The Jane Austen Society(80)

Andrew read through the two affidavits before him. “So it’s a potentially valid claim, then, no question about that?”

Dr. Gray nodded.

“And besides you, Adam and his mother are the only other people who know—Mr. Knight never knew, correct?”

“Yes, which makes the wording of the will—‘closest living male relative’—so important. Without the word legitimate, correct me if I’m wrong, anyone related by blood can make the claim.”

“Yes, correct, that is the law of the land,” Andrew replied. “Well, then, let’s discuss as a group and call a vote, obviously with Miss Frances and myself abstaining along with Mr. Berwick. That means, according to the law of meetings in parliamentary procedure, that a majority of all eight society members—five—must vote aye for any resolution to pass. That leaves the five of you who are allowed to vote in a pretty tight spot.”

“Well, I for one am not sure what there is to discuss,” Adeline spoke up again. She was sitting on the small love seat next to Evie. Mimi and Yardley were on the sofa across from her. Andrew had pulled another wingback chair over between the sofas to face the fireplace, in front of which Dr. Gray and Frances sat on opposite sides.

“I mean, clearly Adam is conflicted by the news, rightly so, and must be so upset,” Adeline continued. “And I don’t see how letting the whole village know the history behind all of this will make a shy man like Adam anything but even less secure than he already is.”

“I’m not sure Adam is insecure, so much as he is just quiet,” said Yardley.

“But you don’t know him the way we do,” Adeline retorted. “Village life is extremely intense in a way—no one misses a thing. There is no anonymity, you can’t hide yourself on a bad day the way you can in the city. Your neighbours force you to own up, by their sheer proximity.”

“You make it sound so enticing,” said Dr. Gray, letting his old teasing tone with her return.

“My neighbours knowing everything I am up to, every house I visit, or don’t, is not why I stay here.”

“It certainly does make decisions much more loaded when you know there’ll be a constant chorus of approval or disapproval either way,” Frances offered.

“I can see that,” said Mimi. “In a way it’s like Hollywood.”

They all turned to look at her.

“Yes”—Evie laughed outright—“that’s exactly what they say about Chawton.”

Mimi smiled self-effacingly. “I just mean, we are lucky if we get to live in places where so many people care—the trick is understanding why they care. Here, what I love, is that you care because you have a history together. You have known each other’s parents and grandparents, and all the siblings running amok in each other’s yards, and when times are hard, you help each other through. In Hollywood it’s quite the opposite. Everyone comes there to start new and makes up a history—even makes up their own name. Mine’s Mary Anne, by the way, not Mimi.”

“You’re joking!” exclaimed Evie. “You’re about to film Sense and Sensibility as Elinor and your real name is Mary Anne?”

“Yep. Ironic, huh? Although even that right now is up in the air—they suddenly want a younger actress for Elinor, to go with the even younger actress playing Marianne.”

Adeline and Frances looked at each other.

“Will Mr. Leonard let that happen?” Frances asked.

“I suspect it’s his idea,” replied Mimi archly, causing Adeline and Frances to glance quickly at each other again. “Anyway, in a town where no one even knows your real name, let alone where you come from, what is tethering you to anything? What is there to keep you on the ground?”

“Oh, we do plenty of that around here, let me assure you,” answered Adeline. “No one in Chawton is eager for anyone to rise above their station. Don’t even get me started on the education system. There’s a reason Evie was self-teaching in the library all those years. Not that you didn’t love every minute of it,” she said with a smile at the girl.

Dr. Gray and Andrew looked over at each other, aware that they were fast losing control of their limited agenda.

“So, Adeline,” Andrew intervened, “you think the stakes are too high for Adam, both emotionally and reputation-wise. Evie and Yardley, what about the two of you?”

Evie hesitated. Yardley was facing her on the sofa, and for a few seconds they stared at each other knowingly, both recalling that night in the library when she had revealed its many secrets to him. They were indeed very alike, and they had sworn that night to keep the library and the collection of Austen-related artifacts throughout the house as intact as possible.

“May I speak first?” asked Yardley. “I know I am very new to you all, but I really do think Adam can handle whatever happens. That he feels wonderfully supported by all of you, and by the society and what we’re trying to do. And, speaking professionally, the risk of losing all of these items, let alone the house itself, is very significant. Once you lose it, you might never even get an Austen family salt shaker back one day. We haven’t even scratched the surface of the rest of the house, the paintings and furniture and who knows what else. I hadn’t mentioned this yet, but Miss Frances showed me a mahogany writing desk in her father’s bedroom earlier today, and it could very well be the biggest find of all. Sotheby’s sold one for over ten thousand pounds last September, on the chance it was the one Jane Austen used while travelling. I think this is the real one instead. We might be looking at tens of thousands of pounds for that little desk alone.”