by Kirsty Ferry
‘It’s probably to get to the basement for storage,’ Cassie suggested.
Aidan turned to her, his eyes twinkling. ‘Shall we move the trapdoor and see?’
‘We can do, but it’s going to be a basement. That’s all. Remember, in those days the servants had to be seen and not heard.’
‘Wasn’t that the children?’
‘Those as well. But if you want to, we’ll give it a go. Unless you need to go, of course. I’ve probably kept you far too long as it is.’
Aidan shook his head and his dark hair flopped onto his forehead. He pushed it away and shook his head again. ‘No. I’m good.’ He grinned at Cassie and she couldn’t help but grin back.
‘Great. Let’s go for it then.’
‘Sure. Right. You can help. Take hold of that side of the ring, and I’ll take this side. Great. Now, on the count of three. One, two, three!’
They heaved at the wooden trapdoor and, although there was some resistance at first, it moved a little bit.
‘It feels as if it’s being sucked back down the hole,’ Cassie said. ‘It’s got a good seal on it, whatever it is.’
‘We can do it. Come on, let’s give it another go. Ready? I’ll count again. One, two, three!’
Cassie put all her weight into it, throwing herself backwards and Aidan did the same. The panel moved with a schlloppppp sort of sound, and they ended up on their backsides, sitting on the floor, still holding onto the trapdoor that had landed on top of them.
‘Ouch. That’s a few bruises to add to the cut, I guess,’ Cassie said, glaring at the trapdoor.
‘I’m not going to ask where the bruises are.’ Aidan grinned and reached over. He took the panel from her, tossing it to the side as if it weighed nothing. Then he got onto his knees again and peered into the hole.
‘The draught is definitely coming from here.’ His voice echoed weirdly from inside the hole. ‘And you know what else there is down here?’
‘No.’ Half of Cassie wished he would move so she could have a look.
‘Steps.’
‘Well, obviously if it’s a basement it needs steps into it.’
‘Yes, but they’re proper steps. Panelled in wood, it seems.’ Aidan moved away from the hole.
‘Wooden panelled steps? Really?’
‘Really. Go on – look.’
Cassie didn’t need to be told again. She squinted down them. ‘Dammit! We need some light.’ Cassie turned to him. ‘You don’t smoke do you? Do you have matches on you?’
‘No, sorry. Tried it once, didn’t like it.’
‘Me too. Oh, well.’
There was a pause while Aidan came close and they both stared into the intriguing pit beneath them.
‘I suppose I’ve got a flashlight on my mobile phone, if all else fails,’ Cassie mused.
Aidan turned his head slowly and looked at her. His dark eyes burned into hers and she found she couldn’t look away. Her jaw slackened and she exhaled a teeny, tiny breath.
‘So are you brave enough to go in? Or do you want me to?’ His voice was low and sensuous.
‘You. You found it.’
‘Are you sure? Ladies before gentlemen. You’re Lady Cassandra after all.’
She was very aware of their bodies close together and the heat coming off him. She was very aware of his eyes and his nose and his perfectly sculpted mouth. She was staring at his mouth as it began to curve into a smile. And then she thought of the mysterious lady who had bought him the scarf.
‘Don’t ever call me Lady Cassandra,’ she managed to say. ‘I only use it when I want something.’
Aidan shrugged, his shoulders moving ever so slightly under that black tee-shirt.
‘Ladies first, then.’ He drew back. ‘After you.’
‘Okay.’
And, turning away from him, keeping her flaming cheeks well hidden, she began to climb down the steps.
Aidan watched Cassie disappearing into the hole and waited until he could see only the top of her head.
She had, he noticed, a twig stuck in her hair, and he fought back the urge to tug it out. If he went for her head now, when it was dark and all their senses were on red alert, she had the potential to either scream and bolt into the unknown or turn around and thump him, neither of which he particularly wanted to experience. And there was Tom as well. Of course. He might not appreciate another man touching his girlfriend’s hair.
Cassie reached the bottom of the stairs and was swallowed by darkness. Aidan climbed in after her, standing on the top few steps, waiting for her to move. The basement or whatever it was couldn’t be that far underground. But what he could tell, was that it was a proper staircase. If they were in a house, it would have been the same sort of arrangement.
‘You okay?’ he asked.
‘I’m fine. Oh!’ And then: ‘I’m right! It’s a basement – well, a wine cellar. Look. I think someone left something behind. It’s just too dark to see properly though.’
Aidan jumped down the last couple of steps so they were standing together. He found his phone and switched the flashlight on, scanning it around the room. It was quite small, beautifully decorated in an Art Deco style with bottle racks from floor to ceiling.
‘Yes!’ Cassie reached out and took hold of a bottle. It was dusty and grimy, but as she rubbed at the label she grinned. ‘A very fine champagne.’
‘Is it still drinkable?’
She smiled. ‘They beat us to it. It’s empty. This one next to it doesn’t even have a label on, but I bet that was a nice one too. Oh! And it doesn’t have a proper neck. It’s like it’s been sheared off or something. Actually. You know what?’ She shivered and put the bottles back on a shelf. ‘I suddenly feel like I’m intruding. I think I want to get out.’
The atmosphere had, he realised, shifted, and he and Cassie did seem to be – not exactly unwelcome, as such – but surplus to requirements.
Aidan nodded. ‘I know what you mean. We’ve reminded someone they left their champagne here.’ He didn’t mean it entirely as a joke.
‘They’re welcome to it. Let’s leave them to enjoy it. And quickly!’ And with that, Cassie squeezed past him and clambered out of the wine cellar. He didn’t linger very long himself afterwards. Seconds later, they were in the room, and within a couple of minutes, back outside.
‘Nothing beats the sight of the River Hartsford for grounding you again,’ Cassie said, half-nervously, as she hurriedly led Aidan away from the changing rooms, away from the overgrown bit of wood that nobody had seemingly traversed in ages, onto a much more well-maintained, meandering pathway. The atmosphere lifted the further away they went, and soon it didn’t feel as if they were intruding on anyone’s privacy anymore. Which was, he admitted to himself, a good thing.
Cassie eventually stopped, silhouetted in front of an archway of willows that framed a scene of pastoral idyll. There was the river, skipping along merrily over the stones; a meadow full of wildflowers beyond it, and trees bent and shaped by the winds leaning their limbs together as if they were whispering secrets to each other.
She took a deep breath, turned around and grinned. ‘That’s better. And also one of the best views ever. It just feels … real after being in there. That was simply surreal. Oh, but I want to know what they did in that room, though. I want to know so, so badly!’
She danced out into the daylight. And Aidan, once again had no reason not to follow her.
1940
He turned the photograph over and read the inscription on the back for what seemed like the millionth time. Reach for the Star. Dance until we die.
‘My God, Stella,’ he said, scowling at it; scowling at his own photograph. ‘What the hell do you want me to do? I’m not about to stay here, sitting on my bloody backside!’
He had seen the news about Dunkirk, and been appalled. His friends might have been amongst that carnage. It was clear that things couldn’t continue as they were in his life. It would be wonderful to dance and love and sing as they al
ways had, to make lazy, sleepy love in their secret room and drink champagne forever, hidden away from the world. But he couldn’t do it. He was a man of integrity, and he couldn’t stand by and watch the world implode. He didn’t want to stand by and watch it implode.
He had lost both his father and his mother, so he knew all about losing people you loved. But the fact that the world was heading into chaos again was the reason he wanted to marry Stella. In his mind, he would come back after the War, and they could have umpteen little Aldrich-Edwards babies. But he wanted to marry her before he went. Needed to know she was truly his, forever.
For the first time, he cursed the fact that she was stubborn. And he cursed the fact that he loved her to distraction.
Rob caught sight of himself in the mirror. His hair was sticking up where he had run anxious, furious fingers through it when he had first read the letter. His face was set and angry, his lips compressed and his eyes were dark with anger or desire – he wasn’t quite sure which it was.
‘Stella Aldrich,’ he swore into the mirror as he glared at himself, ‘I’m going to make you damn sorry you said any of that. You can’t see a future for us? Well, there bloody well won’t be one at all now. And you think I’m going to wait around while other people die, just because you want me to? No. You don’t get to blackmail me like that. You need to grow up and realise some things are more important than your opinions.’
He stalked over to the table and riffled through a magazine. Finding the page he had been studying, just this very morning, before he received the letter, he ripped a great rectangle out of it. He stared at it, his hands shaking with fury and then stormed out of the house, throwing a scarf around his neck and knotting it into a cravat. It was Stella’s scarf. Her silk one. Her blue and white silk one.
Later – a long while later – he came back. He felt drained, but his hands were steady. His heart was stone.
Then he sat down and composed a letter.
Yes. I did it. And I’m sorry if you expected otherwise.
I’ve always loved you, but I find I cannot like the fact that you are acting so utterly spoiled and silly, and being so very selfish. You’ve always had your own way, and I’ve always done my utmost to give you every damn thing I can to keep you happy. But this time, in this situation – I can’t.
I’m going, and if that means I lose you in the process, then so be it.
I thank you, politely, for returning the token of my affection, although it cost me dearly to receive it in such a manner.
I remain,
Your Astrophel
She would understand the reference. She would.
He slid the crumpled rectangle of paper into the envelope along with the letter and sealed it.
It was an advertisement for the RAF.
Chapter Fourteen
Present Day
Cassie smiled. She put her arms in the air and pirouetted around; her friend Kate was quite an accomplished ballet dancer and Cassie had begged her to show her some moves. It just seemed a pirouette-sort of moment.
‘That room! And knowing the tales about my family, I’ve got a theory about it.’
Aidan put his hands in his pockets, and leaned forward, smiling. ‘Come on then.’
‘Have you ever heard of skinny-dipping?’ Cassie grinned. ‘That’s what I would use it for. The coat hooks in the room? You could put your clothes there and head down here naked. You’d be well-hidden in the woods. Then put your towel on the rail to dry with the warmth of the stove.’ She laughed. ‘Or maybe not. It’s a bit of fun, though, isn’t it?’
‘And you really knew nothing about it?’
‘I only had my father growing up, and he wasn’t exactly committed to parenting. He thought he did an all right job, but – well – I’d beg to differ, I think. But I don’t even know if my father would have known about the room, and he passed away a few years ago so I can’t exactly ask him. My mother left us when I was a baby, and I doubt she would have known about it anyway, to be honest. The way it looks, it doesn’t seem as if it’s been touched for years. It’s like a time capsule.’
‘I’m sorry about your father. And your mother, too, I suppose. It must have been tough.’
‘No need for sympathy, I’m fine.’ She smiled at him, unsure of how much to tell him, then she thought there was no reason not to. ‘Well, I was until a couple of weeks ago. Alex showed me a letter. My mother’s wanting to come and see us, apparently. I’m not sure how I feel about that one. But Alex and I turned out okay in the end, I think, anyway. Come on.’ She turned to face the river and looked to her right. ‘If we head that way, we’ll come out at the Faerie Bridge.’ She turned back to Aidan. ‘You can meet Elodie. She’ll love Robert’s sketch book.’
Aidan patted his pocket. ‘Just as well I brought it with me. And I’ve still got it. It didn’t fall out. That’s a relief.’
‘I wouldn’t have minded going back in the secret room to retrieve it.’ She felt quite adventurous and excited about it all.
‘It’s not the secret room I was thinking about. It’s the woods. I really didn’t fancy looking in the plants for it.’
‘Actually, I’m with you there.’ Cassie fingered the cloth over her wrist. It was stiff with dried blood, but she didn’t want to risk taking it off just yet.
Or maybe, a little voice in her head said, you don’t want to take it off yet because it’s his.
She shook the thought away, forced herself to think about the ‘lovely’ Petra and resolutely turned to her right. ‘Come on. This way. We’ll go back along the riverbank. It’s gorgeous at this time of year.’
Aidan fell into step beside her. ‘Well, for a simple visit to what I originally thought was going to be an old lady a couple of weeks ago, this has all turned out pretty interesting.’
‘And for me too. When do you think you’ll be able start work on the pool for us?’ Cassie felt on safer ground, bringing the conversation back to work. ‘Depending on what my brother says about the cost, obviously.’
‘I’d have to confirm it with my site manager, but I think we could start pretty soon. We have a project for a hotel coming up, but we haven’t given them any firm timescales.’
‘Ooh, a hotel. Is it a nice one?’
‘Pretty much more of a B&B, but it is quite nice. It’s up in Aldeburgh.’
‘Oh! I love it up there. That’s the last decent place I went to on the bike. Excellent fish and chips.’
Aidan nodded. ‘Yeah. I found the B&B on one of my trips there. It’s one of the really colourful buildings overlooking the beach.’
‘Beautiful place. And look, there’s the Faerie Bridge. You see it?’ She pointed out the almost perfectly circular packhorse bridge that crossed the river. ‘And there, if I’m not mistaken, is Elodie in the Gypsy Tea Caravan.’ Cassie smiled at Aidan. ‘The least I can do is offer you a cup of tea after our expedition.’
‘The least I can do is accept it.’
Aidan saw the brightly painted gypsy caravan on the grass by the river. It was cool and shady inside it, but as they approached, it became clear that there was a blonde-haired, heavily pregnant woman within it dressed in a floaty, turquoise top and a pair of denim leggings.
‘Look at that. She always looks gorgeous. Elodie!’ Cassie raised her voice and the woman looked up from a magazine and waved at them.
Cassie broke into a trot and eventually clambered inside the caravan, Aidan standing in the grass outside, enjoying the breeze and the sunshine that dappled the river. ‘What’s that you’re reading?’ asked Cassie. ‘More interior design magazines from London?’
‘I’ve got to remain in touch with current trends,’ said the woman – or rather Elodie, Cassie’s sister-in-law and, by Aidan’s reckoning, a Duchess or a Countess or something. He couldn’t quite get a handle on that – or understand why she was working in a gypsy caravan, boiling up a tea urn for tourists when she owned the place. ‘How’s things?’
‘Just fine. This is Aidan Edwards.
’
Elodie’s gaze drifted across to Aidan and she smiled. ‘Hello, Aidan. I don’t believe we’ve met.’
‘We haven’t.’ He smiled. ‘My company is going to work on the Spa for Cassie. I’ve been having a look at it. I think I know where we’re going with it.’
Elodie smiled back. ‘Oh, yes! Cassie did mention she had a civil engineer on her books. That’s fantastic news.’ She stretched her feet out and wiggled her toes, then stood up. ‘Can I get you guys a coffee? Tea? Cold drink?’
‘Tea for me, please. Aidan?’
‘Tea would be great, thanks.’
‘Two teas coming up. On the house, of course.’
‘What happened to your toenails? And are you okay? You look a bit pale.’
Aidan noticed for the first time that Elodie had nine pale green toenails and one black one – the big one on her left foot.
‘Alex.’ Elodie made a face. ‘I asked him to do one job. One job! All he had to do was paint my toenails. And that’s what he did.’
‘I like it.’ Cassie laughed. ‘It’s unusual.’
‘I might have to ask you to take it off. Please? I can’t reach. And in answer to your other question, I’m fine. Just a bit tired and – breathy. You know? It’s been a tough couple of weeks.’ She cast a quick glance at Aidan then back to Cassie.
‘It’s okay. I told Aidan about Mother wanting to come and see us. My brother wasn’t very happy about it,’ she added to Aidan, more quietly. ‘I think he took it worse than I did. You see, he can remember her. I can’t.’
‘That’s hard.’
Cassie nodded, then turned back to Elodie. ‘How is he?’
Elodie shook her head. ‘He’s off with Hughie again. I’m not really getting through to him. Not yet. He’s all closed up.’
‘Oh, dear. Well, make sure you don’t overdo it. If you want to pop over later, I’ll take the colour off your nails for you.’
‘Thank you.’ Elodie smiled gratefully and pushed the cups of tea over the counter to them.