Cauldstane (21 page)

I started to panic, then realised the bridge possibly obscured my view of her. I hurried on, my phone pressed to my ear, waiting for Fergus to pick up, but my call went straight to voicemail. As I listened impatiently to his recorded instructions, I heard the
sound of crying. As it built to a wail, I left a breathless message. ‘Fergus, it’s Jenny. Could you ring me? It’s urgent.’

I ran on, looking to left and right, trying to locate the crying child. I went
back on to the bridge and looked up-river. To my horror I saw she was now standing on the Blood Stone, her shoes and socks soaked by the water that flowed past her, its course divided by the big flat stone. From my raised viewpoint it was obvious she’d picked her way across the water via a series of stepping stones – stones I didn’t recollect seeing before, but which were now revealed just level with the surface of the water. The child screamed as the icy water splashed her legs. She hopped from one foot to the other, trying to keep her legs out of the water, then she slipped and landed on her bottom.

I cried out, expecting to see her sw
ept away by the torrent, but she gamely clambered to her feet again. Even before she was standing, I’d descended to the riverbank again and was running towards her, shouting, ‘It’s all right! I’m coming to get you. Don’t move!’

I still had my phone in my hand and as I stepped onto the stones at the river’s edge, I s
elected Alec’s number and put the phone to my ear. Keeping my eyes on my feet, I chose the flattest stones and tested them gingerly before letting them bear my weight. After a few steps I could see the water was suddenly much deeper and flowed faster. There was no doubt that if the child fell into the river, she’d be swept away.

Alec answered his phone but
before he had time to say anything, I shouted, ‘Come down to the river. By the bridge.
Now
. It’s an emergency.’ He hung up without asking a single question. I slipped my phone into the pocket of my cardigan and hoisted the strap of my shoulder bag over my head, so the bag hung across my body. Then extending both arms for balance, I attempted to step on to the next stone.

The child was strangely quiet now as she watched me, her chest still heaving. I smiled at her and called out, in what I hoped was a reassuring voice, ‘Don’t worry, I’m coming to get you. Just
stand
very
still.’ She said nothing, her dark eyes expressionless and her face sullen, but she folded her arms – an oddly adult gesture, as if she was waiting for me to join her, but I supposed she was trying to keep herself warm.

I had no idea how I was going to get th
e girl back on to the riverbank and I didn’t like to think what would happen if I fell into the water. I wasn’t even a good swimmer, but Alec was on his way from the armoury, only minutes away. I assumed between us we’d be able to rescue her, but I cursed myself for not telling him to bring some rope. I wished Fergus would ring back. Maybe he’d have some in his trailer.

Looking down, I saw that the next stone
now lay beneath the water. It would require an act of faith to put my weight on it, but it had obviously born the weight of the girl, so I assumed it must be stable. She was watching me closely now and, seeing me hesitate, she started to whimper.

‘It’s all right, I’m coming! Just stand very still and I’ll be right there.’

She looked up sharply in the direction of the bridge and her little face twisted into a scowl. I turned my head and saw Alec and Fergus standing on the bridge, leaning over the parapet. My legs almost gave way with relief.

Alec bellowed, ‘Jenny, what the hell are you
doing
? For Christ’s sake, don’t move!’ Then he started to run.

The girl began to
sob and held her arms out towards me, her eyes wide with terror. ‘Don’t worry about me,’ I shouted. ‘Just go and get some rope before the child falls in!’ With that, I raised one foot and prepared to step down into the rushing water, onto the sunken stone. As I did so, Fergus, still on the bridge, yelled, ‘
What
child?’

I
knew then. I understood everything. The child. Coral’s death. The trap that had been laid for her, then for me. I knew as my foot descended, feeling for the stone I’d seen beneath the water, that it would no longer be there.

I threw myself backwards, but it was too late. My body’s momentum was too strong and I lost my balance. As I fell, I heard Alec cry out. The child clapped her hands and squealed with delight, as if I’d done som
ething very clever. Screaming, I reached out towards the Blood Stone, but the river was already sweeping me away. My last sight and sound was the child pointing and laughing at me, then the water surged over my head.

As it dragged me downstream towards the bridge, the river slammed me against submerged rocks. I clutched at every obstacle I hit, but I couldn’t stop or even slow my passage through the water. The sun disappeared as the current swept me under the bridge and towards the bank. I came to a jarring halt and fought my way to the surfac
e. Flailing around, I tore the skin of my arms, but I quickly established that I was being held by the strap of my shoulder bag which had caught on a branch of a fallen tree lodged among the rocks. Relief was soon dispelled as I realised the river continued to submerge me. Only by kicking furiously was I able to keep my head above water and my legs were beginning to tire already.

I threw up an arm, trying to grab a branch above me so I could hang and pull my head up out of the water, but I missed and slipped down again, falling through the loop made by the strap of my bag. I twisted violently, grabbing the strap that would keep me attached to something solid. It slid suddenly and my neck was jerked backwards. As the leather noose tightened round my throat, I pulled frantically, trying to loosen it, but my body turned again, spun by the force of the current
, and the strap increased its stranglehold. I kicked with all my might and managed to raise my head above water long enough to gulp down some air. Above me in the gloomy shadows under the bridge, I saw something hanging from a branch of the dead tree, something that looked like another strap, another small bag. But it wasn’t a bag, it was a camera. Coral’s camera. It had hung there, in its nylon case, for seven years.

I
reached up again, caught hold of the thick shoulder strap and pulled on it. It yielded, then held. It bore some of my weight while I tried to free my neck with my other hand. Tugging with useless frozen fingers, I managed to loosen the leather’s deadly hold, but I couldn’t free myself. I tried to scream for help, but no sound came from my swollen throat.

Above the roar of the river, I suddenly heard
a machine start up, not far away. I couldn’t place the sound, then realised it was the whine of a chain saw. The noise stopped suddenly and beyond the arch of the bridge, I saw a tree slowly descend into the water, its topmost branches reaching out into the middle of the river. As it hit the water, there was a backwash and my head was submerged again.

As
the water subsided, I heard a voice shouting my name. I turned and looked upstream. Alec was in the water, trying hard to swim towards me, but he was being swept towards the middle of the river. I thought he was going to sail past, but he plunged towards me, shouting, ‘Kick out your legs! Towards me!’ I obeyed and felt him grab my foot, then grasp my leg. As his weight pulled me down, the strap tightened round my neck again. He saw what was happening and quickly clawed his way over to the dead tree. He looked at me, horrified, then with one hand tried, as I’d tried, to loosen the strap that was biting into my neck. He gave up and reached down into the water. He appeared to be struggling with his sock but after a moment he produced a small knife, his
sgian dubh
.

He sliced through the strap of my bag and loos
ened its hold round my neck, shouting, ‘Hold tight to the tree now.’ He swept dark, wet curls out of his eyes and said, ‘Here’s what we do. We’re going to stay together and we’re going to float downstream till we hit that tree. Ferg is sitting on it and he’s going to help us. So what I want you to do is this: just float down with the current. I’ll be holding you and we’re going to travel on our backs to protect our eyes from the tree. You keep yours closed, OK? It’ll be like life-saving. I’ll put my arm round your neck – like this – and your body will lie on top of mine. D’you understand, Jenny?’ I found I couldn’t speak, so I nodded. ‘If we stick together, we’ll be heavy and move more slowly. I’ll be able to steer us towards the tree. The important thing is to stay still and stay together. Just act like you’re dead.’

‘That
,’ I croaked, ‘won’t be difficult.’ My voice sounded strange and harsh, as if it belonged to someone else.

Alec’s smile was brave
, if not genuine. I realised then how afraid he was, afraid his plan wouldn’t work, but I was too exhausted to care. I just wanted to sleep for ever. He shook me and said, ‘Jenny, look at me! I’m going to take you down now, then we’re going to hit that tree.’

It occurred to me then that, quite possibly, Alec and I were both about to die
. But there was something he needed to know, something he shouldn’t blame himself for. I opened my mouth to speak but the words wouldn’t come. Clinging to the branch with one arm, I pointed above my head, to where Coral’s camera dangled. He looked up, craning his neck. I saw him swallow, then his white, wet face seemed to turn grey. Unaccountably, I started to weep. ‘The little girl… Could you see her? It was Meredith, wasn’t it? She wanted to kill me too.’

He put a hand up to my face. ‘Och, wheesht now!
I have my wee blade. She cannot harm me and I won’t let her harm you.’ His words were defiant, but his dark eyes were blank with shock. ‘Come on, Jenny, we can do this! Are you ready?’

I nodded
, wincing at the pain in my neck. Alec worked his way behind me, holding on to the tree roots and I felt a sense of relief as the relative warmth of his body met the chill of mine. He put an arm round my neck, like a wrestler and said in my ear, ‘Get ready to let go when I say so. But don’t kick or use your arms. Just play dead. I’m your life raft, OK?’ His left arm tightened round my neck as his hand gripped my shoulder. He pulled me back towards him and I felt his body floating underneath mine. ‘Let go, Jenny. This is it.’

T
he gnarled branch that had preserved my life for the last few minutes slipped from my fingers and we moved off through the water, alarmingly fast. Underneath me Alec was kicking his legs, frantically trying to steer us against the current and towards the river bank. I lay on my back, motionless as instructed, staring up at a cloudless sky. It was a fine day to drown. Had it been a day like this when Coral had died? A large bird swooped into my field of vision and hovered above us, apparently still, apart from the delicate flick of its tail. I recognised the red kite and for who knows what reason, I started to cry again. The warmth of my tears startled, then comforted me.

Alec cried out in pain as we came to an abrupt halt, then he shouted i
n my ear, ‘Grab a branch and hold tight.’ I twisted in the water, impaling my arm on a broken twig. ‘Work your way along the tree. Towards the bank. Can you see Ferg? When he can reach you, he’ll pull you in.’

I star
ed at Alec, stupefied with cold. Blood was pouring from a wound on the side of his head. ‘You’re hurt,’ I said.

‘I’m fine. Move, Jenny! Work your way across but keep your eyes closed as much as you can. It will protect them from the branches.
Feel
your way across. I’m right behind you. You’re going to be OK now.’

I clawed my way along the fallen tree and as the branches got thicker, I felt safer. Eventually I felt another pair of hands – warm hands – grab my
bleeding arms and I opened my eyes to see Fergus, white-faced, sitting astride the trunk of the tree, his legs dangling in the water. He pulled and Alec pushed until I heaved myself out of the water and collapsed, clinging to the tree trunk where I think I would have lain until Doomsday, but the fallen tree lurched suddenly and Fergus yelled at me to move.

While he
helped Alec out of the water, I crawled up the sloping tree trunk until I reached the riverbank, then both men scrambled after me. Just as Alec reached dry land, the tree, freed of our weight, began to shift, then, like a ship being launched, it slipped into the middle of the river and floated downstream, bumping and turning as it thrashed against the rocks.

The three of us stood on the river bank, dripping water and blood, shivering convulsively. Alec put his arms round me and Fergus put his arms round us both. Nobody spoke. I was too tired even to cry.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Looking back, I can see exactly how things went wrong for Alec and me. One man went into the river, another came out. Alec emerged knowing Meredith had bullied his wife from beyond the grave, then lured her into the river by preying upon a childless woman’s instinct to protect the vulnerable. Meredith had let Coral drown for no reason other than spite.

As he
carried me back to the castle – Fergus offered, but Alec just shook his head – he must have realised Meredith had tried to kill me in the same way so that he would know Coral’s death was neither an accident nor suicide. If Meredith had succeeded in her murderous plan, Alec would never have believed lightning could strike twice. But even though she’d failed to drown me, Alec still got the message. He’d seen his wife’s camera dangling from a branch under the bridge. Would-be suicides don’t leave home with a camera.

From that day on,
Alec was inaccessible to me, as if he were behind some sort of invisible screen. He’d always seemed guarded and I understood why, but after he saved my life, he became distant. I sensed a deep reservoir of anger in him and I suspected the only way he could deal with it was to keep himself reined in, aloof, unresponsive – to me, or anyone else.

Zelda put it down to a knock on the head that required several stitches.
Fergus attributed it to post-traumatic stress. Only I had any idea what was really going on in Alec’s mind and even I had to guess because he wouldn’t talk about it. What I didn’t guess was that Alec, broken-hearted, angry and defeated, had decided Cauldstane must be sold. Not to save money. To save lives.

~

After I was rescued, Fergus rang for an ambulance, summoned the family and we all waited in the armoury. It was the warmest place. Alec and I sat huddled by the furnace, wrapped in blankets brought by a shocked and silent Wilma. Zelda was voluble and asked too many questions. Fergus did his best to field them, but since he had no idea why I’d been standing in the middle of the river, he could say little to satisfy Zelda’s curiosity. I was incapable of speech and Alec sat with his eyes closed, bleeding steadily from a gash on his temple. Sholto was calm and business-like administering First Aid, reassuring Alec that it was “just a nasty cut”, but he’d better get it seen to.

When Sholto an
nounced that Alec and I would be kept in hospital overnight, (“Bang on the head. Could be concussion.”), Wilma trotted off back to the castle. She returned with two bulging holdalls. Mine was packed with a change of clothes, a pair of shoes to replace the ones I’d lost in the river, a nightie and a comb. I assumed she’d performed a similar service for Alec. I gave her a wordless hug, but Alec didn’t respond. He didn’t even look inside his bag.

As
we clambered into the ambulance, Sholto said, for my benefit, I’m sure, ‘Don’t worry now. You’ll be in good hands.’

He was right, of course. As the ambulance sped off in the direction of Inverness, I was overwhelmed with a sense of relief that I was leaving Cauldstane
– and therefore Meredith – behind; relief that Alec was with me; that we were both safe and would remain so for at least another twelve hours, maybe more.

It had been a narrow escape. But we
had
escaped.

~

The following day, Zelda collected us from hospital. On the drive back to Cauldstane she told me I’d had several telephone calls, all from the same man. Struggling to conceal her curiosity, she told me a Mr Sheridan had rung three times. He was concerned that I wasn’t answering my mobile (which had joined my shoes in the river). Zelda explained there’d been an accident and that I was in hospital. Pressed for details, she told him I’d fallen into the river and almost drowned. Rupert had apparently sounded distressed and asked if he could ring back for updates. He’d then dictated a message which Zelda produced from her coat pocket and handed to me. I unfolded the piece of paper and read, “I received your letter and have given the contents a great deal of thought. I’ll be in touch shortly. In the meantime, I shall be praying for you.’

I thanked Zelda for
her trouble but had to ignore her sidelong look of enquiry. There was nothing I could say about Rupert or his carefully-worded message that wouldn’t lead to questions, so we drove back to Cauldstane in silence.

Alec
didn’t speak throughout the journey. It didn’t occur to me then to wonder what he might have made of that conversation.

~

Back at Cauldstane, I made my excuses and said I needed to go and check my email, but on the way to my room I picked up one of the house phones. Sitting on the bed, already exhausted, I rang Rupert. I got his voicemail, so I left a message to say I’d lost my mobile, but he should wait for me to call. I told him I would ring back in an hour, then on the hour until I got through.

I returned the phone to its cradle
, then knocked on Alec’s door, but there was no answer. I assumed he was already back at work. The thought of negotiating stairs and solicitous family members on my way to the armoury was sufficient deterrent. I went back to my room, lay on the bed and stared into space. I tried to think, but my mind just stuck in a groove, dwelling on the same irrational thought. I didn’t believe in God – any god – but it was a source of inexplicable comfort to know Rupert Sheridan was praying for me.

~

When I was sure Sholto had gone for his nap and Zelda was ensconced with Classic FM, I took one of the house phones and a notebook to the library where I curled up in a chair by the fireside. The phone rang only once before Rupert picked it up.

‘Jen?
Is that you?’ It sounded almost accusatory.

‘Yes, it’s me.’

‘I’ve been so worried! Are you all right? Your people have been very tight-lipped about what happened.’

‘That’s because they don’t really know what happened. On the face of it, I walked into a river and almost drowned.’

‘You walked into a river?’

‘Yes.’

‘Why?’

‘It’s a long story.’

‘Mrs Fontaine said “the boys” had rescued you.’

‘The boys are
grown men. Alec and Fergus. Oh—’ I slipped back into professional mode. ‘I really can’t say any more. Unless…’

‘Unless what?’

‘Unless you’re coming up to help us.’

‘Jen, I can’t.
I did explain. It’s the responsibility of your local priest.’

My heart plummeted and I fought back tears with indignation.
‘Rupert, I nearly drowned!’

There was a moment’s silence, then, his voice unsteady, Rupert said,
‘Are you saying your accident was… connected with the
ghost
?’

‘Yes.
’ I stared into the fire, trying to recall the scene – something I’d experienced, but could neither believe nor comprehend. ‘I saw a little girl in trouble, standing on a rock in the middle of the river. She was crying and I thought she might fall in and drown. So I rang for help, then I went in to help her. There were stepping stones, you see, across the river. But… one of them wasn’t real. Nor was the little girl. Only I could see her. No, that’s not true. I think Alec might have seen her too. But his brother couldn’t.’

‘And you think this child was the ghost?’

‘I know she was.’

‘Jen, I’m having trouble keeping up. I
n your letter you said this spirit was your subject’s dead wife.’

‘They’re one and the same. I think Meredith can manifest herself in other forms.
And I have reason to believe another member of the family saw this child seven years ago.’

‘Have y
ou compared notes?’

‘I ca
n’t. She’s dead. She died the way I was meant to die. So you see, Rupert, you
have
to help us. It’s really serious. I think we need an exorcism or something.’

‘
Oh, no, they’re extremely rare. Outside Hollywood,’ Rupert added pointedly.

‘Well,
we have to do something!’ I heard the note of rising hysteria in my voice and reached automatically for my notebook. I tried to shoehorn my brain into fact-finding mode. ‘OK, you’re the expert. Tell me what we’re up against here. How can the local priest help?’

Rupert
explained the fundamentals of the Church’s deliverance ministry in his patient voice, assuring me of its effectiveness. Meanwhile I took notes, as if I believed every word. When he’d finished, I said, ‘So we
are
in trouble then?’

‘I think you might
be. There definitely seems to be something going on. Which is why I can’t help you, Jen. You must ask the local man first. If you draw a blank there, I’ll reconsider, but these things have to be done properly. I know it sounds like bureaucratic red tape, but there’s the issue of follow-up pastoral care. People often need support afterwards. We pray with them, or just lend a sympathetic ear until things settle down again.’

‘But as far as I know
, this family isn’t religious. Well, the housekeeper is a churchgoer and I think Zelda – the woman you spoke to on the phone – she sometimes goes with her, but I don’t think any of the men are.’

‘Even if they aren’t, the
priest might have local knowledge that would be valuable. If it’s a rural community, he might know the family socially. That would be a start. I would just be… an outsider.’

I gripp
ed the phone, angry now – not with Rupert, with Meredith. ‘There are lives at stake here, Rupert, and one of them is mine.’

‘But
why
? You’ve only been there a matter of weeks. Do you know why you’ve been singled out?’

‘Oh
, yes. And I can show you proof. She sent me a death threat. Well, as good as.’

‘I
n Heaven’s name, why?’

I took a deep breath. The truth was always simplest
and Rupert deserved nothing less. ‘Because I’ve fallen in love with a man who rejected her. And she doesn’t want anyone else to have him. I think she probably wants him dead too.’

There was a long silence at the other end of the phone, a
fter which Rupert said, ‘I shall pray for you all. But my advice is to contact the local priest as soon as possible. If he doesn’t give satisfaction, then get back to me.’

‘You’ll come?’

‘If for some reason he can’t deal with it, yes, I’ll come.’

‘Thank you!’

‘Keep me posted, won’t you? I shall worry unless I get regular bulletins.’

‘A
s soon as I get a replacement phone, I’ll text. But I think I’d better get off the phone now. I can hear someone coming upstairs.’

‘B
efore you go, Jen – may I ask?… This chap you say you’ve fallen for. Does he feel the same way about you?’

There was another long silence
, at my end this time. ‘I don’t know. Something’s going on between us, but I’m not sure what. The ghost has rather got in the way. Which is exactly what she intended.’

‘Well, I hope you’ll both stay safe. I’ll remember
him in my prayers. Is it Alec or Fergus?’

‘Alec.
He saved my life. But that isn’t why—’

‘
No, of course. I understand. You’ll stay in touch?’

‘
Yes, I will. Goodbye, Rupert. And thank you.’

‘Goodbye, Jen. God bless.’

~

I decided
it was time I talked to Alec. As I crossed the courtyard, heading for the armoury, my legs still weak from my ordeal in the river, I tried to order my thoughts. What I was about to suggest as a rescue strategy was unlikely to meet with his approval. It could provoke derision or even incur his wrath, but as I saw it, we had no other option.

I knocked on the door – superfluously, as Alec was hammering and woul
d be wearing ear defenders – then I walked in. The armoury was dimly lit, as usual. A smith needs to see the changing colour of the red-hot metal so he can gauge its temperature and that was easier to assess in low light. As I entered, the shaft of daylight from the open door alerted Alec to my arrival. He looked up from his anvil, then downed tools and removed gloves, safety glasses and ear defenders, carefully avoiding the dressing on his temple. He was pale, dishevelled and looked very tired. After a moment, he smiled, as if he’d just remembered what his face should be doing.

It
wasn’t an encouraging start, but I launched into my speech. ‘Alec, can I talk to you about what’s happening at Cauldstane? What we can do about it.’

He turned away and headed towards the kitc
henette where I heard him fill the kettle. ‘I’ve done what can be done,’ he called out. ‘And as you can see, it isn’t working.’ He emerged again and leaned against the partition wall, his arms folded across his chest. ‘But there’s no evidence Meredith wants to harm anyone but me and the women I get involved with. So I think it’s pretty obvious what we have to do. I have to be careful. And you…’ His eyes swerved away from mine. ‘You, Jenny, have to leave.’ He retreated to the kitchenette and I heard the clattering of spoons and mugs.