Artistic Licence (32 page)

‘I think we should eat,’ said Ben.

His voice was shaking too and Thea wondered how near he had actually been to hitting her.

‘Would you like a drink?’

‘Yes, please.’

He got out two glasses and a bottle of whisky. He’d poured one huge measure when he stopped. ‘Where does the friend you’re staying with live?’

Thea’s mind went blank. She had it written on a piece of paper which was in her bag. Her bag was probably still in his once immaculate bathroom. ‘I can’t remember. I’ve got it upstairs.’

‘I’d better not have anything if I’ve got to drive you home.’

‘I can easily take a taxi.’ Thea felt that half her life had been spent in taxis just recently.

‘I’m sorry to mention this, but Toby said you spent all your money on the one from Knightsbridge.’

‘When I wasn’t kidnapping him, you mean?’

‘I’m sorry about that, too. It was Veronica who suggested you’d kidnapped him. It was how it seemed to her, you see.’ A rueful grin disturbed his serious demeanour. ‘Look at it from her point of view – you left her favourite gallery with her pet artist and her son. It did look quite like theft.’

Thea sighed. She could see that from Ben’s point of view it had its funny side, but while in time she might see the incident as amusing, her life was nevertheless in tatters: she’d still lost her artist.

She sipped the drink he handed her. ‘I think I’d like to go back now and not eat first.’ She made a rather pathetic attempt at a smile.

‘Thea–’

‘I’ve got a lot of thinking to do.’ She put down her glass. ‘I’ll go upstairs and get my bag.’

He was in the hall when she came down, holding his
car keys.

‘I’ll just go and say goodbye to Toby,’ said Thea.

Ben nodded. ‘He’s in there. I’ve asked my neighbour to pop over for a few moments.’

‘Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t think. I’m not used to looking after children.’

‘You don’t do too badly.’

The moment was full of confused emotions, things unsaid. There was too much between them and too little. ‘I’ll say goodbye to Toby now.’

He opened the door to the sitting room without speaking.

‘Hi, Toby.’

Toby pressed something on his console and got up.

‘I’m off now. Ben’s taking me home. We’ve had quite a day, one way and another, haven’t we?’

Toby came over to Thea. ‘It wasn’t Dad’s fault, what happened.’

Thea put her arms round him. ‘No, of course it wasn’t. It was just a silly thing that happened. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.’

‘So you will go on being friends with him?’

Thea was about to say that of course she would and why on earth did he think she wouldn’t, when she realised he might well have heard them quarrelling. ‘Relationships get very complicated when you’re grown up, Toby. But whatever happens, we can still be friends.’

Toby shook his head. ‘That might be quite difficult, actually.’

Thea nodded in agreement. ‘We could try, though. Molly would help us.’

Toby suddenly smiled. ‘Yes, she would, wouldn’t
she?’

Thea had to bite her lip very hard not to cry as she gave Toby a last hug. They both knew they probably wouldn’t see much of each other in future and Thea felt she’d lost someone she loved very much.

Magenta gave Thea a large vodka and orange juice. Thea sank back into her soft, cream-coloured sofa in relief. ‘It’s been such a long day. I’m completely shattered.’

‘But you found Rory, which was the object of the exercise.’

‘And lost him again, though I do know where to start looking, which is something. But Mags, that gallery! It’s to die for and at a really swish address. How am I going to get him out of there and into the sticks?’

Magenta raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow. ‘You mean, “How you gonna keep ’em down on the farm, now that they’ve seen Parree"?’

Thea had to laugh and nodded.

Magenta’s answer was food: ‘What do you fancy to eat?’

Pleased to be let off the hook, Thea considered. ‘Toast and Marmite or pasta. I want comfort.’

‘You shall have it. And I’ve got a box of truffles in the freezer, kept for emergencies.’

Thea had no energy left for talking. After they’d eaten pasta with a cream and smoked salmon sauce, and half a box of truffles, all she felt fit for was the futon in Magenta’s spare room. She brushed her teeth, smeared herself with Magenta’s expensive night cream and fell into bed, praying that sleep would
prevent her thinking too hard about her shattered dreams.

In the morning, well rested and lured out of her pit by the smell of fresh coffee and the sound of Magenta’s electric juicer, she felt different. Yes, she was still heartbroken about Ben’s defection, for however much she wanted to believe his story, logically she just couldn’t. After all, she thought, who would you support? Your ex-wife and mother of your adored son, or some zany friend of your second cousin once removed?

But now, she told Magenta brightly, she was going to fight for Rory tooth and nail. ‘And as I don’t care about my nails one-tenth as much as Veronica cares about hers, I’m bound to win.’

‘Well, I’m glad you’re feeling so upbeat about things this morning,’ said Magenta. ‘Have a multi-vitamin.’

‘I don’t feel upbeat, actually. I feel as if I’m trying to sort out world peace single-handed, but I’m also too angry not to try my very hardest to succeed.’ Thea took a sip of orange juice and swallowed the pill.

‘But don’t forget,’ said Magenta. ‘You have Rory’s pictures and they don’t.’

Taking vitamins and feeling angry was one thing. Actually fronting up at the gallery demanding to know Rory’s home address required the loan of a beautiful linen skirt and a good squirt of some scent Magenta guaranteed would bring men to their knees. After all, strong perfume hadn’t appeared to do Veronica any harm.

Thea went in and crept around the exhibition as she had done the day before, quietly, without announcing
her presence. When she had stored up enough little snippets about the work to sound intelligent and informed, she approached the desk where Edward, the curator, was sitting. He was in his early sixties, still very good-looking and immaculately dressed.

‘Hi!’ She gave him a warm, slightly apologetic smile. ‘I sort of hope you don’t remember me, but I was in yesterday.’

He smiled graciously back. ‘Of course I remember you. How could I forget? Such turmoil you left behind you.’

‘I’m so sorry. Was it very dreadful?’

‘For a while. Veronica blamed the nanny and the nanny blamed Veronica and tried not to show it. It was awful. I had to calm them all down with nips of brandy.’

Thea laughed. ‘Well, it wasn’t really anyone’s fault, expect Toby’s, sort of. But he’s under the age of criminal responsibility, so no one can pin anything on him.’

Edward laughed. ‘Now, what can I do for you?’

‘Well, I’ve already hugely enjoyed this exhibition. And it’s a lovely space…’

‘Thank you. I selected the work and arranged it, and I also created the space. So what can I
really
do for you?’

Thea bit her lip. This was the hard part. She could spend all morning flirting with this attractive man, but it wouldn’t get Rory back for her. ‘I want to know where Rory’s staying. I really
do
have to talk to him. Our conversation yesterday was cut short by Toby and a thunderstorm.’

‘Now tell me, my dear, why should I give you the
address of one of the most exciting young artists I’ve seen for years, when I know you’re going to try and take him away from me?’

It was a fair question. Thea took a deep breath. ‘Because my chances of getting him to come to me instead of staying with you are so infinitesimal that it wouldn’t be fair of you not to give me the opportunity to at least try.’

Edward nodded. ‘True, but you’re a very charming young woman. Your chances might be better than you think. Can I risk that?’

‘I was a charming young woman when Rory abandoned me for you, so to speak. I’ve got to give it a last try because I’ve worked too hard and committed too much of my partner’s money to give up. But I will probably have to admit defeat.’

‘What will you do? Abandon the idea of a gallery?’

‘Good Lord, no! I’ll have my graduate show and resign myself to never making a penny. I’ll have to work in a bar in the evenings to keep myself, but it’ll be worth it. It is a fabulous space, you see. I think it could be a really good gallery.’

Edward became thoughtful. ‘Have you got any pictures?’

‘Of the space?’ Thea was cautious. The fact that she was getting on so well with Edward didn’t mean he had ceased to be the enemy. ‘I’ve got all my slides and stuff for my graduate show at my friend’s flat and I think there are a couple of shots of the gallery as well. I was a photographer in my past life.’

‘Have them biked over.’

‘What?’

‘Get your friend to ring a courier and get them sent here. I’d like to see what you’ve found in the graduate shows that really excites you.’

Still Thea hesitated. It would be an expensive exercise and what good could come of it?

‘I’m not planning to steal all your young hopefuls,’ said Edward, laughing. ‘I just want to get an idea of how good your eye is. I might just need someone like you in my life.’

Chapter Nineteen

By the time the work arrived, one and a half hours later, there was only one other person whose opinion Thea valued as much as Edward Grampian’s. And as she planned never to speak to Ben again it was what Edward thought that made her anxious as she slit the parcel tape on the package.

She couldn’t bear to be present while he looked. This degree show might have to be her start in the world of gallery owning and if what she’d chosen was no good, she’d either have to learn very fast or give up. She prowled around Harrods Food Halls for an hour, trying not to imagine what a distinguished gallery of the Barbie Kitchen or the video of willowherb seeds swirling up into the sunshine.

Eventually, she forced herself back to the gallery. Edward was sitting at the desk, a very distinguished pair of gold spectacles on the end of his nose. He looked at her over them.

‘Well?’ she demanded. ‘Shall I give up my gallery and take up knitting instead?’

‘Oh, no. I shouldn’t think you’d be any good at knitting.’

‘Edward!’ By now she felt they were old friends. ‘What do you think? Don’t keep me in suspense. I’m on pins here!’

‘I think you’ve got the makings of a very good show. I think you need to add something a little more mainstream, so you don’t antagonise the more conventional members of the public, but you don’t need to go too far. A half-decent painter would do the trick.’

‘Not easy to find. I looked and looked, but it’s just not in fashion at the moment.’

‘It will be. When Rory’s had his show.’

There was a silence between them. For a while they’d forgotten they were in competition for the same ground-breaking young artist. Edward had Rory and Thea had the paintings. Thea felt that having Rory put Edward ahead, because she knew she wouldn’t be able to keep the paintings against everybody’s will. But Edward might not know she had them, which gave her a smidgen of advantage.

‘Edward, about Rory’s show.’

‘Yes, Thea?’

‘If you told him he could show with you afterwards, at some time in the future, he might well do the decent thing and stick with me.’

‘He might. And while I probably would always be happy to show Rory’s work, when I’ve got the space, I’ve no intention of telling him that.’

‘But why not? You know how hard I’ve worked for this. You know I discovered Rory in a shed in Ireland!’

‘You forget, I saw Rory before he disappeared. I was an admirer long before you were. By the time you found him he was easy to appreciate. He’d refined his art, done years of concentrated work. I saw the talent behind the rawness.’

Thea sighed deeply and tried again. ‘But you’re an
established gallery. People will come here and buy from you whatever you put in it. You don’t need the recognition like I do.’

‘I have a reputation to keep up. People buy from me because they trust me to know what’s good, what will appreciate in value. You can afford to fail. You’ve only money to lose. I have my integrity – far more precious, I assure you.’

That’s the trouble with being fair-minded,
thought Thea despondently.
I can see Edward’s point of view perfectly. I know all about integrity, how important it is, how hard it is to acquire, how devastating to lose.

Possibly sensing her surrender, Edward went on, ‘But I will give you Rory’s telephone number. If you can persuade him to show with you and not me, I won’t hold it against him in future. Though I should warn you, Veronica has a lot of influence and she won’t use it to your advantage if you take Rory. She’s a scalp hunter and she won’t be able to display Rory’s if he shows with you first.’

This was something of a blow. She had, up until now, felt she had enough against her; shortage of capital, time, having her artist threatening to leave, without malicious interference. But if Veronica had nearly ruined Rory the first time round, she could do it again and ruin her at the same time.

‘Just as well I haven’t got a towel about my person, then, isn’t it? Or I might be tempted to throw it in.’