Page 21 of Traitors Gate

‘Thank you, Ross,’ replied Beth. ‘But who would you happily castrate this time?’

‘Drug dealers. So where are you two off to this evening?’ Ross asked, wanting to change the subject.

‘I’m driving Beth to Heathrow but should be back in a couple of hours. Three at the most,’ William added without further explanation.

‘Please make sure the children are in bed by nine and have spent at least half an hour reading something worthwhile,’ chipped in Beth, ‘and I’m sure I don’t have to remind you, Ross, Harold Robbins is not yet considered a classic, but maybe it’s only a matter of time.’

‘Will do, ma’am,’ said Ross, giving Beth a mock salute.

‘Now you know what I go through every day,’ whispered William as they walked out into the hall and he helped Beth on with her coat. ‘A commander in the office and another one at home.’

Lucky you, thought Ross, as he opened the front door and watched them walk down the path and get into their car, still wondering where Beth was going, because they hadn’t givenhim a single clue. He closed the door and joined the children in the kitchen.

• • •

If you’d told Beth twenty-four hours earlier that she’d be boarding a plane to New York the following evening, she wouldn’t have believed you. However, once James had called to tell her his news, she realized she didn’t have much choice if she still hoped to take up the role as director of the Fitzmolean.

Beth sat at the back of a packed jumbo jet considering the consequences of James Buchanan’s bombshell but decided not to jump to any conclusions before she’d seen the painting for herself. She hoped it would be a wasted journey.

At first, she hadn’t told William the real reason her plans had been thrown into disarray, other than to hint that the trip might help her make up her mind whether she really wanted the job. William didn’t question her, assuming she was involved in an important deal. But when Beth finally told him the truth, he agreed that she hadn’t been left with a lot of choice.

‘Say nothing to Ross,’ said Beth when William dropped her off outside Departures. ‘If he found out the truth, he’d probably end up killing Faulkner,’ were her final words.

William couldn’t disagree as he watched his wife disappear into the terminal before he set off back to Fulham. It was while he was heading back down the motorway that he worked out the consequences for both of them if her worst fears were realized. He knew Ross’s antennae would be working overtime, even though he hadn’t asked any questions.

• • •

Monday nights had a routine of their own that didn’t always comply with Beth’s strict instructions. Supper in the kitchen – four margherita pizzas (large) picked up from the local Italian by Peter, followed by a large dollop of chocolate ice cream taken out of the freezer by Artemisia five minutes after her parents had left.

Once supper had been devoured and the kitchen left as they had found it, with no clues as to what they’d been up to, they moved into the living room where Ross and Artemisia would play a game of Scrabble. She seemed to know a lot more words than he did, although he suspected one or two of them hadn’t yet made it into the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. Ross had long ago given up playing chess against Peter, as the word ‘checkmate’ had become more and more frequent with each encounter.

They would then take it in turn to read the current books Beth had selected,Swallows and AmazonsandA Tale of Two Cities– both of them for the first time. On one occasion Ross had suggested to Beth they might add Ian Fleming to their reading list only to be greeted with a short, sharp shake of the head.

‘One James Bond in the house is quite enough,’ was her only comment on the subject. But which of them did she have in mind, Ross wondered.

After reading a couple of chapters fromThe 39 Steps, the twins began discussing once again what would be a suitable subject for their prize essay competition. Drugs, global warming and the future of the Royal Family all made the shortlist, without a final decision being made.

Getting the three of them to go to bed was Ross’s final challenge of the day, often achieved only moments before Beth and William returned.

Ross was watching theNews at Tenwhich was reporting on Britain’s chances of staging the 2004 Olympics, when he heard the front door open. He switched off the TV and went out into the hall. He assured William, before he had a chance to ask, that the children had gone to bed over an hour ago. William didn’t look convinced.

‘How wasThe 39 Steps?’ he asked.

‘I enjoyed it,’ admitted Ross. ‘Although I would have arrested Hannay long before he set off for Scotland.’

‘Of course you would,’ said William, stifling a laugh. ‘But I suggest you read a few more chapters because it’s possible you would have ended up arresting the wrong man. Anyway, back to the real world. I’ll go up and make sure the children are asleep.’

Ross had no doubt that even if the little monsters were wide awake, they would pretend to be fast asleep as they wouldn’t want to get him into any trouble.

‘I’d better get going,’ said Ross as William left the room. ‘I’m on the early shift tomorrow.’

‘Thanks for not asking,’ said William as Ross opened the front door, which only made him even more curious to find out where Beth had gone at that time of night.

On the drive home, Ross thought once again about how fortunate Jojo was to be a fully fledged member of the Warwick family, with Peter and Artemisia acting as her older brother and sister. Artemisia considered it nothing less than her duty to explain the ways of the world to her younger sister, while Peter feigned indifference, but was always the first to come to Jojo’s defence whenever she got into any trouble … which she regularly did.

As a single parent, Ross had long ago accepted his way of life was not compatible with raising a young woman. He hadto admit if only to himself that he was envious of Beth and William – but not jealous.

After he’d arrived home and closed his own front door, he went straight to bed. But he lay awake thinking about the only woman he’d ever really loved and wondering if he would be lucky enough to experience such happiness again.

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