The Real Charlotte Part III

Francie is invited to stay at Bruff for a few days, and she is very nervous. Christopher forgives her gaffes but the ladies of the party don't like her at all and think she is common and stupid. She embarks on a flirtation with Gerald Hawkins, who is a soldier - and who plays around with her with no intention of marrying a penniless girl. Lady Dysart and the other women of the party, except for Pamela, Lady Dysart's sweet natured daughter, are chilly with her. She goes bicycle riding and lets young men flirt with her and can't seem to stop herself. She likes Christopher but is uneasily aware that he will not find her all that interesting or suitable if he gets to know her better.. she's not up to his weight. She goes boating and she and Roddy Lambert who is of the party are almost drowned. Charlotte begins to get annoyed with her young cousin. She seems to get into scrapes continually and to engage in vulgar behaviour. Moreover, she can see that Roddy is growing too fond of Francie, and she is jealous, because she still has feelings for him. Although he is married, he and Francie flirt and reminisce over when they knew each other in Dublin. Lucy Lambert, his wife, is getting uneasy. Francie is in love with Gerald Hawkins and wants to marry him but he shies away, as he does not want to get tied down with her. Charlotte is more and more irritated by her, feeling that she is throwing away her chances of becoming Lady Dysart, for the sake of a flirtation with Hawkins. Charlotte is eager to increase her land, and manages to get hold of a farm rented by Julia Duffy. Julia is elderly and poor and not able to manage the farm. She is bedridden much of the time and suffering from depression. Charlotte tells Roddy Lambert that if she had the farm, she would use it for breeding horses and would make money out of it, but Julia is just letting it go to rack and ruin. She gets the tenancy, and Julia breaks down and ends up in the local asylum, having lost her health, her mind and her social status. Charlotte moves into the farm, but her servants dont like it as it is further away from town than her other home.. and they are lonely. There is nothing to do but look after Charlotte's collection of cats whom she adores. Charlotte is getting more and more annoyed with Francie, and she tells Lucy Lambert that she thinks Francie is flirting with Roddy and that Lucy should watch out for her. She gives her letters between the 2 which indicate a heavy flirtation... and Lucy, who is never in good health, gets upset and has a heart attack. Charlotte was supposed to be Lucy's best friend, but she is not desperately upset by her death. Roddy feels guilty that he was often neglectful of his wife and goes to Charlotte for consolation. Francie leaves Lismoyle and goes back to Dublin and her Aunt and Uncle are moving out to the seaside, to find a cheaper place to live. She is fond of them, but finds life with them increasingly miserable but she doesn't have enough money to live on her own.