Rivals for Love Read online

  On his frequent travels around the world he had found the accommodation on most ships to be extremely uncomfortable with the food even worse.

  Because he had travelled so extensively he knew exactly what he required and so some years ago he had ordered for himself a schooner with two masts and fore and aft rigged sails.

  Although it was expensive, the schooner, which he had named the Sea Horse, was an undoubted success.

  He had engaged the best master of rigging to give him advice.

  As in most two-masted schooners the main mast was higher and carried more sail than the foremast and this assured him of reaching high speeds whenever he required it.

  He made sure that below deck, inside his Saloon, the upholstery, furnishings and decoration were as attractive as possible. This ensured that every voyage he took was a delight.

  He had always been interested in ships ever since he had been a small boy, joining the Cork Harbour Water Club as well as the Cumberland Fleet when he was quite young. These organisations were mostly concerned with racing and were supported by every seafaring nation.

  The Duke had decided some time ago that when he had a little more time to himself he would try to form a Club of his own to attract the very best sailing ships in the world to compete for very high honours.

  For the moment he was feeling very thankful that he was not forced to travel to St. Petersburg overland. It would have taken a great deal of time and would have been most disagreeable.

  Now that the war between Russia and Sweden was over he could sail across the North Sea, round Denmark into the Baltic and reach St. Petersburg in just two or three weeks.

  It was to be a voyage that would be comfortable and therefore most enjoyable.

  The Duke was always happy when he was at sea.

  ‘When this tiresome mission is over,’ he decided, ‘I will sail down the African coast or perhaps explore the Aegean Sea, where I could even gain some idea of what the Russians have in mind for Constantinople.’

  He could certainly believe that they were still scheming to capture the great City on the Bosphorus; nothing would surprise him where Russia was concerned.

  As he reached his house in Park Lane, he only wished that he did not have to take the girl with him. Or go through all the paraphernalia of pretending she was his wife.

  He would much rather have gone to St. Petersburg alone, but after heeding his cousin Violet’s dire warning, he would have to make the best of a bad job.

  ‘It may not be all that tedious,’ he mused as he walked through his impressive front door, ‘but it will be boring.’

  *

  Elva on the other hand was in a feverish state of wild excitement.

  She could scarcely believe that her subtle scheme of travelling with the Duke as his wife had actually been accepted.

  Not only by the Duke himself but also by her aunt.

  In her wildest dreams she had never thought that her desire to travel would be fulfilled in such a strange way.

  Now there was very little time to think.

  Lady Violet already had sent for her clothes from her cousin Muriel and then she pointed out that Elva must take some more sophisticated dresses, which would make her look older and more like a married woman.

  “What you will certainly need more than anything else, my dear Elva, is plenty of jewellery as the Russians will expect a Duchess to be covered in it!”

  “I would never have believed it. Mama had some beautiful jewellery, but Papa has it locked away, some of it in London and some in the country and I don’t have the keys.”

  “I think this is something that your Cousin Varin should be able to produce for you.”

  Lady Violet sat down and wrote a note to the Duke and had it sent round to his house by one of the footmen.

  “He will understand,” she said when the note had gone, “that as a representative of the British aristocracy he must not appear to be mean, especially when he has just been married.”

  Elva was not paying attention.

  “One piece of jewellery I do have,” she said, “is Mama’s wedding ring. I have always kept it with me and sometimes I put it on my finger just to feel near to her.”

  “You must wear it all the time you are travelling, my dear, and I feel sure it will protect you.”

  “I am certain it will and I don’t wish to miss any of the Palaces it will be possible to visit in such a short space of time.”

  “I have been told that St. Petersburg is very large and most impressive,” said Lady Violet. “I expect you know the story of how the City was founded.”

  “No, tell me, Aunt Violet. My governesses never told me anything exciting in my history lessons and I cannot remember it in any book I have read.”

  “On May 16th, 1703,” she began, “the Czar Peter, standing on a small island on the north bank of the River Neva cut two pieces of turf and placed them crosswise.”

  “Why did he do that?”

  “According to legend,” her aunt replied, “he had a casket containing the remains of St. Andrew buried in the ground which was then blessed and sprinkled with Holy Water.”

  “And what happened next?”

  “The Czar’s original idea was not to create a new Capital, as what he really needed was a fortress against the Swedes who had defeated him at Narva in 1700 because the Russian ships were still in the Neva.

  “The City was founded under the Swedish guns and later survived in spite of them. Work began on the fortress and Czar Peter gave orders to build a dockyard. The construction of the fortress and the town became a masterpiece, but no one knows how many people perished to produce it.”

  “Oh, but why?”

  “Because of the dreadful weather, thousands died from sickness and the cold following the Czar’s atrocious demands. He was completely ruthless, but his grand design for the new City made everyone who saw it gasp.”

  Elva was listening eagerly as her aunt continued with her fascinating tale.

  “The Czar consulted his architectural advisers, but always made up his own mind. He was just determined, whatever anyone said, that the South bank of the River Neva was to be the most prestigious and that was where he built the Winter Palace in 1711. The Great Squares, the Palaces and the Avenues will all astonish you when you see them.”

  “I cannot wait,” enthused Elva, “and when I come home I will write down everything I have seen so that I shall never forget it.”

  “That is an excellent idea, but I have a suspicion that when you do return you will be too busy riding your horses!”

  Elva laughed.

  “I only want to return so that I can go away again. Perhaps by yet another miracle, just like this one, I shall get a chance of going to Africa or Egypt.”

  “Now you are going much too fast,” Lady Violet cautioned her. “Be content with what you have at the moment. Do not forget that you are going to visit one of the most interesting, beautiful, yet dangerous Cities in the world.”

  “I cannot think there will be much danger for me,” sighed Elva. “After all I am of no particular importance. They might try to kidnap the Duke, or perhaps the Empress will want to marry him, if she is not really already married to Prince Potemkin.”

  “You are not to talk like that,” Lady Violet scolded her. “Someone might overhear you and do not forget that when you arrive in St. Petersburg even all the walls have ears.”

  Elva looked at her wide-eyed.

  “Are you really saying that the Russians would deliberately listen in to my conversations with the Duke?”

  “It might happen,” answered Lady Violet. “Either because the Empress wants to know what you are saying in private or perhaps by chance, just as you listened in to my conversation with the Duke.”

  Elva laughed.

  “I cannot deny it. But it makes me nervous that if you say anything we do not want the Russians to know, they may be listening.”

  “As I have told you, the walls have ears. You will have to be v
ery careful not to say anything which could possibly be used against you or, more importantly, against the Duke.”

  She now put out both her hands to touch her niece affectionately.

  “You are a very intelligent young lady, Elva, and remember that men often take unnecessary risks and it is our job as women to protect them from themselves.”

  “I thought they were there to protect us, Aunt Violet!”

  “That is what they like to think and believe, but a clever woman can indeed protect a man. She often knows instinctively when danger is looming while he takes things entirely at their face value.”

  “I understand what you are saying, Aunt Violet, but I never imagined I might have to look after someone so prestigious and so resourceful as the Duke.”

  Lady Violet smiled.

  “Even the most powerful man was a little boy at one time and he never really grows up. If you are a true woman, you are always there to comfort and make a fuss of a man when he most needs it.”

  Elva gave a little laugh.

  “I just cannot imagine the Duke turning to me for comfort,” she said. “He is only too well aware of his own position in the world, and I am quite certain he thinks that like the Czar Peter he always knows best.”

  “Well, in the case of St. Petersburg the Czar was surely right. So I can only hope that Cousin Varin will be the same. But remember that your job is to look after him and make him happy. Just as his job is to protect you from any physical danger.”

  “I certainly hope he will do so,” cried Elva. “I do not want to be shot by mistake, shut up in a fortress or tortured until I tell the Russians what they want to know.”

  “I can only pray that nothing like that happens. In the meantime, dearest, be on the lookout and trust no one. If it comes to that – not even your own shadow.”

  “No, it is becoming a real adventure with Russian dragons lurking round the corner to eat me up! Doubtless robbers, highwaymen and pirates are planning how they can capture and hold us to ransom!”

  “Once again, my dear, you are turning it all into a fairy story.”

  “But,” emphasised Elva, “you have forgotten that my fairy story, as you called it, has come true. I am going abroad and I am going to visit at least one City I have always wanted to see.”

  She gave a deep sigh.

  “A week ago it all seemed impossible, but now the impossible has become very much the possible. How could it be anything but a miracle?”

  She spoke with a joy and excitement in her voice that was very moving.

  As Elva rushed from the room, Lady Violet looked worried.

  ‘She is so young and impetuous,’ she pondered. ‘I do hope she will not come to any harm or be disappointed in any way.’

  As she walked slowly from the room after Elva, she was quietly wondering even at this eleventh hour, if she should prevent this young girl from going on such an adventure. If not properly handled it might easily cause a scandal or end in disaster.

  Upstairs in her bedroom Elva was supervising her packing.

  She thought the dresses she had bought to wear for debutante balls were reasonably attractive, but they would surely be somewhat unsuitable for any party given in the Winter Palace or in any of the other great Palaces in St. Petersburg.

  However, the clothes she and her aunt had bought that morning in Bond Street were all in bright colours and much more suitable for a young married woman.

  They were, as the vendeuse had informed them, the very latest designs and the height of fashion.

  Because Elva was so slim, the models, which had really been made entirely for show, fitted her perfectly.

  It meant she had to pay a little more for the dresses than they would have paid if the gowns had been replicas for sale.

  But Elva could not wait.

  “We shall have a great deal of trouble replacing all these designs,” grumbled the vendeuse.

  “I am sure that you will be able to manage somehow,” replied Elva, “and I need all of them for some very special occasions.”

  She then felt she had been a bit indiscreet and added,

  “I am a debutante this Season, as you may know.”

  “Yes, of course, my Lady, and very lovely you’ll look in these pretty gowns. I hope you’ll come to us when you will be requiring your wedding gown.”

  It was with some considerable difficulty that Elva prevented herself from saying that would be a very long time away.

  Instead she replied,

  “I am in no hurry and I am sure you have a good number of wedding dresses already on order.”

  “We have indeed, my Lady,” she gushed. “Three of this Season’s debutantes are already announcing their engagements in the next few weeks and I am sure their weddings will be very smart and impressive, just like your Ladyship’s will be when the time comes.”

  Elva wanted to say it was the last thing she wanted.

  Her aunt, who had been talking to the manageress of the salon about the bill, joined her, so there was really no need to say anything further.

  As they drove away Lady Violet looked worried.

  “I do so hope we have thought of everything. Can you think of anything we have forgotten?”

  “I really cannot, Aunt Violet. I have now acquired enough clothes to stay in Russia for at least a year!”

  “I am sure that is the last thing you want to do, my dear, although it would be interesting perhaps to see the rest of the country which I have never done.”

  “Did you really enjoy Russia?” asked Elva.

  “I was fascinated by the beautiful Palaces and your uncle and I made some very good friends, but I would have no wish to live there. Everything seems to revolve around the Empress and as she is unpredictable, one never knows from one day to the next what will happen.”

  “Of course she and most of her family,” observed Elva, “are really Prussians and not Russians.”

  Lady Violet put up her hand.

  “That is true, but it is something you must not say in public.”

  “Why not?” enquired Elva.

  “Because they think of themselves as Russian and as they rule the country, they obtain what they want from the people serving them.”

  “And from visitors like you and me?”

  “I would certainly not wish to oppose the Empress in any way. She is too powerful and very sure of exactly what she requires and what she intends to receive.”

  Lady Violet paused for a moment.

  “Make no mistake, she is extremely clever. She is ruling the country with great strength of will, and no one, however strong could possibly ever oppose her. When she came to the throne, the diplomats in St. Petersburg gave her six months, but she has now reigned for twenty-eight years.”

  “It will be very exciting to meet her,” commented Elva, “but a little frightening.”

  Then she asked,

  “What I would really like you, Aunt Violet, to do is tell me is something about Prince Potemkin.”

  She thought her aunt was going to refuse.

  Then Lady Violet remembered that Elva had heard a good deal about the Prince by listening in when she was talking to the Duke in her study.

  It would be best, she reckoned, if the information Elva required came from her rather than from anyone else.

  “He is a most unusual person,” she began slowly, “and it is so difficult to describe him in just a few words. People have variously called him a troubadour, a satyr, a warrior, an organiser and a Statesman. He is actually a man overburdened with talent and eccentric charm.”

  Elva giggled.

  “He sounds truly fascinating!”

  “He is in a way. He is also strong-willed, restless, impulsive, romantic and a visionary. When he was a boy, he decided to become a monk.”

  “A monk!” exclaimed Elva. “That calling sounds very different to everything he is now.”

  “He studied at University,” resumed Lady Violet. “Then he joined the Horse Guards and journ
eyed to St. Petersburg.”

  “And how did he meet the Empress?”

  “It was one of those strange occasions which I am sure you would now call a miracle. Catherine had not yet become the Empress because the two Orlov brothers were conspiring to depose her husband, Czar Peter III, and place her on the throne of Russia.”

  “It must have been a most dangerous scenario,” murmured Elva.

  “She was prepared to lead the Guards to Peterhof, wearing a borrowed uniform. As she was having trouble with the knotted sash that held her sword and scabbard in place, Potemkin, a new upstart young Officer, impulsively rode to her side and gave her his own sword knot.”

  “That was certainly a brave action to take.”

  “It undoubtedly must have caused a good deal of comment as he remained close to her all through the ride and later fell in love with her. She was then actually in love with Prince Gregory Orlov, but Potemkin’s peculiar magnetism had already begun to work its magic and he was constantly in her mind.”

  “How old was he then?”

  “He was just twenty-three, ten years younger than Catherine. Very tall and with a large heavily muscled body. He sported black curly hair which framed his face, flashing dark eyes and an aquiline nose.”

  Elva grinned.

  “He does sound rather frightening.”

  “When Catherine was crowned Empress of Russia six months later in Moscow and distributed honours to her supporters,” Lady Violet continued, “there was a special award for Potemkin. She gave him ten thousand roubles, an estate with four hundred serfs and a double promotion in rank. Most of the Officers in the conspiracy were raised by one grade.”

  “What happened next?” asked Elva breathlessly.

  “The Empress often heard stories about him from the Orlovs, who found him witty, amusing, a wonderful mimic and a born actor.”

  “In what way?”

  “One night the Empress asked him to do some of his imitations. On an impulse with supreme impertinence, he imitated Catherine’s own voice speaking Russian with her German accent. For a moment everyone stiffened and so did Catherine. Then she laughed. She was enchanted.”