Fatal Deception

by Sally Wentworth

  When he saw her he looked at his watch. 'I could have saved you over half an hour.'

  Biting her lip, Norrie answered shortly, 'Time isn't everything.' And went to walk past him.

  But as she came up to him, Bruno said, 'Are you going to get in the car or do I follow you while you walk all the way to Radbury?'

  'That would be very stupid.'

  'It would indeed,' he agreed.

  'So why don't you just go away and leave me alone. I have no intention of going anywhere with you,' she said, moving away.

  'But you will.'

  Again she came to a stop and faced him, bright sparks of anger in her eyes. 'What gives you that idea?'

  'Because you dislike looking silly as much as the next person, and you'll look extremely silly walking along with your nose in the air and me driving alongside you.'

  'You wouldn't dare!'

  A gleam that she remembered of old came into Bruno's eyes. 'Wouldn't I?' He opened the car door. 'Well, which is it to be?'

  'You can go to hell!' But some women had come out of a nearby shop and were looking at them curiously. Norrie suddenly had a mental picture of what they would look like going down the road. And Bruno would do it, too. 'Damn you,' she swore at him forcefully, but stepped forward and got into the car.

  Bruno shut the door and then came round to get in beside her. Norrie caught the tang of his aftershave and was aware of his size and the self-confident masculinity that he exuded at every pore and suddenly she felt like a fly caught in a web, who is too mesmerised to run when the spider comes towards her.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Taking refuge in attack, Norrie demanded curtly, 'Why have you followed me here?'

  'Lots of reasons,' Bruno answered calmly, as he started the engine and began to drive away. 'The sun is shining, I felt like a few hours away from the office, I'm interested in the grotto you're going to see.' He paused and glanced at her. 'And I thought that perhaps we could have a talk, renew an old friendship.'

  'Friendship is the last thing I feel for you.'

  'All right, renew an old enmity, then.'

  'That's ridiculous,' Norrie said scornfully. 'The less one sees of an enemy the better.'

  'Oh, I don't know, I think you're quite enjoying hating me. You're certainly enjoying trying to get everyone at the Observer riled up against me.'

  'And there's the real reason why you followed me; you want to try and talk me round again,' she accused him. 'But you should know by now that you're wasting your time.' She spoke belligerently, wanting him to know how much she disliked him, but as a protection, too, against her basic reaction to his nearness. It was all there still, the masculinity and strength that had so overpowered her the first time, the chemistry that had drawn them inexorably into bed together. She had been lost then, so drowned in her love for him that she'd been blind to everything else until it had been too late. But now she must be on her guard, must never let her barrier of hatred waver for a second.

  Bruno didn't speak for a moment as he overtook a tractor that had been blocking their way for some time, but then he smiled rather sardonically. 'You know something, Norrie, you have a very exaggerated idea of your powers of persuasion. The people at the Observer aren't stupid; they're not going to commit themselves one way or the other until they see what's in it for them. It would be pretty silly to try and fight me when they're going to do well out of the take-over. Which way?' he added as they came to a junction.

  'To the left. There should be a sign about a hundred yards along.' She would have liked to continue the argument but the old man who looked after the grotto was sitting on a chair under the sign, smoking a pipe as he waited for Norrie to arrive. 'Thought you were going to walk here, missie,' he observed as Norrie shook hands with him.

  'I was but this—er—gentleman offered me a lift,' Norrie told him on a sarcastic note that wasn't lost on Bruno. 'He's the new proprietor of the Welford Observer, Bruno Denton.'

  'Folks call me Sid,' the old man offered. 'The caves are this way.' He unlocked a barred metal gate in the wall behind him and led them down an overgrown path shaded by tall rhododendron bushes that were a mass of mauve and pink flowers. The earth beneath their feet was damp, never touched by the sun, and gave off a sweet, pungent smell as they disturbed it.

  'Who does this ground belong to?' Norrie asked him.

  'It was part of the grounds of the manor once—you won't see it, it's about a quarter of a mile away—but when the squire got killed in the first world war, his widow sold most of the agricultural land off to farmers, but she gave the caves to the parish, to be looked after by the parish council. Although I don't know what she thought they would use them for.' The man laughed richly, enjoying the thought, and it was impossible not to smile with him.

  The shrubs cleared a little and they saw a thick wooden door set into what looked like a large mound of earth, rather like the entrance to an underground fall-out shelter. Sid selected another key. 'Have you brought a torch?' he demanded.

  'Why no. Isn't there any electricity laid on?'

  'No. Electricity would spoil it. Never mind, I keep a few candles inside.' Opening the door, he displayed a little cubbyhole with a stool and narrow shelf. 'This is where I sit to take the money on open days. Not that there's many as comes here now. It's too hard to find, even if they know about it.' There was a box of candles on the shelf and Sid selected two, fiddling in his pocket for his matches, but Bruno produced his lighter.

  Giving one of the candles to Bruno, Sid led the way down the narrow corridor into the caves with Norrie following him and Bruno coming last. Her first impression was one of dankness and Norrie shivered, feeling suddenly cold. The candles' light showed white walls on which graffiti had been scrawled in places, hearts and names mostly, with here and there the name of a football team. As if it was his fault, Sid said in apology, 'It's the youngsters that do it. I try to watch them but I have to sit at the door and take the money, then there's always some fool whose candle goes out and I have to go and find them.'

  The corridor opened into a domed room and Sid held his candle high so that they could see the ornate shellwork which patterned the roof and most of the walls. Most of the decoration was still intact but it had fallen off in places, especially lower down where people could reach it. 'This was the Robing Room,' Sid told them and when they'd looked round led them on to other chambers, equally ornate, until Norrie had completely lost her sense of direction.

  'Is there a map of the lay-out?' Norrie asked the old man.

  'I've got one pinned up by the main door. I'll do you a copy, if you like.'

  'Thanks, but just a rough sketch with the names of the rooms would do.'

  'Perhaps Sid could do that for you now,' Bruno suggested smoothly, 'while we take another look round.'

  'Oh, but ...'

  'Right-oh.' Sid, ever helpful, was off before she could stop him, the light from his candle receding down the corridor and cutting off abruptly as he turned a corner.

  'Was that necessary?' Norrie demanded sharply. 'It could have waited, surely?'

  'I know.' He said it softly but immediately tension filled the underground chamber, seeming to bounce back from the walls, loud in the silence.

  Filled with sudden fear, Norrie turned to hurry after Sid, but Bruno put out an arm to stop her. She hit out at him in blind panic. 'Get out of my way. Don't come near me.'

  'Why? What are you so afraid of?' Bruno tried to catch hold of her hand but she jerked it out of the way, knocking his arm and sending the candle flying from his hold. It went out before it hit the ground, leaving them in total darkness.

  Norrie gasped and instinctively put her arms out in front of her, but all she touched was Bruno's jacket. Before she could move away, he caught hold of her hands. 'Are you afraid of the dark?'

  'No. No, of course not.' She tried to pull her hands away but he held them fast.

  'And you're surely not afraid of me. After all, you've been alone with me in the dark
many times.'

  'Which is something I prefer to forget,' Norrie assured him, but her throat constricted as she said it. 'Will you please let go of my hands?'

  'Why? So that you can run away again?' he asked sardonically. Then, abruptly, 'Why didn't you answer my letter?'

  'I should have thought that was obvious,' she retorted. 'Look, this is ridiculous, just standing here. If we call out to Sid he'll come and find us.'

  'And be one of the fools he talked about?' Bruno mocked.

  'It was an accident.'

  'Was it? How's Sid to know that? He may think we want to be in the dark together.' And he drew Norrie nearer to him.

  'Let go of me.' Her voice rose in alarm. 'Damn you, Bruno, I suppose you think this is funny. Well, I don't.' She opened her mouth to call Sid but felt Bruno's hand moving up her arm and then it was in her hair, his other hand going to her waist as he pulled her against him. 'Don't!' Agitatedly she put her hands on his chest and tried to push him away, but his grip tightened and his mouth sought hers, finding her cheek as she tried to turn her head. His lips moved across her skin, featherlight, and Norrie swore at him as she felt them touch the corner of her mouth. 'No! Don't.' The words came out on a panic-stricken gasp, lost under his mouth as Bruno's lips closed firmly over hers.

  Norrie struggled wildly, her body squirming in his hold, but he held her tightly and there was no way she could move her head. She tried to knee him, but he bent her back so that if she tried it again she would lose her balance. Thwarted, Norrie tried to bite his lips but Bruno forced her mouth open, hurting her in his domination, so that she could only make sounds of furious anger in her throat. The darkness seemed to close about them, making it all the worse because she couldn't see him, could only feel his lips, his hands holding her and the strong hardness of his body as he arched her under him. Bringing up her right hand, Norrie raked it across his face and felt a stab of satisfaction when he flinched and released her mouth. 'You little bitch,' he muttered under his breath, and then took her mouth again without mercy, his lips ravishing hers greedily, making her head swim and her body tremble.

  It was a sensation Norrie hadn't felt for a long time; the sheer shock of memory made her stop resisting and stand still in his embrace, the fire that he had always been able to light in her beginning to rise from the embers that she had thought long since dead and cold. In an agony of revulsion at her body's betrayal, Norrie made a supreme effort and pushed herself violently away from him, so violently that she fell back and was only saved from falling by the wall. The sound of Bruno's breathing was heavy in the darkness and Norrie was afraid that he would reach for her again, but after a few moments he snapped on his lighter and moved closer so that he could see her face by its light.

  Norrie leant back against the wall, feeling its cold and dampness through her clothes. 'I hate you,' she stammered wildly. 'God, how I hate you. You just had to do that, didn't you? What's the matter—can't you take the fact that a woman you've had is capable of resisting you?' she asked with fierce derisiveness. 'Well, this one certainly is. You leave me cold.'

  It was as if he hadn't heard. Bruno continued to look at her in silence, only moving when they heard the sound of Sid's footsteps echoing along the corridor, then he turned to look for the candle, found it and relit it. Then he said in a strange kind of voice, 'I was merely trying to prove something to myself.'

  'And did you?'

  He gave a cold, mirthless laugh. 'Oh, yes. I most certainly did.'

  'What did you prove?' The words were torn from her even though she hadn't wanted to ask them.

  This time his laugh was mocking as it echoed round the cavern. 'Why, what I suspected all along, of course.'

  And that, Norrie knew, was all she was going to get out of him. 'You sod,' she swore at him. 'Why the hell did you have to come here?'

  Bruno's face hardened, but Sid came into the cave just then and Norrie turned to him in relief, needing now to get out into the open air again; the walls of the underground rooms and the darkness had become more than oppressive, they seemed to be closing in on her from every side. 'I think I've seen enough. Let's go outside, shall we?'

  Once out of the caves Norrie became professionally efficient, getting out her notebook and asking Sid all he knew about the grotto. After a few minutes Bruno wandered off by himself, pushing his way through the shrubs that barred another path further into the garden. Sid was a nice old man and enjoyed having someone to talk to about his favourite subject, Norrie didn't want to be abrupt but his meandering answers to her questions enabled her mind to go back to that nasty scene in the cave and she didn't want to think of that, so she tried to keep him to the point without offending him. He accepted her briskness resignedly; the old who had little time left giving way to the pressure of the young who think they have no time at all.

  When Bruno came back she was arranging for a photographer to come the following week. Sid escorted them to the gate and waved goodbye as they drove away, a smile on his face at the thought of haying his photo in the paper.

  As soon as they'd turned the corner Norrie took out her pad again and went through her notes, making an addition here and there while her memory was fresh. Bruno glanced at what she was doing and then kept his eyes on the road, concentrating on negotiating the narrow, twisting lanes. Norrie hung it out for as long as she could, but eventually had to close the pad and put it away in her handbag, and then there was nothing to do but look fixedly out of the windows and try and pretend that Bruno wasn't there. Which was pretty difficult one way and another.

  It was he who broke the taut silence. 'Old Sid's quite a character.'

  'Yes,' she answered unhelpfully.

  'But then I suppose you get quite a few characters around here?'

  'Yes.'

  'So why don't you do a feature on them, or perhaps a series of short features?'

  Norrie saw instantly that it was a good idea; every village had its own eccentric from retired snake dancer to daffodil eater, and it would sell papers to the whole village when they knew one of their own was being featured. But she wasn't going to let Bruno know that. 'It's hardly a new idea,' she answered dampeningly. 'It was probably done ages ago.'

  'Don't you know?'

  'I've only been on the staff for a couple of years.' ~

  'Well, it could be worth checking. And village populations change; it might be worth bringing it up to date.'

  Norrie made a dismissive sound. 'Tell Sue you want it done, if you're that keen.'

  'Can't you suggest it to her?'

  'It's your idea,' Norrie pointed out disparagingly. 'And Sue's my boss; she tells me what to do.'

  'Aren't you allowed to have any ideas of your own?'

  'Sometimes,' she admitted grudgingly.

  'But you don't intend to make use of the idea I've given you simply because it came from me, is that it?' He waited but when she didn't answer, added sarcastically, 'You know, Norrie, you should never let your emotions interfere with business.'

  She turned to glare at him, grey eyes flashing angrily. 'Well, that's certainly something you could never be accused of.'

  'On the contrary,' Bruno replied acidly, 'I once let emotion get in the way and almost lost my job over it. So I learned my lesson the hard way and it's one mistake I don't intend to repeat.'

  Impossible not to know that he was referring to their affair, but it was hardly how Norrie remembered the circumstances. And she didn't believe for a minute that he had almost lost his job; he was far too ruthlessly efficient for that. But she was curious and said, 'I'm sure you needn't worry about losing your job this time—although I notice you are working for a different company now. Westland Holdings didn't have the sense to see you for what you were and kick you out, did they?'

  'Sorry to disappoint you; I left on my own account.'

  'To become a bigger fish in Provincial Press, I suppose,' Norrie remarked sneeringly.

  Bruno looked at her with a twisted grin. 'Thinking of trying to do m
e some harm there? What a nasty little mind you have. But I'm afraid it won't do you any good.' He changed to a lower gear as they went round the roundabout on the outskirts of Welford.

  'Why not? Maybe there are some things in your past you've been careful to keep from them that they might be interested to hear about,' Norrie threatened smoothly.

  'In that case you'd better let them know. Why don't you write to the Managing Director?'

  'Maybe I'll do just that,' she retorted, thinking that he was trying to call her bluff. 'What's his name?'

  Bruno grinned and glanced towards her. 'It's Denton. Bruno Denton. The company's mine; I formed it over three years ago.'

  Norrie could have hit him, but had to bite her lip and try and contain her anger. He had scored a hit, but letting him see her chagrin would only increase his enjoyment.

  The traffic was thicker as they entered the town and Bruno slowed down. 'Are you going back to the office? Shall I drop you there?'

  Glancing at her watch, Norrie saw that it was twenty to twelve. 'No, the next corner would be better, by the Post Office.' There was a 'phone box there and she would be able to 'phone the child-minder and tell her she needn't meet Ben at the nursery school after all.

  Noticing her action, he said casually, 'Do you live near there?'

  'No, but I want to 'phone someone.'

  'A boyfriend?'

  Norrie looked at him and wanted to hurt, to get her own back for that kiss in the grotto. 'It's to arrange to meet the person I live with,' she said tauntingly. 'I suppose I ought to thank you; your giving me a lift means that I'll be able to have lunch with him after all.'

  She was disappointed. Bruno's eyebrows flickered but he betrayed no other sign of emotion. They came to the corner and he pulled up and turned to face her. 'I hope he looks after you.'

  'Oh, he does—beautifully.' She said it sensuously, her lips pouting, letting him assume that she was referring to sex.

  'I'm glad to hear it,' he replied smoothly. 'I hope for his sake he knows how to handle your temper—as well as your body,' he added, his eyes running insolently over her.