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FLAMINGO MOON



- Eve hadn't particularly wanted to go to France, to

the lonely Caargue region, to vi!it her dead

cou!in'! "a"y !on, "ut !he #elt !he owed it to her

aunt and uncle$ %ut !he #ound that the "a"y'! gri

uncle, &aoul u%are, wa! even le!! enthu!ia!tic

a"out her arrival$ (et what ight have "een the

end o# it all turned out to "e only the "eginning $$$



Books you will enjoy

by MARGARET PARGETER

FLAMINGO MOON

WILD INHERITANCE

Ale)a went to the *e!t Coa!t o# +cotland to tae

po!!e!!ion o# a cro#t that had "een une)pectedly le#t to her

"y a di!tant relative$ %ut !he et oppo!ition #ro the

y!teriou! Fergu! who advi!ed her again!t taing up

re!idence. and #ro her neigh"our, Ma)well o# Glenaird,

who wanted her land and didn't !ee to have any /ual!

a"out taing her with it I

NEVER GO BACK

Celia had di!lied Guy &yland #or three year!■ ever !ince

he had taen over her #aily'! "u!ine!!, and !he wa!n't!ure how !he cae now to "e woring #or hi$ %ut then

!he wa!n't !ure a"out a lot o# thing!including the rea!on

why !he wa! !o 0ealou! o# Guy'! old #riend Greta Morri!on $

$ $

WINDS FROM THE SEA

*hen +ara decided to get away #ro it all and tae a 0o" in

the +cotti!h 1e"ride! !he looed #orward to a coplete

change #ro the city li#e to which !he wa! accu!toed$ 1er

new eployer, the di!concerting 1ugh Fra!er, wa!

certainly very di##erent #ro any an !he had ever et

"e#ore 2

BLUE SKIES, DARK WATERS

*hen an old #aily #riend a!ed 3an to go to %ar "ado! to

!ee what hi! nephew, Earl Elton, wa! up to, !he could

hardly re#u!e$ %ut Earl turned the ta"le! on her very neatly

"y "ecoing deeply !u!piciou! o# her otive!!o what

with that, and #alling in love with hi, 3an had ore than

enough on her hand!2

%(

MA&GA&E4 5A&GE4E&

MILL+ 6 %OON LIMI4E

78-79 FOLE( +4&EE4 LONON *iA i&



All the characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of

the Author, and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same

name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual

known or unknown to the Author, and all the incidents are pure invention.

The text of this publication or any part thereof may not be reproduced or

transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,

including photocopying, recording, storage in an information retrieval

system, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.

First published 19 !hilippine

copyright igyy This edition 19""

: Margaret 5argetcr 7988

For copyright reasons, this book may not be issued on loan or otherwise

except in its original soft cover.

I+%N ; <=> 8<?;< <

+et in Linotype Gran0on

#ade and printed in $reat %ritain by &ichard 'lay (The 'haucer !ress),

*td., %ungay, +uffolk

7@< ?



CHAPTER ONE

CELESTE had said not to come tothe farm, and now that she wasactually here, standing in front of it,Ee Reston !egan to wish she had

ta"en her adice and stayed away# $t%ro!a!ly wouldn&t hae strained thelast remnants of her %atience oermuchto hae remained at the hotel a littlelonger in the ho%e that Celeste would

eentually contact her# The 'u(areranch, or manade, as such %laces werecalled in the Camargue area of )rance,

had a singularly formida!le loo" a!outit, an air of distinct hostility which

seemed to linger around its heat*ha+ed%recincts# $f there had !een notices%osted stating that strangers wereunwelcome, Ee wouldn&t hae !een atall sur%rised

She had left her car !eside acluster of low scru!, a short distance!ehind her near the road# -hy, she hadno ery clear idea as she certainly felt.uite ulnera!le without it, and half

hidden as it was, it definitely wasn&thandy for a .uic" getaway should theneed arise# /ay!e instinctiely she had

"nown the necessity for a more silenta%%roach than a noisy litde engine

allowed#The car she had hired from /rs

-ood, the hotel %ro%rietress, who hadowned and ran the large esta!lishmentwith the hel% of a com%etent staff since

her hus!and died# An enter%risingwoman who also "e%t a small fleet of cars which she rented to guests whocame without one#

Ee was aware that /rs -ood&s

curiosity was %ro!a!ly no greater thanany other hotelier&s would hae !een

regarding a young English girl whoa%%eared to do nothing !ut sit in herroom all day#

&$t will do you good to get out,/iss Reston,& /rs -ood had remar"ed%ointedly, coming into rece%tion 0ust intime to hear Ee in.uiring a!out a car#&$f you&e come for a holiday you won&t

find much to entertain you inside thehotel, not during the day at any rate# $should drie into the countryside, if $were you, or down to the coast# 1ou&llat least get a change of air#&

Ee had smiled uneasily,conscious of /rs -ood&s close scrutiny,the sudden flic"er of s%eculation in therece%tionist&s considering glance# &$intend to,& she hurriedly assured them

!oth, &!ut $ hae,& she hesitated

momentarily !efore re%eating in a

nerous rush, &$ hae other !usiness toattend to first#&

Swiftly she turned away, in herhaste almost snatching the car "eys fromthe des", an2ious to esca%e the more%ertinent .uestions which she sensedwere hoering on the ti% of /rs -ood&s

tongue# &$ only e2%ect to re.uire a car forone afternoon,& she had murmured !eforeshe had fled#

Now, ta"ing a dee% !reath in anattem%t to still the agitated tremors that

ran through her, Ee adanced a fewmore ste%s# There a%%eared to !e no one

a!out, no one to interru%t her firstmoments of reluctant sureillance as herwide*eyed ga+e wandered nerously oer

a long line of !uildings# Slung out, theyseemed to !e, on a dusty, limitless %lain,thrown, as if !y some careless artist,across a %rimeal landsca%e whichstretched !etween water and s"y#

She had only !een here three days,!ut long enough to realise this was aremote land, a land of white horses andherds of catde, of gi%sies and cow!oys#The latter she had heard referred to in

the hotel as the gardians of the Cam*argue# A hard land it seemed to !e,although, until now, Ee had li"ed whatlittle she had seen of it, !ut there wassomething a!out the atmos%here of this

ranch which filled her with a %eculiar,intangi!le fore!oding#

This house !efore her was%resuma!ly the residence of the 'u(ares,

the %lace where Celeste 'u(are had !een!orn, the home that she had oftens%o"en of with a%%arent affection atschool !ut which she now seemed toregard rather in the light of a %rison3a

%rison from which she seemed to imagineit was Ee&s definite duty to release her#

(eset !y numerous an2ieties, Eehad allowed that Celeste, in ma"ing suchassum%tions, was %ro!a!ly right, !ut now

she didn&t feel so sure4 Surely Celestee2%ected too much4 She must hae !eenmore than a little cra+y to imagine shecould !ring an almost com%lete strangerinto her family circle and force them to

acce%t her4 Already her elder !rother, thenotorious Raoul 'u(are, was hostile, andthis !efore he had een met her# Howcould Celeste %ossi!ly ho%e that he mightreact faoura!ly on finding her here, on

his ery doorste%4

Of course, she hastened to assureherself, it was entirely Raoul 'u(are&sfault that such a %eculiar state of affairse2isted# -hile her eyes remained fi2ed

nerously on the e2%anse of low stone

7@< =



dwellings, a slighdy mutinous change of

mood firmed Ee&s soft li%s with anunfamiliar determination# $t was, she

considered, entirely !ecause of himthat there had !een any estrangement!etween their two families, that he stillafter all this time a%%eared to hold herfamily wholly res%onsi!le for the eents

which had led u% to it# To !e a!le to tellhim e2actly what she thought of hisoutrageous %re0udices had !een one of the chief reasons why she had allowedherself to !e %ersuaded to come here#

There was a growing urge withinherself to meet this man3a man whose

for!idding arrogance had !eenconeyed so realistically !oth !y hisactions and in the one letter he had

condescended to write to her aunt/ais, Carol&s mother#

$t was this thought of her cousinthat 0er"ed Ee&s mind !ac" to Carol&s!a!y, /ichel, who was really the real

reason why she had come# Celeste haddeclared it was her duty#

&/ichel is your ne%hew,& she hadsaid, adding with incredi!le coolness#&Now that Carol is dead you hae as

much right to him as any of us &-hich wasn&t strictly true, as

Celeste "new ery well# Carol&s %arentshad more or less ado%ted Ee whenshe had !een eight, after her %arents

had !oth lost their lies in an accident#She had !een 5eorge Reston&s!rother&s child# &She&ll !e com%any forCarol,& he had declared, and his wife

had wholeheartedly agreed#They had !een so good to her

that Ee had always ho%ed some day tore%ay them# $ndeed, she had tried todo this almost from the ery !eginning#

She had !een a cleer child andstriing es%ecially to %lease her aunt

and uncle, she had wor"ed hard,eentually delighting them !y winninga scholarshi% to .uite a famous girls&

school# $t had !een there that she hadmet Celeste 'u(are, a )rench girlwhose mother had !een English, andwho still had relations liing inCornwall, not far from Ee&s own home#

Celeste, who had only two!rothers in )rance, s%ent many of herlong acations with these relations, andoccasionally she had also stayed withEe&s family# &/y !rothers sim%ly

consider $ am a nuisance,& she had

!een fond of declaring em%hatically#6They do not care for me#&1et, for all her %rotestations,

Celeste&s younger !rother, 'omini.ue,

had isited her regularly at school, and

one Sunday Ee had ta"en them !oth

home for tea# Ee&s home, com%ared withthat of Celeste&s relations, was e2tremely

modest, !ut 'omini.ue had a%%arentlyfound nothing dis%leasing a!out it# $n factit seemed that he found something a!outthe small, semi*detached house ery%leasing as he returned again and again#

(ut it wasn&t until a!out two years later,when he elo%ed with Carol, that Eereally understood why he had isited soregularly#

(ecause they could thin" of no alid

reason for such a furtie marriage,Carol&s %arents had !een u%set, !ut their

natural dismay had !een nothingcom%ared to Raoul 'u*(are&s fury# Oerthe tele%hone /ais had !een fro+en !y

his icy disa%%roal# Celeste&s isits hadsto%%ed a!ru%tly and she had returned to)rance straight away# Here, on this eryranch, Raoul 'u(are had made things soaw"ward for Carol that she had !egged

5eorge and /ais to wait a while !eforeattem%ting to come to )rance#

Raoul had !een the reason, Carolhad tried to e2%lain after her honeymoonwas oer, why she and 'omini.ue had

!een forced to elo%e# $t seemed thatRaoul had chosen a )rench !ride for hisyoung !rother, and in )rance, een today,many %eo%le still faoured sucharrangements# $n a way, Carol had

generously declared, she .uiteunderstood, and time must !e allowed forRaoul to forgie and forget# She had!egged them to hae %atience#

(ut des%ite Carol&s o%timismnothing ha%%ened, Raoul 'u(are !einga%%arendy unwilling either to forgie orforget# Carol isited her %arents inCornwall occasionally, !ut that was all#

There was certainly neer an initationfor any of them to return with her to the

Camargue, a state of affairs which fretted5eorge and /ais so much they couldoften tal" of litde else#

After Carol&s !a!y was !orn Ee,des%ite her fondness for them, had feltalmost relieed when 5eorge, who was aciil engineer, went to Rhodesia, ta"ing/ais with him# Ee, at that time, had

!een in London studying to !e achildren&s nannie, the one thing she had!een really "een to do, so she couldn&thae gone with them een if she hadwanted to, !ut she had ferently ho%ed

the change would do her aunt good and

ta"e her mind off Carol for a while#1et, unfortunately, 5eorge came to!lame this ery tri% for the real tragedywhen it struc"# Carol, who had not !een

really well since /ichel arried, had

7@< 8



managed to %ersuade her hus!and to

ta"e her for a short holiday to SouthAfrica to see her %arents, against, it

was reealed later, Raoul&s e2%resswishes# This time it must hae seemedto the su%erstitious that his anger had!een 0ustified when the %lane carryingCarol and his !rother had crashed into

the sea with a loss of all life#The shoc" had almost %roed too

much for 5eorge, who foolishly !lamedhimself for the accident# At once, afterhearing the news, he had colla%sed

with a heart attac" and !een in and outof hos%itals eer since# Een now, after

almost a year, he was not nearly wellenough to trael, and /ais wrote thathis doctor had adised him to remain in

Rhodesia, where at least she had%lenty of domestic hel%# She had also,in that last letter, enclosed one whichshe had receied from Raoul 'u(are3aletter which had infuriated Ee greatly,

and which she still remem!ered onlytoo clearly#

$n it he had assured /ais, withmore than a hint of cruelty, that he wasmore than a!le to ta"e care of Carol&s

!a!y himself, and it would !e !etter forall concerned if they continued to gotheir se%arate ways#

&A erita!le tug of war would dothe child no good,& he had said, &and

considering your hus!and&s state of health no one would loo" on him as asuita!le guardian# $n my care he willwant for nothing and hae a !etter life

than you could eer ho%e to %roide,%roiding, of course, you do not see" tointerfere # # #&

His last sentence had seemed tohold more than a measure of insidious

warning# Stay away, it had im%lied, orelse And, at that %articular time, there

had seemed little else that any of themcould do !ut to com%ly with Raoul'u(are&s wishes# (ut inside Ee was

still a smouldering anger, oer a yearlater still as fresh as when she had firstread his letter with its intimidating,forceful handwriting# One day, she hadowed, she would surely find a means

of hurting him as !adly as he hadwounded her aunt and uncle, and %oorCarol, whom he had scarcely eerallowed them to see

Once her training had !een

com%leted, Ee had ta"en a tem%orary

0o! in London, loo"ing after the smallson of a )rench !usiness man and hiswife# Carefully, she had saed hersalary, ho%ing, when her 0o! was

finished, to !e a!le to fly to South

Africa to see 5eorge and /ais, !ut

!efore this could ha%%en, to her sur%rise,letters !egan to arrie in a %ositie

deluge from Celeste#Ee had seen nothing of Celeste

since she had left school, and now shewrote7 &$ wish to lie in Paris# $t was all%ractically arranged !efore the accident#

After that, Raoul declared my duty washere, at the ranch# $ must remain to loo"after /ichel who, een now, is still a!a!y# Raoul a%%ears to thin" $ must sharethe res%onsi!ility of seeing he is reared

correctly, and seems to ta"e it forgranted that $ should willingly sacrifice

the !est years of my life# Our cousinNadine assures me $ am wasted here inthe Cam*argue, and, while she is not

nearly so strict as Raoul, would loo" afterme well# Raoul a%%ears to imagine $should !e content with the Rallye and afew carefully chosen friends&

The Rallye, Ee "new aguely, was

a sort of %riate grou%, formed !y themothers of the u%%er classes who regu*larly gae dances so that their daughtersmight meet only eligi!le young %eo%le#Ee&s em%loyers had mentioned it and

Celeste had tal"ed of it at school, !ut asEe had neer moed in such circlesherself she had %aid little attention#

$t had !een Celeste&s ne2t wordswhich had utterly dismayed her# &1ou

must come, Ee, and hel% me tal" toRaoul# $f $ do hae some res%onsi!ilityregarding /ichel, then so do you, andyou must share it# 1ou are his aunt,

e2actly as $ am # # #&After numerous attem%ts, Ee had

re%lied as !est she could, %ointing out!luntly in the end that, as Celeste must"now ery well, she had merely !een

Carol&s cousin, so wasn&t really /ichel&saunt, and conse.uendy would only !e

wasting her time# Raoul would neer !e%re%ared to receie her#

(ac" had come Celeste&s ne2t letter

3furiously &1ou must come $f youcontinue to refuse $ will !ring /ichelimmediately to England# Then the fire will!e in the fat3or how is it you say $ $ willswear you inited me and Raoul will

!eliee me# He will accuse you of %ersuasion and he will !e ery, eryangry, and you do not "now what my!rother is li"e when he is angry, macherie!'

Recalling all she "new of him, Ee

had no real dou!ts a!out Raoul 'u(are&stem%er# 8nconsciously she had shiered#$t was as if the dar" %ersonality of theman had een then reached out and

touched her#

7@<



Celeste had finished on a

%leading note# &(ut you "now $ will onlydo this if all else fails# $ !eg of you to

reconsider, cherie. Raoul is a man of many moods, if you caught him in agood one he might listen to you# 1ouare almost twenty*two, more than ayear older than me, and most

attractie with your lint*fair hair andwide eyes# $t is when you smile that $thin" Raoul will see in them that whichhe li"es in a woman# So you mustsmile, Ee, and assure him times are

changing and girls are not to !e "e%t ina!solute seclusion any more, that you

are .uite %re%ared to loo" after /ichelfor a few months while $ en0oy a littlefreedom# After all, $ cannot see how he

can remain so rigid when he is so fondof his own amours $ "now of morethan one mademoiselle— madame . . .'

Celeste had ram!led on so muchin this ein that Ee had grown

alarmed# She had no wish to heara!out Raoul 'u*(are&s indiscretions, asshe already des%ised him, !ut Celeste&so!iously un!alanced attituderegarding her immediate %ro!lems

filled Ee with a%%rehension# She mightindeed !e .uite ca%a!le of arriing inLondon as she threatened

And for all her resole not to seteen one foot on )rench soil, Ee&s

mind had clung uneasily to the %ro!lemof /ichel# -as it desira!le that a young!a!y should !e reared ! such %eo%le41et might it not !e worse for him to lie

in %ossi!ly inferior digs in London3always su%%osing the arrogant Raoulallowed him to remain 1et it wasn&tuntil the third letter, when Celestethreatened to contact 5eorge and

/ais, that Ee felt left with no otheralternatie !ut to gie in# Clearly, if

faced with een an in"ling of such adilemma, 5eorge might again colla%se,and Ee "new it was u% to her to rule

out the %ossi!ility of any such thingha%%ening#

(y return she had %romisedcautiously that she would %ay a shortisit, and immediately Celeste, as if

antici%ating her surrender, had sent alist of instructions# There was a hotel, ashort distance from Les Saintes /aries,run !y an Englishwoman who hadalways rooms to s%are at the !eginning

of the season# $t was an ideal %lace for

Ee to stay# $t had the decidedadantage of !eing !oth conenientand seeral miles from Celeste&s home#Ee was to go there and Celeste would

get in touch as soon as she arried# On

no account was Ee to try and contact

her#$n s%ite of !eing inwardly almost

terrified of such an underta"ing, Ee hadalso felt an undenia!le flic"er of tensee2citement# Preiously she had hadneither the time nor money for foreigntrael3now she must find !oth, yet the

%ros%ect, while daunting, was not, shesoon realised, insurmounta!le# Her recent

0o! com%leted, she too" a little of themoney she had saed to !uy material fordresses which she made .uic"ly herself,

then %ositiely clutching her %ass%ort anda few small %ieces of luggage, one s%ring

eening she had caught a train from9ictoria to 'oer, then on to Calais,arriing seeral hours later in Paris# )rom

there the remainder of her 0ourney southhad %roed much easier than she hade2%ected, and would hae !een, had shenot had so much on her mind, eryen0oya!le#

The hotel she had found withoutmuch difficulty, although, contrary towhat Celeste had told her, almost all therooms had !een ta"en and, !ut for theinterention of /rs -ood, the

%ro%rietress, Ee fancied she might hae!een turned away# Ta"ing com%assion, itseemed, on Ee&s rather %anic*stric"enface she had assured her she could haea room for at least a few days# Ee had

than"ed her gratefully, adding that shedidn&t e2%ect to re.uire it for longer thanthis as when it !ecame conenient shewas to stay with a friend#

(ut for three whole days Ee hadwaited in ain for Celeste# Strung u% to ahigh degree of tenseness, she hadscarcely dared leae her room for fearshe should miss the girl should she

tele%hone or arrie# On the fourthmorning, !eset !y a wholly frightening

des%air, Ee rang the ranch in the agueho%e that Celeste might, answer# $t was aris" she had felt drien to ta"e# At first

she had thought it wasCeleste who answered, !ut when

Ee s%o"e her name there had !een onlya short, shar% silence !efore a stranger,another woman, had informed her that

/ademoiselle Celeste was not there#)illed with alarm, Ee had .uic"ly

dro%%ed the receier# -here Celeste wasshe had no idea, !ut she was stronglyconinced that something must hae

ha%%ened# There and then Ee decided

she would no longer remain hiding in thehotel li"e some errant criminal ordefenceless animal# She must go out tothe ranch immediately and get this thing

setded once and for all# Celeste o!iously

7@< 9



didn&t intend to get in touch as she had

%romised, and, at that moment, Eefelt suddenly too incensed to een

consider returning home without seeingsome!ody3een if that some!ody hadto !e Raoul 'u(are himself# He might!e a force to !e rec"oned with, !ut socould she !e on occasion, and he

couldn&t %ossi!ly eat her#-ithout giing herself a chance

to calm down, when it might hae !een%ossi!le she would hae changed hermind, she had started out in one of /rs

-ood&s cars, and now that she hadactually found her way to the ranch,

the only hurdle left seemed that of haing to "noc" on the door# -hich%roed the worst of the lot, now that

her defiant tem%er had su!sided alitde#

The house loo"ed sha!!ier thanshe had imagined it would !e, a great!arn of a %lace with solid stone walls

and a heay roof of straw !eneathwhich small windows %eered curiously#There was an oerall sha!!iness whichEe found in no way com%ati!le withthe 'u(are image# /ay!e Raoul

'u(are s%ent his re%uted wealth onother things4

-hi%%ing u% her already failingcourage, she "noc"ed louder than shemight hae done in other

circumstances, and heard herthunderous ra%%ing echoing inside,hollowly, as though the %lace wasem%ty# She was startled !y such a

thought as she waited# Celeste mustsurely !e around somewhere,es%ecially when she was !eing forcedto loo" after

/ichel4 (ut when eentually the

door did o%en, Ee found herself staring into the eyes of a stout, elderly

woman3a woman who was definitelynot Celeste

$f Ee was curiously !ereft of

s%eech the %erson in front of her wasnot# Swifdy she drew herself u%, her!lac" eyes darting oer Ee&s slightfigure as if actiely resenting such anintrusion# 'Que voulez-vous? -hat do

you want, mademoiselle?' shere%eated, as Ee didn&t immediatelyre%ly#

:uic"ly Ee tried to %ull herself together, gul%ing on a dee% !reath# 'Je

regrette . # #& she found herself

a%ologising %olitely, trying to su!due ashar% resentment at the woman&s tone#&/ay# $ come in4& she re.uesteda!ru%dy, &$ hae called to see

/ademoiselle Celeste# $ am a friend of

hers#& Cautiously, and only 0ust in time,

Ee withheld her own name# Perha%s, inremaining anonymous, she would stand a

!etter chance of seeing Celeste#The woman continued to stare

sus%iciously, her dou!ts not whollyalleiated, it seemed, !y Ee&s ery good)rench# &1ou are not one of us,

mademoiselle,' she said at last# &-e donot care for strangers here#&

&(ut you are mista"en, madame,' Ee cried, losing some discretion in amoment when she felt the door a!out to

!e slammed in her face# &$ cannot e2%lainto you, !ut if you would %lease tell /iss

Celeste $ am here $ can assure you all will!e well#&

'Mademoiselle3$ & the woman was

clearly still far fromconinced as she !lin"ed

uncertainly#Attem%ting, in a moment of

insanity, to %ush an adantage she

o!iously didn&t hae, Ee interru%tedwildly# &$ should li"e, if /iss Celeste is nothere, to see the !a!y#&

'L'enfant?' Pinched li%s %ursed withdisa%%roal in fla!!y chee"s, as for a

startled instant the woman dro%%ed herguard, allowing Ee to %ush %ast her intothe house#

&1es, the enfant /ichel#& )ollowingu% the moe which a%%eared to ma"e her

%osition stronger, Ee s%o"e firmly# &$should li"e to see him at once# Vouscomrenez?'

As the woman shoo" her head in a

dum!founded fashion, Ee feltinstinctiely she had made a mista"e# 1etit would !e im%ossi!le to try and changematters now# (esides, her head was sotense with neres that anything she

might say could only ma"e mattersworse, and she had no %ossi!le e2cuse

for thrusting her way in here uninited#'e regrette # ##& she a%ologised again, #distractedly, as the woman turned away#

$f Ee had sus%ected she was a!outto !e thrown out she was wholly relieedwhen, as if com%letely non%lussed, thewoman muttered sullenly# &$f you will waithere, mademoiselle, $ will see what $ can

do#&Left on her own, new fears seemed

to rush u%on Ee from seemingly manydirections# The whole thing, the eryatmos%here of the %lace, her own

stu%idity in coming here, was frightening#

Hel%lessly she ga+ed a!out her# $t wasn&tthe sort of dwelling she had eerassociated with Celeste 'u(are, nor couldshe remem!er Carol descri!ing her home

in )rance li"e this, although she had

7@< 7;



always !een reluctant to tal" of it# The

house was unusual, different from anyfarmhouse Ee had seen in England# A

flight of stone ste%s led u% to the firststorey, where the family o!iouslylied# These ended on a sort of terraceand a door o%ened straight into the"itchen# This was a ery large room,

furnished with a long wooden ta!le,flan"ed !y !enches and wood*seatedchairs# There was a fire smouldering ona flat hearthstone in s%ite of the heatof the day, and from the chimney hung

chains on which a large %ot wassus%ended oer the flames# The strong,

a%%etising aroma suggested sou%might !e coo"ing# There were also, Eenoticed, inglenoo" !enches on either

side of the wide chimney, and while thewhole coneyed an im%ression of roughcomfort it seemed scarcely in "ee%ingwith the rich !ourgeois#

Ee sighed, suddenly weary; this

was a minor consideration# She was,after all, only in the "itchen, a roomwhich the 'u(ares %ro!a!ly neercame near# -here on earth wasCeleste4 The woman had !een long

gone# Renewed indignation floodedthrough her so that when the door!ehind her was rudely flung o%en sheswung swifdy around, her face tautwith a nerous anger#

(ut again it wasn&t Celeste# $twas a man who stood there regardingher from %eculiarly light green eyes#Ee didn&t thin" she had eer seen

anyone li"e him $t wasn&t that heseemed to loom oer her, hise2%ression hard and indifferent,seemingly as annoyed as her own ### $twas %erha%s more in the way he stood,

im%assiely, something that com!inedwith the dar"ness of him and the

clothes he wore# Startled, Ee&s eyestoo" in the high*heeled leather !oots,his wide*!rimmed hat, so reminiscent

of a western cow!oys# As he drewnearer her nostrils were assailed !y thesmell of warm leather and sweat andshe flinched, as if instinctiely de*fensie against the lightning effect the

man had on her# Though o!iouslyalmost coered in dust his good loo"swere undenia!le, yet !ecause of thedust which seemed to cling to eerydetermined grooe of his !ody, Ee

would hae !een hard %ut to een

guess at his age# A lot older thanherself, she thought, well into histhirties# Her heart lurched as shereturned his narrowed, in.uiring

glance, feeling suddenly the im%act of

an intently shar%ening ga+e# And she

didn&t, not after those first few whollyde%ressing moments, need to !e told

e2actly who he was#1et it was he who s%o"e first as his

eyes ran coolly a%%raising down thewhole slim length of her# &5ood afternoon,mademoiselle,' he said, his oice

curiously stirring her already heightenedsenses# &-hat can $ do for you4 1ou arein.uiring a!out my ne%hew, $ am told4&

&1es3yes, $ am#& $n her confusionEe omitted to return his greeting, or

indeed to s%ea" )rench# (efore hisintense masculinity her own ga+e faltered

and fell as wildly she tried to decide whatshe must do# Hadn&t she %romisedCeleste she would not !etray her4 She

drew a .uic" !reath without realising itwas .uite audi!le# How foolish she had!een to come to the ranch this morningHow could she hae imagined therewould !e little ris" of running into Raoul

'u(are4 He had %ro!a!ly "nown the eryminute she had a%%roached his land#

&$&m Ee Reston,& she went on in a!reathless rush# &/y cousin Carol wasmarried to your !rother# She used to lie

here # # #& -ith some dismay Ee halted,realising she was giing needlesse2%lanations in a muddled fashion thatwould neer im%ress the man !efore her#&1ou see, $ "now who you are,& she

managed to whis%er, as Raoul 'u(arestiffened#

His eyes, icy with anger, flic"ed herflushed chee"s, !ut there was no

indication that her news starded him#Coldly sardonic, his fine sarcasm li"e adouche of cold water, he inclined hishead# 'Mademoiselle,' he said, smoothly,&$ suggest you go no further, you would

merely !e wasting your !reath# Suchinformation as you hae gien is not

im%ossi!le to find# Hae you any %roof of your identity4&

Ee&s eyes flew to his !lan"ly,

already hating him# $t seemed a twist of fate that she carried nothing with her;she didn&t een hae her hand!ag in thecar, unfortunately haing left it lying onthe rece%tion des" at the hotel# She had,

in fact, !ecome aware of this !efore shehad gone ery far and had almost gone!ac", then decided this would !e silly asthe rece%tionist must hae noticed and itwould !e well ta"en care of until she

returned# 'id Raoul 'u(are actually thin"

she was an im%ostor, or was he sim%lysee"ing an e2cuse to get rid of her4 -hatreason would she hae for %retending to!e someone she was not4 &This is

ridiculous,& she said !reathlessly,

7@< 77



attem%ting to ignore his .uery, to treat

it with the contem%t she was sure itdesered#

His eyes glinted# He was not to!e %ut off so easily# &1ou must carrysomething on your %erson4&

&No,& the turmoil within hertightened her throat %ainfully# &(ut $ am

not a liar, monsieur, $ do "now yoursister#&

&So you would li"e me to thin"#&He was loo"ing straight at her, his ga+ederisie# &Other would*!e "idna%%ers

hae sought to conince me of thesame thing#&

&<idna%%ers4& Ee&s mind feltcuriously disconnected with shoc", andshe was una!le to turn away from the

!rilliance of those strange eyes# )or amoment her oice seemed lost in herthroat and she couldn&t utter anotherword# Surely she couldn&t hae heard%ro%erly4

As if he read her mind with adeilish accuracy, his mouth hardened#&1ou heard correctly, mademoiselle, and$ might add that the ingeniousness of criminals neer ceases to ama+e me#

One would neer imagine they wouldem%loy a girl with a face as dece%tielyinnocent as yours# How did you gethere4&

The a!ru%tness of this last

.uestion cut li"e a scal%el throughEe&s last remaining fragments of easion# &(y car,& she confessed wea"ly#

&(y car4 $ do not see any such

ehicle# -here is it4&&Oh # # #& Swam%ed suddenly !y a

cold a%%rehension, Ee stared at himaghast# &$t&s3$ mean # ##&

&1es 4& he cho%%ed through

the mum!led wordsshar%ly, malice in eery hard line

of him#Ee caught her !reath at his

tone, yet was im%elled !y it to*continue

more clearly, &$ left it a little way downthe road, !ehind a clum% of trees#&

&Hidden& Now she could seetrium%h shooting almost isi!ly throughhim, !ut it was too late to regret she

hadn&t drien !oldly u% to the frontdoor#

&$t was !ecause $ was nerous&There was a feeling she was caughtsomewhere in the middle of a

nightmare, and only a!le to find

answers which seemed to gie theo%%osite im%ression to that which shesought#

&Or afraid of !eing caught4& he

taunted, without giing her a chance to

!e more e2%licit, his own o%inion

o!iously all he was %re%ared to !eliee#&1ou were a%%arently %re%ared for the

necessity to esca%e .uic"ly should theneed arise# And your fears were no dou!t

0ustified, mademoiselle. /en fre.uendyoerloo" the fact that a woman&s nere isnot all it should !e, and they ery rarely

%ossess the e2%ertise to %roesatisfactory accom%lices in a scheme suchas this# 1our friends should also haeconsidered that Raoul 'u(are might "nowtoo much a!out women eer to !e fooled

!y any one of them#&Ee s%un on him in a fury, goaded

!eyond measure !y his outrageous line of attac"# So he "new all there was to "nowa!out women She could .uite !eliee he

thought he did, !ut his mouth had toocruel a twist eer to hae "nowntenderness# His affairs, she guessedinstinctiely, would !e iolent, in "ee%ingwith the terrain he lied in, su!tly calcu*

lated to !ring %leasure only to himself# Awoman&s feelings would !e of minorconsideration so far as this man was con*cerned# Conulsiely Ee found herself shuddering as her wide*eyed glance clung

to his hard features, not "nowing .uitewhere such intimate thoughts had comefrom, !ut willing to !e coninced thatthey had !een wholly %rom%ted !y hisicious, unfounded sus%icions regarding

her integrity# Small wonder Carol hadn&tli"ed him

'a+ed, she %assed a num!ed handacross her gently %ers%iring forehead,

trying to collect her scattered thoughtsinto some sem!lance of order# $f, as hearrogantly declared, he "new eerythinga!out women, then he might easily haeguessed how ery little she "new a!out

men# He was a stranger, an un"nown.uantity, whom a girl with so little

e2%erience would !e cra+y to tangle with#No dou!t, if he chose, he could !e asruthless as this harsh, !arren land# 1et

how could she let his terri!le accusations%ass as though she had neer heard him4Human nature was surely neer meant to!e as tolerant as all that

&/onsieur 'u(are,& she found

herself saying, coldly, &you sim%ly can&trealise the seriousness of your stu%idallegations4&

The word stu%id must hae !een amista"e, as immediately she had uttered

it his 0aw tightened saagely and he

re%lied in a hard, tight oice, in no wayinclined it seemed to ta"e !ac" a singlesentence of what he had said# $ndeed hewent on, intent o!iously to insult further#

&1our friends hae certainly sli%%ed u%

7@< 7<



1et her own fault or not she had

neer felt so horri!ly treated Raoul'u(are was a %ositie monster, a

!rute, and she regretted that she hadno means of coneying to him clearlye2acdy what she thought of hisdia!olical !ehaiour# (ut then he wouldonly laugh# She could imagine that

strong dar" head thrown !ac", hiswic"ed eyes gleaming, and the %icturethus con0ured u% distur!ed so strangelythat she immediately %ut it from her#

(iting shar%ly her full lower li% as

her side hurt, Ee wal"ed slowly !ac"to the car, determined not to o!ey an

urgent inclination to run# She wouldn&t%ut it %ast the man to !e still standing!y the window, ma"ing sure she went#

Her chin tilted, she tried to moesteadily# She must show him she wasnot com%letely defeated3if he wasreally watching, which, casting foolishfancies aside, she ery much dou!ted#

$nside the car it was hot,suffocatingly so, as she hadn&tremem!ered to lower the window whenshe had left it# The seats !urnt and shewinced conulsiely as tears of self*%ity

!egan to run hel%lessly down herflushed chee"s# She "new a terri!lefeeling of !eing totally alone anddeserted, and an e.ually intense if irrational longing for the comfort of a

loing !reast to wee% on# Attem%ting to%ull herself together, she gro%ed for ahand"erchief, the only li"ely means,she told herself wryly, she might eer

hae of drying her tears# And if shewas to return the hired car* !y lunchtime she must get !ac" to the hotel#

Turning .uic"ly on the hardenedtrac", she %ressed her foot to the

accelerator, heedless of the ensuingdust as she left the ranch far !ehind# A

wind !lew in a tormented fashion oerthe land and Ee didn&t care for it# $twas the mistral, and she had learnt

that with the e2ce%tion of the summermonths, there were ery few days inthe Camargue without it# Today it !lewstrongly, !uffeting the small car,whirling the ineita!le dust clouds

across the hori+on# There were otherminor ha+ards, a%%arently, if in a moreenticing form# )reshwater marshes,grown densely with reeds, a tra% forthe unwary# Or the more attractie !ut

!rac"ish la"es, "angs, where other

dangers might lur", !ut none of these,she decided misera!ly, could !e worsethan the human element, in the form of Raoul 'u(are

Try as she might to distract it, Ee&s

mind "e%t tenaciously returning to him3and Celeste# She had come es%ecially to

see Celeste and failed, and there seemedlittle more she could do a!out it# $t wasno use arguing with herself that shemight hae tried harder# $f she went onli"e this she would only ma"e herself ill#

-ith a little effort she might eenconince herself that Raoul might hae!een more successfully a%%roachedanother way, !ut no matter how they hadmet such a meeting would hae !een

doomed to failure#Straight away she had sensed in

him an antagonism which had not !eenwholly !ecause of !a!y /ichel# Ee&s%ainful sigh of !ewilderment was

constricted# (a!ies such as/ichel, from ordinary families, were

surely in no great danger of !eing"idna%%ed4 Raoul 'u(are, in accusing heras he had, must !e more than a little

cra+y (ac" at the hotel, Ee left the car

"eys in rece%tion, and than"fullyretrieed her !ag !efore retiring to herroom# Once there she san" down on to

the edge of her !ed trying to reiew thesituation clearly# The morning had %roeda com%lete failure, in the nature of adisaster, !ut something else distur!ed heralmost as much# Her money was running

out# 5loomily she sureyed the contentsof her hand!ag# There was only enoughleft to see her through another day ortwo, and then only if she economised on

meals# A frown of a%%rehension creasedher smooth !row as she counted herremaining francs# $t had %erha%s !eenfoolish to come with so litde, !ut it wasall she had decided she could s%are from

the money she had set aside to go toSouth Africa, and Celeste had %romised

she wouldn&t hae to stay at the hotel formore than two nights#

Howeer3Ee closed her !ag

shar%ly; it was no good crying oer s%iltmil"# She had done enough of thatalready# She must arrange to leaetomorrow# This would at least gie her afew more hours to thin" of a way !y

which she might still see Carol&s !a!y# $f it was at all %ossi!le4

Ee&s head, as she sat there, !eganto ache, and the longer she thoughta!out it the more confused she !ecame#

To her shame all she could isualise was

not the !a!y, !ut a man&s hard face, a%roud, dar" %rofile, the .uiering reactionof her own traitorous !ody to the hurtingstrength of his arms# She merely had to

close her eyes to hear the attractie

7@< 7@



i!rance of his oice which had seemed

to stri"e some answering chord withinherself, ma"ing contact as it had

seemed to with eery sensitie nere#She would do !etter, she "new, toremem!er that his oice had had aolume of !itterness in it, and that hiseyes had held cold cynicism, all too

clearly reflecting his o%inion of womenon the whole# And the utter indignity of that last scene

$t wasn&t until she was a!out totidy herself !efore going out to find a

chea% snac" rather than indulge in ane2%ensie lunch that the idea came#

Not a ery original one, or e2citing, !ut!ecause the arid regions of her mindseemed inca%a!le of %roducing another,

she snatched at it# She might findherself a 0o!#

'es%erately she tried to thin" if there was a )rench e.uialent of theEnglish em%loyment !ureau and failed#

Again a frown drew her feathery !rowstogether dou!tfully# How did one seta!out getting wor" in a foreign land4She couldn&t remem!er whether shewould re.uire a wor" %ermit or not#

Some regulations, she "new, had !eenchanged# /ay!e the !est thing shecould do was to as" /rs -ood, whoseemed always so willing to adise herguests# :uic"ly, without sto%%ing to

change her soiled dress, Ee rinsed herhands and rushed downstairs#

$t was almost three o&cloc" andthe hotel was .uiet, many of the

isitors !eing down on the nearest!each or gently snoo+ing !eneathmammoth um!rellas on the hotellawns# /rs -ood was in her office asEe ho%ed she would !e# There was no

one else around a%art from hersecretary whom she dismissed to

rece%tion when Ee as"ed tentatiely if she could hae a %riate word with her#

&Now, my dear,& she said !ris"ly,

as the door closed !ehind the girl,&what can $ do for you4 Sit down#&

Ee hesitated, her face suddenly%ale, scarcely aware of !eing watchedclosely as she too" the chair /rs -ood

indicated# &$&m sorry,& she !egan insome confusion, with an a%ologeticglance after the disa%%earing secretary,&$ really didn&t mean to interru%t youli"e this#& She continued in a rush when

/rs -ood told her not to worry, &The

thing is, /rs -ood, my affairs herehaen&t wor"ed out .uite as $ e2%ected,and $ should li"e to find a 0o!# $t&s 0ustthat $ don&t really "now where to start

and wondered if you could hel% me4&

$f /rs -ood was sur%rised she

didn&t show it, although she didn&t re%lyimmediately# (ut her s%arse lashes

flic"ered as her glance rested curiouslyon Ee&s slightly torn dress, and her eyesnarrowed a fraction# &$ rather got theim%ression,& she said, &that you were hereto meet a friend, a !oyfriend, %erha%s#

Someone who&s let you down4&Ee flushed, momentarily startled,

in no way %re%ared for such anune2%ected contingency, though,regarding her %resent %osition

intros%ectiely, who was she to .ui!!le4-asn&t she in an e2tremely aw"ward

%osition4 )alse %ride could hae no %lacein her life at the moment# 1et, it came toher instinctiely, !ecause the 'u(ares

were inoled she must !e cautious# The-oods had !een in the district fie years,they must "now the 'u(ares or, at least,of them# $t might not do to !e tooindiscreet in that direction# So ignoring a

natural desire to confess the truth, shemanaged to merely nod her headeasiely, ho%ing that /rs -ood would%ro!e no further#

/rs -ood didn&t# Ee&s %in" chee"s

and hastily lowered lashed coninced /rs-ood that her guess had !een accurate,and she was too !usy to waste moretime# &$&m sorry, my dear,& she said, &!utthese things do ha%%en# And now you

would li"e to stay a little longer, in theho%e %erha%s that you might !eeentually reunited with this young man4-ell, you say you would li"e wor", !ut

are you trained for anything, dear4&:uic" relief oercoming a faintly

indignant, if ridiculous tremor at /rs-ood&s swift dis%osal of her affairs, Eefound herself agreeing almost eagerly

and ac.uainting /rs -ood with a fewdetails of her training# -hateer else she

was %re%ared for it hadn&t !een /rs-ood&s delighted e2clamation#

&-hy, you might indeed !e the

answer to my %rayers& the womansmiled, her ga+e resting with renewedinterest on Ee&s face# &$ usually em%loy anurse, you see, as many of my guestshae children and they welcome someone

who will ta"e them off their handsoccasionally and "ee% an eye on them inthe eening when they&re out, or eensim%ly dining in the hotel# 8nfortunatelythe woman $&e em%loyed for the %ast

two years has !een called urgendy !ac"

to England as her mother is ery ill, and$&m actually loo"ing for someone suita!leto ta"e her %lace# She ho%es to return ina wee" or two, and, as she&s so good, $

%romised to "ee% her 0o! o%en for her, for

7@< 7?



at least a while, !ut if you would care

to hae it on a short term !asis, thenit&s yours#&

/inutes later, as she almost flew!ac" to her room, Ee found it difficultto !eliee it had all ha%%ened# -ith anefficiency which Ee had found ratherfrightening, /rs -ood had com%leted a

few details, her !ris" !usinessli"emanner %roing instantly why her hotelwas such a success# She was delighted,she said, with Ee&s .ualifications, hersatisfaction !eing o!ious when she

learnt that, as well as )rench, Ee alsohad a %assa!le fluency in 5erman and

$talian, languages haing !een one of her faourite su!0ects at school#

&As we get .uite a lot of isitors

from these two countries,& /rs -oode2%lained, &this will !e useful#& She haddismissed Ee then, after telling hershe could start right away, the soonerthe !etter#

Ee had agreed, ery willingly,%romising to !egin that ery eening,without com%letely realising e2actlywhat she was ta"ing on#

'uring the days that followed,

howeer, reality caught u% and a litdeof her new o%timism faded as shefound herself haing to ta"e solecharge of numerous small children#There seemed little consolation in

reminding herself that she was still inthe Camargue, and !ecause of Raoul'u(are&s attitude had not !een forcedto return home immediately, without

any ho%e of eer seeing /ichel again#Her new 0o! Ee found

interesting !ut ery hard wor", whichwasn&t, when she sto%%ed to thin",ery sur%rising, as the hotel was a

large one and most of the guestsa%%eared to hae their families with

them# Sometimes she found it difficultto ma"e u% her mind who was the mostdemanding, the children or their

%arents# The latter a%%arendy e2%ectedher to fetch and carry for them longafter their offs%ring were in !ed#Com%aring this with her first %osition inLondon, Ee realised that there she had

had ery little to do# 1et here she hadtoo much, and her gratitude towards/rs -ood changed ra%idly to a ratherwry cynicism, which fortunately shemanaged to "ee% to herself# $t could,

she was aware, %roe a !lessing in

disguise that she was left with littletime to !rood oer the 'u(ares, !eingusually too e2hausted to s%are themmore than the occasional %assing

thought# $f she did get round to

thin"ing of them her mind, too tired !y

the chatter of small, e2cited tongues,refused to come u% with anything new#

On her day off, she resoled, she musttry to get out and e2%lore the area, thenthe answer might %resent itself as towhat she must do#

$t was on the following Tuesday

morning, 0ust !efore she was a!out tota"e a grou% of small children to %lay inthe %addling %ool, that she receiedanother shoc"# She had gone with a%arent to collect an inflata!le ring from a

car and was on her way !ac" alone whento her utter ama+ement Celeste drew u%#

She was driing a small, !right yellow carand, although Ee could only stand andstare at her s%eechlessly, Celeste didn&t

seem in any way a!normally affected !ythe sight of Ee, her only concession to!ewilderment !eing in the glance shedirected at the collection of toys clutchedin Ee&s hands#

&Hello, cherieV she laughed, hereyes crin"ling with a sudden merrimentas she wound down her car window andleaned out# &'on&t tell me you intend allthose for /ichel4 He is not yet of an age,

cherie, and he has enough#&&)or /ichel4& $ndignantly Ee

sto%%ed in her trac"s, her own glancewidening# Really, for sheer arrogancethese 'u(ares too" a lot of !eating Here

she was, almost e2hausted after a wee"of worry, not to mention wor", and allCeleste could do, after "ee%ing her insus%ense all this time, was to giggle and

%ass some ridiculous remar"# &Really,Celeste,& she managed at last with

uncontrolla!le !luntness, &you do hae anere &

&-hy, how do you mean4& the girl

in.uired a!sendy, to Ee&s disgust noteen yet dis%laying a hint of remorse as,

after her first few fli%%ant words of greeting, she chose to glance a!out thecar %ar" furtiely as if scared someone

would see her#&Loo", Ee,& she rushed on

nerously, not waiting for Ee to answer,&$ thin" it would !e !etter if we tal"edsomewhere else# $ don&t wish the so !usy

/rs -ood to see us together# She has theear of my !rother, that one#&

&$t was your idea that $ stayed herein the first %lace,& Ee reminded her,resentful that Celeste was aoiding the

fact that she was a wee" late, that no

a%ology was forthcoming# &And the so!usy /rs -ood, as you call her, ha%%ensto !e my em%loyer, so $ can&t do whatyou as" een if $ wanted to#&

7@< 7=



&Ee& )or the first time Celeste

seemed to loo" at her %ro%erly# &(utwhat is the matter, cheriel 1ou act

strangely 3and what do you mean#How can /rs -ood !e your em%loyer4

Je ne comrends as3$ don&tunderstand#&

Coldly Ee stared at her# &1ou

a%%ear to forget that $&e !een hereoer a wee"# $ had to do somethingwhen you didn&t turn u%#&

&A wee"& Celeste threw u% herhands, her little s.ueal of dismay ery

)rench# &(ut, darling, you distinctlystated you would arrie today &

&$ said the first of the month#&&No, Ee, you said the ninth&&Listen,& Ee !egan fiercely, &$

made a s%ecial note of the date, theday and eerything# $ couldn&t %ossi!lyafford to ma"e such a mista"e# Haeyou my letter4&

&$&m sorry, cherie.' )or the first

time Celeste had the grace to loo"slighdy ashamed# &1ou see, Raoul cameacross me reading it 0ust after the %osthad !een# $ was forced .uic"ly to %ut itin the fire and immediately he imagines

it is from my !oy*friend whom he doesnot care for# (ut $ could swear you saidthe ninth#&

Ee sighed dee%ly, restraining hergrowing im%atience, fully aware that so

far as this went Celeste was .uite %ro!*a!ly s%ea"ing the truth# $n the !est of circumstances she had neer !een a!leto memorise %ro%erly, !ut Ee couldn&t

understand why she hadn&t, in this oneinstance, !een %articularly careful# Orwas it that Raoul 'u(are struc" thesame fear into those he loed as he didstrangers4 Remem!ering his cold light

eyes, Ee found no difficulty in!elieing it#

&$ came last wee",& she re%eatedin a more een tone, feeling it %ointlessto argue further# &$ waited for three

whole days !efore going out to theranch#&

&1ou came to the ranch4&Celeste&s eyes were li"e startledsaucers, and for a moment she seemed

to forget the need to leae the hotel.uic"ly as she ga+ed incredulously atEe&s taut face#

$n a stony oice Ee re%lied, &1es3and your !rother threw me out,

literally (ut $ didn&t see you#&

'Mon dieul' Celeste&s e2clamationwas a hoarse whis%er# &1ou must hae!een cra+y eer to contem%late such athing $ hae warned you !efore a!out

Raoul# And to arrie at the ranch, 0ust

li"e that# 1ou are an im#ecile -hat day

was this, you say4&&-ednesday ## #& !eneath such an

onslaught, Ee&s %ale chee"s flushed withanger#

&-ednesday3mercredu How was it$ did not see you4 $ was at home all day#And how do you mean, he threw you

out4&&1ou don&t hae to distur! yourself,&

Ee assured her !itterly# &$t hurt, !ut then$ su%%ose you&re .uite used to seeingisitors treated in this fashion#&

&(ut $&m not $ can&t thin" how # # #Loo", Ee,& Celeste, a frantic frown on her

narrow !rows, glanced a!out wildly#&Loo", darling, we can&t tal" here# /rs-ood does "now

Raoul, occasionally she hires ourhorses, and she is always relating, ortrying to relate, some little titde*tattle#Raoul does his !est to aoid her, of course, !ut it is not always %ossi!le# She

has the determination, you see, andRaoul is a man women li"e# $&m sorryeerything has !een3what do you call it3mi2ed u%, !ut if the fault was mine, and$ su%%ose it will !e, then you must

forgie me# (ut you must also agree tomeet me somewhere and discuss what isto ha%%en ne2t#& &(ut your !rother4&

&Oh, if only you had waited& Celestegae a des%airing little moan# &Now Raoul

is u%set and eerything will ta"e muchlonger to sort out# -e must reach asolution, !ut not here# 1ou must comewith me at once#&

Such audacity Ee shruggedindifferently, not in any way im%ressed#-ith that hint of im%eriousness as shes%o"e, Celeste reminded her too forci!lyof her !rother, and a iolent disli"e of

Raoul 'u(are restrained her fromagreeing too readily with Celeste&s

suggestion that she should go with hernow# (esides, she couldn&t 0ust wal" out#She wasn&t free to do so# /rs -ood might

hae her faults, !ut she had %roided a 0o! when Ee had !een des%erate andEe had no intention of letting her down#

&$ can&t %ossi!ly get away,& she toldan agitated Celeste# &1ou must wait until $

get time off, and, as $&e only 0uststarted, $ don&t "now when that will !e#&

&(ut you are entided to time off,cherie! Ta"ing not the slightest notice of Ee&s %rotests, Celeste named a small il*

lage some distance away along the coast#

&$ shall meet you there tomorrow# Thiswill ena!le you to ma"e the necessaryarrangements#&

&$ don&t "now#& $llogically Ee !egan

to reconsider, waer*, ing in s%ite of

7@< 78



herself# &/rs -ood does a%%ear to

imagine $&e had words with a !oy*friend, and $ didn&t e2actly correct the

im%ression#&To her sur%rise, Celeste&s gay

laughter %ealed out# &Oh,Ee,& she cried, &Raoul would !e

flattered& Then, 0ust as swiftly as she

smiled she frowned, as somethingsuddenly occurred to her# &$f Raoulthrew you out, it was surely not!ecause he "new who you are4 1oucan&t %ossi!ly hae told him&

Again Ee felt her chee"s go red,and hated herself for feeling guilty# &$

su%%ose $ did in a way,& she heardherself admitting reluctantly, &!ut $&mnot certain he .uite realised# He

seemed to imagine $ was there at theinstigation of a gang, all set to "idna%/ichel# This, $ gathered, was whatinfuriated him#&

&<idna% /ichel3you & Celeste

stared at Ee dis!elie*ingly# &(ut yes,&she added mysteriously, &$ do see# -edid hae a little trou!le, !ut, so far asyou are concerned, it still doesn&t ma"esense#&

&-hat do you mean4& Ee as"ed 0er"ily, glancing swiftly at her watch#The children would !e tired of waiting#

&$&m sorry, Ee, $ can&t e2%lainnow# There is no time#& )rom the corner

of her eye Celeste caught a glim%se of /rs -ood&s searching figure# &Herecomes your so good em%loyer, nodou!t wondering if someone has

"idna%%ed her new slae# /eet metomorrow at three, cherie. 1ou must&

)looded with a "ind of angryfrustration, her cry of %rotest lost!eneath the noise of an oer

accelerated engine, Ee watched asCeleste swung the small car swiftly

around and disa%%eared, thus aoidinga curious /rs -ood# That she had leftwithout offering een one constructie

suggestion filled Ee with des%air#$t was with some reluctance that

she did eentually as" for a few hoursoff ne2t day, %retending not to notice/rs -ood&s disa%%roing e2%ression as

she agreed# Ee was .uic"ly learningthat there was a great deal of difference !etween !eing a hotel guestand an em%loyee# Her room hadimmediately !een changed, the one

she occu%ied now little more than a

cu!!yhole with one tiny window half way u% the wall, which o%ened onlywith the e2ertion of a great deal of %ressure# Her meals, naturally, were

not the same, nor had she e2%ected

them to !e, !ut the si+e of the %ortions

were often so meagre that she fre.uentlyfelt hungry, een though her a%%etite was

normally small#&$t is 0ust her way#& Other mem!ers

of the staff shrugged off /rs -ood&smeanness indifferently# &$n some things/adame is generous3in others, 0ust the

o%%osite# $t can !e !etter to eat outside,or ta"e e2tra food to one&s room#&

(ut this cost money, Ee "new, andshe still didn&t seem to hae enough tos%are# Resigned, she remained silent#

'uring the ne2t wee"s shemanaged to meet Celeste occasionally#

The other nanny whom /rs -oodem%loyed didn&t return and Ee decidedto stay on at the hotel a little longer, at

least until she had seen /ichel# Shethought it adisa!le to write to Rhodesiaand e2%lain where she was, though shes"i%%ed seeral details, and when /aisre%lied, full of gratitude, as"ing eagerly

a!out her grandson, Ee felt forced torenew her determination to see him,des%ite Raoul 'u(are&s attitude#

The first time she met Celeste theytal"ed, among other things, a!out /ichel,

Celeste endeaouring to e2%lain how hehad almost !een "idna%%ed#

&$t was while Carol was outsho%%ing in town# $ was with her# Awoman managed somehow to get into

the house and /arie, our maid, actuallycaught her carrying /ichel out# She saidafterwards it was !ecause she had losther own !a!y, which might hae !een

true, !ut the woman was a stranger andthere were rumours of a gang# Howeer,nothing was %roed and she got off with afine, !ut Raoul has !een fussy eer since#He 0ust won&t allow /ichel to !e ta"en

from home unless he is well guarded#&Ee ga+ed at her in !ewilderment#

&(ut why should anyone wish to commitsuch a crime4&

&/oney, usually,& Celeste shrugged#

&$t ha%%ens all oer the world# $n )rancewe are %erha%s fortunate that suchoccurrences are rare# $t is, as Raoul says,an international curse, %ro0ected !ygreed# Neertheless, he won&t ta"e any

chances#&-hich might e2cuse his rude

!ehaiour in a way, although it stillseemed ridiculous that he had sus%ectedherself# &$f $ went with you to the

manade, and you introduced me yourself,

then surely he would see sense4& Eeinsisted#&Not where you are concerned,&

Celeste re%lied nerously# &$ hae a great

sus%icion that he actually did realise who

7@< 7



you are, !ecause he has ta"en to

lecturing me again a!out your family#So, for the moment, $ dare not do

anything&Ee tried to remain %atient# &(ut

you must hae had some %lan whenyou contried to get me here4 1ou can&t%ossi!ly hae !rought me all the way

to )rance for nothing4 After all, Raoul&sdisli"e of my family is not altogether anew thing#&

&$ had nothing definitelyarranged,& Celeste confessed, lightly,

much to Ee&s disgust# &$ felt suresomething would occur to me#&

Celeste&s %lans had always !eenli"e mirages in the desert, Ee recalled!itterly; she might hae "nown

&Actually, $ hae thought of something,& Celeste sur%rised Ee !ycontinuing, if with some hesitation#&There is a shallow lagoon, some milesaway from the house, on the far side of

the mas. -e used to %lay there aschildren, 'omini.ue and $# SometimesRaoul came too, !ut then he was older#Our father !uilt us a large hut for%icnics and such and Raoul has always

"e%t it in re%air# $t is a %lace wheremany rare !irds are !reeding, andoccasionally $ ta"e /ichel# The lagoonis not dee% and he seems old enoughto watch the !irds and %lay a little !y

the water# To this Raoul does noto!0ect#&

&1ou mean,& Ee&s face lit u%eagerly, &that $ should meet you there,

you and /ichel4&&$ will do my !est,& Celeste

%romised, &!ut you must !e careful#There are mudflats, ditches of !rac"ishwater which you won&t !e familiar with,

and if any harm should !efall you $should neer get to Paris, $&m afraid#&

$t might hae !een amusing, if her sense of humour hac0 still !eenintact, to realise that Celeste&s concern

was entirely for her own %lans# 1et Eecouldn&t deny a small thrill of antici%ation as she set out on her ne2tafternoon off# $itet all, although this%lan of Celeste&s might %roe cra+y,

any= thing was !etter than languishingat the hotel#

Celeste had gien her clearinstructions which she found fairly easyto follow# )irst the auto!us to a certain

%oint, then to follow a trac" to another

%oint from which she should find it%ossi!le to see Celeste&s car %ar"ed inthe distance, The only thing to watchout for, Celeste had said, was %erha%s

a gardian rounding u% cattle or horses,

!ut it was unli"ely that Ee would meet

anyone that afternoon as most of themen were wor"ing on the other side of

the ranch#(earing in mind Celeste&s

agueness regarding the actual location of %laces, Ee wasn&t greatly sur%rised tofind tht*lagoon much further away from

the road than she had !een led to!eliee, and was !oth hot and irritatedlong !efore she reached it# (ut oncethere she did, to her relief, find Celeste,and the !a!y#

They were sitting outside the hut,/ichel, now oer a year old, %laying

ha%%ily while Celeste thum!ed carelesslythrough the %ages of a fashion maga+ine,ta"ing little notice of the child !y her

side# )or a moment Ee %aused unseen,strangely moed as she watched so!erlyher irritation fas fading# He was a small,dar" !a!y3a 'u(are, not a !it li"e Caroluntil one noticed his eyes, which were

large, and as warmly !rown as hers had!een# Ee felt her !reath catch with a stillaching sadness, a resentment against afate which decreed that Celeste, who hadno real interest in /ichel, should !e here

instead of the mother who must haeloed him dearly#

There came the noise of somelaughter to her right, causing her to turnswifdy# )urther along, shadowed !y the

tall grass which !ordered the lagoon,were two men# They a%%eared to !eelderly, their faces !rown and wrin"led,creased in idle contem%lation as they

%layed cards, scarcely glancing at Ee asshe stood a%%rehensiely staring#

&$t is all right, cherie, don&t worry,&Celeste, haing loo"ed u% and seen her,called gaily# &$t is only old )rancois and

Pierre from the mas. Raoul would neerlet me come here alone, !ut these men

owe loyalty to me as well as him# Theysee nothing $ don&t wish them to#&

&$ndeed& Ee s%o"e shar%ly as she

adanced, not at all ha%%y a!out thesituation in s%ite of Celeste&s assurances#To hae said these men gae her loyaltyafter her !rother might hae !een nearerthe mar", Ee sus%ected# Howeer, there

was nothing she could do !ut let it %ass,and ho%e ferendy that it might !e atleast %artly true#

&Come and meet your ne%hew,&Celeste cried, her eyes indifferently

amused on Ee&s trou!led face# &$ hae no

great feelings for so young a man, as youwill "now, !ut you will admit he is adarling, n'est-ce as?'

(ut !efore Ee could reach them,

or een had time to s%ea" to the !a!y, to

7@< 79



her horrified dismay there came the

sound of a rec"lessly drien ehicle#Een Celeste&s !right smile faded as

the scream of heaily a%%lied !ra"es%ierced loudly through the oerhangingtrees, followed !y the crash of a cardoor which must hae roc"ed it on itshinges# &Raoul& Celeste started u%,

clutching /ichel to her, !lan" sur%risechasing the e2%ression of su%reme self*confidence from her small face# &Oh,no& she whis%ered, ga+ing hel%lessly atEe# &$t can&t !e &

(ut, unfortunately, it was#Striding through the scru! he came,

around the corner of the hut, his facedar"er een than Ee remem!ered it#He loo"ed %ositiely dangerous, his

mouth drawn thinly, and !eneath hisnarrowed eyelids his light eyesglittered#

'Mon dieu!' he almost s%at at hissister# &So3when my !ac" is turned this

is how you re%ay my trust Ta"e your*self and the child !ac" to the house atonce# As for you, you scum,& he calledwith cold fury to the two old men, &$will deal with you later, and do not

ho%e $ will forget#&&And you, mademoiselle,' the ice

in his eyes !la+ed to a !urning angerwhen he allowed his glance to rest forone scorching moment on Ee&s white

face# &1ou $ will deal with immediately,as soon as $ hae seen my disre%uta!leyoung sister on her way &

&Oh, !ut, Raoul & At last Celeste

seemed to find hertongue although she had

o!iously no clear idea as to how shemight %ut things right# Her stum!lingoice and frightened demeanour

!etrayed this# &$ don&t thin" you should 0udge Ee too harshly# She only is

interested in the !a!y#&$f Celeste had ho%ed to im%roe

matters she had only succeeded in

ma"ing the situation worse# The colourof controlled dis%leasure tautenedRaoul 'u(are&s s"in, leaing it mar!le*li"e in a%%earance, a coldness whichcaused Ee an inward shudder# &Of that

$ hae no dou!t,& he agreed icily, &!ut $!eg of you, Celeste, go now, !efore $com%letely lose my tem%er# $ do notwish to hae to s%ea" to you again &

His tem%er Ee&s own anger,

su%%lanting a little of her a%%rehension,

raised scorn# /ust he always !ethreatening %eo%le with the loss of acommodity he had too much of eer torun short of4 >ust in time she

restrained herself from uttering her

irrational thoughts aloud# The effort to

hang on to her dignity was almost !eyondher, yet she managed somehow to stand

stiffly still while Celeste droe away withnothing more than an a%ologetic glanceoer her shoulder, the delicate im%licationthat it was now u% to Ee to ma"e Raoulsee sense# Clearly Celeste would !e of

little more hel%#Her soft li%s com%ressed, Ee

turned warily to the man who stood,hands on hi%s oer his s"in*tighttrousers, immensely tall in his leather

!oots# Her fair hair was swinging, !lown!y the wind across her eyes, hiding, she

ho%ed, the sense of shoc" shee2%erienced at the closeness of his %res*ence# $t was the same nere*0er"ing

sensation she had "nown !efore and,while she didn&t understand it, it arousedague fears which she found no easier tointer%ret# And !ecause this surfeit of emotion seemed in some way to instigate

a warning she tried, if unconsciously, to!e sensi!le#

&-on&t you %lease listen to me,/onsieur 'u(are4& she said# &$ thin",& sheadded, greatly daring, &that you should#

1ou can&t %ossi!ly go on ignoring facts, orho%e to change them !y doing so#&

His eyes s"immed her face, not onewhit relenting, and for one dreadfulmoment Ee felt he toyed with the notion

of throwing her into the lagoon, and herown eyes flew with startled a%%rehensionto the dar", reed*!ound water#

&$ should li"e to, mademoiselle,

ery much,& he assured her softly, withdeadly accuracy reading her thoughts#

Ee swallowed %ainfully, trying toignore the threat !ehind his words,choosing instead to re%eat what she had

0ust said, &-on&t you %lease listen4&She was not %re%ared for the way

in which his mouth thinned withcontem%t# &So you would !eg,mademoiselle— or !argain# Are you not

a!le to ma"e u% your mind4&Colour flamed, fanned !y the

taunting inflection in his smooth oice, to%aint her %ale chee"s iidly# &$ seldomresort to the first, monsieur, and neer

with you would $ consider the second# $tis not a case of !eing una!le to ma"e u%my mind# $ merely see" a logicalsolution#&

His hard li%s continued to curl# &And

as you naturally suffer from the inherent

stu!!ornness with which one auto*matically associates* your race you won&tta"e no for an answer# 1ou are stu!!ornand %ig*headed, and yet you e2%ect me

to !e tolerant# 9ery well then,

7@< <;



mademoiselle, $ will consent to fie

minutes, no more# (ut it is $ who willdo the tal"ing,& he finished

enigmatically#-ithout waiting for another

comment he gras%ed her arm, thesame arm which his forceful gri% had!ruised !efore, and where the mar"s of

his fingers had long lingered# &Come,&he said coldly, &we will go into the hut#A little shade might hel% you delierthe s%eech you a%%ear to hae t%re%ared in your head so diligendy#&

&/ore .uic"ly, you mean4& Eegas%ed, "nowing herself unheard as he

thrust her almost rudely into the largewooden !uilding only yards from wherethey stood#

$f she had enisaged the inside of the hut at all she would hae gien itaerage %ro%ortions as there wasnothing a!out the roughly hewne2terior to suggest the s%aciousness

and comfort she would find within# Thefloor was coered with cool green tilesand scattered rugs of a thic" lu2uriousfur# There were small, glass*to%%edta!les set near chair units dee% with

cushions, the material which coeredthem sil"en, o!iously e2%ensie# Softglowing colours, reminding one of semi*%recious stones, showed u%intensely against the matt white %aint

of the walls, and across the windowshung curtains of the finest oile,shading delicately from creamy*white,yellow, %in" and %each through to

cyclamen#$t was !eautiful, remar"a!le, a

erita!le oasis in a desert# Rather li"ean Eastern harem which someone had%lanned with care# And that someone

could only hae !een Raoul 'u(are#Not for the first time, in the short while

she had "nown him, Ee felt her sensess%in, and when she wrenched herself from his gras% and turned to face him

she e2%erienced all the terrors of asmall, tra%%ed animal#

CHAPTER THREE

)OR seeral minutes as Eestared at Raoul 'u(are the atmos%hereseemed charged !y an almost tangi!ledistrust# Silence reigned, an

uncomforta!le silence, while Ee&s

thoughts raced alarmingly, heruneasiness .uite clear to see# -hat didshe really "now of this man with hisdar"ly com%elling loo"s, his %iratical

manner4 The trace of remoteness

a!out him she found in no way

reassuring# Rather it im!ued a %eculiarresentment that one so tall and solidly

!uilt should also contrie to %ossess suchan air of elegance, denying as it did to hisrough chec"ed shirt and sericea!le attireany claim to !e the %ossessions of anordinary wor"er#

Nothing stirred; the faint sound sheheard could only hae !een the irregularthum%ing of her own heart# Outside therecame only the occasional call of a !ird,which seemed to em%hasise their

isolation, not detract from it# A shier ranthrough Ee in s%ite of herself as his eyes

went oer her, lingering on her hair, as if considering its %ale fairness, the dam%,curling tendrils which had esca%ed the

shining coil at her na%e# Here was a manto notice, a man a!le, when he chose, to%romote fear 1et, as she met hisassessing ga+e, Ee was determined notto !e !row!eaten#

-ith im%atient des%air she tried torally her wandering thoughts to decisieaction# Such an o%%ortunity as this mightneer again %resent itself, and here shewas without a%%arently a word to say#

&$ am waiting, mademoiselle,' he%rom%ted, his eyes narrowed now on herhesitant face# &$f $ allowed a mista"ensense of generosity to %ersuade me tohear you out, don&t !e tem%ted to try me

too far# /y %atience is limited and $ am a!usy man#&

&(ut $ don&t hae a great deal tosay, monsieur,' she %rotested hurriedly# &$

only wish to insist that you don&t continueto ignore the fact that $ am Carol&scousin#&

&$ wasn&t aware she had one,& hestated im%assiely#

Ee started# Had Carol gien thisim%ression4 $t was difficult to !eliee

and, een if for some un"nown reasonshe had, there was surely the eidence of her hus!and and Celeste# &-ell, Carol&s

%arents ado%ted me, !ut $ really was hercousin, not her sister, and Carol alwaysconsidered me one of the family# (ut then$&e told you this !efore#&

&$ndeed& he gae the !lac"*!rowed

re0oinder more than ahint of incredulity# &1ou&ll hae to do!etter than this, $&mafraid#& ,

He s%o"e in almost %erfect English,

with only the slightest intonation,

otherwise Ee might hae thought shehadn&t heard aright# -as it %ossi!le thatCarol had !een forced to %lay down theactual si+e of her family in order to aoid

Raoul 'u(are&s dis%leasure4 'Monsieur,'

7@< <7



she found herself e2claiming, &$ can&t

really fathom your determination toignore %lain facts, es%ecially when you

must "now $ can easily %roduce %a%ersto %roe my identity# Een if,& sheadded deli!erately, remem!eringanother day, &$ don&t always carry suchdocuments with me# Also, your sister

"nows me, and if you had s%ared her amoment she would hae told you so#-e were at school together3shestayed often at my uncle&s house# $t&snot as if she had neer seen me#&

His head came u%, em%hasisingthe taut line of his im%laca!le 0aw# &So

you "ee% saying, mademoiselle,' hetaunted softly, &and yet she fled li"esomeone with a guilty conscience# $

wonder why4 $ also wonder,mademoiselle, if you are who you sayyou are, what e2actly you ho%e toachiee in coming here at this latehour#&

His .uestion, coming as it didune2%ectedly, reduced Ee to a state of some agitation, and, in falteringuncertainty, she made another mista"e#Celeste hadn&t yet gien %ermission

that her %art in this affair should !edisclosed# &$ wanted to see /ichel,& shere%lied, deciding swiftly this was theline to ta"e# &/y uncle, as you must"now, is still an inalid in Rhodesia, and

!oth he and my aunt worry a!out the!oy as they are una!le to isit# Noteen you, monsieur, could insist that itis unnatural for them to !e an2ious

a!out their onl grandchild# So $,!efore going out to 0oin them, agreedto at least try and see him#&

The glint in his eyes dee%eneddangerously as he studied her tense

face, watching how the colour cameand went !eneath her flawless s"in,

giing her a curiously young, un*touched loo"# 1et there was in his eyes,as they wandered to her delicately

cured li%s, a narrowed consciousnessthat here was no child !ut a woman, if an unawa"ened one#

&And if $ refuse to let you seehim4& he murmured almost a!sently, as

if his mind e2%lored other, moreinteresting %ossi!ilities#

)or no reason at all, !eneath hiscalculating glance, Ee&s %ulse 0er"ed,causing her to assert more firmly than

she intended, &$ must hae some rights#

Acting, as $ should !e doing, on !ehalf of /ichel&s grand%arents, $&m .uite sure$ hae, $&m also fairly sure there isnothing really much you can do a!out

it, in s%ite of your fine tal" &

&1ou are im%ertinent, mademoiselle

%' )or one awful moment as his angersurged, Ee thought she had gone too far,

!ut instantly he reerted to cool control,a sneering scorn# &-hateer rights you oryour family might imagine you hae, $could swee% aside ery .uic"ly (elieeme, mademoiselle, $ hae*gone into this

matter ery closely /ichel&s %lace is hereon the ranch where, when he is of age,he will inherit considera!ly3all that hisfather %ossessed, and more than%ro!a!ly, much of mine# No one you

could name could offer so much or loo"after his interests so well# And let me

warn you, mademoiselle, $ am not a manto !e threatened, not unless you are%re%ared to ris" some form of retaliation#&

-hateer did he mean3retaliation4There was that in his face whichsuggested many things .uite clearly# Eefelt her !reath catch strangely in herthroat and annoyed herself !y ta"ing a

defensie ste% !ac"wards# Not whollyaware of what she was saying, she cried,&(ut you might hae a family of yourown Een now you might hae one4&

The %hrasing of her sentence was

so muddled as to !e easily misconstrued#Again his eyes glinted# &So you don&t een"now if $ am married& Trium%h rangsuaely# &$f you were familiar with myfamily then surely you would "now this#&

&Of course $&m aware you aren&tmarried& Ee flushed, cho"ing suddenlywith the im%atient, futile rage Raoul'u(are seemed a!le to arouse so easily,

a rage, which after only two meetings,seemed to !ring her to a state of hithertoun"nown rec"lessness# &And now that $&emet you,& she cried, tears of des%airalmost !linding her eyes, &$ can well

understand $ don&t !eliee you hae it inyou to lead a normal married life 1ou&re

too full of ice There&s no understandingor tenderness in you anywhere# $f youwere to hold a girl in your arms you

wouldn&t "now how to loe her&Suddenly aghast, she trailed off to

an almost indistinguisha!le whis%er onher last three words# (ut he had heard allright3his face went hard and his eyes

glittered, and she had neer !een soclose to a man in such a cold fury !efore#$n that cra+y fraction of time, as he stoodstaring down at her, she would haegien anything to hae ta"en !ac" what

she had 0ust said# On to% of eerything

else to %ractically accuse him of !eingless than normal must seem the finalinsult# -hateer had made her utter sucha lot of nonsense4 She had no idea where

such thoughts had come from3only a

7@< <<



fool would eer thin" of Raoul 'u(are

as a celi!ate !achelor Something, not an intentional

a%ology, esca%ed her cold li%sunconsciously# &$&m# sorry,& she gas%ed,her chee"s stained red, her heartfluttering, &$## #&

Shar%ly he gae her no time to

finish# Her oice faltered, cut off inmid*sentence as his hands sna"ed outto gras% her shoulders, to %ull herruthlessly into his arms with a surenessand economy of moement that

confirmed all her half formed dou!ts#There was a sensuousness, een in the

touch of his hands, which Ee could not!ut !e aware of as he held her to him#

His !ody was li"e steel, tough,

and as he dragged her closer, the!uttons and !elt of his clothes %ressedalmost forci!ly into her soft s"in,hurting her# (ut her des%airing wincewent unnoticed as his hand went tightly

to her slender nec", tilting hertrem!ling mouth to meet his as hishead came down#

Ee had neer !een "issed!efore, at least not li"e this# She

su%%osed she had led a singularlychaste life, %erha%s !ecause she had!een an unusually fastidious child,more interested in her immediatefamily and !oo"s# /ais and 5eorge

had neer actiely encouraged her tosee" many friends of the o%%osite se2,!eing stricter with her than they hadeer !een with Carol, and Ee had

always tried to %lease them !ydeoting herself firmly to her studies#$n her dreams she had alwaysimagined a man&s arms would !ewonderful, an e2%erience she might

cherish, !ut Raoul 'u(are shatteredsuch an illusion# His mouth on hers was

un!eliea!ly cruel, !ruising her soft li%swhile she writhed and twisted in hisarms in a des%erate, unsuccessful

attem%t to free herself# Hel%less, shewas forced to endure his em!race untilhe chose to release her#

1et for a moment, !efore he didso, she was still from sheer

astonishment as something li"e.uic"siler ran iidly through her# Hisarms held her tightly and with a "ind of shameful confusion she !ecame awareof the res%onse of her !ody to eery

urgent nere in his# $t could only !e

that he sought to %unish, !ut when helifted his head she could scarcely findthe strength to %ush him away#

Sur%risingly his e2%ression had

changed slightly, a hint of s%eculation

softening the derisie lines of his face as

he stared narrowly from her da+ed eyesto her !ruised, .uiering mouth# &1ou are

still of the same o%inion, mademoiselle&'' he .ueried suaely#

&O%inion###4& Ee&s oice camewea"ly# Through the %eculiar tumult inher head she was not sure she had heard

correcdy# &-hat o%inion, monsieur&' she!reathed, with the trem!ling air of one!emused#

&'o you deli!erately misunderstand,or do you wish for een greater %roof that

$ am a man4& he taunted dryly# His oice,unli"e her own, was confidently smooth,

and his words which should haeshoc"ed, raised instead a %leasura!le, if wholly %u++ling e2citement# 'eli!erately

enticing, he %layed on her young nereswith an e2%erience he made no attem%tto hide as again he lowered his dar"head#

Ee couldn&t turn away, een while

conscious that in s%ite of a curiousinclination to follow the dictates of herfast thro!!ing heart she must resist him#She was no child any more and,instinctiely, she "new this man "new it#

She merely lac"ed the e2%erience whichher traitorous !ody suddenly longed for, a"nowledge of men which might haemade her infinitely more e2citing tosomeone li"e Raoul 'u(are# As it was,

she realised ha+ily, the situation could !efraught with danger# The lengtheningshadows and fragrantly scented air of a%%roaching eening %layed insidiously

on the senses, doing nothing to assist herin her effort to %ull herself from his arms#

His gras% on her cotton*cladshoulders tightened as he felt herresistance lessen# &1ou ma"e a ery

rewarding noice,& she heard him whis%er,as his li%s caressed the smooth fairness

of her tem%les, e2%loring the soft cureof her chee"# &$ can !e gentle, ma etite,should the need arise#&

'Monsieur . . . !' Swiftly, as thetaunting softness of his oice smote her,she tore herself resolutely away, conul*siely ashamed of her oer res%onsie!ody# Raoul was almost a com%lete

stranger; that she had gone to schoolwith his sister could !e no e2cuse# Lostfor further words, she stared at him, her!lue*green eyes wide# Any claim todignity she had %ossessed must !e lost

for eer, yet surely no humiliating scene

need !e %rolonged to the e2tent of !e*coming %ainful# Somehow she seemed tohae lately ac.uired the unha%%y "nac"of getting herself into aw"ward situations,

!ut no one, she felt sure, could hae

7@< <>



foreseen this# Monsieur,' she tried

again, &you must e2cuse me# $ will re*turn to my hotel#&

His white teeth glinted as if hetoo" %leasura!le satisfaction from herstrained, slightly haunted e2%ression asshe stared into his face# &And you,mademoiselle,' he remar"ed, with a

coolness she enied, &must discontinuetelling me what $ may or may not do#That $ hae found a way of silencingyour elo.uence ery considera!ly issomething $ intend to "ee% in mind#&

&$&m sorry3there were things $had no right to say#& )or an instant

Ee&s thic" lashes flic"ered as she feltthe a%ology trem!le inoluntarily fromher li%s# 'id he hae to stand there

loo"ing so wholly su%erior, his eyes,li"e a light flame, lic"ing oer her,missing nothing, carelessly cynical#

His head inclined the merestfraction, autocratically, as if he

acce%ted her hum!led gesture as hisdue# &$ will ta"e you !ac" to your hotel,mademoiselle, if you would !e so "indas to tell me where you are staying4$&m afraid $ hae no idea#&

And he had neer tried to findout# After their first, stormy encounterat the ranch he must hae consideredhimself well and truly rid of her,otherwise, she guessed with sudden

coniction, he would hae made it his!usiness to discoer her wherea!outs#Somehow, un%redicta!ly, the"nowledge hurt# &There is no need to

ta"e me anywhere, /onsieur 'u(are,&she stressed his name deli!erately# &$found my way here# $ can 0ust as easilyfind my way !ac"#&

&1ou would en0oy thin"ing een

less of me should $ let you4& hetaunted#

Again her colour flared in creamychee"s# 'Monsieur, $&e said $&m sorry#&

&Not ery conincingly#&

&And you&re a man who musthae his %ound of fleshtwice oer & she cried im%etuously#

0One !lac" eye!row rose

sardonically# &'on&t .uote your &!ards to me, mademoiselle, $ am not inthe mood &

0Ee noticed he still refrained from

calling her anything & else !ut

mademoiselle, which seemed toem%hasise his sus* & %icions, each timehe uttered it, of her true identity# Ner*ously filled with an odd trem!ling

resentment, she turned ? from him,6

ma"ing for the door# &$ will acce%t your

offer, 4 monsieur,'' she ac.uiesced,without meaning to, su!con* $ sciously

des%erate to esca%e# &$ forgot to as" thetime of the @ returning !us# $ intended toas" Celeste#&

He followed her from the hut !eforeanswering, turning 7 the "ey in the loc"

!efore thrusting it dee% into his %oc"et asif something a!out the !uilding irritatedhim# His shrug as he turned to her againseemed suddenly ery 5allic, warning herforci!ly that he was alien, not one of her

own countrymen, !ut she felt too strungu% to let it !other her# /ay!e he & was

recalling other more amorously rewardinge%isodes in the hut !eside which her ownreluctant res%onses com%ared

unfaoura!ly4&Celeste,& he was grunting, &would

merely hae told you that there was noguarantee that the !us would return, andthen left you to find out for yourself# $t

would !e well, mademoiselle, that youdo not e2%ect too much of m sister#&

-as that a threat3or a warning4There was no telling# 5lancingdes%airingly at his hard %rofile as he

e2%ertly droe his heay ehicle throughthe dense scru!, Ee was intensely awareof how little she really "new of this manwho had 0ust "issed her so roughly# Shedisli"ed him, and eerything and

eeryone to do with him $m%ulsiely hermind made numerous decisions# None of them3neither Celeste, or 5eorge and/ais3could e2%ect more of her She

couldn&t !ear to stay here any longer; shewould tell /rs -ood#

The ehicle s%ed3drien iolently#She had a good e2cuse, if one wasneeded, as they !um%ed madly oer the

uneen ground, not to ma"e anycomment on his sarcastic statement#

There was, anyway, no %oint in discussinganything with Raoul 'u(are any more#His mind had !een made u% long !efore

she had eer arried# Her fee!le%ersistence hadn&t changed one thing,only annoyed him and strengthened hisresole to "ee% /ichel away from hismother&s family#

/ulling oer this sullenly, Ee wassur%rised to hear him say 0ust !eforethey reached the hotel, &Carol&s father ###Has he recoered at all from his heartattac"4&

&Not really, monsieur,' she re%lied

stiffly, una!le, !ecause her head felt sonum!, to reconcile his remar" with his%ersistent refusal to ac"nowledge thatshe was Carol&s cousin#

7@< <@



1et he went further, if rather

o!iously against his will# &They haenot yet returned home4&

Still stiffly, Ee murmured,"ee%ing her eyes determinedly on theroad, &The doctors don&t adise it3!esides, they can&t afford to ris" it, notat the moment#&

&$ do not follow#&Ee sighed, her !row trou!led in

s%ite of her resole to %resent anindifferent front# She said reluctandy,&They li"e it out there, and, if England

had an aderse effect on 5eorge&shealth, they couldn&t afford to return#&

&$ see ## #&Something calculated in his

words caused her to glance at him with

sudden sus%icion# $t was as if hedeli!erately %ro!ed for information that%leased him# 1et how could this !e4Then almost as if he read her thoughtsand wished to !anish them from her

mind, he attac"ed deiously, as sheindicated aguely towards the hotel#

&1ou may com%lain a!out a lac"of money, mademoiselle, !ut youa%%ear to !e doing yourself ery well&

&How do you mean4& Again shefloundered uncertainly, !ewildered !yhis changing tones#

&Liing here,& he waed asarcastic hand towards /rs -ood&s

large, modern esta!lishment, &howmany wee"s4&

&Almost four#&&/rs -ood&s hotel is not the

chea%est, !eing almost first class#&The im%lication was suddenly

.uite clear# Ee&s s"in %ric"led withangry resentment as he droe swiftlyinto the car %ar" and, !efore he had

.uite sto%%ed, she wrenched o%en thedoor and 0um%ed stum!ling on to the

tarmac# $t made no difference that hewatched her untimely flight with dar"eye!rows raised, nor that /rs -ood, on

one of her neer*ending %romenades,was coming around the corner, hereye!rows eleated almost as high asRaoul 'u(are&s#

&Than" you, monsieur,' Ee

gas%ed as her !reath cho"ed# &-hatyou %oint out is no dou!t true, !ut youmay !e sure $ won&t trou!le you again3and that when $ go $ will leae node!ts that might sully, een indirectly,

your illustrious name&

'$u revoir, mademoiselle,' hereturned grimly, as with an indifferentlift of his hand to /rs -ood he droeaway#

&And what were you doing driing

with /onsieur 'u(are4& /rs -ood%ounced almost !efore he was out of

sight#$n ain Ee tried to hide her hot

chee"s# She could see .uite clearly that/rs -ood felt rather slighted !ecauseRaoul 'u(are had not sto%%ed to s%ea"

and, now that he had gone, Ee had nowish to discuss him# Nor did she want /rs-ood to "now she "new him or any of hisfamily# &He merely gae me a lift,& sheforced herself to %rearicate# &$ missed

the !us#&$f she had ho%ed to diert /rs

-ood easily she was doomed todisa%%ointment#6 /rs -ood&s eyes andwits, shar%ened !y many years in

!usiness, saw through her smallsu!terfuge# &Raoul 'u(are,& she %ersistedsus%iciously, &does not ma"e a ha!it of %ic"ing %eo%le u%, es%ecially strangegirls# $ do ho%e, my dear, you haen&t

!een indiscreet4 $ must thin" of there%utation of my hotel#&

To Ee&s chagrin she felt her flushdee%en, until she felt an e2%ression of guilt must !e written all oer her# $t was

little use trying to conince herself that/rs -ood&s unfortunate %hrasing wasentirely res%onsi!le for the warmth in herchee"s# -hat, she wondered unha%%ily,would /rs -ood hae thought could she

hae "nown what had ha%%ened in thehut !y the lagoon4 (ut there were somethings Ee had no wish to recall, not eento herself# &$ can assure you, /rs -ood,&

she managed, &that /onsieur 'u(are is inno way interested in me&

Partly mollified !y the ehementem%hasis in Ee&s tones, /rs -ood&sdou!ts a%%eared to leae her, and when

she continued it was with a sur%risingarchness# &1ou see, dear, he is a man with

a considera!le re%utation regarding thefair se2, and $ do feel in some wayres%onsi!le for you# 1ou couldn&t hae

"nown this, of course, when you acce%tedhis offer of a lift#&

&$ wouldn&t "now, naturally,& Eere%lied shortly as, in an attem%t toesca%e, she turned to wal" away# $n s%ite

of herself a flic"er of dry humour smoteher# /rs -ood seemed to im%ly thatRaoul 'u(are was a "ind of highwayman,lying in wait for unsus%ecting ictims !ythe roadside# She wondered curiously

what he would hae made of such an

e2aggerated im%ression, and shudderedto imagine the sarcasm of his indifferentcomments# &$ don&t thin" $ shall see/onsieur 'u(are again,& she added,

deli!erately#

7@< <?



/rs -ood wal"ed with her,

o!iously, een while satisfied her fearshad %roed groundless, not willing to

!e dierted# &He&s re%uted to !e welloff, certainly he&s a man of some%ro%erty, !ut#a%art from this, his loo"sand %ersonality ma"e him much soughtafter#&

&(ut $&m not in the leastinterested in /onsieur 'u(are, /rs-ood& Of a sudden the drama of theafternoon com!ined with /rs -ood&stenacious attac" caused Ee&s oice to

trem!le# &$ hadn&t the faintest notionthat he&s wealthy#&

&>ust !ecause he rides with hisown gardians and often wears thesame rough clothing, %eo%le are a%t to

!e misled# They say he can wor"harder than his men when he ta"es itinto his head, !ut this shouldn&t hidethe fact that he&s e.ually e2%eriencedwhen it comes to women#&

8neasily Ee stared at herem%loyer with !arely concealedastonishment# $t didn&t seem %ossi!lethat /rs -ood was more than a littleinterested in Raoul 'u(are herself, and

Ee couldn&t hel% wondering what itwas a!out him that attracted women sohel%lessly# &-hy hasn&t he married,& sheas"ed scornfully, &as he&s so %o%ular4&

/rs -ood shrugged# &He&s

a%%arently not in any hurry# There is anheir, of course, his late !rother&s son,so he %ossi!ly feels there&s no urgencyin that direction# A )renchman, more

than many others, sets great store !y ason and heir, so eentually $ e2%ect hewill get around to marrying and hainga family of his own# There has !een arumour a!out a girl who occasionally

comes and stays#&&$ see # # #& Ee said thoughtfully#

&1ou must e2cuse me, dear#& /rs-ood&s secretary was waing, and!usiness must always come first, een

!efore the fascinating 'u(ares# /rs-ood ran, leaing Ee ga+ing unha%%ilyafter her#

Later that same eening therewas a tele%hone message# $t was

Celeste, although she didn&t gie hername until Ee %ic"ed u% the receier#)or one awful moment Ee had thoughtit might !e !ad news from Rhodesia,!ut instead of relief she "new only

anger that she should !e made to

suffer een momentarily through the'u(ares again# &-hat is it4& she as"edcoldly, her oice clearly unfriendly asshe resisted the im%ulse not to s%ea"

to Celeste at all#

&$ had to ring, Ee#& She a%ologised

!riefly for her %art in the fiasco of theafternoon, !efore haing the audacity to

add, &-hen you come to "now Raoul!etter you will realise he is not too !ad#&

&$ don&t want to listen while yousing your !rother&s %raises,& Ee retorted,feeling she&d had more than enough from

/rs -ood#&Please,& Celeste cried shrilly,

a%%arently alarmed, &don&t ring off# Raoulhas had to leae for Paris3an emergencyhas !lown u%# $ must not see you until he

returns, he says, !ut when he comeshome he will arrange to !ring you here,

to the ranch# He is %re%ared, he told me,to discuss certain things, although hewould not diulge e2actly what#&

&$&m afraid,& Ee said stonily, &$won&t !e here#&

&Oh, %lease, cherie,' Celeste!egged, &do not go away, you must not $don&t "now what you said to Raoul, !ut

you seem to hae made .uite anim%ression# He has !een strange alleening, as if he has much on his mind#This might !e 0ust the o%%ortunity we areloo"ing for to arrange something for

/ichel#&&$&ll thin" a!out it,& Ee answered

tonelessly, and, without giing the girl achance to say anything more, she .uic"lyre%laced the receier# Her few words had

!een deli!erately misleading# She had nointention of going within miles of theranch eer again# -ild horses, not eenCamargue ones, she reflected with a

mirthless grin, could drag her withinmiles of the %lace She intended to leaeat the end of the wee"# $f she had still!een a guest she would hae left in themorning, !ut, as things stood, she did

owe /rs -ood some sort of notice#(ut unfortunately /rs -ood

considered Ee owed her much morenotice than a few days# -hen Eetentatiely announced that she must

return to London almost immediately shemet with icy dis%leasure# /rs -ood wasfurious and made little attem%t to hideher anger# &$ sim%ly can&t allow you towal" out on me li"e this,& she e2claimed#

&And it&s not as if you hae another 0o! togo to# 1ou must stay until the end of themonth,& she commanded, dismissing Eefrom her office with a decisie wae of her hand#

Perha%s she was right, Ee

reflected gloomily# As an em%loyer, /rs-ood must hae certain rights, and shedid hae her hotel to thin" a!out# $n her%osition she wouldn&t !e gien to .uoting

untrue facts which might easily !e re*

7@< <=



futed# &9ery well,& she shrugged, giing

in unha%%ily, !ut realising there was noother thing she could do#

'uring the ne2t wee" Ee wor"ede2tremely hard, and if she had hersus%icions that /rs -ood deli!eratelyfound her more to do than wasnecessary she %roudly made no

%rotest# /rs -ood might shout and!ully, !ut Ee determined to "ee% herdignity intact# 1et there were dayswhen she felt almost weighed down!eneath the sheer num!ers of children

she was e2%ected to su%erise, andwhen the rest of the staff whis%ered

that she was !eing &%ut u%on& shefound it difficult not to succum! to theiro!ious sym%athy# To "ee% a stiff u%%er

li% had neer seemed harder, !ut whatother ? alternatie did she hae4 And,as /rs -ood had so ruthlessly %ointedout, she had nothing really to return to#$n s%ite of all the hard wor" she was

%ro!a!ly wiser to stay# Her salary,though not generous, was good# $f shesaed $ most of it !y doing without thee2tra meals she had got into i the ha!itof !uying outside, the small nest*egg

she would j conse.uently ac.uire wouldcome in ery useful when she ; dideentually return to England#

$t was then, 0ust as she !egan toimagine ho%efully he had forgotten

a!out her, that she heard from Raoul'u(are# $t was in the form of a !rief note from Paris# $n it he said he wasreturning to the ranch and would see

her ne2t day# $t was signed with e.uala!ru%tness3'u(are, and Ee stared atit in some dismay, wonderinga%%rehensiely why een the sight of his dar", masculine handwriting had

the %ower to accelerate her heart!eats#$t was almost as if he had a%%eared in

%erson, actually confronting her# -hyhad he chosen to write4 Of course,while he could hae more easily

contacted her !y tele%hone initially shewould not hae answered herself andother %eo%le would hae "nown# This,she was coninced, he would not want#1et a note was merely a note, there

was nothing to sto% her from%retending she had not receied it# $twould do him no harm to discoer noteeryone was ready and willing to o!eyhim, and he must "now as well as she

that there was a!solutely nothing left

for them to tal" a!out#/uch later in the day she was stillreassuring herself that she didn&t haeto go, scarcely aware that the note she

had stuffed in her %oc"et was almost

worn to fragments !y constant re*

reading# $t didn&t seem %ossi!le, in theface of such resolute determination, that

she should find herself on the followingafternoon clinging to the seat of arec"lessly s%eeding !us on her way to theranch#

)ortunately it was her regular

eening off# /rs -ood had as"ed her towor", !ut for once Ee had !eenadamant, een daring to say she wasgoing an hour earlier than usual3astatement which had met with such a

frigid rece%tion that in the fro+en silenceshe had managed to esca%e !efore /rs

-ood had had time to .uestion such afriolous disregard of duty# Ee "newinstinctiely that she would neer hae

got away had /rs -ood had the aguestidea where she was going to#

$t wasn&t until some time after the!us set her down that Ee discoered shewas much further from the ranch than

she had thought# 'istance, in such awilderness, she realised, must !edece%tie# On her first isit she had hiredone of /rs -ood&s cars and had seemedto reach the ranch .uic"ly# -hen she had

met Celeste at the lagoon it had !eenalmost com%letely in the other direction#Now she found the ast %lains curiouslyfrightening, the si+e of them dwarfing herli"e a small dot in a seemingly limitless

region of scru! and water# She hadtraelled a good way from the hotel,some twenty miles, she guessed, !utotherwise she had little idea e2actly

where she was# To her right she sawwater !uttercu%s s%reading li"e whitecar%ets across sheets of water, and onher other side, windswe%t ste%%es,coered with salt grass# She shiered,

concentrating on the dry land rather thanthe marshes where she remem!ered

Celeste once mentioned wild !oar lur"ed#Noticing the reeds, the thic" clum%s of !ulrushes, she could .uite !eliee it#

The sun was hot, too hot forcomfort, and with it the ineita!le mistralwas !lowing which !othered Ee eenmore than the heat# )ortunately therough road was well mar"ed so she

couldn&t get lost, !ut with each ste% she!ecame more and more coninced shehad !een cra+y to een thin" of cominghere# Een to thin" of Raoul 'u(are filledher with a %ainful confusion, a growing

certainty, where he was concerned, of her

own ulnera!ility#One heel was !adly !listered andher thin cotton dress clung dam%ly to hers"in long !efore she reached the ranch*

house and wearily clim!ed the now

7@< <8



familiar ste%s, the e2tra effort re.uired

to do so ma"ing her feel .uite %eculiar#Possi!ly Raoul wouldn&t !e in and she

would !e forced to wait in the warm"itchen until he condescended toa%%ear# Already she fancied she "newhim well enough to !e a!le to foretellclearly how he would treat her#

Ee "noc"ed, and, contrary toher e2%ectations, the door o%enedalmost immediately, and a dar",%leasant*loo"ing young womana%%eared# Ee s%o"e in )rench,

imagining it would !e .uic"er, and wasrewarded !y a swift smile#

&Ah, yes, mademoiselle thewoman nodded, as Ee as"ed for/onsieur 'u(are, &he thought you

might come here# $ am to ta"e you tohim at once# /y name is /arie,& sheconcluded sedately#

&(ut why shouldn&t $ come here,is this not where he lies4& Ee as"ed

with sur%rise, as /arie ste%%ed outside,closing the door .uic"ly !ehind her#/arie merely shoo" her shining !lac"head, !ec"oning that Ee should follow#

$t was difficult to argue with the

tem%erature so high and feeling as shedid# $t was all she could do to wal"!ac" down the uneen stone ste%swithout tum!ling to the !ottom in anundignified hea%# Not for the first time

that afternoon Ee de%lored the factthat she hadn&t come !y car# :uiteeasily, if she hadn&t !ecome o!sessed!y the need to sae money, she could

hae hired one, and could now haereturned to the hotel until she felt!etter, or at least to some not sodistant s%ot until she had managed to%ull herself together#

At the !ottom of the ste%s /arie%aused, glancing dou!tfully !ac" oer

her shoulder at Ee&s %ale face, then,as if deciding that all Englishwomenmust loo" li"e wilting iolets, she

continued on around the corner of the!uilding, ma"ing for a thic" clum% of trees a short way off# There was %o%lar,Ee noticed, and ash, some elm andalder, all fully in leaf# She was

astonished to find such lu2uriantgrowth here in an area which seemedmostly coered !y low scru!# Throughthe trees, as they drew nearer, sheglim%sed a house, a long, low structure

%ainted in a !eautiful clean white, set

in the midst of gardens gay withflowers, again in direct contrast to thearid countryside around them#

Ee found herself !lin"ing as she

entered the im%osing front door# /rs

-ood had not !een e2aggerating; Raoul

'u(are must indeed !e a man of somesu!stance to run a %lace li"e this $n

direct contrast to the warmth outside the? interior was tiled and cool and, as /ariedirected her into a f drawing room shenoticed the eighteenth*century )rench Sfurniture, the Chinese %orcelain,

Samar"and rugs# She $ longed suddenlyto sin" into one of the dee% sofas, dra%edl with furs# The sensuous lu2ury !ec"onedalmost irresisti!ly, and it was only !yconcentrated effort that she remained on

her own two feet# /arie said, &$ will gonow and see" /onsieur Raoul,& !ut Ee

scarcely heard her leaing, and wasstartled, a few minutes later, to find himstanding !y her side#

&So3you hae arried,& he saidsmoothly, his "een glance flic"ing herclosely, his oice dry3as if he neer, forone moment, had dou!ted she wouldcome#

)or an instance Ee made nores%onse# She was too sensitie# Alreadyshe had realised the futility of resentingthis man&s a!ility to !ruise and deflate#5lancing at him swiftly, her eyes

dar"ening, she stroe to "ee% her face inthe shadows, that he might not read the.uier that ran across it#

&1ou hae the eidence of your owneyes, monsieur,' she tried to lace her own

tongue with some of his light sarcasm,&!ut $ !eliee $ was e2tremely foolish tocome # # #&

A!ru%tly he cut in, &That,

/ademoiselle Reston, will remain to !eseen# $ in turn could !e regretting that $sent for you, !ut once you are gone $must !e satisfied $ am rid of youcom%letely# $ do not intend, at some

future date, that my conscience shouldsuggest $ made a mista"e#&

Ee felt nothing !ut scorn for hisenigmatical statement# &$t is good to"now you hae a conscience, monsieur,

whicheer way it wor"s, !ut not that youconsider it the only reason for draggingme all the way here & -hen she con*sidered all those endless miles in the sunshe could cheerfully hae hit him# (ut her

soft ehemence s%o"e for itself, as didthe tenseness of her slight !ody, thesmouldering heat in her wide !lue eyes#

He shrugged, a%%arentlydiscounting anything she might hae

suffered# &$ regret, mademoiselle.' he

!owed slighdy, dryly, &if $ hae causedyou any inconenience, !ut $ hae only 0ust arried from Paris myself, haing!een unaoida!ly held u%# As a matter of

fact $ was a!out to ring your hotel to tell

7@< <



you that $ would send a car when /arie

told me you were already here# $ "now,of course, that you hae your own car,

and while $ agree it is .uite a distance,you had surely nothing else to do#&

Ee ignored this with difficulty,not willing to gie him the satisfactionof "nowing how far she had wal"ed# He

had called her !y her actual name,een though he had .uic"ly reerted tothe more anonymous mademoiselle,which must !e a sign that he half !elieed her story#

$f only her head would clear, thenthis last interiew might !e made to

0ustify all the humiliation she wassuffering in coming here today#Eerything a!out this man seemed, for

no sensi!le reason, to !e !ecoming too%ersonal This was merely their thirdmeeting, yet he a%%eared to hae the%ower to hurt her in a dee%ly distur!ingway#

Ee&s fraught emotions whirled,and, in flare of unconscious des%air,she wished ferently to esca%e fromhim# /ichel&s fate must !e dealt with%rom%tly# &Please,& she !egged,

agitation .uic"ening her tones, &whate2actly did you want to see me a!out4&

CHAPTER )O8R

E9E&S .uery, %ut so nerously,hung !etween them tentatiely forseeral seconds !efore Raoul

answered# &1ou must "now,mademoiselle, that $ wished to see youa!out /ichel# There could !e nothingelse#&

Ee flushed, in s%ite of an all*

%reailing num!ness# There was in hisoice a slight insolence which she found

difficult to assimilate# He surely didn&timagine she had ho%ed there could !eanything else4 That she had e2%ected

an a%ology for his uncouth !ehaiourwhen they had last met !eside thelagoon4 /en li"e Raoul 'u(are, shesensed instinctiely, neer a%ologisedfor "issing a girl, not een as he had

done# &$ am .uite aware, monsieur,there could only !e /ichel, !ut 0ust ashort while ago you refused to discussanything a!out him# $&m sim%ly curiousto "now why you should change your

mind#&

&Let me %ut it this way,& hedrawled suaely, &you hae alreadycondemned me as a !rute, and long!efore a certain3er3incident occurred,

!ut $ %ut it to you that your own

manner of a%%roach has !een far from

straightforward# $f you are who you sayyou are3and $ hae more reason now to

!eliee you are s%ea"ing the truth3then$ thin" you owe me some sort of e2%lanation3as to why you arried onthat first day as you did, the eil of secrecy you chose to draw oer your

initial a%%roach#&-ith an air of slight des%eration,

Ee hedged, still reluctant to im%licateCeleste# &-ould anything hae made anydifference4& she remonstrated# &1ou&e

always refused to see me#&&1ou %ro!a!ly don&t realise,& he said

curtly, &that once an attem%ted"idna%%ing was conducted in almoste2acdy the same manner# A woman, not

an English one, forced her way in herewhen /ichel was !ut a few wee"s old# $twas only !ecause of /arie&s igilance thatshe did not succeed#&

&(ut surely & Ee whis%ered, as

shoc" ran through her#&Perha%s,& he continued,

interru%ting without a%ology, &you canimagine how $ felt when you a%%eared&

&(ut $ did tell you,& Ee %rotested,

unwilling to acce%t what she wasconinced was only half of the truth, &andyou had only to as" Celeste#&

&1es,& he nodded grimly# &$n fact $hae consulted my sister, !ut she has

!een almost as deious as you#&:uite hel%lessly, Ee sat down# He

hadn&t as"ed her to, and, conscious of what seemed a deli!erate omission, she

had !een determined in s%ite of a feelingof faintness to stand, !ut of a sudden herlegs 0ust refused to su%%ort her# &Please,&she whis%ered, her eyes dilatingstrangely with terror, &$ must return to

the hotel# $ feel terri!le3my head # # #&)or fully a minute he too" no

notice, remaining where he was, a fewfeet distant, his dar" ga+e narrowedcynically on her lightly %ers%iring face# &$

su%%ose,& he taunted dryly, &this is all %artof the act# Now that you feel you haeesta!lished your identity, you announcethat you are ill, %ossi!ly ho%ing to gainan initation to stay until you are .uite

recoered#&&-hy, you fiend # # #& Through a

ha+y whirl of colour which dancedconfusingly !efore her eyes# Ee wasuna!le to see the calculating sneer on his

face, !ut she "new it would !e there#

How could he eer imagine she wouldwish to stay when she would hae gienanything to hae !een a!le to get to herfeet and wal" out3and neer come !ac"

She couldn&t een find the strength to

7@< <9



continue her inoluntary attac", her

few furious words %etering out asanother wae of sic"ness hit her#

&Please, monsieur she %leaded, aghast,&you&d !etter get someone to drie me!ac" to the hotel, otherwise $ won&t !eres%onsi!le# $t must hae !een thesun#&

&The sun4& he ras%ed# &How couldthat !e4&

(ut Ee was %ast answering#8na!le to sto% herself, she san" !ac",letting herself !e enelo%ed in the

de%th of the sofa, her head sli%%ing toone side, drun"enly, her face %a%er*

white against the soft green elet#'Mon dieu!' he ground out, !eside

her in one stride, his fingers swiftly on

her wrist, his head !loc"ing out thelight# His fingerti%s on her %ulseseemed almost %rofessional# 'Mondieu!' he re%eated, &what hae you!een doing with yourself4&

&$ wal"ed too far, $ thin",& Eeforced herself to re%ly through sha"ingli%s as the room whirled in a most%eculiar fashion a!out her# She !it herli% hard, "nowing that all of a sudden

her eyes were full of oer emotionaltears# &Please,& she !egged, with aslight moement of her head, &won&tyou 0ust ta"e me home4& Home, at thatmoment, was not the hotel, nor een

London, it was the small town whereshe had grown u%# She had a suddenlonging for it#

He naturally thought she meant

the hotel# &No, not there,& he e2claimed,une2%ectedly curt# &O!iously, although/rs -ood&s esta!lishment is good, theair there must not suit you#& His eyesswe%t her slight figure# &1ou loo" as

though a slight !ree+e would !low youdown# -hen did you last hae anything

to eat4&&This morning,& she muttered,

scarcely daring to s%ea" for fear the

nausea oertoo" her# &$ shall !e& .uiteall right, monsieur, if you would only doas $ as"#&

&And who is going to loo" afteryou4&

Ee ignored the saage em%hasisin his oice, 0ust as she ho%ed shehadn&t heard aright when he shoutedloudly for /arie# Her eyes, enormous,li"e rainwashed !lue s"ies, fastened on

him des%airingly, and she couldn&t

control the trem!ling unha%%inesswhich shoo" her lim!s# -hy wouldn&the listen4 The e2%ression on his facewas so cynical she could hae cried#

-hy didn&t he 0ust throw her out when

he wasn&t duty !ound, or inclined, to do

anything else4Then suddenly there was a glass in

his hand and she found herself hauled u%against his hard male frame, and heforced her to drin" while /arie hoered#His hand came firmly !ehind her headand the !randy stung her li%s, ma"ing

her cho"e# -ildly she tried to turn away,the fineness of her hair s%illing oer hiswrist li"e sil", sha"en, een while feelingso ill, !y a %rimitie determination toresist him#

She might well hae !een a smallchild wrestling with someone of infinitely

more e2%erience# He controlled her fee!lestruggles !y merely tightening his gri% onher slender shoulders while he swiftly

instructed /arie, &/ademoiselle Eea%%ears to !e suffering from e2haustionas well as the sun# -e will %ut her to !edand see how she feels in the morning#The (lue Room, $ thin"# The colours there

are cool and she might feel a certainaffinity which might hel% her head#&

How did he manage to insert somuch hidden moc"ery into a sim%lestatement4 /arie, with an an2ious if

slightly !ewildered smile, was gone in aninstant, %resuma!ly to turn down the!ed, and Ee "new a moment of !lind,unreasona!le %anic# $llness was noe2cuse; she must not !e %ersuaded to

stay in this %lace, with this man# &No, no&she cried, attem%ting unsuccessfully to situ% so he might sec she was not in needof such attention# &1ou can&t !e sure,& she

added wea"ly, &$&m suffering frome2haustion#&

As she had half e2%ected, he too"not the least !it of notice# &$solated as weare in the Camargue,& he grunted, &a

manadier must !e "nowledgea!le a!outsuch things3a layman&s "nowledge, if

you li"e, mademoiselle, !ut one that notmany of us could manage without#(esides, le docteur is a !usy man, we do

not call him unless necessary# /y menoften consult me first !efore the doctor#This is why $ enture to conclude that youare merely suffering from some "ind of e2haustion and re.uire chiefly rest# As $

hae said, we will %ossi!ly !e a!le to 0udge !etter in the morning#& -hen $might well !e dead, Ee thought,curiously contradictory# She winced,touching a hand to her tem%le# $t was

%ounding a!omina!ly, !urning hot too#

She felt aguely sorry for herself andoddly resentful that he should sound socoolly unsym%athetic, een while heoffered a !ed#

7@< >;



&Sto% fighting,& he ordered,

suddenly decisie, as if her oddmurmurings of %rotest irritated him

!eyond endurance# &$ hae had a !usyday and, as yet, can see no end to it#Come#&

-as it her imagination or wasthere actually a thread of tenderness in

his oice on that last word, or was itsim%ly in his arms as he lifted her, anormal !ut im%ersonal com%assion ashe carried her from the room4 Een to!e lifted !rought !ac" the terri!le

di++iness and she found herself clingingto him in an aching, suffocating silence,

wholly grateful for the cool smoothnessof his elegant town suit against theheat of her chee"#

&/arie,& she heard him s%ea"ing,!ut in such ra%id )rench it wasim%ossi!le to follow# She was dimlyaware that the woman came with themu%stairs and was assuring Raoul

earnestly that she had found a suita!leneglige for /ademoiselle and wouldmost gladly hel% her into !ed#

&And do not argue, Ee,& he saidlightly, as he strode into a !edroom and

laid her carefully on soft cool sheets#&1ou&re in no condition, and you&ll soonfeel more comforta!le if you leaeeerything to /arie#&

-hen he too" his arms away Ee

felt strangely lost and unconsciouslyclas%ed hot fingers on his sleee as if to detain him# &$&ll !e !ac",& he fi2ed hisdar" ga+e on her, his face enigmatically

grim as he noticed how the whitenessof the %illow almost matched the colourof her face, &fn a few moments,& he%romised, releasing her slim hand#

He was# She was scarcely

!etween the sheets !efore he returned,in his hand a glass of water and some

ta!lets# &Two of these will ena!le you toget a good night&s rest,& he said, andEe was hel%lessly ashamed to find

herself su!mitting mee"ly to his firmadministrations# She swallowed theta!lets as if an2ious for the o!liionthey might !ring, so that she might nolonger see how his coolly assessing

glance swe%t oer her#$t was an effort to s%ea" through

the thro!!ing %ain in her head, !ut shedid manage to say hoarsely, &$n an hour$ shall %ro!a!ly hae recoered, at

least enough to go !ac" to the hotel#

/rs -ood will !e wondering where $&egot to# Perha%s /arie would !e "indenough to wa"e me u%4&

&1ou won&t !e going anywhere

this eening,& Raoul 'u(are retorted,

Ee&s %ersistence o!iously irritating# &As

for the good /rs -ood, f shall see to it%ersonally that she is informed of your

wherea!outs# Naturally she will !eworried to lose one of her guests, !ut it isa sim%le matter of %ic"ing u% thetele%hone# $ will see to it at once, so youmight rela2, mademoiselle'

Ee&s eyes, too large for her face,stared u% at him in dismay# He must not!e allowed to contact /rs -ood3shemust find the right words to sto% him#(ut already the slee%ing %ills were at

wor", her lashes droo%ed, too heay to jlift again, een slightly# There was a

somewhat muddled 0 %lan in her mind asto what she must do# She must as" S/arie to find Celeste3she must as"

Celeste to deter her @ !rother fromringing /rs -ood# She must ## # !utwhateer ? else it was Ee neer "newas, with a wholly indifferent B disregard of her efforts to stay awa"e, slee% oertoo"

her#$t was morning !efore she wo"e,

and to her sur%rise found Celeste %erchedon the end of her !ed, a%%raising her%ensiely#

&Oh, good & the girl e2claimed,when Ee o%ened her eyes# &$ thoughtyou weren&t going to, eer# 'o you "nowwhat time it is4 $t is after midday, cherie.1ou hae almost sle%t the cloc" around#&

/omentarily Ee couldn&t remem!era thing# She hadn&t the faintest ideawhere she was or what Celeste wastal"ing a!out4 Then, !ecause she hadn&t

!een actually hurt in any way, it all camerushing !ac"# The humiliating way shehad almost colla%sed into Raoul&s armsand how he had ignored her strugglesand carried her here and do%ed her

ruthlessly with slee%ing ta!lets when shehad dared to %rotest At least, in the light

of her rising annoyance, this constructionseemed reasona!ly correct# 5ingerly shefelt her head with nerous, e2%loratory

fingers# The ache was still there, !ut onlydully, the nausea was gone# 1et she stillfelt strangely tired in s%ite of slee%ing3what had Celeste 0ust said, almost thecloc" around4

Surely not4 Aghast, she tried to situ%, while Celeste watched her fee!lecontortions with a "ind of detachedinterest# &Raoul is right,& she o!seredaloud and with faint astonishment, &you

are .uite attractie when you are not all

starched u%# That nightgown, cherie,neer can $ recall you wearing anythingli"e it# Een your cotton dresses alwaysmanaged to a%%ear3how is it you say,

old*fashioned#&

7@< >7



As she digested what she

%resumed were Raoul 'u(are&sremar"s, Ee felt her chee"s flush

scarlet, and e2hausted !y a surge of dismay she colla%sed again against her%illows# Rather incredulously sheglanced down at the !rief wis% of satinymaterial which Celeste referred to as a

nightgown# Had Raoul 'u(are reallyseen her li"e this4 As he had %ut her to!ed, he must hae done, !ut it didn&t!ear thin"ing a!out She swallowed anerous lum% in her throat, !eset !y an

odd trem!ling#&This nightgown, Celeste, as you

must "now, is %ro!a!ly yours, and $hae neer !een a!le to afford erymuch in the way of clothes# 1ou must

!e aware that a student is usually hardu%, and !esides, it has neer matteredmuch how $ dressed# $&e always triedto !e tidy#&

&-hich at your age should not !e

something to !oast a!out,/ademoiselle Reston#&

Through Celeste&s small s.ueal of laughter, Ee&s eyes swung to collidewith Raoul 'u(are&s as he stood in the

doorway and her !reath caughtraggedly in her throat at his sheeritality# He was dressed this morning ina %air of casual !ut well tailored creamtrousers which he wore with a cool sil"

shirt, a craat "notted with carelesselegance circling his !rown nec"# Shewas struc" anew !y his a!solute %hysi*cal %resence, the almost tangi!le

strength of the man, !ecause therewas something %hysical a!out him, a%reailing masculinity she had neerencountered in one of her owncountrymen# Hel%lessly she shuddered#

Her instincts had warned her, had theynot, on their first encounter to !e wary,

!ut what %ossi!le defence did a girlhae against such a dynamic%ersonality4 1et she did try, when at

last she found her oice, to assertherself a little#

&$ don&t thin" you hae the rightto criticise my a%%earance, /onsieur'u(are,& she e2claimed#

&Not under normalcircumstances,& he agreed mildly as hemoed into the room, &!ut you mustadmit that since you arriedcircumstances hae !een far from that#&

&-hich does gie him a certain

licence,& Celeste added gaily, !eforeEe could s%ea"#&That will !e enough from you,

cherie,' Raoul warned his sister,

although his oice retained its %realent

mildness#He turned again to the girl in the

!ed, studying her narrowly, his ga+ewandering without haste from the ruffledstrands of her %ale hair to where theslender stra%s of her dia%hanous attireclung trans%arently to her slender shoul*

ders# There was an odd flic"er in the !ac"of his dar" eyes, something Ee hadnoticed !efore3disli"e, %erha%s, !ut itwas enough to cause her heart to !eginhammering relentlessly at her ri!s, and

ma"e the !lood go racing through her!ody# $t !rought a hectic flush to chee"s

still too lac"ing in colour, a wildresentment that this man could haesuch an effect on her, and defensiely

aware of his intent regard, she gatheredthe white coolness of the sheet tighdyaround her#

Raoul saw the flush which %aintedher smooth s"in and ? misconstrued it# &$

didn&t wish to distur! you until you felt ,!etter, Ee# There are things $ wouldrather leae until , another day, !ut $ cansee that until we hae certain matterscleared u% you will not rest as you

should#&He glanced swiftly to Celeste# &1ou

may ma"e yourself scarce until Ee and $hae tal"ed, !ut first you can !ring her ashawl, something she might wear until

such a time she does not feel it necessaryto coer herself u%#&

Ee had neer felt so confused!efore# His audacity was almost

un!eliea!le She tried to raise her eyesto loo" at him steadily, only to find hisgreen ones loo"ing down at her, a glitterin their de%ths that made her .ua"einwardly# Een the smile which 0ust

touched his hard mouth was not the leasthumorous# There was something

calculating a!out it, oddly menacingwhich in no way steadied her racing%ulses#

$nside her moed a desire to s%ringout of !ed, if only her legs had nota%%eared to !e held down !y leadenweights and her head still too fu++y todirect a clear course of action# Celeste

had rushed to do his !idding in a whirl of sweetly innocent alacrity# (etween thetwo of them she might hae little chanceof suriing if she didn&t watch out

The !ed0ac"et arranged, Celeste

retreated with what she seemed to

imagine was an encouraging smile, !utone which Ee couldn&t for the life of herreturn# The girl, li"e her !rother,a%%eared, singularly lac"ing in

conscience# Hadn&t it !een Celeste who

7@< ><



had got her into all this trou!le and

who, from the loo" of things, was notwilling to lend een one hand to hel%

her out-ordlessly Ee stared mutinously

at her own hands while Raoul drewforward a chair and %laced it !esideher# &'o you feel !etter now, Ee4& he

in.uired, disregarding her silence, theslight sul"iness which em%hasised thewide cures of her mouth#

&$&m not sure,& she res%ondedreluctantly, not sure if he referred to

the !ed0ac"et or her health# Shedecided on the latter# &$ thin" $ should

feel !etter once $ was u%,& she sug*gested %ointedly#

He merely shoo" his head# &$n a

few minutes /arie will !ring you a lightlunch and straighten your !ed, thenyou must rest again until this eening#Only then, if you feel well enough, mayyou get u%, %erha%s for dinner#&

&1ou can&t "ee% me a %risonerhere $&

&No4& his smile was slight and thistime faindy moc"ing as he glancedaround the charming room# &There are

those women, my dear, who haeen0oyed !eing "e%t %risoner in a!edroom, !ut $ will %romise that youmay come down for your eening mealif you in turn will %romise to do as you

are told until then#&-hy did he hae always to taunt

her ine2%erience4 O!iously the womenhe "new had a so%histication to match

his own and wouldn&t !e trou!led !yinhi!itions such as hers# 'es%eratelyshe tried to "ee% her mind on otherthings# &$ am not an inalid,& sheinsisted stiffly, &nor can $ guess why

you should choose to turn me into one,monsieur?

&Raoul## #& he corrected, gently!ut firmly, his eyes glinting as herslight !ody isi!ly flinched, her cured

!reasts tautening sensitiely againstthe sheet as though his hand hadtouched her# &Es%ecially as you are myguest#&

&$ can&t !eliee # # #& Sha"en, she

moistened dry li%s !y !iting hard#&That a leo%ard can so .uic"ly

change its s%ots4& he suggested swiftly#&$ was merely going to say

something a!out a change of tune,& she

re!u"ed him# &$t is only a few short

days ago that you were adising me toleae the country#&&$t is not always a woman&s

%rerogatie to change her mind,& he

countered smoothly, &and $ am not

suggesting you should stay indefinitely#

)or some wee"s %erha%s, so that youmight get to "now your ne%hew# As you

are my sister*in*law&s cousin it mightseem remar"a!ly strange if we continuedto address each other formally# Hae younot o!sered how $ hae !egun callingyou Ee4&

She deli!erately ignored his lastremar", sure that he wasn&t a man toworry in the least as to his friends&o%inions# &$&m sure you would suriesuch a contingency,& she said shar%ly, in

no way reassured !y his suaee2%lanation# &(esides,& she added slowly,

her hesitation not unmi2ed with alarm, &$am not free to stay een if $ wished to# Atleast,& she amended, &not until the end of

the month#&He iewed such am!iguity with

raised eye!rows and Ee felt the colourwhich flooded her chee"s guiltily and %uta hasty hand u% to hide it, her eyes

lowered swiftly rather than meet his#&1ou don&t hae to e2%lain,& he said

seerely# &1ou see, $ went to the hotelmyself last night, after $ had made sureyou would !e no more trou!le until this

morning, and $ tal"ed with one of thestaff !efore consulting the good /rs-ood#&

&/rs -ood # ##& Shoc" hit Ee hardand she could only stare s%eechlessly#

&1es,& his re%ly came !luntly, &!ut,as $ hae 0ust said, !efore she a%%eared $s%o"e to her secretary, who was notreluctant to answer a few .uestions#&

&1ou mean you tric"ed her intodiscussing my %riate affairs& Acutelymisera!le, Ee stared at him, her fearsnot %roing groundless when he cameswiftly u%right, resorting to his old

saagery as he attac"ed her curdy#&'id you see" to humiliate me !y

wor"ing li"e a slut in that esta!lishment&His hard words stung and hurt and

started the %ain in her head again, !ut if

her chee"s %aled dramatically he was not,at that moment, dis%osed to notice#&1ou&re !eing .uite ridiculous& shegas%ed, her own tem%er rising# &$ won&tstay here to !e insulted# $ am not3what

you 0ust called me&&$ wonder& His eyes narrowed on

her cured and generous mouth# Hemight easily hae said &you "issed li"eone&, and Ee felt herself go hot and cold

!y turns as she thought she read his

mind# Then suddenly his s%eculatieglance was eiled as if he deli!eratelyrestrained himself and he !riefly inclinedhis head# &$ a%ologise, /ademoiselle Ee#

7@< >>



(ut why did you do it4 iens,' he

e2claimed, &that room -as it money4&&No, no# Of course not& $n her

haste to conince him she used toomuch em%hasis which was herdownfall#

&Oh, !ut of course& His wits wereshar%er than hers# &'idn&t $ hear you

say yourself a student has often nomoney for clothes4 The secretary saidit was merely your second %osition# 1oudid not hae any money &

&$ stayed for the e2%erience # # #&

&'o not !e so stu!!orn,& headised softly# &1ou cannot ho%e to

hoodwin" me so easily# 1ou wished toleae at the end of last wee", $ wastold, !ut /rs -ood forced you to stay

on# That room where you weree2%ected to slee% A !arren s.uare,with a !o2*li"e window# And all thosehordes of demanding children Smallwonder you are suffering from

e2haustion# $f nothing else $ wassatisfied that it confirmed my initialdiagnosis#&

&And lost me my 0o! 1ou don&tunderstand,& she cried, &it could !e

some time !efore $ find another#& Themental %icture of him swee%ingruthlessly through /rs -ood&s hotelwas enough to ma"e Ee ga+e at himin horror as she isualised all sorts of

re%ercussions# &$ thin" you hae !eenim%ertinent, monsieur'

&$f so, it was only for your owngood,& he contradicted# &$t would

a%%ear, Ee, you were so determined tosee your ne%hew that you were willingto %ut u% with any inconenience# Suchself*sacrifice should not gounrewarded#&

Ee&s fingers clenched into dam%%alms# &>ust what did you hae in

mind4& she as"ed stormily, not unawareof a certain suaeness in his tones# Herstomach muscles went tense with

nerous sus%icion# -hy was he sodeious4

He considered her for one longunhurried moment !efore risinga!ru%tly to his feet, as if her fluctuating

colour and heightening tension warnedhim that she hadn&t yet fully recoeredher strength# &There is nothing, $ mustre%eat, for you to worry a!out anymore# $ hae seen /rs -ood and

arranged eerything# 1ou will not !e

returning to the hotel; she has nofurther use for you and your salary will!e %aid until the end of the month#/arie has already un%ac"ed your

!elongings which the good secretary

"indly collected from your room, and $

shouldn&t adise you to .uarrel with sucharrangements# Now, all you hae to do is

to forget the whole !usiness and rest#/ay!e tomorrow, if you feel u% to it, wecan select an itinerary which might %leaseyou for the remainder of your stay#&

Afterwards Ee !lamed Raoul

'u(are entirely for her continuede2haustion, the %eculiar lethargy whichshe didn&t seem a!le to sha"e off untilne2t morning when she wo"e to find shehad indeed sle%t the cloc" around,

starting from after the light lunch whichshe hadn&t found %ossi!le to eat the

%reious day# This morning, howeer, shefelt !etter, really !etter, and though alittle ha+y a!out the time, was a!le to

a%%reciate that her head no longer achedand the curious inertia she had "nownhad almost left her#

She lay for a moment, %leasantlydrowsy, su!consciously unwilling to allow

the eents of the last wee"s to intrude onher aura of !lissful unawareness# Then,with a reluctant sigh, she 0er"ed herself !ac" to reality and swiftly left the !ed,running to the window# (elow her lay the

gardens, and she ga+ed on to greenlawns and cool ar!ours, to wide !orders,gay with flowers# Through a thic" hedgeof trees she thought she could glim%se!lue water which might !e a swimming

%ool, secluded and %leasant within thecool shadows of the high*walled!oundaries# Although !eyond this shecould also see a narrow stretch of the

arid, scru!*coered terrain she wascoming to "now, the immediate groundswere lu2uriant, adertising no shortage of money, !ut rather a %lentiful su%%ly of it#How Carol must hae loed it here, with

such a !eautiful house and numerouswilling serants to loo" after her # # #

Remem!ering the mista"e she had made,if inadertently, on her first isit, inthin"ing that Carol had !een forced to

lie in other, not so %alata!leaccommodation, Ee went almost hotwith em!arrassment#

8nha%%ily confused, Ee turned!ac" to her !edroom, and recalling what

Raoul had said a!out collecting herclothes she went to the wardro!e andfound her dressing*gown# $t was old andsha!!y and didn&t really com%lementCeleste&s glamorous nightdress, !ut this

latter she meant to discard as soon as

she had washed# Her face flushingslightly, she regarded the short row of her clothes which /arie had arrangedneatly at one end of the commodious

wardro!e# The cotton dresses, most of

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which had !een run u% .uic"ly on a

!orrowed sewing machine in her digs,hung lim%ly, without either cut or

nota!le style, something which hadneer worried Ee unduly until now#)rowning slightly, she turned aside,choosing instead a %air of old 0eans anda casual shirt that she had worn around

London on her free wee"ends# $f Raoul'u(are found her sha!!iness not to hisli"ing %erha%s he wouldn&t !e long in%ac"ing her off home, and while such athought should hae cheered, it

!rought with it only a sur%rising touchof de%ression#

/a"ing the most of the limitedtime she sus%ected she had at herdis%osal, Ee o%ened a door o%%osite

that which she "new led out on to thecorridor and found a !athroom, com*%lete with !ath and shower# :uic"ly shesli%%ed out of her dressing gown andturned on the shower, glancing wistfully

towards the !ath, imagining the%leasure of a long lu2urious soa" inwater scented from one of the range of e2.uisite*loo"ing toiletries which lineda glass shelf on the mirrored wall# -ho

had chosen them4 she wondered# Hadit !een Celeste, or had someone elseleft them there4 Some woman,%erha%s, one whom the master of thehouse "new intimately4 Someone with

elegance and !eauty, so%histicatedenough to ma"e full use of the su%er!,e2%ensie %erfumes to !e found inthose wonderful glass*sto%%ered

!ottles#Nerelessly held, she stared

through the s%ar"ling riulets of waterwhich soa"ed her hair and shoulders!efore running oer her slim !ody, the

trend of her thoughts suddenlytightening her s"in %ainfully, dar"ening

her !lue eyes# -hy did she hae tothin" of Raoul 'u(are li"e this, a manwho clearly only considered her a

nuisance4 $t didn&t seem %ossi!le, andher mind shied away from admitting it,that she had neer felt the same sincehe had "issed her# His cruel treatmentof her had, she assured herself,

increased in no small way the hatredalready in her heart# -hy then did thethought of him with other women !ringsuch shar%ly e2.uisite %ain4

)linching instinctiely as if from a

%hysical !low, Ee, in a des%erate

effort to thrust him from her mind,gra!!ed a thic" towel and dried herself ruthlessly as she sought to regain asli%%ing com%osure# She was twenty*

two, time she grew u% a little and

learnt to ta"e men li"e Raoul 'u(are in

her stride3not to act li"e some loesic"%artici%ant in some modern tragedy who,

after one !rief em!race, was againlonging to commit herself to the arms of a man who, with his undou!ted"nowledge of such matters "new all tooeasily how to arouse a %assionate

res%onse# $t was all a matter of sim%lee2%erience, she decided !itterly, firmlyclosing the !athroom door#

She was dressed and !usy tidyingher room when /arie arried#

'$h, #on, mademoiselle shee2claimed, smiling at the sight of Ee&s

much im%roed a%%earance# &1ou loo"!etter, there is now colour in yourchee"s# 1ou sle%t and sle%t and $ was

afraid you would not wa"e u%, !ut/onsieur Raoul assured me you would, allin good time#&

&$ feel a fraud,& Ee smiled ruefullyas she than"ed /arie for loo"ing after

her, and /arie glanced at her as if %leas*antly sur%rised, as though she wasn&t tooused to a%%reciation from many of theirisitors# &/ademoiselle is too "ind,& shemurmured#

/ademoiselle could go down forlunch, /arie continued,

!ut only if she felt recoeredenough to do so# Otherwise she

could hae it here, in her room#

Reluctant to cause any moreinconenience, Ee drew a

dee% !reath and re%lied that shewould go down, !ut first she

must see /ademoiselle Celeste#Suddenly Ee "new this was

im%eratie !efore she met Raoul again#She must get things straight# $t had !eenCeleste, in the first %lace, who had

insisted she came here, and it wasCeleste who must tell Raoul this,

otherwise he might not !eliee it# &Please,if you can find her, would you tell/ademoiselle Celeste $ must see her at

once, /arie,& she said#Celeste came eentually, loo"ing

sullen# &-hat a fuss you do ma"e, Ee,&she grum!led, as Ee tried %atiently toe2%lain what she wanted her to do# &'oes

it matter who as"ed you to come4 Afterall, the main o!0ect was that Raoul shouldreceie you# (ut now that this has !eenachieed why im%licate me4 He wouldonly !e furious with me&

&(ut don&t you understand4& Ee

almost %leaded# &He thin"s $&e more orless wormed my way in# $&m conincedthat, although he has issued a shortinitation, he secretly des%ises me for it#&

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Celeste glanced at her, suddenly

taunting# &Surely, Ee, you are not oerconcerned as to what o%inion my

!rother should hae of you4 'on&t youthin" he deseres to !e deceied a littleafter the way he has treated you4 Anddon&t you thin" also that you owe me alittle loyalty, a little silence4 After all, $

hae sacrificed almost two years3twomost im%ortant years of my life3toyour cousin&s child#&

-hich ha%%ened to !e true in away, Ee conceded, whicheer way one

loo"ed at it# And while Ee could %ointout that Carol&s %arents had !een

!arred from the child this had not !eenCeleste&s fault# Per%le2ed, she watched,momentarily at a loss for words, as

Celeste wandered to the window,%ausing to ta% restlessly on the narrowwooden frame !efore turning to faceEe again#

&1ou see,& she continued, her

small, %i.uant face %etulant, &Raoul!ullies me# $ must o!ey his eerycommand# -hen 'omini.ue was alieit was not too !ad, although he toomust do as Raoul dictates# He must

stay here and loo" after the ranch whileRaoul en0oys himself in Paris with his

etite amie. $ hae always !een afraidof him, Ee, and you must remem!er itis $ who shall hae to lie with him

after you hae gone#&$n s%ite of the warmth of the day

Ee was conscious of chill# &(ut $thought you were going to Paris almost

atonce 4&Celeste fli%%ed her small hands

regretfully# &Cousin Nad*ine has !eencalled to New 1or"# 8nfortunately she

will !e there for seeral wee"s#&&So it is not really necessary for

me to stay4&&Oh, !ut yes, it is& Celeste

e2claimed eagerly# &She will !e !ac"3

and if eerything goes well here # # #1ou understand that /rs -ood at thehotel told Raoul you are a trainedchildren&s nanny and this has arousedhis interest#&

&$ see#& Ee shiered, feelingstrangely colder# So it was thisinformation which had %rom%ted hisinitation to stay, not her %ersonally, asa woman# This of course, she hastened

to assure herself, she would not want,

!ut she hated to thin" she was !eingconsidered merely in the light of a%ossi!le em%loyee# E2acdy how shemight !e e2%ected to fit in here as a

trained nurse she had yet to wor" out#

A%art from Celeste, Raoul surely already

had ade.uate %rofessional hel%, and onlynow was Ee !eginning to realise how

im%ossi!le it would !e to stay on at theranch !y herself#

&Ee& the girl was e2claimingloudly# &1ou sent for me, %ost*haste, andnow $ am here you sit dreaming, and

Raoul does so disli"e !eing "e%t waitingfor luncheon# $ %resume you are ready4&Her dar" eyes swe%t Ee&s denim trousersinsolently# &$ am not sure he willa%%reciate what you are wearing, cnerie.'

&$&m .uite sure he will neer notice,&Ee retorted coolly, rising .uic"ly to her

feet, unwilling to e2%lain the %recariousstate of her finances, wondering, at thesame time, why she should allow these

'u(ares to hurt her so# &$ will at leastremain a little while,& she agreedreluctantly, &!ut $ refuse to ma"e any%romises#&

As it ha%%ened, Raoul did not arrie

for lunch# /arie e2%lained that he had!een called une2%ectedly to the otherside of the ranch and would eat with hismen# &Always there is something,& shegrum!led, as she sered the delicious

light meal# &Always these gardiansimagine he can sole eery %ro!lem#&

&They are !usy with the herds,&Celeste su%%lied further details withouta%%arent interest as she greedily

attac"ed her lo!ster# &They are chec"ingthe cales !efore !randing# 'omini.ueused to let >ules, our chief gardian, geton with it, !ut Raoul must go himself and

see#&Had Carol ta"en any %art in this

intriguing actiity outside the house, outon the wide o%en s%aces of the marsh*land4 Ee wondered, "nowing herself,

een after such a short time, to !e full of an eager curiosity regarding the wor"ings

of the ranch# Perha%s Carol had learnt toride and ac.uaint herself with the herdsof !lac" !ulls and wild horses, !ut

glancing tentatiely at Celeste&s a!sor!edface she was aware that this was not themoment to as"#

Afterwards Celeste left to isitfriends# &/ichel has his meals in the

nursery and will now !e haing his rest,!ut $ su%%ose you might isit him later,&she said !efore she went, !ut nota%%arently feeling any necessity to ta"eEe there herself#

)inding there was no one around

after Celeste had gone, Ee resisted thetem%tation to see" /ichel out right away,wandering instead into the garden# )orthe first time since she had come to

)rance she felt lonely, strangely shut out

7@< >=



from this wildly %rimitie area of the

Camargue# Or was it that she still felt alittle tired, and would hae !een wiser

to hae retraced her ste%s and gone toher room4 Only if she was really wellcould she eer ho%e to ta"e all this inher stride# 1et, after slee%ing for solong the %reious day, another siesta

didn&t really a%%eal and, in s%ite of theincreasing warmth of the sun, shecontinued to e2%lore the gardens, her%ale face soon glowing with mountinginterest in all she found there#

CHAPTER )$9E

THE gardens, Ee found, were!eautiful, een more so than they had

a%%eared to !e from her !edroomwindow and she s%ent a %leasant hourwal"ing around them# 1et in s%ite of her %leasure a sense of frustration%reailed, as there were so many

%lants and !irds she didn&t recognise#There were wrens, a ro!in andgoldfinch, !ut she found it im%ossi!leto name many more# Among the %lantsthere were those which she had seen in

English gardens, !ut, as with the !irds,there were a lot she didn&t "now# Shemade a mental note to as" Celestea!out them when she returned#

As she had sus%ected, there was

a swimming %ool hidden away in thewalled %art of the garden, !ut it waswith some difficulty that she found thenarrow door which led to it# $t wasn&t

loc"ed and once through it she haltedin some ama+ement# The %ool was longand wide and %aed inside and outsidewith translucent !lue tiles whichreflected the colour of the water and

changed with eery faint ri%%le on thesurface to a shimmering, iridescent

green# On the o%%osite side of the %oolto where she stood there werechanging rooms, and outside these,

%laced at interals on the tiles, werenumerous chairs and small ta!les#

:uite a %lace, Ee decided,recoering her !reath sufficiently towander to one of the chairs and sit

down# She felt suddenly tired andglanced with unconcealed longing atone of the comforta!le gardenloungers, !ut to stretch out on it mightgie the im%ression, if anyone caught

her, that she was ma"ing herself too

much at home# Resisting the tem%ta*tion, she stayed where she was, !utthe heat of the sun and soft wind whichmoed through the !ranches of the

near!y trees had an hy%notic effect,

and she was almost aslee% again when

Raoul 'u(are found her#Startled, Ee 0er"ed herself u%right#

/ust he ma"e a ha!it of a%%roaching heron silent feet4 She hadn&t heard a thing3it had only !een instinctiely that she had"nown he was there# Li"e a refle2 her%ulse had suddenly .uic"ened, warning

her in a %eculiar, un%redicta!le way# $f there was a single thought in her head itwas one of relief that he hadn&t found herin a more indolent %osition# (lin"inguncertainly from drowsy !lue eyes, she

loo"ed u% at him as for a moment hetowered oer her !efore dro%%ing

negligently to the seat o%%osite#&$ wondered if $ should find you

here,& was all he said#

The !reity of his greeting arousedodd feelings of guilt# &$&m sorry,& she!egan, &$&m %ro!a!ly tres%assing#&

Rather a!ru%tly he shoo" his head,as if im%atient with such a suggestion#

&/arie thought you were in the garden,and if you li"e it here !y all means stay,!ut $ thin" you would hae !een !etteradised to hae gone to your room for a%ro%er siesta# 1ou are still loo"ing too

fragile, mademoiselle.' &$&m .uite fit, really,& she %rotested,

with an effort s%ea"ing lightly, his oicewith its momentarily caressing noteaffecting her strangely#

&1ou must ta"e it easy for seeraldays,& he %ersisted, as if she had neers%o"en# &$f you don&t wish to remain inyour !ed you can come out here#

Eentually a short di% in the %ool woulddo you nothing !ut good# $t would !ring!ac"3 what is it you say in your country43the roses to your chee"s#&

&Than" you,& she murmured, trying

to remoe her ga+e from his dar"lyhandsome face, una!le !ecause of a

%eculiar constriction in her throat to re%lyin any other way# &Celeste went out,& shemanaged eentually, as he continued to

e2amine her chee"s in la+y silence, &!ut $haen&t !een lonely, monsieur. $ haeen0oyed your garden#&

&$t is %leasant,& he ac"nowledged#She %erseered# &This swimming

%ool# # #4&&/y father !uilt it, seeral years

ago,& he enlightened her idly, &when $ wasa !oy# 'omini.ue en0oyed it and so didCarol occasionally#&

$t sur%rised Ee that his words

!rought more %leasure than %ain# $t wascomforting to "now Carol had !een ha%%yhere, and she felt curiously disinclined tochallenge Raoul a!out it at this moment#

7@< >8



&1es,& she nodded, &Carol would# $

en0oy swimming myself# So doesCeleste#&

&-hy do you always !ring Celeste!etween us, mademoiselle? 'o youregard her as some "ind of %rotection4&

Ee stiffened, the !rightness of the day suddenly fading !efore the

returning moc"ery in his tone# Rising toher feet, she moed with swiftagitation, a slender sha%e against thesun*flec"ed water# &1ou en0oy teasingme, $ thin"# To !egin with, it seemed,

you wished only to dis%ose of me !yfair means or foul# Now33& she

hesitated, her face flushing withconfusion, at some loss to descri!eaccurately the way he chose to treat

her now# The thread of gentlenessalarmed rather than reassured, thetransition from cool enmity too suddento ring true# This outward show of !enign ciility could !e %art of a

deli!erate course of action, %lanneddeiously to succeed where !rutestrength had failed in ridding himself once and for all of Carol&s family# Thisman, she realised des%airingly, would

always !e one ste% ahead# $t was u% toher to !e wary, not to allow a few softwords to wea"en her defences, yet howcould she accuse him of du%licity onthe eidence of the %ast two days4 The

flush of em!arrassment in her chee"sdee%ened as, una!le to find the rightwords to continue, she !egan to wal".uic"ly away#

'Mademoiselle!' His oice caughther li"e an arrowhead !etween theshoulders, !ringing her headlong flightto an a!ru%t halt# &Come !ac" at once,&he ordered, and she didn&t "now how a

man&s tones could carry such commandyet !e so low#

Curiously una!le to follow herown inclinations to diso!ey, she foundherself doing as she was told, een to

resuming her seat, aware, as she didso, of his downward glance of satisfaction# The glint in his eyesshar%ened# &'o you always leae yoursentences unfinished, Ee, or was it

sim%ly that you wished to s%are myfeelings4 $ shouldn&t hae thought youlac"ing in courage, whateer else#&

&$ %romise you won&t find that,monsieur,' she retorted shortly, see"ing

to conince him of a irtue she was not

sure she %ossessed, !ut unwilling heshould guess# &$&m sure your feelingsare too tough to !e dented !y anywords of mine# $&m not sure why $ felt a

desire to leae the garden, nor why $

changed my mind and didn&t do so#&His hard mouth .uir"ed, as if he

understood that her little e2%lanation was.uite ridiculous# &$ am used to !eingo!eyed, Ee,& he %urred, ta"ing herac.uiescence wholly for granted# &1ou willfind it easier to remem!er#&

&Not so %ainful, you mean4& She hadneer intended referring to an incidentshe fancied would hae !een !etter for*gotten, if only for her dignity&s sa"e, !utim%ulsiely it had sli%%ed out#

&So# ##4& his eyes ra"ed her# &E2%lainyourself, mademoiselle.'

The !lood !eat hot in her tem%les,een to thin" of it, and her tongue felt%aralysed, !ut afraid that he should

notice een a twinge of a%%rehension,she lifted her chin defiandy# How daredhe %retend she had no cause forcom%laint &On my first isit here youmust remem!er how you almost threw

me down those ste%s4 $ was hurt3!ruised &

$n a second as his ga+e met hers itshar%ened to a frown# &1ou were4 $ didn&trealise# (ut,& he shrugged sardonically, &$

do recall that $ was furious#&&1ou were that all right&&Hush, mademoiselle,' coolly

restrictie, his eyes slid oer her, &you aretoo sensitie, and %erha%s this ma"es

you too res%onsie# There is a fragilitya!out you which might arouse a deil in aman# To a small degree $ still consider my!ehaiour was e2cusa!le, !ut $ am not a

!rute# $ am sure $didn&t deal too harshly# These

!ruises you s%ea" of4&&$ still hae them faintly#& Carried

away !y a consuming flare of indignation,

Ee %ushed u% her sleee to where thesmooth young s"in of her u%%er arm still

showed a shadowed mar"#His eyes dwelt on the !are s"in

thoughtfully, and though he murmured

softly that he was sorry, Ee sensedinstinctiely that he was no such thing#That the infliction of %ain, in her case,was something he had en0oyed, andmight still do, should the need for further

chastisement arise# )rom a distance sheheard him add, &$t a%%ears $ owe you ana%ology, Ee#&

Her !reath curiously uneen, Eedro%%ed the su!0ect as if it !urnt# &$

!eliee so3yes, !ut $ would much rather

hae a few straight answers, monsieur.' &To what4& His dar" !rows rose#&Regarding the way you treat my

family, for a start#&

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&And $ suggest, Ee,& he o!0ected

suaely, &that we leae such adiscussion for the time !eing#& As she

sought to %rotest his hand went out tocoer her nerous fingers firmly, giingem%hasis to his ne2t words# &$ can&tthin" any useful %ur%ose would !esered !y dissecting the %ast until we

"now each other !etter# On our futurerelationshi% so much could de%end, soyou must hae %atience, mademoiselle.$f you are to stay here for a wee" ortwo then it is %ossi!le to leae things

as they are at %resent# $f $ hae !eenoer*hasty a!out certain matters then $

do not wish to ma"e the same mista"eagain#&

So he admitted he had !een

wrong, !ut li"e a tyrant was not%re%ared to dwell on his misdeedsSwiftly, as if stung, Ee 0er"ed herhand from under his, a release for hertaut senses# How coneniently he

wra%%ed u% years of irrational!ehaiour li"e a !undle of scra% to !ethrown lightly aside, the riddles hetal"ed merely a means of setting u% acamouflaging confusion# (itterly she

stared at him, at his dar" face, "nowinga desire, stronger than any she hadeer "nown !efore, to hurt# 1et, eenas she stared, there washed oer her afinely ground frustration# How could

she eer ho%e to wound anyone soim%erious4 )or all his %lausi!le wordshe left her in no dou!t he held the whi%hand# $f she were to %rotest too much,

ma"e too much fuss then, 0ust as easilyas he had gien it, he could withdrawhis initation, and she had yet to meetCarol&s !a!y#

&As you li"e, monsieur,' she

agreed aloofly, her coolness giing, sheho%ed, a clear indication that while she

was !eing forced to ignore the %ast itwas not so easily forgotten# &And,& sheadded, with unwonted shar%ness, &as

my time is limited, $ should li"e tomeet /ichel as soon as it can !earranged#&

$f she had e2%ected to annoy hima little with this last o!seration she

was doomed to disa%%ointment# Heloo"ed merely amused !y the outragein her eyes# &$ do !eliee $ li"e you!etter when you forget to !e thedemure nursemaid, my dear# Too much

sweetness can !e cloying# On occasion

you hae a refreshing tartness which $en0oy# Carol could neer defend herself as you do#&

Should he not hae said Carol

was no fighter4 $f Carol had !een fond

of haing her own way she had usually

succeeded in getting it !y other means#1et what right had Raoul 'u(are to sound

so critical4 Actie disli"e against the manstirred# &1ou forget, monsieur, Carol and $were only cousins, and she was alwaysgentle#&

&Of course,& there was in his oice

an unfeeling restraint as he rose to hisfeet, drawing her u% with him# &1ou wishto see the child4 $ will ta"e you to himmyself, !ut as you are still too thin and%ale $ do not want you to wear yourself

out3not again# 1ou may stay with him fora short while and then go to your room

and rest# Tomorrow, if you wish, a litdelonger, !ut only in easy stages,mademoiselle.'

Restlessly, Ee flinched, reluctant toagree he could !e right, that it was%ossi!le# Her !reathing still came%ainfully, een her %ulse !ehaederratically, too aware of his steely fingers

!eneath her arm as he led her from thegarden# She was also aware of anincreasing need to o%%ose him# &$ %romisenot to do anything foolish, !ut $ cannotrest for eer, monsieur.'

Ee had often wondered e2actlyhow she would feel a!out Carol&s !a!y,should she eer get to "now him# Her%resent wor" would hae !een im%ossi!lehad she not !een fond of children en

masse, and the one indiidual child whomshe had loo"ed after in her first 0o! had%resented no %ro!lems# He had !een a%articularly %lacid !oy, ery easy to

manage# )or /ichel she hadn&t e2%ectedto feel any immediate attachment such asa grand%arent or real aunt might haedone, and she was sur%rised at the wayher heart went out to him when she and

Raoul entered the nursery and found himwee%ing# His whim%ering cries could in

fact !e heard as they wal"ed along thewide corridor towards his room, and Eewas .uic" to note the dar" frown on

Raoul&s face as the cries rose in olumesof sheer rage, a crescendo that su!sided%athetically to defeated, hiccu%ing so!s#

'Mon dieu,' he !reathed, %ullingo%en the closed door, &can there !e no

com%etence anywhere when my !ac" isturned4& His oice rose angrily as, afterone com%rehensie glance oer Ee&shead, he ste%%ed !ac" into the corridor#&/arie & he called, his mouth grim#

$t was within seconds of Ee

scoo%ing the !a!y u% that a rather scaredyoung girl came running along the%assage# &$ am sorry, /onsieur 'u(are,&she gas%ed, !reathlessly, &!ut /arie is too

!usy3le diner, vous comrenez,

7@< >9



monsieur? And $ must hel% with the

%re%aration which she tells me is moreim%ortant than le etit.'

&Nonsense,& Raoul declared curtly,glaring at the girl, &1ou may go and tell/arie that the child is more im%ortantthan any meal $ will !e down to hae aword with her immediately#&

'(ien sur, monsieur the girl!o!!ed, Ee thought ridiculously, asshe !ac"ed frantically from the room,her small face nerously reflecting heralarmed reaction# &$ will tell her,

monsieur she cried earnestly as shedisa%%eared#

Still furious, Raoul turned onEe&s disa%%roing stare# &And you canta"e that3what*is*going*on*here4 loo"

off your face, mademoiselle. /ichel isnot neglected, it is %ro!a!ly a case of haing too many %eo%le attending tohim,& one half of whom are alwayssu%%osing the other half is in the

nursery, while in reality there is oftenno one there at all# /ichel is almosttwo and it will do him little irre%ara!leharm to yell a little# $t is theincom%etence $ find irritating#&

Ee stared at him stoically as/ichel clung to her li"e a lim%et, notwholly aware yet that she was astranger, indifferent, it seemed, toanything !ut the comfort of her

rescuing arms# &$ haen&t had time towonder anything of the sort, monsieurshe re%lied stiffly, as she held the !a!yclose# &/ichel, as you say, is almost

two, !ut a young child can suffer%erha%s een more than a !a!y fromtoo great a mi2ture of affection andneglect# Children of any age need tofeel secure#&

&And $ do not re.uire a lecture onchild %sychology,& he said saagely,

continuing unfairly, &$ will not hae himturned into a mil"so%, mademoiselle. $f he is mollycoddled too much he will

neer ma"e a satisfactory manadier.' /ichel&s cries had ceased, as if

Ee&s gentle authority had dis%elled hisfleeting fears# Possessiely trium%hant,she cradled him to her and across his

head fearlessly met Raoul 'u(are&snarrowed, s%eculatie glance# $n yetanother way he was no dou!t tellingher he would neer let /ichel go, !utsuddenly she didn&t care# That he was

irritated !y the situation seemed clear#

There might !e room for o%timism yetif she tread warily#&$ will stay with him, monsieur

she re%lied, coolly ignoring his taunt#

&He a%%ears to need changing# $ am sure

you can&t o!0ect if $ do that4&&>ust for one half hour,

mademoiselle his eyes glinted dar"ly ashe nodded !riefly# &Then, if you are not inyour

room, $ will come and conduct youthere myself#&

He would !e .uite ca%a!le of it, shethought, startled, as he left a!ru%tly,after a swift word with the !a!y# /ichel,to her sur%rise, had res%onded ha%%ily,holding out his chu!!y arms as though he

was not in the least a%%rehensie of hisformida!le uncle# She had !een further

astonished when Raoul had laughed andtossed his ne%hew almost to the ceiling,and it had !een when he had held the

then gurgling child for another momentthat she had noticed the resem!lance, asshe had seen it !efore# /ichel was truly a'u(are#

&1ou li"e children4& Raoul as"ed, the

ne2t eening, as they had drin"s !eforedinner# Celeste was not yet down, as itwas still early, !ut Ee had !een resdessin her room and una!le to stay there anylonger#

&$ would scarcely !e a trained nannydid $ not,& Ee answered, staring down ather drin", !laming the dullness of herre%ly to a lac" of confidence in hera%%earance# How much !etter she could

hae faced Raoul 'u(are if she hadn&t feltso dowdy# Strangely enough, in the hotelit hadn&t seemed to matter# There, whenshe had !een on her own, the %lainness

of her attire had hel%ed her to remainincons%icuous, !ut now she wishedferently that she had %ossessed a%rettier dress# The one she wore thiseening was, she realised unha%%ily, a

mista"e, and that might %roe a "inderdescri%tion than the one Raoul 'u(are

had in mind, 0udging from his e2%ressionThe dress was cotton, a stiff materialwhich tended to crease each time she sat

down, and the %eculiar shade of greendid nothing for her %articular colouring#At !est it was res%ecta!le, andtenaciously Ee tried to cling to thisassurance, %ushing all thought of some*

thing more glamorous, a little smarter,from her mind#

Raoul&s eyes, she was well aware,were .uite fran"ly assessing the cost of her entire wardro!e# )aintly resentful she

flushed, not used to a man&s close

scrutiny although she "new his to !ewholly o!0ectie, a mere curiosityregarding her unfashiona!le a%%earance#This she was %re%ared to tolerate, !ut not

that he should s%ea" outright# An

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Englishman wouldn&t hae done, she

felt sure, !ut Raoul was different#&$t is as well your figure is

naturally good, ma cherie,otherwise that dress Mon dieu,where did you get it&

She had e2%ected a few more%olite remar"s regarding her career,

and her eyes flew o%en wide with as%ar"ling resentment as they met his#'I made it myself, monsieur,' shecho"ed, &!efore $ came to )rance#&

&Otherwise you would hae

chosen something more flattering,& he.uir"ed# &$ find it difficult to !e

ca%tiated !y what you hae on# $t iso!ious, /ademoiselle Reston, that youare not s"illed in the art of

dressma"ing#&&$ hae neer %retended to !e,&

she retorted stiffly, the indifferent tilt of her chin designed to hide a growingsensitiity to his criticism, and not

willing that he should hae any"nowledge of her recently !orn desirefor something nice, a longing which sheha+ily su%%osed might hae !eenaroused, stu%idly, !y the sight of a few

decoratie 0ars in a !athroom# Raoul'u(are, she tried to conince herself,had nothing at all to do with it &Nor am$ ery interested,& she added coolly#

$dly he continued, roc"ing !ac"

on his heels, his teeth glinting white ina smoothly calculating smile, clearlydou!ting the truth of her !rittle littlestatement# &$f, as you declare, you are

indeed one of the family, then youmust not resent a few honest remar"sfrom one of its mem!ers, f %ersonally%refer women to !e chic, ma chere, !ut%erha%s your !oyfriends ran" among

today&s young reolutionaries who donot consider it the thing to !e well

dressed4&$nnocently she fell into the tra%,

although she wasn&t aware of it at the

time# &$ hae no s%ecial !oy*friend,monsieur, f hae deoted myself to mytraining#&

His eyes smouldered with amomentary satisfaction# &And you hae

only 0ust finished this4&&No, $ held one %osition !efore $

came here#& She didn&t "now why shefelt so reluctant to gie him thisinformation a!out herself, unless it only

seemed to ma"e her more ulnera!le#

He too" a considering drin" fromthe glass held contem%latiely in hisfine*!oned hands# &1ou loo" too young,mademoiselle.''

&$&m almost twenty*two#&

&So old4 )orgie me, you loo" a!out

seenteen3$ find it difficult to !elieeyou are older than Celeste# And you so

ha%%ily deote yourself to other %eo%le&schildren, while !eing old enough to haea family yourself4&

His eyes added many things, whilehis face remained a %olite mas"# Stung

!y a sudden warm confusion, she ans*wered ingenuously, &One has to ac.uire ahus!and first, monsieur.'

&Ah, an old*fashioned girl&Ee s.uirmed, furious with herself,

and een more at Raoul 'u(are&ssardonic tones, !ut she refused to !e

drawn further# (iting !ac" a shar% retort,which might only hae !ounced off histough e2terior, she said instead, &1our

ne%hew is a good child, monsieur. $ en0oy!eing with him#&

There was silence for a moment,and she felt annoyed !y his lac" of interest when he said, &He is a good child,

yes, well content with his lot, and $should li"e him to remain so, !ut $suggest we leae the nursery for theeening, ma chere. $t is a time when!a!ies, if they are well, should !e tuc"ed

u% in !ed and forgotten#&-hich might !e an easy matter in a

%lace li"e this where there, werenumerous serants to "ee% an eye onthem, she wanted to retort, !ut somehow

dared not, some %art of her still wary of this man&s reactions# 1et she couldn&tresist what was %ro!a!ly a %ertinentremar"# &Some fathers only manage to

see their children in the eening,monsieur.'

&And $ should wish only to see mywife# 1ou must allow that men can differ,ma chere, and %ray do not !egin to waste

your a!undant sym%athy on ametamor%hosed wife# $f eer $ ac.uire

one $ shall see to it %ersonally that shehas, at this hour, no thought left in herhead for the nursery#&

A wae of indiscerni!le feelingswe%t oer Ee, though she willed herface not to reflect it# &$t is %ossi!le,& shewhis%ered stu!!ornly, &she might notshare your iews#&

&She would soon forget suchinde%endence and !ecome com%liant,mademoiselle. $ should soon teach herthat these hours are to !e en0oyed in adifferent way#6

Strangely Ee shuddered almost

isi!ly as she stared down at hertrem!ling fingers, something she seemedto !e doing in his %resence withincreasing fre.uency# She sus%ected he

deli!erately set out to shoc" a little her

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so*English susce%ti!ility# 1et surely he

had some English !lood himself4 &1ouhad an English mother, had you not4&

she murmured, as if tal"ing to herself#&/y dear mademoiselle,' he said

smoothly, o!iously .uite clearlyfollowing the trend of her thoughts, &$twas 'omini.ue and Celeste who were

thus !lessed# -ere you not aware that$ am merely their half*!rother, whollyand com%letely )rench4&

&So,& she cho"ed, &naturally youdon&t a%%roe of Englishwomen# Now $

!egin to understand &'Mademoiselle & he !egan, !ut

didn&t finish the sen*tence#

Ee&s eyes fell !efore the

im%atient glint in his, and neer !eforehad she !een so %leased to seeCeleste# 1et she a%%reciated her%resence more than her remar"#

&1ou are loo"ing .uite hot and

!othered, Ee,& she laughed# &'on&t tellme Raoul has managed to ruffle yourso tenacious dignity4&

Ee&s flush dee%ened een whileshe managed to smile carelessly#

Celeste, dressed as elegantly as her!rother, contried to ma"e her moreconscious than eer of the %lainness of her dress, and she was relieed whenRaoul interru%ted a!ru%tly, relieing

her of the necessity of re%lying# &-herehae you !een all day, Celeste4 1ouseem to forget we hae a guest, onewho is su%%osed to !e your s%ecial

friend#&The girl laughed lightly# &(ut you

forget, Raoul, our isitor is not heresolely to see me# 1ou surely don&t !e*grudge me the little freedom Ee&s

%resence here allows4 $f you must"now $&e !een to /arseille to see

Amelie# $ could,& she continued airily,&hae stayed longer# Amelie did as" meto, !ut $ "new you would only ma"e a

fuss#&Ee felt Celeste was somewhat

sur%rised when he didn&t, een now# Hesim%ly shrugged and in.uired, &How isshe4&

&Oh, ery well#& Celeste tooshrugged as they all went in to dinner#&She was so interested in la demoiselleanglaise.' -ic"edly she grinned at Ee#&/adame Troyat is so attached to Raoul

that she must "now of eeryone who

comes near him# $ assured her, machere, she had nothing to fear fromyou, !ut already she is ma"ing u% hermind to come and loo" you oer#&

8nsure of her own reactions, Ee

!lin"ed, feeling Raoul&s dar" ga+e on herhead as she sat down, wondering why

her heart should grow so cold at themention of one Amelie Troyat# /adame,Celeste had said, which surely meant thelady was married4

&/adame Troyat is a widow,&

smartly astute, Celeste en0oyed a littledrama, &!ut not such a ery old one, machere, and she li"es Raoul so much &

&That is enough, Celeste#& Raouls%o"e shar%ly this time# &Amelie has

always !een a good friend, !ut haen&t $told you !efore, it is too far to go to

/arseille !y yourself#&&(ut $ am not an infant, Raoul,&

Celeste e2claimed crossly, choosing to

ignore his leel glance# &(esides, whenNadine returns $ shall %ro!a!ly go toParis, which is much further afield#&

&1ou would do !etter to settle downand marry Andre,& Raoul re0oined shordy,

&as $ should hae insisted you did yearsago#&

&1ou forget, Raoul, $ am not yet of age, and not ready to o!lige you !ysettling down with one so dull as Andre#

And it is no use getting annoyed, !ecauseyou can&t force eeryone to do as youcommand#& 'Mon dieu . . . !'

Ee continued with her dinnerwithout !eing really aware of what she

ate as she listened uncomforta!ly to theterse interchange of words# She was.uic" enough to realise that Celestedeli!erately hinted at Raoul&s attem%t to

force 'omini.ue to marry one of his owncountrywomen# (ut might 'omini.ue not!e alie today if he had o!eyed# 5lancingu%, she met Raoul&s enigmatic eyes and"new he had !een a!out to re%ly in this

ein, !ut for some reason changed hismind#

Not out of consideration of EeReston&s feelings, surely, Ee thoughtwith dis!elieing sur%rise#

&Neer mind,& he said, loo"ing.uic"ly !ac" at his sister, &it is clear youcan&t esca%e to Paris or anywhere else

0ust now, so you must content yourself for a while#&

&Only for a while#& Celeste&s consentwas gien grudgingly# &$n the meanwhileyou might %erha%s consider Ee as asuita!le nanny for /ichel, or !etter still,there is always the so o!liging Amelie,

who, if you were to as" her nicely, might

!e willing to !e !oth nanny and wife#&-hy did Celeste&s im%ertinent littles%eech stay with her, Ee wondered, allthrough the night4 Een when she wo"e,

at fre.uent interals, it was still on her

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mind# Ee "new, from %ast e2%erience,

that Celeste when she chose could !ea!surdly indiscreet, yet Ee hadn&t

thought she would hae dared to go sofar with her !rother# Raoul&s reaction toCeleste&s taunting o!seration had not!een a%%arent# He had merely grinned,a swiftly sarcastic smile which Ee was

sure had not reached his eyes, !eingmainly for her !enefit# $n another%lace, with other %eo%le, Ee mighthae thought the situation amusing,!ut somehow, here at the 'u(are

ranch, the humour of it eaded her#-ho e2actly was this /adame

Troyat, who Celeste declared wouldma"e such an e2cellent wife4 $t must,of course, !e time Raoul married# He

was a!out thirty*fie !ut loo"ed mucholder, with an authority andso%histication far !eyond that meagres%an of years# How was it, then, thatthe thought of him with a wife seemed

strangely a!horrent4 $t could only !e aform of %ity for the girl who wouldeentually find herself in such a%osition#

$t was still .uite early ne2t

morning when Ee decided she couldstay in !ed no longer# Rather than tossand turn, een on such a well s%rungmattress, she would go outside anden0oy the delightful early freshness of

the gardens# :uic"ly she showered,%utting on a fresh shirt and %air of

0eans, !rushing her unruly hair intosome sem!lance of tidiness !ut not

!othering with any ma"e*u%# Shedidn&t, she considered, studying herglowing com%le2ion, loo" as if sheneeded it this morning, and for the firsttime in days she realised she was

!eginning to feel really well# At her facein the mirror she grimaced wryly# So

much for the lotus*li"e e2istence shehad !een leading $t wouldn&t do to gettoo attached to such idle lu2ury,

otherwise the sudden transition !ac" toa life of toil was going to !eunendura!le

Raoul sur%rised her !y !eing at!rea"fast when she ran down# 8sually,

/arie had told her, he was gone long!efore this time#

&'o you ride, mademoiselle?' heas"ed, his ga+e more a%%roing thanthe eening !efore as it rested on her

!lue 0eans which, though not

e2%ensie,&hugged neatly the tendercures of her figure#Confused, Ee glanced at him

while ma"ing a great ado oer the

%ouring of coffee# )or some un"nown

reason she found it difficult to drag her

eyes away from him this morning andinwardly 0eered at herself that she should

!e sur%rised he loo"ed e2acdy the same#Had she e2%ected to find him changedoernight 0ust !ecause she haddiscoered he wasn&t half English4 (uteen that much had !een a sort of !ond,

!ringing with it# as it had, the comfortingreassurance that he wasn&t altogetheralien# Now she felt she could not !e sureof anything, and it didn&t hel% that it wasthere in his eyes, the hard satisfaction of

"nowing that once again he hadconfounded her#

He had as"ed if she could ride, andalready her silence was irritating him# Ashis dar" !rows rose im%atiently she

flushed and said swiftly# &1es, monsieur, $do, !ut hardly, $ thin", li"e one of yourgardians.'

&That, mademoiselle, is nothing to!e ashamed of# Our gardians are a race

a%art; one would not e2%ect you to !eimmediately as good as they are, !ut youwill learn# Our horses might not !e .uitewhat you are used to# $ will, howeer,accom%any you to !egin with, so there is

nothing to !e afraid of either#&&Than" you, monsieur,' she re%lied

demurely# &$ can assure you $&m notafraid, although, as you say, your horseswill almost certainly not !e what $&e

!een used to# $ was taught at school,where some of the girls had their own%onies, which, alas, $ could not afford,and the horse $ rode there was old# A

darling, of course,& her eyes, momentarilyreminiscent, softened, &!ut often $ longedfor an animal with a greater turn of s%eed#&

&'on&t worry,& he said softly, his

eyes on her small, iid face, &you willfind that here# $ %romise you,

mademoiselle, you hae the a!ility toreach greater heights than you hae eer"nown, if you leae it to me#&

-as it sim%ly her nonsensicalimagination that whis%ered that he wasnot merely referring to riding4 Her !reathcaught as she felt his ery %ersonalitydrawing her closer# 1et it was this total

reliance on him, on which he deiouslyinsisted, that she resisted# The warm!lood !eating !lindly in her tem%les, shestirred too much sugar into her coffeeand was aware of his eyes iewing her

unsteady hand with a glint of near

satisfaction# &$s Celeste coming with us,monsieur?' she as"ed#&No#& >ust that#Ee had forgotten that he had

accused her of using his sister li"e a %iece

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of armour %lating# Now Ee held on to

her li"e a lifeline# Een so, she had noclear idea where her ne2t .uestion

came from, as it was a su!0ect she wasstriing to aoid# &1ou said Celeste isonly your half*sister, monsieur& 'oesthat mean that 'omini.ue was # # #&

&/y half*!rother also4 1es,& he

su%%lied, as she %aused uncomforta!ly#&$ must confess $ am sur%rised you didnot "now 4&

&Carol neer said # # # Not that itcan matter,& she added hastily#

&(ut now you feel, mademoiselle,$ am a stranger4&

He had guessed, !ut only %artly#He couldn&t "now how her .uic"eningheart!eats, when he loo"ed at her

intently as he did now, %roclaimed himno stranger#

&$ can assure you, mademoiselle,' he went on, when she made no re%ly,&a man is a man, no matter what his

nationality# $t is merely that an infusionof foreign !lood can, occasionally, !ringminor %ro!lems#&

&Such as 'omini.ue&s desire tomarry an English girl4& she challenged,

resentment returning#&Not necessarily that, although he

was coninced there must !eimmediate com%ati!ility !ecause of it#&

&And you didn&t3you don&t

agree4&&Not with eery detail of his

theorising, Ee#& Raoul&s eyesconsidered her steadily# &$t is more, $

!eliee, an inherent relationshi% withhis country which might !e !red into aman# 'omini.ue&s mother was English,a daughter of one of your ownaristocracy, whose ideas as to how land

should !e managed were .uite differentfrom our own# $n another %art of

)rance, %erha%s, her %lans might hae!een %ut to %ractical use, !ut not herein the Camargue# One has to !e almost

!orn in a district li"e this to understandit#&

&And she tried to instil her ideasinto 'omini.ue4&

&E2actly, and %ossi!ly naturally,

!ut while she was alie he must listento widely diersifying iews from !othher and our father, so it was not%erha%s to !e wondered at that hegrew u% as he did#&

&$ didn&t "now him too well,

monsieur.' &No,& Raoul&s sigh went dee% ashis li%s com%ressed# &He was, in manyways, an admira!le young man, !ut

always indecisie# He wished to

manage the ranch, !ut inaria!ly when $

returned from Paris, $ would find chaos ineen the most sim%le of things# Then he

would decide he must run the family!usiness in Paris, !ut this too defeatedhim when it came to ma"ing decisions onhis own#&

&Couldn&t he hae wor"ed under

you4& Ee entured to suggest#&Ha& Raoul&s smile was suddenly

sarcastic again# &$t was here that yourfamous (ritish inde%endence came in He wanted something more than this# At

the same time he %ossessed a certaingenerosity of s%irit which allowed him

only to confess his own limitations# Heand Carol were ha%%iest when away onacation, !ut alas, $ found it difficult to !e

in two %laces at once#&&1our !usiness in Paris is im%ortant,

monsieur&' &$t is,& he said !riefly, &!ut $now hae an e2tremely com%etentmanager who has little dou!t that he can

su%erise me as well as an e2cellent staff#Howeer, it is a great comfort to "nowthe whole thing won&t colla%se !eneaththe first crisis when $ am not %ersonallyon hand# The Paris !usiness is im%ortant,

Ee, !ut this is my life#&Ee found herself considering all he

had told her when, minutes later, theywal"ed out into the cool morning air# Thenights were still chilly, the a%%roach of

summer still slow, !ut as soon as the sunrose a!oe the ground mist, sending itsfirst %ro!ing rays across the awa"eningland, a %leasant warmth would !e s%read

eerywhere# Raoul had risen a!ru%tlyfrom the !rea"fast ta!le, as if alreadydeciding he had said too much, and hadgranted Ee only enough time to snatch alight 0ac"et# He had im%atiently for!idden

her to go near the nursery#&/ichel can do without you this

morning,& he had said firmly, addingenigmatically, &1ou will %ro!a!ly see morethen enough of him in future, and he will

not fade away, mademoiselle, should youneglect him for a few hours today#&

She had glanced at him dou!tfully,then gien in without further argument,een while her conscience whis%ered that

she was not here for her own %leasure,!ut for the sole %ur%ose of getting to"now the child#

A trace of !itterness in Raoul'u(are&s e2%ression "e%t her strangely

silent# His dry, indifferent tones oer

!rea"fast had not fooled her com%letely#She had seen it in his eyes3 he hadcared a!out his young !rother, %ossi!lyas much as Carol&s family had cared

a!out her, and this could !e another,

7@< @@



%erha%s the most im%ortant, reason

why he felt he must rear 'omini.ue&sson on his own# The im%ortant factor

was whether or not he was right#

CHAPTER S$

(EH$N' the house, away from theacres of lu2uriant greenness of thegrounds and gardens, lay, in Ee&so%inion, the real Camargue, and not

haing !een far from the house sinceshe had arried she now felt alie with

a growing curiosity# Something insideher craed to get out and see as muchas she could of the district !efore she

left, %ro!a!ly for eer#Raoul again wore a !rightly

coloured shirt with a !road*!rimmedhat and %roduced a similar one for Eeto use# &The sun can !ecome too hot,&

he smiled, showing her how to secureit# &1ou must not ris" ruining that!eautiful English com%le2ion#&

His eyes lingered for a moment,his fingers !eneath her chin tightening

slightly as his ga+e wandered, as if contem%latiely, to her %in" curedli%s# Slowly he too" his hand away, !utit was only when his eyes released herthat Ee could moe#

&Than" you, monsieur she said,her oice a mere whis%er which hemight not hae heard#

Eerywhere there was silence,

they a%%eared to hae the %lace tothemseles# Surely she remem!eredCeleste saying a lot of men wor"ed onthe ranch, !ut when she as"ed Raoulwhere they were, he e2%lained that,

een at this early hour, the gardianshad long since gone, He did show her

the !un"house where they lied# &/anystill lie in small clay houses withthatched roofs,& he told her#

&Traditionally these face south*westaway from the %reailing north*easterlymistral which !lows down the Rhonealley#&

Ee was relieed the men were

all at wor" when Raoul hel%ed her tomount# &$t is three years since $ leftschool,& she confessed, rathershamefaced as the horse fidgeted andshe clung rather than sat in the saddle#

This time Raoul seemed

genuinely amused# &So,& he grinned,&we hae here a hardened deceier# $tis three years since you last rode# $sthat what you are trying to tell me4&

Num!ly she nodded, a%%rehensie

although she felt no actual fear, her onlydou!ts !eing her a!ility to manage the

small !ut mettlesome animal !eneathher#

&>ust rela2,& he said mildly, with a.uic" glance at her tense face# &1ou hae.uite a good seat, een though you may

!e no e2%ert, and $ am here to see youcome to no harm#&

>ust a few !rief words, yet li"e arare wine they flowed warmly throughher# -hat sort of man was this, she won*

dered, who could, almost in the same!reath, !oth frighten and enthrall, fill one

with a rare sense of reassurance4 Shewould !e less than human if she failed toa%%reciate his "indness# $t was the other

side of him which made her cautious#Sur%risingly, !efore they had gone

far, Ee realised than"fully that her olds"ill was returning, and she was in facta!le to rela2, een to the e2tent of

ho%ing Raoul would !e willing to answer afew .uestions#

&1es, certainly,& he o!liged# &Thefamous white horses still e2ist, if theirnum!ers hae dro%%ed considera!ly#

/any !reeders now cross the whiteCamargue horses with Ara! strains, !utthat does not mean that the %ure*!redCamargue horse is threatened withe2tinction#&

Raoul himself was riding a !eautiful%ure*!red Ara! which he had told her hehad im%orted from North Africa# $t wasmuch larger than the white Camargue

horse she rode, which was only aroundfourteen hands# &$ thin" $ li"e this one!etter,& she said shyly, reaching forwardto %at its nec"#

Raoul, to her sur%rise, was willing

to e2%and on the su!0ect when, after agentle canter, they slowed to wal" care*

fully along the side of a freshwatermarsh# &Each year,& he said lightly, &manytourists come here ho%ing to catch a

glim%se of the wild herds of white horses,some een ho%e to ride them across thewide e2%anses of the Rhone delta# $n away, $ su%%ose, it is yet another instanceof man&s fascination with something

whose origins are ancient# Once, in thenorth of your country, $ isited yourfamous white Chilling*ham cattle, Of course our horses are more numerous,and their origins uncertain, !ut their

traditions go !ac" to Roman times when

>ulius Caesar re%lenished his caalry withCamargue horses and the area wasnamed after the Roman senator, AnniusCamar, who was %roconsul of this region#

Since then tides of inaders hae swe%t

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across this corner of Euro%e, all leaing

something of themseles# The Romansfollowed the Phoenicians, to !e

followed centuries later !y Attila theHun with his /ongol hordes# Eentoday the gardians use asu%%lementary rein similar to the /on*gols&# $t lets the rider lead without

%ulling the horse&s mouth, and thisincreases the animal&s agility# Thenfrom the nomadic Saracen and /oorishhorsemen who followed the /ongols wehae the iron head that ti%s the seen*

foot %ole the Camargue cow!oy uses tocontrol his cattle# $t is of ancient

Saracen design, a half*moon set!etween two shar% iron horns#&

Ee had listened, fascinated !y

eerything he told her# Now, as he%aused, she as"ed, unconsciouslyeager, &Are there any herds of whitehorses actually to !e seen, or are theynow so rare as to !e ho%eless to loo"

for4&His eyes glinted at her heady

e2citement# &$f $ were to tell you we area%%roaching one such herd now,mademoiselle, what would you say4&

&That $ could scarcely !eliee it,&she !reathed, her eyes daring him totease# &/any isitors at the hotel neersucceeded in finding any#&

&(ecause they didn&t "now where

to loo",& he re%lied more so!erly, &!utat this time of the year, when the foalsare due, it is as well the herds %refer tohide themseles as, unless a%%roached

with caution, and with someone who"nows them, they could !e dangerous3the stallions, es%ecially#&

&1es, monsieur she said, anddidn&t see him smile, a little ironically,

at her so mee" re%ly#&1ou said,& she %ersisted,

an2iously smiling, &you might "nowwhere to find some of these whitehorses4&

He grinned# &As you are o!iouslywilling to !e unusually agreea!le inreturn for such a faour, how could $refuse4&

&$&m always trying to !e

agreea!le,& she said uncertainly, waryof something she couldn&t %in%ointunless it was the slightest hint of athreat in his am!iguous oice4 Nomatter # ## -hat was one small ste% in

the dar" if it meant the chance of

seeing the famous white horses4 -ith achildish trust, after he had tetheredtheir mounts, she %ut her hand into theone he held out and allowed him to

lead her through the trees#

The tamaris" thic"et ran alongside

the marsh, and the thic"et with a stretchof dry grass !eyond was %art of the

gra+ing ground of a herd of a!out fortyhorses# &This is one of their faourites%ots,& Raoul s%o"e .uietly, as they sawthe horses in the distance# &They cangra+e oer seeral s.uare miles, !ut they

are most often to !e found here#&He would not allow her to a%%roach

too closely, !ut een through a %rotectingscreen of !ranches she could see reason*a!ly clearly# (arely conscious of Raoul

'u(are standing !ehind her, she staredat the %owerfully !uilt !easts# $t was an

unforgetta!le e2%erience# A few of thefoals had o!iously not !een long !orn,and were ma"ing their first tentatie,

unsteady ste%s on legs far too long ands%indly to su%%ort them satisfactorily#

&Soon,& Raoul told her, &they will !estrong enough and run li"e the wind#8ntil then they hae always the

%rotection of the herd#&&(ut the foals are !lac",& Ee

frowned, the glance she flashed at Raoulfull of disa%%ointment# He nodded la+ily,yet she was .uic" to notice the e2%ert

sureillance in his eyes as he loo"ed theherd oer, something that coninced herthat this tri% today had not !een entirelyfor the !enefit of one curious English girl#Her disa%%ointment went suddenly

dee%er, flic"ering to a slight %ain, !ut was 0ust as .uic"ly forgotten as he e2%lainedthat nearly all the foals were !orn !lac"with a white %atch on their foreheads# &At

a!out eight months old,& he went on,&they lose this coat and !y the time theyare a!out four years old their colouringwill hae changed to %ale grey, !efore itturns to its final white#&

&1ou "now a lot a!out them3Isu%%ose naturally, as $ e2%ect you own

some of them,& she tac"ed on swiftly,realising that, haing s%ent his life here,her first statement he might consider3

ridiculous#$t he did he gae no indication# His

eyes had gone !ac" to the herd, asthough her .uestion had eo"ed noirritation, !ut was one he had heard

many times !efore# &Contrary to whatmany %eo%le imagine,& he said, &today&swild horses of the Camargue are notreally wild at all, neither in s%ecies orcharacter, !ut !ecause they lie wild the

whole year round they often go for wee"s

without seeing a human !eing# The herdyou are loo"ing at now is a family one,made u% of stallions, mares and foals# Onthis stud farm $ hae a!out a hundred

7@< @=



mares, on others this num!er aries,

and we all hae our own !rands#&Ee&s interest was growing#

$nside, she felt a ne!ulous, mountinge2citement# The horses were gra+ingalong the reed!eds, moing leisurelythrough the shallows# Across the marshflamingoes s"immed the water, and the

golden rays of the sun melted into the!lueness of the surface, throwing !ac"its reflections to the s"y# Her whole!ody seemed, in some hithertoun"nown fashion, to come alie,

flooded to a new, singing awareness of this ama+ing land#

Not sure how to co%e with thisdisru%ting effect, she caught Raoul&sarm im%ulsiely, see"ing for words to

su!due such tumultuous feelings# &Can&twe go nearer4& she almost !egged, her!lue eyes clinging insistently to hissilery*greer ones# &1ou must "now thehorses if you own them, so surelD it

wouldn&t !e too dangerous4&He smiled gently, his glance

holding hers deli!erately !efore heanswered# &They don&t "now you, machere, that is the trou!le# $t can ta"e a

long time, often wee"s, !efore thehorses get used to the sight and soundof someone, !efore they are ready toacce%t# There is no danger, as $ toldyou !efore, if one uses a little common

sense and remains at a distance# $f youwere to lie here, now, $ would !ringyou eery morning and introduce you%ro%erly# 'oes not the idea a%%eal to

you, mademoiselle?' &1ou are teasing me again,

monsieur,' she re!u"ed him, colourflushing !eneath her s"in !ecausesuddenly, ina%%ro%riately, what he

suggested, een idly, soundedattractie# She must remem!er that

she could neither stay, or come !ac" tothis delightful s%ot, and that no softword, s%o"en meaninglessly should !e

allowed to tem%t her imagination# As if stung she .uic"ly remoed her handfrom his arm, and, after another swiftglance at the meandering horses,turned away#

&$t must !e a!out noon,& shemurmured, &shouldn&t we !e getting!ac" home4 Celeste will !e wonderingwhere we are#&

His sardonic glance left her face

to note the sun, direcdy a!oe the

um!rella %ine under which they stood#He ignored her reference to Celeste,!ut he did nod his head# &-e must, infact, !e getting !ac" to our two other

horses, ma chere. The stallions often

resent the %resence of a strange horse,

and while they hae seen mine .uitefre.uently, they do not "now yours#&

Ee noticed he had no comment toma"e a!out her unfriendly withdrawal# $twas almost as if he understood thecom%le2ity of the emotional !ewildermentwhich seemed to hit her !etter than she#

His strange green eyes !eneath theirthic" fringe of dar" lashes merelyflic"ered, as if una!le to restrain a fainthint of satisfaction3something, shefretted distractedly, she fancied she had

noticed !efore# She tried, this time, tores%ond coolly# &1ou hae gien me a

great deal of %leasure this morning,monsieur. $ shall not forget#&

&'on&t worry, $ "now the score#& His

white smile suddenly glinted deilishly#&One of these days, ma chere, $ shallsend the account# One only ho%es youwill find it %ossi!le to settle#&

-hy had he always to leae her

with too much to thin" a!out4 $t couldonly ma"e her disli"e of him stronger totreat her this way# To mildly threatenre%risals, to %retend she was in his de!t,when, a%art from a reluctant and some*

times de!ata!le, courtesy, she had hadnothing from him at all# He had insistedshe went with him this morning, it hadn&t!een anything she&d thought u% herself$t was utterly a!surd that he should thin"

she ought to !e %ositiely oerflowingwith gratitude#

His hand on her wrist as he drewher .uic"ly !ac" through the tamaris"

hurt slightly, and it was as if he de*li!erately intended it should, !ecausewhen she tried to %ull away his gri%merely tightened, sending smalls%earheads of lightning through her

eins# &Sto% struggling,& he orderedtersely# &$&m sim%ly guiding you through

the marshes# /ay!e it might !e !etter tolet you drown, !ut $ am sure if $ did, yourso serious litde face would %ro!a!ly

haunt me for the rest of my days#&1et later he did ta"e a few minutes

to congratulate her on her horsemanshi%#&1ou are really ery good, mademoiselle.-ith a little more %ractice you will soon

!e an accom%lished %erformer, a credit tous all#& His eyes had moc"ed her dou!tfule2%ression, yet he seemed to !ewatching her with a "een a!sor%tion,almost as if he was una!le to ma"e his

mind u% a!out something which faindy

intrigued him#-hateer it was, Ee "new whatseemed to !e a nearly %hysical relief when they reached the ranch# A

%romising noice or not, to her utter

7@< @8



mortification she found her lim!s so

stiff she was scarcely a!le to stand# Nordid it seem to hel% the aloof little front

she had contried oer the last hourthat she should hae to clutch wildly atRaoul 'u(are while trying to regainsome !alance# &$&m sorry, monsieur,' she gas%ed, furious with herself#

&$f $ were a sus%icious man,mademoiselle,' he answered, %o"er*faced# &$ might !egin to imagine youcouldn&t !ear to let me go# &(ut hishands held her, steadied her, and she

closed her eyes a!ru%tly against thedar"ly dominant charm which seemed

to reach out and em!race her eenwhile he only held her lightly to him#

-hen she o%ened them again she

was roc"*steady on her feet, thetremors only inside her# &$&m sorry,monsieur,' she re%eated, her ga+egoing no further than the hard cleft inhis chin# &1ou must "now it is !ecause $

am unaccustomed to this %articularform of e2ercise#&

&Of course, mademoiselle,' heagreed smoothly, as his hands fellaway, &!ut we will ma"e a rider of you

yet, ma chere.' Swiftly he unsaddled her horse,

smac"ing it lightly on the rum%,e2%laining, as Ee watched it run away,&A true Cam*argue horse is neer

sta!led# $n winter, when we do not usethem so much, they run free in herdsli"e the others#&

&$t is a good life,& she whis%ered,

inoluntarily#&$t is,& he agreed, &!oth for man

and !east, !ut,& his eyes ran intentlyoer her flushed chee"s, &$ thin" youhae had enough of the great outdoors

for one morning# This afternoon youmust rest# 1ou are still too fragile, ma

chere.' (ut that afternoon another isitor

arried at the /as 'u(are, as the

ranch was locally "nown# /adameTroyat droe u% in her car from/arseille shortly after lunch, and Eesaw at once that she was e2tremelyattractie# 'ar"ly iacious, she

immediately anne2ed Raoul, who hadseemed inclined to linger oer coffee3which was .uite unusual, according toCeleste#

Amelie Troyat swe%t in as if she

was ery familiar with the %lace indeed,

and as she was o!iously welcome itmustn&t, Ee concluded, matter thatshe hadn&t let anyone "now she wascoming# Celeste had said Amelie was

curious a!out Ee, !ut surely this didn&t

0ustify a s%ecial isit4 Amelie&s eyes did

flic"er narrowly in Ee&s direction, !uta%art from this one !rief sureyal Raoul

a%%eared to hae all her attention#$t wasn&t until some minutes later

when she was settled !y his side that shestared coolly !ac" at Ee again# &Celestementioned your isit, /ademoiselle

Reston,& her eyes e2; amined derisielyEe&s faded denims, her slight, girlish 0figure# &$ must admit to !eing curiousa!out %oor dear Carol&s family# 1ou aremerely a sort of cousin, $ !eliee4

Neertheless, it is interesting to meetyou#&

Amelie&s e2%ression said directlythe o%%osite# She might well haedeclared aloud that she considered Ee a

%lain little no!ody# Ee felt her s"in%ric"le with a "ind of su!dued rage#/adame Troyat was a%%arently regrettingthat she had rushed all the way here inthe heat of the day when there had

actually !een nothing to worry a!out3certainly nothing to threaten her soo!ious ho%es of ca%turing Raoul

'u(are for herself#1ou&re welcome to him, and in you

he might 0ust get what he deseres, Eefelt li"e shouting, while at the same time!eing more than a little dismayed !y theun%recedented force of her reactions# $tsurely didn&t matter so much how

/adame Troyat cared to insult her, Eewould soon !e gone#

(ecause she was secretly ashamedof her own anger, Ee managed to smile

wea"ly, !ut her resentment grew againwhen Raoul interened sardonically, asthough the matter was of no greatconcern# &/ademoiselle Reston is merelyhere for a few wee"s, ma chere, so you

%ro!a!ly will not see much of her# Shehas come to isit my ne%hew in order to

ta"e a first*hand re%ort of him to hisgrand%arents in Rhodesia#&

&$ see # ##& Amelie was s%ea"ing in

ra%id )rench, %ossi!ly unaware that Ees%o"e the language# -ith a further con*tem%tuous glance in Ee&s direction, sheadded, &(ut is all this necessary, Raoul41ou hae always !een so against it#&

Raoul shrugged, it seemedindifferently, unashamedly, Ee decided!itterly, noting how he laid soothingfingers oer Amelie&s hand which re%osedon his "nee# &There are e2tenuating

circumstances, ma chere, these one must

allow for# Carol&s father is ill ## #&Could he always manage to e2%laineerything away so smoothly4 A fewseconds later, Ee managed to esca%e,

still seething, still feeling the coolly

7@< @



taunting flic"er of his eyes# Stum!ling

slightly, she had mum!led somethinga!out ta"ing /ichel to the gardens#

Celeste followed her to thenursery# &1ou must not ta"e offence atAmelie, Ee, ma chere. She is merelywarning you off# $ su%%ose it is natural,when, eer since her hus!and died, she

would li"e Raoul#&&She has no reason to imagine $

could in any way endanger her %lans,&Ee retorted stiffly, &!ut %erha%s it is a%ity your !rother gae the im%ression

that $&m here on a long isit#&Celeste&s light laughter turned

0ust as .uic"ly to a frown, as sheturned from a studied ins%ection of herface in the ornate mirror which hung on

the white %ainted wall# &(ut you willstay, Ee,& she !egged, &if Raoul as"syou4&

A short while ago Ee might haegien in resignedly, now she wasn&t so

sure# A "ind of %anic smote her,throwing her into a whirl of confusion,reducing her oice to a strangledwhis%er# &$ sim%ly can&t ma"e any%romises, Celeste# (esides, $ don&t

really !eliee Raoul meant what hesaid# He was, more than li"ely,%roo"ing /adame Troyat a little, toma"e her 0ealous, %erha%s, although $can&t thin" she would eer feel li"e that

a!out me#&&(ecause you imagine you are

%lain4& Celeste&s frown turned tolaughter again# &(ut you are not so ery

%lain, Ee# $n fact, at times you canloo" .uite #elle V

(eautiful $ Ee sighed# She couldneer !e that $ &/adame Troyat didn&ta%%ear to thin" so,& she said dryly, and

with some s%irit# &Her e2%ression leftnot a thing unsaid &

&And that, when she "nowsnothing of what has !een going on,&Celeste giggled gleefully, as though

secretly not so enamoured with Amelieas she had made out# &How would shereact, $ wonder, if $ were to tell her youhae !een out on the marshes withRaoul since dawn4 That he has shown

you his %recious horses, an honour he!estows on few# Not een me, thismorning&

Ee ga+ed at her remorsefully#&$&m really sorry a!out that, Celeste# $

did thin" a!out you, !ut Raoul gae me

no chance # ##& Haltingly her oicetrailed off, and she didn&t notice howfre.uendy she was !eginning to use hisname#

Celeste had, and her glance

shar%ened with a flic"er of com%lacency#&$ did not wish to accom%any you, not this

time,& she tac"ed on hastily# &$t cheeredme so much to "now Raoul !egins toacce%t you# 'idn&t $ tell you he would, machere& $ can see Paris looming nearereach day $&

Ee started uneasily# Celeste washa%%y, full of a gay o%timism, yetsomething was wrong# A whole lotneeded carefully going into !efore Celestecould go to Paris or anywhere else#

Howeer, there was %erha%s some elderlyrelation already waiting to come should

Celeste really manage to get away# Some%erson Ee "new nothing a!out# Sheshran" from mentioning a cha%erone to

Celeste, well aware that the girl mightonly laugh, might sim%ly %oint out cruellythat such a %erson was scarcelynecessary, that %eo%le would neer creditthat there could !e any liaison, im%ro%er

or otherwise, !etween Ee and Raoul'u(are# Somehow Ee had e2%ected thehouse to !e swarming with relations#/any of the stories she had read a!out)rance seemed to im%ly that do+ens lied

under the same roof, and hadn&t sheheard Carol com%laining a!out so many%eo%le !eing underfoot4

$t was all too confusing# Ee&ssmooth !row wrin"led with a fretful

an2iety, and she felt her heart heay withun"nown dread, an instinctie feeling of disaster, worse than anything she hadeer "nown#

/ichel, a contented enough !a!y,had !een %laying at their feet while theytal"ed# Now, Ee scoo%ed him u%, holdinghim to her as though the warmth of hissmall, nestling !ody could dis%el all her

fears# She made no further commenta!out Paris, instead she as"ed Celeste if

she wouldn&t come with them to thegarden# There, she half ho%ed to find away to tal" to Celeste rationally, to

suggest there could !e %ro!lemsregarding her %lans in a sort of rounda!out fashion#

(ut, as usual, Celeste had madeother arrangements# &'arling,& she cried,

&$ am sorry # # # $ am o!liged to s%end anhour with Amelie, then Andre is arriingto ta"e me out, He %ositiely !egged, andas it is also a chance to gain Raoul&sa%%roal how could $ refuse4 $f Raoul

thin"s $ am in loe with Andre he will not

mind my going to Paris !ecause then hewill !e sure $ shall come !ac"# Thegarden will still !e there another day#&

/ichel was not a !a!y, in the

%ro%er sense of the word, any more# He

7@< @9



was almost two, and toddling, although

he seemed to %refer sitting on the floor,!ut this, Ee had !een .uic" to

sus%ect, was %ossi!ly !ecause he s%entlong hours confined to the nurserywhere he had numerous toys !ut littlechance to try out his legs on the highly%olished surface# And while it would

hae !een ridiculous, with all he had,to allege that he was de%ried in anyway, Ee also sus%ected it was easierfor one of his many nursemaids tosim%ly leae him to his own deices, a

.uic" glance through the nursery door!eing enough to ensure that he was

ta"ing no actual harm# $t was %erha%sregretta!le, Ee reflected, that he wastoo %lacid a child to o!0ect# Raoul was

!usy, and haing too much to do wouldimagine that as /ichel was .uiet, allwas well# /an*li"e, he would notunderstand that /ichel might well!enefit from a more aried routine than

he had at %resent#:uic"ly Ee gathered u% a few

things and carried the !oy into thegarden# On her way she sto%%ed onlyto tell /arie where she was going#

/arie, whateer her faults, alwaysinsisted on "nowing where /ichel was#'(on, mademoiselle,' was all she said,%reoccu%ied with her neer*ending!a"ing, !ut she did smile, and

%roduced a rosy a%%le for 'le etit gosse'.

/ichel, Ee had discoered, loedthe garden and, since she had !egun

ta"ing him there, his small lim!s werealready growing !rown# He .uite oftengot dirty, more li"e a !oy# Now shewatched as he toddled around chasingthe !rightly coloured !utterflies which

fluttered on gau+y wings 0ust out of reach of his chu!!y fingers# The air was

heay with the sweetly astringentfragrance of thyme and rosemary, thewild rosemary !lossom which crowded

the outer reaches of the garden, adelicate %ale*!lue ha+e against a richgreen !ac"ground# Ee !reathed thescented air dee%ly# $t was !lossom timeand eerywhere the dar" masses of

shru!s and trees were smothered in!rightly coloured flowers such as wererarely seen in the usual su!ur!angarden at home# The %rofusion of colour she loo"ed at was s%ectacular,

and the glittering wings of the !irds

and insects which flitted in and out of the !ranches een more so# $t would !eso easy to !ecome addicted to liing insuch colourful surroundings# (y

com%arison London, een in /ay, was

going to a%%ear .uite dra! once she was

home#/ichel, tugging urgently at her

0eans, interru%ted her wistful dreaming#5uiltily she %ic"ed him u%, re%roachingherself for neglecting him as much as hisother nursemaids as she %retended toe2amine the !right yellow flower he had

found# $t was rather li"e a daisy, !ut shecould tell him no more, yet it seemed aste% forward that he had !rought it to herso confidingly# He was 0ust !eginning total", and !ecause he only s%o"e )rench,

Ee occasionally found it difficult to followhis !a!yish ram!lings# She was trying to

e2%lain to him in terms he might 0ust%ossi!ly understand how a flower wasmade, while he in turn was laughing

ha%%ily and doing his !est to %ull the!loom to %ieces, when /adame Troyatarried#

Amelie gae the im%ression thatshe was merely wandering in the garden

%assing the time of day, yet she seemedto wal" across to them so %ur%osefullythat Ee felt an immediate twinge of a%%rehension at her rather e2aggeratedsur%rise#

&f had forgotten,& Amelie smiled,&a!out your intention to come out hereyourself# And how is your %oor cousin&s!a!y today 4&

Too .uic"ly she !ent to %o"e at

/ichel with long, shar% fingers, and witha small nerous whim%er he shran" !ac"against Ee# He had !een whollya!sor!ed with his daisy and Amelie&s

a%%roach had !een too a!ru%t# Then, toEe&s dismay, he !egan crying in earnestas Amelie continued to stare at himclosely with dar"ly malicious eyes#

&One can see at a glance,& Amelie

said coldly, &that he lac"s disci%line3haen&t $ told Raoul a hundred times Of

course he agrees with me, !ut he is too!usy, %oor man, to do anything a!out it#A young !a!y needs a firm hand, !ut

alas,& she shrugged, &at the moment $hae no authority# Howeer, ery soonthis may !e altered#&

-ith difficulty Ee !it !ac" a shar%retort, not !eing a!le to thin" of one

good reason for /adame Troyat&s o!iousantagonism# /adame Troyat&s wholemanner she found intensely irritating#Howeer, she conceded grudgingly, %er*ha%s the woman meant well4 Some

%eo%le always managed to ma"e

themseles a%%ear in a !ad light, while atheart they were full of good intentions#Amelie&s manner was %ro!a!lyunfortunate, and Ee "new she could not

7@< ?;



!ut agree that children did need a

certain amount of disci%line#&(ut /ichel is young, yet,& was all

she re%lied, as the !a!y clung tighdy toher# &He didn&t e2%ect to see you andsim%ly receied a little fright# A eryyoung child often acts instinctiely3hehasn&t yet learnt to reason#&

)aindy mollified, Amelie a%%earedto rela2, een to smile again, this timecharmingly, at Ee&s an2ious face# &So $stand chastised, mademoiselle,' shelaughed lightly# &$ .uite see you and $

are adults, and must not allow thewhim%erings of one small, s%oilt child

to drie us to a fren+y# $ hae !eenwondering,& she went on, &if Raoulwould not let you ta"e /ichel to lie

with his grand'mere in Rhodesia# Howmuch more conenient for eeryonethis would !e#&

A few wee"s, een days ago,such an ally and such a %ro%osition

would hae delighted Ee; now, shewasn&t so sure# There was a hollowfeeling inside her where a growingelation should hae !een# &/onsieur'u(are would neer consider such a

%ro%osal,& she said unthin"ingly#Amelie&s glance narrowed "eenly

as though something amused her#&/onsieur 'u(are4& she re%eated sofdy#Then, &He can !e so stu!!orn, that one,

/ademoiselle Reston# /ichel must haehis %oor father&s share; Celeste, theidle wretch, must hae a dowry# $t is aswell, is it not, he is a ery rich man,

otherwise what would there !e left forhis %oor wife when he ta"es one &

&That is none of my !usiness,&Ee retorted coldly, while longing to as"if it was any of Amelie&s either# 1et why

should the idea of Raoul !eing marriedto Amelie fill her with alarm4 Amelie

was an attractie widow and wouldundou!tedly ma"e him an eminendysuita!le wife# $t was not for her to

!other her head a!out such matters#Ha+ily she !ecame aware of

Amelie s%ea"ing, and that while heroice was still soft, it also seemed tohold a thread of threatening iolence#

&>ust ma"e sure it continues to !e noneof your !usiness, mademoiselle, thenwe shall hae nothing to .uarrel a!outAnd as for ta"ing the child with youwhen you de%art3well, you thin" not,

!ut $ should adise you to wait and see&

Startled, Ee stared as Ameliewhi%%ed around, wal"ing off as swiftlyas she had come# &-hew $& she foundherself e2claiming soundlessly# /adame

Troyat was undou!tedly a force to !e

recognised, haing no com%unction when

it came to issuing ultimatums, leaingEe in no dou!t as to what ha%%ened to

those who stood in her way# All tooclearly Amelie was determined to !ecome/adame 'u(are# /ichel had sto%%edso!!ing and scram!led from Ee&s armsin almost the same instant Amelie had

gone, and Ee sighed# Raoul would neer%art with his !rother&s only child, that sheinstinctiely "new, !ut what sort of achildhood would /ichel hae if his unclemarried someone li"e Amelie Troyat4

Seeral eenings later Ee came

down to the garden !y herself to sam%lethe delights of the %ool# The afternoonhad !een hot, unduly hot for the time of

year, and after %laying all morning with/ichel, she had fallen aslee% in the coolconfines of her room# She had !een .uiteannoyed with herself when she wo"e u%and found it was .uite late# She was also

ery stiff, as she had gone to slee%unintentionally, sitting in the armchair !ythe east window where she had onlyintended staying for a minute to esca%ethe sun#

A!out to scram!le into a dress fordinner, she had suddenly remem!eredthat !oth Raoul and Celeste were out andshe had told /arie not to coo" anythinghot, that she would 0ust hae a snac" in

the "itchen# Hastily she had %ut her dress!ac" in the wardro!e !efore runningdownstairs where, to her delight, /ariehad already arranged an assortment of

cool salads on a tray with a !ottle of wine#

ft was /arie who suggested shetoo" her meal into the garden, and had aswim# &One of the !oys will carry your

tray for you, mademoiselle she said,smiling# &1ou will en0oy your diner !etter

when you feel cooler, you will see#&The idea had suddenly a%%ealed to

Ee enormously# She hadn&t yet swam in

the %ool as Celeste neer seemed to !eat home to accom%any her and she hadfelt curiously reticent a!out using it onher own# (ut there would !e no onearound at this time of the day, no chance

of Raoul discoering her une2%ectedly, ashe was not e2%ected home until late#

So she allowed herself to !e%ersuaded and, after murmuring a wordof !reathless than"s to /arie, rushed

u%stairs for her !i"ini and a towelling

wra%# $n the %ool she had died andswam until once again she was tired#Now, drowsily re%lete after en0oying hermeal, she was ashamed to realise she

could ery easily go to slee% as she had

7@< ?7



done 0ust a few hours earlier# The air

was still and warm, the shadowsgathering as the light !egan to fade#

Een the %iercing cries of the !irds haddro%%ed to a murmurous twittering,and the last !usy insect retired for thenight# Soon she would hae to retire aswell, !ut right now she couldn&t seem

to manage the effort to moe# Herrecliner was the last word in comfort,%added softly with cushions and!oasting a huge fringed um!rellaoerhead# $dly Ee wriggled !are toes,

while scarcely conscious of anymoement at all, only aware it was a

long time since she had felt so rela2ed#$t was %erha%s !ecause of this,

when she lifted her heay eyelids to

find Raoul 'u(are ga+ing down at her,that she "new such an instantresentment# A twin feeling of flic"eringe2citement she ignored, concentratingon her loss of %leasure in a losing

struggle to create a sort of inisi!le!arrier# -hy must fate turn him u% li"ethis4 'uring the last few days she hadseen a lot of him, too much, in fact#Had it !een totally unreasona!le to

ho%e for a !reathing s%ace4 He was tooswiftly decisie eer to need one, !utEe felt her own more ulnera!ledefences sha"ing# &5ood eening, mon-sieur,' she said wea"ly, gathering her

wra%, for no reason she could thin" of,more tighdy a!out her#

His eyes taunted the sha"yfum!ling of her fingers, his dar" !rows

rising derisiely# &1ou feel a suddenchill4& he as"ed, his oice threaded withironic concern#

His sarcasm hit her, scattering foreer her mood of tran.uility# &$ didn&t

"now you would !e home so early,& shechallenged him foolishly#

&O!iously not, !ut there is noneed to act as though you haecommitted a crime in !athing in my

%ool# Or is it something else,/ademoiselle Ee, that distur!s you4&His eyes still moc"ed as his glanceswung to the remains of her cold meal,the almost em%ty wine !ottle# &$f $&d

"nown you were cele!rating, $ mighthae 0oined you instead of eating !ymyself on the way#&

8ncomforta!ly Ee flushed; histeasing glance was so %ointed she

couldn&t %retend not to understand#

&The night was hot, monsieur. $t is onlya little light wine3and $ dou!t,& sheadded, with a "ind of frantic daring, &if you dined alone#&

He laughed at her %ertinent

o!seration# &No,& he confessed, &$ didnot# At least, an old ac.uaintance 0oined

me for coffee, which was not so amusingas it might hae !een here, with you#&

&Oh # # #& Ee&s thic" lashes flutteredon her hot chee"s; %erha%s she haddesered that He wasn&t to "now her

silly .uery had !een %rom%ted !yconfusion rather than curiosity# -ithconcentrated effort she turned her ga+eaway from him, attem%ting to finddistraction in the !eauty of the garden,

!ut dismayed to find her iew still!loc"ed !y Raoul&s image, seemingly

indeli!ly im%rinted on her mind&s eye#As if ac"nowledging the

ho%elessness of her own endeaours, she

loo"ed nerelessly !ac" at him,wondering rather des%erately what it wasa!out him she was fast !ecoming una!leto resist# He might hae had a !usy day,there could !e no dou!t a!out that, !ut

he still gae the a%%earance of !eingalie with a sort of deastating energy,his eyes !rilliandy alert, not missing athing# He was a man whose dynamic%ersonality would always !e one ste%

ahead, anywhere in the world# -hatchance would a girl li"e Ee Reston haeof !eating him at his own game, or anygame at all, come to that4

/oodily lost in a whirl of

uncertainty, Ee&s eyes clung to his welllaundered shirt, the immaculatedistinction of tailored sil"# He hado!iously !athed and changed since re*

turning home, haing discarded his townsuit in faour of a %air of more casualslac"s# He loo"ed cool and remote, !ut hewas, she was .uite aware, all man# 9erymasculine, which was undou!tedly the

way he was made, !ut he was alsodangerous, this she "new only too well,

and %rayed silently that, while he mightsway her senses, she could still retainenough coolness of head to see him

o!0ectiely#As he so o!iously waited for her to

finish, or to ma"e some further comment,she said faintly, &$ don&t thin" you wouldfind me amusing for long, monsieur. As

we hae so little in common it is oftendifficult to find anything to tal" a!out#&

CHAPTER SE9EN

$) Ee had ho%ed to confound him!y such an o!iously discouragingo!seration, she clearly failed dismally,

as his eyes again flic"ered tauntingly#

7@< ?<



&1ou English set great alue on the

lengthy conersation, do you not, mydear Ee4 $n )rance we can often thin"

of !etter ways of %assing the time,es%ecially at this hour of the eening#&

Now she "new he deli!eratelyteased, and would hae li"ed a!oe allthings to hae !een a!le to get u% and

sim%ly wal" away, !ut it seemed as if his eyes deli!erately %inned her to thesoft cushions of the recliner and it wasall she could manage to retain een amodicum of dignity as colour flared

wildly !eneath her s"in# &$ am notfamiliar, as you "now, monsieur, with

the way a )renchman&s mind wor"s,&she muttered crossly, &and it canscarcely matter as $ shall soon !e

gone#&-ithout warning he dro%%ed

down !eside her, on the edge of thewide recliner, facing her, his oice full of a menacing smoothness# &The wine has

%erha%s made you a little rec"less,mademoiselle. $ must hae a word with/arie#&

&No, %lease#& He was so close if she %ut out a hand she could touch

him# &$ didn&t mean to soundim%ertinent, monsieur.'

&(ut you do,& his mouthhardened, &all the time# -hat e2actlydo you ho%e to gain !y these imaginary

!attles you fight, or is it that you ho%ea lot of smo"e will conceal the e2actamount of the fire4&

&1ou tal" in riddles, monsieur &

she cried, trying futilely to edge awayfrom him as his hand sna"ed out andcaught her, holding her, regardless of her !rief struggle# &-hy should $ haeanything to conceal4&

&Perha%s you are right,& heshrugged, suddenly indifferent,

although his hand did not leae herarm# He merely rela2ed slightly thesteely gri% of his fingers, as if not

willing yet that she should esca%e him#His hard glance e2amined her face, thesatiny, rose*flushed s"in, the wide,a%%rehensie !lue eyes, !eforedro%%ing consideringly oer her !are

graceful lim!s# &1ou are young,mademoiselle,' he sighed, &at themoment uncommonly a%%ealing, !ut,contrary to what you !eliee, we dohae something to tal" a!out,

something we do hae in common, and

which $&m afraid we must discuss# $imagined this would !e as o%%ortune amoment as any#&

As Ee&s a%%rehension dee%ened,

he continued# &-e had a letter from my

father&s cousin, Nadine# She is on her way

home and wishes for Celeste to go toParis to stay with her for a while !efore

they !oth return to New 1or"#&&$ see # ##& Ee&s oice grew cautious

as she sensed the looming danger#&1ou are sur%rised, mademoiselle,

!y this news4& Raoul&s eye!rows rose

slightly#&$n a way,& Ee flushed !eneath his

sce%tical e2%ression, and she addedunintentionally, &!ut $ hae always "nownof Celeste&s desire to go there#&

&Always, mademoiselle?' Ee stirred uneasily, hit !y an

utterly confusing coniction that theywere nearing some sort of crisis, yet howcould she thin" clearly when his fingers

were shooting small flames u% her arm ina wholly ine2%lica!le way4 &$&e "nown fora while,& she amended unha%%ily#

&So, /iss Reston,& he went on,ac"nowledging her retraction narrowly,

&we are confronted with the %ro!lem of /ichel#&

&Oh, yes, monsieur.' )or onehorri!le instant she had imagined hima!out to challenge her half*truths;

instead it seemed, sur%risingly, he waswilling now to s%ea" rationally of /ichel&sfuture# &Of course,& she said eagerly,&Celeste could not !e e2%ected to sacrificeher whole life to the child# $t&s as well you

are %re%ared to !e sensi!le#&Something, a derisie flash of

anger, flic"ered in the de%th of his eyes#&That could, in this case, !e .uestiona!le&

he drawled enigmatically#&$&m sorry, monsieur, that was

unfortunate# -hat $ meant was # # #&&$ feel sure $ "now ery well what

you meant,& he interru%ted coolly# &1ou

imagine $ will !e willing to %art with thechild, that $ will allow you to ta"e him4&

&Not necessarily#& Ee&s oice trailedoff as she drew a dee% !reath, im%atientthat he could so easily confuse her, &1ou

might hae %lans of your own#& He couldhae decided to marry Amelie, or therecould !e others only too willing to o!lige,es%ecially if he was as wealthy as Amelierec"oned he was# A%art from this it was

surely not im%ossi!le to find satisfactoryhel%#

&$ hae %lans, yes,& he was saying,%ausing, watching her e2%ressie faceclosely, reading clearly the muddled trend

of her thoughts# &$ hae "nown of

Celeste&s unrest for some time, !ut untilyou arried a solution eluded me#&Rather des%erately Ee stared away

from him# She might hae "nown he had

seen through Celeste&s too ela!orate

7@< ?>



contriances, !ut he couldn&t actually

!e admitting he found her ideasfeasi!le4 &1ou mean # # #4& she !egan,

with a %ainful hesitation#&$ mean, Ee,& he again cut in

firmly, &or rather, $ am suggesting, thatyou "new something of my sister&sattem%ts to enrol you as nursemaid#&

(right colour stained Ee&schee"s and she felt guilt must !ewritten all oer her# &There was nothingdefinitely arranged,& she faltered# &/yaunt and uncle were ery an2ious to

hae news of their grandson#&&So you 0ust came, ho%ing to see

him, and suffered all "inds of re%risals!ecause of it4 Such deotion to one&sinfirm relaties ought not to go

unnoticed, ma chere.'' (ut it hadn&t !een altogether li"e

that Ee felt li"e crying# Hadn&t sheonly come reluctandy, resenting wildlythe conscience which had seemed to

drie her here4 This, and the whollyalarming fear that Celeste would carryout her threats and !ring /ichel toLondon, was almost entirely re*s%onsi!le# She was no self*sacrificing

heroine as %erha%s Raoul a%%eared tothin", yet how could she e2%lain thiswithout im%licating Celeste4 (ut shewas in fact searching for a suita!le wayto confess when his ne2t words droe

all such thoughts from her head#&$ hae decided, Ee, it is not

merely a nurse $ must loo" for !ut awife#&

Heaens )or a moment she wasstartled, !efore the sur%rise inside herseemed fro+en cold# &A wife& shewhis%ered, %aling clearly as a shierran through her#

&-hy not4& he demanded, as shestared u% at him#

&(ut of course, monsieur,' realisation dawned# &A nurse, a youngone, anyway, would re.uire a

cha%erone %erha%s # ## /adameTroyat###&

&5o on,& he murmuredsarcastically, as she faltered, &you weresaying4&

&Oh, %lease,& she gae him ascared glance, &it was only that/adame Troyat also said a wife would!e the !est thing# She was s%ea"inggenerally3you understand4 Someone

who would see to it that the nurse

loo"ed after /ichel well#& She dared nottell him of /adame&s other %lans for/ichel3there was such a lot she wastoo frightened to tell him, his anger

could !e harsh#

&So,& he drawled dryly, &$ am to !e

saddled with !oth a wife and a suita!lenanny, two %eo%le when it is %ro!a!ly

only necessary to find one#&&(ut /adame Troyat# # #&&-e will %ut the good lady to one

side for the moment, Ee, although shemay yet !e necessary# She is indeed a

most admira!le %erson, !ut it is you who$ am as"ing to consider

this %osition# $ am as"ing you to !emy wife4&

'Monsieur, %lease& she felt herself

go white# &$ don&t imagine,& she gas%ed,&you are serious, !ut $ don&t somehow

a%%reciate your little 0o"e&&$t is no 0o"e, ma chere.' His mouth

cured ironically, as he loo"ed down at

her num!ed face# &'o not loo" so com*%letely dis!elieing# This is not an entirelynew idea, something unheard*of# /enhae !een marrying with the same%ur%ose in mind throughout the ages# $n

finding someone with your training, whosuits my %ur%ose admira!ly, $ hae !eenmore fortunate than many others, shallwe say#&

Ee had a strange feeling, as she

listened to him, that she was sin"ing inwater so dee% she could neer ho%e toreach the surface again# That she wasdrowning, !ut %erha%s in o!liion shemight rediscoer some "ind of sanity#

Now, as her eyes widened on his hard,handsome face, she realised he meanteach word he uttered# And yet it did notseem %ossi!le#

8nconsciously she moistened dryli%s# &A%art from my own feelings,monsieur,' she said, &are you willing tosacrifice all ho%e of marrying someoneyou loe in order to !enefit a !oy who

isn&t een your son4&&Oh, $ would find com%ensations,

mademoiselle, neer fear# There is muchwhich might !e arranged#&

&/ay!e you are thin"ing of diorce,

in a few years& time, when /ichel isolder4&

&A )renchman .uite often does notmarry until he is older, mademoiselle, !utwhen he does it is for the rest of his life,

usually#&&(ut# # #& Ee&s !reath seemed

drien from her !ody, and as she s%o"e awild flush returned to her chee"s# &(ut, if it was not a %ro%er marriage, monsieur&'

His eyes were enigmatically eiled#

&One crosses all these hurdles as onecomes to them, ma chere. There isalways a solution, and not always theo!ious one# At the moment, as

7@< ?@



$ thin" you must agree, the child

is the im%ortant consideration#&He tal"ed in riddles, terri!le,

heart*accelerating riddles# &-hat yousuggest is of course im%ossi!le,& heroice gathered a little strength andconfidence as she tried to thrust allthought of it from her# &1ou could easily

find a suita!le nanny and some elderlyrelation to act as cha%erone# $ wouldmyself !e willing to stay on a littlewhile longer in these circumstances#&

&Then you will leae,& he

commented dryly, &and once more thechild will !e at the mercy of change#

And the elderly relation who is free tocome, whom $ could %ossi!ly endure inthe house, does not e2ist# So you must

thin" again, mademoiselle.' &$&m sorry,& Ee re%lied stiffly, in

no way coninced#His !road shoulders lifted, the

muscles moing smoothly !eneath his

thin shirt# &So am $,& he shrugged#Ee glanced at him

a%%rehensiely# $t was merely a %olitere0oinder, his tone holding no o!iousregret, as though, in his o%inion, in

s%ite of what she said, a satisfactoryoutcome was sim%ly a matter of timeand %atience# She would hae li"ed toesca%e, !ut his hand still held her armand he made no attem%t to release her,

and when he !egan to s%ea" again shecould only wait su!missiely to hearwhat more he had to say#

&Ta"e a few days,& he instructed

coolly, &to thin" a!out it# Thin" also of the relief your uncle and aunt will "nowshould you change your mind# 1ouruncle&s heart, Ee, would surely !enefitaccordingly#&

&$ don&t need to thin" a!out it,&she insisted stu!!ornly, refusing to !e

!lac"mailed in this fashion#He went on as if she had neer

s%o"en# &Then %erha%s if you still refuse

$ must as" some more o!liging lady#Someone with a tender, loing heart,such as Amelie Troyat, who $ su%%osewould loo" after my ne%hew almost aswell#&

&$&m sure she could, monsieur,' Ee retorted shar%ly, through adis.uieting surge of dismay# 1et hemoc"ed her so o%enly with his eyesthat tem%er lic"ed along her own eins

so that she must retaliate# &1ou are a

fool, monsieur, to imagine a liaison!etween the two of us would wor" out#-e hae nothing in common &

Hard anger flared isi!ly in his eyes

and his fingers tightened# &-e are notincom%ati!le#&

&That $ cannot !eliee, monsieur' Hysteria, rising from

tension, rose cho"ingly# He did notli"e it when she called

him a fool, she could see# $t was a

raw flic" to his %ride eenif he could control his anger !etter

than she# &1ou are notonly foolish,& her oice rose wildly,

&you are stu%id, stu%id

$t was enough He didn&t attem%t todisguise his contem%t, the rare

im%atience that flic"ered through him ather rec"less words# &1ou tal" too much,&he said shar%ly, &it is you who is !eing

stu%id, $&m afraid# 'on&t you "now !etterthan to %roo"e a man in this fashion4&

Her fingers clenched to sto% herhands from sha"ing# &That wasn&t myintention,& she assured him .uic"ly, as

coolly as she could, &$ was sim%ly tryingto conince you that what you hae inmind would neer wor" in a hundredyears&

&Really4& $n other circumstances

there might hae !een grim humour inhis oice at such a forthright e2clamation,!ut whateer it was it wasn&t strongenough to dissole his %reailing anger#His 0aw hardened a!ru%tly, and she felt

the moement of his hands against hers"in as they slid round her, !ehind hershoulders, almost lifting her from the re*cliner#

Then the warmth of her !ody wasin his arms and he was saying roughly,&/ust you always hae %roof of eerything4 There is a%%arently only oneway to hel% you ma"e u% your mind#&

Sheer, %rimitie alarm shot throughher as she tried to %ull away from him,

!ut he merely followed u% her ineffectualstruggles, !ending oer her until she wasstretched tautly against the lowered

!ac"*rest, her eyes, wide and distressed,neer leaing his face# &'on&t,& shewhis%ered, her oice a low cry in herthroat, !ut he came right on, notsto%%ing until he was crushing her to

him, feeling the futile %rotest of sil" andflesh under his hands and her mouthtrem!ling %iteously !eneath his#

His arms held her to him with thesame unrelenting strength she had

"nown once !efore and there was no

gentleness in his "iss, which was clearlymeant as a %unishment for daring to defyhim# 1et the harsh shoc" of it eo"ed a!ewildering res%onse within her,

7@< ??



something that seemed to hold her in a

fearful oid, where all rationalthought deserted her#

She wanted to %ush him away,!ut instead she clung to him, and whenmomentarily he lifted his head, her li%swere soft and see"ing against his, andthe sweetness of her %arted mouth

seemed to loosen something in himwhich he could not su!due# He saw hereyes !lurred with emotion and felt herhands moe !ehind his nec", and thereseemed nothing !ut a great silence,

holding them immo!ile, loc"edtogether#

There was a danger around themthat dee%ened, almost uncontrolla!ly,and as if sensing this the man drew

!ac" slightly while Ee&s head whirledand the !lood %ounded %ainfully in herears# :uiering, she could not lift herheay lashes to loo" at him, !ut shecould feel his ga+e, his !reath on her

hot s"in, his fingers threading hertum!led hair, gri%%ing the sil"y strandsof it as she !reathed eratically# 'Mondieul' she thought she heard his oicesoftly, &!ut $

could loe you ## #&Then his li%s were on hers again,

crushing them this time with ademanding .uestion in his, anunwillingness to ta"e no for an answer#

She felt his !road shoulders %inning herdown, and sensation tore along hereins, racing madly through herheart!eats, as he swiftly swe%t aside

the !elt of her loose ro!e, his hands!rutally fran" on her !i"ini*clad !ody#

-hen ne2t he raised his head shewasn&t so inarticulate, she did managehis name# &Raoul,& her oice was a

sha"en whis%er, the sureness of histouch %roing an almost intolera!le

stimulant#&-ould you still say we are not

com%ati!le4& he %ersisted, drawing an

audi!le !reath as she lay .uiering inhis arms#

Num!ly she tried to answer, tonod stu!!ornly, !ut nothing ha%%ened#There was only her heart thudding into

his, and she was aguely aware therewas nothing !ut the sil" of his shirt!etween them as he !egan "issing her%assionately, his caresses hard with!arely restrained desire as they recog*

nised the urgency within her and was

more than a!le to satisfy it# And Eefound herself only clinging and clinging#Then suddenly he was standing

some feet away from her as Celeste

came running, calling, into the

gardens# 'iensl' Ee heard him e2claim#

&Can there !e no %eace anywhere &$t was almost dar", Celeste !ut a

dimly defina!le figure, !ut Raoul turned,wal"ing %ur%osefully towards her3soo!iously to gie Ee an o%%ortunity toad0ust her ro!e that as reality returned, aflush of %ure shame seemed to coer her

com%letely, !ut when they returnedtogether, Celeste chatting iaciously, inRaoul&s green eyes as they sureyed herstill lingering distress there was not, sofar as Ee could see, one flic"er of

sym%athy3or regret)or some time after the incident !y

the swimming %ool Ee seemed to lieonly half aware of the world a!out her#Eery sensitie %art of her seemed to !e

stee%ed in a "ind of agony, inducingawareness of her own wea"ness# Eenher normal colourful energy seemedde%leted, as though Raoul had, in somedeious fashion, drained it away from her,

and the usual daily routine with /ichelwas almost more than she could manage#There was a lassitude within herim%ossi!le to fight; it een seemedreflected in her a%%earance# Her eyes

when she watched Raoul 'u(are, whenshe thought herself uno!sered, werewistful, shadowed with a %u++led con*fusion which held her mouth taut# $t wasonly when she remem!ered his "isses

that her %in" li%s unconsciously softenedto a .uiering awareness that not een adetermined coolness of manner coulddisguise#

She couldn&t seem to find any of the right answers# There were so manythings to !e done, yet the effort toorgani+e her thoughts constructiely!rought only %ain, something she fled

from instinctiely# There was Celeste to!e informed a!out her return to London3

a date to !e definitely fi2ed for it# And the%ro!lem of /ichel&s future to !e decidedon, this in a way that might at least

%artly satisfy his grand%arents inRhodesia# 1et, as the days eoled intowee"s, she came no nearer to the ma"ingof any of these a%%arendy sim%ledecisions# At times she thought almost

frantically that it was as if Raoul stood inthe !ac"ground, ironically contem%tuousof her o!ious ina!ility to ta"e this lastdecisie ste% towards freedom#

She wasn&t sure how much he had

guessed merely !y "issing her, !ut, if he

was as "nowledgea!le a!out women ashe was re%uted to !e, he had %ro!a!lyfound it easy to 0udge how litde she "newa!out men# >ust how difficult she would

find it to "ee% him at a distance should

7@< ?=



he really try to storm her defences she

did not "now 4 At night she could only!ury her hot face in her %illows,

.uiering with humiliation whenrecalling how eagerly she hadres%onded in his taunting arms# Therewas all the time the frighteningconiction that he was sim%ly watching

and waiting, well aware that hise2%erienced caresses had acted li"e adrug, for which, so far as Ee wasconcerned, there was no "nownantidote, no means of# resistance# Nor

did it do anything for the last remainingfragments of her confidence to realise it

would !e foolish to stay and een to tryto fight a !attle in which she would soo!iously !e the loser#

$f Raoul had loed her it mighthae !een different, !ut his %ro%osalhad !een accom%anied !y no suchdeclaration*Ee shuddered, recalling his!usinessli"e tones# -hy did he want to

marry her4 Of course an arrangedmarriage, es%ecially one directly lin"edu% with his family, would not seem sostrange to him, the structure of )renchfamily life !eing strong# /ore and

more, during the few wee"s she hadlied here, Ee was coming to realisethis# 'omini.ue&s child was %art of it,and Raoul was a%%arently conincedthat !y marrying Ee there would !e no

further ris" of /ichel !eing remoedfrom his care# On to% of this there must!e the added assurance of herim%ecca!le training, the fact that she

had already wor"ed with a )renchfamily, all of which would gie addeddefence against the claims of others in/ichel&s future#

Perha%s if Ee could hae loo"ed

at it from the same unemotional %ointof iew it could hae !een easier, !ut

certain things, she was finding, hurttoo much# Amelie Troyat seemedalways to !e isiting, sometimes

staying oernight, anct always to !efound near Raoul# Occasionally Celesteand Ee went u% to !ed leaing the twoof them dee%ly a!sor!ed inconersation#

&She is out to get him, that one,&Celeste giggled derisiely as theyclim!ed the stairs# &'o you thin", Ee,she will succeed4&

&She might,& Ee managed, with

commenda!le indifference, considering

the sin"ing feeling in her tummy# &1our!rother a%%ears to !e fond of her# Hecertainly seems to find her com%anystimulating# He must at least li"e her a

lot#&

&Oh, as to that,& Celeste shrugged

carelessly, &$ should not !e at allsur%rised if he is at this ery moment

ma"ing loe to her# (ut as for marriage3that, $ imagine would !e .uite anotherthing &

(ut would it4 Ee wondered,a!ru%tly !idding Celeste goodnight and

closing her !edroom door# -hy was itwheneer she thought of him married toanother woman there was only %ain4Amelie must !e suita!le in eery way, aswell as !eing, it was %lain to see, entirely

willing#$t was Amelie&s attitude towards

/ichel that caused her the greatestdou!ts# Clearly Amelie had no great loefor him, een though she might %retend a

delightful affection when his uncle wasaround, !ut it wasn&t until Ee came u%onher une2%ectedly again, in the gardensthat she realised Amelie might actuallydisli"e the child#

One of the young girls em%loyed inthe house, had ta"en him there to %lay, adaily routine that Ee had managed toesta!lish, and een /arie now insisted onit when Ee wasn&t there# Ee had, that

morning, !een out riding with )rancoisand Pierre, the two old men she had meton that momentous day !eside thelagoon# Her riding had much im%roedand she loed to go out in the early

morning, !ut Raoul insisted she neerwent alone, ordering the two old men of the mas to accom%any her whether sheli"ed it or not# $n fact Ee found their

com%any ery agreea!le as, once theygot to "now her, she found them erywilling to tal" a!out the Camargue,)rancois in %articular %roing a erita!le

fund of "nowledge#

Now she was !ac", after s%endingsome interesting hours watching the

herdsmen wor"ing with the herds of !ulls# There had !een a sic" animal andthey had had to ride out to the %astures

to !ring it home# The !ull had not, toEe&s way of thin"ing, loo"ed as if it hadmuch the matter with it, !eing moroselyunco*o%eratie and com%laining#

-hen she as"ed )rancois a!out it

he had merely laughed, eyeing herdou!tful face indulgently# &He is 0ust li"e aman, mademoiselle, who is not ill enoughto !e anything !ut !ad*tem%ered#&

he maltre was away that morning,

the men said, so Ee had allowed herself

more time than usual, not an2ious foronce a!out running into him# $t was fairlyeasy, she had discoered, !y staying inher room a little longer, to aoid him at

!rea"fast, and !y lunch she usually felt

7@< ?8



more a!le to face him without isi!le

tremors#She hurried now into the# garden#

/ichel was getting to "now her, to li"eher !eside him# At last she was!eginning to re%resent something in hissmall world3someone who would laughwith him when he felt li"e !eing silly,

someone to cling to when he was hurtor felt sad# At the same time, "nowingshe must one day leae him, Ee waswary of ma"ing him too de%endent, afine !alance which, with so young a

child, was not easy to achiee#Long !efore she reached him she

heard him cry and momentarily shesto%%ed in dismay !efore hurrying on#$t didn&t seem the sort of whim%ering

wail he usually made when he suffereda little fright# This had !een a highscream of rage# Then, around the ne2tcorner, Ee drew u% shar%ly, her whole!eing flooding with rage# Amelie was

there, holding /ichel, sha"ing him,screaming with tem%er, and the child,Ee could see, was terrified#

&Sto% it3let him down& Eeheard her own oice raised high as she

reached them in a flash, almostwrenching /ichel from Amelie&s gras%#She didn&t !other to s%ea" in )rench,though "nowing Amelie s%o"e erylittle English# $f Amelie didn&t

understand what she said, Ee "newher e2%ression could not !e mista"en#&1ou&re des%ica!le& she cried, holding/ichel&s trem!ling !ody to her# &Surely

nothing could 0ustify your sha"ing himli"e that&

&He !ro"e my nec"lace $& Ameliereturned angrily# &He 0ust wouldn&t letgo &

&He couldn&t !e e2%ected tounderstand # # #

&He is old enough& Amelie cut incontem%tuously# &And don&t %retendthat in your country no child is eer

chastised# /y own sister is married toan Englishman and she tells me # ##&

&All right3$&m sorry, madameEe&s oice was suddenly flat, as shetried to control herself# Perha%s, as

Amelie im%lied, she was ma"ing toomuch fuss# $t wasn&t really a crime tosha"e a child when it was naughty, only/ichel was so young# Surely he couldhae !een forgien on those grounds

alone 4

Suddenly, as Ee stared at her in!ewilderment, Amelie&s rage seemed toleae her and she su!sided rather $"e a%ric"ed !alloon# Trrrsorry, too,& she

almost gas%ed, &$ "now $ should not

hae lost my tem%er, !ut $ swear $ did

not hit him# $&m sure he is ma"ing a greatdeal of noise unnecessarily#&

Ee nodded num!ly, there seemednothing else she could do, !ut she wasuna!le to rid herself of the sus%icion thatAmelie did not li"e the child, was not fondof any "ind of children, which %erha%s

e2%lained the fact that she had neer hadany of her own# &$&ll ta"e him !ac" to thenursery, madame,' she said, &if you wille2cuse me#&

$n the nursery /ichel soon calmed

down# Ee saw .uite clearly he hadn&t!een actually hurt in anyway, that he had

sim%ly had a !ad fright, and in a fewminutes would !e none the worse# Herown a%%rehension was something .uite

different# $f Raoul married this womanhow would /ichel fare4 $t wasn&t a newthought, !ut, until this morning, and thisincident she had 0ust witnessed, the fullim%lications had neer struc" her forci!ly#

Amelie was !eautiful, well !red, and,when she li"ed, charming# No one wouldeer !eliee she had a slightly unsta!lestrea", that she might not !e a %ersonwho should hae charge of a small child#

$t wasn&t, after all, an easy thing toascertain# Ee herself was unwilling tomis0udge her, een after witnessing twoof Amelie&s hysterical scenes#

&The child has !een u%set, Ee4&

Startled from her reerie, Eeswung around to find Raoul sureying hersom!rely from the doorway# She hadimagined him in /arseille, where the

gardians had said he was going# He musthae returned early# How much had heseen4 $t&s nothing, Raoul,& she answereddistractedly, glancing again at /ichel&sslee%ing form# The heat and fright had

tired him and she had %ut him in hissmall cot !ed to rest# Now he sle%t

soundly, his round face %lacid once morealthough the tear mar"s remained on hischee"s# &$t was nothing,& she re%eated,

unaware that the crum%led tear*wet stateof her !louse %erha%s called forsomething more !y way of e2%lanation#

Raoul&s mouth thinned as his eyeswent oer her, .uic"ly assessing her

disheelled a%%earance# &/arie saidAmelie had ta"en him to the gardens#&

This e2%lained the a!sence of thegirl who usually loo"ed after him# &$ thin"the sun must hae tired him, monsieur

Ee answered, aoiding a direct re%ly as

!est she could#His eyes dwelt on the colour whichlightly stained her creamy chee"s# &$ see,&his glance was narrowly reflectie# &He

a%%ears to hae !een crying3%erha%s he

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did not want to come indoors so early#

A trained nurse can occasionally !e toomuch of a disci%linarian, my dear#&

&(ut it wasn&t li"e that## #& she!egan, then sto%%ed, words trem!lingon the ti% of her tongue, words shecould not utter# )irst it had !eenCeleste, now Amelie 1et did she owe

either of them loyalty4 She thoughtnot, !ut how could she change her ownnature4 $f she was to !etray them shewould only feel misera!le and, !esides,what %roof had she, and how was she

to "now if Raoul would !eliee her4 &$mean,& she stum!led !lea"ly, &$ was

sure he had !een out long enough#&&(ecause he was en0oying himself

with Amelie4 $ did not !eliee you

would !e rude to my guests# She wasmost u%set#&

'Monsieur . ..!' &1es4& his oice was dar"ly ironic#

&Hae you not the grace to loo"

ashamed4 The e2%ression of a sullenchild does not !ecome you#&

&1ou hae no right to 0udge me,&she tried to glare straight into hiscuriously light eyes# &1ou li"e to

condemn me out of hand&His white teeth glinted though

not, she thought, in amusement# &$ donot forget, Ee, you hae granted meno rights whatsoeer, to date# (ut

there are others, my dear, who wouldnot !e so reluctant#&

&Someone4& she cho"ed furiously#&A certain lady you don&t wish me to

offend4&&1ou could say that,& his smile

was ery white, amused, faintlycynical# &(ut do not let6Fit agitate you,ma chere. 1ou are hot enough !y all

a%%earances without adding to yourdiscomfort#&

$ndifferendy, it seemed, while shefumed, he %ut out his hands, drawingher to him# &Occasionally $ find you in*

furiating, little one, at the same time $do not li"e to see you li"e this#& Hishand went, !efore she could moe, toher hot !row, !rushing !ac" theclinging tendrils of dam% hair, his

fingers stilling effectiely any %rotestshe might hae made if words hadn&teluded her# She saw in his face anim%atient male tenderness mi2ed witha cool deli!eration# &'o you hae to get

yourself in such a state oer one small

child4& he muttered sardonically# &'on&tyou thin" it&s high time you !egan towaste some of these so intenseemotions on a man4&

Her eyes dee%ened and dar"ened

li"e the !lue of the s"y !efore night andshe could only stare at the strong column

of his throat, aware that !y doing so shefound none of the self*%ossession shesought, only a .uiering reluctance to!eg him to release her# He was undoingthe to% !uttons of her shirt, his "nuc"les

digging into her soft s"in as he slid hishand under the stiff collar, easing it !ac"#His fingers lingered on her smooth young!ac" and he didn&t withdraw them#

&/a chere he s%o"e with low

em%hasis, his eyes direcdy on her slenderyoung figure, &must you always wear such

e2hausting, inhi!iting clothes4 Mon dieu,if you !elonged to me $ would !urn thelot of them and !uy you a few wis%s of

material in which you would loo" whollyenchanting&

Colour swe%t again into her face,catching her !reath shar%ly, ma"ing hereyes !rilliant# &(ut $ do not $&

&Not yet # # # !ut $ might %resume itis 0ust a matter of time !efore you arrieat a decision4& &$&e always told you # # #&

&$ remem!er eerything you toldme, ma chere, !ut words are ery rarely

the whole of it#& His !reath was on herchee" as his free hand touched the racing%ulse at the !ase of her throat, hisinsinuation so %ointed she could not%retend to misunderstand#

&How $ hate you & she cried, feelingherself a stone&s throw away from totaldisorientation, almost una!le to restrainher own arms from going u% around his

!road shoulders, her sha"ing mouth fromsearching for his# 'es%erately, %u%%etli"e,she stared at the faint stri%e in his whiteshirt, willing herself rigidly from doingany such thing#

His hold tightened on her, hurtingfor another minute !efore suddenly he let

her go# &1ou&d !etter go and change forlunch,& he moc"ed, &if you&re stilldetermined to %lay it safe# Shall $ see you

to your room4 The house is ery .uiet#&&There is no one around,& the

glinting deil in his eyes seemed to add,&and, although you may %retend, $shouldn&t so much as wager two cents on

your resistance &And he could !e right, Ee

admitted, terrified for the first time in herlife !y a man&s tauntingly o!iousthoughts as she turned and fled#

$n her room, all the time she

scru!!ed her hot face and searched for aclean shirt, she tried to "ee% her mindclosed to all thoughts of him# How daredhe moc" her so sarcastically4 He couldn&t

really want to marry a girl after tal"ing to

7@< ?9



her li"e that -hat he had said was !ad

enough, !ut that which he had im%liedcould !e een worse# -as he sim%ly

e2%ressing, she wondered wildly, hisgeneral o%inion of women, or was it

0ust herself4 Perha%s she desered it3his a%%arent disres%ect4 He must haeguessed she lingered here not merely

!ecause of /ichel# Shiering with alarmand confusion, Ee thought of the wayshe seemed always to res%ond in hisarms# /ight he not !e e2cused if heimagined she would settle for a3less

%ermanent relationshi%4 $t wasn&tdifficult to recall how hardily he had

%roclaimed he hadn&t a dro% of English!lood in him# A wholly decisie man,and how little she "new of him# He

would demand*no, ta"e, more than shewould !e %re%ared to gie, and dailythe danger mounted# $t was u% to herto ma"e the effort, to %roe once andfor all that she really had the strength

to turn her !ac" on him and go#Amelie didn&t come in from the

gardens until /arie sounded the old*fashioned gong for lunch, merely goingto the downstairs cloa"room to rinse

her hands and not a%%earing in thedining room until eeryone else wasseated# $t might a%%ear she had !eenunwilling to confront Ee again, or hadsim%ly waited, with su%reme

confidence, for Raoul to annihilate her#Ee noticed throughout the meal

how Amelie&s eyes gleamed s%itefullyas they wandered fre.uently from

Raoul to herself, noting, with o!ioussatisfaction, that they rarely addressedeach other# Raoul&s solicitude regardingAmelie&s comfort was something Amelietoo" so clearly for granted that, on

more than one occasion with Ameliesim%ering at him, Ee ground her small

white teeth almost audi!ly# Painsta!!ed and she flinched while%erersely glad of it, hiding as it did a

worse ty%e of hurt, and a flic"er of 0ealousy which, of course, shedisowned#

Altogether, Ee was glad when itwas oer and she was a!le to e2cuse

herself# The men had told her when shehad left them that morning they were!rea"ing in some of the young stallionslater in the day, and she did not wantto miss such a sight# Not that she

%articularly cared for the idea of wild

horses !eing tamed in this fashion, !utshe su%%osed it was necessary for thegood of the herds# The herdsmen, she"new, were su%er!, and would neer

treat an animal cruelly# -omen, she

su%%osed !itterly, remem!ering Raoul

'u(are&s treatment of herself, would !e.uite another thing

She lingered with /ichel untilalmost four, then, leaing him %layingha%%ily with his two young nursemaids,she ran down to the sheds where thegardians were already !usy# Eagerly Ee

clim!ed on to the to% of some highwooden railings to watch# 1oung stallionsof a!out three to four years old werecaught in the marshes and !rought !ac"to the manade where they were handled

to get them used to %eo%le !efore !eingridden for the first time# $t was hard

wor", sometimes dangerous, as theanimals seemed instinctiely to "nowthey would neer again hae the same

freedom and re!elled accordingly, theirhooes flying out wildly at anyone whogot in their way#

The mistral had !een !lowing forseeral days now, and it was hot and

dusty, !ut Ee didn&t care# The dust wasthe worst %art of it, clinging as it did toher clothes and hair, getting in her eyes,half !linding her# 1et somehow the dis*comfort went unnoticed, surrounded as

she was !y num!ers of e2cited horses,and e.ually e2cited men# Horses arecreatures of ha!it# They li"ed familiar,well worn trac"s, "nown gra+ing grounds,a regular %attern of actiity, and o!0ect

when this %attern is !ro"en# All this Raoul'u(are had e2%lained to her on one of the rare occasions when he had ta"en herout3e2cursions to !e treasured !ut not

dwelt on too dee%ly# E2acdy how ananimals instinct wor"s was still a mystery,he&d said, !ut a horse&s %erce%tion wasinfinitely more sensitie than man&s# $nthic" dar"ness a horse could find its way

home without any difficulty, whileanything new or different on its %ath

would immediately arouse its sus%icions#)rancois, Ee&s faithful shadow, was

giing a running commentary on the

%roceedings, encouraged %erha%s !y heranimated e2%ression# She listened fitfully,her whole attention dierted when one of the herdsmen, riding a wor"ing horse,!rought out a young, un!ro"en stallion

on a leading*rein# She watched closely asthe man wor"ed carefully to get the wildhorse used to the saddle, holding her!reath almost %ainfully as the horsereared, trying to get free#

&1ou are interested, mademoiselleV

At first she a!sently assumed it was)rancois who had s%o"en, until thedifferent tim!re of oice !ro"e throughher a!sor%tion# She didn&t need to turn to

see who was standing !ehind her# Her

7@< =;



%ulse lea%t een while she "e%t her

eyes fi2ed steadily in front of her#)erently she had ho%ed he wouldn&t !e

here and, for a short time, she had feltcom%letely rela2ed !ecause he wasn&t,!ut she might hae "nown he wouldarrie#

&-hy, monsieur she heard

herself saying !lan"ly, &1ou seem !enton startling me today # ##&

CHAPTER E$5HT

$//E'$ATEL1 she had s%o"en Eeflushed# That sounded naie, !ut didhis !rows hae to shoot u% so

sarcastically4 She let out a faintlystifled !reath that had nothing to dowith the dust, aware that he waited forsome "ind of e2%lanation# &$ hadnothing %lanned, monsieur,' her oice

faltered# &$ came on im%ulse#&$f anything his !rows rose higher#

&1ou don&t hae to ma"e it u% as you goalong, child,& he re!u"ed ironically,&s%are me that $f you had mentioned

that you wished to come here today $would hae !rought you myself#&

Ee gul%ed, fi2ing an unfocusedloo" on a %oint somewhere !eyond hisshoulder# &$ cannot tell you eerything,

monsieur, we are not on those "ind of terms# (esides, you were tal"ing with/adame Troyat, so I imagined you hadother %lans for the afternoon#&

He ignored this, !ut his mouthtightened at the corners as he loo"edat her# &-hy can&t you !e your age/ust you always act li"e some cra+ychild, sitting in the dust as if it was

sand on the !each -hat you reallyneed is disci%line, and one of these

days, when my %atience is at an end # ##&

His oice was low, and Ee did

not need to glance at him again to"now he was furious# Rec"lesslyindignant, she retaliated, &1ou sound

0ust li"e a disa%%roing %arent, mon-sieur.'

&A while ago it was Raoul&Her lashes flic"ered, this time

uncertainly# &Only !ecause you startledme#&

&Now you choose not een to loo"

at me& As if conscious of other ears

listening, he s%o"e in saageundertones, something a!out hero!iously driing him !eyondsufferance#

Surely her lac" of elegance should

not offend him to this e2tent4 Ee&s !lueeyes clouded curiously as, as if com%elled

!y his anger, they turned a%%rehensiely!ac" to him, her glance clinging with asudden, startled sur%rise to his chec"edshirt# She hadn&t noticed he was dressedli"e one of his own men, and o!iously

not for %leasure# $t couldn&t !e that heintended riding one of those snorting,infuriated animals himself4 &Ee&

As her e2%ression grew trance*li"ewith dismay, his shar% tones 0er"ed her

u%right# &$&m sorry,& she gas%ed, her oicecontaining now only the shadow of a

sha"y defiance, &(ut $ am loo"ing at youas you re.uested, monsieur, if it wasnecessary4&

'Mon dieul' he countered, missingcom%letely the fearswhich !eset her, in his a%%arent desire tosha"e the life fromher# &1ou %arade in front of my men in a

%air of 0eans sotight they leae nothing to theimagination 1ou sit on afence li"e a young !oy, not caring whatthe dust and dirt

does to your s"in $f you were mine,mademoiselle-------------------------'

&(ut $ am not& Ee cut in, feeling itwas a %oint to !e immediatelyem%hasised, her heart thum%ing again at

his sheer male arrogance#&Not yetP'Monsieur . . .?' His chief gardian

a%%roached him, see"ing adice, and

Raoul turned a!ru%tly from Ee, dro%%ingher arm, though not his dar" scowl, andshe stared after him com%ulsiely, eerynere end tingling as if with shoc", as hewal"ed towards the horses#

&Stay there and don&t moe until $am finished,& he commanded curtly,

o!iously indifferent as to whether themen heard or not# &$ will not !e long, thenwe shall return to the house#&

/utinously num!, Ee ga+ed afterhis tall, dar" figure# He towered way anda!oe most of his men and was alsomuch heaier !uilt, although he moedwith a litheness which matched een the

youngest of them, and was clearly, ineery way, su%remely fit# 8nconsciouslyher fingers cre%t to her arm, where hishand had touched her, remem!ering howhe had held her !efore lunch# $t wasn&t

sensi!le to wonder if he li"ed the feel of

her !ody close to his# -ith his hardmasculinity %erha%s any woman, notnecessarily any %articular one, would do#

$n minutes his long stride too" him

away from her, to the other end of the

7@< =7



huge enclosure, where she lost sight of

him amidst the general melee of animals, dust and men#

The first horse she saw wassaddled and wal"ing .uietly on theleading rein# Now it was time forsomeone to try and mount him, andthis wasn&t accom%lished immediately#

Ee drew in her !reath shar%ly as shelistened to the encouraging calls of thegardians as the first man succeeded instaying in the saddle and !oth horseand rider disa%%eared in the ensuing

swirl of %ounding hooes and dust# Thestallion&s fren+ied !ody flashed through

the air as he tried eery tric" to unseatthe man, !ut the e2u!erant gardianwon# $t was a clash of wills, a !attle of

strong tem%eraments, the outcomeforeseea!le if not to !e ta"en forgranted#

$t was a ritual, !orn of necessity,that the young stallions should !e

!ro"en and learnt to tolerate thesaddle, as no one in the Camarguerides a mare, these !eing "e%t for!reeding# After today&s session thestallions would !e gently and %atiently

schooled until they were ready to !emounted normally# The mutual res%ect!etween the famous gardian and hishorse was something one wasinstinctiely aware of#

Raoul, to Ee&s relief, !ecauseshe wanted to stay a little longer,remained where he was, and when oneof the stallions managed to throw two

men he mounted it himself# Ee feltherself trem!le and her hands go slac"with %ers%iration on the rails as shewatched, una!le, for a moment, toconceal the de%th of her fear# She had

!een aware of Raoul 'u(are&s goodhorsemanshi%, and she could see now

he was su%er!, !ut it didn&t sto% herfrom sha"ing, from !eing suddenlyterrified for his safety# The animal,

haing already trium%hed oer twomen, was .uite confident of getting ridof a third and reared and !uc"ed withthis clearly %aramount on its mind,fm%ossi!le # # # The men laughed and

cheered, rela2ing after the first fewtraumatic seconds when it seemed thatictory might almost !e within reach of the infuriated horse# Ee&s heart was inher mouth, which seemed uncommonly

dry, when a short time later Raoul

ste%%ed down, as coolly as if he hadmerely !een out on a leisurely e2*cursion# Le maitre was o!iously a heroin the eyes of his men, indifferent while

she had !een fraught with an2iety

a!out a danger, which for him, hadn&t

seemed to e2ist#(ut the danger, it seemed, was

there, not for Raoul !ut for herself#Another of the young horses managing tothrow its rider, !ro"e free from the leadrein, and, !efore anyone could moe,charged wildly at the wooden fence on

which Ee was %erched# $t all ha%%enedso swiftly she couldn&t afterwards recall athing# One minute she was sitting com*forta!ly, ga+ing !itterly at Raoul 'u(are,the ne2t, she was lying flat on her !ac",

a cano%y of slashing hooes flying oerher#

She couldn&t !e hurt, although the!reath seemed to hae !een com%letely"noc"ed from her !ody# (ac"wards she

had !een flung, eery %art of her 0arredwith the unham%ered force of her fall, asmall scream of frightened sur%rise echo*ing faintly from her li%s# She hit the hardground with a softly audi!le thud, and

lay, momentarily una!le to moe, aslender, crum%led hea% against the dry,arid earth, the fragments of !ro"enrailings scattered all around her#

Mon dieul' )rom a distance she

heard Raoul&s furious e2clamation, andtried to o%en her eyes immediately so asto assure him she was only3the wordstu%idly eluded her3 winded $t couldn&t!e more# At least, nothing to 0ustify the

way in which his hands were goingruthlessly oer her, %ro!ing, it seemed,eery !one of her !ody# Then he was%ic"ing her u%, holding her to him with a

force which she unha%%ily sus%ectedmight !e doing more damage than heractual fall#

He was shouting to the men, hislanguage only fit for the ears of the

unconscious, so for a moment sheconsidered it adisa!le to retain this

a%%earance# He sounded li"e a man erynear the end of his tether, !ut it wasenough to lie lim%, for once letting his

anger flow unanswera!ly oer her#&And you,& she heard him hiss in her

ear as he carried her towards the house,&you may o%en your eyes# $ am assuredthe damage is not irre%ara!le# 1ou

desere to hear eerything $ hae to sayfor sitting on that rotten fence# Mon dieu,$ need my head e2amined for allowingyou to remain there, !ut must you always!e in some "ind of trou!le, mademoi-

selle?'

&$&m sorry,& she whis%ered, heroice wea", not from the in0uries he sorightly wouldn&t allow her, !ut she had re*ceied a fright and felt !adly sha"en# His

rotten fence, as he called it, had !een

7@< =<



.uite high All she needed was the con*

solation of his arms, 0ust for a fewmore minutes, een if he felt no actual

sym%athy# His heart thudded into herthrough the !lue and !lac" chec" of hisshirt, and she caught the dusty,%ers%iring heat from his !ody# $nsanelyshe wished suddenly that the house

was miles away# Her fall might haeta"en all her !reath, !ut it had alsoseemed to remoe all her resistance,leaing her trerri!ling, una!le to hideher deastating emotions# &Oh, Raoul,&

she moaned, %ressing her hot facefrantically against his !road chest#

&(e still,& he ordered grimly,o!iously thin"ing her wandering in themind# 1ou could hae hurt your head#

)n docteur . ..' &No, no,& she cried, fully aware of

his instant re0ection, &$ don&t need adoctor# 1ou can let me down, $ canwal"#&

(ut, all at once, they were at thehouse, and Amelie was there, theshar%ness of her glance, the sus%icionin her face too a%%arent# Ee caughther glance and there was hate in it,

warring with a %atent dis!elief#Amelie&s laughter came shrill as

she saw Raoul lowering Ee gentlydown to the sofa# &5ood heaens,& shee2claimed, &whateer has Ee !een u%

to now4&Raoul didn&t answer# He too" no

notice of Amelie at all as he gentlyswe%t Ee&s fair hair !ac" from her %ale

forehead# &Am $ to !e always doingthis4& he murmured enigmatically# &-illyou neer learn to loo" after yourself4&

Ee stirred !eneath the %iercingscrutiny of his eyes as they searched

her white face, !ut !efore she coulds%ea", Amelie interened again# &-ould

someone mind telling me what hasha%%ened to /ademoiselle Reston4'oes she hae to hae all your

attention as well as your sym%athy,Raoul4&

&She was "noc"ed from therailings on the fence# :uite easily shemight hae !een "illed,& Raoul retorted,

shar%ly a!ru%t as he went to %our!randy#

&So,& Amelie&s eyes were s%iteful,&what else would you e2%ect of one soforeign to our ways -ho would flaunt

herself from such a %osition in front of

all your men Surely you haen&tforgotten Carol4&&That will !e enough, Amelie&

Raoul&s oice was rough as he thrust

the !randy into Ee&s hand instead of

administering it himself as had o!iously

!een his intention a moment ago# Hea%%eared to dismiss Amelie&s indictie

accusations curtly, !ut Ee saw from hisslight frown that there was something hehad indeed oerloo"ed#

-ith a great effort she managed toget to her feet, welcoming /arie&s timely

a%%earance in the doorway# &$f you wille2cuse me, Raoul,& she said hastily,feeling slightly sic", &$ thin" $&ll go to myroom#&

/arie went with her, on Raoul&s

orders, while he stayed with Amelie,staring steadily down into the glass Ee

had gien him !ac" and sureying theuntouched contents moodily# $t wasnothing, Ee told herself stolidly as /arie

hel%ed her u%stairs, and, if she felt hurt,she couldn&t altogether !lame Amelie# $twas %lain Raoul had !een fed u% with her!ehaiour, !y what he had said as he hadcarried her in# This would !e his way of

ma"ing dou!ly sure she didn&t attach tohis small act of chialry any of the wrongconclusions# And it was also clear that hesought to allay any sus%icions Ameliemight hae !y not !othering to escort

Ee een so far as the drawing*roomdoor#

Ee&s head ached for the rest of theday, !ut after a good night&s slee% shefelt a whole lot !etter, a%art from the %er*

sistent ache in her heart and lim!s# Thesoreness of her lim!s was only to !ee2%ected, she smiled wryly, when /arie,!ringing her early morning coffee, as"ed

how she was# Ee didn&t mention thecondition of her heart#

Raoul hadn&t come near her againthe %reious eening, !ut had instructed/arie to !ring her a light meal u%stairs to

sae her the discomfort of coming downfor dinner#

'Le maltre is always so thoughtful&/arie had e2%lained, and while o!iouslywondering why Ee hadn&t immediately

agreed with her, had %ut down herreticence to her fall#

How could Ee %ossi!ly hae toldher, that for one short isit from le maitreshe would gladly hae forfeited a thou*

sand dinners (ut then /arie might haeunderstood no !etter than she didherself#

A few days later Raoul went toParis, the direct se.uence of a tele%hone

call from his manager# He would !e away,

it seemed, oernight# &$t would seem $ amnot so dis%ensa!le after all,& he shruggeddryly, as he said good!ye at !rea"fast,!efore de%arting#

7@< =>



He had a%%arently addressed the

three of them, !ut his eyes hadlingered fractionally longer on Ee&s

glistening fair hair, the %aleness of herchee"s as she made a great ado of stirring her sugarless coffee# &1ou loo"as if you could do with some fresh air,ma chere he had suddenly frowned# &$

hae told you !efore $ will not hae youwearing yourself out oer the child &

&Of course not, monsieur was themost she could manage, feeling, insome %eculiar way, more li"e wee%ing

than wishing him a gay farewell asCeleste was doing, or getting u% from

the ta!le and "issing him tenderly, asAmelie was doing#

&Nothing from you, /ademoiselle

Reston4& he had teased sardonically,%ausing !eside her chair#

&5ood!ye, monsieur. $t might !edifferent if you were going for twoyears,& she had retorted, trying

des%erately to match his light raillerywhile !right flags of colour touched herchee"s# 'eli!erately she had strien toshow com%lete indifference, yet shecould not !ear to loo" at him in case he

should read the true state of herfeelings3her des%air at the a%%arent%leasure he had deried from Amelie&swarm caress#

Later Celeste went out and, after

lunch, Amelie suggested that she andEe isited the Etang de 9accares, aast lagoon of some seenteenthousand acres which formed %art of

the famous Camargue nature resere#&1ou must see it,& Amelie

enthused, adding sweetly, &!efore yougo home#&

Ee hesitated, and seeing it,

Amelie rushed on, &'idn&t Raoul thin"you needed fresh air3to get out4 And $

.uite agree with him, ma chere. 1our%ale face irritates him On the la"ethere are flamingoes which nest in

colonies on the small islands# 1ou willloe them, they are such a wonderfulsight&

$n s%ite of Amelie&s dramaticenthusiasm, Ee felt a strange,

unaccounta!le reluctance# 1et hadn&tAmelie !een e2tremely %leasant allwee", and es%ecially this morning4 Somuch so that Ee was coninced shehad imagined Amelie disli"ed her# $t

%ro!a!ly wasn&t %ossi!le, or fair, to

0udge someone on the eidence of oneor two isolated incidents, and Ee hadno wish to a%%ear indictie# No one"new !etter than herself that, where

feelings were inoled, it was all too easy

to sus%ect the worst of others#The idea of e2%loring the nature

resere, or at least someof it, was tem%ting# Once, she

remem!ered, Raoul had mentioned it# Hehad, in fact, %romised to ta"e her therehimself, !ut she dou!ted if he would

really find time# Time, for her, she "new,was running out# $t might !e !etter tota"e a chance with Amelie#

&(ut what a!out /ichel4& shehedged uncertainly, feeling torn in two

directions#&(ut what a!out him, ma chere&'

Amelie moc"ed gaily at Ee&s an2iouse2%ression# &/arie will do eerythingnecessary3she loes the child# (esides,

as it is so hot and Raoul is away, $ haetold her not to coo" dinner, thatsomething cool and light will do, a sim%lesnac", so that it doesn&t matter when weget !ac"#&

<nowing she had run out of e2cuses, Ee agreed, 0oining Amelie inher small car outside# Now it had !eendecided, Amelie was in a hurry to !e off,assuring Ee that it was unnecessary to

ta"e 0ac"ets and, as she had alreadyarranged eerything with /arie, therewas no need to do anything in thatdirection either# As Raoul would&wish, allEe had to do was rela2#

North of Aries the Rhone diides, itstwin streams flowing into the sea across a!road %lain# There is always somethingeerie a!out a delta# The rier has lost its

momentum, running sluggishly until theestuary o%ens and there is a clash of o%%osing forces as the sea challenges thecrawling streams# $n turn the rierattac"s, %ushing muddy streamers into

the clear, s%ar"ling waes# Here, too, theearth is unsta!le, fought oer !y !oth

rier and sea# /ud coers the sand inarying de%ths, to !e washed away in thene2t rainstorm, and dunes which are

moulded one day are swe%t flat !y themistral the ne2t#

-est of the Petit Rhone is an areaof small la"es and sand dunes, and to thenorth is a district of ineyards, rice fields

and orchards# Here shee% are gra+ed onthe drier %astures while the !ulls andhorses are reared on the marshier %arts#$t was the taureau* and horses which"e%t the marshes from !eing oergrown

with the dense reeds#

Amelie, when she chose, could !ean interesting com%anion, !eingremar"a!ly well informed# As they wentalong she e2%lained that the ma0or %art

of the huge Etang de 9accares was

7@< =@



%rohi!ited to the general %u!lic# So,

too, was the other nature resere, Les$m%eriau2# Hunting was not allowed in

this area, neither was fishing, e2ce%t toa few %rofessional fishermen from LesSaintes /aries de la /er#

Raoul, she said, along with otherlandowners, still owned and controlled

much of the area in !etween, and thiswas chiefly used for hunting and thegra+ing of the semi*wild !ulls andhorses# Although these %laces were notin the actual reseres they !ordered

them, and, !ecause !irds and animalsrarely recognise !oundaries, were

almost as good# $ndeed, in these!oundary areas, where the animalswere more or less used to the %resence

of %eo%le, it was often easier toa%%roach them more closely#

The fresh*water marshes in%articular %roided nesting grounds forthousands of different !irds, from#the

!ittern to the %ur%le heron, the waterrail and many songsters# -here*eerthe marshes were heaily gra+ed !y!ulls the reeds were thinner, and herecould !e found terns and stilts along

with many duc"s and waders in thewinter#

&(ut one must !e careful,& Amelielaughed# &These swam%s are also idealfor our old friend the wild !oar, of

whom it %ays to !e wary#&Amelie droe swiftly along the

winding roads, and on other stretcheswhere no roads a%%eared to e2ist at all

and o!iously re.uired s"illedconcentration#

Ee !it her li% as she stareda!out her# This %art of the countrysidewas not familiar and seemed isolated

and lonely# &1ou&re sure you "nowwhere you&re going4& She glanced at

Amelie, trying to s%ea" lightly,reluctant that the woman shouldsus%ect she was nerous#

&Of course, ma chere,' Amelieanswered im%atiently# &/y latehus!and, you "now, was a great friendof Raoul&s# He was also a "eenornithologist# -hen we were first

married he used to drag me aroundthese s%ots almost eery wee"end,until sometimes $ could hae screamedwith !oredom $&m afraid $ used tostudy the area more than the !irds#&

And she had thought Amelie

oerflowing with enthusiasm, Ee feltmore confused than eer# $t didn&tseem to hel% either, that she soon lostall sense of direction# As the sun grew

hotter the small car soon seemed to

resem!le an oen, and she couldn&t

restrain an audi!le sigh of relief wheneentually Amelie sto%%ed#

&Phew & she e2claimed, laughingruefully as she almost fell from the car,feeling stic"y all oer from the eneratingheat#

Amelie merely shrugged, her eyes

a%%raising on Ee&s hot face# &The sundoes not !other me,& she re%lied coolly#&1ou see, ma chere, $ am used to it,haing lied here all my life#&

/eaning $ haen&t, $ su%%ose Ee

got the message loud and clear, althoughshe !it !ac" a shar% retort# $n a way,

Amelie was %ro!a!ly right, and it couldn&t!e a su!0ect worth .uarrelling oer Andit was a !it late to !egin dou!ting her

wisdom in coming here with Amelietoday# $t might !e !etter to try andsu%%ress a too iid imagination Ameliewould neer dare harm her, Ee felt sure#

The car was %ar"ed and loc"ed on a

%iece of dry ground !efore they set off along the side of a swam%# Amelie, Eewas forced to admit !efore they had goneery far, was a wonderful guide# Sheseemed to %ossess a !oundless store of

shar% energy and soon had foundnumerous nests# As it was s%ring the airwas alie with the sound of !irds, andsoon the loneliness of the terrain wasn&tso noticea!le any more as Amelie named

arious s%ecies, %ointing out thewonderful construction of some of thenests# One in %articular, that of thewhis"ered tern which !uilt a floating one

of !ulrushes and sedge stems, intriguedEe a lot#

$t was much later when Ameliediscoered she had forgotten to !ring the%icnic !as"et, that they hadn&t so much

as a flas" of fresh water, let alone tea They had reached a %oint !ordering the

edge of the la"e, or etang, as la"es werecalled here, when Amelie decided shecould go no further without a drin"#

&$t is all my fault& she wailedcharmingly, when they returned to thecar and found what had ha%%ened#'iens, and $ am %arched & shee2claimed#

&-ell, it won&t hae to matter#& Eewas feeling %arched herself, !ut had nointention of com%laining# Anyone couldma"e such a mista"e# &$t might !e !etter,&she con0ectured, &to sim%ly go home#& $n

fact she had a sudden, ine2%lica!le

longing to do so#(ut Amelie wouldn&t hear of it# &$t isscarcely four o&cloc",& she cried# &There isstill so much $ hae to show you,

es%ecially when, as Raoul has told me,

7@< =?



you are soon to !e leaing us for

London# 1ou must wait here# $ willreturn to the mas to collect our tea# On

my own $ will go much .uic"er andshould !e !ac" within half an hour, nomore#&

-ith a regretta!le flic"er of relief,Ee ga+ed after the de%arting car#

Amelie 0ust wouldn&t ta"e no for ananswer, declaring adamantly that asthe fault was entirely hers she couldn&to!0ect to the !other# Ee hadn&t%ersisted, her desire to return to the

ranch fading !efore an een strongerwish to remain where she was and

!rood# $t was not the first time Ameliehad related Raoul&s remar"s, yetalways the hurt seemed fresh# /ay!e

Amelie did do it deli!erately, with atouch of e2aggeration, !ut somewhere,Ee frowned, there must !e a glimmerof truth# -hateer, it might certainly !eadisa!le to see what she could while

she had the chance, and it wasstrangely soothing, in s%ite of herformer a%%rehension, to sit here alone#

Ee settled !eneath a ratherragged*loo"ing white %o%lar, the

nearest large tree she could find, and%re%ared to wait# Amelie had told hernot to e2%lore on her own, and for onceEe didn&t feel li"e diso!eying# The heatseemed to hae made her .uite tired

and she yawned, content to watch adistant grou% of flamingoes ta"ing off from the la"e, the red feathers undertheir wings, which were hidden when

folded, li"e a !rilliant flash of flameagainst the s"y#

Afterwards, Ee neer couldremem!er the e2act moment she fellaslee%, !ut she always remem!ered

how stiffly uncomforta!le she felt whenshe wo"e oer two hours later# How

a%%rehensie she was when sherealised she was still alone, there !eingno sign of Amelie with the %icnic

!as"et# )or a few moments she satwhere she was, frowning, trying to%onder constructiely on what mighthae ha%%ened# -as it %ossi!le thatAmelie, driing as she did, had met

with an accident4 $t was now3Eeglanced again at her slim wrist3 aftersi2 o&cloc", and Amelie had !een gonesince four# There could, of course, !eother e2%lanations, if one had time to

thin" them out, !ut one or two things

seemed ery clear# $f Amelie had hadan accident then it was highly im*%ro!a!le she would !e !ac", !ut unlessshe was unconscious she could surely

hae told someone a!out her4 The men

from the ranch would hae !een here

ery .uic"ly# (ut, so far as she could see,there wasn&t a soul in sight#

)or another half hour Ee waited,!efore deciding she must wal"# $t seemedtoo o!ious that Amelie, or hel% of any"ind, wasn&t coming, and it seemedsenseless to stay here until dar"# -ryly,

as she rose to her feet, Ee glanced downat the %lace where she had !een sitting#She didn&t thin" she would eer forgetthese thirty minutes3the siler trees, thela"e and flamingoes; the !are %lain and,

in the distance, a faint line of whitehorses gra+ing towards her# $t hel%ed, !y

concentrating on them, to oerloo" the%eculiar tric"le of fear which cre%t downher s%ine, ma"ing her trem!le#

(riefly she hesitated, haing littleidea of her e2act %osition or of thegeneral direction she should ta"e# The airwas still warm, !ut her s"in felt clammyand cold as she !ecame slowly aware

what it must !e li"e to s%end the nighthere in the o%en, alone# There was, shesaw, with great relief, the mar"s of Amelie&s car tyres, !ut though shefollowed these for what must hae !een

the most %art of a mile they eentuallyfaded out as she reached drier ground#

Neertheless, trying to use somecommon sense, Ee trudged on, "ee%ingthe sun determinedly on her right as she

went along# The initial shoc" at !eingdeserted in such a wilderness had fadedyet ta"en its toll# Her hair was dam%,clinging to her chee"s, and %ers%iration

had soa"ed her thin shirt, which was nowcrum%led and dirty# Her 0eans and shoeswere soa"ed in mud from falling into aswam%, and wide*eyed she sureyedthem, feeling only a half hysterical relief

that Raoul 'u(are, with his fastidiousfault*finding,

couldn&t see her now#$t seemed to come to her only

slowly that all a!out her was growing

.uieter# As night a%%roached the !irdsceased singing, there was only the rustleof wind in the to%s of the %ines# Thetreeto%s were glowing with the rays of the setting sun and the glinting light

moed from leaf to leaf, dancing !etweenthe !ranches !efore su!siding into theolie*green cano%y of shru!s and thic"undergrowth# Then she was aware allaround her of new noises and sounds, of

shadows detaching themseles from the

dar" reed tunnels among the marshesand turning into hungry, searchingcreatures !ent on foraging for food underthe %rotection of the oncoming dar"ness#

$t was then, to her horror, that she heard

7@< ==



what seemed to !e a grunt, and

remem!ering what Amelie had saida!out wild !oars, she too" to her heels

and ran, s%ending what little !reathshe had left in one last de%airing raceto esca%e what she imagined could !ea relentless %ursuer#

Needless to say nothing did

actually chase after her, !ut it was%erha%s 0ust as well that the noise hadsent her off in another direction, as itwas only after she had forced her waythrough a heay clum% of shru! that

the gardians found her#They assured her that they had

neer for a moment dou!ted theywould, although relief mingled withdis!elief on their faces as Ee !urst

into sight# Celeste did tell her later thatthey had all !een terri!ly worried,es%ecially as Raoul hadn&t !een there todirect them, and they had notimmediately found her where Amelie

had sworn she would !e#&The danger,& Celeste said, &of

!eing lost in the 'elta comes not somuch from !eing attac"ed !y wildanimals as from the %ossi!ility of falling

into one of the numerous la"es orswam%s#&

/ost of the gardians hadsearched for her on horse!ac", !ut twoof them came in truc"s, and it was into

one of these that the men gently %utEe to drie her home, trying, shecould see, not to loo" too closely at her!edraggled a%%earance# )ortunately,

a%art from this, she seemed none theworse; at least she wasn&t fainting alloer the %lace, as she had thought shemight when her control had seemed to!e sli%%ing3when, for one awful

moment, she had decided no one wouldeer find her again# )or the first time in

her life she had felt num! with fear asshe had isualised a deilish %ursuer inthe scru!# 'eath, she remem!ered

thin"ing, could !e relentless, !ut couldsurely neer oerta"e her li"e this

Her face felt sore where dee%scratches had cut the white s"in, andwhen she touched the red weals with

e2%loratory fingers she winced, gladagain that Raoul wasn&t here to see her#He was in Paris, than" goodness# 1etcontrarily her flic"er of relief !roughtno real comfort# He would !e !ac"

-hen she found her oice

sufficiently to as" the men what e2actlyhad ha%%ened to Amelie, they loo"ed%eculiarly easie, mutteringsomething a!out engine trou!le, which

to Ee&s da+ed mind sounded 0ust

a!out right# No reason for them to re%ly

in such uncertain tones, or, when theyconcluded that she was too s%ent to hear,

to whis%er together so a%%rehensielya!out le maitre. Nothing of what hadha%%ened was their fault3anyone&s fault,really, so what had they to worry a!out4Hadn&t they rescued her, and wasn&t

Raoul hundreds of miles away# And,!efore he came !ac", she might een !eas far away from this terri!le %laceherself# $t was Celeste who eentuallytold her e2actly what had ha%%ened#

Amelie, it seemed, shortly after she hadleft Ee that afternoon, had deelo%ed a

fault in her engine and had decided toma"e for Les Saintes /aries# The garagethere, she had felt sure, would !e a!le to

sort out the trou!le .uic"er than theycould at the ranch# (ut it had !eenseeral hours !efore she had een gotthere, and a while longer !efore amechanic diagnosed dirt in the %etrol

tan" and %ronounced that he could dolittle a!out it that night#

&So it was almost dar", you see,!efore Amelie rang here as"ing us to goand fetch you,& Celeste said an2iously# &$

thin" she !lamed herself for not finding it%ossi!le to let us "now sooner# $ thin" shesaid it was a case of acting for the !estand nothing turning out as she&de2%ected &

And she could say that again Eethought wryly, as she sureyed hermutilated arms and face in the mirrorne2t morning# Amelie hadn&t, in fact,

arried !ac" until after Ee the night!efore, and she had !een full of commiseration, none of which, to Ee&sweary ears at least, sounded %articularlysincere# Amelie&s story was too %lausi!le#

$f there had !een dirt in the engine,wouldn&t it hae trou!led them on the

way to the resere earlier in theafternoon4 $t didn&t seem %ossi!le3andcertainly wouldn&t !e %ro!a!le; she had

deli!erately %ut it there herself so thatEe might !e forced to s%end the nightalone on the marshes, !ut Ee shiered,"nowing suddenly !eyond dou!t, thatwhat she sus%ected was true#

1et why should Amelie Troyat dosuch a thing4 Had she .uite ruthlesslywanted to drie a girl she disli"ed out of her mind4 Ee shuddered, remem!eringher own terror, wondering wildly if it

could hae ha%%ened# That Amelie should

constructiely %lan such an occurrencesurely indicated some degree of derangement# No wholly sane %ersonwould eer thin" of such a thing

7@< =8



Agonisingly, all through the night,

while her !ruises and sore lim!srefused to let her rest, Ee thought of

it, and long !efore dawn %ushedtentatie fingers across her windowsillshe "new what she must do# She mighthae mis0udged Amelie# !ut shecouldn&t afford, for /ichel&s sa"e, to

gie her the !enelit of this dou!t# Raoulmust not !e allowed to marry Amelie,as he had indicated he might if Ee "t%ion refusing him# $f Amelie really wasunsta!le, then might it not !e almost

criminal to allow her any %art in/ichel&s future, es%ecially when the

way to %reent this was clearlyindicated 4

As if to confirm her sus%icions,

Amelie came to her room first thing thene2t morning, suggesting lightly !utlirml, &'on&t ou thin" ou would !ewise to go home immediately, Ee41our face is scratched, !ut not too

!adly, nothing to sto% ou traelling# $could .uite easily accom%any ou as faras Paris toda, which would certainlyguarantee your esca%e from Raoul&sanger when he returns#&

Her heart suddenly cold# Ee laidaside the small hand mirror she had!een holding and stared at Amelie inton*fusion# So Amelie was determinedto !e rid of her after all3and toda

She was certainly a woman of somedecision, was Amelie 'rly Eeswallowed, feeling a great necessity togul% the tea Amelie had dro%%ed

shar%ly on her !edside ta!le, !ut darednot# $t could !e %oisoned Half hysterically she giggled softl at herown humour#

Amelie, seeing only the hectic

s%ots of colour on Ee&s %ale chee"s,sought deiously to %ress her %oint#

&1ou could neer stand u% to Raoul&sanger, ma chirc. His wealth ma"es himarrogant# 1ou are too small and

ulnera!le#6Ee !lin"ed in some confusion,

so!ering right awa !efore the flarings%ar" in Amelie&s eye# &$ "now he isim%atient of accidents, madame, and $

realise $ hae had seeral since $ camehere, !ut none of them, es%ecially thislast one, was my fault# -ell, note2actly # # #&

As her oice trailed off Amelie

countered shar%l, &(ut if

you hadn&t insisted on going to thegame resere**********************&&(ut $ didn&t& Ee&s eyes widened

with !ewilderment# &$t was you who

suggested it, you "now that#&

&(ut no one else does, and who will

!eliee you46 Amelie&s laughter wass%iteful# &Raoul is too aware of m disli"e

for any %art of the countryside, theresere, with all those thousands of screaming, highly colourful !irds,es%ecially# And he "nows !etter thanmost that $ am not to !e %ersuaded to do

anything $ would not en0o#& &He wouldn&t!eliee you &

&He ery %ro!a!l would#& Amelie&s!lac" eyes sna%%ed# And then you wouldalso !e a liar, as well as a nuisance, ma

there.' Ee felt stunned, also slightly sic"

with a great u%surge of fore!oding# $f shehad !een see"ing for confirmationregarding the state of Amelie&s mind,

didn&t she hae it now4 All the eidenceshe needed3if she onl had to coninceherself# Nothing else must !e im%ortant,all her %ersonal inclinations must !eclam%ed down on# Carol, 'omini.ue, her

uncle and aunt would neer forgie her if she let /ichel down now#

)or one distraught moment sheclosed her eyes against the ineita!le#There was a chance, if a slim one, that

such a decision might neer hae to !emade, that Raoul might !eliee Amelieanil consider this latest esca%ade of Ee&sunforgia!le and wash his hands of her#$noluntarily she flinched against the

confusing %ain of such a %ossi!ility,tremors which went shattering throughher dismissing coherent thought# $n suchan eent she could only ma"e one last

attem%t to ma"e alternatie %lans for/ichel#

Amelie moed, shar%l im%atient,her eyes glacial on Ee&s hesitant face#&-ell, mademoiselle,' she %rom%ted, &are

you deaf as well as !lind4&&$&m sorry,& Ee whis%ered, her

nausea strangely dee%ening !efore theinsolence in Amelie&s oice, &$&m afraid $can&t go home today, madame. Raoul

might, as you sa# ery easily !e furious,!ut whateer else $ may !e, $ ho%e $ amnot a coward# $ must stay and see him#&

CHAPTER N$NE

E9E, understanda!ly, was a littlelate in coming down for !rea"fast thatmorning and was sur%rised to find

Celeste in the hall, already dressed to go

out# As she heard Ee on the stairs,Celeste glanced u%wards with an unusualair of startled em!arrassment colouring

her smoothly made*u% chee"s# &Oh, hello,

7@< =



ma chere she said !rightly, o!iously

%ushing aside her confusion# &Amelietells me you are fully recoered, so you

won&t mind if $ go with her to /arseille#-e are to collect her car from thegarage in Les Saintes /aries# She iswaiting outside for me now, and as"edme to hurry#&

&1es3well, fine# 5o ahead#& Ee&sli%s felt strangely stiff# $t seemed aneffort to s%ea" carelessly, as thoughCeleste&s desertion didn&t matter#Somehow eerything was an effort this

morning in s%ite of the fact that shemust !e relatiely unscathed from her

ordeal# $t !rought some small relief,howeer, to "now that Amelie wasgoing, although Ee dou!ted it would

!e for long# $n another way her goingdidn&t seem to ma"e sense3hadn&t shethreatened to tell Raoul the wrongstory4 $t seemed unli"ely that she hadhad second thoughts and changed her

mind#Celeste, gathering u% her

hand!ag, soon enlightened her# &Raoulrang and Amelie answered, !efore $came down# She has e2%lained a!out

yesterday, !ut she didn&t say what hesaid# He has a conference this morning,so will not !e home !efore this eeningor may!e tomorrow# (ut do not loo" soworried, ma chere, he can&t !e angry&

(ut he was angry, furiouslyangry, and he arried home in themiddle of the afternoon, when Ee leaste2%ected him# &Celeste told me you had

a conference,& she gas%ed, as her!edroom door was rudely thrust o%enand he strode in unannounced#

She was lying on her !ed, fullyclothed in one of the sha%eless cotton

froc"s from her wardro!e, to which,after Raoul&s dry criticism, she had

ta"en an ine2%lica!le disli"e, onlywearing it now !ecause it was coolagainst her !urning s"in# )erently she

wished he hadn&t found her li"e this,!ut the hot sunshine outside had madethe scratches on her face sting, forcingher indoors, and somehow it hadseemed sensi!le to curl u% on her !ed#

How she regretted this now Raoul&ssudden a%%earance %ut her in a finefret and she clenched her hands hardto sto% them trem!ling#

&-hat ha%%ened to your

conference4& she tried again, as he

made no re%ly to her first .uery#'Mon dieul' $t a%%eared to haeta"en him seeral seconds to find hisoice, and he swore roundly, not

!eneath his !reath, as his eyes !la+ed

oer her torn face, her sore young !ody

huddled hel%lessly against the %illows# Hera%%ed out an oath which was only

sur%assed !y his glowering e2%ression#&1ou tal" of conferences, mademoiselle,!ut leae me with no %eace of mind toconcentrate# The moment my !ac" isturned you seem all set to commit

suicide, and $ am forced to rush home tosurey the damage& Ruthlessly he san"down !eside her on the !ed, his handgoing out to swee% the tum!led gold curlsfrom her face# 'Mon dieu he re%eated, &if

you had set out deli!erately to ruin your!eautiful s"in you could not hae done

!etter &&$t was scarcely my fault, monsieur

His close %ro2imity made her oice wea"

and she lay ery still, aware of an urgentneed to %lacate him !efore he added tothe damage she had already sustained#

Coldly he continued to regard her#&'id $ not %romise to ta"e you to the

resere myself4 As a mem!er, $ haeaccess to eery %art of it# (ut no, youmust assert your insane inde%endence !ygoing yourself, !y !egging Amelie to ta"eyou# /y %atience,& his 0aw clam%ed, &is at

an end $ refuse to s%end my endrefuture .uoting %arrot*li"e, 6you mighthae !een "illed6 )rom this minuteonwards, ma cherie, you will not so muchas moe until you hae my a!solute

%ermission &&(ut it wasn&t li"e that# # #& Near

!rea"ing %oint, Ee ga+ed at him,Amelie&s words returning trium%hantly to

haunt her3&he will onl thin" you are aliar&# Could she, ris" this3would it not%erha%s !e !etter to let things slider Afterall, no crime was inoled, and mattersmight merely !e made worse# 1et

somehow there was in Ee the mostferent com%ulsion to %rotest, een

though Raoul&s dar"ness, his cold %ur%osewas most intimidating, doing nothing toencourage a %lea for understanding#

&1ou tell me how it was li"e4& heground out sarcastically as she %aused#&Then you will no dou!t feel !etter, whichis more than $ can eer ho%e to do#&

His am!iguity was !eyond her# $t

was his tone of oice that %rom%ted herto continue rec"lessly, &To go to theresere wasn&t my idea# 1ou might recallsaying, !efore you left yesterday, that $needed fresh air, and after lunch, Amelie

suggested we went there#&

&Ee & His green eyes dar"enedcoldly to 0et, and she "new immediatelyshe had made a mista"e# On his face wasno sign of the trust she had ho%ed for,

only sus%icion, an almost tangi!le longing

7@< =9



to sha"e her# &$ wish,& he was suddenly

taut, &you could lose this rather stu%idha!it of lying to me# Amelie would

neer dream of going near the resere#$t is too tied u% with memories of herhus!and# She disli"es it intensely#&

&Then there is nothing more to !esaid, monsieur Ee&s face went white,

the shoc" of his incredulity worse to!ear than any %hysical %ain she wassuffering# &1ou must surely !econgratulating yourself that youdiscoered my true character in time#&

&(efore $ married you, youmean4& His eyes were li"e diamond slits

in the hardness of his face#&E2actly#& 5loriously defiant, Ee

annihilated all her former resolutions#

Neer, neer could she marry such anarrogant man

His oice was smoothly suae#&(ut you mustn&t let it !other you, monamie. $ intend to iron all such dece%tion

from you, if necessary with a heayhand# 1ou are young enough to learn#Mon dieu, you won&t "now yourself when $ am finished&

She flung at him her furious

retort, &$ li"e myself as $ am,monsieur!'

'Monsieur he moc"ed cruelly, hiseyes contem%tuous of her s%irited%rotest, !efore his e2%ression changed

a!ru%tly, and it seemed in s%ite of himself, as again his frowning glancerested on the liid mar"s on herotherwise smooth white throat# &$ must

hae a loo" at those scratches,& hewent on, somewhat curtly, &so you cansto% acting li"e an outraged child ando!lige me !y !eing still for a moment#/arie informs me that you refused to

allow her to send for the doctor &&-ell, it wasn&t necessary # ##&

His mouth thinned# &(ut $,mademoiselle, will arrange that he shallcome immediately, should $ feel it

necessary#&Ee s.uirmed sullenly, trying not

to flinch as he !egan to e2amine herface ery thoroughly, her handclenched tight when once he %ro!ed

too closely# 1et his fingers were in*finitely gentle, his moements deft, andshe could find no real cause forcom%laint# $t was when he saw thedee%er weals on her shoulders that his

fingers stiffened as though he would

hae li"ed to hit her# &And you got u%,this morning,& he ras%ed, &and wentdown to !rea"fast, telling eeryone ouwere well&

&$ su%%ose Amelie assured you she

would not hae left if she had thoughtotherwise4& Ee cho"ed, almost

!reathless with an unha%%iness she didn&tunderstand and hating his seemingindifference#

&One more word,& he ground out,the hardness of his green glance cold on

her lacerated s"in, &and $ will add to your%ain where it hurts most# Naturallyneither Amelie or Celeste would hae leftif they had "nown# Now if you will ma"esome endeaour to rela2 $ will dress

these wounds %ro%erly, !efore ringing thegood doctor#&

&$ wish you wouldn&t, Raoul,& she!egged, her eyes fi2ed %leadingly on his,not really sur%rised when he refused#

&There may !e some infection, machere, as you must with your training"now# Only a doctor can deal with that&

$t seemed hours later, !ut wasactually 0ust after eight o&cloc", when

Ee, !athed and dressed, 0oined Raoul fordinner in the cool dimness of the dining*room# The doctor had arried and gienher an in0ection, !ut declared himself una!le to im%roe on Raoul&s initial

treatment# He had e2amined her sothoroughly that she sus%ected Raoul&sim%licit instructions, then, with /arieloo"ing on, had informed her that with alittle care she should soon heal, that she

was indeed a ery fortunate young lady#$f she sensed undertones of

another meaning a%art from her health,the doctor&s suae countenance gae no

clues# She had no clear idea what he wason a!out until she too" coffee with Raoulin his study later in the eening# -hen hetold her, without a fraction of hesitation,they were to !e married in a few days&

time#&f hae !een ma"ing all the

necessary arrangements in Paris,& he saidcoolly, a%%arently o!liious of Ee&ss%eechless stare# &-e will !e married

there !ut return here immediately, asNadine and Celeste will leae the sameday on a si2 months& tour of the States#Afterwards, ma chere, we will !e away onour own acation, a !elated honeymoon,

if you li"e#&Ee&s eyes widened and she felt

di++y and gras%ed the cu% she washolding until her "nuc"les shone white#He had !een e2tremely considerate oer

dinner and she had come down not

"nowing .uite what to e2%ect, therecollection of his total dis!elief in herintegrity colouring her imagination as aforerunner of escalating disaster# $t was

no comfort to learn that her instincts had

7@< 8;



not !een wrong# &1ou go a!out things

in a ery high*handed manner,& shewhis%ered hoarsely#

)irmly he eased the fragile cu%from her taut fingers, his dar" eyesnarrowed on her shoc"ed face#&Otherwise,& he em%hasised, &we shouldneer get anywhere# -e !oth "now

what we must do for /ichel and anim%ossi!le situation is fast deelo%ing,one which $ ho%e to deal with ery.uic"ly once we are married# Therecomes a time when it is necessary to

ta"e action, Ee#&He tal"ed in riddles, as usual, and

her mind was too num!ed to sort itout# Ho%elessly, in s%ite of all herformer resolutions, she "new what she

must do, !ut what a!out him48ncertainty flic"ered, distress turningher %u%ils to an almost intense !lue#&1ou are willing,& she as"ed nerously,&to sacrifice all ho%e of marrying

someone you loe4&He said, ery cris%ly, his eyes

glinting with a "ind of deilment, &'on&tyou isualise any romance !etweenus4&

&$ don&t thin" so,& her heaylashes swe%t her chee"s as shefaltered, not daring to let him so muchas glim%se at her des%air# &1ou wouldnot find me ery e2citing, monsieur' His

mouth .uir"ed# &1ou might sur%riseme#& The need to !e com%letely honestdroe her !eyond her normaldiscretion# &$ don&t thin" $ hae a

%assionate nature # # #&&1ou hae some eidence of this4&

There was still the touch of amusement, the indication that herefused to ta"e this matter seriously#

8nha%%ily Ee was !eginning towish she had neer said anything, !ut

once started, what else could she do!ut go on4 $&e neer had a seriousaffair, monsieur, and $ hae had the

o%%ortunity, !ut you see $ hae neerfelt %articularly amorous#&

&And what if $ told you $ amwilling to ta"e a chance4& e

&$ wouldn&t wish you to feel

cheated#&This time his oice came ery

smoothly# &$ do not antici%ate such aneent#&

$mmediately she went taut,

something moing conulsiely in the

%it of her stomach# She felt all sorts of things a!out him instinctiely, !ut thiswas one thing3the a!ility to find theright words to e2%ress such feelings,

.uite another# &-hat you are saying,

monsieur, seems to suggest that you

imagine a normal marriage# Or %erha%sthat you e2%ect to see" some sort of

distraction elsewhere4&His eyes scorched her face with

their cynical amusement, and hea%%eared in no way im%ressed !y hero!iously %ainful endeaours to hae

eerything straightened out !etweenthem# His light laughter flic"ed her la+ilyas he drawled, &And why should $ go tothe trou!le and the often considera!lee2%ense of "ee%ing another woman when

$ will hae a young and !eautiful wife,who is %ro!a!ly only lac"ing a little

careful tuition4&His teasing was the last straw# Her

face scarlet with mortification, she cried,

&1ou must gie me time& $n a !reathings%ace anything could ha%%en, a re%rieehad !een won in less#

His eyes narrowedcom%rehendingly, !ut he merely said,

&fust so long as you don&t as" for awritten guarantee, ma chere. 1ou (ritishare ery "een on your guarantees#&

&(ut you are a man of your word4&)ee!ly she clutched at anything#

&8sually, !ut do not try me too far, etite. $ might also !e something rather!eyond your e2%erience#&

-hat did he mean4 He was )rench,of course, which did not necessarily mean

he disli"ed all English girls, although hehad disa%%roed of Carol# &1ou didn&t li"emy cousin did you, monsieur?'

His li%s thinned im%atiently,

although he re%lied eenly enough# &$can&t see how that odd little .uestion hasany !earing on the %resent situation, Ee,and $ don&t thin" it would %rofit either of us to discuss either Carol or my !rother# $

will see to it that their child is well loo"edafter, !ut they can&t, unfortunately, hae

any %art in his future#&8nha%%ily Ee stared away from

him# So he intended marrying her with

the mystery of Carol and 'omini.ue li"ea !lan" wall !etween them4 -hich onlyim%lied that he didn&t altogether trusther4 And, come to that, in other ways%erha%s the mistrust was mutual# -ould

he really find it %ossi!le to gie u% all hisgirl*friends3es%ecially Amelie4 Ee foundherself dou!ting it#

Suddenly, as her eyes returnedwidely to his, he %ulled her decisiely to

her feet# &Come, ma chere he ordered

lightly, &you&e had enough drama in thelast few days without adding to it# $&ll seeyou to your room, otherwise $ fear youmight colla%se on the way u%3you hae

an air of fine e2haustion#&

7@< 87



Somehow she found it im%ossi!le

to argue, to find so much as a whis%erof %rotest as, with his hand %rotectiely

!eneath her arm, Raoul halted outsideher !edroom door#

&Now,& he said, his moc"erycancelling the solicitude of a momentago, &say goodnight li"e a good girl#

There is always tomorrow#&-ithout giing her a chance to

%rotest, he !ent his dar" head and"issed her, his li%s crushing hers hard#$t was only !riefly, !ut the touch of that

ruthless mouth was enough to send a!la+e of fire shooting through her,

!ringing chaos to her emotions#&5oodnight, cherie she heard his

oice coolly following her, as, anything

!ut coolly, she wrenched herself freeand fled into her room#

They were married, as Raoul had%romised, fie days&later, the ceremony!rief, in the same church where he told

her his %arents had !een marriedalmost forty years ago# $t was all ery.uiet, with only Celeste and Nadine andan old friend of Raoul&s, a man of a!outthe same age, who seemed .uite ta"en

with Ee and em!arrassed her !ydeclaring em%hatically to Raoul that hewas marrying a !eautiful +eune fille.She wasn&t sur%rised to learn later thathe was a mem!er of the old )rench

no!ility3such so%histication andelegance would hae !een im%ossi!leto %lace elsewhere#

The day !efore the wedding she

had traelled to Paris with Raoul andCeleste and the two girls had stayedoernight with Nadine# Ee was still not.uite sure e2actly how Celeste hadta"en the news of the im%ending

marriage, !ut Raoul had gien her littleo%%ortunity to air any definite iews, if

indeed she had any# $n Raoul&s%resence she had hinted rather shar%lyto Ee that there had !een no necessity

to carry their little charade so far# Andto Raoul she had %rotested that Ameliewould !e heart!ro"en# (ut !efore shehad got any further Raoul had whi%%edher curtly into his study, to delier, Ee

had little dou!t, a lecture# -hile shecould sym%athise with Celeste&s!ewilderment she had felt oddlygrateful for the ensuing silence whenCeleste, o!iously enthralled with the

%ros%ect of America, had held her

%eace#Only once, that Ee "new of, didshe relate to the su!0ect again# &$ neerthought,& Ee heard her say smugly to

Raoul !efore they went in to the

rece%tion, &that when $ sent for Ee to

come to the Camargue it would turn outli"e this &

(ut there had !een no time forRaoul to re%ly, or to een su%%ose he hadheard %ro%erly, and, in the ne2tcham%agne*drin"ing, congratulation*filledhours, no o%%ortunity for him to .uestion

Celeste, if he had !een inclined# Celeste&smood eered so changea!ly that Eesaw, not for the first time, she wouldalways need a steadying influence in herlife, and, fond as she was of her, Ee felt

strangely than"ful she would !e away forsi2 months#

$t seemed inconsistent with herrelief that the ceremony was oer to feela curious reluctance when she and Raoul

left Paris to return home later in theafternoon# She would hae li"ed to haelingered, !ut Raoul wished only to get!ac"#

As he heard her low sigh, his li%s

moed in a slight smile#&Paris is really for loers,& he said,

clearly reading her thoughts, &to !een0oyed to the full# (ut,& he added, enig*matically, &$ %romise you will see it

another day#&Ee !it her li%, loo"ing down at her

la%, a demure and attractie figure in hercool sil" dress# $t was a dress which hadcost more than she had dared thin"

a!out, and, though it had !een %urchasedin a hurry the %reious morning alongwith seeral others, fitted her !eautifully#She tried, !ut failed dismally, to "ee% her

thoughts away from the fashiona!le!outi.ue she had !een ta"en to# &Theleading cout*uriere, the most e2%ensiein the city & Celeste had whis%ered,%roceeding to reel off the names of some

of its famous clientele !efore Raoul hadgrowled at her to shut u%#

$t would hae !een sensi!le to haeshown how humiliated she had felt,haing scarcely enough money to %ay for

the shoes she had !een married in, yetfor a little while she had found it %ossi!leto !e com%letely ca%tiated !y the an"le*length, frothy white dress which Raoulinsisted she wore in church# There was

also a collection of e.ually suita!le gownswhich had !een sent this morning for herto ta"e home#

And that hadn&t !een all# $n the lateafternoon there had !een a lengthy isit

to the lu2urious salon of a famous !eauty

house where she had !een gone oer, itseemed, from head to toe, eerything%ossi!le !eing done to turn her from a%assa!ly %retty girl into a raing !eauty#

Certainly Ee had found it rather difficult

7@< 8<



to recognise herself afterwards3all the

gleaming, satiny s"in, the enchantingly%ure cure of a sensuous mouth, a

fluffy fall of ashen hair, fingers so deli*cately tinted as to gie eerya%%earance of not haing done somuch as a day&s wor" in their life# 1eteery !it of her ironic self criticism had

!een forgotten !efore the glitteringa%%reciation in Raoul&s eyes as she hadwal"ed towards him u% the aisle#

&1ou loo" wonderful, cherie,' shehad thought he had said, !ut wasn&t

sure she had heard him correctly a!oethe frantic !eating of her own heart#

&(eautiful ###&$t was late when they arried

!ac" at the ranch and there was no one

a!out# Een the nursery, which was onthe other side of the huge house, was.uiet# Tactfully, /arie had laid out acold meal in the dining room, and, afterwishing them eery 0oy, she discreetly

withdrew, !ut not without a glance of com%lete a%%roal at Ee&s flushed,em!arrassed face#

&She only %resumes you arecoered with a ery %ro%er confusion,&

Raoul teased softly, as he remoed hercoat# &(ut that is nothing to what youmight e2%ect tomorrow,& he smiled# &$tis not eery day that le maltre ismarried# The gardians will hae a feast

and no dou!t cele!rate accordingly# $might een get a little drun" myself,ma chere, if you continue to loo" at meas you do now#&

Hastily Ee remoed her wide*eyed ga+e from his grae face,e2cusing herself .uic"ly to go and washher hands# A few days ago it had allseemed com%aratiely easy, !ut now

she was !eginning to realise that herdifficulties might only 0ust !e starting#

Raoul had hinted that there would !ecele!rations# 'id he forget they hadmarried sim%ly for the sa"e of the

child4 She would li"ed to haereasserted this %oint, !ut somehow shedared not, something intangi!le in theman himself sto%%ing her# $t almostseemed !eyond her to carry on een a

normal conersation#Swiftly she ran u%stairs# The

0ourney had !een hot and tedious, andshe felt a sudden longing to freshen u%com%letely, to find an old %air of more

comforta!le shoes for her aching feet#

To her utter sur%rise, when she %ushedo%en the door to her room it wasem%ty# The furniture had not !eenremoed, of course, !ut the !ed was

stri%%ed and !are and the wardro!e stood

o%en3!ereft of all clothes#As she stared a%%rehensiely, her

heart thudding uncertainly, she heardRaoul&s footste%s coming u% !ehind her#&1ou are naturally with me now, machere,' he said coolly, his hands forci!lyon her shoulders as he %aused with her,

sureying the room# $f Ee felt in hisfingers some urgency transmitting itself into her soft flesh she ignored it, holdingherself rigid, determined to resist the wildim%ulse to turn and fling herself wholly

into his arms# Also to !e cur!ed was theery real %ossi!ility of traitorous senses

turning all this into some old*fashionedmelodrama# A little common sense wasall that might !e re.uired3to remain

sane#&$ would rather hae stayed here, at

least for a little while longer#& She tried tos%ea" eenly, !ut her words didn&t comeout that way#

$f he was aware of her agitation hetoo" no notice# His hands merelytightened# &Perha%s you would, Ee, !ut $do not wish that we should !ecome theo!0ects of amused s%eculation, as would

surely ha%%en if you remained here#&&(ut you %romised& $n s%ite of her

resole to !e sensi!le her oice rose, asshe wrenched furiously round to facehim#

His eyes narrowed dar"ly at hero!ious tem%er# &$ made no %romisesa!out anything,& he said .uietly, &least of all a!out this#&

&>ust !ecause we neer had time toget around to it, !ut $ should haethought it was understood & she flashed!itterly# &Anyway,& she ste%%ed hastily!ac"wards, &whether you a%%roe or not $

refuse to moe And, as $ feel ery tired,$ don&t thin" $&ll come down again, so $&ll

say goodnight&$t was a mista"e to get hysterical,

to goad him# $mmediately she s%o"e she

"new that, !ut she wasn&t in any way%re%ared for his reactions# Li"e steel!ands his arms went around her,scoo%ing her u%, scattering the hand!agshe was carrying and its contents across

the floor as he turned with !rute force,crushing her to him as he slammed thedoor and strode relendessly along the#wide corridor outside#

Ee !ecame aware that she was

screaming, half cho"ing against his hard

chest, and the more noise she made themore liid he !ecame, clas%ing her sotightly it hurt# Then, when she seemedalmost to hae lost all !reath, she felt

7@< 8>



herself released, flung down, or rather

hurled, on to something soft3a !ed#&5oodnight, madameV His oice,

li"e a hard liing flame, seemed toscorch her# &$ no more wish for anunwilling !ride than you o!iously wishto !e one# $ can assure you you will not!e distur!ed here &

Ee gas%ed, !ut !efore she coulds%ea", if she could hae found thewords to do so, he had turned and wasgone, the door roc"ing on its hingesem%hatically !ehind him#

Ne2t morning she wasn&t sure ithadn&t !een all a nightmare, !ut during

her first awa"ening moments when shesaw she was com%letely alone, sheslowly realised it had actually

ha%%ened, her memory wasn&t 0ust%laying her tric"s# Raoul had !eencom%letely infuriated, and now must !ewholly antagonised, something she hadneer honestly intended should occur,

and een now could not clearlyunderstand how it had come a!out#

8nha%%ily her glance traelledaround the room she now occu%ied#She must !e in Raoul&s %riate suite on

the west side of the house, where shehad neer !een !efore# Her !athroomdoor stood o%en, !ut there was anotherdoor, o!iously a communicating onewhich she hadn&t dared try the %reious

night# $n case, she recalled thin"ingwildly, he was on the other side

No dou!t, she ha+arded, herglance lingering, that would !e his

!edroom# Or may!e it was 0ust adressing*room and she was actually inthe !ed Raoul usually used# $t waslarge enough and on the dressing*ta!lewas laid out what a%%eared to !e a

masculine set of !rushes# A feeling of something ery li"e shame ran through

her, along with a definite .uier of misery as she considered, inretros%ect, her own .uestiona!le

!ehaiour# There could hae !een noreal need to act as she had done# -henthey had first arried home Raoul hadnot seemed as if he was %re%aring to!e unreasona!le# Now she had

alienated him com%letely, he would%ro!a!ly not een !e willing to !eremotely friendly# And could she !lamehim4 She might 0ustifia!ly resent hismistrust of her, !ut had she not

e2aggerated her own attraction in

imagining he wanted her as a manwould normally want his wife4Confused, and not a little

em!arrassed !y her own racing

thoughts, Ee scram!led out of !ed,

and after haing a .uic" shower ran

downstairs, /arie, for some reason, hadnot !rought coffee, and Ee suddenly

longed for some# Her suitcases had !eenleft inside her !edroom door, althoughshe had no idea how they had got there#Someone must hae entered the roomsilently when she had fallen into an e2*

hausted slee% 0ust !efore dawn# )rom anarray of new, e2%ensie dresses Eechose a soft, round*nec"ed cotton, whichwas cool and hid the now almost fadedeidence of her adenture in the nature

resere#At first she did not loo" for Raoul,

instead she sought /arie in the "itchen#&(ut it is in the dining room,

madame.' -ryly Ee noticed the new,

formal address, !ut let $t go#&$## #& she stammered, suddenly

aware of /arie&s o%enly curious stare, &$3$ missed my early morning cu% and didn&twant to go straight in for !rea"fast#&

'Le maitre said neither of you mightwant any this morning,& /arie said!luntly, reaching consideringly for thecoffee %ot, her meaning so clear that Eefelt herself go hot all oer#

How dared Raoul gie such an order$ How dared he, she "e%t re%eating,silently furious as /arie&s eyes wentslowly oer her# Swiftly she assured thewoman she had changed her mind a!out

the coffee and ran out into the gardens#$f Raoul had accused her of

contriing to gie the serants food forthought, it was a%%arent that he didn&t

thin" twice a!out committing the samecrime himself# 'uring that first day andthe nt2t she scarcely saw him e2ce%t atmealtimes, when the conersation on!oth sides could only !e descri!ed as

cool, studiously %olite# Occasionally hewas attentie enough, to allay, she

su%%osed, s%eculation# The gardians hadhad their day of cele!ration which Eeconcluded, un!eara!ly, neither she nor

Raoul had en0oyed ery much# She hadscarcely drun" anything herself and Raoulhad remained stone cold so!er#

$t was this %reailing coldness thatfrightened Ee most, his a!ility to remain

com%letely detached while she wor"edherself into a fine if incom%rehensi!le fretof unha%%iness# Her own %riate hellwhich grew almost %ast !earing# She losta little weight, her inner turmoil reflected

in a loss of a%%etite and a growing

coniction that Raoul was !eginning tomean more than she had eer thought%ossi!le#

$t was this "nowledge which she

refused to face that %rom%ted her to see"

7@< 8@



the isolation of the ast ste%%es on the

third afternoon after their return fromParis# She had s%ent most of the day

with /ichel, already loing the !oy andconfident she had his affection inreturn# Ee hadn&t !een altogethersur%rised that /ichel&s grand%arentsa%%roed of her marrying Raoul,

!ecause, she sus%ected, they wouldimagine this ensured /ichel&s future#(ut they had also, she "new, !eenoer0oyed when Raoul had as"ed themto isit wheneer they li"ed# $t would

seem that eerything could end ha%%ilyin this direction, if nothing else#

Raoul had !een gone since lunch3something to do, he had e2%lained!riefly, with the ne2t day&s festiities in

Les Saintes /aries de la /er# He hadnot as"ed Ee to accom%any him, andsuddenly, after tea, she could !ear theconfines of the house no longer on herown# She would go riding; it seemed an

age since she had !een out on the littlehorse she usually rode# There was aneagerness inside her to hae the windwild on her face, through her hair,anything which might remoe the

increasing lethargy of the last fewdays#

Een to thin" of it made her feel!etter and she ran .uic"ly u%stairs#She would hae to change into

something suita!le3the dress she waswearing certainly wouldn&t do, !ut itwasn&t until she reached her old roomthat she remem!ered her old clothes

had disa%%eared# -hen she hadmentioned this !efore to Raoul he hadmerely said he had instructed /arie to!urn them, which had annoyed Ee somuch she had !een una!le to ma"e

any comment, !ut surely he must haerealised she would need something to

ride in4 )rowning, she stood !efore theem%ty wardro!e wondering what to do#There was 0ust a chance /arie might

not yet hae got around to dis%osing of them, es%ecially her 0eans#

$n the "itchen /arie glanced ather du!iously# &They are still in the oldlaundry, madame. $&m afraid $ forgot all

a!out them#&Or more li"ely, Ee thought,

/arie had intended giing them tosome of her numerous relations, asthere was nothing actually wrong with

the clothes, e2ce%t their cut, and the

)rench were e2tremely thrifty# She felt/arie&s eyes on her as shetrium%hantly rescued her 0eans#

&5racious,& she e2claimed

disa%%roingly, &you are going to loo"

sha!!y, ma chere, after the smart clothes

you&e !een wearing&Ee ignored this, sim%ly grinned

li"e a young child as she clas%ed hertrousers ha%%ily to her and, afterthan"ing /arie, flew !ac" u%stairs# Thathad !een easy Off came the newe2%ensie dress which made her loo" so

a%%ro%riately elegant# -ith carelesshands she let it dro% to the floor !eforedonning the somewhat faded, definitelyuntidy*loo"ing short*sleeed shirt andslac"s# They were comforta!le and

familiar and in them she felt free,curiously untrammelled !y the tenacious

threads of a marriage which wasn&t reallya marriage at all# Now she felt almostherself again, a carefree young girl

!elonging to no one# Outside she couldhear the shrill, e2ultant cries of the !irds,and in her heart was a sudden,e2hilarating e2citement, an echoingres%onse to their free, wild song# The

eening stretched !efore her, enticing herout to see" the solace, the soothingatmos%here of those lonely %laces forwhich the Camargue was famous# -ithany luc" she should !e !ac" !efore Raoul#

Almost dancing she whi%%ed around, tofind to her dismay that he stood in thedoorway, the ery man she had ho%ed toaoid, staring at her# Her eyes wideneddar"ly as a isi!le .uier went through

her# How long had he !een standingthere4

She had heard nothing of himcoming in3hadn&t e2%ected he would !e

home# Hadn&t he told her he would%ro!a!ly !e .uite late, after dinner4 Hemust hae !een in the !athroom whichshe "new he made use of at the otherend of the corridor as he wore only a

white towelling ro!e !elted looselyaround him, and his hair was still dam%

from the shower# He must hae caughtsight of her as he had !een returning tohis room, and Ee&s neres 0er"ed

%ainfully with a !rilliant terror#Trying des%erately to !eat down

such frantic feelings of des%air, her li%smoed in a traesty of a casual smile# 'idhe hae to loo" so utterly furious4 Her

heart, which only a few moments ago had!een sailing gaily among the white cloudsshe had glim%sed from the window,dro%%ed somewhere in the region of the!oots she had not yet had time to %ut on#

She had "nown herself to !e afraid of

him, !ut not how much$t was %lain to see he was mada!out something, his green eyes glitteredli"e daggers# &-here were you going,& his

7@< 8?



oice crac"ed li"e a whi%, &dressed li"e

that4&So that was it Hel%lessly,

scarcely realising what she was doing,Ee !lin"ed down at her crum%led

0eans# &$###& she had to swallow twice, &$was sim%ly going for a ride#&

&$ refuse to allow you &

&Oh, !ut# # #& $nstinct warned herit would !e wiser to offer some sort of e2%lanation, to !eg him to understand,!ut an inherent fear of re0ection heldher !ac"# How could she ho%e to

a%%eal to his !etter nature when heo!iously didn&t hae one4 1et in s%ite

of a consuming indignation, she hadthe grace to feel slighdy ashamed whenher easie glance fell to the carelessly

discarded dress and sli% oh the floor#He ste%%ed oer the threshold,

the first time he had eer entered herroom since that first disastrous nightwhen he had flung her with such

su%reme indifference on to the !ed#&1ou are not,& he re%eated tersely, aclear*cut determination in his mouthand chin, &going anywhere in thoseclothes&

&(ut,& her oice wor"ed at last,and her eyes, intensely !lue, clung tohis face, &$ was only going riding,monsieur.'

'Monsieur!' he muttered some

iolent e2clamation, his face !lac"#&After three days of marriage you canstill call me that4&

She felt a little shier of fear# She

had "nown it was a mista"e, !ut fromha!it it had 0ust sli%%ed out# &$t&snothing,& she muttered sullenly, &toma"e a fuss a!out, !ut if you musthae an a%ology, then $&m sorry &

Such a reluctant e2%ression of %enitence was ignored# &$ will gie you

two seconds,& he said, the undertonesof iolence still in his oice, &to get outof those uns%ea"a!le clothes, or $ will

remoe them myself# $t shouldn&t !etoo difficult&

CHAPTER TEN

ST8N5 !y momentary shoc", Eeflinched, her da+ed glance flic"eringuncertainly !efore returning to his face,

seeing the strength and %ur%ose !red

into it# Once he had s%o"en, he wasn&ta man easily swayed from his word, !uthe mustn&t !e allowed to thin" she wasso easily intimidated# &1ou wouldn&t

dare G& she whis%ered em%hatically#

Too wholly on the defensie to !e

com%letely aware of the danger, she!ac"ed away from him, !ut he only

adanced nearer, further into the room#Totally isolated as they were at this endof the great house, there was only silenceas they stared at each other, tension!eating, with almost tangi!le force,

!etween them#'es%erately, as a %anic she couldn&t

%in%oint rose within her, Ee glancedswiftly oer her shoulder, measuring thedistance to the !athroom door# Could she

ma"e it4 She did manage a yard or two!efore he caught her3and then with an

e2clamation that scorched her already!urning ears Ruthlessly, as the moaningsound of the mistral rose outside, and

clouds dar"ened stormily the eeningsun, he dragged her to him, his holdinfle2i!le as he gri%%ed the to% of hershirt and ri%%ed, doing the same to her

0eans# 8%side down she seemed to go,

the fury in his hands lending themstrength, along with a sur%risingdeftness, as he remoed the offendinggarments and flung them remorselesslyacross the floor#

&-hy, you !east& Half so!!ing inher fury, she tried to turn in his gras% tostri"e him# &$ hate you, $ hate you& shecried#

He %inned her %ale, slender hands

with one of his, rendering themineffectual as his glance slid deastatinglyoer her#

&And so, ma etite re#elle, it will not

matter how $ treat you, you cannotdisli"e me more# (ut, mon dieu, $ willonly %ut u% with so much $

The heat of his anger !urned intoher, and !efore she could sto% him he

turned her to him, wholly into his arms,his eyes !la+ing down at her while the

leashed loo" on his face stilled her tosheer !reathlessness and fear flutteredli"e a wild thing through her !reast#

Her !reath came in a short,distressed little gas%# &1ou&re hurting me&She %ushed !ac" against him, tearsglinting with tem%er on her dilated %u%ils#&1ou&re a !rute& she cried, una!le to "ee%

the tremors from her oice as his handmoed oer her# He was formida!le,utterly ruthless, someone she scarcely"new#

'%nsolente! 1ou are greatly in need

of a lesson, madame. $t is time you learnt

you can&t hae eerything your own way&Ruthlessly he crushed her to him, hishand !eneath her chin, e2%loring the softhollows of her throat as he forced her

mouth u% to meet his, the fierceness of

7@< 8=



his assault %arting her !ruised li%s,

stri"ing a liing flame right through her#$f one last sane instant Ee tried

to resist, to fight free of the !urninge2citement which the hardness of hisli%s aroused within her# (ut Raoulrefused to relent# He was all force and%assion, stilling her fee!le %rotests

until, lost in a la!yrinth of emotion, sheceased to struggle# 8nder his touch hershrin"ing disa%%eared, and there wasonly the feerish insistence of her !lood%ounding in her ears#

&$&ll neer let you go ###& Hismouth lifted fractionally, his oice dar"

as his li%s came down again, this timetheir %ressure easing slightly as hishands %ro!ed the !areness of her s"in

through the ragged remains of hershirt# Ee moaned, turning in his arms,closer# Her heart was !eating too fast,sensation hitting her in great waes,carrying her along on a tide of

incom%rehensi!le desire# Eerythinga!out her seemed to fall away, all hersurroundings, een her own !eingwhirling li"e a !ursting dam a!out herears as he drew

from her slender !ody an eerincreasing res%onse#

&Raoul# # #& She wasn&t whollyaware that she was so!!ing his name,her li%s moing num!ly under his as

she felt herself s%inning out of control,her senses merely a roaring oid in herears# Her gro%ing fingers touched thehard, smooth te2ture of his chee",

going slowly around his nec" as sheclung to him, her !ody going softly!oneless against his#

&Raoul ###& Tremors were attac"ingher lim!s# Somewhere she was floating

and he was lifting her, carrying her, !utshe had no "nowledge of where he was

going#&(e still,& she heard his oice,

thic"ly im%atient# &$ don&t wish to hurt

you more than $ must## #&&Raoul3%lease# # #& -as that her

own oice trem!ling wildly !efore the%assion in his4

&-e are married, mignonne? The

%ressure of his mouth and handsdee%ened, and was the last thing sheseemed to hear, other than her own crya little later !efore eerything faded tounconsciousness#

The ne2t day she went with Raoul

to the festial in Les Saintes /aries dela /er# She hadn&t really wanted to go,!ut he had insisted, and it seemed shehad no will left in her now to defy him#

All morning Raoul and his men had

!een cutting !ulls from the herds# These

would !e ta"en !y lorry to the !ull ring!ut !rought !ac" again afterwards and

released to the herds# (ull !reeding inthe Camargue was directed at %roducinggood cocardiers, !ulls for the s%ort "nownin that area as the course "#re, andanimals !red for this could %roe .uite

%rofita!le for their owners#The town itself was full of gi%sies

from all oer Euro%e who gathered thereeach year on the twenty*fourth of /ay toattend /asses# Added to this, or mi2ed

rather incongruously in with it, Eethought, were the stirring songs, the

cele!rations in the streets, the !ullfightswhere the ensuing dust seemed to minglewith the heay scent of incense from the

high altar# There was much to stare at,much to hold the attention of een themost 0aded %alate, !ut in s%ite of attem%ting determinedly to en0oy herself she was far from succeeding# To "ee% her

mind wholly on the iid entertainmentall a!out her seemed im%ossi!le# Shecould only thin" of Raoul 'u(are and hisloema"ing, which in his case hadnothing to do with loe at all# Her own

headlong res%onse was something shetried in ain to forget# The night had !eenan e2%erience she must somehowcontrie to %ut from her#

The noise and gaiety that filled the

little town seemed to !e at an eer*increasing momentum# As she wanderedthrough the crowds Raoul was neer farfrom her side, remote yet curiously

watchful, as if fully aware of her con*tinuing lassitude and always ready whenshe occasionally ste%%ed heedlessly intodanger# $t was late afternoon when the%aleness of her face o!iously %rom%ted

him to suggest they should see" somelight refreshment, then return home# He

would ta"e her to a hotel,&1our old friend /rs -ood&s

esta!lishment will do ery well,& he said,

&and it will !e .uiet as it is out of town#&Ee glanced at him woodenly,

haing no great desire to go there# &$tdoesn&t matter,& she hedged# &$&d rathernot, if you don&t mind#&

&Oh, !ut $ do, ma chere he re%liedthinly# &$f you must insist on wearing theair of a martyr then $ must do somethingto cheer you u%#&

8nha%%ily Ee refused to let him

see how much his words hurt her# How

could she eer hae !een cra+y enoughto imagine he might eer grow eenremotely fond of a wife he had onlychosen for conenience He would loo"

after her as he would any other

7@< 88



inestment, as %art of his %ro%erty,

that was all# Towards her was alwayscourteous, !ut suddenly this was far

from enough# She wanted more#)eeling it not worthwhile to

%rotest further, she sat %assiely !esidehim as he droe swiftly to the hotel#Once there she felt relieed to see it

was .uiet, most of the guests still !eingin the town and not yet !ac" to dressfor dinner# Raoul ordered tea, are.uest, Ee mused, which wouldn&t !etoo %o%ular in the "itchens where, at

this hour, they were no dou!t %re%aringa cele!ration eening meal# Studiously,

as they sat down, she "e%t her eyesaerted, not needing to loo" at him to!e aware of his faintly arrogant air of

distinction, his undenia!le good loo"s#How had she eer come to loe a manli"e this4 And loe him she did3if itwas something in the nature of anunwelcome shoc" to face the

reelations of one&s own heartPreiously her disli"e had seemed toact as a sort of inisi!le reflectoragainst the %enetrating im%act of his%ersonality, !ut now, realising how she

really felt a%%eared to remoe all herdefence mechanism and her su!*se.uent ulnera!ility could only lead tofurther unha%%iness, she wasconinced#

Ee sat ery still, her head !entslightly, allowing her fair, soft hair tofall oer her chee", ho%ing to hide heryoung des%air# &1ou may %our,& Raoul

suggested when their tray arried, andher hand went automatically out togras% the tea%ot, shiering to hear himadd, &1ou&e had ery little all day, machere, and last night you did miss your

dinner#&'id he hae to remind her4 She

had a feeling he did it deli!erately, andit wasn&t entirely one missed meal hewas thin"ing of# &$ don&t ha%%en to !e

ery hungry,& she re%lied as eenly asshe could#

His glance, wholly encom%assing,was full of restrained irritation, asthough her silent distress was !eyond

him# &'on&t worry,& he said withseemingly cool indifference, &youra%%etite is sure to return#&

'efensiely she lifted her heaylashes to glance at him mutinously, not

caring for his sarcasm# &$t wasn&t my

fault & she !egan, only to !e cutoff a!ru%tly as noneother than /rs -ood !ore down

on them# Ee&s !reath caught uneasily#

She had seen nothing of /rs -ood

since she had wor"ed at the hotel, !ut

had always felt guilty a!out leaing asshe had, in such haste#

(ut /rs -ood was o!iously in the!est of tem%ers, the %resence of herformer nursemaid, magically transmittedto the e2tremely enia!le %osition of /adame 'u(are, not affecting her

adersely at all# Not on the face of it &Ah,m'sieur, madame,' she cried gaily, in thenature of a fully air!orne !alloon, &!uthow nice to see you& (eaming, shewished them eery ha%%iness, e2%ressing

eery ho%e of seeing more of them in thefuture# &And $ also ho%e,& she a%%ealed,

smiling at Ee coyly, &you can %ersuadeyour hus!and to o%en his riding sta!lesagain, dear# Nowadays $ go elsewhere,

!ut $ miss the /anade 'u(are erymuch#&

Ee glanced at Raoul uncertainly,seeing that he merely shrugged# 9aguelyshe remem!ered hearing something

a!out this from Celeste, !ut couldn&trecall anything definitely, and it didn&ta%%ear that Raoul was interested#

As if sensing this, /rs -ood rushedon, &This wasn&t why $ a%%roached you

today, m'sieur. $t was actually a!out/adame Troyat#& As Raoul&s eye!rowsrose slightly, and Ee&s heart 0er"ed%ainfully, she continued, &A!out twowee"s ago she came in at this time and

stayed on to dinner, and, $&m afraid, lefther cigarette lighter# $t is here,& she drewt out of her %oc"et, &and it a%%ears to !ea good one# See, it has her initials# -ell,

the ne2t morning, when $ rang yourhouse, $ was told that she and your sisterhad already left for /arseille, and thene2t thing $ "new your household was inParis for your marriage, so $ decided to

leae it# $ thought %erha%s /adameTroyat might return to collect it herself# ##&

/rs -ood tal"ed for a few moreminutes after %assing to Raoul theelegant, gold*coloured lighter, then left

them with a !right farewell and anotherferently e2%ressed wish a!out the ridingsta!les# 'ully Ee loo"ed at the gleam of gold metal turning idly in Raoul&s hands,ft would merely sere to remind him of a

woman he might hae married, someone!etter a!le to match his demands thanshe# (efore she could sto% herself shesaid, &1ou were ery fond of Amelie # ##4&

&)ond& The e2clamation in his oice

suggested she had understated, !ut

curiously he said no more, 0ust continuedto frown contem%latiely at the lighter#Suddenly she didn&t want to thin"

any more a!out Amelie# &This riding

school4& she .ueried#

7@< 8



&$t wasn&t my idea,& he re%lied

swiftly, o!iously not concentrating onwhat she was saying, &$t was one of my

!rother&s# $t can !e .uite a %rofita!lesideline with summer tourists, !ut $&mafraid $&m 0ust not interested#&

&No, of course not#& -hy werethey conersing %olitely, li"e a cou%le

of strangers4 She too" too .uic"ly agul% of hot tea, almost scalding herself#

&$f you will e2cuse me, ma

chere, $ will !e !ac" in a moment#&Rising a!ru%tly, his own tea a%%arently

forgotten, Raoul left her withoutwaiting for a re%ly#

All the way !ac" to the manadeRaoul was %reoccu%ied, not tal"ing erymuch, and Ee decided, the "nowledge

haunting her, that he was still thin"ingof Amelie# Een so, she was .uiteun%re%ared when, on arriing home, hesaid .uiedy, &$ hae to go out again,ma chere.' * &Out3again4& Startled, she

swung around to face him as he heldo%en the ehicle door, his hand %olitely!eneath her el!ow as she clim!eddown# &1ou mean, !ac" to Les Saintes/aries4&

&No#& His eyes were hooded,enigmatic, as he held her !ewilderedga+e# &$f you must "now, $ am going to/arseille, and $ may !e late# 'on&t waitu%#&

/arseille4 Oh, no, not that Tearssuddenly stung Ee&s eyes as shestared after him# His 0aw had !eenterse, and he had loo"ed at her as if he

was already regretting not only hismarriage !ut the su!se.uent turn ithad ta"en# $f he had wrung from her allthe res%onse he had ho%ed for the%reious night, he o!iously didn&t li"e

her reactions today# -hateer he hade2%ected she had no means of

"nowing, and this must !e his way of showing his disa%%roal# His way of demonstrating clearly that if he had

turned !riefly from Amelie it had only!een a tem%orary deflection, a momentof madness, not to !e re%eated# Thiseening, he must !e confident, Ameliewould greet him with o%en arms

8nha%%iness lending an air of e2treme e2haustion to her taut youngface, Ee ran u%stairs, almostforgetting in her misery to loo" in onthe nursery, !ut /ichel was !y this

time fast aslee%# )or a long moment

she lingered, loo"ing half eniously athis smoothly unconscious face !eforegoing to tell /arie that Raoul would not!e in for dinner# She %retended not to

notice as /arie glanced at her shar%ly#

That /arie should een guess where he

had gone would %roe the finalhumiliation

The remainder of the eeningstretched long and dismal !efore her, andit was only 0ust after ten when, una!le tosettle, Ee decided to go to !ed with a!oo"# $n Raoul&s study she had

discoered a wide selection and chose adetectie story, anything which mightta"e her mind off her own %ro!lems# 1et,after a shower and the usual routinetas"s necessary !efore retiring for the

night, she still felt too restless to clim!into !ed, and for a moment lingered !y

her faourite s%ot at the window# A hugewhite moon sailed across the s"ies and,as she stared u% at it, it s"etched the

%oignant %lanes of her face in atrans%arent glow, highlighting theshadows, turning to siler the loosestrands of hair where it touched# (ut,a!oe all, it seemed to accentuate her

solitary figure, !estowing a lonelinesswhich she was almost !eginning to feeldee% down inside her#

(eyond the gardens, across theast %lains, the wind drifted softly with all

the %romise of an early summer, !ut, ason other nights, all was .uiet# No oicesof !irds, no mistral washing wildlythrough the to%s of the %ines, only thefaint hum of a wandering insect as it

threw itself heedlessly against theglittering glass of the window, attracted!y the soft flic"er of light# There was somuch a!out this %art of )rance that was

attractie, so much she li"ed, could learnto loe, een as she loed the man whoowned this large !it of

7@< 89



it, gien the chance# Tremulously Ee sighed# (efore it had allseemed so easy, !ut she must hae !een a fool eer to thin" it reallywould !e# How could she stay here now, loing Raoul the way shedid, een for /ichel&s sa"e4 The difficulty of hiding her true feelingsmight !e, she conceded, an im%ossi!le tas", and she dwelt

des%airingly on Raoul&s acute em!arrassment should he eer guesse2actly how she felt a!out him#

So dee% and ho%eless were her thoughts that she didn&t hear/arie&s tentatie "noc" until she tried again, this time louder#

Ee, thin"ing for one heart*sto%%ing moment it was Raoul,hastily gra!!ed her white sil" ro!e with its unmista"a!le stam% of Paris and slowly o%ened the door# Her %ulse rate dro%%ed to normalagain as she saw it was only /arie3she might hae "nown Raoulwould neer "noc"#

/arie was !eset !y her usual an2ieties &Oh, madame,' she

cried nerously, &$ wonder if you would mind loo"ing at the child# Hewon&t sto% crying, $ thin" he might !e ill, and as le maitre is3er3stillout4&

&Of course#& -ithout %ausing to satisfy /arie&s curiosity a!out lemaitre, Ee followed /arie .uic"ly down the corridor# $t wasn&t thefirst time since she had come here that /arie had sought her adicein the middle of the night, !ut for once Ee almost welcomed thediersion&r6$t would .uite %ro!a!ly !e nothing serious, the youngnursemaids had %ro!a!ly !een indulging /ichel too freely again, !ut/arie, e2cita!le !y nature, always seemed eager for reassurance#

Once in the nursery she found, as she had sus%ected, that/ichel was suffering from a %ersistent %ain in his small tummy#Swiftly she gathered him u%, soothing him .uiedy !eforeadministering a small dose of something she "e%t for such occasions,to reliee it# $t was only a matter of minutes !efore, cuddled closelyin her arms, he went to slee% again#

&$&ll stay with him a while longer,& she %romised, sending /arieoff to !ed, together with the young nursemaid who sle%t in thead0oining room# As she laid the !oy gently in his cot he turned oeron his side, contented, and she dou!ted if he would wa"e again that

night#Carefully she turned his nightlight low and sat down in a chair!y his side# Here she must hae fallen aslee%, as she wo"e with astart a little while later to find to her dismay Raoul standing !y herside, watching her intently as she struggled to find her !emusedsenses# &$ must hae forgotten where $ was,& she gas%ed, !ut hemerely smiled#

&Come, ma chere he said softly, !ending oer her, &1ou musttell /arie she must manage herself occasionally when the child cries,!ut there is no need for you to stay any longer#&

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So he had guessed what she had !een doing# &He had only asmall %ain,& she e2%lained, &nothing serious# Howeer, /arie wasn&tsure# $ intended staying only a few minutes # # #&

&And you fell aslee%4 No matter,& he shrugged, !ringing her toher feet, guiding her stum!ling footste%s from the nursery, his arm

gende yet firm around her narrow waist# &The child is all right nowand we hae much to discuss#&

&Raoul& Outside the door, at once wholly awa"e, she %ulled !ac"from his arms, too conscious of the thinness of her ro!e, thedia%hanous .uality of the nightgown underneath# How could hee2%ect her to !ehae rationally when he had only 0ust returned from/arseille, from Amelie4 &$ don&t thin" we can hae anything to tal"a!out,& she e2claimed !itterly, her eyes huge in her white face# &Atleast nothing that couldn&t wait until the morning#&

&Shush, ma chere,' his oice soothed as his dar" ga+e slid

deli!erately oer her slender figure, his gri% on her waist tighteningagainst her urgent struggles as he too" her com%letely into his armsand "issed her hard# His hand moed slowly to her na%e, threadingthrough her ruffled hair, holding her %assionately to him until she!ecame com%letely ac.uiescent against him, his %ower oer her nolonger dis%uted#

Her li%s thro!!ing, her !ody a!la+e with a "ind of feerish fire,Ee was scarcely aware of how she reached his study# She couldn&tseem to fight him any more, nor could she count on any inclination todo so, common sense not seeming to function een slightly when u%

against an attraction such as his# &Raoul G& )rom somewhere she triedto assert a small measure of inde%endence, only to find herself %ushed authoritatiely down on to the wide elet sofa, his handslingering momentarily on her slim shoulders !efore he !ent to switchon the electric fire# Again he too" no notice of the wild note of entreaty in her oice#

&Stay there,& he commanded, leaing her to %our drin"s, and!emused, Ee watched his eery moement, staring at the !ac" of his dar" head, loing him too much, yet fully conscious that suchone*sided emotion could !ring her no ha%%iness#

&Here, drin" this, you are too %ale, ma chere.'' He was !ac" !yher side, %lacing a glass in her sha"ing hands, guiding it with his toher mouth, watching intendy until she too" a small si%# He dro%%eddown !eside her as she sat li"e a ery fragile, cured statuette,una!le, for some reason, to ta"e her eyes off him#

Rather too .uic"ly he half em%tied his #own glass, as if endeaouring to retain an e.uili!rium he felt was sli%%ing# &'arling,& itwas the first time he had called her that and her s"in tightenedelectrically, her chee"s colouring# 'ro%%ing her head to hide suchrushing confusion didn&t hel%# He noticed instandy, and his fingerswent out to gently touch the iid tide of it and stayed caressing

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!eneath the ulnera!le angle of her chin# &Ee,& his oice dee%ened,&you "now where $&e !een this eening4&

&1es,& she drew a %ainful steadying !reath# There was nothing to!e gained !y %retending not to# &1ou went to isit Amelie, and $ thin"$ "now why#&

&1ou do4& He %aused for one o!iously !affled moment, hisglance "een on the slight !etraying .uier of her li%s#

&1es # # #& $t 0ust had to come out# &1ou wish you had married herinstead of me# Pro!a!ly you&e !een to tell her so# There can !e noother e2%lanation#&

&Enough& his oice whi%%ed, his hand on her face tighteningalmost cruelly !efore rela2ing again# &$&m sorry, ma chere herintensely anguished e2%ression acted as a !ra"e, &!ut of course youmust !e thin"ing something li"e this# $t is natural, yet nothing wasfurther from my mind#&

&1ou mean you don&t loe her4&Smiling slightly, he shoo" his head# &There is only one girl $

loe, my darling#& His fingers tensed, tilting u% her chin, forcing her toloo" straight at him as he as"ed ery softly, &Can&t you guess4 )romthe moment $ saw you # # #&

&No3Oh, Raoul& Her oice came on a funny little gas% as hedrew her forci!ly to him, "issing her fiercely, as if glorying in the 0oyof her hel%lessly yielding !ody#

/inutes later he lifted his head# &$ loe you,& he said, &!ut !efore$ tell you how much, we must tal" a!out tonight# All the dou!t

!etween us must !e cleared u%, otherwise you will continue to fret#'o you recall, ma chere, when /rs -ood gae me Amelie&s lightershe also said when Amelie had left it4 Something occurred to mealmost immediately, !ut, to ma"e sure, $ chec"ed u% again with /rs-ood while you finished your tea# Amelie had arried at the hotelaround fie o&cloc" on the ery day she had left you in the natureresere# -hen she was su%%osed to !e on her way !ac" here to see"the forgotten %icnic !as"et#&

&1ou mean # ##4& Ee flinched, her slight figure droo%ing as thatdreadful e2%erience came rushing !ac" to her#

&$ mean,& he went on swiftly, &that all the time she has !eenlying# That while she was su%%osedly nursing her car off the resereall the time she was at the hotel&

&1ou&re .uite certain4& To Ee it didn&t ma"e sense#Raoul&s mouth thinned decisiely# &After chec"ing with /rs -ood

$ rang the garage where she left her car# The %ro%rietor told me, machere, there was almost more sand in Amelie&s %etrol tan" than thewhole of the Sahara# Too much eer to hae got there accidentally,and certainly more than would hae allowed her to trael more than aery short distance# Of course he had no idea of the true circum*stances, and $ didn&t tell him# Mon dieu,' Raoul ground out, &and tothin" $ didn&t !eliee you G&

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Her head came !ac" against his shoulder, the tension inside hereasing slighdy# &$ would neer lie to you, Raoul#&

&'arling,& his fingers %layed through her ruffled hair, tenderly,&$&e !een a !rute and must !eg you to forgie me# $t was Amelie whotold me a tissue of lies, !ut it was actually my concern for you that

made me so furious# This afternoon, as $ %ieced together what hadreally ha%%ened, $&m afraid $ saw red# $ was com%elled to go andconfront her %ersonally3it would neer !e %ossi!le to %in Ameliedown oer the tele%hone, etite. $ was so a!solutely liid# To thin"she had endangered your life, s%ending that eening in /rs -ood&shotel in order to gie you a fright And, on to% of this, she confessedeerything when $ found her in /arseille, and wasn&t in any wayre%entant, een when $ told her that what she had done could easilyhae !een construed as a "ind of %remeditated murder#&

&Oh, no& Ee&s eyes flew to his, startled# * thin" she would

only intend giing me a fright# Something to ma"e me hate theCamargue and hurry !ac" to London#&

&Een so she couldn&t hae guaranteed your safety# She mustcertainly !e a little mad# $ will neer hae her !ac" here&

&$ thin",& shuddering, Ee swallowed, trying not to e2aggerate,&$ thin" she could, on occasion, act ery irres%onsi!ly#&

&8n!alanced4& He halted narrowly, an odd une2%ected note inhis oice# &-as this why you decided to marry me, ma chere&'

$nconse.uently, Ee tried to aoid a direct answer# &PoorAmelie,& she sighed# &She had no idea $&d eer wor"ed for /rs -ood,

or een stayed in her hotel# $f we hadn&t gone there today ###&&Ee3$ as"ed you a .uestion#& There was a wealth of male

%ur%ose !ehind his oice#&1es,& Ee answered easiely, &it was on my mind at the time#&&And since then4&Her heart !eating suddenly too fast, she turned a delicate

%rofile to him# &Since then, Raoul,& she confessed, frantically, &$&e!een fighting a losing !attle, trying not to face the fact that $ loedyou# Then last night# ##& her !reath changed as emotion shot throughher, accentuating her e2treme %allor#

&1es4& he %rom%ted, his hand sliding oer the sil" of hershoulder lightly, !ut enough to !rea" the shar% sense of disci%linewhich held her#

She turned u% her face, "nowing he didn&t hae to force her tosurrender# &Last night,& she whis%ered tremulously, &$ realised howmuch # # #&

Silendy he held her to him, his heart stri"ing into her withforce, his li%s warm against the thro!!ing nere at her tem%le#&(efore $ "iss you, mignonne, !ecause $ may not !e a!le to sto%,there are still one or two things left to say# On our wedding day,Celeste said something a!out sending for you# $&m afraid the mannerof your arrial here was no longer im%ortant# $t was something $ had

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long %ut from me, certainly something $ hadn&t the time or inclinationto thin" a!out on my wedding day# (ut was that also true, mydarling# 1ou let me thin" you had arried com%letely uninited# To%rotect Celeste you chose not to say anything4&

&1es#& There was in Ee a fine rec"lessness, com%elling her to

confess all# Perha%s, if Raoul really loed her, he had to hear it4&Celeste threatened that if $ didn&t come she would !ring /ichel toLondon# 8nfortunately, when $ did arrie she had mi2ed u% the dates#$ had her letter, !ut she had lost mine and hadn&t made a note of myarrial# This was why $ came here# /y money was running out and $felt it im%eratie to "now what had gone wrong# She had es%eciallyas"ed me not to tele%hone, in case # # #& Her oice trailed off, unwillingto im%licate Celeste any further#

&$n case,& Raoul su%%lied, with a wry flic"er of humour, &$ foundout# And $ su%%ose,& he added, still wryly, &in retros%ect $ couldn&t

really !lame her# And, when you did come, $ couldn&t get rid of you.uic" enough#&

&1ou threw me out, literally#& The re%roach in her oice wasaudi!le#

Raoul&s laughter was low# &So you once said, madame, andagain $ a%ologise, !ut %erha%s you don&t understand how des%erate $was to !e rid of you# fmmediately $ caught sight of you $ sensed youwere a threat to my %eace of mind# Not that $ was wholly conincedyou actually were whom you said you were, !ut how could $ welcomeyou after %rotesting so much a!out Carol4 Then the ne2t time $ saw

you and held you in my arms $ "new $ could neer let you go#&Through the uneen !eating of a feerish %ulse she forced

herself to as", &1ou neer told me why you neer li"ed Carol or herfamily#&

$n his oice was a half im%atient tenderness# &$t was nothingreally %ersonal, ma etite. Perha%s ##you were not aware that'omini.ue was already !etrothed to a )rench girl when he ran off with your cousin# Can you imagine what $, a mere man, was left toco%e with4 The wee%ing of a distracted, deserted fiancee, a necessityto calm and a%%ease irate %arents# $ may hae oer*reacted, !ut the

fact that my !rother, whom $ relied on a lot, didn&t return for almosttwo months did not hel%# Mon dieu,' Raoul smiled, &!ut $ was ready tohate the lot of you &

&(ut Carol4& Ee %rotested#Raoul&s smile faded and he sighed# &Oh, we got on ery well, my

darling, eentually, !ut she did little to hel% 'omini.ue settle down#Always they were off somewhere, or doing something unnecessary,such as refur!ishing the old hut down !y the lagoon in such a waythat one dared scarcely %ut a foot inside it# -e used it a lot at onetime for watching wild life on the water#&

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Ee remem!ered, with a .uier, which %rom%ted her to saywhen otherwise she might not, &1ou certainly didn&t a%%roe when shewent to Rhodesia &

&$t wasn&t e2actly that,& Raoul e2%lained curtly# &They had only 0ust returned from America, and there was a lot to do#&

&1et Carol wasn&t well4&&1ou sound sur%rised, ma chere,' he shrugged wryly# &$ thin"

Carol often made a conenience of her health# 8sually she was .uitefit#&

&And this is why you wanted to "ee% /ichel here when his%arents died# So that he might hae a sta!le home4 4&

&Something li"e that, ma chere.' Raoul loo"ed at her con*tem%latiely# &Anyway, we shall see# After we return from ourhoneymoon his grand%arents will come on a long isit, so we will notworry too much a!out the future right now, mignonne.'

&A honeymoon###4& -as his oice full of the old tantalisingmoc"ery, or did he really mean it4 She was neer .uite sure whereshe was with him# Her hand clung suddenly to the dar" sil" of hisdressing gown, her face taut with e2treme sensitiity as she gae anodd little shudder#

&Need you as"4& He understood the .uery in her oice and hisown was tolerant# &$&e !een getting eerything organised# $ find $can&t wait until Celeste returns from America to hae you com%letelyto myself# There is a small illa $ own in the Swiss Al%s, which isn&t sofar away# $ "now you will adore it#&

&Oh, Raoul& The %ros%ect in front of her seemed so da++lingthat she could scarcely acce%t it without !eing %rone to some dou!t#Not for herself3she could neer .uestion the strength of her ownfeelings, !ut what of his4 &How can you !e sure,& she felt hel%lesslyforced to go on, &how can you !e sure $&ll settle down any !etter thanCarol4&

&(ecause $ do, my darling#& His arm cured hard as it tighteneda!out her# &$n fact, merely from watching you since you first came, $can almost guarantee it# (ut, whether you do or not, it&s a ris" $ mustta"e# (esides, ma chere a glint of dry humour flic"ered through his

eyes, &is it not rather late to !e thin"ing of this now4&&(ut & she !egan uncertainly, a small deil of %erersity driingher#

&No more !uts, etite.' 'ecisiely his li%s cut off whateerwords she had !een a!out to utter# &'on&t you thin",& he murmured, aslightly roughened edge to his oice, &we&e tal"ed enough for onenight4 Nothing can really matter any more !ut this, ma #elle enfant.This will last for eer& Closely he held her, his mouth lingering on thewide cure of her li%s !efore sliding oer the soft sil" of her throat,lingering for one threatening moment on the wildly !eating %ulse!efore see"ing the warm s"in of her shoulder, the fragrant a%%eal of her seductie ounghody#

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&)or eer# # #& There was an unconscious !rea" in her oice asshe said it, wholly su!missie as she %ressed his dar" head loinglyto her !reast, no thought inside her of denying him any longer# $t wasa word that would !e stam%ed indeli!ly on her heart for always# Thatand this %lace, this man, with whom she would always !e wholly

content#

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