The utter silence that came just after fresh snowfall was as deep as the sparkling carpet that claimed my feet and most of my calves.
Pegasus.
I called him silently, then walked slowly towards the trees, begging him to make an appearance so I’d be able to go home and sleep, knowing he was safe for one more night.
He appeared as if from nowhere, a mystical sight as he raised his head to the moon, then turned, his deep brown eyes fixed upon me. He began to walk hesitantly towards me, and I to him.
‘Darling, Pegasus,’ I whispered, then saw a shadow appear on the snow from the cluster of trees. The shadow raised a rifle.
‘No!’ I screamed into the silence. The figure was behind the stag, his gun aimed and ready to fire. ‘Stop! Run, Pegasus!’
The stag turned round and saw the danger, but then, rather than bolting away to safety, he began to run towards me. A shot rang out, then two more, and I felt a sudden sharp pain in my side. My heart gave a strange jolt and began to pound so fast that dizziness engulfed me. My knees turned to jelly and I sank onto the snowy blanket beneath me.
There was silence again. I tried to hold on to consciousness, but I couldn’t fight the dark any longer, not even for him.
Some time later, I opened my eyes and saw a beloved, familiar face above me.
‘Tiggy, sweetheart, you’re going to be all right. Stay with me now, won’t you?’
‘Yes, Pa, of course I will,’ I whispered, as he stroked my hair just as he used to when I was sick as a little girl. I closed my eyes once more, knowing that I was safe in his arms.
When I woke up again, I felt someone lifting me from the ground. I searched around for Pa, but all I saw above me were Cal’s panicked features as he struggled to carry me to safety. As I turned my head back towards the cluster of trees, I saw the prone body of a white stag, blood-red drops spattering the snow around him.
And I knew he had gone.
20
‘Morning, Tiggy, how are you feeling?’
I forced my eyes open to see who was speaking to me, because the voice wasn’t one I recognised.
‘Hello.’ A nurse smiled down at me. With huge effort, I dredged up fleeting memories of . . .
‘Pegasus,’ I whispered, my bottom lip quivering as tears appeared in my eyes.
‘Try not tae upset yourself, dear.’ The nurse, who had bright red hair and a kind face covered in freckles, put her plump hand on mine. ‘You’ve had a shock and that’s for sure, but at least you came out of it in one piece. Now, the registrar will be here to see you shortly. I’ll just take your temperature and blood pressure, but I’m afraid I can’t offer you any solid food until the registrar says it’s allowed.’
‘That’s fine, I’m not hungry anyway,’ I replied as more memories of last night began to download in my brain.
‘Then how about a nice cup of tea?’
‘Thank you.’
‘I’ll get one of the health assistants to bring it to you. Open, please,’ she added before placing the thermometer under my tongue, then tightening the armband around my upper arm. ‘Your temperature’s fine, but your blood pressure’s still a wee bit high, though it’s down from last night. Sure tae be all the drama.’ She comforted me with a smile. ‘Now then, your friend Cal is waiting outside. Can I send him in?’
‘Yes.’ The thought of Cal and the way he’d cared for me yet again last night brought further tears to my eyes.
‘Morning, Tig,’ he said as he strode in a few minutes later. ‘It’s good tae see you awake. How are yae feelin’?’
‘Distraught. Is Pegasus . . .’ I bit my lip. ‘Gone?’
‘He is, Tig, he is. I’m so sorry, I know what he meant tae you. Maybe you’ve just got tae imagine him like the mythical Pegasus; growin’ wings and flyin’ up tae the heavens.’
‘I’ll try,’ I said, giving him a weak smile. It wasn’t Cal’s way to indulge in flights of fancy, so I was grateful for the effort he was making. ‘I like that thought, but I just feel responsible. He trusted me, Cal, came out to see me like he normally does and got shot because of it.’
‘Tig, you couldnae have done more – none o’ us could.’
‘You don’t understand! I shouted at him to run away, but instead he ran towards me. If he hadn’t been between me and the poacher, it really would be me who’s dead now. He saved my life, Cal. Really, he did.’
‘Then I for one am grateful tae him. Even though it’s a terrible loss for us, as well as the natural world, I’d rather him than you. Has the doc been in tae see you yet?’
‘No. But the nurse says he’s on his way. I hope he’ll remove all these’ – I indicated the tubes and the beeping machine I was wired up to – ‘so I can come home.’
‘There are some who say our health service isn’t up tae much, but that helicopter was there in the glen with the paramedics within half an hour of me making the call.’
‘That explains all the whirring and clanking,’ I said. ‘I thought I’d dreamt it.’
‘You didn’t. I followed by road and I’d doubt there was a bit o’ yae that wasn’t scanned, X-rayed, or tested last night. The doc said he’d have the results this morning.’
‘I honestly can’t remember much – just a lot of noises and bright lights. At least I’m not in any pain anywhere.’
‘I’m not surprised, with the amount of drugs they pumped intae yae. Now then, I have tae tell you there’s a detective waiting to interview you when you’re feeling stronger. I’ve told him everything I know, but, if you remember, I wasn’t there tae see the shooting itself.’
‘A detective? Why on earth would they want to speak to me?’
‘Someone took a potshot at you last night, Tig. As yae just said, they could have killed you.’
‘But only by mistake, Cal. We both know he was after Pegasus.’
‘Well, for now, they’re treating it as suspicious.’
‘That’s ridiculous, although I do want them to find out who it was who killed him. Poaching’s an offence too, and especially such a rare animal.’
‘Did you see who it was, Tig?’
‘No, did you?’
‘I didn’t. By the time I arrived, the bastard had vanished.’
We were both silent for a while, thinking about the conversation we’d had yesterday about Zed, but neither of us mustering the courage to voice our thoughts.
‘Now, do you want me tae call anyone for you? One of your sisters? Or that lady you call Ma?’ Cal asked me.
‘God, no, unless the doctor has told you I’m dying.’
‘He certainly hasn’t done that. He said you were a very lucky lass. Talk o’ the devil.’
A man who looked barely older than me had entered through the curtain.
‘Hello, Tiggy, I’m Dr Kemp. How are you feeling this morning?’
‘Fine, good,’ I nodded, my heart immediately giving a bounce as it prepared itself for my health status report. I saw the doctor glance at the monitor, then turn his attention back to me.
‘The good news is that the X-rays we did last night both came back clear and confirmed what we thought. The bullet went straight through the side of your ski jacket and put a hole through the three jumpers you were wearing, but only gave you a flesh wound. We didn’t even have to stitch you up. You’ve just got a nice big plaster to cover it.’
‘Am I free to go home then?’
‘Not quite yet, I’m afraid. When the paramedics helicoptered you in, they reported that your heartbeat was all over the place, and your blood pressure was very high – we initially thought you were having a heart attack. That’s why we’ve got you wired up to a monitor. The ECG we took showed you’re experiencing something called arrhythmia – that’s when the heart can’t manage to keep a steady beat. You are also having bouts of tachycardia, where the heart beats faster than normal. Have you noticed if you’ve been getting any palpitations or a racing heart recently?’
‘I . . . yes, a bit,’ I said, knowing I nee
ded to be honest.
‘For how long?’
‘I can’t remember, but I feel perfectly okay, really.’
‘It’s always a good idea to get things checked out for any underlying condition, Tiggy. And that’s what we want to do.’
‘I’m sure my heart is absolutely fine, doctor,’ I said firmly. ‘I had very bad asthma as a child and constantly got bronchitis. I had lots of tests in the hospital and my heart was checked every time.’
‘That’s reassuring, but the cardiology team want you to have an angiogram just to be on the safe side. A porter will be along shortly to take you. Are you up to sitting in a wheelchair?’
‘Yes,’ I replied miserably. I hated hospitals, and as the porter pushed me along the corridor ten minutes later, I decided I agreed with Chilly and would definitely opt to fade away in my own habitat.
The angiogram was painless, if unpleasant, and within half an hour I was back in bed with a watery bowl of soup that was the only vaguely vegan thing on the lunch menu.
‘What do you think about seeing that detective now, Tig?’ encouraged Cal. ‘The poor bloke’s been hangin’ around since the wee hours.’
I agreed and the man was ushered in. He introduced himself as Detective Sergeant McClain, was dressed in plain clothes and had a practical, kindly air about him. He sat down by my bed and took out a notebook.
‘Hello, Miss D’Aplièse. Mr MacKenzie has already made a statement and filled me in on what he thinks happened last night. We’ve taken your jacket and jumpers for forensics. Talk about a near miss. They have the bullet from the stag, but they’re searching for the casing at the crime scene. We should be able to identify the exact type of rifle from both of them and that. Now, I’m afraid I need to take a statement from you too as the sole witness of the shooting itself. If at any time you want to stop, please say so. I understand it may well be upsetting for you.’
I took a deep breath, focusing on getting this over with so I could be released and be back in my own bed at Kinnaird by tonight. I took the detective through everything that had happened, with him prompting me for further detail as I went.
‘So, you didn’t get a look at the shooter?’ he clarified.
‘Not really. All I saw was his shadow on the snow.’
‘You think it was a man?’
‘Yes,’ I said. ‘The shadow was really tall anyway, although I suppose shadows aren’t anything to do with the height of a person, are they? It sounds strange, but I think he was wearing an old-fashioned trilby hat. At least that’s what it looked like in the shadow. But then I saw Pegasus running towards me . . .’
‘Pegasus?’
‘The white stag. I called him Pegasus—’
‘Tig and the stag had a bond, detective,’ Cal put in by way of explanation as tears bubbled in my eyes.
‘And now I really wish we hadn’t, because Pegasus would still be alive now . . .’
‘All right, we can stop here, Miss D’Aplièse, you’ve been very helpful.’
‘Will you be able to charge this man for poaching?’ I asked.
‘Oh yes, don’t you worry. If we catch the barmpot who did this to you and the stag, I’ll make sure the CPS have him up on every count we can manage. Sounds to me like that stag took a bullet for you, so we might even get him on attempted murder. I’m warning you, though, the press is on to the story,’ Sergeant McClain sighed. ‘Bad news travels fast, especially given the fact that the stag was already on the media radar. There’s a couple of reporters hanging about at the hospital entrance. When you’re discharged, I suggest you look for a side door. My advice is to say “No comment” in answer to every question, okay?’
‘Okay, thanks.’
‘Now, I’ll just ask you to read through your statement, and if everything is correct, just initial each page and sign at the bottom for me.’
I did so, then handed the pages back to him, trying to stop my hands from trembling. Recounting the story had drained every last ounce of my strength.
‘Here’s my card if you remember anything else in the next few days. I have your contact details, so now I can leave you in peace to recover. We’ll let you know if we find the casing, and our victim support service will be in touch shortly. And please think, Miss D’Aplièse – anything else you remember might mean we can get the idiot charged. In the meantime I hope you recover swiftly, and thanks for your help.’
Once he’d left, I felt my eyelids become heavy. I was just closing them when I heard the curtain being opened again.
‘How are you feeling?’
I opened my eyes and saw Dr Kemp, the young registrar, looking down at me.
‘Fine.’ I did my best to look convincingly alert. ‘Can I go home now?’
‘Not quite yet, I’m afraid. Mr Kinnaird, the senior consultant in the cardiac department here, is coming down to visit you. The results of the angiogram should be back tomorrow morning. I’m afraid he’s going to be some time, as he’s in theatre at the moment. He sends his best wishes, by the way,’ he added. ‘Apparently you know each other.’
‘Yes,’ I gulped as my heart did another bounce. ‘I work for him. I mean, in his other life up on the estate.’
‘Right.’ The registrar looked confused and I realised he probably knew nothing about Charlie’s personal life.
I glanced out of the window and saw the sky was already darkening. ‘Will I be able to go home tonight?’
‘No, because he’ll want the results of the angiogram back and he may want to run some more tests. Just one last thing, Tiggy. Cal here told me that you’re not a British citizen, but Swiss.’
‘Yes, I am.’
‘That’s fine, Swiss citizens can be treated on the National Health Service, but I’m afraid you don’t seem to be on our system. Have you ever registered with an NHS doctor’s practice in the UK?’
‘No.’
‘Well then, we need your passport, National Insurance number and a couple of forms filled in to sort out your future care. If you don’t have it to hand, your National Insurance number will be on your payslips.’
‘Right.’ I looked at Cal. ‘I’m so sorry, but my passport’s in my bedside drawer, along with my payslips.’
‘Is this urgent, doctor?’ Cal asked. ‘It’s a good three hours’ round trip.’
‘Reasonably,’ said the registrar. ‘I’m sure you know what NHS bureaucracy is like. Is there anyone who could bring them here for you?’
‘No, I’ll have tae go myself. Unless you want Zed as a visitor, Tig,’ Cal grimaced at me.
I looked at his weary features, then the clock, that showed me it was already past four in the afternoon. The detective had been with me for over two hours. I made a decision. ‘Cal, why don’t you go home now and get some sleep? If I’m not going to be out of here until tomorrow, maybe you could come back with the passport and payslips then and hopefully collect me at the same time?’
‘Are you sure you’re goin’ tae be okay alone here for the night?’
‘I’ll be fine, really. You look worse than I do.’
‘Thanks, Tig, and you’re right. I need a decent scrub in the tub.’
‘I’ll be off then,’ said the registrar. ‘See you tomorrow, Tiggy. Sleep well.’
‘I’m so sorry about all this, Cal. It’s the last thing you need with so much going on at Kinnaird.’
‘The last thing you needed was a graze from a bullet. Okay, Tig, I’ll get goin’. At least I’ll have the pleasure of driving a spanking new Range Rover back. Zed lent me his when he heard you’d been helicoptered off to hospital.’
‘That was kind,’ I said begrudgingly, remembering what had passed between us yesterday.
‘Aye.’ Cal frowned, ‘Or it could’ve been guilt. We all know there’s a thin line between love and hate and you’d turned him down yesterday. Besides all that, a white stag’s head is a helluva trophy to hang on a wall. The ultimate I’d say, especially for a man like Zed. You don’t think it was him who shot at you, do yae?�
��
‘Christ, Cal,’ I said as my heart bumped again. ‘I really don’t know.’
‘Sorry tae spook you, but from what you’ve said and I’ve seen, he’s used to gettin’ what he wants. At least I know you’re safe in here.’
‘I hope so,’ I breathed. ‘Cal, could you possibly bring back some other stuff for me? My rucksack and bag, which I think I left on my bed, some jeans, a shirt, a jumper . . . and um . . . some clean undies. My clothes are with forensics and I don’t fancy leaving here in my hospital gown.’
‘Course I will. Now, don’t you be gettin’ yourself intae any more trouble whilst I’m away, will yae?’
‘Look where I am. That’s impossible, even for me.’
‘Nothing’s impossible for you, Tig,’ he said and kissed me on the forehead. ‘I’ll be back in the morning. If you remember anything else yae need, just call Beryl at the Lodge and she’ll pass on the message.’
‘Thanks, Cal. Just one more question . . .’ I steeled myself for the answer. ‘Where have they taken Pegasus?’
‘As far as I know he was left where he was, because he was part of the crime scene.’
‘I’d just . . . really love to say goodbye.’
‘I’ll find out and let yae know. Bye, Tig.’ He waved as he left and I suddenly felt very alone. There was definitely something about Cal that made me feel safe and secure. Not only that, but he made me laugh. The bond we had forged was really something special and I wondered if we’d been related in a previous life . . .
‘Hello, Tiggy,’ said a different nurse as she walked towards the bed. ‘My name’s Jane and I need to bother you for your temperature again.’ The thermometer was popped into my mouth. ‘Aye, that’s fine. Not in any pain, are you?’ she asked, picking up a red plastic file from the end of the bed.
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