Page 136 of The Mistress of Ashmore Castle

Mr Cowling came out into the stable yard to see Nina off when she hunted Jewel for the first time. ‘You look very nice, my love,’ he said, with satisfaction. ‘Very smart indeed. Very ladylike.’ He realised that might sound like a veiled criticism, and added, ‘Just like you always do.’

Nina smiled and said, ‘Thank you,’ but she wasn’t feeling quite comfortable. Of course she liked new clothes, and of course she enjoyed dressing up, and when her maid Tina had finished with her and she looked into the long cheval glass (a recent present from Mr Cowling) she liked what she saw: the elegant, well-fitting habit, the top hat with the veil, the gloves, the ivory-handled hunting whip. She had liked being helped to mount by her very own groom, had adored having her very own horse for the first time in her adult life. But as her husband admired her appearance, she suddenly felt like a child’s plaything, a doll for dressing up. She could imagine a gigantic little girl stooping over her, picking up her and her toy horse and dotting them along the bedroom floor in a pretend trot to an imagined meet.

She shook away the thought, scolded herself for being ungrateful, and leaned forward to stroke Jewel’s handsome black neck. ‘He’s quite excited,’ she said. ‘I think he knows what’s coming.’

Cowling looked a little anxious. ‘You will take care, won’t you, my love? Don’t go taking any risks. Or jumping any big hedges.’

‘I’ll be careful,’ she promised. ‘This is the first time I’ve hunted him, so I don’t know how he’ll react. And as for hedges, I never overface a horse. Don’t worry.’

He smiled again. ‘I always worry. But that’s because I love you.’

She had nothing to say to that, nodded a goodbye to him, gathered the reins, and set off.

The meet was at Ferndale, the home of Mr and Mrs Burham Andrews, a short hack away. There was already a crowd there, and Jewel flung his ears forward and snorted in excitement at the sight of so many horses. The men had mostly dismounted and were standing in groups chatting, or engaging one of the mounted ladies in conversation, while grooms walked their horses about. The first person she saw was Bobby, mounted side-saddle on Zephyr. She came across to Nina at once.

‘I know, I know – I’m a coward! But Clemmie isn’t hunting today, and then I heard Mrs Anstruther wasn’t coming out – she’s had to go and visit a sick aunt or something of the kind – and with you defecting from the ranks I didn’t quite have the brass to do it alone. So here I am being meek and womanly, and if we have a fast run and I break my neck over some tremendous bullfinch I shall blame you.’

‘You’ll be dead, so you won’t be able to blame anyone,’ Nina said.

‘Oh! So cruel, and so young!’ Bobby exclaimed. ‘How is Jewel? He looks excited.’

‘I think he must have hunted before. He seems to know what’s coming.’

‘Well, it’s a good day for scent, so let’s hope we have a run,’ Bobby said. She looked Nina over critically.

Various people came up to say hello to Bobby, who was a well-known and popular member of the hunt. She introduced those Nina had not met elsewhere, and there was desultory chat about the weather, the prospects for the day, and the price of lamb. Mrs Burham Andrews came over on a raking chestnut that was already trying to pull her arms out, and after a few sentences was forced to move him away as he tried to bite both Zephyr and Jewel.

‘I foresee fun ahead. I know that plug,’ said a familiar voice, and Nina looked down to see Adam leaning against Jewel’s shoulder and smiling up at her. ‘Fellow called Cossey hunted him with the Cottesmore two or three seasons ago and couldn’t hold him. Why on earth Cora Andrews bought him I can’t imagine.’

‘Oh, hello, Kipper.’ Bobby heard her brother’s voice and turned round. ‘I was just talking to Foxton about it. Cossey gave up hunting it and had it broken to side-saddle, and his wife’s been riding it, apparently with no difficulty. Quietened down with age, I suppose.’

‘Unless it’s just hunting that makes it mad,’ Adam said.

‘But shouldn’t someone warn her?’ Nina said, feeling they were taking it too calmly.

‘I already have,’ said Lord Foxton, appearing from the other side of Zephyr. ‘But she’s confident she can manage, so all one can do is sit back and watch the entertainment. I recommend you ladies, however,’ he went on, embracing Bobby and Nina with his gaze, ‘to keep well clear of them. Nice piece of horseflesh you have there, Mrs Cowling. How does he go?’

‘I haven’t hunted him before. But he’s fast, and a clean jumper, so I hope we shall have a good day.’

‘I’ll stick close to you,’ Adam said, ‘just in case you have any trouble.’

‘What are you hunting, Kipper?’ Bobby intervened. ‘Tallyrand? Then you’re in no position to promise Nina anything. Once Tally hears the gone away,’ she told Nina, ‘he’s gone away, and there’s no stopping him.’

‘I can manage my horses, thank you,’ Adam said loftily.

There was a call of ‘Hounds, please! Hounds, please!’ and the pack arrived. Jewel went tense, quivered all over, and snorted with excitement. His ears were so pointed they almost crossed. Adam put a precautionary hand on the rein, but Nina still had contact with his mouth and read his mood. ‘He’s all right. Just interested,’ she said.

‘Yes, aren’t we all?’ Adam drawled, looking up at her. But she was watching the huntsman and whips and didn’t hear him.

The day was cold but not bitter; damp, a little misty; and it should have been good for scent. But the first two draws were blank, and apart from jogging between coverts, Nina had nothing to test Jewel, or her ability to hold him. Mr Cowling would have been pleased, she thought – nothing to alarm him, or ruffle her perfect appearance.

She was sitting on Jewel a little apart at the third draw, listening to hounds working. Jewel had passed from excitement to boredom, and apart from jangling his bit as he chewed it and occasionally scraping the ground with a hoof, he was quiet. Adam rode his big bay up beside her, glanced back at Daughters, waiting a little way off, and said, ‘Is your groom to be trusted?’

Nina looked puzzled. ‘I haven’t had him long, but he came with a good reputation. Why? Have you heard something about him?’

Adam grinned rather wolfishly. ‘How literal you are! I didn’t mean in that way. Can he be trusted to keep his mouth shut?’

‘About what?’