There was no one to whom I could speak of my deep disquiet, Chantel treated the matter too lightly. She refused to accept it as serious. I believed that her thoughts were far away in Sydney when she would be reunited with Rex. Even the discovery of the diamonds meant little for the clearing of Redvers’ name was a matter of indifference to her. When she talked of the future she never mentioned him. She didn’t trust him. She had plans for me. Dear Chantel! She was concerned for me. I knew she was planning to launch me in society, to make a grand marriage for me. She did not want me to be involved with Redvers. This slipped out in her conversation and although it hurt me in a way I knew it was a measure of her affection for me. She really believed she had to look after me and in her usual determined manner had decided to do it.
I could not look into the future. I could only wait for the return of Serene Lady. So the uneasy days passed and one afternoon when we had all been resting behind shutters because the heat was intense, I rose, opened my shutters and saw it in the bay — the white gleaming ship.
I ran to Edward’s room and cried, “Edward. She’s come. Serene Lady is in the bay.”
23
The events of the days which followed were so dramatic that it is difficult now to remember the exact order in which they occurred. I could scarcely restrain my impatience. I wanted to go out to the ship.
I wanted to tell him of my fears, of the lost letter and most of all my discovery of the figurehead and the diamonds.
But I had to curb myself.
Chantel came into my room, her eyes gleaming.
“There’ll be a scene tonight,” she said. “Missy’s working up for it.”
“She must be delighted that he’s here.”
“She’s madly excited. But she’s got a devilish look in her eyes. She’s planning something. I wish I knew what was in her mind.”
I waited in my room. He would come soon. I put on my blue silk dress and piled my hair high on my head. I had worn that dress many times; my hair was dressed in the usual way. Yet I had changed. My eyes shone; there was a faint color in my cheeks. Would others notice the change in me?
I heard his voice below and my emotions were almost unbearable. What a fool I was! Was Chantel right? Could I trust him? The understanding came to me that it would make no difference whatever she could tell me of him. I loved him and I would go on loving him forever.
I opened my door. I wanted to stand there listening to the sound of his voice.
Then among the shadows I saw the crouching figure. Suka! She was listening too. She had seen me. I could feel rather than see her baleful eyes fixed on me.
I went back to my room. When I get to Sydney, I said, I must find a post. Perhaps I’ll stay there. Perhaps I’ll find some people who are returning to England. But I must get away.
Pero was beating the gong in the hall. It was time to go down to dinner.
We dined as we had on that first night — Madame, Monique, myself, Chantel, Redvers, the doctor, and Dick Callum.
Dick had changed. He was subdued and had lost that air of truculence which I had so often noticed. I was aware of Redvers — in fact I was aware of little else. Now and then I would find his eyes on me, but I dared not return his gaze. Monique was watching us, I was sure. I wondered whether she would suddenly talk of the letter. It would be like her to produce it at such a time.
Conversation was conventional. It centered round the voyage and of course an account of the flame dance.
As we went through to the salon I was able to whisper to Redvers: “I must see you. It is very important.”
Dick talked to me while we drank our coffee but I scarcely listened to him. Madame de Laudé was talking about my discovery of the antiques in her house. Dick was very interested and she asked if he would like to see a French console table which I had declared to be particularly valuable. He rose and I slipped out with him and Madame but instead of following them I went out into the garden and waited in the shadow of the trees. It was not long before Redvers came out.
He took my hands in his and looked at me but before he could say anything I began to pour out the story of my discovery. I said: “You must go to that house. You must make some excuse to see the figure. I am sure it is the figurehead of The Secret Woman and that the stones are the diamonds.”
He was as excited as I knew he would be.
He said: “There’s something I must tell you. Dick Callum confessed to me. He couldn’t get over the fact that I had saved him from the sharks. He’s told me everything — who he is and his jealousy of me. I had no idea. He wanted some sort of revenge on me. I was under suspicion but what greater disgrace for a captain than to lose his ship! He suggested to those people that the ship should be blown up. It was something to do with the name. He arranged that no one should be on board, which was not impossible in his position, so at least he made sure that no lives were lost. But Anna, if you’re right about this …”
“I’m sure I am. And if I have made this right for you, I shall be so proud and so glad that I was that one.”
“Anna,” he said, “you know nothing can be right for me without you.”
“I must go in now. They will notice that we are missing. They mustn’t. I’m afraid of what could happen. But I had to tell you this. I must go now.”
He was holding my hands tightly but I pulled them away.
“Please,” I said. “Go as soon as you can. At least make sure of this.”
I turned and ran into the house.
I had told him nothing of the letter. Later I must do so; but let him first go to the house and discover the diamonds before I told him that I had been so careless as to lose that letter which could be so incriminating.
Madame de Laudé was still showing Dick pieces of furniture and I joined them; so that when we returned to the salon I hoped the impression was given that I had been with them all the time.
Redvers was not in the salon. Monique said that he had business to attend to on the ship and would be away for a while.
Dick talked to me of the voyage and how dull it had been.
“I missed you,” he said. “I thought of you often. It’s hot in here. Let us walk in the garden.”
I asked if he would excuse me as I was very tired; he seemed disappointed.
I sat by my window. There would be some sign from Redvers, I knew. Sure enough it came. I heard the light rattle of pebbles against my shutters.
I went down to him to that spot among the bushes which we had made our meeting place.
Redvers was there. He was elated. It was wonderful, he said. I was right. I had made this great discovery. I, Anna, whom he had loved from the moment he had seen her!
I was caught up in his excitement, and once again I experienced the ability to shut out everything past and future and live entirely in the moment. For years he had been under suspicion and I had dispersed that cloud almost effortlessly and by chance. What did it matter now? I had done it!
It was a wonderful moment. “It’s significant,” he said. “It proves that your affairs are mine and mine yours.”
“I must know what happened,” I said. “How did you persuade them to show you the figure and give you the diamonds?”
“It was not difficult,” he explained. “There was great shame in the house of the Flame Men. One of them had failed. They waved aside the fact that he was only a boy not so skilled in his art as they, and looked on it as the sign of some divine wrath. This gave me my opportunity and I took it. I had to. I suggested that there was an evil influence on the house and I talked of the ship that had been blown up in the bay. I took a pencil from my pocket and drew the figurehead. ‘You took this goddess from the sea,’ I said, ‘and she is an alien goddess.’ They told me that they had been promised good fortune if they destroyed the ship. I knew this already because Dick had told me. And when the ship blew up, the figurehead, as they said, leaped from the ship and floated on the water and came to rest near the rock of the Woman of Secrets. They took that as a sign. So they brought in the figurehead and set her up as they set up their own gods. They told me that in the figurehead was a concealed cavity and in this had been the bag of stones. This convinced them, because their custom is to surround their statues with stones and shells. And these were such bright and beautiful stones. They set her up and waited for the good fortune. But it did not come. Instead there was great misfortune for nothing could be worse than for the fire to cease to be a friend of the Flame Men.
“I have the diamonds,” he went on. “I told them that there would be no luck until they were taken to those to whom they belonged. Ta’lui will destroy the figurehead and I told him that there will be a reward for finding the diamonds which will enable him to set up a new statue. He is completely satisfied. I will take the diamonds to England and the matter which began when Fillimore died of a heart attack will be settled. If only he had told someone that he had hidden the diamonds in the figurehead a good deal of trouble would have been saved.”
“But at last it is over.”
“No one can talk of the fortune I have salted away in some foreign port now. And Anna …”
But I could hear voices and I believed that we were closely watched and it might even be that now it was known that I was in the garden alone with him. I could hear Monique’s voice. She was on the porch and Chantel was with her.
Chantel was saying: “You should come in. Come in and wait.”
“No,” cried Monique. “He is here. I know it. I will wait here for him.”
“Go quickly,” I whispered to Redvers.
He went toward the house while I cowered among the bushes, my heart beating wildly.
“What did I say? Here he is. So you are back.”
“It appears so.” His voice was cold when he spoke to her. How different when he addressed me!
“You look as though you have been having an exciting adventure,” said Monique, her voice shrill.
“I should go in,” said Chantel firmly. “I am sure the Captain would like that coffee you said you would make for him. No one makes it quite as well as you do.”
“Yes, I will,” she said. “Come on, mon capitaine.”
The silence was broken only by the hum of insects in the garden. I waited for some minutes then went swiftly into the house.
There was a tap at my door and Chantel came in. She looked excited. Her eyes were enormous.
“I had to tell you, Anna,” she said. “She has the letter.”
I put my hand over my heart, and half-closed my eyes; I felt as though I was going to faint.
“Sit down,” said Chantel.
“When did you see it?”
“Not till tonight. She was reading it and when I came in she put it on the table and pretended it was nothing. I had a quick glance and saw your name on it. Then she picked it up and put it inside the neck of her dress.”
“Chantel, what do you think she intends to do?”
“We can only wait and see. I was surprised how calm she was. And she has said nothing.”
“She will.”
“I think she will say something to him tonight.”
“But she calmly went up to make coffee for him.”
“I don’t understand this calmness; but I thought you should be prepared.”
“Oh Chantel, I feel terrified of what may happen.”
She stood up. “I must go back. I may be called in. But don’t worry. I promise you, Anna, that it’s going to be all right. We have nearly finished with this place, with all of it. You’ve always been able to trust me, haven’t you?”
She came up to me and kissed me coolly on the forehead.
“Goodnight, Anna. Only a little while now.”
She went out and left me.
I knew that sleep was impossible. I could only think of Monique reading that letter which had been intended for me alone.
A night of strange emotions. This tremendous tension had to break sooner or later. It could not last. That was my only consolation. I must get away, get away from them all. Perhaps even Chantel for she was bound irrevocably to the Creditons. A few weeks now and I should be in Sydney, and there I must find the courage to break away, to start a new life of my own.
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