Daughters of Fire (60 page)

‘Fast enough for you?’ He turned to her and grinned.

She nodded. Her hair had been whipped into tangles, her cloak almost torn from her shoulders. She was breathless. She laughed out loud. ‘Fergal takes good care of me and of the horses’ legs. He would not have dared to gallopso.’

‘Then he doesn’t understand you.’ Vellocatus was exultant.

‘No. Maybe he doesn’t.’ She eyed him. ‘I don’t require my charioteer to understand me,’ she said quietly. ‘I require him to obey me.’

‘As I would.’ He gave a small bow. ‘As I will.’

There was a moment of silence.

She raised her hand and gently touched his cheek. ‘You are sworn to my husband, Vellocatus. You are his shield bearer; his charioteer. You carry his weapons. You fight at his right hand.’

‘And I read the message in the eyes of his wife,’ he whispered. The horses had stopped and, taking the chance, were snatching mouthfuls of the long lush grass at the trackside under the trees. ‘She feels betrayed by him. He abuses her trust and her standing as his queen. And he leaves her lonely.’ He paused.

She said nothing.

‘I am at your command, lady. Yours absolutely.’

The silence lengthened between them. One of the horses moved forward a pace to snatch another mouthful of grass and the chariot jerked slightly at the pull on the yoke, unbalancing her and nudging her towards him. He caught her and pulled her close. There was another split second’s hesitation, then he reached down to kiss her lips.

‘More research, Viv?’ Hugh was standing immediately behind them, leaning on his staff, within easy earshot.

Viv turned incredulously. She stared at him wide-eyed. ‘Hugh?’ Dragged suddenly out of the past, she was confused and angry. ‘What are you doing here?’

‘Listening.’ He stepped closer, still leaning on the stick.

With a sigh Pat switched off the recorder. ‘Bad timing, to say the least!’ She climbed wearily to her feet. ‘But then your entrance stage left was imminent, wasn’t it. Greetings, Venutios!’

Viv spun round. ‘Pat?’ She was furious and embarrassed. How much had he heard?

Pat nodded. ‘I called him. Medb needs his services. I did warn you, Viv.’

‘How could you!’ Viv looked from one to the other in horror, finally focussing on Hugh’s face. ‘Venutios?’ she whispered.

He shook his head violently. ‘No! He’s gone. You mustn’t be frightened. I just need the brooch, then I’ll leave.’

‘He hasn’t gone!’ Pat’s eyes narrowed in the sunlight. She pushed the recorder and microphone into her bag. ‘But you are not going to get the brooch. Of that you can be certain. That’s not why I brought you here. You gave it away to Cartimandua, Venutios, after Medb had given it to you!’ She stepped towards him. ‘Didn’t you?’ she accused.

‘Pat! Stop it!’ Viv snapped.

‘Why? Does he scare you? He should!’ Pat turned back to Hugh. ‘You can’t have the brooch back! It’s mine.’ Her voice had changed. It was lighter. Harsher. ‘And I want it back. I will never let you have
it. I will find it, whatever I have to do.’ She eyed him scornfully.

‘What’s the matter with this woman? What’s happening?’ Hugh backed away from her.

‘I’ll tell you what’s happening,’ Viv cried. ‘Don’t you see? Us three. We’re being forced to fight each other. We’re being forced to re-enact their drama! And we’ve colluded in their plan! Pat and I are writing a play, for Christ’s sake! And you, Hugh, are writing about Venutios! We’re just puppets and they are pulling the strings!’

For a moment all three were silent.

Hugh swallowed hard. ‘That’s an insane suggestion,’ he said at last.

‘Is it?’ Her eyes blazed. ‘Why did you come then? And why, in God’s name, Pat, did you tell him where I was?’

‘So that he can kill Cartimandua.’ Pat’s eyes were silver slits.

‘No!’ Viv grabbed Pat’s arm and shook her. ‘Don’t do this, Pat! You don’t mean it. Don’t listen to Medb!’

‘I’ll listen to whoever I please!’ Pat pulled away. She laughed. ‘I’m off. The recording is spoiled, anyway.’ She turned and swinging her bag onto her shoulder she headed off down the track.

Hugh stared after her in silence, then he turned to Viv. ‘That woman terrifies me!’

Viv bit her lip. She didn’t disagree.

‘Can we talk, Viv, please? This whole thing has to stop.’

‘I agree.’

‘I’m sorry,’ he said. ‘I really am.’

‘For what? Coming here? Eavesdropping? Attacking me in the press? Destroying my life or planning to kill me?’ Viv picked up her own bag. ‘If we can’t be on the same side, Hugh, there’s no point in you and I even discussing this.’

‘We are on the same side.’

She shook her head. ‘No. It’s too late, Hugh. I’m going.’

Hugh stood watching as she set off after Pat, then sitting down on an outcrop of rock he put his head in his hands.

The air was clear and hot. The stones in the wall near him were almost too hot to touch in the sun. It was hazy now in the distance and he could smell newly cut hay and sweet herbs. In the west the clouds seemed to be banking upon the horizon. He was stupid to have come. The best thing would be to go home. To leave them
alone. To hell with the brooch. And Viv’s book. And their play. And that mad woman. He shuddered. Wearily he stood up again and turned back towards the track. Before he reached the first rampart, Venutios was back.

‘Where is the brooch? I have to have the brooch!’ He dragged Mairghread by the arm into Carta’s sleeping chamber and threw her against the wall. ‘She put it in one of her coffers. Find it. Quickly.’

‘I don’t know where it is, King Venutios. I swear by all the gods!’ Mairghread was terrified. ‘Look, lord. Look!’ One by one she pulled open the lids.

He tipped the contents of the smaller boxes onto the bed. The jewelled crane was not there.

‘Was she wearing it?’ he growled. ‘By the great god, Lugh, tell me!’

‘I did not see it, lord.’ Mairghread stepped away from him. Somehow she managed to recover some of her dignity. ‘She was wearing silver pins on her gown this morning; she didn’t have it with her.’

She did not tell him that Carta had shown her the brooch and that both women had shuddered. They could sense the evil coming from it.

‘Is it cursed?’ Mairghread had whispered as she had stretched out her hand and then withdrawn it again without touching it.

Carta had nodded. ‘Oh yes, it is cursed. I have done him a service, taking it from him. And I will dispose of it for him.’ She had smiled grimly. She could feel the impotent rage of the woman who had pinned the brooch on her husband.

Hugh found the cottage empty when he got back at last. He walked back outside and climbed straight into his car.

‘I want to apologise.’ He shrugged. ‘Please don’t throw me out. We have to talk.’ Viv had shown him into the visitors’ sitting room
at the farm, tight-lipped. To his intense relief there was no sign of Pat. ‘I truly didn’t know you were up there,’ he went on. ‘Not this afternoon.’

She raised an eyebrow. ‘Why do I find that hard to believe?’

‘Nevertheless, it is true. And I didn’t realise you were recording your play. I really thought for a moment -’ He paused. ‘I don’t quite know what I thought. It all seemed very realistic.’ He shivered.

She said nothing.

‘Listen.’ He sat down, leaning forward earnestly as he looked up at her. ‘This has all got out of hand. You’re right. I’ve been unfair.’

‘That’s an understatement!’ She spoke at last. ‘You’ve tried to ruin me, Hugh.’ She couldn’t keep the hurt out of her voice.

He looked down at his feet. ‘I hated to see you making claims you couldn’t justify. You were - are - such a good scholar.’

‘Thanks!’ Her voice was heavy with sarcasm.

‘You were improvising up there, weren’t you,’ he went on quietly. ‘Making it up as you went along? You didn’t have a script.’

Viv closed her eyes briefly. ‘We were performing a play, Hugh. We make no claims for accuracy. We are making it up.’

‘But there was no script.’

‘No, there was no script at that stage. We have used scripts for most of it. It will be edited later.’

‘I see.’ He looked uncomfortable.

‘Pat is a professional actress.’

‘Right.’ He nodded. He was still uncertain. ‘And you made all that stuff up? Guessed it ? Dreamed it?’ Watching her face, he saw something like panic in her eyes. ‘That’s it, isn’t it. You dreamed your book.’ He smiled sadly. ‘Your source - your impeccable, unimpeachable source is a dream!’ He stood up. ‘Your dream? Or that actress woman’s dream? That’s why you’re so protective. It seems real to you, doesn’t it. It seems so bloody real you’re prepared to put your reputation on the line. Jesus Christ! I just can’t believe it. I can’t!’ He paused.

‘A dream like yours, Hugh,’ she said slowly. ‘I dream of Cartimandua and you dream of Venutios. We are part of the same dream. Perhaps we are part of theirs.’

He blanched. ‘What have we got ourselves into?’

‘History.’ She smiled sadly.

‘What was Pat talking about up there on the hill?’

‘She’s convinced Venutios wanted to kill Cartimandua.’

‘She had only to read the history books to know that.’

‘She - Medb - thinks you might want to kill me.’ She looked at him uncomfortably. ‘You thought that yourself, didn’t you?’

‘No!’

‘You did, Hugh.’ Her voice softened. ‘Please. You said we were on the same side but you have to mean it,’ she said gently. ‘Tell me what to do. The brooch is at the centre of all this. Venutios wants it. Carta wants it. Medb wants it. The museum wants it.’ She laughed uncomfortably. ‘You can’t deny all this is happening.’

‘I’m not denying it.’ He shrugged angrily. ‘I just find it hard to believe.’

‘So do I. I didn’t want all this to happen. I don’t want us to be enemies.’

They looked at each other silently.

‘Did you bring the brooch here?’ he asked at last.

She nodded.

‘I think I’d better have it back.’

‘Yes, I think you’d better,’ she said quietly. ‘It’s hidden. Up There, on the hillside. I’ll retrieve it tomorrow.’

He nodded. ‘I’ll go now. I’m sorry to have inflicted myself on you,’ he said. He hesitated, then unexpectedly he moved forward and kissed her on the cheek. For a moment they gazed at each other then he said softly, ‘I’ll ring you tomorrow?’

Viv watched him through the window as he walked out to the car, climbed in and drove away. When she turned round she found Peggy standing behind her.

‘I thought I told you I don’t want any men in my house!’ Peggy’s voice was harsh.

Startled, Viv stepped back. The cold anger was back in the other woman’s eyes. ‘He wanted the brooch, didn’t he,’ Peggy went on. She grabbed Viv’s wrist. ‘I think it would be best for everyone if you let me have it. Whatever happens you must not give it to him. Did you see Venutios?’

Viv gasped. ‘You could see him?’

‘Of course I could see him.’ Peggy studied her face for a full ten seconds. ‘Just as I can see Cartimandua and Medb. My dear, don’t imagine these people care who they use. Or who they hurt. Don’t you see,’ she gave a cold humourless laugh, ‘you and your friends have created a cast of monsters!’

As the sun set and the mist began to gather in the folds of the hillside it grew colder, but Pat didn’t feel it as she sat on the bench in the orchard. The voice in her head was too insistent, too loud, to allow any coherent thought.

‘I gave you the brooch for a reason, Venutios! Get it back.’ Medb was incandescent with anger.

He eyed her coldly, wondering not for the first time why he had ever felt attracted to this woman with her pale eyes and her vicious temper. ‘Why is it so important?’ He leaned forward and took hold of her arms.

She didn’t flinch. ‘Because I imbued it with power, you fool. To protect you. Do you want it to serve your wife?’

He held her gaze. ‘I don’t believe you.’

‘Then leave it!’ She tore herself out of his grasp. ‘See what happens!’

He smiled. ‘I think I will do just that. It is time you moved on, Medb. Your constant meddling annoys me.’ He folded his arms. ‘I’ll give you a pension and a horse. Perhaps you should go home to Dun Pelder. Would they want you back there? Are you not a queen in your own country?’