In the Course of Time

damages.

Chapter One

The Queen of Sweden, Lady Louise Mountbatten, the wife of King Gustav the Fifth, was forced to take the matter in her own hands. Information had been passed to her by a reliable source that her son, the Crown Prince, had bedded an attractive chambermaid at the House of Tesser in Stockholm and that she was carrying his child which was due within a month. It was a situation which had to be confirmed or proved to be false and there had to be a remedy to avoid a royal scandal.

Without the knowledge of the State, she had hired one of the most reputable detectives in the country independently. Her suspicions had been raised one month earlier when rumours about the conduct of the Crown Prince and the chambermaid reached her ears and the dangers of a major scandal for the monarchy began to fill her mind. Worst still, the chambermaid proved to be a married woman with four children. If it were true, the outcome was untenable. In her heart, she sincerely hoped that the rumours were false and that the evidence provided would be able to vanquish her concern and she decided to make it her business to find out the truth for certain. The detective was employed shortly and, after examining his findings, he became very concerned. It had taken him a full two weeks to check and recheck the facts and he finally came to a conclusion becoming well aware of the implication of his report which would have a profound effect on the monarch and in the State in general. Indubitably, he had no medical evidence by which to verify the facts but he knew from the information he had gathered that thee were sufficient details to prove the case. He had identified dates, names, locations, the evidence given by Inge Ekland herself, as well as that provided by her husband who was employed as a butler at the Tesser House, and some of the footmen. However, without any means by which to quash the rumour, it looked highly likely that the conduct of the Crown Prince was going to be a serious problem for the monarchy... Unless the Queen acted swiftly of her own accord.

For the detective, establishing the details was the easy part. In this particular case, the problem was the means by which to break the dreadful news to the Queen. He though about the matter very carefully and decided in the end that there was nothing he could do except to tell her the truth however difficult it would be for her to accept. With this in mind, he travelled to the palace where he was shown into the library, waiting patiently with his heart beating faster as he predetermined the angry reaction of the Queen. She arrived shortly, wearing a very long dull plain grey dress, most unbecoming of a monarch, and sat in the comfortable ornate chair opposite him with a haughty dull expression on her face.

‘Well?’ she enquired, after a considerable silence had prevailed. ‘I hope you’re going to tell my my suspicions are entirely unfounded and that there’s no evidence to prove that the Crown Prince is the father of that woman’s child!’

The detective swallowed hard before speaking. ‘No, your majesty. You wee right in your assumption. Absolutely right.’ He paused to await her reaction but, to his surprise, she remained quite still and calm. ‘I’m afraid that the woman’s carrying the child of the Crown Prince. She’s now eight month’s pregnant.’

‘How can you be certain? Surely there must be some doubt!’ The words were fired like a hastening arrow from a bow.

‘The Crown Prince visited the Tesser House eight months ago. That’s a fact. The problem was that there was a gap of two months before and after his visit where no one else came because the Tessers were away on vacation. The dates are absolutely specific. So you see, everything points to the Crown Prince being the father of the child.’

‘What about the woman’s husband? She had a husband, dammit! Why can’t he be held responsible? It’s far more likely to be his child!’

‘I’m afraid not, your majesty. It seems that the Eklands don’t even share a room together. They both state they have had no sexual contact with each other for over two years.

‘Then there must be someone else! The Head Butler, for example, or one of the footmen. If her husband wasn’t responsible, it must have been one of them!’ The Queen was becoming desperate to find a different solution to the problem.

‘I’m very sorry, ma’am. Mrs. Ekland is know to be a very honourable person with four children. She’s a respectable woman and doesn’t care for relationships with other men. However, you may be aware of the custom in places such as the Tesser House that male visitors often make certain demands on chambermaids... especially if they’re attractive. The servants always have to succumb to the guests for fear of losing their employment. If she refused to co-operate, Mrs. Ekland and her husband, who is a butler in the House, would find themselves unemployed. She had little choice in the matter.

‘The Queen shuffled her feet slightly in irritation. ‘You’re certain the child belongs to the Crown Prince?’ she pressed, hoping against hope that she might receive an alternative reply.

‘I’ve examined all the facts, having questioned several people with discretion in the House of Tesser. It would appear that the Crown Prince has a penchant for Mrs. Ekland and they have been together, in flagrante delicto, many times in the past. In addition, the timing is most clear. I’m afraid there’s no one else who could be responsible.’

The Queen thought deeply for a moment, nodded her head, and the rose quickly holding her head high in the air. ‘Thank you for your efforts in this matter,’ she told the detective appreciatively. ‘You will of course destroy the film and all the evidence within it.’

‘You have my word on it, your majesty,’ he confided readily. It shall be done immediately.’

‘Excellent!’ she added in a business-like manner. ‘Make certain you send your account directly to me.’

‘Would you like me to do anything further?’ asked the detective, hoping that the reply would be negative.

She stared at him coldly for a moment. ‘I don’t think so,’ she replied curtly, lifting her skirt to clear the floor before departing from the room.

The detective bowed as she left but after she had gone he heaved a sigh of relief. The revelation had been far less arduous that he had imagined although the future of the monarchy was definitely in doubt. He presumed there would be an enormous scandal which could rock the country to its foundations if an illegitimate child of the Crown Prince was discovered but it was entirely out of his hands now. He had no idea how the Queen would handle the situation but monarchs seemed to have survived much worse events in history. As far as he was concerned, his job had been completed... any further matters related to it were far from his concern.

***

At the break of day, a huge grey mist hovered over the city of Stockholm like a heavy blanket and it hung there solidly the whole morning. However excessive mist was not an uncommon feature in the autumn before the snow arrived. It was the year of 1025, almost seven years since the end of a savage war which rocked the western world. The evil conflict had changed everyone’s lives irrevocably yet, even though vast changes had occurred heralding a new political and cultural era, old customs from the last century still prevailed and were being observed and carried out in some quarters. Such practices continued to be carried out in the House of Tesser, certainly one of the finest mansions in Stockholm which was still continued old sexual abuses by the privileged classes considered to be normal by the old guard. One particular example was that if any chambermaid took to their liking, after a heavy dinner and a great deal of wine, they were theirs for the taking... and there were many bedrooms in the Tesser House.

Inge Ekland stood at the window on the first floor of the East Wing staring at the mist which covered the driveway below. Her emotions were extremely mixed but her face showed little excitement. The household was in turmoil that day because Gustavus the Sixth Adolf, the Crown Prince of Sweden, was coming to dinner and he had indicated that he would stay the night. All the chambermaids were assembled early that morning by the mistress of the House to ensure that every comfort would be provided for the enjoyment of the future monarch while footmen and butlers were given specific instructions by Herr Tesser. As Inge stared down from the bedroom where the Crown Prince would be sleeping, numerous thoughts flashed through her mind. She was an honest, dedicated chambermaid whose husband, Harold, was employed as one of the butlers in the Tesser Household. She had a striking beauty which had remained with her over the years even though she had given birth to four children. Yet despite her responsibilities towards her offspring, she found a great deal of time to undertake her duties but the relationship between her husband and herself had deteriorated rapidly over the past two years. It had become clear that he had totally lost interest in her, showing her no affection whatsoever. He rarely spoke to her and he preferred to sleep on an old sofa, covered with a multitude of woollen blankets, rather than to snuggle up in bed with his wife. There was no longer any love in his hear for her... or for anyone else for that matter. He had become a bad-tempered, dislikeable unpleasant alcoholic. On reflection, Inge had made a very poor marriage. The relationship had started with lust and an element of love and excitement although for a man with such a vile nature emotion of any kind was debatable. Then, throughout the years, their feelings towards each other had deteriorated slowly and decisively, ending disrespectfully.

Harold had been exempt from war service caused by a runaway horse which had collided with him in a street in 1914. As a

result of this disability, he escaped being enlisted into the ranks as a soldier. Although he did not particularly wish to go to war, he was less than pleased to regard it as a slur on his manhood having to watch other men march off to the battlefield to fight in Europe in an attempt to free the world of tyrannical rule. He tried to compensate by turning to the bottle. Unfortunately, the effect of drink made him bad-tempered, sometimes savage, causing him to perpetrate many atrocities on his wife and children. It was not unusual for him to end the evening completely drunk and beat his wife unmercifully using his wide black belt. However, even when intoxicated he was careful to strike her where the bruises wouldn’t show, but the scares remained in her memory for life. Nor was it beyond his nature, when his clumsy sexual advances were rejected by his battered wife, to enter the bedroom of his eldest daughter, Ingrid, and abuse the young girl with his rough-hewn lust. The Head Butler had often berated him about his drunkenness but, as far as Harold was concerned, as long as he had enough money in his pocket to buy liquor, nothing else seemed to matter.

In the early days, jealousy was high on his list and he was unhappy to have to go into service with such an attractive wife. He was aware of the rules of the game but he was in no position to do anything about them. Female servants were often abused sexually by half-drunken guests and he had no means of redress. There were always too many rich and powerful men who were bored with their wives, most of whom had married for social standing or wealth rather than for beauty or love. The temptation of a beautiful chambermaid was too much for them to resist. Inge took care to wear clothes which hid her legs and ankles and she covered her arms and neck right up to her chin. She even changed her hairstyle to look old-fashioned and dowdy but, with very few exceptions, they all saw through her disguise. She had always intended to remain loyal and faithful to her husband despite his poor treatment of her but she was unable to avoid the sexual demands of the guests. Time and time again she was forced down on the soft mattress of a four-poster bed by a fat, sweaty, ugly aristocrat who, panting and puffing in his excited state, pressed himself firmly against her naked body repeatedly On occasion, she found herself pregnant. She was never certain of the identity of the father for, over time, there were so many men who made demands. At that time, Harold would also take his toll on her body as viciously and brutally. Poor Inge... life was really hard work! It had never been as hard when they first married. The First World War was well under way. Domestic help was in short supply as most men had gone off to fight. No one dared to abuse servants as the masters would find themselves at a loss for domestic help. But the war ended in 1918 and all the men returned home. Suddenly, servants were available in droves and employers soon realised they could take advantage of them in any way they wanted. The market had turned viciously in favour of the masters.

Harold was philosophic about his family. He cared little whether his genes ran through them or not. Brats were brats! Sons were selfish, daughters were there to be used. His view that the span of a person’s life was far less than a hundred years so, in the end, what did it matter! In his opinion, he was not the natural father of any of the children. This may have been an exaggeration but in some cases he was probably correct. There could be no doubt that Bjorn, the eldest boy, now eight years old was the product of a riotous evening in 1916 during a swift round of courtship. However, as for the rest he could not make any decision. He was simply happy to continue drinking himself into a stupor every night and not bother to think about it.

A small black coach pulled up in the driveway and the Crown Prince alighted dressed in a dark frock-coat. Herr Tesser and a number of footmen gathered outside to meet him, bowing deeply, while the future monarch stared up at the bedroom window to not Inge watching his arrival. He took a deep breath when he saw her for she was a woman who set his pulse racing each time he gazed upon her face and he dwelt briefly on the excitement of taking her to bed again that evening. Indeed, after dinner, he specifically asked Herr Tesser for her presence and soon they were in his bedroom alone together, Inge didn’t mind sleeping with him at all. She found him attractive, romantic and very sensitive, unlike the other guests who had abused her in the past. All they wanted to do was to satisfy their lust caring nothing for her. The Crown Prince, however, was a true gentleman who not only respected her but always cared for her sexual needs to the fullest extent. Very shortly, they undressed and climbed into bed together embracing each other warmly although the fact that being so heavily pregnant made it difficult. Before they could go any further, the door opened suddenly and the Queen appeared with fury showing on her face. The couple stared back at her in shock.

‘Mother!’ spluttered the Crown Prince, pulling the sheet across his body. ‘What are you doing here?’

‘I could ask the same of you! countered the Queen acidly. ‘Get out of that bed , you stupid fool!’ Sheepishly he obeyed the royal command and moved towards a chair to gather some of his clothes to cover himself. ‘I presume it’s your child she’s carrying!’

‘I don’t think so,’ he muttered awkwardly. ‘I’ve no idea.’

She turned towards Inge, her face filled with fury. ‘I suppose you’ll blame him saying it’s his anyway, won’t you?’

‘But it is, your majesty!’ bleated Inge fearfully. ‘I swear it is!’

The Queen turned to her son almost trembling with anger. ‘Are you out of your mind, Gustavus? Don’t you realise you’ll be the next king of Sweden!’

The Crown Prince began to dress quickly almost falling over as he struggle to put on his trousers. ‘I may eventually aspire to the throne, mother,’ he retorted, ‘but you must understand I’m a human-being as well with ordinary needs’

‘Really, Gustavus! I thought better of you,’ she savaged. ‘Why couldn’t you show some discretion instead of letting the whole household know what you’re doing!’

‘Consider me admonished, mother. I shall take your advice in the future.’

‘Tell the trollop to get dressed so she can wait for me in the library. I’ll talk to her there!’ Inge moved out of the bed, grabbed at her clothes, and left the room with great haste and embarrassment. The Queen stared hard at her son. ‘I do not take kindly to flippancy, Gustavus. You clearly don’t realise what would happen if your frivolous activities came to the notice of the public. There would be a shameful scandal which would embarrass your father. You can’t envisage the damage it would do to the Royal Family!’

‘Have no fears of a scandal, mother,’ returned the Crown Prince confidently. ‘This woman is the soul of discretion.’

‘I see,’ retorted the Queen sharply. ‘You can trust her husband as well, can you? I’m speechless.’ She paused and then turned to the door. ‘There are urgent matters I need to attend to. I suggest you make some excuse to Herr Tesser and return to the Palace immediately. We shall talk about this tomorrow!’ She stalked out of the room with the Crown Prince shaking his head.

‘What a fuss!’ he muttered to himself, adjusting his collar. ‘What a fuss about nothing!’

Inge stood at the window of the library filled with embarrassment and shame. What a thing to happen? The Queen must have been suspicious to come without warning in order to catch them in bed together. It was the most embarrassing thing that had happened in her life and she felt very depressed. However, before she had time to dwell on the matter, the door opened and the monarch entered the room sitting casually in one of the armchairs.

‘Sit down, my dear,’ she uttered in a friendly tone of voice.

‘Please, your majesty. I’d like to explain... ’

‘There’s no need, my dear. No need,’ interrupted the Queen calmly. ‘Just sit down and listen to what I have to say.’ Inge obeyed and sat gingerly on the edge of the chair. ‘I understand that your husband’s a butler here.’

‘Yes, ma’am. We’ve been working here for six years.’

‘You have four children and you‘re pregnant again. How can you be certain my son is the baby’s father?’

‘Because of the timing, ma’am. When he came here eight months ago. I hadn’t slept with anyone for over three months before or after. You see, the house was closed because Herr Tesser and his wife were away on holiday. There’s no doubt that the Crown Prince is the father of the child.’

The Queen paused to think for a moment and then stirred into action. ‘Where’s your husband?’ she asked firmly. ‘I want to see him!’

Inge rose quickly moving towards the door. ‘He’s waiting outside. When I told him what had happened he said he’d wait for me there.’

‘Well bring him in!’ ordered the Queen sharply. ‘I want to speak with both of you!’

Harold Ekland entered the room rather unsteadily. He bowed to the Queen in a theatrical fashion and in a slurred voice said: ‘I’m Harold Ekland... her husband.’

‘You’re drunk!’ exclaimed the monarch looking towards the ceiling as though seeking divine intervention. ‘Heaven forgive me but what goes on in this dreadful house?’ She stared at the man coldly. ‘Now listen to me carefully! I want you both to pack all your belongings and be ready to leave tomorrow morning.’

‘Leave?’ gasped Inge, her mind going into a turmoil. ‘I don’t understand. Where will we go?

‘You’ll be well compensated financially for your loss of employment.’

‘Why do we have to leave?’ demanded Harold drunkenly.

The Queen ignored the question. ‘You’ll embark on a vessel called The Landshammer at Stockholm docks bound for Liverpool. Neither of you will be permitted to return to Sweden again. Do you understand me?’

‘But I’m Swedish,’ declared Harold. ‘This is my homeland!’

‘You’ll do exactly as I say,’ came the sharp response.

‘You may be the Queen,’ snarled Inge angrily, ‘but you’re a very wicked calculating woman. You don’t have to send us away like this. No one will ever know the truth!’

The Queen was completely unmoved by the chambermaid’s emotional state. ‘Just do as I tell you and all will be well. You’ll receive two years’ severance pay each which I consider to be extremely generous. You’ll get the money just before you board the ship. Do I make myself clear?’

‘I presume Herr Tesser is aware of such arrangements!’ spat Inge with annoyance.

‘You need have no concern regarding Herr Tesser,’ retorted the Queen callously.

‘And what about the son or daughter of the Crown Prince?’ cut in Harold, swaying from side to side.

‘That baby has nothing to do with the Crown Prince. Nothing at all,’ snarled the Queen irately. ‘I am not convinced by the explanation given to my by your wife!’

‘Well it’s definitely not my child,’ confessed the drunk.

‘Hold your tongue!’ came the curt response. ‘Attend to your packing without delay. You’ll be given instructions when and where to go in the morning.’

The couple left the room disconsolately closing the door behind them. The Queen sat quite still for a short while contemplating the matter. She was certain she had done the right thing. A royal scandal was the last thing anyone in Sweden wanted... not at this time or at any other... and her decision to deport the Eklands appeared to be the only sensible thing to do.

***

The Landshammer was not a large vessel but it accommodate some five hundred passengers. There were only three decks and the accommodation was extremely scant to say the least. Most cabins had bunk beds and there was just enough room for an ordinary-sized person to move past them. The Eklands had a slightly larger cabin because there were two adults and four children. Inge soon found herself standing on one of the decks with her four children. As usual, Harold had absented himself to do his own thing. He had a pocket full of money waiting to be spent and he found a room where a group of men were playing cards. He stood watching for a while holding a small bottle of whisky in his hand from which he took a swig occasionally. Eventually impatience overtook him and he edged forward with intent.

‘Any chance of a game here?’ he asked gruffly.

A man by the name of Scarface looked up at him coldly. ‘Only if you’ve got money. This game’s for high stakes only. People with faint hearts and short pockets should stay away!’

‘I’ve got money!’ boasted Harold. ‘Lots of it!’

‘Talk is cheap,’ snapped Scarface, dealing out another hand of cards to the rest of the players. ‘If you wanna play we’ll need to see it.’

Harold delved into his pocket and produced a large wad of notes which had been given to him by an equerry of the Queen before they boarded the ship. ‘You see!’ he growled triumphantly. ‘I’m telling you the truth!’

Another player by the name of Jacko looked up at him in surprised. ‘Put it away, man!’ he advised sharply. ‘Never show your money in public! Not unless you want to have it stolen!’

‘Keep your nose out of it, Jacko,’ uttered Scarface before turning to Harold. ‘Okay, matey, take a seat. I’ll deal you in.’

Jacko stared at the dealer angrily. ‘Don’t do it, Scarface. You can see he’s a pushover!’

‘I told you to keep your nose out of it!’ snarled the dealer with fury showing in his face.

Jacko turned to Harold pitifully pointing to Scarface. ‘This man’s a professional gambler. You’ll lose all your money. Take my advice... leave now and go about your business!’

‘Just shut up, will you!’ warned Scarface irately. ‘The man’s here of his own free will to play cards. Let him be! Don’t spoil his fun!’

‘Yes,’ agreed Harold. ‘Don’t spoil my fun!’

A chair was brought for him and he sat facing the other players with a grin on his face. He took a further swig from the bottle in his hand and placed it carefully into his pocket. He was here for the kill to double his money. It was going to be all or nothing!

***

Later that day, Inge took the children back to their cabin. She dressed them in their nightwear and put them to bed. Suddenly, her hands moved quickly to her abdomen and she bent forward in great pain.

‘Oh God!’ she exclaimed with a fearful expression on her face. ‘It’s coming! The baby’s coming!’ She took a number of deep breaths and then turned to her eldest son. ‘Bjorn... get your father! Quickly!’

Her son jumped out of the bed bunk and ran to the door in his pyjamas. ‘Where is he?’ he asked pointlessly.

‘I don’t know!’ gasped Inge, feeling another contraction which sent pain surging through her body. ‘Just find him and bring him back as fast as you can. If not, ask one of the crew to fetch the ship’s doctor... if they have one.’

The boy nodded and raced out of the cabin along the deck. He eventually found his father and came up behind him at the gambling table.

‘Mother’s having the baby!’ he uttered breathlessly. ‘You’re to come right away!’

Harold turned to stare at the boy. ‘Can’t you see I’m busy!’ he responded uncaringly. ‘Get the ship’s doctor to help her!’

The boy hesitated for a moment and then turned tail to look for help elsewhere. Harold shook his head to rid his mind of the disturbance and held his cards tightly in front of him as Scarface threw in his hand.

‘The pot is yours,’ conceded the professional gambler. Harold gathered the money together greedily pulling it joyfully towards him. ‘Let’s raise the stakes,’ he suggested. ‘I’m fed up betting in peanuts.’

‘Suits me,’ agreed Harold, falling into the trap. ‘We’ll soon sort out the men from the boys!’

Scarface shuffled the cards quickly and very adeptly. He placed them in front of Harold who cut them, hardly realising that he was going to be taken for a ride. The professional gambler then put the pack together and dealt out hands to the five people playing. From that moment onwards, Harold found himself up against it. Hand after hand seemed to offer great prospects of winning yet he continued to lose steadily until all his money was gone. Scarface appeared to take pity on his prey, offering him some money so that he could buy a few drinks.

‘I warned you,’ stated Jacko sadly, ‘but you wouldn’t listen. You just wouldn’t listen.’

‘Shut your face,’ rattled Harold snatching the notes from Scarface before walking off angrily at have lost face rather than the money. He made his way back to the cabin to find Inge laying in the lower bunk with a new-born baby in her arms.

‘Look,’ she said to her child. ‘Here’s your father!’

Harold’s face turned to thunder at the remark. ‘Don’t you dare say that!’ he snarled. ‘Don’t you ever say that again! The brat’s not mine!’ He turned on his heel and opened the door again. ‘I’m going to get filthy stinking drunk and to hell with you... you trollop! Damn the lot of you!’ He stormed out of the cabin leaving Inge staring loving at her new-born child.

‘Well my lovely,’ she commented, totally unperturbed at her husband’s tantrum. ‘You have been born on a ship sailing half-way between Sweden and Liverpool. So what nationality are you? Swedish or British?’ She kissed the baby gently on the forehead and lay back as fatigue surged through her body. Having a baby... even a fifth one... was a tiring affair, and