Chapter 7

Squire Edwin leafed through one of his cherished stamp albums in the tranquillity of his study.

Some of his best stamps had been in his father’s collection which Edwin had rescued from the auctioneer’s hammer after father’s death.

He loved the stamps for several reasons. The allure of their design, their history and the sheer survival of such flimsy pieces of paper.

And also that he could still love possessing them; unlike his wife Lydia.

For Edwin had possessed her; when he was in his prime; respected as a captain of the Queen’s Artillery; and a force to be reckoned with here on the estate.

But now he was passed his prime and simply wondering when his third heart attack would befall him.

As for Lydia, she’d not only lost interest in him, she’d then disregarded him; then humiliated him with her outrageous sexual romping.

At first it was reasonably discreet affairs; which then became ever more blatant.

Then a while back, her debauchery dealt him too savagely; when she openly hired a youth to satisfy her perversions.

His name, Jack Sparrow, had become a byword on the estate for Lady Lydia’s depravity.

At times, when the disgrace welled up within him, he was tempted to end it all; in a gentlemanly fashion; with his army service revolver.

Lydia’s fancy for young Jack had not dimmed his ambition to be an office clerk and whenever he escaped Lydia’s need of him, would busy himself in the old squires little office.

There he would try to make sense of the shambles of paperwork that was Mr Rufus’s responsibility; but other demands mostly took him elsewhere, leaving these admin cores undone.

One might wonder why Lydia had stood aside for Rufus to head the Estate office when her husband retired from the duty. The reason was little known; Margo had never learnt to read or write.

And so Jack often found the office unattended and in need of management. And so piece by piece Jack began organising things into files and boxes; so being able to locate a certain kind of bill or document began to emerge. Occasionally the phone would ring and if Mr Rufus was elsewhere Jack would attempt to deal with the call; rather than simply leaving a message for his boss.

Over a number of weeks Jack was beginning to cope in the office rather well and it did not go unnoticed. Rufus was very impressed with how Jack had reorganised the office. Further more he was dealing with much of the day to day routines! Mr Rufus awarded Jack official clerk status and a proper weekly wage!

Jack was overjoyed; but Lady Lydia was quietly fuming that her son Rufus had acted without her acknowledgement. Yet the need for the Estate office to be properly manned was indisputable.

Lydia had little choice but to show her assent to new Jack’s position as clerk to the Estate; while she was also losing his services as her toy-boy; the training for which he had responded so well.

Within a short while of Jack’s new found income and status, it soon became apparent he had the makings of a young man of standing; and was never referred to as “Young Jack” again.

But although Jack Sparrow was thrilled in achieving his ambition in the Estate’s office there was now another ambition that tantalised him.

He was secretly in love with Ella; and he was all to aware that he had a rival; and that rival was his kindly benefactor Mr Rufus; and every morning from his office widow he would see Ella cross the cobbled yard, dressed divinely for riding Juno out across the Downs.