But although she might wish for Gyles' innocence with all her heart, the facts all seemed to point directly to him. Over the next few days she thought of little else, but always she came back to the same question: who else could it be? Diligently she put in the new i plants, but by now she was in a state of nerves and was constantly on the alert for some other trick to be played on them, and wondering dispiritedly if she was doing the right thing in staying on. The herb garden was as much Penny's as her own and it was hardly fair on the younger girl if she insisted on staying at the cottage and spending more money on it, only to have something else go wrong so that they would have to admit themselves beaten and leave in the end anyway. But surely whoever it was—she still couldn't bring herself to accuse Gyles—would realise that they weren't going to be pushed out and leave them alone now.
As the days passed uneventfully, Kirsty became a little more optimistic. Penny had started her job at the garage, working Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and, seemed to be enjoying it, coming home smiling and often going out with Dave in the evenings to the cinema or a disco in Barham. Kirsty herself travelled there one day to visit the bank and do some shopping. Towards the; end of the afternoon she was standing in the market square waiting for the bus back to Notley when to her consternation Gyles pulled up in his Range-Rover.
Jump in, I'm going back to the village.' He leant across to push the passenger door open for her.
As coolly as she could, Kirsty answered,. "Thanks, but the bus will be along in a minute,' and she shut the door again and turned her back to stare with a sudden interest into a nearby shop window.
For a moment there was silence, but instead of the engine starting up, she heard the other door open and brisk footsteps coming towards her. Her pulse started to race and she could feel the hairs at the back of her neck start to prickle with fright. Gyles caught hold of her arm and spun her round to face him, his face taut with anger.
'Get in the car!'
'No, I'd rather go on the bus.' Defiantly she glared at him.
His jaw thrust forward menacingly. 'Are you going to get in the car or do I have to put you in ?'
Briefly she continued to defy him, but the grip on her arm tightened and he .stepped forward, his eyes dangerous. Reluctantly she capitulated and bent to pick up her basket.
'Very well, since you give me no choice.' Head high, she got into the car, only then becoming aware that they were being watched with avid curiosity by everyone else in the line-up.
Gyles got in beside her but didn't glance her way as he pulled away and drove out of the town. Kirsty sat stiffly in her seat, her gaze fixed out of the window, but she was acutely aware of him and had to grip her hands tightly together in her lap to stop them from shaking. After a while it penetrated to her brain that he had taken a different turning' from the main road and she didn't recognise her surroundings at all. She opened her mouth to say. ‘Where are you taking those? but it sounded so corny that she shut it again and the strained silence continued between them. At first Kirsty thought he must be taking a short cut she didn't know about, but gradually she became increasingly uneasy, especially when he turned off the road into a lane that was little better than a track and seemed to lead only into a field, where he pulled up.
The silence seemed very loud then and Kirsty stared fixedly out of the windscreen, too proud to ask him where they were. She knew that he was studying her,
but still she wouldn't look round. Then he said with scarcely controlled anger, 'And now perhaps you wouldn't mind telling me what the. hell that was all about back there?'
Keeping her voice cold, she replied, 'I told you, I wanted to go on the bus.'
'You didn't want to come with me, you mean.'
Kirsty didn't answer and he muttered something under his breath. Then she heard him get out and he came and held her door open for her.
'Let's take a walk. There are the ruins of an old castle just over here."
Slowly she swung her legs out and stood up. For a moment their eyes met, but she looked quickly away, her heart thudding. There was a path across the field and they went along it, Kirsty taking care to walk a little in front so that her arm didn't accidentally touch him. They came to a stile which she climbed nimbly -over and then she saw the age-old stones of the remains of what must have been a large castle, probably Norman from the shape of the windows and the one doorway that was left standing. For a little while they walked round it, still not speaking, but then they came to a part looking out over the valley below and Gyles stopped,
Kirsty turned to him impatiently. 'Can we go back now?"
'Not yet. I want to know why you didn't want to come with me today.'
Anger rose in her at that because she was still unsure of him, and afraid to let him see how she felt, so she took refuge in attack and said caustically, 'I should have thought that was obvious. I don't like peeping Toms.'
'What the hell do you mean by that?'
'You know darn well what I meant I saw you on the night of our party when you were looking up at my window.'
Gyles stepped closer, his face a mask of anger. 'And you, with your suspicious little mind, immediately jumped to the nastiest conclusion you could think of. Well, just to put the record straight, I of ten take an evening stroll down the lane. It's hardly my fault if you happened to see me passing when your doctor friend was practising his bedside manner on you!' he bit out viciously.
'Why, you…' Driven by uncontrollable indignation, Kirsty lifted her hand to hit him, but he moved too fast for her and caught her wrist. For a brief second his eyes blazed at her and then he pulled her roughly against him, his mouth fastening on hers compulsively as he kissed her with a fierce, burning intensity. At first she was so startled that she let him do what he wanted, but even as she began to stiffen he lifted his head and looked at her, a strange expression in his dark eyes.
'I've been wanting to do that for a hell of a long time,' he said, his voice uneven.
Kirsty looked away, afraid of her own emotions, and tried to speak offhandedly. 'And now you've done it. So what?'
'So now I'm going to do it again.'
And he did, more gently to begin with as he explored her mouth, his lips hard against her own, but then becoming more importuning, more demanding, forcing her lips apart. Kirsty was aware of his strength, of his aims crushing her to him, moulding her body against his. She tried to resist him, to stand cold and rigid under the hot demands of his mouth, but the mental and physical temptation to give in to him was
the strongest feeling she had ever known. Her body trembled, touched against his lean hardness, and suddenly she gave a little moan and began to respond, her arms going round his neck, her body moving sensuously against him. Her submission could only inflame his senses even further and he kissed her so passionately that he hurt her, his lips only leaving her bruised mouth when he began to explore her throat, the curve of her neck, her eyes.
When at last he let her go her legs were so unsteady that she had to lean back against the wall, the stones cool against her burning skin. Gyles still had hold of her arms but his touch was gentle now, his hands caressing.
'Kirsty, look at me,' he commanded, his voice still thick and ragged.
Slowly she raised her head and saw such a light of triumph in his dark eyes that she was afraid. She feared that responding to him so ardently might make him realise how much she loved him and she didn't know how to handle the situation. She waited, with beating heart for him to say something, to give some indication that he felt anything more than just desire for her, but he merely bent to kiss her again and she immediately: turned her head away.
'Now can we get back to Motley?' she asked, keeping her voice as cold as she cold.
She felt him stiffen and draw away a little. 'Now?'
'Of course. Why not now?'
'Because a minute ago you were in my arms, that's why not!' He put his hand under her chin and forced her to face him.
Kirsty willed herself
to look at him calmly. She must try to keep him at arm's length, she knew that if he kissed her again she was lost. With a disdainful little laugh she said, 'You don't really think that a few kisses mean anything to someone of ray generation, do you?'
His eyes burned into her and she could feel her heart do crazy flip-flops in her chest. Oh, God, if only she could be sure of him I Slowly he straightened up, his face set in an unreadable mask. 'Evidently not.' His voice colder than winter ice, he reached in his pocket for his cigarette case. 'So why let me kiss you at all?'
'I could hardly stop you,' Kirsty replied rather tartly.
'But you didn't have to—co-operate the way you did.'
She managed to shrug airily. 'I just wondered what it would be like to be kissed by an older man, that's all.'
There was a sudden shattering silence and Kirsty stood with beating heart, staring out over the valley, her emotions in shreds.
When Gyles spoke his voice was almost a snarl. 'And did I come up to your expectations ?'
It took an immense effort, but she forced herself to turn and face him, a small amused smile on her lips. 'Do you really want me to answer that?'
His face grew bleak. 'No, I don't suppose I do,' He turned abruptly away, drawing viciously on the cigarette.
The silence lengthened and became unbearable. Kirsty sought desperately for something to break it. 'Those are most unusual cigarettes,' she managed at last. ‘I’ve never seen any black ones before.'
For a moment he didn't "answer, then he said shortly, "They're Turkish. I discovered them when I was abroad one year and I have them sent to me from Paris.' He turned and began to walk back towards the car, Kirsty following, but at the stile he stopped again
and turned towards her.
Curtly he said, 'The reason I brought you here was because I wanted an opportunity to thank you for the help and encouragement you've given my mother. She was fast becoming a recluse and nothing I tried to do made any difference, but whatever you said to her seemed to have the right effect, because she's been out several times since. I'm extremely grateful,' he added stiffly.
But Kirsty was looking at him in some surprise. 'You realised what was the matter with her?'
He frowned. 'I'm not completely insensitive to other .people, especially my own mother,' he answered bitingly.
Kirsty flushed. I'm sure you're not. It's just that she thought she kept everything hidden from you so well.' She paused and then said hesitatingly, 'Your mother told me something of her accident; it's been quite a long time since she had a thorough check-up, and medical science has progressed enormously in that field recently. Don't you think it would be a good idea if she tried the new treatments?'
Gyles looked at her sharply. 'Have you suggested this to her?' And when Kirsty shook her head, he went on forcefully, 'Then don't. She's had too many disappointments in the past and I don't want her hurt again, especially now when she's starting to come to terms with her handicap.'
'But if there's a chance, then——'
'No, Kirsty. Under no circumstances will I let her subject herself to more painful operations and treatments. You don't know what she's suffered in the past. My father tried everything to get her cured, she spent years in hospitals, but it only left her worse than she was in the beginning. And I don't want her lifted by false hopes only to have them dashed again. 'You're to promise me that you'll say nothing to her, do you understand?' he demanded.
'But you know nothing about the new electrical treatments.'
'And you do, I suppose?" he said caustically.
"Yes, as it happens, I do. Before we came to Nodey I was the librarian at a London teaching hospital, and it was my job to keep up to date with every kind of medical breakthrough. And not only that, Simon talked to your mother and he said that…'
'Simon? You had the temerity to discuss my mother with your boy-friend?" he demanded harshly.
'Well, he is a doctor—and a darn good one,' Kirsty retorted, becoming angry.
Gyles glared at her. ‘I forbid you to even mention this to my mother. Do you hear me, Kirsty? You're to promise here and now never to speak to her about it.'
Kirsty's face was very pale, but she faced him steadily. 'Oh, I hear you all right. But I'd like to know just what right you have to make a decision like that when your mother is capable of making up her own mind?'
His face darkened and he took a swift step towards her, but fortunately a minibus drew into the field just then and a: crowd of noisy schoolchildren began to clamber out Hastily Kirsty climbed over the stile and walked to where the car was parked. She was afraid that he would try to force her to promise, but he evidently decided that she would obey him and didn't pursue the matter, turning on the radio as soon as he got into the car.
Coldly he told her, 'I have to go to the garden centre on the way back, but it won't take more than a few minutes.'
When they got there he invited her to come inside, but she refused and stayed in the car, nodding briefly to the manager's surprised greeting when he came out with Gyles and saw her waiting for him.
The taut silence between them during the rest of the drive back to the cottage was broken only when Gyles said, 'Is your sister using your van today?'
Stiffly Kirsty answered, 'No, it's broken down.'
'Anything serious?'
'Something wrong with the engine.' And how, she thought bitterly. Then wondered miserably for the thousandth time if the man sitting beside her, who had held her in his arms and kissed her so passionately, was indeed responsible for all their troubles. If only -she knew beyond doubt that he was innocent! Then she would have been able to respond without the fear that she was making a fool of herself, without the dreadful thought at the back of her mind that he was sadistically trying to make her fall for him only because it gave added spice to the vendetta he was waging against them.
When they got to the cottage she got out without waiting for him to open the door for her, said shortly, 'Thanks for the lift and walked down the path without a backward glance.
Two days later a bulky envelope arrived containing photostats of all the information she had wanted from the hospital library, together with a short note from Simon. There was no personal word to Kirsty herself, no mention of anything that had been between them, for which she was profoundly thankful. She read over the photostats carefully and then read Simon's note again. 'I must stress that a thorough examination would have to be carried out before it could be decided which, if any, of these treatments might be of benefit to Mrs Grantham.' And he went on't© Kst several consultants who were the top men ia that particular field and whom Mrs Grantham might consult.
Kirsty sat for a long time, torn between a wish to show them to Mrs Grantham because she sincerely believed that it was the older woman's right to choose and no one else's, that only she could decide whether the pain and possible failure Were worth the risk if there was the remotest chance of success, and the knowledge that by doing so she would alienate Gyles even further. If he were innocent of everything else this wouldn't matter so much to anyone except her, it would only make him even more angry with her than he was already, but if he were guilty, if he really was responsible for all the dirty tricks that had been played on them——Kirsty's mind shrank from the thought of what form his anger might take. Dare she take the risk? Could anything possibly justify her deliberately taking the chance of putting their livelihood in jeopardy again?
But there was no choice really, she had known what her decision would be all along. Taking out her pen, she wrote a covering letter and put it inthe envelope with the photostats and Simon's note, then she waited until she saw Gyles go. out before she took it up-to the Manor and asked the butler to give it to Mrs Grantham personally. Once it was done, she felt a great surge of relief. Now the responsibility was no longer hers and it was up to Mrs Grantham to decide what she wanted to do. Perhaps the handicapped woman might be as angry with her as Gyles had been, but that, too, Kirsty could bear if she had to.
She continued to work methodically on the garden, Penny helping her when she wasn't at the garage, and now the place was really beginning to look cared for.
At last they had managed to cut back all the rest of the hedges and had heaped all the cuttings into a pile ready to burn. The front garden, too, was starting to look better as the wallflowers came out and the buds began to appear on the climbing rose round the doorway. Kirsty looked at them every day, eager to see what colour they would be. Penny was sure they would be red, but she thought white.
Late one afternoon, a week or so after she'd sent the photostats to Mrs Grantham, Kirsty decided to light the bonfire. She was almost an old hand at this now and stood and watched as the twigs crackled and burned. There was very little wind, the smoke rising almost straight into the sky. It had been an unusually warm day for May and she wore just a sun-top and denim shorts, her skin already beginning to tan from spending so many hours out of doors. Penny was still at the garage and Kirsty stood alone, leaning on a spade, ready to beat out any spark that leapt from the crackling flames, not that there was much chance of that on such a still day.
The sound of a car door slamming and brisk footsteps coming up the garden path made her look up, and then the blood drained from her face as she saw Gyles walk round the side of the house, one look at his face revealing that he was furiously angry. Defensively she gripped the spade and held it in front of her. He came quickly across the grass and stopped just a few feet away. His eyes were as cold as water over stone. Involuntarily she stepped away from him, and his lips curled in a snarl of anger.
Sally Wentworth - Garden of Thorns Page 13