Free Winds of Eden by Catrin Collier Page A

him.’
    â€˜I have.’ Maud glanced at the baby. His eyes had grown heavy and his body was relaxed. He lolled away from the bottle, his mouth still full of milk.
    â€˜Would you like me to wind him and get him down so the nurse can wash the bottle?’ Angela offered.
    â€˜If you like.’
    Angela spoke to the nursemaid in Arabic. The woman handed the baby over and left the room.
    â€˜I thought I’d call him Robin after my mother’s father. I never knew him. He died when Mother was twelve, but she spoke fondly of him.’
    â€˜Robin John?’ Angela suggested.
    â€˜Just Robin. As John and I didn’t live together for over a year before he was born I’m reverting to my maiden name. He’ll be Robin Perry so the Masons won’t have further cause to be angry with me.’
    â€˜Have they written to you?’
    â€˜Not since I received official notification of John’s death. There hasn’t been time for mail from England to reach here. John’s parents and his sister wrote regularly after our marriage. It was hard to read the letters they sent after John was posted to the front. They assumed I was a perfect wife and John was a fortunate man. I’ve finally found the courage to tell them the truth.’ She pointed to three envelopes on her travelling desk. ‘The third letter is for John’s brother. I don’t have his address but I’ve written to him care of his parents.’
    â€˜You can’t tell them the baby isn’t John’s,’ Angela protested. ‘There’s no point now John’s dead.’
    â€˜There’s every point, Angela. I can’t allow them to believe that my baby is their grandchild and nephew.’
    Angela set the baby down in the crib and tucked the shawl around him. ‘Most women would.’
    â€˜Not women people talk about. British military society is merciless towards those who’ve broken their rules. I’m not sure how long I can stay here when it’s obvious the baby can’t possibly be John’s. There’s gossip about me. Gossip that will, if it hasn’t already, affect the reputation of the mission.’
    â€˜No one in the mission takes any notice of gossip, Maud.’
    â€˜You can’t ignore the fact that Harriet agreed to look after me before the baby was born, only to change her mind after he arrived.’ Maud had been hurt by Harriet’s change of heart. Harriet had been her mother’s maid in England, accompanied her to India after her marriage, and accepted the post of ladies’ maid to her after her mother’s death.
    â€˜Harriet’s pregnant,’ Angela reminded her.
    â€˜One or two months,’ Maud dismissed the comment. ‘Nothing that would have prevented her from helping me.’
    Harriet had married Sergeant Greening shortly after Charles had dragged Maud and Harriet to Basra from India in the hope of silencing rumours in the Indian army about Maud’s adulterous exploits. Harriet hadn’t remained with Maud long after their arrival, and Maud had wondered if Harriet’s sudden marriage had more to do with distancing herself from her mistress’s tainted reputation than love for Sergeant Greening.
    â€˜I’ve heard Harriet is suffering badly from morning sickness.’ Angela said in the maid’s defence.
    â€˜Face it, Angela, the only military wife to pay a call on me since Robin’s birth is Colonel Allan’s, and she felt duty bound as her husband had delivered him.’
    â€˜The others are probably observing etiquette. Isn’t it usual to wait ten days before visiting a new mother?’
    â€˜They won’t come,’ Maud declared. ‘Reverend and Mrs Butler have been very kind but I can’t continue to impose on their hospitality.’
    â€˜Do you want to go back to England?’
    â€˜ “Go back”? I’ve never set foot in the country and don’t know a