The Magus, A Revised Version (80 page)

It was a reversal of all physical reason. She had vanished into thin air. I stared down at the yacht. The dinghy was being hoisted aboard, I could see at least ten people on deck, crew and passengers; the long hull was already on the move and heading slowly along to where I stood, as if I was to be publicly mocked one last time.

Then without warning there was a stage cough behind me. I jerked round
–
to an extraordinary sight. Some fifteen yards behind me, half way up the slope, Julie
’
s head and shoulders had emerged from the ground. Her elbows were on the ground itself and behind her head, like some sinister and grotesque black halo, was a jagged circle. But there was nothing sinister about her mischievous face.

‘
Have you lost something? Can I help you?
’

‘
Christ almighty.
’

I climbed closer, stopped six feet from where she still grinned up at me. Her skin was much browner, now approached her sister
’
s
degree of tan. I could see the circle behind her was an iron lid, like a hinged drain-cover. Stones had been cemented all round its upper rim. Julie herself was in a vertical iron tube sunk into the ground. Two wire hawsers ran down from the lid, some counterbalance system. She bit her lips, and curled a beckoning finger.

‘
Won
’
t you come into my parlour, said the

It was apt. There was a real spider on the island that made neat little trapdoors on every bank; I
’
d watched the boys trying to entice them out. But suddenly her voice and expression changed.

‘
Oh you poor thing
–
what
’
s happened to your hand!
’

‘
He didn
’
t tell you?
’
She shook her head, concerned.
‘
Not to worry. It
’
s past history now.
’

‘
It looks horrid.
’

She climbed out. We stood a moment, then she reached, took the scarred hand and examined it, looked solicitously up into my eyes. I smiled.

‘
That
’
s nothing. Wait till you hear the dance he
’
s led me over this last twenty-four hours.
’

‘
I rather thought he might.
’
She looked down at the hand again.
‘
But it
’
s bearable now?
’

‘
When I get over the shock.
’
I nodded at the hole in the ground.
‘
What the hell is it?
’

‘
The Germans. In the war.
’

‘
Oh God. I should have guessed.
’

The observation post … Conchis would have simply concealed the entrance, blocked
off
the front slits. We went beside it. The hole plunged down into darkness. I could see a ladder, massive counterweights at the end of the wires, a dim patch of concrete floor at the bottom. Julie reached and tipped the lid. It fell smoothly down to ground level, where the incrusted and projecting stones on the upper side fitted the surrounding ones like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. One would never have seen it; one might just, walking over the lid, have noticed an odd fixity about the stones
–
but even then the neck was in a little prominence one would ordinarily have skirted.

I said,
‘
I can
’
t believe this is happening.
’

‘
You surely didn
’
t think; I would
–’
but she broke
off
.

‘
Just half an hour ago he told me you were his mistress. That I
’
d never see you again.
’

‘
His
mistress
!
’

‘
And
J
une
as
well.
’

It was her turn to be shocked. She stared at me as if I must be testing her in some way, then gave a little puff of protest.

‘
But you can
’
t have believed him!
’
I received her first serious, or nearly serious, look.
‘
If you believed him for a moment I
’
ll never speak to you again.
’

A moment later my arms were round her and our mouths had met. It was brief, but agreeably convincing. She pulled her head gently away.

‘
I think we
’
re being watched.
’

I looked back down to the yacht; and released her body, but not her hands.

‘
Where
’
s June?
’

‘
Guess.
’

‘
I
’
m beyond guessing.
’

‘
I
’
ve had a long walk today. A lovely walk.
’

‘
The village? Hermes
’
s house?
’

‘
We
’
ve been there since Friday. So close to you. It was awful.
’

‘
Maurice … ?
’

‘
Has lent it to us for the summer.
’
Her smile deepened.
‘
I know. I
’
ve been pinching myself as well.
’

‘
Good God. This other thing he was planning?
’

‘
Abandoned. He suddenly announced one evening that he hadn
’
t time for it. There was some talk about next year, but…
‘
she gave a little shrug. That was to be the cost of our happiness. I sought her eyes.

‘
You still want to stay?
’

She held my eyes a second, then bowed her head.
‘
If you think we could stand each other just as ordinary people. Without all the excitement.
’

‘
That
’
s so silly I
’
m not going to answer it.
’

She smiled up.
‘
Then it looks as if you
’
re stuck with me.
’

The siren of the yacht sounded. We turned, hand in hand. It had come opposite us, some three hundred yards
off
shore. Julie raised an arm and waved; and after a moment I did the same. I could make out Conchis and Joe, with Maria
’
s black figure between them. They raised their arms and waved back. Conchis called towards a ma
n in
the bows. There was an ascending plume of smoke, a report, a tiny black object hurtling skywards. It climbed, slowed, then burst. A shower of incandescent stars glittered for a few moments with an explosive crackle against the azure; then another, then a third. Fireworks, for the end of a theatre. A prolonged moan on the siren, more waving arms. Julie put her hands to her mouth and kissed them out to the yacht, I waved again. Then the long white hull began to curve away from the coast.

‘
Did he really say I was his kept woman?
’

I told her
verbatim.
She stared after the yacht.

‘
What a cheek.
’

‘
I knew it was a put-on. It
’
s just that dear old poker-face of his.
’

‘
I
shall jolly well slap it next time I see him. June
’
ll
go mad.
’
But then she smiled at me.
‘
Still …
‘
she pulled my hand.
‘
That walk. I
’
m famished.
’

‘
I
want to see where you lived.
’

‘
Afterwards. Please let
’
s eat.
’

We climbed back to where I had left the basket, and installed ourselves under a pine-tree. She undid the sandwiches, I opened the champagne, and lost some of it, it had got too warm. But we toasted each other, then kissed again, and started eating. She wanted to know everything that had happened the day before, and I told her; then everything else, the night manoeuvres, the supposed letter to her from me the week before, my not having been ill.,.

‘
You did get my real letter from Siphnos?
’

‘
Yes.
’

‘
Actually we wondered if it was some last trick. But he
’
s been so sweet to us. Ever since our little show-down.
’

I asked her what they
’
d been doing … in Crete and cruising around. She grimaced.
‘
Lying in the sun and getting bored.
’

‘
I
can
’
t think why there had to be the delay.
’

Julie hesitated.
‘
He did make one attempt last weekend to sell us the idea of … you know, pushing you
off
on to June. I suppose he couldn
’
t quite give up hope on that.
’

‘
Look at this.
’
I reached for my duffel-bag and showed her the envelope of money; told her how much it was, what I still felt inclined to do with it. But she was swift to disagree.

‘
No honestly, you must take it. You
’
ve earned it, and he
’
s got so much.
’
She smiled.
‘
And you may have to start buying me meals soon. Now I
’
m out of work.
’

‘
He didn
’
t try and tempt you with more money?
’

‘
He did actually. It was the house in the village and you against the completion of contract money.
’

‘
A bit rough on June?
’

Julie sniffed.
‘
She wasn
’
t allowed a vote.
’

‘
I adore that sun-hat.
’

It was soft, childlike, short-brimmed. She took it
off
and contemplated it, again like a child, almost gauchely, as if no one had ever paid her physical compliments before. I leant across and kissed her cheek, then put an arm round her shoulders and drew her to me. The yacht was two or three miles away now, disappearing round the end of Phraxos to the east.

‘
And the grand enigma
–
not a clue?
’

‘
You
’
ve no idea. We were almost on our knees to him the other day. But that
’
s the other price. It was going on in that absurd way, or this. Being left in the dark.
’

‘
I wish to God I knew what happened here last year
–
and the one before.
’

‘
You haven
’
t heard from them?
’

‘
Not a word.
’
I added,
‘
I
’
d better confess.
’
I told her about the letters I had written checking on her, and showed her the one from her bank in London.

‘
I think that
’
s absolutely foul of you, Nicholas. Fancy not trusting us.
’
She bit her lips.
‘
Nearly as foul as June
’
s ringing up the British Council in Athens and checking on you.
’
I grinned.
‘
I made ten bob out of that.
’