Kirkland Revels (10 page)

I enjoyed a battle, and I was enjoying mine with him although it was merely one of words. I told myself that I particularly disliked those people who were ready to be critical before they knew the truth. I was sure Simon Redvers was one of these.

After dinner the ladies retired to the drawing-room and I tried to get to know Damaris; but it was not easy; she was pleasant, but so reserved that she made little effort to help with the conversation, and I decided that a blank mind lay behind that lovely face. I was pleased when the men joined us; and when Simon Redvers kept at Damaris’s side rather to the chagrin of Luke I was glad and gave myself up to conversation with the vicar, who told me how the grounds of the Revels were used for the church annual garden party and that he and his wife were trying to arrange to do a miracle play or pageant in the Abbey ruins next Midsummer Night’s 62 eve. He hoped that I would support his endeavours, and I told him that I should be delighted to do all I could.

It was shortly after dinner that Sir Matthew was taken ill He lay back in his chair, his face a deeper purple than usual. Dr. Smith was immediately at his side, and with the help of Simon and Luke took Sir Matthew to his room. The incident naturally broke up the party, but when Dr. Smith rejoined us he told us that Sir Matthew would be all right. He was going back to his home for leeches. Sir Matthew always insisted on being bled in such a manner as his father had before him.

” He’ll be about again in a day or so,” the doctor assured us before he left.

But the party spirit had gone and we sat on talking desultorily.

When Gabriel and I retired it was about eleven-thirty. He put his arms about me and told me that I had been a success and he was proud of me.

” I’m not sure that I was very popular with everybody,” I said.

” Who could fail to be charmed?”

” That cousin of yours for one.”

” Oh, Simon! He was born a cynic. He is jealous. He’d throw away Kelly Grange for the Revels any day. You wait till you see the Grange.

It is not half the size of the Revels- it’s an ordinary old manor house.”

” I don’t understand why his desire for the Revels should affect his attitude to me.”

” Perhaps he’s jealous of me for more reasons than one.”

“How absurd!”

At that moment Friday ran to the door and began barking furiously while he leaped at the door as though he would break it down.

” What on earth’s the matter with him?” I cried.

Gabriel had turned pale. ” Someone’s out there,” he whispered.

” It’s evidently someone Friday doesn’t like.” I turned to Friday. “

Be quiet, Friday.”

But Friday for once ignored me; he continued to bark and jump frienziedly up at the door.

I picked him up and opened the door.

“Who’s there?” I called.

There was no answer, but Friday was struggling out of my arms.

“Something has disturbed him,” I said.

“I’m going to 63 put him on his lead. I don’t want him jumping over the balcony.”

Still holding him I went back to the room for his lead and slipped it on; and when I set him down he tugged at it with all his might.

He dragged me along the corridor, but before we reached the balcony door he leaped at another to the left of it. I tried this and it opened easily. It was a large empty cupboard, and Friday ran into it and began sniffing around.

I opened the balcony door, and there was no one on the balcony either.

” You see, Friday,” I said. ” It’s nothing. What is it that’s bothering you?”

I returned with him to the bedroom. Gabriel had his back to me as I entered the room. When he turned I saw how pale he was; and a terrible thought came to me then: he was afraid of what was out there and he had let me go alone. Was the man I had married a coward?

It was a horrible thought which I discarded almost as soon as it entered my head.

” Much ado about nothing,” I said lightly.

Friday appeared completely to have satisfied himself ; when I took him off the lead, he leaped into his basket and curled up there.

As I prepared myself for bed I wondered what Gabriel had been so disturbed about.

Then I remembered the conversation at dinner and I asked myself whether Gabriel had thought it was a ghost prowling out there. The balcony certainly had a morbid attraction for him.

But in a house like this fancies came easily.

It was late during the next afternoon when I discovered that Friday was missing. I remembered then that I had not seen him since the morning.

It had been a busy morning, for the guests of the previous night all paid duty calls to give conventional thanks.

I saw Simon Redvers ride up on a magnificent grey horse, and I decided to stay in my room until he had left; I did not see him leave and was afraid that I should find he was staying to luncheon; however, when I went down he had gone. Dr. Smith and Damaris had ridden over in his brougham-the doctor to see how Sir Matthew was after his attack, 64

Damaris to pay her duty call. With all the guests arriving it seemed like a continuation of the party.

It was just before dinner when I began to be anxious about Friday’s absence. / Dinner was a solemn meal that evening and there was little conversation. Sir Matthew was still in his room and I guessed that everyone was worried on his account although they assured me that such turns were frequent.

When the meal was over and there was still no sign of Friday, I was really alarmed. I went up to our room; his basket, with the folded blanket, was neat and had clearly not been used by him. Was it possible that he was lost?

I wondered if he had been stolen, and when I thought of the ill-treatment he had received at the hands of the gipsy woman I felt sick with worry. It was possible that there were gipsies not far from Kirkland Moorside, for the moor was always an attraction to them.

I slipped on a light coat and went downstairs, intending to ask Gabriel to come with me to look for him, but as I could not find him I went out alone, calling Friday as I did so.

I found my footsteps wandering towards the Abbey. At any other time I might have found it awe-inspiring; on this evening my thoughts were all for Friday.

I kept calling his name, straining my ears for an answering bark.

There was nothing.

It was an uncanny experience to stand there among those ruins . alone.

It had been a glorious day and there were signs of a fine day to follow. The old saying came into my head: Red sky at night, shepherd’s delight.

Then suddenly the fear came to me. I felt that I was not alone; that through those narrow slits, which had once been windows, eyes watched me. The glow from the sky touched the stones so that they looked rosy; and the ridiculous fancy came to me that life was being breathed into them.

I did not know what had happened to me, but I expected to hear the chanting of monks as they walked down the nave. I felt my heart hammering as I looked up at the arches through which I glimpsed the blood-red sky. I imagined that somewhere, not far distant, I heard a stone dislodged and, following that, a footstep.

” Who’s there?” I called; and the hollow sound of my own voice startled me.

I looked about me. There was nothing but those piles of stones, those half-walls, those rectangles of brick within which the grass grew. Here a community of men had lived long ago and I could almost believe that I was moving back in time, that the half-walls would become walls in their entirety, that a roof would appear to shut out the sky and this nineteenth century.

I began to call Friday again, and I noticed that it had become considerably darker than when I had first entered the ruins. Evening skies change rapidly, and the red was now streaked with grey. The sun had disappeared and soon darkness would descend upon me . and the Abbey.

I tried to leave by the way I had come at least I thought it was the way I had come, but after a few minutes I realised that I was in a section of the ruins which I had not visited before. I saw part of a staircase, leading down to darkness;

I turned and hurried away; I tripped over a ridge of stone and only saved myself in time. I had a horrible fear of breaking an ankle and being forced to spend the night here . a prisoner. I began to feel faint at the thought of it.

This was most unlike myself. What is this? I demanded. Nothing but bricks and grass. Why be afraid? But what was the use? I was afraid.

I blundered on. My one thought, my great desire, was to escape from the ruins of Kirkland Abbey.

It was only now that I had lost my way that I became fully aware of the vastaess of the place; and there was a time during that nocturnal adventure when I thought I should never find my way out of the maze of stone. With every passing second the light was fading and I was so anxious to get away from the place that I panicked and lost my sense of direction.

At length when I did escape I came out on the far side of the Abbey and it was now between me and the house.

Nothing would have induced me to go back the way I had come, which would have been difficult in any case, for I should have lost myself in that pile of stones. I ran on swiftly until I found a road. This I took and, guessing my direction, I hurried on, now and then breaking into a run.

As I came to a clump of trees through which the road wound, a figure emerged and for a moment I knew terror. Then it took on a familiar shape and a voice I knew said:

” Hallo! Have you got the devil at your heels?”

The note of mockery in that voice set annoyance swamping my fear.

” I lost my way, Mr. Redvers,” I said. ” But I think I’m on the right road now.”

He laughed. ” You are, but I can show you a short cut .. if you’ll allow me.”

” Doesn’t this road lead to the house?”

” It does … eventually. But if you cut through the trees here you come out about half a mile nearer. Will you allow me to escort you?”

” Thank you,” I said stiffly.

We walked side by side and he fitted his step to mine.

“How did you come to be out alone at this hour?” he asked.

I told him that my dog had been out all afternoon and evening, and I was anxious.

” You shouldn’t wander too far alone,” he reproved me ” You see how easy it is to lose yourself.”

“Had it been day I should easily have found the righ! road.”

” But it was not day. As for the dog, doubtless he has found a little companion somewhere. Dogs will be dogs.”

I did not answer him; we had come through the trees and I saw the house. In five minutes we were there.

Gabriel, Ruth, Luke and Dr. Smith were in the grounds They were all looking for me. The doctor had come in to see Sir Matthew and had heard that I had disappeared.

Gabriel was so anxious that he was almost angry with me for the first time in our lives.

I breathlessly explained that I had been looking for Friday, had got lost among the ruins and met Simon Redvers on the way back.

” You shouldn’t have gone out alone at dusk,” said Dr. Smith gently.

” One of us would have gone with you!” Luke reproved me.

” I know,” I said and smiled with relief because I was so happy to be back. I turned to Simon Redvers. ” Thank you, Mr. Redvers,” I went on.

He bowed ironically. ” Such a pleasure,” he murmured.

” Has Friday come home?” I asked Gabriel.

He shook his head.

” He’ll turn up to-morrow,” Luke put in.

” I do hope so,” I answered.

Gabriel put his arm through mine. ” There’s nothing else we can do to-night. And you look exhausted. Come along in.”

They all seemed to be watching us. I turned and said;

“Good night.”

There was an echoing answer as Gabriel drew me into the house.

” I’ve never seen you look so white and tired,” he told me.

I thought I should never get back. “

He laughed and put his arm about me. He said suddenly:

” Wasn’t that honeymoon of ours wonderful. But it was very short. We ought to have a longer one. I’ve often thought I’d like to go to Greece.”

” The Isles of Greece, the Isles of Greece 1 Where burning Sappho loved and sung,” ” I quoted, and my voice had a high pitch to it.

Although I was worried about Friday, I was very relieved to be safe, which seemed unaccountably foolish.

” I’m going to tell them to bring you some hot milk. It’ll make you sleep.” said Gabriel.

” Gabriel. I can’t stop wondering about Friday.”

” He’ll turn up. You go to your room and I’ll go to the kitchen to tell them to bring that milk.”

I went on up, thinking how gentle he was, how considerate to the servants. They had so many stairs in a house of this nature to contend with.

When I reached our room, the first thing I noticed was Friday’s empty basket and I felt very unhappy.

I went into the corridor and called him once more. I tried to comfort myself that he was hunting rabbits. It was a favourite pastime of his and I had known him forget everything when pursuing it. It might be that in the morning he would come home.

I did realise there was nothing more I could do that night, so I undressed and got into bed.

So exhausted was I that I was almost asleep when Gabriel came in. He sat by the bed and talked about our trip to Greece he seemed really excited about it. But soon one of the servants came in with my milk on a tray.

I did not really want it but I drank it off to please Gabriel, and in a few minutes I fell into a deep sleep.

I was awakened by a banging on my door. Reluctantly I awoke; rarely had I slept so deeply. I sat up in bed to find Ruth standing in the room. Her eyes looked enormous, her face was the colour of white paper.

“Catherine,” she was saying.

“Wake up! Wake up, please And I knew something terrible had happened.

68 I looked for Gabriel but there was no sign of him.

” It’s Gabriel,” said Ruth. ” You must prepare yourself for a shock.”

” What … has happened to Gabriel?” I asked as though [ found the greatest difficulty in getting out the words.