Chapter 21: GETTING STARTED
Wednesday, November 19th… The limo bearing Elayne and Sally rolled to a stately halt just outside Hollin Hall an hour before the Visitor Centre was scheduled to open. The keepers'd already finished breakfast and were out in the barns. After introducing Sally to Blair Statham, Elayne got straight to the point, there being no reason to mince words—his mother and grandmother both having been members of Elayne's coven from the time she lived there.
In the South Barn Elayne asked which of the elderly horses were currently serving as mounts for Dora and Steve. Hector and Otto were pointed out to her. Sally distracted Statham, who'd always had an admiring eye for an attractive lady no matter her age, while Elayne lagged behind for a few minutes conversing with the two old horses and stroking their noses. Sally casually asked Statham if they'd any other rideable ones in case she and Elayne were invited along today.
"Well, we have Jinx and Lucy... they haven't been ridden in a good long while but they probably wouldn't offer much trouble... or there's Halfpenny... more of a pony but Miz Elayne is small and light enough for him." Enthralled with the presence of nobility (having been forewarned by his nephew Conrad/Connie), he didn't notice Elayne stopping for a chat with those animals as well.
With the inspection of the barns concluded, Elayne thanked Blair warmly and said they'd be going up to the Big House now. Taking the limo up to the house car park, she dismissed the driver for the day. Sally followed her into the garage and through the door to the hallway. In the kitchen she was introduced to Vera Barton and Elayne explained about the 'Miz Bees', which Sally found amusing. Miz Bee allowed as how Missus Dora, Missus Dottie and that Violet were in the former's study with the door closed.
Retreating the way they'd come, Elayne knocked on the door to Dora's study and opened it. Three faces looked up as the new arrivals halted in the doorway, Elayne's gaze sweeping the mess in surprise.
"Goodgoogledygoo... what's all this?!" Dora, Dottie and Violet were ranged around a large worktable occupying the center of the room and covered in piles and rows of photographs, stacks of colorfully patterned twelve inch by twelve inch squares of paper, small clear plastic boxes of doodads and gewgaws, spools of ribbon and dozens of arcane little tools. Large plastic boxes scattered over the floor looked to be full of more photographs. Dora got up and came over to embrace her friend.
"My new hobby... scrapbooking! It's all the rage these days and I've been meaning to get all these pictures into albums for years!" Her questioning eyes went past Elayne's shoulder to the other woman standing just outside the door.
"Allow me to introduce my niece and travelling companion, Sally Passepartout..."
"Ah! The mysterious duchess! How very lovely to meet you, Sally... I'm Dora... won't you come in? There's two more chairs around here somewhere..."
Violet was introduced and Dottie admitted that she'd already met Sally yesterday when she'd gone up to see Elayne at the hotel, although she hadn't yet got around to explaining just why she'd gone on her own—without Dora—in the first place. Chairs were pulled up and space made at the table for them. Dora went to the intercom and asked Miz Bee to bring up refreshments for five, both tea and coffee.
"When did you start this?" Elayne asked curiously.
"Oh... a while back... and then I put it away and never got back to it. But I thought I might as well make the most of my confinement and Steve couldn't find any complaint against it. I'm up to late 1974... birthday and wedding pictures and so on." Elayne noted that Dora was looking quite rested and refreshed and was obviously in a chatty mood.
"Too bad there ain't more of the three years at Follyfoot before you married Steve," Elayne offered lightly.
"I know. It's a shame... but we were so poor and didn't have a camera... in fact, our first one was a wedding present."
"I know... I gave it to you!"
"So you did... oh look... here's a really good group shot taken at my twenty-first birthday party..."
In the photo were three couples: Slugger and Dottie, Steve and Dora in the middle, and Ron and Hazel on their other side. Other people were in the photo also, standing at the rear, but slightly out of focus. Dora passed the picture around and Sally recognized herself at the periphery but made no comment as she passed it on to Violet. Violet in turn stared at it for a long time before glancing at Sally and wordlessly handing it to Dottie. Sally gave her an almost imperceptible nod to indicate she wasn't to say anything.
There were several dozen birthday party photos, mostly posed, but also many candid shots taken by a roving photographer. Dora shuffled through these, asking Elayne's advice on which to set aside for insertion in an album and which could be disposed of. Elayne's suggestion was that if she couldn't remember the individuals in the picture, it should go in the discard box and Dora agreed.
About midway through the shuffling, Dora lingered over one particular shot which'd Steve in it but he was mostly obscured by a woman standing next to him, so it went in the box. She'd just about reached the end of the birthday pictures when she suddenly froze... and so did the other four.
"Wait a minute!" Bending over she rummaged through the discards until she found the one she wanted, which she reexamined intently. Looked up at Sally, back at the photo, back at Sally.
"I know you!" she said firmly, holding up the photo. "This is you, isn't it? You were there... and at the farmhouse, too... the day... the day..." Her face clouded. "I don't remember why, but you were there."
Sally smiled innocently. "I was wondering when or if you'd recognize me."
"Yes... yes... I remember now... you brought two girls to watch the farm and look after the horses the day of the party... twins, weren't they? Your sisters or something? And you helped us get ready that day... me, Hazel, Dorothy! You did our hair and makeup and everything!"
"That was me, all right."
"Oh my goodness... after all these years... what a wonderful surprise! Are you staying for our anniversary celebration? Oh please say you will? Steve'll be ever so surprised and pleased himself!" Dora was bubbling over with enthusiasm. Violet tensed, ready to pounce and drag her charge off to her bedroom should it turn to hysteria... but Dora seemed genuinely happy.
"I'd love to help you celebrate your anniversary, Dora."
Miz Bee and Estelle staggered in with trays of tea and coffee and biscuits fresh from the oven even though breakfast was barely over with. Lunch arrangements were made and the ladies resumed their chatter.
"You're not riding with Steve this morning?" Elayne inquired delicately, hoping he wasn't—that would solve one problem: how to get him out of the way.
"No... not today," Dora said with a tinge of disappointment. "Jesse wants to have some 'quality time,' as he calls it, with his father and I'm all in favor of encouraging that! They're off to look at that boat they didn't get around to seeing on Sunday."
"Hazel's not coming today?"
"She teaches a seniors' water aerobics class on Tuesday mornings... over at the Tockwith Community Centre. But she said she would come for lunch."
"Maybe afterwards we could all go for a ladies' only hack... whaddya say? Just like the old days!"
Dora chuckled. "That would be fun... if my minder allows it." She nodded toward Violet.
"You're meant to be having a nap after lunch," Violet reminded her, "Not open to negotiation. Then one hour only on the trail, and not too far away. And I have to go with. The others can hang out at the pool for an hour or have a siesta themselves if they wish. Do we have a deal?"
"Little better than nothing," Dora grumbled. "But I'll take it."
"Good. 'Cause it's non-negotiable!"
POOLSIDE AT HOLLIN HALL
Elayne and Sally'd brought bathing suits with them but hadn't bothered to change into them, in observance of the post-lunch non-swimming hour and in anticipation of riding later. Sally'd scandalized Miz Bee by requesting well-sugared tea poured over a pitcher of ice and garnished with lemon wedges and a few sprigs of mint from the kitchen garden. Nothing that Miz Bee hadn't encountered before, whenever the American contingent were visiting... still... how abysmally uncivilized! They'd settled into lounge chairs by the pool, killing two birds with one stone by staying out of the cleaning team's way—it was one of their regularly scheduled days—and having a place to converse without being overheard. Dottie, who normally would have gone off in her electric cart to visit Queen Maude, decided to wait with them until Dora was allowed to get up, then they'd all go down to the farm together.
Elayne led the discussion, which concerned their planned 'kidnapping' of Dora and piecing her memory back together. Everyone had a differing opinion as to the best approach.
Violet was doubtful. "What if she gets really upset?"
"I had an idea last night," Elayne proclaimed. "We'll ride down to the clootie well and go skinny-dipping. I'll get Blair to set a guard so no one can sneak up on us!"
"It's November," Violet said pointedly. "It's cold. Are you nuts? And what's on earth's a clootie well?"