Black Tuesday

Black Tuesday

by

Sonya C. Dodd

Published by Sonya C. Dodd at Smashwords

Copyright Sonya C. Dodd 2014

Other books available by Sonya C. Dodd:

A Whisper in the Wind

Harbour of Dreams

(A sequel to A Whisper in the Wind)

Dear Mother

With Hindsight

Brass Buttons

The Root of all Evil

Siren Call

Echo of a Siren

(A sequel to Siren Call)

Affirmation of the Sirens

(A sequel to Echo of a Siren)

Don’t Tell Me You’re Sorry

2000 Words: a collection of short stories

No Man is an Island and other stories

Who’s Real?

Prologue

1913

Your investments are safe, Freddie; you’ve got to trust me. Donald eyed his partner through a thick cloud of cigar smoke.

Remember, we agreed; I take care of the financial side of things, leaving you to oversee the running of your estate.

It doesn’t seem a very fair division of the labour, Frederick Lloyd replied. He’d waited all through dinner to have this conversation with his business partner and friend but should have known Donald would cast his worries aside as if they were mere trifles.

They were sitting in the library of Grinton Hall. It had been the seat of Freddie’s family for three hundred years and he felt the responsibility of maintaining the estate weighing heavily upon his shoulders. With his father dead and neither one of his two sons old enough for school yet, Freddie knew it was all down to him, both the highs and the lows.

It was easy for Donald to act so flippantly. He was the one with his nose to the ground when it came to the stock market; however it was Freddie’s money and his children’s future which was being gambled on the success or failure of companies and investments, many of which meant nothing to Freddie.

At school Donald had always talked of securing his fortune by just watching the markets and so far he’d proven successful, maybe a little too confident in his ability to second guess the future, Freddie thought.

He watched as his friend helped himself to another whisky. He’d known Donald since they’d been at school together; being quiet himself, Freddie had been impressed by Donald’s self-confidence and the pair of opposites had quickly become good pals.

Even as a child Donald had known how to make a pretty penny for himself, and Freddie had marvelled at his ability to make such profits just from his peers. It was inevitable Donald would become wealthy and Freddie had been happy to invest in his recommendations. As the profits rolled in, he’d parted with more and more cash knowing he was doing Donald a favour by showing how reliable his advice was and putting others onto him. Donald built up a solid portfolio of clients and Freddie got to watch his money grow.

But now things were different. He was a father for a start. With parenthood, Freddie felt the hand of responsibility and respectability clutching tightly round his throat. It had been one thing to give Donald a bit of pin money to play around with but now the sums were getting larger and the money was what kept the wheels turning like clockwork on the estate.

The rumours of the inevitability of war were rife but Donald kept waving Freddie’s concerns aside, laughing at his hesitancy and telling him to trust him. That was easy for Donald to say; it wasn’t his family’s fortune which was being tied up here, there and everywhere when the world was starting to seem smaller rather than larger.

The whole concept of war was terrifying without having to worry about where his investments were and what risks the war might pose to them.

Freddie sighed heavily. Lizzie would be wondering where they were and they would be forced back into the ladies’ company without him having made any progress in calming his worries. Certainly there was no way he could now suggest to Donald that he’d prefer to alter his investments over to something a little more traditional.

Donald lived for and in the future as much as Freddie held the past dear to his own heart. Freddie remained silent because he could already imagine the sound of Donald’s loud laughter resonating around the bookcases at the very idea of Freddie’s old-fashioned views.

Sensing his friend’s eyes on him, Freddie shook himself out of his thoughts, looked up and smiled.

Things really will be just fine, old chap, Donald chuckled. You need to lighten up a bit, you know.

Freddie raised his eyebrows in response and led the way to the door. He didn’t know whether he was most annoyed with Donald for the way he dismissed his concerns as being unimportant, or whether he was angrier with himself for not having the courage to just ask for his money back to take care of things himself.

Chapter One

Sixteen years later ………

Alice Lloyd had thought that summer was going to be the best of her life but in fact it was where everything began to go dreadfully wrong.

Of course if you had asked her mother, she would have said it all went wrong when Freddie died, just a year before the war ended. You’ll think Alice heartless for not agreeing with her but as she was only four at the time, she can be forgiven for not being more thoughtful, not having any of her own memories of her father.

Naturally there were photographs everywhere, so she was easily able to tell you what he looked like. Photographs of him looking handsome in his uniform which Alice thought were her mother’s favourites because they made her smile; but personally she liked the ones of the two of them dressed in their most beautiful clothes, about to go out and looking very much in love. However they were the ones which made Elizabeth Lloyd sad and even now, after all these years, she sometimes still cried when she looked at her husband’s image.

Alice had already finished school and Hugh, her brother, was back from Cambridge for the summer with just his final year left to go.

The air was full of excitement; Rupert, Alice’s oldest brother, had been away travelling for a year having graduated from Oxford the previous summer. It would be wonderful to all be back together with a long summer full of family fun lying ahead of them.

Whilst Alice struggled to contain her excitement, looking forward to the house being filled with young people again, Elizabeth Lloyd tried to absorb some of her daughter’s enthusiasm.

She felt guilty for holding onto the past. Today was a day when Freddie should have been here to welcome his heir home. Of course Lizzie was thrilled that Rupert was returning to the family fold, but she couldn’t rid herself of the thought that they would still be incomplete. How could she relax and welcome Rupert home when his father was dead? After nearly twelve years, Lizzie knew she should leave her memories where they belonged in the past, but Freddie had made her life complete and now she felt as though she was wandering aimlessly through the years waiting for the day when she would be reunited with the love of her life.

Lizzie watched her daughter pacing backwards and forwards in front of the huge bay window. Alice had grown so tall; of her three children it was strange her daughter was the one who looked most like their father. She was slim and her blonde hair and blue eyes were exactly the same colours as Freddie’s. Lizzie often caught herself just staring at Alice across the dining table, almost able to imagine Freddie was still with them.

Naturally she liked to believe he was with them in spirit and today his presence would be particularly acute with the three children reunited.

Why don’t you go for a walk, darling? Lizzie suggested. He could be hours yet.

But he said he would come here directly, Alice replied turning to face her mother, dragging her eyes from the window to give her mother her attention.

Lizzie gave her daughter a sympathetic smile. Hugh never surfaces before lunchtime; why do you think Rupert will be any different?

Because he knows how excited I am. He promised in his last letter that he would leave London at first light so he could be here by lunchtime. Alice came to sit by her mother who instinctively caught up her daughter’s hand.

You underestimate his tiredness. Take yourself off for a couple of hours; I promise you the time will pass more quickly and you will find it more pleasurable than remaining here and wearing the carpet thin with your constant pacing.

Alice sighed heavily but gave a brief nod of her head. Perhaps a little fresh air would be preferable to the stuffiness indoors, she thought.

Rupert Lloyd settled into the first class carriage of the Norwich train resting his mass of brown, curly hair against the high back of the seat and closed his hazel eyes. He was exhausted but had promised Alice he would make the journey as early as possible and he knew she wouldn’t let him hear the end of it if he let her down.

A few days in London would have been fun but Rupert knew he was only delaying the inevitability of returning home and the responsibilities which were waiting there for him.

The last year of his life had been a real blast but as this day had crept ever closer, his sleep had become broken and a sense of dread had steadily grown inside him.

It wasn’t that Rupert didn’t love his family or his home, there was nowhere else on earth he would rather have been. However the fact he would be charged with having to run the estate in the absence of his father made him shudder. There had been no opportunity to spend time with his father as most of his friends had. There had been no gentle handing over of tasks until Rupert and his father had agreed he was ready to take over the reins fully.

If it was just him it wouldn’t have made such a heavy impact on him, but Rupert knew his brother would be watching and waiting for him to mess things up. And if he did make a pig’s ear of it all, then it would be Alice and his mother who would ultimately suffer the consequences of his ineptitude.

There was a heavy weight in the pit of his stomach but Rupert was aware he had to put on a show for his family of his false confidence. Their letters had been full of excitement about his approaching return to the family fold which had heightened his concerns; but there had never been any doubt of his being able to step straight into his father’s waiting, empty shoes.

Thinking about his father saddened Rupert. He had been eleven when he had heard the news of his father’s death. A heavy curtain of desolation had enveloped the house and Rupert had felt a great degree of guilt over his relief at being able to head off back to school to escape from the morbidity at home.

Of course he had loved his father and was immensely proud of the duty he performed for his country; what son wouldn’t be? But the depth of his mother’s grief had embarrassed Rupert. He had been too young to know how to handle it and had merely felt awkward in her presence.

Rather than growing tired of the perpetual darkness in their lives, Rupert had welcomed the distraction of learning, making new friends and the constant business of school life.

Naturally, his leaving the family home at such an uncertain time had not helped his mother’s recovery, and for that Rupert did feel some sense of selfishness. However he knew this new start would give him an opportunity to make his mother proud of him and also to carry on the tradition of his father’s name by doing well at school and living up to the Lloyd name.

Now that duty weighed heavy once more and Rupert was filled with self-doubt. He hadn’t the first idea about running a large estate. Clearly there would be people at home to help him, his father’s business partner Donald had promised to go through all the accounts and financial side of things with him and the estate manager, Tom Hayward, would be showing him the farming and management side of things. Yet it still sat awkwardly and Rupert couldn’t shake off the feeling of foreboding about the path he was about to embark upon.

And then an image of his sister crept into his mind. Rupert smiled but then recalled where he was and pulled his mouth straight once more. Alice was always such a breath of fresh air. Her enthusiasm for everything and everyone was infectious and Rupert knew he wouldn’t be able to dwell on his own worries for too long once he reached home.

It would be a lucky man who captured Alice’s heart and woe betide anyone who dared to play with her affections, he thought to himself. Rupert was fully aware of her romantic tendencies and her inclination towards day dreaming, so was aware of his responsibility in ensuring she made the right choices for herself.

Whilst Rupert loved his mother dearly, he couldn’t help his impatience with her perpetual mourning for the loss of their father. It was rare to see her not wearing black, even after all this time and Rupert was convinced his father would have frowned upon her holding onto his memory with such a desperate show of feeling.

It would be wonderful if one day he could feel such love for a woman, Rupert decided, but his mother’s behaviour could be embarrassing and was unnecessary in his view.

How strange it would be to see Hugh again. It had been nearly three years since the boys had been at home together and Rupert wondered what kind of man his younger sibling had turned into.

They had always muddled along somehow but it was evident that Hugh carried some jealousy around with him for not being the first born himself. Rupert always got the impression his brother was waiting for him to fail so he could jump in with an: ‘I told you so’.

Maybe Hugh would have matured enough for them to get along a bit better with the kind of relationship Rupert had always hoped they could enjoy. He wasn’t adverse to the idea of Hugh working on the estate too but wasn’t sure how his brother would take such a proposal. He would have to wait and see how his brother reacted to his presence before he made any final decisions in that respect.

The rocking of the train lulled Rupert into a light doze, helping the miles to become swallowed up in a haze of gentle buffeting and the occasional disturbance of the carriage door sliding open and closed.

Rupert was glad Danvers had brought the Austin to meet him from the train so they could approach his home without curious faces staring at him as they passed. At least with a roof over his head Rupert felt inconspicuous, even with the evident status of such a car on the small Norfolk roads.

Pushed back into the leather seat, it was as though Rupert hoped he could become part of the vehicle and disappear from his impending return. However the roads were clear and he could only watch the passing blur of green hedgerows as they drove ever closer to the estate.

When the hedges disappeared Rupert recognised the familiar flint and brick outer perimeter wall of his ancestral home. The wall ended temporarily as they turned into the driveway, past the gate posts sporting the family arms.

It was a warm day but Rupert knew it wasn’t the heat causing him to sweat in his tweed jacket. Suddenly he wished he was miles away, back in the piazzas of Rome with nothing more to consider than which gallery or museum he and his friends should visit that day. Now those carefree moments seemed like a punishment; a memory to make the pain of what he was about to take on even more of a contrast with his previous existence.

As the car came to a stop outside the front door, Rupert paused to take in some deep breaths. It was vital his mother saw no evidence of his worries; now was the time to face what his whole life had been leading up to: the duty he had been expected to fulfil since the moment he was born.

Hugh watched his brother getting out of the car, looking like a slightly taller, slimmer version of himself from an upstairs window. He saw Alice run forward, throwing herself into his welcoming arms. His fists clenched by his sides. All this fuss just because Rupert was home seemed ridiculous; his mother hadn’t even been at home the day he’d returned from university. Now the pair of them were acting as though his older brother was some kind of prodigal son returning to the family nest. It was sickening.

Kicking his shoe against the skirting board Hugh ignored the sound of laughter and excited chatter which travelled up the stairwell towards him. He wasn’t going to make a bloody fool of himself just because Rupert had finally decided to grace them with his presence. Knowing his brother he’d get bored of staying in one place after a couple of months and be off again. No doubt he had a few women hidden away around Europe who would welcome him back with open arms and quite frankly Hugh would be glad to see the back of him.

He smiled. Loose women wouldn’t be Rupert’s style. His brother was more of a favourite with maiden aunts and younger sisters. People thought butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth and it made Hugh sick.

Well good luck to the whole lot of them, he thought. He wasn’t about to change his plans for anyone. He’d catch up with big brother at dinner but for now Hugh had a prior engagement down at the King’s Head.

Let me go, Rupert laughed, trying to peel his sister’s fingers from the