The Hockley's- Hearts Betrayed
By HL Griffiths
The Hockley's - Hearts Betrayed
Chapter Three
Virginia
1913 – December
Gerard Hockley lay back exhausted in his bed breathing heavily, pulling the sheets over his nakedness. He turned his back on the pasty blonde besides him looking unsure who was quickly reaching for her clothes lying strewn nearby.
"Aw yer alright Sir" she asked. Gerard turned dark brown eyes her way, "Throw me that maroon robe there on that chair," he snapped.
The thin confused young blonde girl tossed the dressing robe over to Gerard. Both ignored the other and in awkward silence donned garments until they were dressed.
Gerard resplendent in a rich robe with his insignia GH on the breast pocket...
The girl in a patched faded black dress. Her eyes dull and her mouth drooping with the coldness off the treatment of the rich young man she had bedded so recently who was now ice cold and sullen who had been so keen to woo her and was so quick to get her between the sheets. Not that she cared, as long as he paid his way, she had young siblings to care for and that cost her money hard earned.
Gerard reached into his pocket book and tossed some dollars at the girl. "Thanks for your time" he said bored, "Please leave, go down the back stairs and don't be seen".
The girl picked up the bills he had dropped at her feet, "Thank yer Sir" she muttered "I be Em'lee" gain if you ever need me ta be"
Gerard Hockley span round, his jaw tightening "What did you say?" he asked loudly.
"I be Em-e-lee gain if yer want sir" the girl repeated in a flat voice scared by his sudden anger "That be the name yer called me in de act sir If I may be so bold, Yer called me Em er lee"
"Emily, Emily... The name that had haunted him these past months, her blue eyes, her soft fine blonde hair, delicate smile, the way she fitted against him when he held her close, all those dreams for their future, he had been so happy in those sweet summer days of love She had entranced him with her laughter, her sweet face, her gentleness, Emily, his bride to be...
The betrayal!!! Her being immersed in a tryst with his snake of a brother Caledon. Who had taken Emily under his very nose, the two of them plotting and sneaking about. His vile older brother, Cal who had planted his seed in Emily and violated her . The pair of them smashing precious love into a million pieces. Two innocent babies, twins, fatherered by his brother onto His own love. Two precious innocents who had ruined his life. How could he hate his own nephew and Niece Vaughn and Vivienne. They should have been his children with Emily as His wife.
He heard his own screams that terrible day the liars were caught out "Emily how could you; with my own brother I love you... He would never trust a woman again. He had to stay away from his home and family. The sight of Emily he would not bear and he still wanted to kill Caledon. It would be a lonely Christmas away from home.
The memories he normally kept so tightly hidden tearing him apart. Tears stung his eyes.
The naive young idealistic man who had been Gerard Hockley before was long dead. Emily and Caledon had robbed him of what he had most valued. His happiness, family and piece of mind.
"GET OUT" he screamed at the prostitute he had just shamefully been in lust with just minutes before, all because she was blonde, pretty in a washed out sort of way, and reminded him of a weak echo of Emily if you closed your eyes and pretended!
She gasped and scampered from the room shocked by his temper.
He would have to be tougher. Forget and move on. Progress work at the mill. Sack the dross and create a strong workforce and big profits. What his father wanted, he must be more his fathers son. What was done was done to quote Nathan Hockley.
Gerard opened the window and took great deep breaths of fresh air. He must get a grip. Emily and Cal were now married and he must forget. His mother was desperate that he be all right. She was coming to visit any day soon. He must not show her the despair that sat with him and clouded his thoughts and dreams.
The mills were progressing well under his care; it was all he had to fill his time. He wrote occasionally to Jack and Rose in Wisconsin. Their fairy tale life painful to bear with the shambles of his own sad existence. They were sorry for him; he did not want their pity.
Gerard sighed. He looked forward to seeing his mother again. She was one hell of a woman. Always steady and loyal, he would have been lost without her care these last few months.
He would have to get dressed soon, and go and meet his mother Sylvie at the fancy restaurant for their pre-Christmas meal.
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Over the candle light after the dessert course Sylvie raised her wine glass and drank from it delicately while surveying her son over the table. He was finishing his dessert and did not notice her watching him. His eyes were sad and he was pale and had lost weight.
Gerard had been putting on a act all evening playing dutiful son and being all cheery and going on at length about how well the mill was doing under his care and how much money it was making and how he has sacked three slack workers on the spot.
Sylvie had closed her eyes as he was talking and to her shock heard Nathan in his tones. Even more shocking was this was her wonderful son Gerard talking, once he had not cared about how much money was being made. Before! She now classed Gerard by Pre Emily and Post Emily. The man who had emerged Post Emily was not the caring, gently happy young man he had been. This Gerard regaling her with his production figures and ruthlessness with his men was making her nervy.
No matter how much he pretended Gerard was hurt, the debacle of Emily and Cals infidelity had broken him... Gerard was the kind of young man who when he loved it was a lifelong commitment unlike Nathan his father. Nathan had made a disastrous marriage before her and it was an unwritten rule to not speak of it.
Gerard met his mother's eye, she turned her gaze away quickly but he had felt her intensely studying him.
"Mother" he said and laid the dessert fork down. "Why are you looking at me so intently? Do I have Chocolate sauce on my nose?"
She smiled weakly, her brown eyes like his hazy with love for him. Her only son. How she'd missed him.
"I worry for you," she said in soft voice. "You don't have to play the big mill boss for me"
Gerard frowned
"I only want you to be happy my dearest" she continued and reached across the table for his hand and took it gently.
"And I know you are not, even after all these months you can't fool me, buried in your work trying to hide the pain, none of it your fault..."
Gerard exhaled deeply and pulled his hand away.
"You know me too well Mother," he said tersely. In addition, twisted in his seat feeling uncomfortable.
"I am as happy as I will ever be for now," he added wiping his hands with the napkin and not meeting her eyes. "Not when others took my happiness," he breathed so quietly Sylvie barely heard him.
She spoke back in an equally soft voice not to be over heard.
"You think THEY are happy?" she said, her brows frowning, remembering and living with the tension that had existed as Crosswinds for months since the ill-fated wedding of the adulterers.
"You think that Emily and Caledon are blissfully happy in matrimony?" a sharp edge to her voice, "I think not" then she stopped abruptly.
"Oh I should not talk about this, it's not a good thing to bring up" and took some more wine.
Gerard sat up suddenly, his lethargy gone. "Mother" he demanded.
"Please, tell me, don't stop. Please tell me the true state of events"
He reached back and took her hand this time, their eyes met, his pleading. "We never have lies between us Mamma" he whispered "Father and Cal have enough for the rest of us"
"I don't know Gerard I have spoken out of turn," Sylvie said.
"Mamma" Gerard implored using his childhood name for her.
"What's going on, please tell me, I am still part of this family, disjointed and twisted as it is"
Sylvie sighed"Oh Gerard my boy, I cannot lie to you and pretend everything is well when its not. Your father is on tenterhooks and is very surly these days even with me. Cal and Emily's marriage is difficult; there is a lot of resentment on both sides. Emily is very down and Cal wants the perfect wife, which Emily is not! Cal has certain ideas on bringing up children and keeps Emily at arms length and she hates it. They both are very different people," she said sadly.
Gerard's mouth drooped slightly at her words.
"Emily's lot is not a happy one" Sylvie concluded, "Crosswinds is not a serene place to live. It's only the children that make it tolerable..."
Gerard bit his lip. Sylvia recognised the gesture; he had done it as a small boy when scolded just before he cried.
She squeezed his hand tightly. "They are beautiful children," she said in a lighter manner.
"Vaughn and Vivi are now five months old and are developing their own personalities. Vivi is a Hockley through and through and is very demanding and throws tantrums and is wilful, she is dark haired and dark eyed. Now the boy" Her voice softened as she thought of his sweet step grandchild.
"Little Vaughn, he is a darling, much more placid, nothing like his twin, Cal had a hard job believing the boy is a Hockley, Such a beautiful child with those huge grey eyes and blonde hair"
Gerard stared at her his wine half way to his mouth halted. His mother continued in the same wistful voice
"The boy likes crayons and is such an angel in temperament, very gentle. Nathan was enraged when the baby was born said he was too much of a Tremaine"
Gerard spluttered on his wine and banged the glass down so noisily that nearby diners looked around.
"Why Gerard are you alright?" Sylvie asked breaking off in mid sentence.
"Tremaine" Gerard said huskily "Oh I could tell you a few things about the Tremaines".
Sylvie caught the bitterness in his voice. He threw the napkin down hard. Gerard was not usually one for temper. She blinked confused and upset.
"Do you need to tell me something?" she said her voice firm "Lets go back to your lodgings and I think we need to discuss a few things. You re right Son, there should be no more lies, not between you and me"
Gerard nodded looking relieved.
"Bill please" he called to a passing waiter.
He was sweating now. The knowledge he had been carrying around for months he needed to unload even if it meant blasting apart the very fabric of his family. His mother was a strong woman she deserves to hear the truth about the Hockley's and her husband, his Father.
The truth was all that mattered now. There had been enough lies to last a lifetime.
