Page 165 of One More Christmas at the Castle
‘But why on earth should he have wanted, even for a moment, to kill Faye?’
‘Oh, that’s clear enough in the letters, too. He had no secrets from old Tommy. Faye was threatening to tell Sabine about them, because she wanted to stay on Corfu and be part of the filming and the glamorous, bohemian life they had out there – and she didn’t see why she couldn’t take Sabine’s place!’
‘She must have been mad!’
‘No, just young and silly, I think – and totally self-centred.’
‘I can understand now why he’d want to keep it from Sabine at all costs! Well,almostall,’ I amended.
‘Which he did – though, actually, I don’t think anything could have broken the marriage up, even that. The bond was too tight.’
I wondered if he was right, but then, he knew them much better than I did. It would certainly have increased the bitterness and hate Sabine felt for her half-sister, though …
‘There’s just one other thing, though,’ Xan said, breaking into my reverie. ‘Apparently Faye had told him she was pregnant, though he didn’t believe her and in any case, she wasn’t exactly exclusive with her favours.’
‘It was just another threat to hold over him?’
‘Perhaps,’ he said, with an odd expression. ‘Dido, what year was your father born?’
‘What year?’ I echoed blankly, then a horrible and incredible suspicion entered my mind.
‘Xan, you surely don’t think—’ I began, and then we were interrupted by the opening of the door and Nancy came in, with the old photograph album under her arm.
‘Hello, you two! I thought I’d better return this album—’She broke off, looking at us curiously. ‘Have I interrupted something? Shall I go away again?’
‘I don’t think so, do you, Dido?’ said Xan, exchanging a look with me. ‘You seem to be in on everything and you can tell us if we’re imagining connections where none really exist.’
She listened carefully as he told her what he’d discovered in the letters –andwhat he’d started to conjecture.
‘You don’t look remotely surprised,’ Xan said when he’d finished.
‘Well, no, dear, I can’t say I am,’ she agreed. ‘Asa adored Sabine, but I did know he had his little flings with other women, even though they seemed to mean nothing to him. In this case, though, well, it was very reprehensible of him, but he was punished for it, goodness knows.’
I looked at her rather wildly. ‘Do you think we’re mad to suspect that Asa – that my father was—’ I broke off: it all seemed too incredible an idea to put into words.
‘There’s something I found,’ she said, then opened the album and pointed to a girl in one of the photographs who looked unmistakably like me.
‘I knew you reminded me of someone! This is Asa’s sister, but I only met her briefly once, and she died very young, poor girl.’
‘Then … you think Asawasmy grandfather?’
‘In my own mind, I’m certain of it, though of course, there’s no actual proof.’
‘No, none and, Nancy, Sabine has managed to put so much of the past behind her and accept me for who I am, not as Faye’s grandchild, butthiswould break her heart! She mustneverfind out about it!’
‘Henceforth, my lips will be entirely sealed on the subject,’ she promised.
I wished someone would put me in the recovery position.
Epilogue
Blooming
Summer 2019
Xan, Plum and I wandered down the terraces in the warm sunshine, carrying our rug and picnic basket, until we came to the Winter Garden.
Now, in summer, only a few low-growing shrubs were in flower, their white blossom reminding me of drifts of snow … and of Sabine, whose ashes we’d scattered, at her request, under the Christmas roses.
