Part 32 (2/2)

”Take that smirk off your face, woman. You have wormed your way into the Queen's favour; and while you have been doing this you have taken every measure possible to hide it. And to hide it from me. I have been a friend to her for years ... and you have changed this.”

”I have no power to direct the Queen's affection.”

”You ... snake! Anyone who can behave as you have done is proved to have a very bad purpose at bottom.”

”I do not think Your Grace should be unduly alarmed.”

”You do not think!”

”I know that the Queen has loved you in the past and that she will always be kind to you.”

Sarah could scarcely believe she had heard correctly. This insolence was intolerable. This chambermaid, this hanger-on, this ex-servant girl whom she had taken from a broom was now promising her the Queen's kindness! She was without words for a few seconds. It was unbelievable. Moreover, it was quite alarming, for Abigail was not the woman to speak such words unless she had the authority to back them.

Sarah felt sick with rage and fear.

What had happened? Could it really be that she had lost the Queen's favour ... lost it to a chambermaid!

”You ... wicked creature!” she cried as her powers of speech returned to her and the words came rus.h.i.+ng out. ”You ... snake and serpent ... you insect. How dare you smile!”

”There is such a disparity between an insect and a reptile, Your Grace.”

”Oh, the insolence! The ingrat.i.tude. Would to G.o.d I had never taken you from your broom.”

”It was never my duty to sweep floors, Your Grace.”

”Don't answer me, you s.l.u.t! I took you from a broom. I brought you to my house where I fed you and clothed you ...”

”As an unpaid servant, Your Grace.”

”The wicked ingrat.i.tude! I brought you to Court.”

”That I might take over duties which you found distasteful.”

”And you dare ... attempt to usurp my place!”

Abigail was faintly alarmed. The Queen had by no means escaped from the spell of this woman. It was possible that there would be a reconciliation. She must not allow the brief triumph of the moment to tempt her to act foolishly. Mr. Harley would never forgive her if she did.

She became demure again. ”Your Grace, I would not attempt the impossible.”

”You attempted to turn the Queen against the great Duke, against myself and Lord G.o.dolphin. Her att.i.tude has changed towards us and it is due to you.”

”Your Grace, I do not discuss business with Her Majesty. I only bring to her pet.i.tions with which Your Grace does not wish to trouble herself.”

Sarah wanted to shout: ”And Harley! And St. John! What of them!” But she was remembering John's constant warnings of caution. At the moment it would be unwise to bring in the names of these men. No, she must work in secret, until she found out how deep was the rot.

When she thought of Anne she almost laughed. Of course she would win her way back into the old fool's affections. Had she not always been eager to be friends? There was the Sunderland affair, the Vain affair. Indications which should have been a warning. Harley had told Abigail Hill that they must undermine the Marlboroughs and this was the result.

Thank G.o.d she knew the truth now. But she must be cautious. She must remember that the creature who sat facing her with her green eyes cast down and her pale crafty face was not the insignificant dependant she had thought her. She was a sly and scheming woman who had won the regard of the Queen.

Sarah was unusually silent; and at last Abigail rose, saying that she had taken up too much of Her Grace's valuable time and must intrude no longer.

She curtsied with the greatest respect; and with lowered eyes said: ”I trust Your Grace will permit me to call now and then to enquire for your health.”

Sarah nodded her a.s.sent; and Abigail was gone.

Sarah remained seated.

Then she began to laugh. ”It is not possible,” she said aloud. ”It is simply not possible.”

But Sarah was to find that it was possible. Anne had changed towards her, and although the Queen wrote that she would always be pleased to hear from Mrs. Freeman, she was cool during their meetings, and when she received Sarah would remain standing so that it was impossible for Sarah to sit, which was an indication in itself that the audience would be one of short duration.

Sarah did not know how to meet such a situation. Tact had never been one of her qualities. There were times when she believed that with a little effort she could win back the Queen's affections, but Sarah had never sought to win any affection in her life; she had simply taken as a right that which was given her.

Even when she wrote to the Queen her tactlessness was in every line. She could only write angrily and reproachfully. She attacked Abigail continuously, and Anne defended her.

”Your Majesty says this lady is the very reverse of what I take her to be. To which I can only answer that she is the very reverse of what I once took her to be, and I don't at all doubt but when her master Harley has tutored her a little longer-if I do not die very soon-Your Majesty and I shall come to agree in our opinion of her.”

Sarah could not see that the way to win Anne back was not through attacking Abigail.

Then she accused the Queen of not being frank with her. She herself had always been of the frankest nature and had not Mrs. Morley always admired that quality in Mrs. Freeman?

But this was more than a break between the Queen and the d.u.c.h.ess. The Court watched with interest, the Government with alarm; and the man of the moment was Harley who had alienated the Queen from Marlborough and G.o.dolphin.

Harley was a Tory and the Queen had always been a Tory at heart. There was only one thing a Whig Ministry could do and that was get rid of Harley.

Harley had engaged several of the great writers of the day to work for him. Pamphlets were being circulated throughout the city; but his enemies had realized the value of the literary weapon and the age of lampoons had begun.

The story of Abigail Hill's friends.h.i.+p with the Queen could, the Whigs believed, be used to advantage. It was very different, they believed, from her devotion to the d.u.c.h.ess.

In the streets they had begun to sing the Whig song: ”And when Queen Anne of great renown

Great Britain's Sceptre swayed.

Besides the Church she dearly loved

A dirty chambermaid.”

Abigail listened quietly; Harley was mildly annoyed; and when the Duke returned from his activities on the Continent for the winter, he grasped the danger of the situation and went into consultation with G.o.dolphin to decide what should be done.

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