by Lily Baxter
‘Not now, Meg. Sit down like a good girl or go for a walk. We’re busy.’
‘David, you promised.’
‘I’ll show you.’ Rayner tossed his cigarette butt into the river and stood up, brushing the grass from his cream flannels.
Meg stared at him in surprise. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Come along. There’s nothing to it.’
‘If she falls in you can save her,’ David said, leaning back against the cushions and closing his eyes.
Meg soon found out that it was not as easy as it looked. Rayner gave her a brief demonstration and then they changed places. To her intense embarrassment the first thing she did was get the pole stuck in the mud. She wobbled dangerously but with Rayner’s calm guidance she managed to right her mistake. ‘This is lovely,’ she said gleefully as the punt moved out into midstream. ‘I can do it. Look at me, David. I can do it.’
‘Mind the overhanging bough.’
Rayner’s warning came too late. The branch caught her head a glancing blow and she leaned too hard on the pole. Once again it stuck in the mud but this time she could not regain her balance. She teetered for a few seconds but the punt had gained momentum and it continued downstream leaving her clinging to the slippery pole. Slowly and inexorably she slid into the turgid green water. The last thing she heard as the river engulfed her was Rayner’s voice shouting to David. The shock of icy cold water numbed her brain and she forgot everything as panic overtook her. She struggled to reach the surface but she was hampered by her wet clothes. The current was strong and the undertow was dragging her down. She thrashed about with her arms but the weeds on the river bed clutched at her ankles. Water filled her ears and was trying to force its way up her nose and into her mouth. She could see the sunlight above the ripples but she could not surface. She could not breathe. She was going to die.
Suddenly a figure sliced though the water and came up beside her. Strong arms held her in a close embrace. She could feel the warmth of his body through the thin cotton of his shirt. Entwined, they twirled for a brief moment like partners in a macabre dance of death, and then with a powerful kick of his legs Rayner thrust upwards and they surfaced together.
Coughing and spluttering, Meg gulped air into her lungs.
‘It’s all right. You’re safe now. Relax.’
Rayner’s voice in her ear was the most welcome sound she had ever heard. She clung to him, dazed and shivering from cold and shock as he swam her to the bank where helping hands dragged her from the water.
That evening they were all assembled in the Shelmerdines’ drawing room for pre-dinner drinks. Paul had come home early from the office for once, and was dispensing champagne while Josie sat close to Meg on the sofa.
‘You should have seen her, Aunt Josie,’ David said, leaning back in his chair and stretching his long limbs. ‘We pulled Meg out of the river looking like a mermaid. She had water weed in her hair and green slime all over her face.’
Josie frowned. ‘That’s not funny, David.’ She squeezed Meg’s hand. ‘But she’s safe and sound now, that’s all that matters.’
Meg smiled wearily. She had never thought to see Aunt Josie’s drawing room again, and she could still taste the muddy water of the River Thames. She could still feel the pressure on her lungs as she sank into its murky depths. ‘I really thought I was going to drown.’
Paul topped up Rayner’s glass with champagne. ‘If it hadn’t been for your prompt action, the outcome could have been very serious indeed. Meg could have died today but for you.’
Rayner accepted the accolade with a nod of his head. ‘It was nothing, sir. We were very close to the bank.’
‘You saved my life,’ Meg said, smiling shyly. ‘I can never thank you enough.’
‘I expect someone would have fished you out further downstream,’ David said casually. ‘It was your fault you fell in anyway. You should have been paying attention to Rayner’s instructions.’
Meg opened her mouth to argue but Josie, seeming to sense an impending squabble, turned to Rayner. ‘I think you were terribly brave, and I’m so pleased you were able to come to dinner this evening.’
His serious expression melted into a smile. ‘It was kind of you to invite me, Mrs Shelmerdine. Not everyone in Oxford is so broad-minded about Germans these days.’
‘Oh, surely not?’ Josie’s eyes widened. ‘I can’t believe that anyone would hold someone like you responsible for the political situation.’
‘Most people think that war is inevitable,’ Paul said, pouring a large measure of whisky into his glass and adding just a dash of soda. ‘What is your opinion, Rayner?’
‘I wish it was not so, but I think you may be right, sir.’
‘Don’t spoil the evening by talking about war,’ Josie said hastily. ‘I’d like to know more about Rayner’s home in Dresden, and his family.’
‘Stop interrogating the boy, Josie,’ Paul said sharply.
Meg looked up, startled. She had never heard him speak so harshly to Josie. She glanced at Adele, who had been sitting on the window seat with Frank and had shown little interest in the general conversation so far, but now she too was staring at their uncle in astonishment.
Walter, who so far had taken little part in the proceedings, cleared his throat noisily. ‘This is very good champagne, Mr Shelmerdine. It was kind of you to include us all in your invitation to dine tonight.’
‘You have my wife to thank for that, Walter. I leave everything to her.’ Paul raised his glass to Josie, but Meg was quick to note the mocking gleam in his dark eyes. Momentarily forgetting her traumatic experience, she wondered if all was well with the Shelmerdines’ marriage. They had always seemed the perfect couple, ideally suited, and it was hard to believe that anything could have come between them.
She cast a sideways glance at Rayner, and as their eyes met she was certain that he too had sensed the tension between husband and wife. He turned to Josie with a smile. ‘I’m happy to tell you anything you want to know, Mrs Shelmerdine.’
The warmth in his voice was a sharp contrast to Paul’s cutting tone and Meg felt a surge of gratitude. It was the second time that day he had come to the rescue. She could have kissed him, but she managed to restrain herself. That was the sort of thing she would have done when she was thirteen or fourteen, but not now.
‘Thank you, Rayner,’ Josie said gently. She looked up as Freda entered the room. ‘Perhaps we’ll continue our conversation after dinner.’
‘Dinner is served, ma’am.’
Josie rose to her feet. ‘I’m sure you’re all starving.’ She held her hand out to Walter. ‘We’ll lead the way, shall we, Walter?’
Frank had already tucked Adele’s hand through the crook of his arm and David strolled out of the room with his hands in his pockets.
‘May I?’ Rayner proffered his arm to Meg.
She smiled up at him. ‘I think I read that in some cultures if you save a person’s life then that life belongs to you.’
Paul downed the last of his drink. ‘I’d say that was utter nonsense, Meg.’ He ushered them out of the room.
Rayner’s eyes were warm as they met Meg’s anxious glance. ‘I think it is an idea that has some merit. You have my word, that if you are in danger at any time I will do my best to save you.’
Unusually for her, Meg could think of nothing to say.
It was almost time to leave for the May Ball. The bedroom had all but disappeared beneath piles of undies and discarded clothes. The dressing table was littered with makeup, curlers, combs and bottles of nail polish. Meg took one last look in the mirror surveying the work of Josie’s hairdresser who had performed a minor miracle on her thick, straight hair. She had cut it and styled it so that it hung in a shining honey-blonde pageboy. Josie had supervised her makeup and the result was a stranger staring back at her from the triple mirrors. Meg blinked and looked again. I look almost pretty, she thought. She twirled around several times, admiring the way the bias-cut skirt flared out in a sw
irl of gold and rose shot silk. She knew that Mother would not approve of the colour and she would say that the low-cut gown was too grown-up, but then Mother was not here and she would never know. Meg had already decided that the golden gown might be best left in Oxford when she returned home. She could always wear it again when they came on holiday.
‘You look super,’ Adele conceded, blowing on her freshly varnished fingernails.
‘You look smashing, Addie. You’ll knock Frank’s socks off.’
‘Don’t be vulgar, Meg.’
‘If he doesn’t propose to you after the ball, I’m a monkey’s uncle.’
‘Where do you get these dreadful sayings?’
‘I don’t know. I think Cary Grant said it in a film, or it might have been the Marx Brothers. Anyway, I meant it, Addie, you look beautiful. If Frank’s got any sense he’ll snap you up before someone else does.’
Adele leaned back against the quilted satin pillow shams. ‘I’ve always dreamed of being engaged before I was twenty. And Frank’s father is terribly well off, not that that means anything of course. But the Bartons have got a flat in Mayfair and a country house in Hampshire.’
‘And a rich husband is preferable to a poor one, as Mother would say,’ Meg said, chuckling. ‘And a handsome one is better still.’
‘You’re dreadful, Meg. But Frank is good-looking, isn’t he? And he’s so nice to talk to. I feel as if I’ve known him for years instead of a few days.’
The sound of car wheels grinding to a halt on the gravel drive and a loud honking of a motor horn made Meg rush to the window. A white Rolls-Royce was parked in front of the house. Meg flung the window open, leaning dangerously over the sill as she watched David climb out of the car, followed by Walter and Frank.
‘Hello, there.’ She waved to attract their attention.
‘Meg, for goodness’ sake behave like a young lady,’ Adele said plaintively. ‘Shut the window too. The breeze is ruining my hair-do.’
‘The boys look splendid in their dress suits, Addie.’ Meg closed the casement. ‘I’m going downstairs to join them. Are you ready?’
‘I’ll be down in a moment. I don’t want to smudge my nail polish.’
‘Okay. I’ll make them wait in the hall so that you can make a grand entrance.’
As Meg rounded the curve of the staircase she saw Josie in the hall talking animatedly to David, Walter and Frank.
Walter was the first to spot her. He stared at her open-mouthed. ‘By golly, you look marvellous.’
‘Don’t look so surprised, Walter,’ Meg said, negotiating the stairs with care. Long skirts might look splendid, but she did not intend to spoil the effect by tripping over the hem.
‘I can’t believe it.’ David gave her a brotherly hug. ‘Who is this gorgeous creature? What have you done with my scruffy little sister?’
Josie clapped her hands. ‘Darling, you look a picture.’
‘Wait until you see Addie. She looks like a film star.’
‘I claim the first dance, Meg,’ Walter said, stepping forward and handing her a corsage of clove-scented pink carnations tied with a silver ribbon.
‘Thank you, Walter. No one has ever given me flowers before. They’re lovely.’
He grinned shyly and his face reddened. Josie hurried forward to pin the flowers to Meg’s shoulder strap. ‘There, darling, you look like a princess.’
Meg was about to respond when she realised that Frank was gazing over her shoulder as if he had seen a heavenly vision. She knew without looking that Adele was making her way down the stairs. He leapt forward to present her with a delicate spray of orchids.
‘Are you sure you won’t come with us, Mrs Shelmerdine?’ Walter asked tentatively. ‘It seems unfair to leave you here on your own.’
‘I’m going to curl up with a book,’ Josie said, smiling wistfully. ‘Now off you go and have a wonderful evening. I trust you to keep an eye on your sisters, David.’
‘Don’t worry, Aunt Josie. We’ll have them back safe and sound before dawn.’ He kissed her on the cheek. ‘You could come, you know. I suppose Uncle Paul is working late as usual?’
‘He’s a busy man these days, darling. You can tell me all about it in the morning.’ She opened the front door and held it while they filed past her.
Meg hesitated on the threshold. ‘Is everything all right, Aunt Josie?’ She thought she saw a shadow of doubt in her aunt’s almond-shaped eyes but it was gone in a second. ‘Are you okay?’
‘Of course I am. Whatever put such thoughts into your head?’ Josie patted her on the shoulder. ‘Off you go. Your handsome German is waiting to drive you in style.’
Meg felt the blood rush to her face. ‘He’s not my escort. We’re going as a party.’
Josie smiled. ‘Yes, darling. I understand.’
Despite her denial, Meg’s heart did a little flip when she saw Rayner leaning against the bonnet of the Rolls.
‘Hop in, girls, and let’s get going,’ David said, opening the rear door. ‘We want to arrive at the ball before midnight.’
Frank handed Adele into the back seat. She smiled up at him. ‘Sit beside me, Frank.’
Walter helped Meg to arrange her full skirts as she climbed in beside Frank, and Walter squeezed in after her. David sat in the front seat next to Rayner, who had elected to drive. The engine purred into life and the Rolls moved forward.
‘I’d love to drive this car,’ Meg said dreamily. ‘I can’t imagine what it feels like to be behind the wheel of something so powerful.’
‘You’d crash it before you reached the gates,’ David said, laughing. ‘I don’t think driving the farm truck around the fields qualifies you to be in charge of an expensive motor like this.’
‘I would like to bet that Meg could handle this machine,’ Rayner said, braking slowly as they reached the main road.
‘I’m sure I could,’ Meg said confidently. ‘If I can handle the rotten old truck I think this would be easy.’
‘Yes,’ David said, turning to look at her with a wide grin. ‘Like you could manage the punt, only you nearly drowned.’
‘I’ll lay odds on Meg,’ Frank said, reaching out to hold Adele’s hand. ‘How much are you willing to bet, David?’
‘I don’t think this is a good idea,’ Walter said cautiously.
‘Stop it. All of you,’ Adele cried angrily. ‘This is absolute madness. Meg really would kill herself if she tried to drive on proper roads and in a car like this. I don’t want to hear another word said about it.’
Meg could see Rayner’s face as he glanced in the rear view mirror. ‘I could do it,’ she muttered. ‘I could, if I had the chance.’
CHAPTER THREE
There were three large marquees in the college grounds. Chinese lanterns hung from the branches of the trees, creating pools of light in the lengthening shadows. The strains of dance music filled the air together with the chatter of voices and the sound of laughter. It was, Meg thought, like fairyland, or a scene from a glamorous Hollywood film. The men looked dashing in their evening suits, even the ones she might normally have thought of as being dull and boring. The girls in their ball gowns seem to glide over the lawns like flowers that had been gifted the power of movement by a playful Greek god. Meg felt slightly envious as she witnessed the apparent ease with which they conversed with their partners. Not for them the torments of shyness or the secret fear that they might trip over their skirts or make a social gaffe.
She clutched Walter’s arm as David led them into the largest marquee, where he found a table close to the dance floor. Fairy lights twinkled above them and there were candles amongst the flower arrangements on the tables. The scent of warm crushed grass mingled with the heady aroma of Pimm’s combined with subtle hints of strawberries, citrus fruit, cucumber and mint. Champagne corks were popping all round them and the orchestra was playing a Viennese waltz. Meg was entranced by it all. This was like nothing she had ever experienced in her life. There had been the annual school dance, where
the boys from the boarding school on the other side of the island were allowed to mix with the girls from Meg’s college, but the dances then had consisted of the veleta, the military two-step and the St Bernard waltz, with the occasional polka thrown in which often became a bit too rowdy for the harassed female teachers and the record on the gramophone was quickly changed to something less energetic.
Walter pulled out a chair for her and Meg sat down. At least she could come to no harm if she remained seated. She had been coerced into dancing lessons by her mother, but the teacher had admitted defeat after the first fortnight, declaring that very few people had the proverbial two left feet but she was the exception. She gazed around committing every last detail to memory. She felt quite inebriated already, although she had drunk nothing stronger that day than tea. She realised with a start that Walter was asking her to dance. She hesitated, but she did not want to embarrass him by a refusal.
‘I’m not much good at this,’ Walter said, as they bumped into another couple.
Meg hastened to reassure him. ‘I’m no expert myself, so don’t worry. The very worst you can do is tread on my toes or I on yours.’
‘That’s true. You are a splendid girl, Meg.’
‘Thanks, I like you too, Walter.’
They managed to shuffle round the dance floor a couple more times, but by then Meg was hot and thirsty. As they edged their way to the bar, she had the feeling that Walter was quite happy to be released from the onerous duty of attempting the foxtrot. She opted for lemonade and Walter ordered half a pint of bitter for himself. When they returned to their table they found it deserted. Frank and Adele were dancing cheek to cheek, and Rayner was partnering a rather plump girl in an off the shoulder green satin gown that was a size too small for her ample frame. She looked, to Meg’s critical eye, like a peapod about to burst. David’s partner was quite the opposite: tall and skinny with braces on her teeth and a rather bad case of acne. He could definitely have done better, Meg thought, and was then ashamed of herself for being uncharitable. David was doing the right thing in partnering a plain girl. Perhaps she had not given him enough credit for sensitivity in the past. She turned to Walter. ‘Who are those girls dancing with my brother and Rayner?’
