Dark Castle

by Anne Mather

  'I see,' Mrs. Macpherson was saying now, her tone indicating what she thought of married couples using separate bathrooms. 'And did the pain in your hand keep you awake last night?'

  'Nothing keeps me awake, Mrs Macpherson.' Jonas smiled crookedly. 'We'll have breakfast in half an hour, if we may. Oh, and by the way, Mrs. Hunter is going to drive me to Newton Carn this morning to see old Mc- Tavish.'

  'I think you do right to see the doctor, sir.' Mrs. Macpherson nodded. 'You can't be too careful with glass.' 'No.' Jonas accepted this. 'It's not still raining, is it?' 'No, sir, it's a fine morning. Cold, but brisk.' Airs. Macpherson flicked an encompassing look at both of them. 'Well, I'll leave you now to have your tea. And Rob will have the boat ready before you leave.' 'Thank you, Mrs. Macpherson.' Jonas followed her to the door and closed it behind her. Julie, suddenly realizing how cold she felt, marched determinedly to the bathroom. Then she stopped. She had no clothes in there, only her nightdress!

  'Will you leave now?' she requested shortly. Jonas yawned and walked towards the bed. 'I don't think I'd better. Not just yet.'

  'But how did you know she was here?' Julie protested.

  'My room is next door,' he replied, sitting down on the side of the bed and reaching for the teapot with his left hand. 'Damn!' He burned his fingers and set it down

  again heavily. 'I heard her coming along the gallery.'

  Julie hesitated, watching his fumbling ineptitude, and then walked across to the tray, assuring herself that the towelling sarong was firmly secured. 'Would you like me to do it?'

  He looked up at her. 'Yes, please.'

  Refusing to meet the amused mockery in his eyes, she set out the cups and picked up the teapot. Obviously Mrs. Macpherson had prepared the tea for both of them - two cups and saucers, cream and sugar, at least a dozen home-made shortbread biscuits.

  While she poured the tea, Jonas ate one of the biscuits. 'Try one,' he suggested as she straightened. 'They're very good.'

  Julie looked down at him. 'You're going to get fat.'

  'Am I?' He unloosened the cord of his dressing gown and before she could turn away he exhibited his lean torso. 'Do I look fat?'

  Julie walked rather jerkily across to the bathroom. 'I'm going to finish washing. I - I expect you to be gone when I come back.'

  'You haven't asked me how my hand is this morning,' he remarked, fastening his dressing gown again.

  Julie sighed. 'So how is it?'

  'It feels painful when I move my fingers. The skin feels tight. It's an unpleasant sensation.'

  Julie looked helplessly at him. 'Then it's just as well you're going to see the doctor, isn't it?'

  'Umm.' He swallowed a mouthful of his tea. 'Ugh, did you put any sugar in this?'

  'You're not completely helpless,' she exclaimed impatiently. 'The sugar's there - use some!'

  Jonas shrugged and complied, spooning several generous measures into his cup. 'That's better.' He smiled

  across at her, and when he wasn't mocking or angry, his smile was quite devastating. 'Did you sleep well?'

  Julie could feel heat sweeping over her body from the tips of her toes to the top of her head. 'Jonas, get out of here,' she pleaded.

  'Why?' He put his teacup back on to the tray and stretched his length on her bed, looking appraisingly at her. 'I've enjoyed my tea, and you're adequately covered. You always did look good in the mornings, without makeup and your hair all tangled like that.'

  Julie's legs were trembling so much she didn't know how they continued to support her. Without looking at him again, she walked to the wardrobe and opened it. Once she was dressed she would feel less vulnerable.

  As she looked at the attractive garments she wondered in amazement how this situation had been allowed to come about. In London it had seemed like an unpleasant, but straightforward, assignment. But she had not allowed for the personalities involved. If either her mother or Angela should learn that she had spent three nights at Jonas's castle, and it would be three nights if she stayed until tomorrow as she had promised, they would think she had taken leave of her senses. There was nothing stopping her from walking out of here right now, so why didn't she?

  She extracted a pair of dark green corded pants and a lemon yellow roll-necked sweater and turned round determinedly, prepared to order him out of her bedroom if necessary. Jonas was still lying on the bed, but his eyes were closed, and there was something defenceless about bare feet and the way his gown had parted to reveal the hair-roughened skin of his chest. Her senses responded violently to his undoubted sensuality and with clenched jaws she marched into the bathroom, slamming the door after her, uncaring that she had probably disturbed him after all.

  When she emerged he had gone and she felt furiously aware that she was disappointed. Oh, God! she thought bitterly. He certainly knew how to play this game. Much, much better than she did!

  Over breakfast which they took in the dining-room where she had eaten the day before she deliberately talked about her work in London, describing the interesting aspects of having a weekly deadline instead of a daily one. She told him about parties she had been to, people she had met, some of whom were well known to him, men she had been out with. The fact that there had been nothing of any importance in that line would not necessarily be apparent to him, and she hoped he would get the picture - that she had not spent the whole of the past two and a half years pining for him!

  Jonas was unusually silent, listening to her chatter without comment, his thick lashes veiling his eyes so that she was totally unaware of the effect her conversation was having.

  After breakfast, Julie was introduced to Rob Macpherson for the first time.

  When the meal was over, Jonas rose to his feet and said: 'Get your coat, Julie. I want to have a word with Rob before we leave.'

  Julie, who had exhausted herself by talking throughout breakfast, felt vaguely resentful at the lack of response she had aroused. 'I trust he finds it easier to talk to you than I do,' she observed sarcastically.

  Jonas walked to the door. He was wearing a thick cream sweater and black suede pants that clung to the muscles of his thighs as he moved, and Julie felt her senses stirring just looking at him. However, when he spoke he

  banished her weakness.

  'When you have something interesting to say, I'll respond, Julie.'

  Julie stared angrily at him. 'I thought my conversation would have interested you!'

  'What? Women's magazines?' He shook his head. 'I don't think so.' !' 'It wasn't only that—'

  The heavy-lidded eyes surveyed her mockingly. 'No, I agree. But the rest wasn't worth mentioning.'

  Julie's coffee cup clattered into its saucer. 'You are rude, do you know that?'

  'It's what comes of living alone so much,' he remarked tauntingly, and left the room.

  | Julie collected her sheepskin coat and went downstairs again. Following her instincts, she went along the corridor that led through the main part of the building. Half-way along, double doors gave on to an enormous banqueting hall, and as the doors were open Julie couldn't resist peering in.

  The hall was well lit, with long windows overlooking the loch. Massive chandeliers were suspended from an enormously high ceiling overshadowing a long refectory table placed at one end. The walls were hung with tapestries, worn by the passage of years, and the floor which had once been polished now had a scuffed appearance. And yet for all that, there was an air of faded elegance about the place that Julie's artistic sensitivities responded to.

  Leaving the hall, she continued past other doors, closed against her curiosity, and eventually reached the semi-circular hall of the other tower. She was looking about her uncertainly when Mrs Macpherson appeared down the stairs.

  'Are you looking for Mr. Hunter, Mrs. Hunter?' she asked, with a smile.

  Julie nodded. 'Yes. I hope you don't mind. I've been doing a bit of exploring for myself.'

  'I? Mind?' Mrs. Macpherson clearly thought this was a strange thing for the wife of
the master of the house to say, and she shook her head. 'When you come back, perhaps you'd like to see the rest of the castle.'

  'Perhaps.' Julie was non-committal. 'Where is - my - my husband?'

  'Come with me.' Mrs. Macpherson opened a door at the back of the hall. 'These rooms are Rob's and mine. Mrs. Drummond gave us our own apartments in this tower.'

  'I see.' Julie looked about her with interest. 'It's very pleasant, isn't it?'

  They passed through a comfortable living-room and now Julie could see that an extension jutted out from the tower at this point. Here Mrs. Macpherson had her kitchen, and beyond there were outbuildings and a yard. As they reached the kitchen, Julie could hear men's voices outside and presently a pair of spaniels came bounding into the house, attracted by the sound of their footsteps on the tiled floor of the kitchen.

  'Och, get down, both of you!' exclaimed Mrs. Macpherson as they fussed about them, but Julie went down on her haunches, saying:

  'Aren't they gorgeous! What are their names?'

  'MacGregor and Macduff,' answered a strange voice, and looking up she saw that Jonas and another man had entered the kitchen after the animals. She guessed this was Rob Macpherson, although as far as she could see he appeared to have two perfectly normal legs. He was tall, too, almost as tall as Jonas, but broader, with iron grey hair, and a cheerfully weathered countenance.

  Julie straightened and smiled. 'You must be Rob,' she said.

  'That's right, Mrs. Hunter.' Rob shook hands with her warmly. Then he looked over his shoulder at Jonas. 'She's a fine bonny lass, isn't she? I'm surprised you permit her to live in that dreadful place without you.'

  Julie flushed and Jonas's lips twitched. 'He means London, Julie. The Macphersons don't approve of modern - thinking.'

  Julie ignored him. 'I was just admiring your dogs, Rob.'

  'Ay, well, they're not my dogs,' replied Rob, shaking his head. 'They're your husband's. Didn't he tell you?'

  Julie bit her lip. 'He - he wouldn't. He probably thought I'd disapprove. I - we never had any pets in London.'

  'Not of the four-legged variety anyway,' commented Jonas annoyingly, and she badly wanted to wipe that mockery from his face.

  'You'd know all about that, of course,' she retorted, her eyes flashing, and saw the shocked look that passed between Mrs. Macpherson and her husband. Oh, well, she thought irritably, he couldn't have it all his own way.

  'I think we'd better go,' said Jonas, fastening the buttons of the brown leather coat he had put on over his sweater. Are you ready?'

  Julie nodded, thrusting her hands into her coat pockets, and with a smile Jonas indicated that she should precede him outside. The dogs came after them, but at a command from Jonas they halted obediently, only their eyes eloquent of what they thought at being left behind.

  They walked along the path that led to the steps, leaving the courtyard of the castle behind. Jonas had his

  injured hand in his pocket and Julie wondered guiltily whether she ought to have thanked Rob for his ministrations the night before.

  Jonas was saying nothing, and with a sigh she exclaimed: 'You can't expect me to put up with your disparaging comments all the time!'

  Jonas went ahead of her down the steps. 'You've lost your sense of humour, Julie.'

  'I've lost my sense of humour!' she echoed indignantly.

  'That's what I said.'

  'I know what you said. I said. I just don't happen to see any humour in this situation.'

  'Oh, there is, believe me.' He glanced round at her, but there didn't seem to be any amusement in his set features and she hunched her shoulders resentfully.

  'Why is it you always try to make me feel the guilty party?' she demanded.

  'Perhaps because you are,' he responded coolly, and she determined to say nothing more unless he did.

  He was able to start the outboard motor with his left hand although it was obviously a handicap, and watching him Julie felt sick at heart. But she huddled in her seat and stared out across the water, silently justifying her attitude.

  The sky was much higher this morning and there were occasional breaks in the cloud allowing glimpses of the blue sky above. But the hills were still shrouded in mist, and there was an icy chill in the breeze that blew across from the mainland. The loch lay tranquil within its surrounding belt of firs, blue-grey in places, and utterly enchanting. Even Julie found herself responding to its natural beauty.

  Jonas propelled the boat down the shingle and jumped 82

  aboard as it drifted on the swell. They moved smoothly out into the centre of the loch, rocking a little as the breeze caught them. Julie stared ahead, seeing the jetty where Jonas had garaged the car, and feeling a slight sense of excitement at the prospect of driving such a powerful vehicle. But the reasons why she was to drive him to Newton Carn brought a recollection that momentarily destroyed her determination to remain silent.

  'You said Rob had only one leg!' she exclaimed, turning to look at Jonas.

  Jonas raised dark eyebrows. 'So?' I: 'He appears to have two.'

  Jonas looked bored. 'Haven't you heard of artificial limbs?'

  Julie flushed. 'Are you sure that's what it is? How does he manage to get up and down all those steps?' I 'What a suspicious mind you have, Julie,' remarked Jonas, with dislike. 'How do you think he gets up and down? He walks. He manages. I expect he's glad of the exercise.'

  Julie looked down at her hands, warmly encased in sheepskin gloves. 'If I'm suspicious, you have only yourself to blame,' she mumbled.

  Jonas gave a short laugh. 'Oh, yes, I know. You have made that point blatantly clear.'

  He tied the boat up at the jetty, vaulting on to its concrete surface and offering his hand to Julie. She avoided it, climbing out of the boat unaided, and waiting impatiently while he unlocked the garage doors. She looked up the road towards Achnacraig. How far was it? Four miles? Five? How long would it take her to walk that far? One hour - two? She sighed. There would be a train to Inverness that afternoon. Why didn't she just abandon this expedition and get on it before something

  disastrous happened?

  She became suddenly aware that Jonas was standing watching her. His lean face was dark and brooding and the car keys were dangling from the fingers of his uninjured hand.

  'You can use the car, if you like,' he offered quietly.

  She started. 'What do you mean?'

  'To drive to Achnacraig. That was what you were thinking, wasn't it?'

  Julie stamped her feet to warm them. 'It's cold. Shall we get going?'

  Jonas looked at her strangely. 'I won't stop you, you know.'

  Julie brushed past him, snatching the car keys from his hand. 'I said I would drive you to Newton Carn, and I will,' she retorted, going into the garage.

  The powerful sports saloon started at a touch and she reversed it carefully out of the garage. Jonas closed the garage doors and then climbed into the squab seat beside her.

  'You'd better put on the safety harness,' he commented, putting an arm behind her to indicate the straps. 'Do you understand the gears?'

  Julie looked down. 'I think so. I - I've driven one of these before, haven't I?'

  'You have. This the third Porsche I've owned.'

  'Hmm.' Julie nodded. 'How fast will it go?'

  Jonas adjusted his clothes more comfortably. 'I won't tell you what I've had on the clock. I don't want to terrify you.'

  Julie half smiled, and with a lightening of her spirits she swung out on to the road, turning left at Jonas's instigation for Newton Carn.

  The road to Newton Carn was rather hair-raising in

  places in its own right without the added complication of a car that behaved rather like a leashed tiger at times, purring at high speeds and marling a little when subdued to a steady forty. The scenery was quite spectacular. Much of the road ran between lochs on narrow peninsulas of land, edged with reeds. She was glad they met nothing on the journey except a farm cart which was quite prepared to move asi
de for them. She doubted her ability to reverse the Porsche on such narrow roads without ending up in the loch.

  They saw some of the aggressively homed Highland cattle grazing among the heather and once a deer dashed across the road ahead of them. That incident almost unnerved Julie and she was glad when Jonas said: 'Stop for a few minutes. There's no hurry.'

  She brought the car to a halt on a rough lip of land jutting into the loch, leaving the road clear in case any other vehicle did happen this way. Jonas took out his cheroots, rolled down his window, and lit one. Julie wished she smoked. She would have liked to have had something to calm her nerves just then. Resting her hands on the steering wheel, she said: 'Tell me about South America.'

  Jonas exhaled lazily. 'What do you want to know?'

  'Where did you live? What did you do? What were the people like?'

  He slid lower in his seat, raising one foot to rest carelessly against the dashboard, his head against the soft leather upholstery. 'That's quite a question.'

  Julie looked down at his bandaged hand resting on his thigh. 'Don't you want to tell me?'

  'Don't start that again!' Jonas sounded impatient. Then he sighed. 'Okay, I lived in Maracaibo for a time before moving on to Rio and Buenos Aires.' He inhaled on his cheroot. 'I enjoyed the work, actually. And the people are very friendly.'

  'I see.' Julie digested this, not without a twinge of envy.

  Jonas looked sideways at her. 'What did you expect me to say? Work is the ideal panacea.'

  Julie ignored this. 'Did - did you get to know many people?'

  Jonas's face hardened. 'Women, you mean?'

  Julie shook her head. 'I didn't say that.'

  'No. But the implication was there. Sure, I got to know a lot of people - women as well as men. South American women are quite something.'

  She had asked for that, but it didn't make it any the less painful. She turned her head and looked through the window. Several birds were wheeling in the air above their heads, swooping and diving towards the loch with effortless grace.