I was about a third of the way down the hill when I remembered that there had also been fear in his eyes, and I realised precisely what he had been frightened of – that I would walk away. I stopped, irresolute, and stood for a moment in the shade. There was a pitcher plant beside the road, with a butterfly hovering at its rim, tempted by the sweetness. I remembered my dream. In it, Malcolm Bryant had warned me: ‘You’re well and truly trapped now, Nona. And it’s entirely your own fault. I did warn you.’
There was a soft footstep and I looked up with a start. Ah Khow stood there at respectful attention. He must have followed me down, walking softly in his rubber shoes. Making sure that I came to no harm.
‘Lunch in half an hour, Mem,’ he said.
‘Then I think we should go back, don’t you?’ I said and took his arm. ‘Tuan would never start without me.’
The raid on Starlight began at two o’clock. A small plane suddenly appeared above the treetops, swinging in a tight circle above the two bungalows. Almost simultaneously we heard the roar of trucks coming up the private road. Denis and I were sitting on the terrace sipping our after-lunch cups of coffee, Ah Khow standing behind us in the doorway with a fresh pot in his hand.
‘A bit like the movies, don’t you think?’ Denis asked. ‘I do think these military types overdo it a bit.’
As the first truck came around the corner, it was spilling Gurkhas. The tough little men hit the ground running, and fanned out around Starlight with their Sten guns trained on us. A jeep squealed to a stop directly in front of the terrace, and Malcolm leapt from it with his pistol levelled at Denis. ‘Get away from him, Norma!’ he was shouting. ‘Away! Away! Away!’
I remained seated, my coffee cup halfway to my lips. Inside I was screaming with fear, but on the outside I was as cool as a cucumber. I wanted to say something clever and relaxed, but while the spirit was willing the flesh was weak. The retort jammed tight in my throat so that all I could do was to pretend to smile.
Two more trucks swept straight past us, heading for Moonlight, Gurkhas leaping from the tailgates while the vehicles were still in motion. Behind me, I could hear soldiers crashing through Starlight, and there was the sound of breaking glass.
‘If you think you’re going to get a cup of coffee after that display you’ve got another think coming,’ Denis said severely. ‘I take it you have a warrant to justify this nonsense?’
Malcolm stood in front of Denis, his revolver pointed at his head, and just for a second I thought he was going to shoot him out of hand. ‘Lie down flat on the ground or I’ll fire!’ he shouted. ‘Now! Now! Now!’
‘No, no, no,’ Denis said mildly. ‘Now put that silly piece of ironmongery away and explain why you didn’t have the decency to give us a call before dropping in.’
The mildness of Denis’s manner knocked the stuffing out of Malcolm. He stood there, suddenly irresolute, as a ring of Gurkhas formed around us. ‘Search him,’ he snapped finally at a Gurkha sergeant.
Denis rose almost lazily. ‘Don’t be so damned melodramatic, Malcolm,’ he said. His voice was still mild but there was a thread of steel in it. ‘I haven’t got a gun on me as you can plainly see.’ He turned to the Gurkha sergeant. ‘This man is not your officer and he has no right to give you orders. He is a very silly policeman who has made a terrible mistake, and he will eventually have to pay for that mistake. Talk to your own officer before you do anything. You look like a good soldier and I don’t want you in trouble.’
Just then there was a short burst of gunfire from the direction of Moonlight and everyone except Denis flinched. My heart sank like a stone. It meant that there was going to be fighting, and everything Denis had done to make the situation seem normal would be undone.
‘I hope they haven’t shot the poor damned cat,’ Denis said into the silence.
There was no more shooting and a moment or two later the Gurkhas’ officer, a young English captain, came striding down from Moonlight. ‘Nobody there,’ he called to Malcolm. ‘One of my men fired by mistake.’ He looked flushed and sounded angry.
‘They must have got away,’ Malcolm said. ‘But there will be a ton of incriminating stuff about. Our intelligence is that Moonlight is the Communist HQ. You’d better get your men to seal both bungalows off and get a search under way.’ He gestured at Denis. ‘In the meantime, I’ll take this man down to the police station.’
‘You’ll do no such thing,’ Denis said. ‘Unless you’re going to arrest and charge me. What am I supposed to have done, Malcolm?’
Malcolm gave a thin smile. ‘I’m not going to charge you with anything – yet. But we’ve got ample evidence to take you in under the Emergency Regulations.’ He turned towards the young officer. ‘I rather think helping to run the Communists’ field HQ rates as a risk to national security, don’t you, Captain McManus?’
Denis broke in before the officer could reply. ‘That is arrant nonsense, Malcolm,’ he snapped. ‘Moonlight a Communist HQ? Don’t make me laugh! The place has been occupied for weeks by chaps from my old business. Perfectly respectable crowd too, I assure you. I can give you their names if you like.’
Malcolm’s thin smile slipped just a little. ‘We’re about to search both these bungalows. If we find so much as a Communist tiepin I’ll have you in handcuffs so fast your eyes will water.’
The search took almost an hour, and they found absolutely nothing. All the while Denis and I sat with our stone-cold cups of coffee with Gurkha guns in our faces. It was a horrible time, and my skin crawled every time I heard one of the searchers call out. But Denis lounged back in his chair, the smoke from his cigarette rising straight as a pencil line in the still afternoon air. He was a superb actor.
Eventually Malcolm and Captain McManus stood before us. Malcolm looked harassed, and the captain less than happy.
‘Where do you intend to go from here?’ Denis asked easily.
‘You’re a cool one,’ Malcolm almost spat. ‘But you won’t sound so cocky behind bars.’ He drew himself up to his full height up and squared the cap on his head. ‘I’m putting you under arrest, Mr Elesmere-Elliott,’ he said. ‘We might not have found anything overt here today but I have other material that convinces me you pose a threat to national security.’
‘Don’t talk rubbish,’ Denis snapped. ‘You came here thinking this was a Communist hideout. It’s patently not a Communist hideout. It’s a private home and you rudely interrupted my wife and me having a cup of coffee on our front terrace. As for your so-called other material, you’ll have to show it to a magistrate and get a warrant. But if you try and arrest me without just cause I will sue you and anyone who helps you until you squeak for mercy.’
Malcolm opened his mouth angrily but the young captain intervened. ‘I’m not going to be party to any unlawful arrest, Malcolm,’ he said crisply. ‘You said this place would be swarming with terrorists. There is not a soul here except for these people and their servants. We’ve searched the place and there’s not a skerrick to back your story. If you have other evidence against Mr Elesmere-Elliott, you’ll have to take it through normal channels. I’m not going to put myself and my men out on a limb just on your say-so.’
Malcolm was not to be so easily defeated. ‘This man is running rings around us, don’t you see that?’ he said. ‘My guess is that he’s sent the Communists scurrying off down Sakai trails into the Telom.’ He took a deep breath. ‘Elesmere-Elliott knows this whole area like the back of his hand, Captain McManus. He damned well should, because he set up the arms dumps here for Force 136. He’s turning that knowledge against us.’
The mention of Force 136 was a mistake because the young officer looked at Denis with respect. ‘Were you with Force 136, sir?’ he asked.
‘I helped set up some of their re-supply dumps,’ Denis said shortly. ‘Captain, my wife and I have been bailed up like a couple of criminals. There are still men pointing guns at us. I would take it as a favour if you would collect your men and push off back to wherever you ca
me from.’
Captain McManus snapped an order and the soldiers around us lowered their guns. ‘It’s not quite as simple as that, I’m afraid, sir,’ he said. ‘I was told there was a Communist base up here and ordered to raid it. On what I’ve seen, there is no Communist base here, but I will still need orders to withdraw. In the meantime you and Mrs Elesmere-Elliott are of course free agents.’ He paused and looked at Malcolm. ‘If a mistake has been made, there will be a full and appropriate apology and compensation for any damage my men may have caused.’
For a moment Malcolm looked disconcerted, then he squared his shoulders, the gesture of a man deciding to do something distasteful but necessary. ‘I think I may be able to convince you to take this man into charge,’ he said. Then he looked at me apologetically. ‘Norma, I wonder if Captain McManus and I might speak with you alone?’
I hesitated for half a second but saw Denis nodding. ‘Of course, if it will help clear things up,’ I said stiffly.
We sat around the desk in Denis’s study. Malcolm lit himself a cigarette, then offered me one. I shook my head.
‘Firstly, I’m sorry it’s panned out like this, Norma,’ he said softly. ‘I would have given my right arm to have spared you any involvement . . .’
‘Let’s get on with it,’ McManus interrupted. ‘I have things to do, and to be quite frank I can see no point in this conversation. How can Mrs Elesmere-Elliott possibly help us?’
‘Mrs Elesmere-Elliott will tell you that her husband is working for the Communists,’ Malcolm said. He was looking me in the eye as he spoke but I stared back impassively.
‘I have no idea what you are talking about.’ I said. I tried to sound surprised and angry, which wasn’t hard because I was surprised and angry. Did Malcolm really expect me to denounce Denis, just like that?
And then I thought: of course he expects me to denounce Denis just like that. The man is stark staring mad.
‘I understand that you now accept that your husband has been treating with the enemy,’ Malcolm persisted. ‘I realise how hard it must be to denounce your husband, but I’m afraid you have no choice. Please tell Captain McManus what you know.’
I summonsed up every ounce of indignation I could manage. ‘How dare you imply such a dreadful thing!’ I snapped. ‘How dare you put words into my mouth! My husband is more of a patriot than you will ever be!’
Malcolm looked as if I had thrown a glass of water into his face. ‘Norma!’ he said. ‘How could you? You know perfectly well that I delayed this raid so that you would have time to get clear. We had an arrangement. You were to move into Honeymoon Cottage ...’
Malcolm must have realised how absurd he sounded because he stopped abruptly and changed tack. His voice became reasonable, the voice of a police officer interrogating a witness. ‘Did we or didn’t we have a talk at the Golf Club Ball last night?’ he asked.
‘You were drunk and tried to paw me,’ I said coldly. ‘You were a beast, Malcolm. You are lucky that Denis didn’t punch you on the jaw. And oh yes, you did mention Honeymoon Cottage. You babbled something about having Denis locked up on some trumped-up charge so that I could run away with you!’ I had managed to work myself up into a pretty good state by now, and I went one step further, standing up and shouting into Malcolm’s face. ‘How dare you accuse my husband of all those awful things, just so that you can get your filthy hands on me! You are a despicable cad!’
Malcolm had risen to his feet as well and stood in front of me as white as a sheet. ‘For God’s sake, Norma,’ he said. ‘You know all this is quite untrue. I took you into my confidence last night because of the tremendous regard I have for you. Please don’t crucify me.’
Inspiration struck and I levelled an accusing arm at him. ‘Captain, you should know that this man tried to blackmail me into going to bed with him. It happened years ago when I was a young girl living with my mother in KL. The Commissioner of Police had to transfer Malcolm out of Selangor to stop him harassing me. Just check with the police in KL if you don’t believe me. He’s unbalanced. They had to send him back to England to get over a nervous breakdown.’
It was being dreadfully cruel, but I wasn’t playing for matchsticks. Captain McManus had had enough and he got to his feet abruptly, jamming his cap on his head with an angry gesture. ‘I don’t think I want to hear any more of this nonsense,’ he said coldly. ‘Major Bryant, I’m going to withdraw my people down to the barracks at Tannah Rata. If you still wish to take action against Mr Elesmere-Elliott you will have to convince the civil police. I see no basis whatever for me to take any action under the Emergency Regulations.’ He stalked out, shouting for his sergeant.
For a moment Malcolm and I were alone. He was still extraordinarily pale. ‘You have destroyed me utterly, Nona,’ he said quietly. ‘I trusted you, and you have kicked me in the guts for my pains. Well, this will be the last time. I’m after that husband of yours now with no holds barred. If you get in the way, so be it.’
I tried to think of something to say but of course there was nothing to say. So I just stood there as he walked out of the room. Of course I felt dreadful, but I told myself that all’s fair in love and war. The old saying never sounded so trite, but it also never sounded so true.
And then the shooting started. At first I just stood there in the hallway, completely nonplussed. I could hear the bullets hitting the house, ricochets whining off the stonework, and the odd crash and tinkle as a window was hit. Then I was shouting for Denis, running towards the terrace where we’d left him. As I passed the dining room the wall of glass exploded into fragments. A Gurkha grabbed me and flung me out of the way. ‘They are shooting from the jungle,’ he said. ‘It is not safe to pass any windows. Stay here, please.’
We crouched by the gaping hole where the glass had been and I could actually see the attackers’ muzzle flashes, little pin-pricks of light in the thick jungle on the other side of the steep gully that ran behind Starlight. Our answering fire seemed to be coming from everywhere – from all around the garden, from windows upstairs and downstairs, even from somewhere up near Moonlight. The racket was extraordinary, blotting out cogent thought.
‘I’m afraid I’ve got to do this.’ It was Malcolm’s voice from behind me, cool and quiet and rather sad. He stepped past me and through the shattered window onto the rear patio, drawing his service revolver as he did so. Then he stood fully exposed to the fire from the jungle, shooting his silly little pistol with the care of a man on a shooting range.
‘Come back!’ I shouted, but it was too late. One moment he was standing there, firing methodically into the jungle, and then he was down. In place of the tall, lean-faced man in khaki was a heap on the ground, all twisted and covered with blood. So much blood. It had splashed everywhere, even into the room in which I crouched, splashing my hair and my dress.
I ran out onto the patio just as the shooting stopped, so that I crouched at Malcolm’s head in a sudden stunning silence. I wiped the blood from his face with the hem of my dress and he smiled up at me.
‘I have my wish, Nona.’
It should have been a moment of high drama, but as so often happened with poor Malcolm it turned instead into farce. Captain McManus dropped down beside him and with a quick gesture ripped the shirtsleeve from his left arm. ‘Bloody lucky,’ he grunted. ‘Clean flesh wound. But you’ve lost a bucket of blood.’ He turned Malcolm’s head to one side. ‘Mainly from your ear. A bullet must have torn off the lobe. As I said, you’ve been bloody lucky.’
‘Don’t worry about me,’ Malcolm said nobly. ‘Look after the other chaps.’
‘No other chaps to look after, Major. You’re the only one silly enough to argue the toss with a bullet. Orderly! We need to take this man down to Tannah Rata hospital as quickly as we can.’
To add insult to injury, they dropped Malcolm while carrying him on a stretcher to the jeep, and he screamed with shock and pain. I turned, feeling impelled to go to the poor man, but Captain McManus gripped my arm. ‘He’
ll be fine, Mrs Elesmere-Elliott. What he doesn’t want to know is that you heard that scream.’ He was painfully young, Captain McManus, but wise and perceptive beyond his years.
McManus stood for a while studying the jungle through his field glasses, and then turned to Denis. ‘I’m not inclined to set off after them at this stage,’ he said. ‘I take it they were on some Sakai trail leading heaven knows where?’
‘I think it leads all the way to Kuala Lipis,’ Denis said mildly. ‘With the odd water hazard on the way. No, I wouldn’t charge off after the blighters. It’s quite likely that they’d be waiting for you.’
The captain grunted. ‘I suppose it is the best possible result for all concerned,’ he observed. ‘Bryant’s off the hook because he did lead us to a contact, and got wounded into the bargain. Might even pick up a gong. I’m happy because I haven’t lost anyone. And this certainly clears you of any involvement with the damned Communists.’
‘How does it do that?’ I asked.
McManus grinned. ‘Didn’t you see how it started? They took a long squirt at Denis. He had wandered around to the back of the bungalow and the idiots tried to hit him with submachine-guns from a hundred yards away. Nobody is going to try and kill their own man.’
However, it was clear that we couldn’t remain at Starlight. Apart from the shattered windows and general debris, Captain McManus wouldn’t hear of it. ‘If you did insist on staying up here,’ he grumbled, ‘I’d have to leave some of my men here with you. I wouldn’t like that at all, sir. They’d be sitting ducks.’
So we moved into Honeymoon Cottage after all. The world can be a strange and quirky place, and at times one can almost hear the gods laughing as they play their games with us.
I slept like a log that night, but woke with every nerve screaming. There had been the unmistakable clatter of a firearm being handled, and I found myself out of bed in a second and peering through the window. The little garden of Honeymoon Cottage was full of soldiers, their equipment making them look bulky and sinister in the dawn light.
In the Mouth of the Tiger Page 81