aged,’ she said as she and Rupert lingered at the breakfast table a few days later. ‘Papa has become very frail. Not mentally, of course, but physically. He eats less than a sparrow and is exhausted most of the time. I fear for his life, Rupert. It isn’t just Justin’s death; he was going downhill before that. I’m sure there is an underlying illness.’ She looked over at her brother and went on, ‘Do you remember how our grandfather looked just before he died? All skin and bone?’

Rupert nodded. ‘You think this is the same thing?’

‘I don’t know, not as bad maybe, but very like. Justin was taking the weight of the estate off his shoulders and now you’ve got to do the same thing.’

‘Trouble is,’ replied Rupert, ‘I don’t know anything about running the estate. It was never going to be my province.’

‘Well, it is now,’ asserted Fran. ‘Justin was working with Foxton to see how the estate was run. He’d been going round to all the tenant farmers and reassessing the rents. You must do the same. You need to know how the place works to the advantage of all concerned. It’s not something you can learn in a few weeks – you need to be here, living here, to get a proper feel for the place.’