Time's Legacy (43 page)

‘You don’t believe in God!’ Kier spluttered.

‘My beliefs or lack of them are not the issue here.’ Justin did not raise his voice. ‘This is a Christian church and you are a Christian priest and you have been asked to leave. I think it behoves you to do so. And if you don’t go in the next ten seconds I shall throw you out.’

Kier looked at Ben. ‘Are you going to let him talk to me like that? A foul heathen!’

‘One. Two.’

‘He’s my brother.’ Ben shrugged. ‘We don’t talk theology much, but he seems to have reiterated what Abi and I have been saying. I would have found it much harder than Just to resort to violence in a church, but I might have done so had he not appeared.’

‘Five. Six. Seven – ’ Justin said slowly.

‘Right. I’m going. And I’m going to phone the bishop as soon as I’m out of here,’ Kier said, already moving towards the door. ‘This is not the end of the matter. Abi has to be saved. If neither of you cares, then I am going to have to do it myself!’

They watched as he gained the door and went out, banging it behind him.

Abi subsided onto the step again. ‘He tried to exorcise the church,’ she said to Justin. ‘He tried to banish Mora.’ Her voice was shaking.

Justin glanced round slowly. ‘I can feel the rage in here. The place is vibrating with anger and fear. If I take Abi back to the house, Ben, will you pray to settle the church?’ He held out his hand to Abi.

Unsteadily she climbed to her feet. She stared round. The place seemed to be full of an angry mist.

‘Who is Cynan?’ Justin asked suddenly.

Abi stared at him, then she turned slowly, glancing round the church. ‘Is he here?’

Justin nodded. ‘He is angry and confused and afraid for Mora.’

Abi stared at him. ‘Where? Where is he? I can’t see him.’

‘He comes here to be alone. Here on the hill top. In his time there is no building here. This is a sacred place. He prays here, just as you do. And he senses that it has been desecrated.’ He paused for a moment. ‘Kier’s obsession has allowed something very powerful to worm its way into his soul. Not love, though I’m sure he feels he loves you, Abi. I’m afraid it is something much more sinister. Come with me. He held out his hand. ‘Leave Ben to sort this out here. We will speak to Cynan outside.’

He took her hand and led her up the aisle towards the door. She stopped abruptly. ‘Suppose Kier hasn’t gone?’

‘He has.’ Justin didn’t seem to have any doubts on the matter. With a glance at his face Abi meekly followed him out into the rain.

The churchyard was deserted. She glanced round in relief. ‘I had no idea he had followed me in there.’

Justin shrugged. ‘Forget him for now. We have to speak to Cynan.’

‘How? I’ve left the stone – ’

‘We don’t need the stone.’ He stood for a moment in silence, staring round, then he set off at a brisk walk towards the gate. ‘Follow me.’

Abi glanced behind her towards the church door. There was no sound from inside. She wondered what Ben was doing. More holy water, or just prayers to try and settle the jangling echoes? After a second’s hesitation she followed Justin out of the gate and down the steep path towards the orchard.

So, there wouldn’t be another winter here, to stand and watch the frost-sparkled lacework on the graceful branches of the willow, the bright icicles on the bare angles of the old apple trees, the splintered ice out on the shallow immovable waters, their spears of reed and sedge rigid with cold. He shrugged the robe more comfortably onto his thin shoulders and turned full circle, looking out across the distances. God’s world, at every season, had its beauty and its infinite mystery.

16

Cynan was standing looking out across the water of the lake. The brisk wind had made it choppy. He could see the reeds thrashing to and fro, the yellowed leaves on the willows rustling back and forth and there in the distance he saw the dugout canoe with Romanus paddling in the stern. Yeshua had taken the other paddle and between them Mora sat low in the boat, cradling her bag of herbs. He narrowed his eyes. She had gone without a backwards glance. He shook his head. He could feel danger crackling in the air around them, like summer lightning on a humid, luminous night. He closed his eyes and tried to pray, but he wasn’t calm enough; he couldn’t reach deep into himself to touch the silent core of his being from where he could speak to his gods. He opened his eyes again. They were further away now, almost too far to recognise, heading for the landing point below Gaius’s fields. Glancing round he saw another boat pulled up among the reeds. He paused for only a second before he ran to it and began to push it into the water. At least he could be there. At least if they needed him, he could help.

Janet Cavendish parked her car beside Cal’s in front of Woodley Manor and climbed out. The front door opened and the two dogs came hurtling out, followed by Cal. ‘Thanks for coming over.’ She leaned forward to kiss her sister-in-law’s cheek.

Janet looked at her in concern. The urgent message had been totally unexpected. As a rule the two of them rubbed along in a state of happy incomprehension. They came, as Janet often thought, from two different worlds; two different planets. All they had in common was the surname and the two brothers. When they met it was always to sort out something one or the other of them felt could not be done alone. A Cavendish problem. Both of them realised that at some level that joined them at the hip. If a phone call came, it meant drop everything and listen.

Cal led the way into the kitchen, settled Janet into a chair and put on the kettle. The two dogs threw themselves down in front of the fire recognising the fact that this was obviously going to be a conference. No prospect of an imminent walk, then.

‘We have to be prepared to do something about Kieran Scott,’ Janet said without preamble. ‘And soon.’

Cal was spooning coffee into the percolator. ‘Horrid man.’

‘More than horrid, Cal. Dangerous.’

Cal turned and glanced at her. A word like dangerous from Janet was serious.

‘He rang earlier and called Ben, did you know?’

Cal shook her head.

‘He was in St Mary’s with Abi. Ben took off like a scalded cat. I’ve never seen him look so worried.’

Cal pursed her lips. ‘Wretched man. Why can’t he leave Abi alone?’

‘He’s obsessed, that’s why. Dangerously obsessed.’ Janet took the cup of coffee, sipped it and winced as it burned her mouth. ‘I’ve seen men like this before, Cal. Fundamentalist; absolutely convinced he is right and that everything he is doing is for God. I know Ben has tried to calm him down, and will be trying to calm him down as we speak, but he won’t recognise any possibility that he could be wrong or that Abi’s views and feelings are the remotest bit relevant. I gather she is troubled too, and she seems to be quite a feisty lady. The combination could be disastrous. The problem is that Ben is such a gentle, good man. He believes that prayer and reason can sort out anything.’ She shrugged and shook her head, knowing instinctively that Cal would recognise that this was probably not a realistic outcome.

Janet looked round suddenly. ‘Where is Mat?’

‘He had to go back to Taunton to collect some papers.’

Janet looked relieved. On the balance of things this was probably just as well. Mat was a bit of a wild card. And if anyone mentioned Justin in front of him…She glanced back at Cal. ‘Did you know that Ben called Justin in?’

Cal nodded. ‘Abi told me.’

‘That implies that Ben feels out of his depth.’ She sighed.

‘What are you afraid of, Jan?’ Cal sat down, warming her hands around her mug. ‘Do you think Kier could be violent?’

Janet nodded. ‘Oh yes. I’ve seen that expression in men’s eyes before. He doesn’t rate Ben at all. He thinks he knows more, is holier, is “chosen”, is Abi’s only hope. All that and more. And my dear sweet husband will have walked over to the church like an innocent to the slaughter.’

Cal stood up. ‘Then let’s go over there now.’

Janet gathered up her handbag. ‘I’ve been thinking what to do. We have to be careful. If we rush in, we could exacerbate things. I don’t think Kier is armed or anything like that. He’s not going to shoot anyone. He is more likely to be hurling thunderbolts. Bible quotes. Holy water. Plus the whole John Knox bit. Blasting the monstrous regiment of women. That may or may not hurt Abi. I suspect she has inured herself against the Rev Scott to a certain extent, but it will shock Ben. It will be awful for him. I don’t know if he can cope.’

Cal was astonished to see tears in Janet’s eyes suddenly. She leaned forward. ‘Ben is tougher than you think, Jan. He’ll cope.’

‘Will he?’

‘He’s a senior churchman. He can deal with the likes of Kieran Scott. It’s Abi I’m afraid for. You’re right, she knows what to expect from Kier, but she’s vulnerable at the moment. She is fighting her own demons. She doesn’t need him putting the knife in and twisting the blade.’

The two women looked at each other. ‘OK. You’re right. Let’s go. But we’ll approach quietly and see what’s happening, OK?’

They put down their mugs and reached for their coats. The dogs stood up eagerly. Cal looked at them, thought for a moment, then nodded and opened the door. The dogs had adored Abi from the first moment they met her. If there was any trouble, she knew who the dogs would ally with.

The air was full of the rushing of wind, splatters of raindrops from the speeding clouds, shadows racing across the ground from the west. The yew trees were hissing gently, guarding the path as the two women crept nearer to the church. Janet gripped the door handle with both hands and began to turn it as quietly as she could. The door creaked as it opened a crack. They held their breath and listened. There was no sound from inside the building. She pushed the door open and they stood looking in.

Ben was standing in front of the altar, staring up at the window. He turned as he heard them and they both saw the anxiety in his face. When he recognised them he broke into a smile. ‘Janet! Cal! What are you doing here?’ He had lit the candles on the altar and they flickered and streamed in the draft from the open door.

‘We came to see if you were all right?’ Cal called the dogs back sharply as they ran up the aisle and they came back to heel and sat down beside her, looking sheepish. ‘Where are Abi and Kier? What happened?’

Ben gave a rueful smile. ‘Ah, I see. You’ve come to pick up the pieces. Well I’m pleased to say no blood was spilled.’ He shook his head. ‘It was pretty bad though. Just turned up and saved the day.’

‘Justin?’ Cal echoed. She looked round. ‘Where is he?’

‘Kier left rather abruptly and I fear probably temporarily. I was afraid that that was him when you came in just now. Just has taken Abi out into the orchard to try and sort out her ghosts.’ He shook his head. ‘I stayed in here to pray. The atmosphere was appalling.’

‘It’s all right now,’ Cal said. ‘Isn’t it?’

He shrugged. ‘Better than it was. I should have left the door open. A technical point, but an important one. I had closed it against Kier, but it allowed some of the anger to remain trapped. But now you’re here, with the dogs,’ he smiled down at the animals fondly, ‘it is better.’

‘We came through the orchard,’ Janet said suddenly. ‘We didn’t see anyone there.’

They looked at one another. ‘It doesn’t mean anything bad has happened,’ Ben said reassuringly. ‘Just will look after her. I’m sure he could defeat Kieran if it came to blows. He is younger and I suspect a lot fitter.’

‘He too is a priest, Ben,’ Cal said quietly. ‘He isn’t a man of violence.’

Ben smiled wryly. ‘That description applies to Kier as well, my dear. Or at least it should.’ He sighed. ‘But we must try and find them. Are those dogs of yours any good at tracking?’

Cynan pushed the dugout into the reeds and jumped out. He glanced round. There was no sign of anyone. The reed beds swayed in the wind; a sheet of ripples spread swiftly across the water behind him and was gone. He frowned. He could hear birds calling from the osiers on the bank; from somewhere nearby he heard the bark of a deer. He reached back into the boat for his staff, then he turned and began to walk steadily up the track towards the house.

‘I can see him,’ Justin whispered. ‘He is a brave man.’

‘He’s in love with Mora,’ Abi breathed. They were standing on the edge of the field, by one of the deep straight drainage ditches which had so long ago taken the water from the lake over which Cynan had paddled. He strode past them, his eyes on the track ahead, his sandaled feet padding softly over the muddy grass, then he paused and looked round. They saw his knuckles whiten on the wood of his staff.

‘He can feel us,’ Justin said quietly. ‘We are very close.’

Abi held her breath.

Cynan stood still for several seconds, then he set off once more, but they could see he was wary, his eyes flicking left and right towards the undergrowth. After a few more paces he stopped again and turned back, this time looking straight at them. He fumbled at his waist and with a sharp irrational jolt of fear Abi saw him draw a knife. So he was armed after all.

‘Can he see us?’ she murmured.

Justin nodded. ‘I think so. Wait here. Don’t move. I will speak to him.’

She watched as he took one careful step forward. He paused, then he took another. Cynan frowned. He was peering round now as though trying to see through a mist. ‘Greetings, my friend.’ Justin spoke out loud at last.

Abi saw the other man’s fist tighten over the handle of his knife.

‘You know there is danger up there at the homestead,’ Justin went on slowly. ‘We are here to help if we can.’

‘He can’t understand what you are saying,’ Abi whispered.

‘He can. Just as you could understand them,’ Justin retorted. ‘The Roman has tricked his nephew,’ he went on, turning back to Cynan. ‘The man lies in wait to kill Yeshua and Mora.’

Cynan backed away a few steps, looking increasingly confused. While holding the knife out in front of him with one hand, he rubbed his eyes with the back of the other.

‘Listen to me, my friend. Beware. Listen to your heart. You already suspect treachery. You must hurry to help them. Mora needs you.’