Astoria Park Resumes

Without Thommo's interruptions of this morning, Wills' performance had improved, and Mary made certain that he was aware of her pleasure. When he had filled her and removed himself from her, Mary squatted on the sand and, using her fingers, removed as much of his semen as possible.

"Mary, I love you."

"Go on with you sir, you just be sayin' that because you have had your wicked way with me."

"No I mean it, I want to run away with you, to marry you!"

"Where would we go, what would we do?"

"I don't know, I haven't thought of that. All that I know is that I want to be with you forever." He kissed her clumsily until she pushed him away.

"I would love to be with you, I think that you are a fine young man, but you are too good for the likes of me. I be a simple serving girl, not gentry like you and your friend. And I hear that the two of you are to travel to England in a week or two to study at University. That is what you should be doing, not living rough with the likes of me."

"What if we are together until I have to leave, and then I can send you money from my allowance, and when I come back we can be wed?"

"If I says yes to that, I know where we can stay for a short time, where we can live as husband and wife, and when it is time for you to leave, we can decide if you should stay with me, or go and forget me, or I should wait for your return.

"I shall never forget you my Mary. When shall we leave?"

"In the morning before anyone wakes. We can be sure to find a cart going into Sydney Town, we can ask the driver if he will let us ride on it."

-o-0-o-

"I don't know what to do," Priss told Ben as they came down from making love. "Isobel told me some strange and disturbing news. She has told me that William's whore has opened an exclusive gentleman's club, I assume that William, has some financial interest in this enterprise. That would be bad enough, but that she has, supposedly without William's knowledge, employed Elizabeth, and her friend Bella, as hostesses. Their job is to ensure that the client is plied with drinks and plays at cards or Roulette, and I imagine, loses a lot of money. They are also encouraged, if the client requests it, to provide additional services, to be a whore. To make matters worse, Elizabeth has been servicing Isobel's friend Millie Beaumont's grandfather, Sir Nigel Beaumont, and he is so besotted with her that he plans to marry her."

-o-0-o-

"Oh Sir Nigel, what am I to say?"

"One expects under the circumstances that you will, of course, say yes." He was on one knee and holding a small ring box in his hand. Even in the light of the candle, the facets of the large diamond flashed brilliantly.

"Of course I will say yes, you silly boy. You have made me the happiest girl in the whole world. Come, let me help you up and get your clothes off, you are, of course wanting to consummate this arrangement."

This was to be the shortest engagement in history. Sir Nigel made a valiant attempt to consummate the engagement, and at the instant that he emptied himself inside her, his body stiffened and he fell onto her, dead. His heart had given out.

Elizabeth straightened her clothes and went downstairs to find Juliana. "Come quickly, I think that Sir Nigel is dead."

They hurried back upstairs to Elizabeth's apartment to find Sir Nigel had not moved. Juliana took his wrist and felt for a pulse. There was none. She took a mirror and held it in front of his nose, looking for condensation from his breath. There was none. "Tell me, exactly what happened."

"Sir Nigel had just presented me with this ring." She held out her left hand with the ring on her ring finger. "We are, we were, engaged to be married. He wanted to consummate the engagement, but as soon as he spent himself in me, he died."

"Right, the first thing that we have to do is to get him out of here. Help me dress him." Between them, they managed to dress him. "Now, give me, that ring, and the box that it came in, and I will put them away for safekeeping until this is over."

"But can't I keep them? I will hide them where no-one will find them."

"You will swing if they are found, for you will be thought to have killed him." She looked around the room, checking if there was anything of his left behind. "I will send Burt and Roland up, they will carry him down the back stairs and put him in a cart and dump him somewhere far away from here. You are to say nothing to anyone of this. If anyone asks after him, he left the club at least an hour ago."

Elizabeth sat on her bed. She could have been the next Lady Beaumont, but this was snatched from her. What will she do if he is missed, what if he told someone in his family about her, what would she do, where would she go?" Maybe her father would help, he seemed to know important people, but where was he? Was he at Astoria Park, or in Sydney Town with his mistress? She didn't even know his mistress' name. How could she find out? Everything was going so well for her and Bella, and now this. She needed to talk with Bella, but what would she say? She couldn't tell her about Sir Nigel, or could she? This was all too confusing.

She lay back on her bed and stared at the ceiling. An hour later she was still staring at the ceiling when Bella came into her apartment. "What happened to you, and where is Sir Nigel?"

"He left, and I don't think that I'll ever see him again."

"Why, what happened, I thought that tonight was the night that he was going to pop the question."

"So did I. I think his family might have had something to do with it."

"Did you meet any of them?"

"Not here, but I'm sure that I met his son at one of your parents' parties."

-o-0-o-

Wills and Mary were seated on her old bed, the one that she used when she lived with her mother. It was nothing like the beds that Wills was used to, to start with it didn't have a mattress as such, but a straw-filled bag. The sheets were rough and in need of laundering, there was a tatty woollen blanket and a pillow. The only redeeming feature of this bed was the other occupant. Mary had proven to be a passionate and creative lover, and Wills was fast becoming an accomplished lover himself. He had three days remaining before he would have to leave for England. He was dreading the prospect of facing both his father and Thommo's. He had left no note when he left, so neither parent knew where he was.

-o-0-o-

William had other problems. He received a note from his agent requesting that he call on him at his earliest convenience. Thinking that there might be problems with the harvesting, he was prepared for that eventuality. What he was confronted with had even more devastating consequences for him. It was a letter from Priscilla, and in it, she informed him that she was aware that Juliana had opened a club and that she suspected that he was involved in some way. But was he aware that she had employed Elizabeth and her friend Bella Hamilton, as 'hostesses' and that Elizabeth was having an intimate relationship with Sir Nigel Beaumont?

He was aware that the police had visited the club asking of Sir Nigel's whereabouts, and that one of the hostesses had been taken in hand for questioning. Was this Elizabeth? He must find out. But first, there was the problem of his son who had simply disappeared. He had left the Thompson beach house in the early hours of the morning, apparently in the company of the Thompson's serving maid, who was also missing. His friend had confirmed that the two of them had sex with her and that she seemed to take a shine to Wills, but this was supposed to have been nothing more than them gaining some experience with women before leaving for England. He just hoped that Wills would show up in time to leave as planned.

-o-0-o-

Elizabeth had steadfastly refused to budge from her story that Sir Nigel had left the club early in the evening, saying that he had to speak with his son on some matter or other. While they were friends, Sir Nigel did not discuss his family with her. Detective Sergeant Roberts sat across the table from her, staring into her eyes in an attempt to unsettle her into deviating from her story. He had an ace up his sleeve. "Miss Astor, where is the ring?"

Elizabeth sat up with a start. "What ring?"

"The diamond engagement ring that Sir Nigel Beaumont, your lover, bought from Garrison's Jewellery store the day before yesterday."

"I know nothing of any ring."

"I think that you do. You see, on his person, when we found his body, was a receipt for one diamond ring, stone weight five carats, a large ring don't you think Miss Astor? It seems that, when he purchased the ring, he told Mr Garrison that he was going to pop the question to a young lady on the night that he disappeared. He mentioned you by name, Miss Elizabeth Astor. Where is the ring? It was not on his person."

"Maybe he was robbed, and the thief stole it?"

"We think not, His wallet was still on his person and it contained a considerable amount of money. When we checked with the croupier at the table that he played at, in your presence, he had won a large amount. He had a good night, but he never got to enjoy his winnings. Isn't that sad Miss Astor?"

"I would agree with that, but what is it to me?"

"You had no feelings for Sir Nigel?"

"He was a friend, and that is all."

"We have been led to believe that he was more than a friend, we have been led to believe that, each evening, after he had played the tables, you took him upstairs to your apartment, and provided him with an additional service. What was that additional service, Miss Astor?"

"We talked. He was a lonely old man who had lost touch with his son, and needed someone to talk to who would listen."

"And that was the extent of this additional service that he paid you so well for? Is it not true that you are nothing more than a very highly paid whore?" The accusation came so suddenly and so forcefully that Elizabeth was shaken.

"What are you talking about?" She asked after she had composed herself.

"I am talking about your job at the Wellington Club. We know that the hostesses are encouraged to not only ply their clients with alcohol, and assist them at the tables, but also to encourage them to partake of an additional service to be conducted in the Hostess' private apartment, and that service is a very intimate one indeed. Not the kind that can be bought on the streets, oh no, the Wellington Club is much more sophisticated than that. You are a whore pure and simple, and Sir Nigel Beaumont was one of your best, if not the best, clients. I am not arresting you just now, but our investigations will continue, and I warn you that any attempt by you to flee, will be viewed by myself as an admission of guilt, and I will arrest you. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes Sir."

"Go, get out of here."

-o-0-o-

"I shall write to my sister Meg, maybe she can help Elizabeth. Elizabeth stayed with her while she attended the Constance Armitage Academy, and Meg knew some of her friends, she could ask among them to see where Elizabeth is staying."

"Could she be staying at the club?" Ben asked. If she is working for the club, then she would not finish until the early hours of the morning, not a fit time to be walking home, could it be that the girls have accommodation at the club?"

"I'll get Meg to check that out. I am worried, Darling."

"I know that you are, but there is little that we can do here. If you want, you can travel to Sydney Town, stay with your sister and do what you can. I can look after the harvest."

"What about Isobel?"

"She will want to stay here."

"Why do you suppose that?"

"Haven't you noticed? Your daughter Isobel has a couple of very good reasons for wanting to stay here. One is that she is very interested in the management of this property. I think that she sees herself as the future saviour of Astoria Park. The other reason is that she's in love."

"What?"

"You must have seen it when she arrived. She could not take her eyes off young James."

"But they grew up together, they have known each other all of their lives, and they are still only kids."

"Old enough for them to be in love, or at least think that they are in love. James told me a lot about him and Izzy, as he calls her. And it is very clear that the attraction is more than between friends."

"Oh God, if it's not one thing, it's another. It's obvious that I can't leave the two of them together."

"And why ever not? Look, James is a sensible lad, he knows that Izzy is in love with him, and he is in love with her. We have discussed this, and he has promised that nothing will happen between them. He knows that if he behaves badly he will be dismissed from his position."

"Where is James now?"

"I sent him into town to fetch the post and pick a few small items that we need."

"Did Isobel go with him?"

"I believe that she demanded to accompany him, yes."

"Oh God, what are we to do?"

"I am certain that nothing will happen. We wait for their return and I guarantee that everything will be all right."

"I trust that they will be. If I had known all of this before they had departed, I would have given them the letter to Meg to post."

-o-0-o-

William was furious. His stupid son had come out of hiding to announce that he was not going to England. "You will damn well do as you are told! You will be on that ship tomorrow morning, with your bags packed, with your friend Thompson, and you will set sail for England where you will attend Cambridge University. Is that understood?"

"No sir, I will not!" Wills was equally as angry as his father. "I will stay here with Mary, we are to wed."

"And what are you going to do for money. I intend, if you do not obey me, to cut you off without a penny to your name."

"Very well, I shall find work, I shall provide for my wife, and in time my children."

"And where do you think that you will find work?"

"Thommo has also decided that he does not want to go to England. His father has been more reasonable than you and has offered him employment with his company. I will also apply for a position with him. He has spoken to his father and they have agreed to give me employment."

"Am I to meet this harlot that you have taken up with?"

"She is not a harlot, and you are a one to talk, what about your harlot that you now live with." He went to the corner of the building and extended his hand into the laneway. Mary came to him, and together they walked to his father. Mary was wearing freshly laundered clothes and was freshly scrubbed herself. She was the picture of modesty.

"I am pleased to meet you, sir." She said as she curtsied to him.

"And what have you to say for yourself, young lady?"

"You have a fine son, sir. You should be proud of him for making a decision on his future, and this is to do what he wants to do. I am proud of him. I did not force him to make this decision, but I fully support him on this."

William was taken aback by the refined way in which she spoke, he was not to know that Wills had coached her on not only what to say, but in what manner to say it.

"And where are you living?"

"We are at present staying with my mother. These are modest accommodations it is true, but until Wills has settled into his employment and we have enough money to find a place of our own, it will suffice." Again she spoke in a modest and refined manner.

"I see that you are set to defy me, and I do not have the time or the patience to argue with you on this, so, sir, miss, I bid you farewell, and wish well for your future. But first, give me your address in case I need to speak with you." Wills wrote it in a small notebook and tore out the page. William could not go as far as to show affection for his son and his whore, but he did concede that to leave them with bad grace was not the correct thing to do. He had more pressing matters to attend, matters that he was not looking forward to.

-o-0-o-

"What the hell were you thinking of? How could you employ my own daughter in this Club?"

"Because she is the best girl that I could find. She has class, she has style." Juliana decided that it was time that William knew the truth about his daughter. "And she is willing to provide the additional services that our clients want, in fact, she loves it."

"What? You must have forced her into doing it. She would never have done that without some sort of force being used."

"Not only wasn't she forced, but she volunteered to do it, it was she and that other high-class slut Bella Hamilton who put up the idea of both of them doing it if the client wanted two girls. They were very creative, believe me. In fact, I was so taken by them that I have arranged with the Constance Armitage Academy to send me the best girls in their class each year so that I can offer them employment. They have even offered to train the selected girls to become mistresses so that I do not have to do it myself. So much for your high-class education."

"Where is she? I want to speak to her."

"I am afraid that she is not here at the moment. She is being interviewed by the police. It seems as if one of her clients died in the saddle." This was a deliberate crudity. "It seems that the police suspect foul play was involved."

"Why would they think that?"

"Money, she was very interested in making a lot of money very quickly. She and Bella had plans to travel to London and Paris to enjoy the high life. And it appears as if the man that died in her presence had recently changed his Will, leaving his entire estate to her. The Police believe that to be motive enough."

"This is preposterous! Have you not put in a good character for her?"

"To do that would draw unwanted attention to the club, I cannot have that."

"But, as well as being your business partner, I am also your lover. I have left my wife and walked away from my property because of you. I would at the very least expect that you would stand by my daughter, your employee."

"I think that it is time that you learned a few home truths. Do you think that you are my only lover? That I sat around pining for you when you weren't here? No, I was doing what I do best, fucking men for money. I know that I was not your only lover, how many kids have you fathered with the young girls that work for you? You like them young, don't you, you snivelling little worm. You came to me as an act of repentance, 'oh punish me, Mistress, I have been a very bad boy'. 'Tell me, what have you done you little toad? Got one of your little girls pregnant? Pull down your pants and let your Mistress punish you'. That's what it was all about for you. You never loved me, you just loved me punishing you for fucking young girls."

"But I left my wife for you. I left my farm for you."

"You left your wife because she wouldn't let you fuck her." Again she was being deliberately crude. "You left your wife and farm for a business opportunity that would make you more money for less effort. You left your farm because you couldn't be bothered putting in the effort to keep it going. You were so close to your children that you didn't know that your precious little Elizabeth was no longer a virgin, she had given herself to at least two young men that I know of before she came here, and she enjoyed herself doing it. Since she came here she has fucked several men, and she must be good because they all came back for more."

William was shocked speechless, Juliana had never spoken to him like this before, she had never used profanities in his presence before, let alone directed at him. But it didn't stop there.

"I never loved you. I saw you as the way to get the money to set up this club quicker. I loved seeing you grovel when you were being punished. I loved seeing the relief on your face when it was over. I loved seeing the gratitude on your face when I let you fuck me. I do not love you enough to risk losing this club to save your precious little whore of a daughter."