Fortune's Lead

by Barbara Perkins

  ‘No, she didn’t. Not from what she told me, anyway. It’s lucky she had the sense to do no more than pretend she might come away with him! But leaving Essie aside—for the moment, though she seems to have landed you in a fair pickle with her erstwhile boy-friend!—what I want to know is, Charlotte—’

  ‘How—how on earth did you know we were here?’ I asked rapidly, fending off his impending question. ‘We drove for miles—and he said she didn’t know where he was intending to take her!’

  ‘It may be a long way by road, but it’s only about three miles as the crow flies, from here to Thurlanger. I don’t know when I’ve covered it so fast,’ he added grimly, and went on, ‘I’m surprised he risked staying so close ... but perhaps he hadn’t realized it was so close, if he’s only driven it. So you want my explanations first, do you? All right. By a stroke of luck, just after I’d got it out of Essie that you’d gone I had a phone call. From here.’ He eyed me. ‘Rosalind, whom you may not have noticed—’

  ‘I—I had—’

  ‘Rosalind was meeting some of her bridle-path committee in the bar here. She—um—took it upon herself to feel that your scandalous behaviour in arriving here with the—let’s say apparent intention of spending the night with Michael Chace needed—reporting. Just so that we’d know how much gossip you were likely to cause. Of course, if you will get yourself marooned behind a locked door—I suppose she tried it, since she was rather prim about its being locked—’

  ‘Did—did she? Well, if I’d known, perhaps I would have screamed, after all!’

  ‘Why didn’t you?’ he enquired, taking a step towards me. ‘It would have been the sensible thing to do!’

  ‘I—I didn’t think he’d ... and anyway, he s-said he’d say—’

  ‘Yes, no doubt. But he’s fairly thoroughly gone now, so I think we’ll leave that one. But let’s hear some explanations from you, my girl, about why you took off in that crazy way!’

  He was looking threateningly at me, and as he took another step towards me I edged round to put the table between us. ‘I w-wanted to go home,’ I said weakly, sought for something to distract him, and asked rapidly, ‘H-hadn’t we better see if Michael’s badly hurt? It’s not that I care, but you did throw him out of the window, not to mention—’

  ‘Stop concerning yourself over Michael, or I’ll think you were deliberately using him as a defence against me. That did occur to me when I got Rosalind’s call.’ As I opened my mouth protestingly he went on, ‘If that was it, you bit off more than you can chew, didn’t you?—but I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt! And if you must worry about whether I actually murdered him or not, we’re only on the ground floor, and I saw him beginning to get up before I shut the window—and if he’s got any sense he’ll be miles away rather than let me catch another sight of him! Now, are you going to explain, or not?’

  ‘N-no—’I moved again, quickly, as he took another step, so that the full width of the table was still between us. ‘I—I just wanted to go home. I w-was going to tell Henry so, but he was—was busy talking to you, so—so there wasn’t time to explain!’ I saw his eyes sharpen, knew that he had guessed at my overhearing something, and sought desperately to rally my forces.

  ‘I wasn’t using Michael as a defence against anyone! I simply asked him for a lift, because Essie suggested I should, but I never—I never—’

  I broke off, gulping, and shivering a little at the memory of Michael’s ruthlessness. I had reason to be grateful to Rosalind and her telephone call—even if I had more than a suspicion that it had been prompted by a rather virtuous form of spite—but I was beginning to feel I had had enough of this evening. Facing Kevin, I felt a miserable ache inside me. He might have ridden hot-foot to my rescue, but it could have been just to taunt me, for all I knew ... He was regarding me closely, and when I didn’t go on he spoke again himself.

  ‘So you did hear something! I thought you might have done! Essie—who’s very informative tonight—said you went in search of Henry, and the times seemed to fit! Was it such a terrible thought, then? And if so, why did you look at me the way you did when I came in this evening? You couldn’t look like that and not mean it, could you? That was what decided me that you weren’t going to marry Henry out of some mistaken sense of duty whatever he might think! Besides, I was thoroughly sick of standing back in case the situation was—’

  ‘W-well, I know what you think now!’ I interrupted resentfully. ‘It w-was bad enough before ... ‘I moved round the table again, rapidly, as Kevin started round it towards me. ‘I know what sort of suspicious mind you’ve got! Yes, I did hear Henry telling you he’d intended me for you, and as soon as I heard that, I knew what sort of reaction he’d get from you! You th-think I knew all about it, don’t you?’

  ‘Of course I don’t, you idiotic child! I know both you and Henry too well for that! Didn’t you stop and listen to what I said in reply? Charlotte, keep still!’

  ‘No,’ I said miserably, putting the table between us again. ‘I knew perfectly well as soon as I heard him say that, that you’d think I’d been chasing you—’

  ‘You should have listened a bit longer. Furthermore,’ Kevin said, a glint coming into his eye which made me dodge round the table again as he moved towards me, ‘I don’t believe you’d know how to chase someone if you tried! You’re too much of an innocent! Nobody but an innocent would go running off in the middle of the night, and get themselves locked up with vengeful suitors, and—Charlotte, do keep still!’

  ‘C-considering all the things you started out accusing me of—’

  ‘I’ve apologized at least four times. And if you didn’t hear me tell my wretched uncle that despite your habit of either shouting at me or ignoring me I somehow fell in love with you, and that I hoped the same thing might have happened to you, stop and listen to it now!’

  ‘You’re—you’re not in—’

  ‘Yes, I am, and you know it perfectly well unless you’re blind! If you didn’t run away because you heard me say so, which might have been the reason, then it must have been something else. Like thinking I’d suspect you of being in some idiotic plot, which I don’t,’ Kevin said, coming at me again so that I retreated rapidly, still round the table. ‘So the only matter in doubt is whether that night we spent in the barn meant as much to you as it did to me!’

  ‘It can’t have meant v-very much to you, since you’ve kept away from me ever since!’

  ‘Misguided nobility,’ Kevin said calmly, making an attempt to reach me which only failed because I put the table between us again. ‘Are we going on like this until we both get dizzy? Charlotte, will you answer me once and for all, do you love me, or not?’

  ‘Y-yes, but—’

  I had been foolish enough to leave the protection of the table—since I was feeling dizzy—and at once I realized it was a mistake, since without it Kevin could reach me easily. In fact, he had me trapped between the corner of the jutting fireplace and the door. He put both arms round me so that I couldn’t get away from him again, and looked down at me, possessively. I felt weak at the knees again. And breathless. Anyone might feel breathless after what I’d been through tonight...

  ‘But what?’ he asked.

  ‘B-but—’I swallowed. ‘But I know you th-think I knew what Henry was plotting! And I didn’t! I was m-miserable because I thought I might have led him to believe I was f-fond of him, and everyone seemed to think I meant to marry him, and I started being afraid he might think so too!’

  ‘Then it’s a relief to know he doesn’t, isn’t it? You can be as fond of him as you like—as an uncle. But you belong,’ said Kevin, tightening his hold on me, ‘to me!’

  ‘But you don’t even know—’

  ‘Don’t even know what?’ he asked, brushing his lips against my cheek in a way which made me feel dizzier than ever. ‘If you think for a moment that I ever believed all those extraordinary tales you cooked up for me, I didn’t! Besides, you told me about your family the other night—
and a much more believable one it was, too!’

  ‘I’m a nurse, a fully qualified S.R.N. Henry said I wasn’t to tell, in case it made everyone think he was ill!’

  ‘So that’s what you are! And very suitable too, for a doctor’s wife. I ought to have guessed that one, oughtn’t I?—if you hadn’t been so deliberately hiding it. You really are a pea-goose, Charlotte!’

  I looked up at him unsteadily, wondering if he realized what he’d said about a doctor’s wife. Or if he was just saying it to please Henry. It had to be admitted that when he kissed me, promptly, it didn’t feel as if he was thinking solely about pleasing Henry...

  ‘That’s better,’ he said, some moments later—sounding almost as breathless as I felt. ‘Now, can we stop misunderstanding each other? And fighting? I love you, silly goose, in case you still don’t believe it, and I’ve spent heaven knows how much time trying to get near you! Near enough for this.’ He kissed me again. ‘Just to reassure me, do you still feel no self-respecting female would ever consider marrying me?’

  ‘Did—did I say that?’

  ‘You did. Very savagely. After which you were making a great fuss of Henry every time I saw you, which was enough to give anyone the wrong idea!’

  ‘I—I was—was hiding behind him, if you see what I mean. Well, you did look,’ I told him defensively, ‘very much as if you wanted to murder me!’

  ‘I did,’ Kevin said cheerfully, and grinned at me. ‘You can’t really be surprised, all things considered!’

  ‘Kevin, Henry didn’t—I mean he did really mean—’

  ‘I don’t think he wants to get married again in the least. If he did, he certainly can’t have you, so it’s lucky he doesn’t want you, isn’t it?’ my beloved said calmly. ‘Except as a niece, of course!’

  ‘You w-wouldn’t ask me just to please him—’

  No, I most definitely wouldn’t. He’s a devious old devil, and it’s only annoying to find he’s such a good judge of my taste! And now,’ Kevin said, sounding almost regretful about it, ‘I suppose I’d better take you back to Thurlanger.’

  ‘Oh dear,’ I said, remembering it. ‘Henry really won’t be too pleased with me, will he? I mean—I introduced Michael to Essie, and—’ I looked up at Kevin, a thought striking me. ‘No, it was you who brought him to Thurlanger! When you were still—still plotting against me!’

  ‘Pax! I only did it to prevent gossip, and I might not have bothered if I hadn’t seen by that time that you weren’t the sort of girl who ought to be put in the embarrassing situation of being speculated about!’ Kevin hugged me, giving a mischievous grin. ‘You really won’t believe I could do anything straightforward, will you? The only plot I’m hatching now is to marry you—you have said yes, haven’t you?’

  ‘Y-yes. But—’

  ‘Not more buts! As for Essie, I’m beginning to think she’s got more common sense about fortune-hunters than you have! But I’ll have a sharp word or two with her, just the same.’

  ‘Essie would keep saying I’d make a good stepmother,’ I said weakly. ‘Th-that was part of the trouble! She’s—she’s going to be rather surprised—I mean, she thinks I can’t stand you!’

  ‘You did go around giving that impression. It was very discouraging,’ Kevin said, and kissed me again as if to reassure himself. He seemed to be making a habit of it. When I could think rationally—which was difficult, and something I found myself approaching with great unwillingness—I clutched at Kevin’s jacket as a further idea occurred to me.

  ‘Michael locked the door from this side and the key isn’t there, so it’s probably in his pocket.’

  ‘And the pocket’s gone with the man. Hm—well—’

  ‘Kevin,’ I said, clutching at his jacket again, ‘th-there’s going to be an awful lot of gossip about my being here with Michael, isn’t there? Oh dear, Rosalind saw us, and goodness knows who else!’

  ‘The people she was with wouldn’t know you. Dear me, poor Charlotte, what a terrible reputation you must be getting!’ Kevin said wickedly. ‘You spent a night in a barn with me—and now you’re alone in a locked room, also with me—I’m compromising you thoroughly, aren’t I? You’ll really have to marry me, after this!’

  ‘Perhaps you just feel that you’ve got to marry me—’

  ‘And that’s enough of that nonsense,’ Kevin said promptly, in his most domineering manner. ‘Just to prove it, and to avoid your feeling self-conscious which might make you more prickly than ever, I’ll sort things out with a subtlety worthy of Henry! Let me see, now—getting out’s easy enough, because we can use the window. I’d better pay for the damage I made bursting in, and I can add a bit to keep the landlord’s mouth shut. I know old Charlie Hetherley well enough, anyway—I took his child’s tonsils out. What next? Well, having galloped to your rescue, we can both gallop back again. Thunder’s waiting outside—patiently, I hope—’

  ‘Kevin, I am not getting up on Thunder—’

  He gave me a resigned look. ‘You really will have to stop being frightened of him, you know! I must have talked to him enough about you ... Well, all right, then. I suppose you’re not exactly dressed for being flung across my saddlebow, anyway! I’ll ask Charlie to stable him for the night, since I know he’s got some decent stabling at the back there, and see if he’s got a car he can lend us. The things I do for you, my love!’

  ‘I’m—I’m sorry—’

  ‘Don’t worry, I’m only teasing.’ He caught me to him again: he had let me go while he thought. ‘Now then. Providing Charlie’s got a car ... Yes, that should be easy enough. I’ll smuggle, you in up the back stairs, just as you smuggled yourself out, and you can change back into evening dress—in which you were looking very lovely, in case I didn’t mention it—and then you can come down looking as if you never went out at all. It’s still surprisingly early, now I come to notice the time—not much after eleven. I think it should work, don’t you? If anyone thinks they saw you over at the Dog and Duck tonight, they must obviously have been mistaken, because there’ll be plenty of witnesses to say you were dancing the night away at Thurlanger House—and announcing your engagement to me, into the bargain! ‘Looking down at me, he added mischievously, ‘And that is part of the bargain. If we don’t include that, I’ll put you up and ride away with you without more ado! Agreed?’

  ‘Yes, Kevin,’ I said meekly.

  ‘Good,’ he said, while I reflected that the Thurlanger family were demons for bargaining. ‘Stay here then, darling, while I nip round the front and talk to Charlie.’

  ‘I’d—I’d rather come with you!’ I said quickly as he made for the window. ‘I can wait outside so that no one sees me—but I don’t want to stay in here!’

  ‘All right, but don’t catch cold.’ He opened the windows and climbed out, holding out his arms for me as I scrambled on to the sill. I heard him chuckle in the darkness. ‘Very clandestine we look, don’t we? Where’s Thunder? Ah, good fellow—he hasn’t slipped that hasty knot I put round the post. Come and say hallo to him, at least—he deserves that, doesn’t he?’

  I went obediently, though nervously, with Kevin’s arm round me, half-blinded in the darkness but aware of the dark shape of Thunder ahead. We seemed to be in a yard—and I remembered abruptly another yard into which Michael had driven. I remembered something else, too, and clutched at Kevin.

  ‘It’s all right, don’t be scared—’

  ‘It’s not that. I—I left my suitcase in Michael’s car—’

  ‘Then I expect he’s gone off with it. Serve you right,’ Kevin said with equanimity, and took my hand to place it gently on his horse’s neck. ‘There now, boy, here’s Charlotte. Just show her you’re friendly. That’s it—you see? He likes you. He’s got taste, too!’

  Thunder turned his head towards me in the darkness, and blew softly into my face. I decided I would get used to him. I would have to, anyway... Stroking his neck timidly, I felt the warmth of him under the silky coat, and the powerful muscles. He was a beautiful
beast, and it would be uncharitable to go on being afraid of him when he had rescued me twice. He seemed disposed to accept me and I stroked him for a moment longer, more confidently, until Kevin stepped back.

  ‘All right, now, I’ll go and see Charlie. He must have just closed up, I should think. Stand over there, in the shadows, till I come back. You’ll be all right, won’t you?’

  ‘Yes—yes, fine—’

  He kissed me quickly, and left me to stand in the shadowy corner away from Thunder. I shivered a little, and glanced up to see stars—the same stars which had witnessed my precipitate flight from Thurlanger earlier tonight. People said you could read fortunes by the stars...

  When Kevin came back I caught hold of him with the urgency of my thoughts still on me. He began to say something about a car waiting, and everything being fixed—but I interrupted him breathlessly.

  ‘Kevin, I’ve just realized—what the gypsy said didn’t have to mean what I thought it meant! And the dark man I wasn’t to trust could have been Michael—he’s much darker than you!’

  ‘My darling idiot, what are you talking about?’

  I ignored the uncomplimentary epithet. ‘I only came here because I’d had my fortune told, and—no, I suppose that wasn’t the only reason, but it did all seem to fit in! She said there was an older man whose name began with H and he’d have a great influence on my life—and he has, hasn’t he? And she said I’d have a short journey with my heart’s desire at the end of it, and the first person I met when I got here was you!’

  ‘I suppose tonight hasn’t sent you right off your head?’ Kevin asked mildly, keeping a tight hold on me as if I might fly off at any moment. ‘Your fortune told? My darling, you sound even less sensible than usual! Though I must say,’ he added, his teeth flashing in the darkness as he grinned at me, ‘I like the last bit. Very much!’