An Innocent in Russia Page 7

  And she knew that this would be more difficult to carry out than anything that she had ever done before.

  Nevertheless a pride that she had not known that she possessed made her raise her chin high.

  As she stepped out at the Volkonsky Palace and gave her name to a resplendent Major-Domo, she was aware that he noticed that she had arrived in a carriage that bore the British Coat of Arms.

  He also glanced at Davey with what she thought was an expression of surprise and then said in somewhat broken French,

  “Their Highnesses will receive you, mademoiselle, before you are shown upstairs.”

  Zelina merely inclined her head as an acknowledgement and then, holding herself very tall and moving deliberately slowly, she followed the Major Domo.

  They crossed a resplendent hall with tall pillars of malachite and climbed an enormous golden and crystal staircase to what she was to learn later was one of the smaller salons.

  However it seemed at this moment very large and it was hung with magnificent paintings by the great Masters.

  There were flowers everywhere that scented the room and at the far end, seated on a sofa with a large Russian wolfhound at his feet, was an extremely good-looking man whom she identified as her host.

  Standing talking to him was a woman who might easily have stepped out from one of the paintings on the walls.

  The Princess Olga, with her huge dark eyes and her dark hair drawn back from an oval forehead, was a Western European’s ideal of a Russian beauty.

  “Mademoiselle Zelina Tiverton,” the Major Domo announced in a loud voice and Zelina saw the surprise in the eyes of the Prince and Princess as she advanced towards them.

  She had dressed herself with the greatest care, asking Davey to have one of her trunks brought up from the bowels of the ship and then took from it a very elegant gown that her aunt had bought her as an afternoon ensemble.

  Zelina had expected to wear it at one of the Receptions that she knew her aunt would be invited to, such as those given in London by the Whig hostesses who entertained those who supported the Government in power.

  However she had been left at home by her aunt and now she thought that it was certainly not the gown that would be worn by a Governess nor the bonnet with its small pink feathers and frill of real lace attached to the high crown that was likely to be seen in any schoolroom.

  She advanced without hurrying down the long salon until at exactly the correct distance from the Princess she dropped a very graceful curtsey.

  Then with a smile she exclaimed eagerly,

  “I have arrived rather earlier than you had expected, Your Highness, owing to a series of misadventures, but I am so delighted to be here and it is so very very kind of you to invite me to stay.”

  “We are surprised to see you so soon, Miss Tiverton,” the Princess replied in perfect English.

  The Prince, who had now risen, held out his hand and, as Zelina curtseyed again, he said,

  “Welcome to Russia! I am so sorry to hear that your journey has been an uncomfortable one.”

  “Not exactly uncomfortable, Your Highness,” Zelina replied. “In fact the Ischora is the most beautiful yacht I have ever seen!”

  “The Ischora!” the Princess exclaimed.

  Zelina laughed and it sounded quite natural.

  “That is why I have arrived earlier than expected and I must tell Your Highness that, as my chaperone was ill and had to be left behind, my lady’s maid is not my own but borrowed from Lady Watkin Williams-Winn in Copenhagen.”

  By the time she had assuaged the Prince and Princess’s curiosity and explained to them the commotion that had been caused by her chaperone’s illness, Zelina knew that they had both accepted that she was a guest in their Palace and they had not even mentioned their children.

  It was only at luncheon when a number of guests appeared that Zelina realised that she made the numbers odd.

  Because she was present, there was one woman too many round the table and it was only Lord Charnock’s cleverness that had prevented her from being dismissed to the schoolroom to eat with the children and their other attendants.

  Much later in the day, when the children appeared to spend an hour with their mother before the youngest of them went to bed, Zelina found that there were five, starting at the age of three and ending with an attractive girl of fourteen.

  They had an English Nanny, a French Mademoiselle and a music teacher and the boys had visiting Tutors in Greek and Latin besides two riding masters.

  “Your children are being very well educated,” Zelena commented to the Princess.

  “I hope they will be,” was the reply, “but I am rather worried that they may not speak English correctly.”

  “I thought that their English was very good.”

  “They have, of course, learnt it from their Nanny,” the Princess explained, “but I am well aware that, excellent woman though she is, she is hardly what you would call a cultured person.”

  There was a pause and Zelina knew that the Princess was waiting for her to say that she would teach the children to speak English.

  Remembering Lord Charnock’s advice, she merely said,

  “I am sure that, as they talk with you, Your Highness, and that, as your English is so perfect, they will not make any mistakes that could not be easily rectified.”

  She saw that a suggestion trembled on the Princess’s lips, but, before she could speak Zelina added,

  “Oh, I wish my father could have seen the treasures you have in this wonderful Palace! When he was a soldier, he appreciated art and it is because we were so close that I have a little knowledge of painting, which will certainly be improved while I am in Russia.”

  “Your father was in the Army?” the Princess asked.

  It was easy from that opening to introduce her grandfather into the conversation and to speak of some of the paintings owned by her uncle, the Earl of Rothbury.

  Like Lord Charnock, she was aware that, when the invitation arrived from the British Embassy for dinner and a dance, it finally swept away from the Prince’s and Princess’s minds any idea that they might use her as a teacher for their children.

  When she had come down to luncheon, she had presented the Princess with a gift, which Lord Charnock had told her was an essential thing to do.

  She had found three fans in the trunk that Davey had unpacked, all of them in white satin boxes that bore the name of the well-known shop in Bond Street where her aunt had bought them.

  Because they were so pretty, she really wished to keep them for herself, but Zelina had chosen for the Princess the one that she liked the least and even then, because she had owned so few extravagant things in her life, it was quite hard to part with it.

  Davey, however, had wrapped it up very elegantly in paper and tied it with a piece of satin ribbon that belonged to one of Zelina’s gowns.

  The Princess had been delighted.

  “How very very kind of you, Miss Tiverton,” she had exclaimed.

  Then, as she looked at the fan with a little smile she had added,

  “I cannot speak to you in such a formal manner. ‘Zelina’ is such a very attractive and very Russian name, although you will never look anything but English!”

  The gentleman who was seated next to her at luncheon had said much the same thing,

  “I know that you come from England where there are so many beautiful women,” he had said. “Now tell me about yourself.”

  Again Zelina remembered that she must impress the Russians and, when several of the Princess’s guests said they hoped that they would meet her again, she knew that she had been successful.

  When she went upstairs to dress for dinner, Davey told her that, because they had arrived unexpectedly, the Princess had sent a groom to invite another gentleman to dine.

  “You’ve caused quite a sensation, you have, miss, arrivin’ in the Royal Yacht,” Davey said, “and, from what I learnt downstairs, nearly a week early!”

  �
�I am so glad I did not have to go on to Stockholm and travel from there in a Russian ship,” Zelina told her.

  As she spoke, she thought how frightening it would have been and then added,

  “And I am very lucky to have had you to look after me, Davey. Which gown shall I wear this evening?”

  This took quite a little time to decide, because Zelina had always been certain that first impressions were most important, apart from the fact that she was still, on Lord Charnock’s instructions, establishing herself.

  When she was dressed, she longed to tell him how well his plans had worked and that after tonight there would be no doubt what her position in The Palace now was.

  Because of his warning to her aboard the Ischora and because she guessed that if the Russians listened to what was said, they would certainly also read what was written, she did not write to thank him as she longed to do.

  ‘He will guess how grateful I am,’ she told herself.

  At the same time she thought that she was very remiss in not making it clear to him.

  ‘One day I hope I will be able to say so,’ she thought.

  Wearing one of her prettiest gowns from Bond Street and knowing that she would not be overshadowed by the Russians who bought their gowns in Paris, she went down the gold and crystal staircase to the salon where the Princess was receiving her guests before dinner.

  The following evening, because she was certain that she would see Lord Charnock at the British Embassy, Zelina decided to wear the loveliest gown she owned.

  She had anticipated when her aunt had bought it that it would be a gown that she could wear only if she was invited to a ball at Buckingham Palace.

  Now as she dressed she felt that she would rather impress Lord Charnock than Queen Adelaide, although she was afraid that it was unlikely that he would take any notice of her.

  She had not missed what the Princess had said about him to the other ladies who had come to luncheon the previous day.

  “I suppose you are going to the British Embassy tomorrow evening?” one of them had remarked.

  “Yes, of course,” the Princess had replied.

  “I expect Lord Charnock will be a guest of the Ambassador, even though he is staying at The Palace with His imperial Majesty.”

  “But, of course, Lord Charnock will be there!” the Prince said. “And I look forward to renewing my acquaintance with him. The last time I saw him was in Paris.”

  The lady he was speaking to laughed.

  “Where he is very much engagé. I hear that all the attractive women there pursued him, but he was attached irrevocably to the exquisite Sophie.”

  “Sophie would certainly not allow him to be anything else,” the Princess remarked and they all laughed.

  “I am informed, however, that it is now all over,” another woman joined in, “but then his Lordship’s affaires de coeur never do last long and are so discreet that, as somebody once suggested, they are almost non-existent!”

  “That is not the story I have been told,” the Princess went on. “And those quiet, silent self-controlled Englishmen are often extremely ardent lovers.”

  “You should know, dearest,” one lady said almost spitefully.

  But the Princess adroitly turned the conversation to another subject.

  Zelina was astonished at what she had heard.

  She had never thought of Lord Charnock as a man who might be an ardent lover and it struck her that he must in consequence have found her very boring and inexperienced.

  Then she was certain that the Princess and her friends were mistaken for he was far too involved with his work to have time for anything else.

  Nevertheless, when she could see him across the room at the British Embassy, she found herself wondering if he was enamoured with the very beautiful woman he was talking to.

  Zelina would have been incredulous if she had been told that the lady in question had been recruited by the Secret Police with the full approval of the Czar.

  In fact her instructions were to find out why Lord Charnock had come to St. Petersburg and as much as possible about the British Foreign Secretary’s attitude towards Russia.

  There was a certain secret that the Czar was very anxious to conceal from the British and, although he did not believe that they need have any suspicions of him, he had ordered a thorough investigation of Lord Charnock.

  As the Czar believed so firmly in his ability not only to get his own way in everything he undertook, but also to deceive and hoodwink his opponents, he was not aware that in Lord Charnock he had met his match.

  On his guard from the moment he had stepped on board the Ischora, Lord Charnock had been aware that General Suchtelen, while apparently talking in the most open manner about anything and everything, was making a note of his answers that would eventually be reported to the Czar.

  He was equally well aware when he had first been introduced to the Countess Natasha Obolensky that she had been chosen to seduce him into every possible indiscretion.

  She was very lovely with eyes that slanted upwards at the corners and a face that might have been moulded by a master craftsman in Medieval times.

  Everything she said seemed to be a slight challenge and every movement of her lips was a provocative invitation to the man she was speaking to.

  She flirted with Lord Charnock outrageously, but being clever enough to appear slightly elusive.

  They sparred verbally with each other at dinner and, when the Czar singled him out for an intimate talk, Lord Charnock noticed that the Countess made no attempt to attach herself to anybody else, but merely waited for him to be free.

  The first night that Lord Charnock stayed at the Imperial Palace he slept peacefully and undisturbed.

  He had been amused when he went up to his extremely impressive bedroom to find that Hibbert had been taking the usual precautions that they always carried out in every country he visited.

  The valet had not said anything to him, but had merely tapped one of the panels, which immediately opened with a secret spring.

  Lord Charnock saw that behind the wooden panel the wall was hollow and that anybody occupying the adjoining room would be able to hear everything that was said in his bedroom.

  This was something that they had encountered before and Lord Charnock saw that his valet had taken the goose feather mattress from the bed, which his Master disliked anyway, and squeezed it into the aperture.

  Now it would not only be impossible for anybody to enter it, but no one could overhear what was being said.

  Hibbert indicated that as far as he could discover the rest of the room was clear, but he then pointed up at the painted ceiling and Lord Charnock saw that there was a small piece of paper stuck over the eye of a Goddess.

  He knew that this indicated that Hibbert had found a peephole through it from the floor above.

  He said nothing, but merely smiled at Hibbert to congratulate him on this discovery and, while he undressed, they talked only when it was necessary.

  He took his bath and dressed again in his evening clothes.

  In his silk knee breeches and wearing numerous decorations pinned to his evening coat with a white cravat that would rival that of any dandy of the Russian Court, Lord Charnock looked very impressive as he then walked the long distance to the Czar’s Apartments where he was to dine.

  The food proved to be excellent, the wines superlative and the conversation intelligent and stimulating.

  It was the sort of evening that Lord Charnock enjoyed when the guests talked instead of being obliged to dance and the Czar and Czarina retired early.

  Somebody suggested that he might wish to go on to a ball, but he declined, saying that he was tired after his journey. And he was then able to escape to his own room.

  Hibbert was waiting for him and again without saying anything aloud he pointed to the despatch cases that told Lord Charnock that they had been slightly moved from the position where they had been left.

  Another gesture from Hibbert
indicated that his possessions had all been inspected, the drawers opened and anything in writing had been read.

  Since this was what he had expected would happen, Lord Charnock was not in the least disturbed and, when he eventually climbed into bed, he slept dreamlessly until the morning.

  *

  He awoke ready to face the day, knowing that he had to carefully consider every word he spoke and to control even the expression in his eyes just in case it should give away what he was thinking.

  Then he was not surprised to find that the Countess Natasha was seated next to him at luncheon and again at dinner.

  The party on the second night was very different from the first night and much larger.

  The women were ablaze with jewels and, when dinner was finished, more guests arrived from other Palaces and they danced in one of the magnificent ballrooms with its gold pillars symbolic of the glittering extravagance of everything and everybody in Imperial Russia.

  Lord Charnock was not particularly eager to dance, but he could not refuse the Countess when she asked him to do so and he was aware that the Czar seemed to smile at them with approval as they moved past him.

  “You are so handsome, mon cher!” the Countess said in a voice that seemed to vibrate with feeling.

  “Thank you,” Lord Charnock replied. “And, as you are aware that you are very beautiful, there is no point in my telling you so.”

  “But I want you to say so and I want to feel that it is not just an expression which comes from your lips but from your heart.”

  “I have always been told it is an organ that has been omitted from my anatomy,” Lord Charnock commented dryly.

  “That I am sure is untrue and you must let me find it for you, which will be very exciting for me.”

  “But perhaps a discomfort where I am concerned.”

  “I think actually it would make you very happy. Shall we try to find your heart?”

  Because Lord Charnock could not think of a suitable answer to this question, he smiled enigmatically, but did not reply and he felt her press herself a little closer to him.

  It was late when the party finished and later still when Lord Charnock was ready for bed.

  He did not, however, get into the large, heavily draped bed with its lace-edged silk sheets monogrammed with the Royal cipher, but stood at the window looking out at the lights on buildings across the Neva and seeing the stars overhead reflected in the water moving slowly towards the sea.