Mind Games and Ministers
Page 32
A rubbish bin, a dozen or so yards away, was attracting wasps. This year, they were hardy little critters. We were heading for nippier days and there were still no signs of them buzzing off to the great nest in the sky. Best to stay away from the stripy flying things at this time of year. They would be in a rather foul mood.
As I would be, too, if he didn’t turn up soon. I’d arranged a lot of stuff, re-jigged quite a few schedules, and woven some elaborate stories in order to be here. To see him.
I jumped suddenly – nearly knocking my handbag off the edge of the seat – as a pair of hands reached from behind the park bench, covering my eyes. Holding my head firmly. Not yielding.
“Oh, very funny,” I muttered.
Met with silence.
“So – am I supposed to … guess who? It’s going to be a tricky one, this …”
I heard a sigh, partly muffled by the floating chimes that came to us across the lawns. The big clock striking quarter past five. A clipped response.
“Like I said before. You’d be dreadful in the army, Rachael. All too easy to ambush.”
“Yeah, well. Some of us have read War and Peace and understood what the subtext was all about, without being so mindless as to think it might be a great and glorious thing to do. To join the military …”
He dropped his hands from my eyes. And I craned my neck back, meeting those grey eyes at last. He reached for me. All upside down. Mouth on mine.
And there was a definite charge there. Perhaps even rivalling that of the Light Brigade.
Michael pulled me up from the park bench and nodded towards Westminster station.
“Welcome to my stomping ground, Ms Russell. Sorry it’s all been a bit last-minute for you. Now. Only say nice things about our chaps in the army, if you don’t mind. I’ve got ministerial obligations here, remember?”
I let him kiss me again. Five o’clock shadow in the shade of Big Ben.
“And hand me that annoying little suitcase-on-wheels thing of yours. I’m taking you right back to my barracks.” I got up from the bench and frowned at him.
“Speaking of all things military, Michael – isn’t it time that you told me about those war wounds of yours? You were happy enough to joke about them on Twitter, but you did say that there was a story behind it all and I for one still don’t know how you —”
“Yes, yes. All in good time, though. All in good time.” Accompanied by a sharp nod and that blinding grin – dimples dancing in the waning light. His fingers reached for mine as he told me:
“And now, my lovely northern broad – quick march!”
I rolled my eyes.
But for once, I did as I was told.
THE END
Find out what happens next in the life of Rachael Russell, by reading the sequel ‘Cuckoo in the Chocolate’ by Chris L Longden
KEY TO CHAPTER TITLES:
Prologue1 – ‘ FRIGG IN HELL’ – Frigg* (also known as ‘Freya’) was viewed as the goddess of motherhood and the weaver of fate.
Prologue 2 – ‘KERES ON THE ROOF’ – Keres were spirits (female) of violent death.
1.‘PANDORA ON THE DOORSTEP: REAL TIME’ – Pandora was the first woman, created by Zeus, king of the gods. Pandora opened ‘that box’ and unleashed every woe and evil into the world. The only thing remaining in the box was Hope.
2.‘PANDORA PROPS UP POSEIDON’ – Poseidon was the god of the sea, and watery things in general.
3.‘ERIS AND ARES – GOING AT IT’ – Eris was the goddess of strife, discord and war. Ares was another war god, and a lover of violence.
4.‘POOR OLD PEGASUS’ – Pegasus was a beautiful, immortal winged horse.
5.‘SANCTUARY OF DELOS (OR THE DOSSHOUSE)’ – Delos is a sacred island for the Greeks. It is said to be the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis (see 19).
6.‘DIONYSUS, THE AMPHORA AND A CRAP FROZEN PIZZA’ – Dionysus was the god of wine and enjoyment.
7.‘TWO TALES OF THANATOS’ – Thanatos was the god of non-violent death.
8.‘POST-HIMERUS, AND BATHTIME’ – Himerus was the god of sexual desire.
9.‘AMAZONS IN AGREEMENT’ – The Amazons were a race of female warriors.
10.‘PAN HANDLING IT’ – The god Pan was half-goat and half-man; a musician with a sense of mischief.
11.‘ENTER HADES’ – Hades was the dour god of the underworld: head honcho of the dead.
12.‘CHAOS, THE TITANS’ – ‘ Chaos’ was the voidless state referred to by the Greeks before the creation of the world. The Titans were perceived to be the ‘elder gods’, who ruled before the Olympian gods (such as Zeus).
13.‘HERA IS A RIGHT COW’ – Hera was Zeus’ wife and the quarrelsome goddess of marriage.
14.‘THE AGE OF IRON(ING)’ – The Greeks believed that they were living in The Age Of Iron – a time of relentless toil and hardship.
15.‘THE CAP OF INVISIBILITY’ – The cap was Hades’ favourite article of clothing. Helped him to carry on being a sneaky bugger.
16.‘ARISTOPHANES’ ARRIVAL AT NUMBER TEN’ – Aristophanes was a Greek writer of comedy plays; he often poked fun at the Establishment in Greek society.
17.‘TANTALISING APOLLO AND ARTEMIS’ – Apollo and Artemis were twin gods (brother and sister). Apollo was said to be god of the sun, of light and of the truth. Artemis was the goddess of wildlife and was not particularly fond of men.
18.‘TABLOID TITANS’ – See 12.
19.‘PLANNING FOR THE PARTHENON?’ – The Parthenon was a magnificent temple built on the Acropolis, Athens in honour of the gods.
20. ‘HADES SETS THE LABYRINTH’ – The Labyrinth was home to the child-chomping Minotaur. We don’t know if Hades had any hand in creating the Labyrinth, but you can bet your bottom dollar that he thought that it was a marvellous idea.
21.‘ATLANTA RETURNS TO THE HUNT’ – Atlanta was the goddess of the hunt. And of running.
*Frigg is the only non-Greek included in the chapter titles. Always nice to have a bit of cultural diversity, I think .
If you like this story and style, Chris L Longden’s writing can be found at:
www.funnylass.com
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