Best Kept Secret (The Clifton Chronicles, #3)(31)

‘I’m so sorry to have kept you waiting, my darling, but I just couldn’t decide what to wear.’

He leapt up and kissed his fiancée on both cheeks, took a pace back, and once again thought how lucky he was that this beautiful woman had ever given him a second look.

‘You look fabulous,’ he said, admiring a yellow dress he’d never seen before, which emphasized her slim, graceful figure.

‘A little risqué perhaps for the reading of a will?’ suggested Virginia as she spun round in a circle.

‘Certainly not,’ said Giles. ‘In fact, the moment you walk into the room, no one will be thinking of anything else.’

‘I should hope not,’ said Virginia as she checked her watch. ‘Heavens, is it really that late? We’d better skip breakfast, Bunny, if we’re going to be on time. Not that we don’t already know the contents of your mother’s will, but it must appear as if we don’t.’

On the way down to Bristol, Virginia brought Giles up to date on the latest wedding arrangements. He was a little disappointed that she didn’t ask how his speech from the front bench had been received the previous day, but then, William Hickey hadn’t been in the press gallery. It wasn’t until they were on the Great West Road that Virginia said something that demanded his full attention.

‘The first thing we’ll have to do once the will has been executed is look for a replacement for Marsden.’

‘But he’s been with the family for over thirty years,’ said Giles. ‘In fact, I can’t remember when he wasn’t there.’

‘Which is part of the problem. But don’t worry yourself, my darling, I think I may have found the perfect replacement.’

‘But—’

‘And if you feel that strongly about it, Bunny, Marsden can always go and work at the Manor House, and take care of my aunts.’

‘But—’

‘And while I’m on the subject of replacements,’ continued Virginia, ‘it’s high time we had a serious talk about Jackie.’

‘My personal secretary?’

‘She’s far too personal, in my opinion. I can’t pretend that I approve of this modern habit of staff calling their bosses by their Christian names. No doubt it’s all part of the Labour Party’s absurd notion of equality. However, I felt it necessary to remind her that it’s Lady Virginia.’

‘I am sorry,’ said Giles. ‘She’s usually so polite.’

‘With you perhaps, but when I rang yesterday, she asked me to hold the line, something I’m not in the habit of doing.’

‘I’ll have a word with her about it.’

‘Please don’t bother,’ said Virginia, which came as a relief to Giles. ‘Because I shall not be contacting your office again while she remains on your staff.’

‘Isn’t that a little extreme? After all, she does a first-class job, and I’d find it almost impossible to replace her.’

Virginia leant over and kissed him on the cheek. ‘I do hope, Bunny, that I will be the only person you will find it almost impossible to replace.’



Mr Siddons entered the room, and was not surprised to find that everyone who had received the To Whom It May Concern letter was present. He sat down at his desk and peered at the hopeful faces.

In the front row sat Sir Giles Barrington and his fiancée, Lady Virginia Fenwick, who was even more striking in person than the photograph he’d seen of her in Country Life soon after the couple had announced their engagement. Mr Siddons was looking forward to making her acquaintance.

In the second row, seated directly behind them, were Mr Harry Clifton and his wife Emma, who was sitting next to her sister, Grace. It amused him to see that Miss Barrington was wearing blue stockings.

Mr and Mrs Holcombe sat in the third row, alongside the Reverend Mr Donaldson and a lady who was dressed in a matron’s uniform. The back two rows were filled with staff who had served the Barrington family for many years, their selection of seats revealing their station.

Mr Siddons perched a pair of half-moon spectacles on the end of his nose and cleared his throat to indicate that proceedings were about to begin.

He looked over the top of his spectacles at the assembled gathering, before making his opening remarks. He didn’t require any notes, as this was a responsibility he carried out on a regular basis.

‘Ladies and gentlemen,’ he began. ‘My name is Desmond Siddons, and I have had the privilege of being the Barrington family’s solicitor for the past twenty-three years, although it will be some time before I equal the record of my father, whose association with the family covered the careers of both Sir Walter and Sir Hugo Barrington. However, I digress.’ Mr Siddons thought Lady Virginia looked as if she agreed with him.

‘I am in possession,’ he continued, ‘of the last will and testament of Elizabeth May Barrington, which was executed by me at her request, and signed in the presence of two independent witnesses. Therefore this document,’ he continued, holding it up for all to see, ‘renders any previous will null and void.

‘I shall not waste your time going over the pages of legal jargon that are demanded by the law, but rather I will concentrate on the several relevant bequests left by her ladyship. Should anyone wish to study the will in greater detail later, they are most welcome to do so.’