But then her mind went to her plum trees and she considered that perhaps there was hope after all. For the plums held one final secret that she had not revealed to the public. The thought of doing so made her hands sweat slightly inside their gloves. She had only managed to eat one plum herself and the memory of it was still enough to make her gag. Sometimes it even woke her up in the middle of the night with a cry that sent Wilkie running to the corner of the room. Most people, she suspected, would not have the strength of character or the determination necessary to force down the entire plum. There were bound to be complaints. Probably tears and remonstrations. Perhaps a medical man might even need to be called for. But this was a time to be bold, to take chances and to give it all she’d got.

‘It is hard to go on sometimes,’ Rosa had said, more than a year ago at Half Moon House. ‘You have to fight for it with every breath …’

Beatrice knew she must follow that advice now, that this was an opportunity that would not come again. She made her way back to the carriage, and as it rattled down the drive she saw fireworks lighting up the sky through the window. They must have been special ones designed by Rosa for they painted pictures on the clouds – dancing bears and tumbling acrobats and blooming flowers. Beatrice thought it like artwork in the stars.

When she arrived back at Half Moon House, she went up to the roof and thought again about the plums. They did not taste like any fruit she had ever had anywhere in the world. They tasted of regret. Until those trees, Beatrice had never known that regret had a taste, but she had sampled it now and it was so bitter it was almost impossible to eat an entire plum. But for those who battled through, the plums held a secret at their hearts – something that was worth fighting for, something wonderful and dreadful.

As she watched over her garden that evening she could not help thinking that it seemed too small, and quiet, and quaint compared to the large, fiery spectacle Rosa had put on. It was foolish to have the plums and not use them. From tomorrow, that would change.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO