

A Spell Cast

Volume Two

Mistaken identity, deeper secrets, danger, and surprises.

A Seven Spell Story

T Stokes

****

ISBN 978-1-908210-89-0

Formerly published amongst the book Spellbinding this is not a new story, rather the re-edit, write and revise of part two. Formatted for all new kindles and alle-readers. Parts one and three are also available as The Spell Cast, Volume One, or Three, A Seven Spell Story

The moral right of the author has been asserted

Copyright all rights reserved worldwide T Stokes 2013

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author.

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return toSmashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

All characters and events in this publication, other than those clearly in the public domain, are fictitious and any resemblance to actual people living or dead is purely coincidental.

Covers, All rights reserved Worldwide Copyright T Stokes 2013

****

A Spell Cast

Volume Two

Mistaken identity, deeper secrets, danger and surprises.

****

"Well that's true, but this is about the supernatural stuff. For a few years I kept thinking I might suddenly age, you know overnight I'd become my true age for some reason, and blow away as dust in the morning breeze."

Chapter One

It was a humid start to the day, and I found my cargos and turned them up a couple of times, I'd wear them, as well as a blue T-shirt.

Tristan had phoned and asked if I wanted to see the stained glass window, which was represented in Laura's painting that I had bought. There was also the new panel that was his insurance against the museum pieces being totally destroyed. It would be good to see the windows from inside the church.

Tristan came around in the truck we had used once before and we drove to the abbey museum car park from where it was quicker to walk to the church.

It was warm walking there. Tristan was humming and turned to me to make sure I was keeping up okay as he had begun his striding along. He slowed down a little saying,

"When we get there, even though no one should be around we need to take care. No one needs to become aware of the third panel with me in it if possible. That's been Liz and Jack's plan."

He suddenly put his arm around my shoulders and continued humming as we neared the church. He seemed happy.

When we were there inside the church, it took a few minutes for Tristan to remove the net of ivy and then the inside pretend, renovation scaffold, and boarding. He revealed a trio of stained glass panels. The first panel was of the old knight and part of the Norman wall. The middle panel was a garden, waterfall, plants, some angels, and crosses. The far panel that had been hidden was Tristan as a knight leading his horse over a bridge on the river and towards the Norman wall, with more angels, and flowers. The whole thing made a lovely window. It was a whole scene not three when seen all together, and it all flowed together into a whole picture that was quite lovely.

"Wow, Tristan this is great," I said to him. He came close.

"It is an attractive window so it's a pity it has to be covered up."

"Why not just let people know you modeled for the glazers Tristan, instead of hiding it, that would be feasible?"

"Ah, the reasoning is that it's kept safer from breakage if it's hidden as an unfinished part of the church renovations. That's what Jack and Liz want. I go along with it because really I feel I burden them enough, especially Liz. She's young and needs her own life not one of hiding me."

He covered it all up on the inside and put back the net of ivy on the outside. The ladder he used was placed amongst the building materials. He turned to me.

"I don't know if that filled in any gaps for you since you bought Laura's painting. I've felt better about everything since Harry has the book I found, and we've had those talks with him. Since you know about me, and Oliver does too now. I feel as if I have real friends again. It's a long time since I felt that I didn't just have to rely on the Dearings. I've said before, I think, how lonely that's been. I haven't had close friends in a long time not that have known about me I mean. That makes a difference. I told you once I think, my best friend Richard, was the only person who knew besides the designated family members." He stopped talking as he saw my face.

"Richard was the name of that knight, your best friend?" I asked.

"Yes, Chloe, didn't I say before, why?"

"You said 'a knight' not his name. That broken up tomb at the Eleanor Tarrant ruins had the name Richard on it and just that too, no second name like her. That was on the inscription, Oliver said. He hadn't photographed the inscription that's why you didn't see it, and I guess when you asked about a name we all thought Dearing or Tarrant was what you meant."

"Chloe, it may not be anything to do with my Richard, the name was quite common at the time," Tristan smiled at me, but he had a hopeful look in his eyes too.

"It's an uncanny coincidence though don't you agree?" I said, as he took my hand, and we started walking back to the truck.

"It is, yes."

On the way back home Tristan and I talked about the arrangements for the trip the next day to Somerset, and because Tristan had to do some work that afternoon he left me at my door. Before he left, we hugged each other close. I wanted to make sure my bond with Tristan wasn't eroded in any way. He seemed so vulnerable after the talk about his knight friend.

It occurred to me I'd better tell my mom about the trip to Somerset. Once in the house, I went up the hall to her study. She turned around to me from her desk.

"Hi Chloe, what are you up to? I haven't seen you for days?"

This made me laugh because sometimes she gets so absorbed in her work she forgets what day it is.

"Mom, I'm going to go down to Somerset with Oliver tomorrow just for the day. That's okay huh?"

"Sure but take care and call or text me a couple of times."

She clearly thought we were visiting the company where Oliver had done computer work and I didn't correct her, because it would have led to so many other questions.

"I'm taking my jeep and I will call you Mom. It'll be a nice trip just for the day."

She smiled turning back to her work.

I went up to my room and texted Oliver the arrangements for tomorrow. He didn't reply, but then about half an hour later, he replied saying he'd just checked his messages, was at work, but tomorrow sounded good.

I realized he must be at the restaurant. I wondered what it would be like to be with both Oliver and Tristan for a whole day. It would be weird I thought.
Chapter Two

The next morning Oliver came around first and then Tristan arrived. Steven was talking to Oliver in the kitchen and I opened the door to Tristan.

He said he would wait outside, which wasn't so bad, because I went in to Oliver and said, "Let's go then, Oliver," and we left straight away.

I'd already filled the Jeep up with petrol and we were on the road in no time. On the way, Oliver asked Tristan if he'd recognized anything in the photos.

"Not really Oliver. I'm looking forward to seeing the place. I'm impressed you found it and I'm sure it's significant. I just don't know how yet."

I thought of something I'd been meaning to ask Tristan for a while.

"Tristan, why did you tell me the legend of the waterfall was that it had a secret passageway to another time within it? Was it just to head me off the real legend?"

Tristan laughed a little.

"Well in a way it does, because I am from another time and the waterfall had a hand in that, but yes more or less to try and head you off, sorry Chloe."

Oliver smiled at this too.

"I can't begin to imagine the things you've lived through Tristan. I hope this place we're going to will be helpful. I can't help thinking that we're all here together now because something critical is on the move."

"I think that too Oliver," Tristan replied. "Everything has been quiet for many years, the stained glass looked after in the abbey museum, and the new window covered up and left as some kind of insurance. I thought my story was just what I knew, though a part of me felt it wasn't complete. Then suddenly there was James and his thesis. Only half a year later along came Chloe and everything started to change. The story I'd lived with for so long started to unravel and grow."

Oliver listened, he had leaned forward to Tristan who was in the front seat next to me, and I could feel Oliver's empathy myself. Oliver was so open.

He asked, "Do you ever wish you could just be a normal nineteen year old, if you know what I mean?"

Tristan was thoughtful.

"You grew up quickly in the age I was born in. I was lucky not to have already been in battle. I was a little spoilt as the youngest son. I've had some time to do things that perhaps a nineteen year old might do. I don't age physically, but my experiences age me mentally, sometimes I think emotionally I'm still nineteen. I seemed to react more than I expected when I found out about Jack keeping those finds. Certain emotions I have are those of a young person, but then does anyone really change inside?"

We stopped for a drink at some services and stocked up on water and some apple juice, which Tristan wanted. I smiled at him, apple pie, apple juice. He liked apples obviously.

Oliver directed us the last part of the journey. It didn't take long before we were there at our mysterious destination.

Chapter Three

As we pulled up in the car park, I felt strangely anxious. I looked at Tristan as we got out of the Wrangler and started up the grass lawn area to the edge of the ruins. I couldn't judge how he was feeling. He seemed to have shut down. His face was impassive as we walked up to the main entrance. There was a very small fee and you could buy a small booklet like the one Oliver had. There were also some postcards, which were of the ruins and the surrounding countryside. We went through the office entrance part and up the path to the main ruin.

The estate outer wall with the Tarrant coat of arms was leaning dangerously close to the edge of quite a steep drop, into what must have originally been the moat. A little way off the standing half arch of the church part was very high. It was as if it hung there defying gravity. Behind this was the roofless part of a room, it was very ruined, but led to the undercroft where a sort of arched roof remained intact over the tomb of Eleanor Tarrant. The other tomb of her lost love was now open to the elements. The whole place was surrounded by well-kept grass. We all stared for a long time at Eleanor and the two crests side by side.

I could feel Tristan by my side and Oliver too. It was as if we were holding a collective breath.

Then I asked, "Do you know her Tristan?"

He answered thoughtfully, "No I don't, but that's the Dearing shield all right."

Oliver was the first to go to the other tomb. I wanted to hold onto Tristan as we followed on too, but he seemed contained in anticipation.

He stared for only a few seconds, then he leaned close to the face, looking at it, he made a little 'oh' sound and said, "I think, I think this is my father, well an effigy of him, it has a tiny scar that he had on his chin, that's not damage that's carved. Remarkable really." He stood upright and looked at both Oliver and I who were standing there watching him.

"It's not my uncle. I really think it's my father. The clothes fit the sort of thing he wore, the ring on his little finger, true there is a lot of weather wear and some deliberate damage to the legs and hair, but it's him." He turned to the effigy and looked closely again. A whole minute went by then he stood and came to us. "It's him, he's this Eleanor's lost love, for sure he's not in that tomb, he died in the Holy Land and that's where he was left. So the story that the tomb is empty, that's true. Who was she I wonder?"

Oliver and I looked at each other, then at Tristan. He sighed and started walking towards the other ruins, walls, and lumps of walls, arranged around just as Oliver had described it. Empty stone coffins, and the paving with crosses and carved patterns that were so worn you could hardly make them out, were set into the lawn. We knew Tristan was making for the other broken up tomb and effigy. It was within another ruined wall area where bits of broken stone cross were leaned against other ruined walls and these too leaned as if they had sunken into the ground and slid along from where they were originally placed.

We reached the broken tomb and effigy just after Tristan. I heard him gasp when he saw it. Half the face was gone from the cheekbone to the jaw, the sword that the knight had clasped was broken out of his hands, and one hand was gone with it. A foot was gone. Most of one side of the body was chipped. The sword that should have been in his hands was actually placed in pieces on the lawn next to the tomb with a rope around it and a plaque with information about Norman swords. There were other bits of carved stone there too. It looked like the tops of arches or pillars. Tristan was actually leaning against the tomb, leaning on the edge with his hands, and he was intent on the face of the knight.

Oliver and I looked at each other again, he shook his head, and we both knew this tomb might be more significant than that of the older man from Tristan's reaction. He bent and scrutinized the sword, then the inscription on the tomb that was only just legible.

Oliver went close to him.

"Are you okay Tristan, do you know who this is?"

Tristan looked at Oliver, pain was evident in his expression, he nodded to Oliver, and then he started to look around at the bits of stone carving that were arranged around the base of the tomb. He found what he was looking for. It was a long piece of stone, but had a pattern of chevrons, and some kind of animal.

He looked at this for what felt like a long time, and then standing up he said,

"You were right Chloe this is my friend Richard. His insignia even though only two half Griffins remain is there, but it's his face, even with half of it gone I know it's him. See this bit of patterning at the bottom of the carved armored torso plate here, that's the bird foot pattern he always had hammered onto the bottom of his real jousting armor. He said it kept him grounded in the reality of the joust, which was to deal quickly and with skill. I used to laugh at that. This is odd, because I know where he's really buried, because I buried him. This tomb is empty too."

I had to ask, "Why is he represented here at all Tristan? Do you know?"

"I don't," he said.

We all seemed to agree to move off and silently we walked the perimeter of the ruins. Once or twice Tristan looked intently at some piece of building or carving, he seemed to try to read a stone set in the ground, which had a carved chalice still visible on it.

We stopped by the entrance to the ruins and I went into the trust office and bought the booklet and one of every postcard of the ruins. When I came out Oliver was talking with Tristan. I watched them for a moment. They looked like two friends talking, their heads close they were both standing hands in their jean pockets facing each other. Tristan's brown, glossy, hair falling over his forehead, Oliver's short blonde spikes, they were looking at the ground then at each other as they talked. As I approached, they both turned to me, including me in their physical space.

"Chloe, I have a theory that Richard must have been Eleanor's son. I was telling Oliver it would make sense because his tomb was there, but he didn't ever talk about his parents, not really, only once. Perhaps we could go and find a place to talk. I'll tell you about Richard."

In the Wrangler, I asked Oliver if he had any idea where a café might be, and he said he'd stopped for coffee in a place further down the road before he'd reached the ruins on his way from the advertising agency. We went there. At a table in what turned out to be quite a cute tearoom, we ordered coffee, and tea for me, and deciding we should eat we ordered a plate of sandwiches.

Tristan looked pale. I wanted to hold his hand, but I had noticed that neither Oliver nor Tristan had shown any of the physical affection they would usually show me. It must be because they were both with me here, and I thought this is a good thing, we're all friends now.

Tristan started his story.

"I met Richard at a joust, he was over twenty, but I didn't know exactly how old he was, and I was of course nineteen, stuck at that age. He seemed to want to be a friend right away. We met in eleven ninety-two. He'd been jousting for a year and taught me some good moves. My father had been dead for about two years. He told me his father was dead too, but that his mother was living. They were estranged because of her husband. I assumed a second marriage and didn't press for details, as that would have been discourteous. We'd known each other for four years when he heard his mother had died of a fever. He called himself Richard De Stoches and I assumed that was his family name. He went home then for a short time, saying he did have two brothers and a sister whom he would visit because of his mother's death. We met up again at Corfe Castle for a festival of sword fighting. He told me he had seen his family and that her husband had actually died the year before his mother. He said the estates had gone to his brothers, but that he had seen her tomb next to that of his father. To his surprise, she had commissioned a tomb for him too before her death, and in a letter had said she bitterly regretted their estrangement and loved him always, and would want him to be buried in the family crypt when the time came. I'll jump forward in my story.

It's eleven-ninety-six now and Richard is twenty-six or thereabouts. We joke about how he's matured, and I start to try and build more muscle, and dressed differently to try to seem as old as him."

Tristan stopped talking and drank some coffee. Neither Oliver nor I had said anything. We watched Tristan. Oliver quickly glanced at me. He raised his eyebrows slightly. Tristan continued his story.

"I knew Richard for ten years approximately off and on, he got married and he had a manor house and a sort of farm in the south, but spent little time there, although he had a son, and twin boys. His wife's parents were wealthy. The manor house was within their land. He loved Rosalind his wife, but he said they meddled constantly in the marriage and he sometimes had to escape. We were following a jousting tournament when a retainer from the manor caught up with us and told Richard that one of his boys was ill and he was needed at home. Of course he went. Just over two weeks later, he met me in a market town where I was lodging before moving off to one of the Dearing estates in the north. He was sick. He told me his boy had recovered and was doing well. He thought that maybe he had caught the same illness and would shake it off. I quizzed him on where he had been on the journey to meet me. He had lodged overnight in an Inn two towns away because of a storm. He had talked with a Moor there. They had shared a meal and the Moor had told him about his own family, all girls. I tried to tend Richard for his illness but he got worse in a short time, only a day and it was obvious he was dying. He asked me to tell him why I never looked any older while his hair was graying already. I told him my story as I knew it then and he said if he lived he would never breathe a word to anyone as I was his best friend and he couldn't have asked for better, that he looked upon me as a true brother. He died in my arms, when I was trying to get him to drink. I buried him in the forest where we used to spar and practice for the tournaments. I marked the grave with his sword. I thought it was right to do this and not spread disease by sending his body back to his manor house. It felt wrong not to let his family know, but I couldn't risk going there myself and answering any questions, so I paid a messenger to take word to his wife and family of his death. He was thirty years old. I grieved for his friendship for many years. I found myself not making close friends as the years went on because I never looked any older and people started to notice more quickly than they had before if I stayed too long in one place. I guess people were becoming more sophisticated or suspicious."

Tristan stopped talking again and looked down at his hands clasped on the table in front of him for a long time. Oliver to my surprise put his hand on Tristan's shoulder and asked him if he was okay. Tristan nodded in answer.

Then he shook his head and looked up at Oliver and then at me.

"This effigy is Richard, and Eleanor must have been his mother, but she's clearly a Tarrant. Richard never had that name and then there's the tomb with my father on it, her lost love. We need to do some research about her, somehow. There's some important information that we're missing. Don't you think?"

Oliver and I both nodded.

Then without thinking, I blurted out, "What if Richard was your brother? What if he was Edmund's son? After all, didn't he say to you that his father's tomb was next to that of his mother? The only tomb visible near his mother was the one with the effigy that looked like you and turned out to be your father, Tristan."

Both Oliver and Tristan stared at me. It seemed as if I had made a leap too far because Tristan looked shocked.

Then he said very softly.

"He told me he was born out of wedlock. He called himself Richard De Stoches. I assumed that was his father's name, but some of the things he said to me he could have said as my brother. That would mean my father was unfaithful to my mother, that would mean Eleanor was either unfaithful to her husband, or had Richard by my father and married another man after. Richard was older than my fixed age when we met. Could it be he knew who I was?"

He suddenly smiled at me, then at Oliver.

"Let's check out what we can about Eleanor. If we find some dates out, we could deduce some things better. You know what, if he was my brother, I'd like that. Lots of men fathered children out of wedlock in those days, although I think it would have been terrible for my mother if she'd known."

I smiled back at him. He had a lovely smile and he was trying to be upbeat about what was a sad thing.

"That sounds like a plan Tristan."

Then Oliver said,

"We do know that your father wrote a letter to go to his lady in another county. Wasn't that what the story said in the book that you found Tristan? That would fit with it being Eleanor." He gave us a quizzical look and then shrugged. "Sorry I just think all the pieces fit. She was Richard's mother, her lost love and Richard's father was your father. The only thing I don't quite get is if your father still had a son left alive, meaning Richard, why did he go off to the Holy Land again, supposedly because he was heartbroken about the loss of you and your brother who had been killed in there. Incidentally what was his name Tristan?"

Tristan had been about to stand up, but at this speech he sat down again and answered. "His name was Rupert, and I think that if my father was Richard's father maybe he couldn't own that Richard was his son. Maybe it was because of Eleanor's reputation and her present husband of the time, who knows really?" Then he did stand up. "Let's go, shall we?" he finished.

Outside we stood around in the warm air for just a few minutes. It seemed as if we were all thinking our separate thoughts. Tristan was tracing something in the sand that seemed to be around the car park in patches. Oliver was leaning on the jeep with his hands in his pocket but staring at the ground. The atmosphere was quiet and peaceful. It was hard to imagine the place was so full of intrigue.

I asked were we ready to go home? Tristan said okay then and Oliver agreed. I thought Oliver had hit on the right explanation when he said he thought Edmund Dearing was Richard's father. How strange life was that Tristan's brother, well half-brother would find him, and be his best friend, both seemingly not knowing they were related. A little doubt came into my mind though I felt that Richard had known.

Tristan broke my thoughts. "Thank you for this trip, Chloe, and you too Oliver for finding that place. Something I have been forgetting, and please forgive this, Oliver your name is Tarrant. Could there be any connection to Eleanor Tarrant, what do you think?"

I added, "Yes, Oliver did you ask your dad about your family history, you said you were going to?"

Oliver nodded. "Oh, yes I don't know why I forgot to tell you, since it could have been important. I don't think it is now. He said he didn't know much, that his great grandparents had come from Dorset. He thought that was because his great grandfather had been born there."

"Maybe it means nothing, it's just a coincidence after all, Oliver," I said.

We were silent again for some time then Oliver spoke again, "I think I'll contact the advertising agency and ask if they can tell me anything more about the site, let's face it someone chose it for photographs."

"Okay, good idea Oliver," I agreed, and then I thought of something. "Hey, why don't we ask James if he has any clues how to find out about Eleanor? He may know archaeology people in different counties who could help."

"I think that's a great idea, what do you think Tristan?" Oliver asked.

Tristan seemed to think for a moment.

"Okay. Harry was going to let James in on a few more things because of the dig. I think James is trustworthy since he has knowledge that he could have used and he hasn't."

I laughed at this. "Because let's face it, who would believe it if someone went around saying 'hey that Tristan Dearing is more than eight hundred years old,' they would be branded a lunatic." Both Oliver and Tristan laughed too. It seemed to help us all. We were just driving along laughing.

It didn't take too much longer to get back home.

Oliver told us he was only going to work Friday and Saturday for my dad for a while because his business was picking up well. Tristan said there was a wedding in the grounds next weekend and that they wanted peonies and roses for the flower decorations. For my part, I told them Clare would be expecting me to do a bit more on the scenery for the play. We seemed to want to talk about ordinary things. The other stuff was too hard right then.

At home as Oliver got into his Land Rover, he said, "It's been a good day, I'll ring with any news." I wanted to say more than okay and see you later, but that's what I said. Tristan was leaving too. He said that he would contact me with any news about the dig. Both of them were gone and I was left reflecting on how there hadn't been one instance where either of them had touched me, not a hand on my arm, nothing. It felt weird. It had to be because neither would show affection in the others presence. I had to admire their respect for each other and for me.

Chapter Four

I was in the kitchen as usual. It's so big and comfortable that I find it more relaxing than going in any other room downstairs. It was early evening and the sun was still warm. I took a sandwich and a drink out onto the patio and sat watching the bees in the flowers and thinking about what was going to happen now. Where were we with the riddle of Tristan? It just seemed to get more complex. I missed both Oliver and Tristan. I missed the affection we usually shared. I decided that I needed to ask Tristan again, about what he hoped to find out next. We just about knew his whole story now. It could be that was it. We all had to live with what we knew.

I went upstairs and booted my netbook. I took it back downstairs to the patio where if I sat close to the biggest tree I could see the screen clearly despite the sun. Oliver and I had Googled Eleanor Tarrant, but I wanted to Google Eleanor De Stoches. There must have been a reason why Richard called himself that and I thought it might be his mother's maiden name. If not that, then it could be the name of her first husband.

I found several hits about De Stoches and information about the name being from France. Then about four pages in, I found her. She was from a well-known family actually living on the Welsh borders, having settled there after the conquest. They seemed to be related to the Norman royal line somehow. She moved further into England on her marriage to an aristocratic man called Wesley Tarrant, a considerably wealthy man who had two estates in Somerset.

It looked as if the estate and the history had been documented because of an archaeological dig first done in nineteen-forty, which found Saxon treasure. The church on the Tarrant estate in question had been started in Saxon times. The abbey nearby had been patronized by Wesley Tarrant and the monks had documented local history. It seemed that the second Tarrant estate was divided up between the two sons on Wesley's death in eleven-ninety-four. Eleanor had continued to live in the other estate until her death in eleven-ninety-six. Nothing was recorded about her daughter and there was a resounding silence about a son called Richard. The most interesting part of the story was the location of Wesley's tomb. It was on a second Tarrant estate, which was completely gone, notably not the one where she, and the empty tomb, and Richard's ruined tomb were. A few sentences described the fall into disrepair of Eleanor's site for a few years before a family called Raleigh lived there until Tudor times. I had to deduce from this that Richard called himself De Stoches because he was Eleanor's son and not Wesley's.

Maybe none of this mattered, not ultimately anyway because only Tristan remained. It was perhaps unimportant that Edmund had fathered a son with Eleanor. I was thinking this when my cell rang. It was Oliver and he wanted to say goodnight.

"I wish I was with you," he said. "I want to hold your hand. It was hard today not to hold your hand as we walked around that ruined place, but I couldn't do it, not with Tristan there."

It was good to hear from him. "I missed that too, Oliver," I said.

"I'm working late for your dad tomorrow. I guess midnight is too late to see you?" his tone was hopeful.

"Oliver, I could meet you, we could just take a walk around the lake it's all lit up. I have news about Eleanor. I'll send you the link so you can read it yourself."

Oliver must have smiled because it sounded that way when he replied.

"Meet me on the patio at the restaurant tomorrow at midnight. I'd love to take a walk around the lake with you. I'll check the link, send it now."

I did that and took a shower. I half expected Tristan to contact me too. He didn't.

Chapter Five

It was Saturday and I wanted to find out from Clare what the next step was for her set design requirements. I texted her and immediately she replied saying she was at the hall where the drama group practiced and if I wanted to come down she would be there until early afternoon. I rang her then, to say I'd come down right away. After telling my mom where I was going, I headed off to the hall.

I parked in the pub car park. After all, it was daylight. In the hall, the group was practicing a particular scene. Clare wasn't with them so I checked the room off the main hall where the group had done a script read through last time I was there. Then I checked the room full of the scenery we had already painted up, she was in there talking with Max and a couple of others whose names I didn't know. I went in and seeing me, she called hello. They were talking about adding details to the larger scenes we had painted.

She filled me in on what the group had brainstormed they would like to see added. I had to tell her one or two of the ideas would make the scenes way too busy. We agreed I'd sketch in some of the requirements and the scenery crew would paint them in when possible. This was okay as the people in the crew came in sporadically and at times when I may not be able to be there, so I set about sketching the ideas in. I'd been introduced to Jane and Ryan the two other group members that were there with Max, and as I worked, they started painting in.

Clare came back from talking with her director, and in conversation told me that James was so far disappointed with the new dig on the Dearing estate. He'd said last night, that although they'd only been on site for a day he could feel that it would be slow going.

I was standing up looking at her as she spoke, and could see the two group members painting on the scene in front of mine. Even as I listened to her, I became aware that Max was also listening intently. He had slowed to almost a halt on the brushwork he'd started and was leaning slightly to hear her. Eavesdropping or perhaps he rather likes Clare, I thought.

We worked on for some time and then Clare and I went down to the café by the library for a drink. As we walked, Clare asked me how I was doing with my two guys.

"Chloe, so are you still in love with both of them?" She laughed.

I laughed too.

"I am yes, Clare. Do you know what time James might be free from the dig today?"

"Maybe about eight-thirty. Why, Chloe?"

"Nothing that important I was thinking about wandering over just to take a look. I've never seen an archaeological dig before."

This was true, but there was more to it than that, which I couldn't tell her.

Clare and I sat down at an outdoor table. The same girl who had served Oliver and me weeks ago came to take our order. I wanted to tell Clare about everything, but it wasn't for me to do this, and who knows James may not want to involve her either. I asked her how she and James were going and to my surprise, she smilingly told me they were very serious and there may be an engagement announcement soon. I voiced my surprise and added my congratulations, saying I thought they made such a great couple.

"My mom thinks I am a bit young," she confided, "but really I can't imagine ever wanting to be with anyone but James."

I smiled again at this.

"You know when you love someone don't you?" Clare added.

I nodded to this question, thinking even if its two people that you love.

We went back to talking about the set design and I said I'd go in the next day to finish sketching in, asking too if they needed any color notes. Clare thought just a few notes would do, and after finishing our lunch we walked back to the hall. Clare was working for dad that night and we parted outside the hall, she for her mom's café premises and me for my car parked in the pub car park.

When I got in my Wrangler, I checked my phone for any messages, I was hoping to hear from Tristan, but there was nothing. Driving home, I decided to walk over to the greenhouses that afternoon because it felt odd not to have heard from Tristan.
Chapter Six

After parking my car at home, I walked around the patio side of the house. I headed off up the path to the place where it met the estate paths that led up to the greenhouses.

It was a cooler day than it had been for a few weeks, the sun in and out of clouds. There was a smell of rain in the air and I thought it might even rain in the next hour or so. I reached the greenhouses and went into the one I knew housed most of the roses. Tristan wasn't there and I walked down the inside looking at the lovely flowers. I exited at the other end by the door I hadn't used before and went around the path to the next greenhouse.

Opening the door, I could see down the length of it and Tristan wasn't in there either. I knew there was an office attached to this greenhouse at the end and walked down there on the outside. Knocking and receiving no answer, I stood there for a few seconds. I didn't know where else to look. I didn't feel I could go up to the big house and knock.

Going along the path I texted him, which I maybe should have done first, but the lure of actually setting eyes on his lovely face had been too much to resist. He didn't reply and I waited a few minutes by the bird shaped hedges, then I started back home.

I was in my room when he did text back.

'Sorry to have missed you... have been with James... love you'.

I felt a warm glow reading that. I texted, 'could I ring him' and he rang me.

I told him about the De Stoches information and asked if he'd found out anything from James. He'd seen Harry as well as James and they knew about the Tarrant ruins. Harry was looking up information and James had a friend in 'Somerset Archaeology.' He was going to contact her and get her to check if anything was known about the site that hadn't been published.

Tristan had thought about things, and now he thought it was significant that Richard had called himself De Stoches, and was almost convinced Richard was his half-brother. He ended up saying, "We need to find a letter my father wrote. It could fill in the gaps, but at the same time, I'm almost past caring. Almost. What difference would it make I wonder to know more, nothing would change, would it?" He seemed to need support of his viewpoint. I told him I'd thought that same thing last night. It was hard to think what difference could be made now. He told me he would love to see me but still had work to do on the estate that couldn't wait, and he'd ring me as soon as he could. It was hard ending our conversation. He said he was missing me. I told him I missed him too.

I spent half an hour berating myself for not being able to like Oliver more than Tristan or vice versa. It was almost agony thinking of having to give up one or the other. What possible harm was I doing anyway, so far no one had been hurt, and if I used integrity then no one should be, except maybe me. I'd never really been the girl who attracted the guys in school, and it hadn't really bothered me. I'd just accepted it, but now, to care for, and be cared for in return by Oliver and Tristan I felt as if it was meant to be. I was here in a new country and in no time at all, I had met and become involved in a mystery and with two lovely guys. It was almost too good to be true. Maybe it wasn't true I thought. I'd better pinch myself to check if it's a dream.

I helped mom with some chores around the house that evening, and then around ten, I went up to my room to sort out a few things before going to see Oliver. I had my email program open and noticed a couple of emails from my Californian friends. I replied to these. One of my friends had started seeing a boy she had been hoping to date for the last year, she was happy. Another one had found out they had been accepted by Berkley. I was happy for them, but it felt like a different world from mine now.

At ten minutes to midnight, I got in my Wrangler and went to the restaurant. In the car park there were around five cars still parked, one was Oliver's Land Rover. I walked around the front to the patio area. The chairs had been pushed in under the tables and the umbrellas were down. It was packed up for the night. I sat on the low wall to wait for Oliver. The night air was remarkably warm and there was no wind at all, everything seemed to be very still as if the place was holding a breath.

It looked like the weather was set to go warm again. The longest day had passed, but it remained light for a long time at night. It was midnight, the moon wasn't visible, and the area was very dark. I looked around at the places where the fairy lights and lanterns shed their light. It seemed to disappear into the blackness. There must be a lot of cloud cover, not one star was visible. The night felt like a blanket.

Oliver came out of the front window doors and bounded up to me, smiling. As he reached me, I stood up to greet him and he picked me up in a hug.

"Hello Chloe" he said, put me down, and then kissed me on the forehead.

"Hello Oliver," I replied laughing and taking his hand as we fell into step and walked to the end of the patio.

"Did you find anything more about the Tarrant estate?" Oliver asked. I told him no but that Tristan had spoken to James and there may be information to come from his friends.

Oliver and I turned to walk around the lake. He put his arm around my shoulders, leaned onto me, and brushed his lips across mine.

"My dad said he would check with a couple of relatives if they knew anything more about our family history, but I seriously doubt we have anything to do with the Tarrants that lived there. What have you been up to today anyway?" he asked.

I told him about the drama set work with Clare, and that I needed to drop by tomorrow and finish it.

Oliver told me how Will said he'd been in love with Liz since he first saw her and now they were together Will was going around singing and smiling all the time.

"He's so happy. I was thinking Chloe that maybe we could go see a movie this week, maybe Tuesday? It's been a bit intense recently, let's do something fun, what do you think?"

"That's a great idea Oliver, Tuesday sounds good." I was happy to accept this suggestion. It felt like ages since I'd actually been out somewhere just for fun.

It seemed like this was the answer Oliver had hoped for, because he stopped walking, turned to me, and kissed me. Oliver smiled his lovely smile afterwards and we went on walking around the lake. He told me about a new contract he had won to design and build a website and intranet for a company that produced concrete window frames, which looked like old stone windows, some of them like the window frames we saw in the bit of building that wasn't ruined completely. He was going to use the theme of going through the windows to the information about the company and the prices.

We reached the patio again and sat on the low wall, Oliver's arm around my shoulder.

"It seems extra dark tonight doesn't it?" he asked.

"I noticed that too, I think it's the cloud cover, it's so still."

"I'll walk you right to your car door," Oliver said, but we sat there close together for a few more minutes. I was just soaking up the comfort that I felt leaning up against him. I think it was the same for him. He took my hand and traced around my palm and along each of my fingers with his own. It felt good. I moved my head so that it was easy just to kiss along his neck to his ear. He turned and kissed me again. I felt as if Oliver and I had a special connection.

The restaurant was in complete darkness and we decided to get going. At my Wrangler Oliver hugged me close and said, "I'll ring you. I think I should pick you up Tuesday night to see the movie. It's been so good to see you." I hugged him back.

In the Wrangler, I backed up to exit the car park and waited until I saw him start to open his Land Rover door, then I drove off.

Chapter Seven

I finished the set work on Sunday, it took longer than I expected as Max let us down and only two other people who said they could do the Sunday times showed up.

Driving home listening to a favorite CD, I was wondering if James had found anything in the dig yet. I heard the message received tone on my phone, but I was close to home so I decided to wait until I got there, and then look to see who had sent the message.

Outside the house, I checked my phone, it was Tristan asking did I have time to meet him by the waterfall and check out the dig. I texted 'yes when' and the message came back, 'say when'. So I said ten minutes and he texted back, it was 'okay with him'.

I went down to the waterfall humming one of the songs I heard before. I hoped there would be something happening at the dig.

At the waterfall, Tristan was standing by the side where the water fell like silk onto the surface of the pool. I thought that was so cool every time I saw it. He stretched out his hand and the water glided over his skin.

He suddenly appeared in his leather and fur, the rings on his gloved hands. His hair seemed to have more golden brown in it when he appeared like this. I watched him from the other side as he took his hand from the water and re-appeared as Tristan wearing jeans and a shirt over a T-shirt.

Turning to me he said, "You catch me drifting back in time Chloe. I was thinking of Richard." Then he smiled a sad but lovely smile and walked towards me.

"Let's get going to the dig, I hope James has found something interesting, or that he's been in touch with his friends about the Tarrant estate."

He took my hand. His felt cool from the water and we walked silently to the area of the Norman door and archway. It was a little way and as we walked, Tristan let go of my hand and put his arm around me. I looked up at him and he seemed deep in thought.

When we got to the dig, there were about ten people around the place, tables set up and plastic bags and tubs on them. I spotted James talking to a couple of people who were holding out a tray with something on it for him to see. We walked to him circling a rectangular trench that was open about two meters away from the ruined archway. He looked up from the tray and saw us. He said something to the people he had been talking with and walked to meet us.

"Hello there, nothing to report I'm afraid. I don't think there's anything to be found here that is pertinent to your predicament Tristan," he said grinning. Then continued, "We got a couple of coins, a belt buckle, and a piece of a cross, which is nice I have to admit, but if Jack is hoping for a treasure trove I think he's going be disappointed. It's been difficult to do geophysics here, but what we have points to a room of some kind below the wall and nothing but the imprint of the castle ruins that we already know about plus a little bit of curtain wall.

On the other matter, my friend in Somerset tells me the second Tarrant estate remained in the family until very late on, around the sixteen hundreds when they seem to move down country, and it totally fell into ruin. Tristan, I think that could be a dead end for information too."

We walked around to a table where a few drawings and printouts were spread out. James took a printout from the table and we went over to the archway where he handed it to a person watching two people scraping at the ground with what looked like butter knives and toothbrushes.

"Thanks James for everything. I still have no idea what Jack hopes will be found."

Tristan turned for us to leave.

We were soon out of their way again, and walked back to the waterfall.

"Tristan, maybe the dig is a dead end after all and if we want to find Edmund's letter we might have to think of places he would be likely to hide it. What do you suppose was meant by that phrase in the illuminated book you found, what was that? He hid the letter in a place only he and his lady would know." I asked Tristan as we walked.

He considered this for a moment then answered shaking his head,

"I can't imagine. I never knew he had another lover let alone where they met. The place could be anywhere. We don't know if she ever retrieved the letter, nor if the monks actually got the letter. It could be a red herring. What could he be saying that we haven't already deduced, or discovered? Just about nothing."

Then he laughed and put his arm around my shoulders and we walked back through the trees to the waterfall. When we were there, he trailed his hand in the fall again, smiling at me as he did his 'changing act.' I was used to seeing it now but it was still very magical. We went up the bank to the top path and wandered along it silently.

It seemed that Tristan was tired of the secrecy and clouded mystery that had surrounded him most of his life.

"I'd just like to forget about the past. I decided that was what I should do last night. I was thinking how good it was just to do ordinary things. Just walk with you or the other day the trip to Somerset, it was as if I belonged to a real set of friends my own age" he told me.

I smiled at him, he seemed happy with this decision.

"Tristan, have you told Liz about what you discovered at the Tarrant estate or even given her any update about what's been going on?" I asked.

He frowned a little.

"Seriously, I don't think it concerns her that my father was unfaithful, and Richard was my friend, so I haven't said much to her. She's happily seeing Will every chance they get anyway. I like that. I think the burden of looking after the stained glass is too much to always be thinking of." He looked at me his blue eyes intense. "What is a bit of a concern is that Laura is back soon, maybe three weeks and she will be hounding me again." Then he shrugged but his expression was a little sad.

We reached the beginning of the garden, and Tristan stopped and gave me a hug.

"Do you need to go yet? Let's go and watch the balloons for a while. I know where they launch from, and there will be three go up tonight."

I was fascinated.

"Really, I had no idea, is it nearby? I just see them up in the sky. Yes let's go."

Tristan smiled broadly at my enthusiasm. We went around to my Wrangler. Once on the road, Tristan gave me directions and we were there in only fifteen minutes. We parked in the gravel car park at the front of the large building and walked around the back to the first fencing where people could view the hot air balloons go up. This happened a short distance off in another area, but was perfectly visible. A balloon was all ready to go and I watched fascinated as it went up into the sky and sailed off majestically. Tristan said, "I've never done it but I'd like to. What do you think?"

I've flown quite a bit, but the thought of not having the bulk of the airplane around me didn't appeal.

"I think watching is my preference," I laughed and Tristan smiled at me. We watched them ready the next balloon, which was situated a little further off in the launching area. It was the blue and red striped one that I had seen in the sky a few times. They seemed to wait for the other balloon to have risen to either a height, or an angle, before this one went up. We watched this one until it had sailed off. I looked at Tristan,

"Do you come and watch them often Tristan?"

"Not often but once or twice, when I know they might fly."

"Have you flown in a plane Tristan?" I asked him thinking that maybe his life had kept him from going to many places.

He laughed again. "I have many times, and I used to fly myself."

"Seriously?" I looked at him, and he was still smiling.

"Yes, I flew a Dolphin in the First World War, dog fights, you know?"

I was very surprised I hadn't even begun to know what he had done in his life.

"Wow, I bet that was scary."

"You could say that, but the sky was better than the trenches, believe me," he looked very serious.

"Let's not dwell on that stuff," he said, and he suddenly kissed me.

I was happy not to, the thought of war just horrifies me.

We were back in the Wrangler and Tristan was humming along to the CD I had playing.

"I love this band," he said, and I agreed they were exceptional.

"Will is good at singing their songs," he commented.

At home, I asked Tristan if he wanted to come inside and have something to eat.

He needed to go to the horses and there was paperwork to do, he told me.

"It's been good to see you." He put his hand along my cheek, and kissed me.

I told him it had been good to be seen, and as he walked off up the path to the edge of the woods, I watched him. His particular stride was elegant I thought. He turned after a few paces and saw me watching him. He smiled then and suddenly ran back picked me up, and swinging me around kissed me again.

"Go inside Chloe, or I'll find it impossible to leave you," he told me.

I went inside.

It wasn't late. I decided to do some drawings. I started drawing Tristan from memory, before long I was drawing Oliver alongside him, two beautiful guys. I took the photograph I had of Tristan changing appearance in the waterfall and drew those clothes on him, touching up the facial features from the photograph. Just for fun, I put the same clothes on Oliver, lengthening his hair to the same level as that of Tristan's in the photograph.

They made a good pair. They looked like friends.

When I went to bed, I put the drawings on my desk, but was careful to put the photographs right at the bottom of my stack of things as usual. I didn't expect anyone to come in my room looking around, but you never know. I smiled to myself. I still had that chair holding the locked handle so that it couldn't be turned in my bathroom.

Chapter Eight

The next day it started out as a dull morning, misty and cool, with a slight drizzle of rain. Then by the time I had breakfast, the sun had broken through and was so warm that steam was rising from the patio paving outside the kitchen. I watched the birds pecking at things all over the little lawn area in front of the flower borders, and thought about calling Clare to check if everything had been okay with the drama backdrops, I had left on Sunday. Then I thought, why not go up to the restaurant? I hadn't seen dad for a few days and I could just say hello, check if Clare was going to work and then I might go look around the shops. I felt like I needed some new jeans.

I asked mom if she needed anything from the shops, but she didn't.

Parking in the restaurant car park, I noticed Oliver's Land Rover. I hadn't realized he was working weekdays. I was sure he said Fridays and weekends. Well I could say hello to him too.

I went in through the little corridor. There was no one around. I checked dad's office, no one. I went through to the main body of the restaurant and found dad and Marcel, checking the tables out at the far end.

Saying hello to Marcel and then giving dad a hug hello I asked if Clare or anyone was around. He told me no one had arrived yet.

"Oh, but Oliver has, that's his Land Rover in the car park Dad" I said.

"Really, he must have decided to work a weekday after all. Did he arrange that with you Marcel?"

"Not with me Nick," he replied.

"Maybe the thing has broken down again," dad speculated.

I agreed that maybe it had and asked if Clare was working today. She was doing the afternoon café service and was expected at eleven thirty. I noticed the menus on the table in a stack and looked at the new design. Dad had gone with a feather embossed design. I told them I liked it. I knew they would need to get on with preparation and so I said goodbye and went out onto the patio at the front. The sun was out fully now and the day was warming up considerably. I looked out across the lake and noticed a marquee and the usual chairs and tables stacked inside. There must be an event coming up soon.

Turning and walking around the restaurant, I went straight to my Wrangler and went off to the shops.

It took a while to find a pair of jeans I liked and then I got a sandwich and drove home. I figured if I put the jeans to wash straight away they would dry, and I could wear them to the movies with Oliver on Tuesday.

By late afternoon, I had emailed friends, and heard from Clare that the sets were good, but could she get me back for bits and pieces as they cropped up.

I expected to have heard from Oliver, but hadn't. I left it until early evening before I thought I'd text Oliver.

I sent him a text but got no reply. Throughout the evening, I expected a reply. About midnight I finally thought maybe he had been called to a computer support job and was busy.

I fell asleep thinking I had heard nothing from either Tristan or Oliver that day and it felt weird.

Chapter Nine

Steven and I were in the kitchen the next morning discussing the merits of one version of a song over the other when dad actually rang us on the landline from the restaurant. He'd received a call from Oliver's mom. Oliver hadn't been home since Saturday. Did I know where he might be? I felt a wave of fear for some reason, and said to dad that I didn't know, I had been texting him and had no reply. Then I remembered his Land Rover and asked dad to check if it was still in the car park.

Dad walks over to the restaurant most mornings now so wouldn't park a car himself and have seen the Land Rover. I told dad I was coming over and giving the phone to Steven I dashed out to my Wrangler and drove the short distance to the restaurant.

The Land Rover was in the car park as I drove in. It was in exactly the same spot. Oliver couldn't have gotten in it when I drove off Saturday night, well Sunday morning really, as it must have been nearly one in the morning when we split up. I was almost running up to it, feeling quite sick with worry about where Oliver could be. I was at the driver's side. There was a long and wide streak of blood on the window, and a couple of finger marks in blood too. I felt terrified, because what if it was Oliver's blood. Dad had come out to the car park. I looked at dad and he looked at me as we both registered the presence of blood.

"Oh my god Dad that's blood on the door, call the police," I said shakily.

We went inside and dad was on the phone to the police in his office straight away. He came out to the staff area where I was pacing up and down. Saying they were sending a car. I wanted to call Oliver's mom but dad said wait for the police. I was pacing up and down and then I called Tristan.

I just hoped he would answer as I heard his phone ringing, and he did.

I nearly burst into tears when I heard his voice.

"Tristan, Oliver is missing. His Land Rover is still in the car park and there is blood on it. Where are you can you come over?" I gabbled.

"I can come over, tell me where, and try not to panic, we will find him," Tristan answered.

"Oh, I'm at the restaurant car park. We're waiting for the police."

"I'll be there soon."

After looking at the blood again, I walked to the entrance of the car park and back a few times, before Tristan arrived in the estate truck. He parked and I went straight up to him. He looked at me his eyes questioning and worried, "Let's see the blood on the Land Rover," he said.

I showed him, and he looked at it for a moment then he turned to me and we walked a little way off.

Dad had said hello to Tristan and then gone into the restaurant after asking if I was okay, and saying to let him know when the police came.

Tristan looked concerned as he said to me, "It looks like he hit the door with his face and hand. His face was bleeding by then. He might have been trying to get into the car, or just trying to steady himself. What the hell has happened I wonder?" Tristan was whispering almost.

I put my hands out to him because I felt scared for Oliver, and he took them, then he transferred one arm to around my shoulders and held my hands in the other.

"Don't worry we will find him Chloe." He tried to sound convincing, but I knew he wasn't feeling too convinced by the note of worry in his voice.

Then I said, "But how Tristan, we don't have any idea what could have happened to him?"

Tristan was about to say something when the police showed up. They had a van behind them, which turned out to be the police as well. The guys in that vehicle set about looking at the Land Rover and all around it, dusted it for prints, and took swabs of the blood smears. They set up tape and photographed the Land Rover and the area. We hung about watching from across the car park waiting to be asked something.

The officers who had gone into the restaurant came back out. "Chloe," they called, "Could we talk to you, please come inside." They didn't want Tristan though.

I told them about Saturday night and seeing Oliver not getting into his car but looking like he was about to when I drove off. There had been no one else around to see. Then I remembered the lurking person, and told them about the two instances. I said I had made a statement about my experience. I asked would they go and see Oliver's mom, as she must be worried sick. They would. I asked them how they were going to find Oliver and they looked at one another and said they would, that I could be assured of that. There were tests they needed to do, make sure it was Oliver's blood on the window that sort of thing. Could I think of anywhere he might go? Had we argued? They asked all sorts of annoying questions, which sounded as if they were not taking Oliver's disappearing seriously enough to my frantic ears. Then I realized it was just what they had to do and I told them to find him, please, because I cared for him so much and this was breaking my heart. They seemed to get the picture then and let me go back to Tristan. I discovered that someone had a word with him too, but obviously he knew nothing, and they had soon left him to wait for me.

I went up to Tristan and told him what the police had said and asked me. He listened and nodded a couple of times, and then he said, "Maybe we should go back to the house or someplace other than this, Chloe." I went inside to dad and told him Tristan was taking me home.

I left my Wrangler and Tristan drove us in the little truck home.

He came inside with me and we went down to the long drawing room where the painting was. There was a bench along one of the large windows and we sat on this together.

"Let's consider what could possibly have happened." Tristan said quietly.

Looking out of the window in this cool room with Tristan beside me I felt as if I could think straight.

"What if it was that person who was lurking?" I said to Tristan. "We never really got to the bottom of that stuff, though it seemed like it was me they were after."

"It could be them, but we have no idea who they are so that's no. Did Oliver ever say anything about anyone that might help us?"

I thought about this.

"Like who Tristan? An enemy? Nothing I remember, nothing, we have nothing to give us a clue," I was very afraid for Oliver again and my voice was shaky.

Tristan put his arms around me and his forehead to my temple.

"Something will come to us. Chloe don't be upset. I know how much Oliver means to you but becoming distraught will stop you from thinking clearly."

He was right.

"Thank you Tristan, for coming over, for comforting me, you are right. I'd feel exactly like this if it was you that was missing, you know that don't you?"

He just hugged me a bit tighter and we sat there looking out at the garden area there, which sloped up a bit.

James rang Tristan. Somehow, he had heard that Oliver had gone missing and was asking if we knew what might have happened. He was worried that the car park of the restaurant wasn't safe, and that Clare and anyone else for that matter might be the next target. Tristan said he didn't know what was going on, he wished he did and that I was distraught.

The phone call was interrupted by the doorbell. I went down the hall to answer the door and it was the police. They came into the kitchen with me and we sat down at the table. They wanted me to go over my experience in the car park again and then told me that there was evidence that Oliver had been dragged away after probably being hit to stun him. They had a footprint that they'd found in the soil of the hedgerow area that served as a pathway, and that if it had been a dark night would have been a great hiding place to wait for Oliver. They wanted to know if I knew did Oliver have anyone who might bear him a grudge, for instance the other boyfriend I seemed to have. I was shocked and defending Tristan to the hilt I told them, Oliver and he were friends, and that we recently went down to Somerset together. The police seemed to accept this and as Tristan came into the kitchen having finished the conversation with James, they began to question him too. They were most interested in his shoes and had a look at the soles. After a while, they left saying if we thought of anything or saw this person lurking around again to get in touch immediately. I showed them out and then ran into the kitchen to Tristan, firstly hugging him then saying,

"Tristan, let's go and look at this footprint for ourselves."

Tristan thought the police might still have the place taped off but wanted to go too. We went into mom's study and I borrowed her camera. She was at the restaurant because of Oliver disappearing. She wanted to help dad out somehow.

Then Tristan said, "Let's go the other way. You know you can walk through from the garden in several places, and come back through that gap in the hedge. If someone was hiding in there, we might find their footprints on the route they took."

As we walked there, I suddenly had a thought, which I immediately told Tristan.

"Tristan, it had to be someone who knew the roster for who was working on Saturday night. If someone was after Oliver, which I think they were, then they must have somehow known that he would be working then and until late."

Tristan thought this was 'very worth thinking about' which made me smile, because sometimes he and Oliver with their lovely English accents sounded very similar.

"Clare was working I know that, because I saw her earlier in the day and she told me," I said.

Tristan was interested in this.

"We should ask Clare who else was working, and we need to ask them all who they told about the shift and what they told these people. For instance did they tell them who was also on the shift?"

I looked at Tristan, and nodded agreement. We had reached the gap in the hedge from the other side and there was police tape flapping around at the entrance of the gap. Since we were not going through it we shrugged at each other and then Tristan looked at me his eyes wide. "This is cool," he said. "I need a bit of adventure that's not about blessed stained glass."

I smiled a little smile at this, his enthusiasm was infectious, and I felt less sad and worried now we were actually doing something about finding Oliver.

The footprint was still obvious and as I was photographing it, Tristan bent down and said, "I know this shoe print."

Chapter Ten

"What?" I said astonished. "What do you mean Tristan?"

"I know the pattern on this print. It's a Colorado shoe print. I have some. They are great shoes. I got them when I was in Australia in nineteen ninety-six."

I looked at him shocked.

"You have some of these shoes, Tristan? For heaven's sake don't tell the police."

"No Chloe, what I mean is I have some and the pattern is a bit different, but there is an unmistakable pattern here. They are not all the same it depends on the style of the boot or shoe but there are always, diamonds, chevrons, triple diamonds, or arrow head type marks somewhere. You know like one or the other, or maybe two of the marks on each shoe. They really are unmistakable branding marks. Once you've seen them or owned them, you know it. I'll show you them."

He took my hand as I slung the camera over my shoulder. Edging around so as not to go through the gap, we went all the way along the restaurant patio, and then into the car park. We picked up my Wrangler and went back to my house.

The first thing was to upload the photographs to my computer, which I did quickly. The drawings I had done of Tristan and Oliver together in sort of knight clothes were on the desk. As I backed up the pictures to a flash disk, I turned round to Tristan. He was staring at the drawings with a strange look on his face.

"Tristan, what is it?" I asked him. He looked at me, his lovely blue eyes filled with interest, and puzzlement, and I said again, "Tristan, what's wrong?"

He picked up the top drawing of himself and Oliver side by side, where I had lengthened Oliver's hair, and put him in the same kind of leather and armor type jacket with a sword by his side.

"Where did you see this man?" he asked pointing at Oliver, and looking intense.

"It's Oliver. I drew him in the same style as you appear in the waterfall water. Tristan, why what is it?" I went to him and as he just kept staring at me, I took the drawing from his hand and put my arms up around his neck.

"It's Richard," he said. "It's so like him, I'm stunned. I wouldn't have known it was Oliver, you've somehow turned him into Richard."

I gasped. This was a surprise. I hadn't even thought that the drawing was very good.

"It must be coincidence, just something about his facial features must be similar, and it's been a long time Tristan," I said.

He seemed to pull himself together. "Yes, it has, sorry. The trip to the Somerset ruins has put Richard firmly in my mind again. Let's get going to the Dearing place I want you to see those shoes."

I picked up my netbook where I had uploaded a clear picture of the print, and stuffed it into my backpack. As we went down the stairs, I said to Tristan that we hadn't looked for the path the kidnapper had taken since he'd recognized the print pattern. Did that matter? He thought not yet.

We drove in Tristan's truck to the Dearing house, and on the way, I phoned Clare. She had heard, James had rung her and told her not to be in the car park alone ever, she said. Then she asked how I was feeling. I told her Tristan and I were on the case and we would really like to ask her some questions. She said if it would help find Oliver she would be only too happy to answer anything and she was at the drama group hall.

I told Tristan that we should go there as soon as he had shown me the shoes. I was thinking did I really need to see them. When as if reading my mind, he explained that if I saw them I could keep my eyes open for people wearing something similar because he hadn't seen any for sale for many years around here, to his annoyance he added.

Once inside the Dearing house, we went up two flights of stairs and then along a corridor, which seemed to go on forever, then up another flight of stairs to what seemed to be a room that took up the whole area of one side of the house. Tristan opened the door and said to come on in. I couldn't help but look around at the room. One side of it was completely windows. They angled up from the vertical to become windows in a low ceiling, before the ceiling went higher, and was painted white. There was a door leading off somewhere in the far wall, the whole place was sparsely furnished but full of light. Tall trees were visible close to the windows, which looked out onto the Dearing estate.

Tristan was at the other end of the room looking inside a very large carved cupboard, very similar to the one I had in my room. He came towards me holding a pair of black leather lace up shoes. I looked at them. They were sturdy, stylish shoes with a chunky looking sole. Tristan turned them over and there it was the chevron, which was in a sort of yellow, and a diamond with other chevrons. I could see what he meant by the pattern being very recognizable.

"But Tristan how do you know they would all have something similar?"

I asked pointing at the pattern.

"Because they do. I had a pair of boots too, which I no longer have but they had it, and when I was looking at the range in the shops out there they all had something similar, even the girls shoes. The triangles, the arrows, the chevrons, take my word Chloe."

"I do Tristan," I told him, and had a good look at the shoes, which I rather liked.

Tristan went to put the shoes away.

"I love your room Tristan, the light is great." I said not wanting to leave without recognition that it was a lovely room.

"Thank you, I love the light too, and you can see the stars through the top windows at night. I like that connection with the outdoors."

We hurried downstairs, and Tristan said he knew it was urgent we go to see Clare, but he really needed to check on the horses. We went round to the stables and Tristan looked at each horse quickly, especially the one which had been a concern to him before. He got cored apples out of a tub at the end of the walkway and gave each horse a few. Then we went on our way.

"Are they okay, the horses I mean?" I asked him as I hurried to keep up with his stride.

"Sorry" he said slowing down, and then stopping and running his hands under a standpipe in the yard before we continued. "I walk quickly I know, the horses, yes they are fine, It's just that I try to look in late afternoon and since I don't know when we will be back, I just needed to do that, sorry it's sort of in my blood to check the animals."
Chapter Eleven

Once we were driving to the drama group premises, Tristan asked me had I been inspired by the tomb effigy to draw Richard. Perhaps I'd done it subconsciously. I assured him I couldn't visualize the effigy at all that I'd drawn Oliver then copied his own hair and clothes style, which I'd seen at the waterfall, to make the two of them look alike.

He seemed to accept this.

I looked out of the window thinking about Oliver. I hoped he was okay, and not in pain or thirsty. He'd been gone two days. I frightened myself by thinking could he bleed to death from his injuries. I must have made a sound, because Tristan asked if I was okay.

I told him I was starting to worry about Oliver again.

He sighed and said he felt it too.

We parked in that usual and now infamous pub car park. Tristan looked around as if the person who had chased me might appear. I took his hand, and we went across the road to the hall and the buildings attached, which the drama group used. I went straight into the place where they'd done the read through of the script. Clare was in there. She got up from sitting reading with another girl. We went through to the hall end where the sets had been painted.

"I can't believe this, poor Oliver. I hope they find him quickly what can possibly be going on?" Clare sighed.

Tristan asked, "Clare can you tell us who knew you were working Saturday night?"

Clare raised her eyebrows. "Just about everyone I know, mom, my sister, James, everyone on the shift, oh the people in the drama group."

She was counting on her fingers and then just held up her hands with a sad look, "Do you think one of the others has Oliver?"

"No, not one of the restaurant workers, I mean you just about all know each other and have for years," Tristan said soothingly. "We think someone had to know Oliver was working that night and lay in wait for him. It was a very dark night, lots of cloud cover. We can't imagine why it happened, but someone knew, or maybe had been following him," Tristan sighed. "It's a bit of a stretch I know, but do you know all the drama group members well?"

Clare looked at him with a surprised face, "Do you think it's someone here? I don't know everyone well and three members are new this semester."

As she was speaking who should walk by us, and eavesdropping again it looked to me, but Max. He hunkered down supposedly to look at a corner of the scenery, more eavesdropping I thought, watching him. That was his undoing because you know how you put one foot down in front of you, and bend the other knee right down so that your foot flexes and gives you balance? Well that's what he did. You can guess what was on the sole of his shoe, the very pattern on the footprint at the car park. I gasped, and grabbed Tristan's hand, which was by his side. He stopped talking to Clare and looked at me, the question was on his face, but he didn't speak. I looked at him and tried to move my eyes towards the sole of the shoe Max was wearing. Tristan knew something was going on. I changed my mind about drawing his attention to Max and asked Clare did she put her roster up in the little office area where we posted the rosters for the scenery crews. I tried to talk as quietly as possible without whispering. I didn't want Max to hear this.

I took Clare's arm and keeping hold of Tristan's hand maneuvered both of them away and into the end room, where the pin board was, and the little desk and phone. It was obvious she did post her work roster, and as I looked at it, I realized everyone was on the roster. Marcel gave out a full timetable which showed who was where and when. This was pinned up there with the crew lists and other information. Why hadn't I noticed this before? I'd looked at the crew rosters on Saturday and hadn't seen this. I guess there is truth in the saying that you see what you want to see. Tristan was looking at it too.

Clare asked, "What, what's up?" She looked back behind her.

"Why are you whispering Chloe," she said to me, even though I thought I hadn't whispered.

"Oh, no reason, sorry I just went croaky." I had to cover my tracks. I didn't want Max to realize anything.

Tristan was still holding my hand and suddenly he squeezed it. It was a signal for something.

"We need to go now, sorry Clare. I only had a little time before I have to get some work done. Thank you for talking with us." Then he leaned in close to her and it looked like he was kissing her cheek but he was saying,

"Please don't tell anyone what we asked."

She nodded and smiled at him. Then she turned to me and joining in the conspiracy, she said quite loudly. "Great to see you, we might need you next week to add a bit more to the palace set."

I said great and actually did kiss her cheek adding, "Please be careful, watch out in car parks Clare."

Outside Tristan and I crossed the road then stopped. "Well it's one of the drama group, or someone who has access to the notice board in there," Tristan said.

I looked at him my eyes wide, "It's Max" I said. "He's wearing those shoes. I saw the pattern on the sole. He was trying to hear what we were saying."

Tristan's look was one of fury.

"I think I may go back and shake the truth out of him," he said. He seemed like he just might, so I took his hand again.

"We should watch him, if he's got Oliver and who knows why he would, he may lead us to him."

"I bet it was him chasing you that night, and him in the garden. I feel like slicing his ears off" Tristan said quietly.

I smiled at this it was such an odd thing to say. Tristan realized he had amused me and seemed to relax.

"Since he uses them to eavesdrop," he finished.

Then he put his arm around my shoulders and we went up to his truck.

We sat there in the truck for a few minutes. Tristan asked me if I could remember which car he was driving the night we noticed the guy in the garden. I thought it was the little white car. He said yes that was what he thought too. When I asked what was in his mind he told me perhaps this Max hadn't seen the truck and we could successfully follow him.

Then suddenly he grabbed my arm.

"Duck, duck," he said.

I did duck as far as I could, so did Tristan. He slowly raised his head and whispered, "I saw him in the rear view mirror, Max. He came up here. Where would he have gone?"

I thought about the night he was after me in the car park if it was him, which it most likely was in retrospect.

"He seems to know the outbuildings here and there are a few that look scary. I ran past them, and he detoured around me using them as cover."

"Either he's used this place as a short cut to somewhere, or he's in one of the buildings," Tristan said. "Stay low, let's wait and see if he comes back out."

It might have been ten minutes later when I was just about to complain that my neck was getting a crick, that a scruffy, red van was driven out of the car park behind us. It certainly wasn't apparent where it had been parked. It looked like Max driving, as even from this distance his hair identified him.

Tristan looked at me. "Let's follow him."

He started the engine and got out onto the street quickly. The van was at the small roundabout, and we watched it turn right into a side street. Tristan followed and when we turned right, we could see the van parked outside a house at the end of the side street and Tristan drove past. I looked at the house. It was easy to remember, a little flat front terrace painted white with a basket of purple flowers hanging outside the door. Not a place that looked as if Max might have Oliver captive, just ordinary, perhaps it was his student lodgings.

Tristan was cursing as he drove down another small street trying to find the way back out onto the main street and then back to the pub.

"Damn his eyes, let's go back to the pub car park now and check out the outbuildings, then we will cruise by that house again and check if he is still there."

"Tristan," I almost giggled, "why damn his eyes?"

Tristan smiled. "It's just a saying, but I feel lots of hostility towards him, and we don't even know if he has Oliver, not for sure."

Chapter Twelve

We were back in the pub car park. Tristan put the truck at the back again. It was a dark place, and I felt a shiver go down my back. We seemed to have been there a long time and it was growing dark. I couldn't believe it was already nine at night.

Tristan got a very bright torch out of his glove compartment. It was a bigger version of my torch that I had shone out into the garden.

We walked as silently as possible around the obviously used outbuildings, and then crept along to the ones further back, which were old and nasty.

Tristan whispered, "These would be good places to hide a body."

I stopped in my tracks. "A body, for the love of god Tristan do you think Oliver is dead?"

Tristan turned to me and hugged me. "No, no, no I don't. It was just an unthinking observation because I'd say some of these places are seventeenth century. Look at the stonework on that one, and they are so decrepit. Forgive me?"

I nodded, but there were tears in my eyes, and I felt sick thinking of Oliver dead somewhere. It was almost three days he'd been gone.

We were snooping around the back of a particularly nasty building, which reeked of damp even from the outside, when my tears blurred my eyes and the light of Tristan's torch just became a series of bright blotches. I stepped into a bunch of weeds growing out of the building as well as next to it. My clog caught on them and I fell forward onto my hand and knees. I started to cry, not because I had fallen, but because I just wanted Oliver back with us. Tristan was helping me up asking 'was I okay,' and 'please don't cry Chloe,' and stuff like that. As I scrabbled up I realized I had something stuck to the palm of my hand.

"Tristan, shine the torch on my hand I think glass is in it or something."

As he did so, he was whispering, "I should be doing this on my own. I don't know why I'm putting you in danger like this."

I said, "Stop that, I need to be here. Oh, it's not glass it's a piece of a cell phone."

Tristan shone the torch on it. It was silver, and something stirred in my memory.

"Tristan, look down in the weeds where I fell, there may be more of it."

"Okay, yes, there is, wait I'll get it."

Tristan picked up some broken bits of phone. There was a lot of it.

"Hey it looks like someone just took this phone and stamped on it or something."

He had the pieces in his hand shining the torch on them with his other hand. It looked like the Nokia flip that Oliver owned. I looked at it. It wasn't rusted, or very dirty, so it must have been recently smashed.

I took hold of Tristan's arm and the torch beam wavered slightly. I had to hold on to him.

"Tristan, that's Oliver's cell, I'm sure of it."

Tristan threw it back down and started to inspect the building more closely.

"I hope he's not being kept in here, but let's take a look," he said.

The door was impossible. It had several padlocks on it, but Tristan set about hacking at the hinges with a lump of brick that was lying close by. Then he stopped and started trying to see through the grimy windows, which had bars on them and planks of wood nailed across in two segments. He was pulling at them and handed me the torch to shine on the place he was trying to get into. A piece of plank busted off and grazed his wrist, which started to bleed slightly. He took no notice, but continued to try to get the whole plank off. It did splinter off, but then we saw underneath that the glass was reinforced inside with graph-squared wire.

Tristan muttered something about wrapping the plank around Max's neck and went back to smashing the brick at the hinge side of the door. The hinges did begin to loosen. Lumps of sharp wood flew off, and the hinge side of the door at the top began to move as he kicked it. I was thinking someone should have heard us by now, but there was no sign of anyone, and the pub itself had music streaming out of the doors at the front when we had passed that would mask the sounds.

The hinge gave out and a long nail came out sideways. I saw it go into Tristan's hand, but again he took no notice. He began kicking the bottom trying to swing the door in to leave a gap. He got the half brick and started on the bottom hinge, suddenly the door fell in. A middle door plank spilt and hit him in the cheek. There was blood streaming down his face and from his hand. I was stunned into silence, but he got the torch from me and scrambled through the broken doorway. I looked in the place. It was black apart from the beam of Tristan's torch. He looked back at me. Blood was still coming down his face.

"Stay there Chloe."

I didn't, I followed, but carefully. There were broken bottles everywhere and piles of mold covered newspapers. The place was stinking and disgusting, then Tristan's torch picked out a shape, slumped against the wall, it was Oliver. He was a mess. He was bleeding from the arm and head too, though there was crusted blood on his face. He had his eyes closed. His hands were tied in front of him, with a sort of plastic tie. His shirt was ripped, and there was blood all over his chest. Tristan turned and looked at me.

"Don't come closer, seriously Chloe," he warned.

He went up to Oliver, and leaned over him intent on checking if he was breathing. The blood from Tristan's hand and cheekbone was dripping down and mingling with the blood on Oliver. I couldn't believe it, what a mess they were. Tristan felt Oliver's pulse on his neck. Then he started to pick him up. Oliver moaned and whatever the wounds were on his chest started to bleed freshly. Tristan put his hand over it, and then ripped off his own T-shirt and held it to the wound in a pad.

All kind of thoughts were going through my head. I had done first aid courses in school. I knew this was a breeding ground for blood poisoning and all manner of disease and what's more, Tristan was bleeding onto Oliver's wounds. I felt weak. There was no way Tristan could get Oliver in that condition up and out of this place. He couldn't move the plastic tie things on Oliver's wrists. To my surprise, he did move Oliver. He dragged him up.

Oliver was on his feet he moaned more then was gasping, "Tristan, my god is that you? I can hardly stand, he's drugged me...what, is that Chloe? I can't stand up."

He did stand up, and Tristan somehow got him out of there. I had the torch and was sort of waving it about, and trying to help too on the other side of Oliver. I had an arm around him. We got to the truck. Oliver was sick by the side of it and Tristan was pushing him in, and I was there pulling him in from the other side.

The second seat in the dual cab of the old truck was torn and a couple of springs were showing, but we got Oliver onto it. Tristan got the bottle of water out of the door compartment and tried to get Oliver to drink. He couldn't, and then Tristan used the water on his own hand and poured the rest of it over his face. With most of the blood gone, his wounds didn't look so bad. I expected Tristan to heal in front of me anyway.

He started the truck and we drove out of the car park. The community hospital was only streets away, and Tristan got there fast. He ran inside and two orderly's came out with a wheel chair. They got Oliver in it and into the hospital. In the fluorescent lights the mess Oliver was in showed up fully. He was filthy and bloody. They took him away. Tristan asked me to wait for him whist he cleaned up. When he came back, I could see his wounds had already started to heal. He checked my hand where the cell phone piece had stuck to it, but it hadn't broken the skin, and I had been and washed it up whilst Tristan was gone. We looked at each other, dismay and incredulity was written on Tristan's face. I guessed the same was on mine.

"What the hell has been going on?" Tristan said. He looked around to check who was in earshot. We were at one side of the waiting room and only a few people were on the other side.

I almost whispered, "I hope he'll be okay, Tristan. Could you tell how bad his wounds are?"

"Not really because of the dark and the mess. I'm definitely ripping the head off that Max. It has to have been him, but how did he manage to do all this to Oliver, he seemed like a boy when I saw him at Clare's party."

"More to the point why did he?" I added.

Tristan took my hand and we sat there thinking for a while.

"We just have to wait for Oliver to tell us what happened I guess," I finally said.

We seemed to realize then that we should call people. I called dad, then mom, and told them where I was and why, and that Tristan was still with me. Tristan called James and he said he would call Clare. I got out the card that the detective had given me and called him. They were at the hospital within minutes.

We got a bit of a dressing down for the rescue, but then they went away because the doctors told them they couldn't question Oliver until morning. I had given them a description of the house on the side street that we had seen our suspect go into, and they seemed to want to get there too for which I was glad.

Tristan sighed and stretched out his legs crossing them at the ankles. He slid down in the hard chair and folded his arms across his chest. Then he put his head on my shoulder in a gesture so like when Oliver and I had been sitting on the low wall after working at the restaurant, it made me cry. I tried to be silent, but the tears slid down my face and plopped onto his forehead.

"Maybe I should take you home Chloe," Tristan said.

I didn't want to go.

"No I don't want Oliver to wake up and no one is here for him."

Tristan put his arms around me and rocked me a little like a child. I closed my eyes, but all I could see was poor Oliver in that dreadful place. When I opened them, it was to see two older people with a police officer coming down the corridor towards us.

They were Oliver's parents and they thanked us for finding Oliver. His dad said that I looked done in and maybe could go home and come back in the morning. He was staying here the night with Oliver's mother and the police officer was going to be outside Oliver's door, which is not to worry anyone but because if Oliver wants to tell them anything they can get onto it right away.

I looked at Tristan and he raised his eyebrows. I told Oliver's dad that we might go home then, but if Oliver woke up to tell him we were coming back. He went off to Oliver's room. I turned to Tristan, "I don't want to leave, but I feel dead on my feet and filthy."

Tristan's expression was thoughtful, his blue eyes earnest,

"I think we should go, because if we stay all night and something needs to be done tomorrow we will not have the energy to do it." His voice was gentle and he started to stand up. He took my hand, and we walked down the corridor and out into the night air.

Chapter Thirteen

As we drove, we passed a crowd of people coming out of a little restaurant. They were all laughing and the street was lit up with summer lights at outside tables and in late night shops. It seemed so weird that Oliver was in hospital badly injured and yet the night was warm, balmy, and full of people enjoying themselves. I felt alienated from this summer night.

Tristan drove us back to my place.

"I wish you didn't have to go, Tristan."

He looked at me his eyes dark in the gloom of the truck. I couldn't tell what his expression was. We got out of the truck and went up to my room. My laptop was still booted. I remembered my netbook in my backpack and put it on the desk thinking we didn't need a picture of the shoe sole pattern after all.

Tristan sat at the laptop and asking if he could use it began to type something into the search box. I took a shower and putting on my dressing gown, I found Tristan reading the page of information about Eleanor De Stoches.

He turned to me. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay now I'm not filthy." I smiled at him.

"I still am." He grinned.

"You're welcome to use the shower, Tristan."

I was looking through my drawings. He didn't take long in the shower, but came out dressed in two towels, which made us both laugh.

We sat side by side on my bed. Our heads on the headboard and legs stretched out, in exactly the same way as in the hospital, except it was me who had my head on his shoulder. I closed my eyes.

When I woke up we were still side-by-side, but lying down and I had an arm around his waist. He seemed to be asleep and I closed my eyes again, just feeling the comfort of having Tristan near.

It was only ten minutes later that Tristan stirred. He carefully took my arm from around his waist and very slowly got up from the bed. It was obvious that he was trying not to wake me so I let him believe he hadn't. He went into the bathroom. When he came out, he was dressed in his clothes from the day before. I had my eyes open and seeing I was awake, he asked if I had slept okay. I told him yes and asked the same of him. As he came towards me, I saw that the gash on his temple, which had reached down to his cheekbone and down the side of his face had gone.

"Wow, Tristan the cut on your face has completely gone. Let me see your hand and arm. He showed me and they were healed and gone too. There was no sign of them at all.

He laughed at me, saying, "I told you it was more or less like in the movies. Chloe I'm going home to change. Do you want to go and see Oliver? I want to find out what happened. Hey I wonder if the police picked up our friend Max?"

"Yes, let's go to see Oliver. I'll go downstairs with you in case anyone is about," I told him.

No one was around and he left in the truck telling me he would be back in minutes. I smiled at that.

I ran upstairs. I dashed in and out of the shower to wake myself up a little more and then dressed in jeans and a blue shirt. I dried my hair quickly, and just wound it up in a hair clip so I wouldn't have to worry about it.

As I waited for Tristan, I went downstairs into the kitchen and raided the fridge. I put grapes, peaches, and nectarines in a big cellophane freezer bag that I found a roll of in the drawer along with cling wrap and stuff. I was going to take this to Oliver, and I was looking for a bit of ribbon or something to make it pretty, when Tristan came back.

I opened the door and asked if there was anything he wanted before we left, meaning coffee, or something like that, but he said a kiss.

The little white car was parked next to mom's Cherokee, but we used my car to go to the hospital.

Tristan said he didn't want to use the truck because of last night. What if Max hadn't been caught? He wanted the anonymity of the truck to remain in case we had to tail the sucker again.

Tristan seemed in his element with this rescue stuff and I had to wonder what things he had done in his long life. I'd ask him now and again, and maybe be able to build up a picture of it all.

Chapter Fourteen

At the hospital, Oliver's mom was using the drinks machine to get coffee. I asked her how Oliver was and she told me remarkably well. He had been stabbed but not deeply, a series of stabs missing vital organs as if on purpose, as if they were torture. I was sickened by this. He had also been drugged, and smashed on the head a couple of times. He had gashes on his face and very nasty cuts where the plastic ties had been on his wrists and ankles.

She didn't seem as upset about this as I was. I told her I was terribly upset to hear this news.

"Chloe, don't be upset because he is healing very quickly. The doctors are saying the minor wounds are almost gone, The drugs he was given by his assailant are nearly out of his system, and he can go home this afternoon, as long as he goes to bed for a couple of days. They think it's because he's young and fit that he has bounced back as quickly as this."

I was so pleased to hear this.

"We're going in to see him if you and his father would like to go out and get a real cup of coffee, Mrs. Tarrant." Tristan smiled gently at her.

Just then, Oliver's father came down the corridor to the machine.

"Hello you two, Oliver is doing really well. His mom and I might go home and take a shower. We'll get Oliver's old room in the main house ready so that he can be looked after for a couple days. We will come back this afternoon and take Oliver home. Thank you so much for helping him."

We nodded telling him we would stay for a couple of hours and they left.

Tristan and I went in to see Oliver. He was sitting up in bed wearing the white gown thing people get to wear in hospitals until they get their own stuff.

The relief I felt when I saw him was just immense. I went up to him and kissed his cheek.

"Oliver, thank heaven you're going to be okay."

Tristan watched me then he went up to Oliver and said, "Great to see you're making a good recovery Oliver, it was hellish seeing your injuries yesterday. How are you feeling?"

Oliver smiled.

"Tristan, I owe you a massive thank you for getting me out of there, you too Chloe. How did you find me anyway? I thought it was all over for me."

"It's a long story Oliver, and we will tell it, but first can you tell us what happened to you?"

Tristan was leaning forward in his chair intent on finding out what was going on.

Oliver looked at both of us.

"It's crazy right, but here goes. I watched you drive away Chloe, and turned to my Land Rover door. Then whack, something hit me in the back of the head hard. I fell forward and smashed my face into the window, blood splurged down the glass and I tried to push myself back up with my hand. As I did this, crash, I was hit again and I just went down. I think I saw the gravel at eye level then it went black as they say. I woke up in that awful room, my hands and feet were tied with this horrible plastic stuff, which cut straight into me every time I tried to move let alone try to get it off. Then that Max guy from the drama group showed up. He started on about what I owed his family and that he wasn't going to be as nice as they might be. I told him I didn't have any idea what he was on about and he belted me across the face with some kind of metal thing he had in his hand. It stunned me and I didn't see him come at me with a knife until he started carving me up.

He seemed like someone demented and was saying before he took the blood I owed him, he was going to shed a fair bit of it. I was to tell him who else was a direct descendent of Sir Edmund. I was groggy by this time and I hurt like hell, but knowing your story Tristan, I knew he thought I was you because he was talking about Sir Edmund.

I told him I had no idea what he was talking about and that I had never heard of Sir Edmund. He said he knew I had just been to the old pile and why would I go there if I weren't a descendent. I didn't know what to make of this because he must have been talking about the Somerset Tarrant ruin we visited. He smashed me around a bit more then he left. I heard him locking about a million locks on the door.

I tried to get to the window but I couldn't. I tried to get my cell phone out of my jeans pocket, and then I realized it wasn't there any longer and I thought it must have fallen out in the restaurant car park.

I felt bad and yet I must have dozed because he came back again. It looked like night when he opened the door, right away, he stabbed me again, just like little stabs, but it was horrible. He was saying he should have grabbed you Chloe, that he was going to because he knew I'd play ball when my pretty, little girlfriend was in danger.

Frankly, I felt like killing him at that moment, but then he said, how it made him laugh to see you at the drama group with Clare whilst he had me here. It had been a good move getting me after all. He laughed his head off then. He said right you owe my family blood.

I wanted some answers before he did anything else and I said that he had mistaken me for someone else that there was no Sir Edmund in my family as far as I knew. I couldn't think what he was raving about.

This angered him, I think it was the word raving. He actually screamed at me, your name is Tarrant, I know for a fact you are a descendent of Richard Tarrant. What do you take me for? I have all the old books from generations of my family. We are the Magi. We know kings. We collect on our debts. I need your payment now. He carved this long cut on my arm and then he said, I am not a murderer I just need the payment. I have spent a long time with my family's scrolls and books and then a long time finding you. It said in the book, which recorded Sir Edmund's visits to my ancestors that he had two lives saved, and that a vial of blood was all the payment was to be when the second life was safe. That payment was never received. The details of the lives saved said clearly, Rupert a knight and Richard still at home.

He was preparing a hypodermic syringe at this time, which scared the hell out of me I don't mind telling you. I tried to delay whatever he was going to do with that by asking him why his family hadn't tried to get payment back in the old days. He said 'they had waited for a while and then the crusades had got in the way, they thought Richard would be joining Rupert in the Holy Land but only Sir Edmund came back. Rupert was killed, what a waste of a magic spell' he snorted. Then he said some time later, only a couple of years later after Sir Rupert was killed, one of us, and I took this to mean his Magi family, came for the payment. We wanted it to do good only. We healed people, and this blood would be an ingredient in medicines. My family was always doing good works.

Then he came at me with the needle and he says one of our best caught the plague on the journey to collect payment. He found your ancestor, and they shared a drink in a tavern, when the Magus was befriending him, so that he would willingly pay. The illness was passed to your ancestor unwittingly. The plague was too strong for even many of us to deal with. We discovered that our Magus had died in the tavern. Your ancestor had left without paying in fact he probably did not even know our Magus had died. Sometimes life events stop you from doing what needs to be done until sometime later, this is sometime later for you.

I asked him why he had been so violent and he said because life has been violent to me, and then he injected me and said it will help you, you will sleep, and I will take the payment. Afterwards when you are asleep I will unlock the door and untie you. You will be able to go free. I will be long gone and you will never hear from me again. I zonked out, and then the next thing I knew you were there Tristan and Chloe you were there. I thought I was dreaming."

It had been a long and horrendous story. Oliver stopped talking, and looked at us, then sighed. "You know what, he got some ordinary blood for his trouble, and I don't feel that bad. I almost feel better by the minute. I am hungry though."

Tristan and I looked at each other. I could see in his blue eyes that he was distressed by this story. I looked at him sending him a message of comfort with my own eyes.

Tristan got up from his seat and put his hand on Oliver's shoulder, he was emotional. "Oliver, through all that horror, you never said anything about me, I will not forget that."

Oliver shook his head. "Its okay Tristan. I wasn't giving that lunatic the satisfaction of anything. I told him he'd made a mistake and that was all he was getting. Let's face it, if you hadn't found me I could have died, so thank you, I will not forget that."

I asked Oliver if he wanted me to go find something for him to eat.

Tristan said, "No I'll go, you have a little time with Oliver."

I looked at Oliver's injuries when Tristan had gone. His face was healing fast. It had been dressed with butterfly plasters, and there was a stitch high on his cheekbone.

"Oliver," I said his name, and put my arms around him as best I could. I kissed him gently. "Tristan and I were so very worried about you. He tore the door off its hinges to get at you. It was just horrible. We couldn't think what had happened to you, then the police found a footprint, and surprisingly, Tristan knew what shoe would go with the print. Then I saw them, the shoes I mean, on Max, and we just kind of realized, almost by accident, where he might have you. Thank heavens we found you, because he'd been to check on you, but not set you free as he promised. What the hell is wrong with him? He must be mad."

Oliver smiled at me. "How you found me in a nutshell. It's good to see you. All I want to do is hug you. Do you know if they got Max? I told the detectives my story this morning about five." He laughed then. "Five in the morning, I bet he'd gone by the time they got to where he was supposed to be."

"I told them last night where to find him," I said, as I took hold of Oliver's hand and just looked at him, I was so happy to see him again.

Tristan came back. He had been out and found some sandwiches and juice, he put them on the bedside table for Oliver saying, "Your father and mother will be coming for you early afternoon, maybe we should leave you to eat and then get ready to go home. Could I just ask you Oliver will you show me the stab wounds?"

Oliver lifted the sheet from his body and then pulled the gown down to show Tristan. I couldn't see properly but the wounds that I saw were dressed.

Tristan lifted the edge of a dressing and looked then stepped back. He smiled at Oliver, "Looking good," was all he said.

"I'll ring you Oliver," I said to him, and Tristan said he would too. I kissed his cheek, and then we left him.

In the Wrangler, I asked Tristan why he wanted to look at Oliver's chest wounds. Tristan sighed and looked at me with a half-smile, "Because Chloe, I noticed how quickly his face and wrists were healing, and when I looked at the chest wound it was too. Did you see any of my blood go into his wounds when they were open and bleeding?"

I had and said so, adding, "What does that mean Tristan?"

Tristan heaved a big sigh. "I hadn't realized. I was just trying to look after him and get him to safety. I didn't see my blood go into his wounds. I more often than not don't feel pain unless the wound is very bad before it heals. You are sure? Sorry of course you are."

"Tristan, what does it mean?" I put my hand on his arm. He looked at me his blue eyes serious.

"It appears my blood is what the Magi say it is, a healing agent. I don't know if it needs other ingredients, but so far Oliver's wounds are healing way faster than they should be."

"How do you know Tristan?"

"Over the years I've seen a lot of wounds and seen them heal and kill people too."

I looked at him with excitement.

"Tristan, this is a good thing, you've probably saved Oliver twice over. First you tore the door off that building, and then you stopped the chest wounds bleeding with your shirt, in the dark, in that mess we were in, you didn't see your blood go in his wounds. It did and now instead of weeks of pain and healing, he gets to heal faster. You did a good thing and maybe it's not just your blood, maybe the antibiotics and dressings in the hospital have helped. Maybe they would be the other ingredients that were talked of by the Magi, who knows? Tristan isn't that great?"

I stopped then seeing he was a little less worried by what had happened.

"I'd like to know if Max was caught. I just wonder what might happen next if he wasn't," I added, and I started the Wrangler.

"Chloe, unfortunately I need to go and get some work done, will you ring me if anything else comes to light? I don't know what else we can do anyway except wait, although it would be good if we knew what the police had done."

I agreed with him.
Chapter Fifteen

At the end of the road, I turned down our usual route home, incredibly at the roundabout the car coming in from the right was the scruffy red van. Tristan saw it and gasped as he said, "My god there's the car Max was driving, who's in it?"

I was staring as it passed us onto the roundabout. I followed on then.

"Let's follow it."

We were a car behind, and I was watching the traffic.

Tristan said, "He's indicating left."

I'd seen this, and was already indicating left. When we turned the corner, the red van was parked on the street outside a row of shops and a bank. We pulled up behind it. The occupant must have made a quick exit into one of the shops or the bank. Tristan got out of the Wrangler and went to stand by the van. I followed him saying, "What are you going to do Tristan?"

"I just want to see who's driving," he answered just as a girl came out of the bank and came to the van. She was dangling her keys, and skirted Tristan as if he was just one more person on the sidewalk. He stepped in her way.

"Excuse me," he said. "Is this your car?" and he pointed at the van.

"Yes, why, what's wrong?"

Tristan continued, "I'm so sorry to sound intrusive, but have you let anyone borrow it recently? It's important or I wouldn't ask."

The girl looked at Tristan then at me, I think our sincere faces did the trick because she told us that she hadn't known but another student had been using her car when she was at work. She didn't use it to get to work, as there was no parking available. She asked with a puzzled look, "Is this something to do with what the police questioned me about because if it is, they were satisfied my car hadn't been used in that incident."

Tristan said, "Yes and we are sorry to have bothered you, just one other thing, is that student still around?"

She told us he wasn't as far as she knew. We thanked her and got back in the Wrangler.

"So that's a little bit of a letdown. I thought we had him then, Chloe. I wish I didn't have to but I have to get to the greenhouse or I'll be letting a client down."

I smiled and nodded.

He phoned ahead to one of his assistants to start cutting the florist's order as I drove.

Chapter Sixteen

It was hardly any time at all before I was back in my room, Tristan gone and there I was looking out the window thinking about Max.

I rang Clare and asking her if she had a few minutes to talk, I started trying to find out more about Max. She said she knew hardly anything, but that she had asked around after this incident and a girl called Joanne knew him a little.

Apparently, she had seen him in the village with a much older man and Max had introduced him as his grandfather. He told her he had a sister but that his parents were dead. He was supposed to be at University for the whole year doing a graduate program in medieval history, which is more than likely a lie, because James would have been bound to meet him in that case.

"He's taken off I'd say. He's not been seen since you and Tristan were round at the hall."

I asked her if anyone knew where Max actually lived, and it was that house, where he had been secretly borrowing the other student's car.

I ended the call thinking if the police had told the girl that her car had no signs of being used to transport Oliver, and had given her the all clear, then Max must have another car.

I wondered where the grandfather lived if Max had a student room.

It occurred to me that the pub must have more significance than we might have thought. How would Max know about the outbuildings to the extent he seemed to? I looked up the pub and found their website. They provided tourist accommodation and would do short-lets up to six weeks.

The place was more extensive than I thought and two buildings that seemed from the street not to be associated with the pub, were actually their rooms and accommodations in garden surroundings.

I had driven past these and thought they were private houses as the gardens were well kept and colorful. I rang Clare back and asked if she knew what Max's surname was. She went off the phone for a minute or two to look at the list in her files. He had called himself Max Spitama.

I called the pub next and pretending to be a car hire company said Mr. Spitama had left his laptop computer in the vehicle he had hired, could we send it around to them at the pub accommodations. The receptionist obligingly told me they had checked out and gave me their address in France to post the laptop. I was stunned by this, firstly because they were so trusting and could have been giving this information to anybody, and secondly because I was anybody.

He must have taken the student accommodation as a cover when really living at the pub with his grandfather. Could he have used a hire car to kidnap Oliver? Maybe he put blankets around, and tossed Oliver in there with his grandfather's help. No one would know, unless the company found blood on their vehicle seats. He could have hired a van for all I knew, put Oliver in the back on a tarpaulin, and casually taken it back to the company.

Then I thought the fact that the pub had accepted me as a car hire representative didn't mean he had hired a car, it could have been a van. Maybe he had driven a car over from France, and used that. I wondered if the pub accommodation had records of registration numbers for their car park information, some do take it at check in. The address in France was interesting. Why did I find France ringing some bell in my memory, and then I remembered, it was just that Laura was in France.

My thoughts were interrupted by mom. She was at the room of my door saying the police were downstairs and wanted to take a further statement from me.

I went down and told them every, single thing I could remember about finding Oliver. They were a bit crabby about the footprint stuff saying we should have gone to them with the information right away, but I said, 'and then we might not have found Oliver in time.'

They still didn't like it but went on to say they had seen Oliver at home not long ago and he seemed to be recovering very fast. They hadn't found a connection to the abduction and the red van we had pointed them to and had little to go on for an arrest. With the best of intentions, they were wondering if it was a student prank gone wrong. They had come across this sort of thing once or twice. Did I know if Oliver was in the habit of taking recreational drugs?

Exasperated, I protested this nonsense, but then they said their enquiries would continue and they would be questioning Tristan Dearing again today. However in the light of the fact that they could find no trace of Max it may be that Oliver has had a scare and a lucky escape and they would continue their enquiries.

I didn't think they were incompetent I thought they didn't know all the stuff we did. Which was good really since it might shine an unwelcome spotlight on Tristan.

When they had left, I ran upstairs, and telephoned Tristan, his voicemail was on, and I didn't want to send a message or anything that could be read by anyone else. Maybe it wouldn't matter that Tristan didn't know the police were coming to question him again, he would just say the same as me.

It was late afternoon, I felt tense, it had been a hectic few days to say the least, and now it seemed as if I was standing still, and I didn't like it.

I put my cell in my back pocket and went downstairs, mom was in the kitchen, and I said I was going for a walk.

She grimaced and said, "Watch out please, could this kidnapper still be out there. Should you really be going out on your own?"

"Mom I think he's long gone. I'll be watching out, really. I'm only going to the dig where James is."

She seemed to accept this, but I could see she was still worried, I said I'd text her every ten minutes until I was home. She laughed but was happy with this.

Chapter Seventeen

I went out the kitchen patio doors and wandered off up the path to the bank to scramble down to the waterfall and walk that way to the Norman door ruin dig. I was listening to my iPod, humming along, and felt better because I was outside. I forgot how spooky the way to the ruins could be and despite my earlier bravado with mom, I was looking around a little wondering if Max would pop out.

I arrived at the dig and Clare was there sitting on a director's chair by a camp table. I walked up, "Hello Clare I thought you were at the drama group?"

"I was but James dropped by and I wanted to be with him a little longer so I came over to watch, anyway we have a rehearsal tomorrow so I was only there making sure of costumes and such. How are you Chloe? Have you seen Oliver since he got home from hospital?"

"I feel edgy. I haven't seen Oliver since Tristan and I went there this morning. I just came down here for a walk really."

James came over. "Hello Chloe, have you come to join in the excitement?"

"What excitement, have you made a find?" I asked smiling.

Clare and James both said yes together. He kissed Clare on the forehead and continued, "We've found what we think is the remains of a short tunnel and it looks like it goes to a room underground that we suspected was there, but didn't hope remained intact. I'm just waiting for the archaeologists to finish opening up the entrance to the room. We're down about two meters which means we'll come out high up in the room. The ceiling has caved in we know that from the camera we put down an opening, but who knows with a bit of work something may be found in the room."

He was smiling, and I could see he was pleased something extra had come from the dig. He told me that he had rung Tristan a couple of times, but he wasn't picking up so he had left a voicemail. Jack was coming down at seven he said. I told him that Tristan was working that's probably why he wasn't answering his phone.

James walked back to where the main activity was happening. Clare and I were talking about the whole Oliver incident again when my phone rang. It was Tristan, he said sorry for not answering earlier, but he had been driving and delivering the flowers for the florist doing the wedding at the abbey ruins. I told him I guessed he was working and I was at the dig with Clare and James. He asked me to tell James he had received the message and was glad something was happening, but that he wouldn't come over, as he didn't want Jack to think he was interested in the dig.

I realized Tristan was still hurt over Jack keeping the stolen archaeology a secret from him. He wanted to know if we could meet and have something to eat together, maybe in the café near the library gallery about eight. I said that would be great and Tristan went off to do a little more work.

Clare was smiling at me. "Have you made a decision as to which one holds your heart yet?" she asked.

"Not a chance I'm afraid. I love them both dearly it's not possible to choose." I only half smiled at her because it was serious stuff in reality.

I left soon after, before they had finished opening the entrance to the room deciding I could find out if anything was down there when Tristan did.

I had texted mom just as I told her I would and it was time to text her again so I did this as I walked along. The walk back home seemed less long and foreboding than it had coming here. The sun had come out and the rest of the day promised to be fine.

At home, I found mom in her study, and she showed me some of her work. It was an island environment on level three of the game. It had all kinds of tasks. The jungles and rivers were so lifelike I was impressed. I told her I was meeting Tristan to have something to eat at the café in the village near the library gallery. Mom looked quizzically at me. "I thought it was Oliver you were seeing?" she said.

"Well they are both really good friends. I really care for both of them," I replied.

She smiled. "That's interesting Chloe, they are both gorgeous I have to admit." She usually said 'interesting' when she didn't know what to make of something. It was funny really.

I looked at her kindly face and just nodded agreement, and then as I left her study, I said I'd see her later. She told me to text when I was at the café safely with Tristan. I called sure and went upstairs to change my T-shirt and comb out my hair, which had been coiled up all day in a clip. I washed my face and put a little eye makeup on. I decided on a white T- shirt and went downstairs.

I hadn't seen Steven since the morning we discovered Oliver was missing, which felt like days away. He was in the kitchen with John and Will. I was pleased to see Will and said, "Hi Will how're you doing?"

"Great, really great, we're deciding what we'll sing at the wedding reception we are booked into on Saturday. We're only on for an hour and they have a DJ for the later part. Hey haven't you been busy this last couple of days. How is Oliver? Do you know?"

"He's fine now Will. I hope to see him tomorrow. I'm going to meet Tristan, so I'll see you later."

I was going to park my Wrangler in the library car park, and turned in to see Tristan's truck already there. I got out of my car and looked into his cab area. The sight of the back seat with its split leather made me feel sick. I could see Oliver on it. I shook my head. I'd better stop that stuff dwelling on it now he was safe was stupid. I took off across the street to the café. Tristan was sitting at one of the outside tables. He saw me and stood up coming to meet me and put his arms around me holding me close.

We walked to the table where he had left his sunglasses folded on the top next to a glass of water. He held my hand the short way to the table, and when we sat down, he sat absolutely as close as he could. I was smiling at him, really comforted by his display of affection.

"I was thinking of what Oliver said about Max going after you first and it just drove me to distraction. I still would like to get my hands on him and give him a taste of his own medicine." Tristan looked pained.

I put my arms around him and kissed him on the cheek.

"He didn't get to me. Oliver is going to be fine, and I reckon Max has high tailed it out of the country. Don't think any more about it. I've been visualizing Oliver in the back of your truck and it sickened me. I said to myself, 'stop this stuff', so I am saying that to you. Let's move forward."

Tristan sighed and still looking pained he replied, "You'll be traumatized you know. I am, things like that you never get used to them, it takes a few days, even weeks for me so it will for you. I love you, do you know that, and I can't bear the thought of anything happening to you."

Looking at his heartfelt expression, I had to stop myself from telling him I loved him too, instead I held his face and kissed him.

"Tristan, I found out more information about Max to tell you," I said to him just as the waiter came up.

We ordered and when he had gone Tristan who was still sitting really close put his arm around my shoulders and whispered in my ear, "Kiss me first."

When I turned my face to his, my heart was beating fast. I felt like I've never felt before, it felt like if I didn't kiss him, I'd die. So I did. When I opened my eyes, he was so very beautiful, his blue eyes held my gaze, fringed with long thick eyelashes.

"Tell me now," he said, and I had to think for a few seconds what I was going to tell him. The spell of his nearness and kiss had just about emptied my mind of anything but him.

I leaned away from him and took a breath. I told him all about the hunch I had about Max, after hearing about his grandfather and then about pretending to be the car hire office. At which he shook his head and frowned a fraction before smiling at me. As I finished the tale, our food arrived. Tristan didn't say anything until the waiter had gone.

"It sounds like a certainty that the address in France is real. I bet he paid with a credit card and a hotel would want the billing address to be the home address. He covered his tracks quite well with all kinds of false things but some things have to be true or you can't get what you need, such as hotel rooms and such. I was thinking how come he hadn't been picked up on camera somewhere, since they're supposed to be everywhere."

"I can tell you about the restaurant car park, the installation was only at the front and the doorway leading to the car park, dad has said he's putting them in the entire car park now.

Then the police said that side of the pub where Oliver was kept doesn't have any, they're all at the accommodation side. I haven't told the police what I've discovered about Max's address. They questioned me again this afternoon and frankly I think given that we need to watch out for more information about you coming into the open, we shouldn't bother telling them."

Tristan looked worried.

"It's not good to have to exclude the police, but I agree with you. Let's try to be extremely careful not to flout the law any more than we absolutely have to. I guess we can't have access to the hotel accommodation cameras."

"You guess correctly Tristan," and I laughed at him.

"I want to see Oliver tomorrow and I'd like to tell him this stuff too. I think all three of us should sit down and have a really good talk about what we know now and what we might do, if anything," Tristan suggested.

I could only agree that was a great idea.

We finished our food and made plans to see Oliver the next day.

We walked back to the car park hand in hand. It was just about dark and Tristan held me close and leaned against the Wrangler's door. It was good to be held so close. I think we both needed this contact after the last few days. It was a reassurance that things were okay, that we had each other. A niggling little thought came into my mind, I wondered if Oliver needed to be held close, and take comfort from anyone.

"I don't think I can drive away until I see you inside the truck with the engine running," I told Tristan and he said ditto. We got in our respective vehicles, started the engines, and exited the car park in convoy. I was grinning at the whole thing.

The drive home was the same route for both of us until the very end when Tristan took the other fork and went to the estate house. I went into the last two meters of the road and into my house drive.

We'd said we would ring each other as soon as we were safely inside our houses. Darkness had made us careful.

In my bedroom, I waited a few minutes for Tristan to have made it home and into his own room. He rang me before I had time to ring him and laughingly said he had sprinted upstairs to his room and called me from it, as we'd said we would do, because he knew I'd be waiting for him. We said goodnight. I took a shower. Despite my intense feelings for Tristan, I was still looking forward to seeing Oliver again.

Chapter Eighteen

I was out of the shower and sitting up in bed looking at a web link that a friend had emailed me when I heard a tapping at my door. Thinking it might be mom or Steven being careful not to wake me if I was asleep, but wanting to talk to me if I was awake, I went over to the door and opened it. It was Oliver. I was just standing there stunned for a few seconds, and then I said his name.

"Yes it is me," he said smiling. "Steven let me in. He's in the kitchen with Will and John, I said I just needed to see you for a few minutes and he said 'go up dude'..."

"Come in Oliver," I closed the door behind him. I hadn't realized the boys were still down there as I dashed straight upstairs on arrival. I was looking around for my jeans because I was in my sleep shorts and a crop top. I spotted them on the chair by my desk and made for them.

Oliver continued talking.

"Chloe, I had to see you. I was thinking of going to Tristan, but I so needed to be with you I came to you instead. Look at this Chloe."

He was unbuttoning his chambray shirt. I looked at him, at his chest as the shirt fell open. There were no dressings on his chest and no wounds. The skin was completely clear, no scars, no sign of anything ever having happened. I realized then there were no injuries on his face and he pushed back his cuffs holding out his wrists for me to see.

"Look at this, they are all healed, not just healed, but completely gone, disappeared, what the hell, Chloe, this is not normal."

He looked a little scared and a little elated at the same time.

I went to him. Dropping my jeans on the edge of my bed, I took his hands and looked at the wrists.

"I guess your ankles are like this too," I said.

He nodded and I let go of his hands stepping back a little to look at him. He looked good. His brown eyes sparkled, and the whites were almost blue tinged with health. His slightly tanned skin was flawless. I noticed the little scar he had high on his cheekbone had gone. His already lovely blonde hair was shiny and as usual spiked up a little. He looked even more gorgeous than usual and that was saying something.

"It's not just this Chloe, something is happening to me. I used reading glasses for all the close computer work I do and I don't need them anymore. It's as if I can see for miles. I think I've grown too, about a couple of centimeters, I feel stronger than I have ever felt. Do you think it could be the drugs that Max used on me or some sort of magic he did?"

As he spoke, the words Tristan had used came back to me. He had used them to describe the changes he noticed in himself during the first months of his life after unfreezing and starting to live again. 'Oliver's become immortal,' was screaming in my mind, 'but I can't tell him that' I thought. Tristan needs to tell him.

"I don't think Max is responsible for this, Oliver. I think we need to talk to Tristan."

He stepped towards me holding out his arms.

"Chloe, could I just hug you? I feel a bit afraid of this. I feel as if I should hide it from my parents and the doctors. Pretend I am still healing for a few weeks or something."

I went into his arms and hugged him close.

"Oliver, don't be afraid, this is a good thing. Tristan will know, he will tell you." I looked up at him, lovely Oliver with his pretty, brown eyes and I thought, I do love him, just love him so.

He bent his head and kissed me. The last time we had kissed had been the night he had been kidnapped by Max. I kissed him again because it was so good to have him back and for him to be safe and well again.

"This is just what I needed to be near you. Can I stay for just a little while?" He kissed me again and I nodded. We sat on my bed, leaning against the headboard, head to head, shoulder to shoulder, leaning on each other, and balancing each other. If you think this was bizarre you are right it was bizarre, not only had Tristan and I been here only a night ago, we had been sitting in exactly the same way.

I took Oliver's hand in mine and traced around his palm and along each finger, in the way he had to me that time. He sighed and shuffled down a little to put his head on my shoulder. I turned my head and kissed his forehead. His hair had a fragrance of rosemary. I closed my eyes holding his hand and we sat there for about five minutes.

Then he sighed and said, "I should go Chloe, before I fall asleep."

We stood up and I said, "Wait Oliver I want to see you in the Land Rover driving away before I will be able to sleep tonight."

He picked up my jeans, which had fallen onto the floor and handed them to me.

He leaned in towards me and kissed me quickly, then said, "Okay, I can understand that, but I will only drive away as you close the door. You realize this could get tricky. How about I ring you when I am home?"

"Yes that's what you must do or I'll not sleep," I told him.

I watched him drive away through the door with the chain on it, and then I went into the kitchen. No one was there, so the boys must have gone home.

As I waited to hear from Oliver, I sat in my bed with a movie playing on my laptop. I wasn't really paying attention. I was thinking what the hell is this both the guys I totally love are immortal? I felt sure that was what had happened to Oliver. Tristan's blood was more than healing it was a fountain of youth. Max didn't know this thank heavens. Max had made off with Oliver's blood to France, more than likely, thinking it could help make medicine. What would happen when he realized it couldn't? He better not come back for more. Then I reasoned why would he. He could just as easily think the descendent hadn't inherited a healing blood after all, and go back to being whatever he was in France.

Oliver rang my cell and we said goodnight.

I couldn't sleep for a while because I was thinking about still loving two guys. I felt like it was somehow unacceptable and yet there it was.

I must have drifted off to sleep without knowing and the movie played to itself all night as I had my DivX player set to repeat.

Chapter Nineteen

The next day I woke up with a start as a line from the movie played, 'Say it, say it'. To begin with, I didn't know what day it was. I felt totally disoriented and after stopping the movie, I closed the lid of my laptop. I did know two things I was in love with two guys, and both of them were immortal.

In the shower, I went over the things Oliver had said last night. I was almost sure he had described the same things as Tristan when he told me about how he healed the first time after unfreezing. This, to say the least, changed the importance of the Magi's quest for repayment. They seemed not to know about Tristan, why were they so sure Oliver was Edmund's descendent? Now there was a question.

Tristan was supposed to come over at midday and we were going to go around to see Oliver then. I couldn't wait. I needed to tell him about Oliver. If it hadn't been so late last night when I finally hit the hay, I'd have told him. I rang him, but his voicemail was on. Crossly I put my phone on the bed and finished getting dressed. I wanted to wear my blue T-shirt but remembered I had chucked it in my laundry hamper, so I wore the antique green one, which made me feel better.

Remembering Oliver had no cell phone I rang his landline again. His mom answered saying Oliver was better and just like him was up and out. So much for being in bed for a couple of days. What was the doctor going to say if he relapsed from not taking care of himself?

I almost said there would be no chance of that happening but didn't. I commiserated with her and excused myself saying I was supposed to meet Tristan soon. I said I'd look out for Oliver. We said goodbye and I rang Tristan's phone again. This time he answered.

"Chloe, hello, I'm with Oliver, and I think you should come over. Will that be possible? Come to the usual door of the Dearing house and I'll be there. We all need to talk."

I agreed and said I'd be there ASAP.

I made sure I told mom where I was going. After all that had happened she would worry otherwise. What she would have done if she knew the whole story heaven only knows.

I was getting out of my Wrangler on the big car park and back area of the Dearing house, when another car drew up. I realized it was Liz, and I waited for her to walk to the door with her.

"Hi Liz how are you?" I said as she approached.

"I'm really well. How are you doing after that dreadful business with Oliver?"

I told her fine, and asked how her plans to work with Marcel were working out. She was enrolling in a course that she could do at the same time as working at the restaurant, and was really the happiest she had been for a long time.

We were just going through the door when Tristan came hurtling down the stairs.

"Hello Chloe, hello Liz, how are things going?"

Liz looked at him with a sort of smug but kindly expression.

"Everything's great but I have things to catch up with before I go to work this afternoon. I'll see you later," and she gave Tristan a knowing look with some kind of message in it. She went down the corridor.

I asked him about the looks they exchanged as we went upstairs to his room.

"We've talked in the last few weeks and I've asked her not to hold up her life looking out for me, but she said don't think she wouldn't watch out for me. The look is because she's warned me that you are often with Oliver."

I stopped walking when he said that, "Tristan, what did you say to that?"

He turned around and took my hand to get me walking again.

"I told her I'd take my chances, that I knew about Oliver, that Oliver and I were becoming friends, and even if we weren't I couldn't find it I my heart to be hostile towards him."

I couldn't say anything to this, so I didn't, and my silence provoked a sidelong glance from Tristan. Then before he opened the door to his room, he kissed me quickly, letting go of my hand, and then smiling as we went into his room. Oliver was sitting in a chair looking out of the massive window onto the trees and beyond.

Oliver stood up when he saw me and came to me.

"I decided this morning when I woke up that I had to see Tristan to show him the healing stuff that was going on."

I looked at Tristan, who supplied, "I told him what was happening to him, well in all likelihood, I mean we can't know for sure." Tristan shrugged with his hands in his pockets and a quizzical look on his face.

I looked at Oliver my facial expression must have asked the question because he said, "I'm fine with it. I mean I'm shocked, but I feel that the alternative, death, or injury wouldn't have been my choice. I'm relieved actually that it wasn't anything that Max did. I think I wouldn't have been fine with that."

I found myself at a loss for words. Then Tristan stepped into the silence.

"I did say I had no idea and didn't mean to do this."

"You know what guys I'm just relieved you are both fine and I think it might be a wise thing to consider what Max might do when he discovers the blood he took from Oliver is ordinary. Also aren't you just a bit interested in why he was so sure Oliver was a descendent of your father Tristan?" I asked them both looking from one to the other.

Both together they answered yes. Then looked at each other and then at me, I was making no comment to this synchronicity.

"That's maybe what we need to talk about, my thoughts are that when he discovers the blood is not in any way a healing ingredient he will give up, saying to himself that time has watered it down. We may have seen the last of him," Tristan said adding, "What do you two think?"

Oliver looked at me waiting for me to speak first.

"Well maybe that will happen. I can't help wondering why he doesn't know about you Tristan, and about the stained glass. I wonder if he will come after Oliver to find other relatives that might have the blood. I think we need to watch out for him."

Oliver sighed. "I think despite he's a raving mad man he's also influenced by his family's ancient honor. I think he'll believe he's taken payment despite it is no good to him. He has no idea about Tristan and the stained glass windows because he's convinced that Richard was Edmund's youngest son and has writings from his ancestors saying so. He's probably not concentrated on anyone but the Tarrants." Oliver stopped talking, and looked at Tristan and then continued.

"Why do you think he kept saying Sir Edmund? He never said Dearing once. He didn't say Richard De Stoches, and he referred to the Tarrant estate? I really think we might have seen the last of him."

Tristan nodded to this and I had to agree he had a point.

"All the same, I think we should take care, and he must not get any more of your blood Oliver nor Tristan's as we now know it's like gold dust, well fairy dust," I said smiling, though inside I felt a little frisson of sadness.

We chatted for a while longer about how to spot anything weird going on that might mean Max, or his grandfather, or any other family member might be back. The big question on all our lips was should we hunt him down and watch him. We decided we couldn't do that it would raise too many questions.

Oliver sighed. "I need to get into town and buy a cell phone. I feel so cut off without one. I need to make sure I can keep my old number because if not I need to contact all my business connections with a new number. That will be such a nuisance. I'll have to get all my cards and headed stuff reprinted."

Right then Tristan's phone rang.

It was James, and he'd found a stone box in the dig that had carvings all over it and the Dearing coat of arms. They hadn't opened it because Jack had told them he wanted to be contacted if they found anything. James told Tristan that he would delay ringing Jack if Tristan wanted to look at the box before Jack.

When they ended the call, Oliver told us he would get going to check in with his mom, who would be worrying.

"We'll come down to the car with you, Oliver," Tristan said. We were downstairs and out in the car parking area, when I realized I hadn't noticed Oliver's Land Rover out there and I wondered how he had got to Tristan's place. Oliver walked over to a dark blue hatch back and said, "Mother's car, the police still have mine."

Tristan grinned and turned to me. "Chloe, do you want to come down to the dig with me?"

I wanted to go to the dig with Tristan but I wanted to go with Oliver too. I may have communicated this somehow because Oliver gave me a longing look as he was about to get in the hatchback.

Tristan suddenly said, "Oliver, why not use my phone to call your mother and come down to the dig with us, I think under the circumstances it might be good if you were in on any information that might come to light. Maybe the phone buying could wait until later. What do you think?"

I was so happy to hear this and hoped Oliver would say yes. He hesitated for a couple of seconds then said yes he would come along to the dig, and Tristan passed him his phone. Oliver called his mom and then we drove to the edge of the abbey grounds from where it was quicker to walk down to the dig.

When we arrived, James came forward to greet us acknowledging Oliver and myself, and then saying to Tristan, "We have the box on a pallet by the hole we found it in, and we haven't called Jack, nor opened it. Technically we can open it, after all Jack didn't say if you find a box don't open it," he laughed a little at this wit. Then added, "Phil will open it, he's really the expert at this stuff," and he introduced us to the archaeologist squatting by the box.

Phil looked up from under a well-worn baseball cap, saying firstly hello and then that he would be having Leslie help him with the box. Leslie was a young woman with scarlet hair and lots of silver earrings. They carefully tried sliding the lid from the box. Then they washed it down a bit, carefully around the seal, and then tried again, lifting and sliding. James gave them a hand, as it seemed either very heavy or stuck. I noticed Tristan taking photos of the carvings with his cell phone that Oliver had given back to him. The lid came up and then slid along. All three archaeologists carefully placed the lid on the pallet next to the box.

"Ah, it's empty, there's nothing in it," Phil laughingly called out.

James looked at Tristan. "Sorry old man, nothing in it, unless it's got a secret bottom."

Leslie, felt around the inside and Phil was carefully looking at it.

"Doubtful," he said, then, "No I'd say this is it, an empty stone box, significant though as no doubt this is Norman, look at the carvings here." He pointed at them. "This is beautiful," he finished with a big smile on his face.

Tristan agreed saying from what he knew it was Norman. Careful not to say how he knew, I noticed, inwardly amused. He asked Phil what he thought it might have been used for.

Phil thought it could be ecclesiastical use since it was stone and the castle was known to have its own church before the other was built separately in the thirteen hundreds. "I'd say maybe relics were housed in it, stone for protection you know."

We nodded. Oliver had been silently watching all of this, standing very close to me. It had been strange not to hold his hand, as he was so close.

Tristan thanked James for keeping him in the loop and said, "Who knows the box itself might be what Jack was looking for, not anything in it."

We left and walked back to the abbey where we had left Tristan's little white car.

He drove us back to his place without saying anything and then as we were almost there he commented, "That stone box, I have one just like it only made of wood."

"Tristan, how has it survived this long made of wood?" Oliver was amazed.

"Oh well, wood only perishes if it's not taken care of. I've taken very good care of my box because my mother gave it to me when I was sixteen. I have it now. It's in my armoire."

"That's the massive cupboard in your room, the one the same as in my room?" I questioned.

"It is," answered Tristan.

"Do you think there's a connection between the boxes Tristan?" I asked.

"I don't know, really I don't, but maybe. I want to compare the pictures of the carvings with my box and make sure they are the same, one stone, and one wooden. I may just go do that and get back to you." He sounded in a hurry to do it.

I recognized that we were not invited and said I'd catch up with them later. Oliver said he needed to get a phone and we all split to different places.

Chapter Twenty

My place was the kitchen patio. I sat there on the wall with a dish of cherries, eating them from around the stone, holding them with their stalk, and chucking the remains back in the dish. I felt a bit petulant. I felt sad. I suddenly realized that I didn't care that I was in love with two guys, who cares, they are both immortal and I'm not, I thought to myself. I don't care, I'll love both of them because why shouldn't I? In the scheme of things, how could it matter now? I realized what that frisson of sadness had been. It was because they would go on without me.

I felt as if I had confronted my own mortality earlier than I'd have liked to.

I went upstairs to my room and looked at my drawings of Tristan and Oliver together. I had better watch out I thought, maybe drawing them together like that had been a premonition. I went over to the massive cupboard in my room and opened it. You could get inside it if you wanted to, and stand up. I looked at the carvings on it. They had some similarity to the carvings on the box and Tristan's cupboard. The chevrons definitely were the same. The geometric patterning surrounding a pair of birds and a sort of lion, a Griffin was familiar. Where had I seen one of those recently? The carved feet of the cupboard were Griffin's feet.

I idly sat on my bed wishing I had gone with Oliver and as if by magic my cell rang.

It was Oliver. "I've been able to keep my old number," he told me, "and allayed the fears my mother had about me relapsing from my injuries. I can have my Land Rover back, and I was thinking if you're not busy maybe you could pick me up and drive me into the police compound."

"I'd love to Oliver," I told him. "When do you want me to pick you up?"

"Any time you like."

"Okay, I am on my way."

I picked up my keys, and phone and was out the door quickly.

I wanted to be doing something, and it was a plus for me that it was with Oliver. The thing with adventures is that when they are over, despite they may have been traumatic, ordinary life just becomes pale.

I got some petrol at the corner gas station before I turned into the village and went through it to Oliver's parents' place. This was a very large house and garden. It was much bigger than even the Californian houses I'd grown up in, and it had a thatched roof. Oliver's conversion was to the side and back a little, across what could have been an exercise area for the horses when they had them. He must have been looking out the window for the Wrangler because he came out of the door, and jumped in. He leaned over and kissed me on the cheek before I reversed and drove out onto the road again.

"Chloe has anything changed between us?" he asked.

"Not on my part, Oliver," I told him.

"Only you seem a little different, maybe wary even."

I glanced at him quickly then looked back at the road. "No Oliver, I feel exactly the same about you as I did, maybe I feel a little sad that all this has happened, I don't know."

"I fell in love with you some time ago," he said softly, and I knew I had to reply to this.

"I love you too Oliver," I said. He leaned over and kissed me on the side of my neck just under my jaw.

"Thank god," he said.

"What?" I was amused.

"Well I'm relieved. I was scared you might not, that maybe this stuff with my getting some of Tristan's blood had changed things. We were really close, I thought, and I honestly didn't know how I'd cope with the loss of that."

I sighed. I wanted to give him a hug of reassurance, but I still had to drive somewhere. "Oliver, I don't know the way to the police compound. You'll have to give me directions."

He laughed and said, "Turn right at the next roundabout. Then second left, okay here's the entrance, but we need to go to the far end of the laneway and right into the wire gates there."

We had to stop and give the reference number to a man in a small office by the wire gates. Oliver got the paper he'd written the number on out of his pocket. The man brought the number up on his computer screen and had Oliver sign something then returned Oliver's keys. We drove to the very back of the compound where larger vehicles were parked.

Oliver was grinning and saying, hurray my old Land Rover back again and got out, but before closing the passenger side door he said, "Chloe, follow me home, I'd love your company for a while longer, is that okay?"

I told him yes and watched him smilingly climb into the Land Rover. I followed him back to his house and parked at the front of his conversion next to his car.

"You do know it's still got your blood on it Oliver?" I said looking the car over.

"I do and I'll go to the car wash later, but first may I invite you into my office or drawing room?"

I grinned and followed him into his place. It was all white, with black glass and metal desks housing two desktop computers and massive screens, a large multi-function printer sat on a low filing cabinet. An old leather sofa was at the window end with a smoked glass coffee table next to it. There was a rack of wireless hubs and assorted peripherals.

"Could I get you tea or something? We could go out onto the lawn," Oliver asked.

I answered that water would do fine and we went out through his kitchen door onto a lawn where a couple of faded blue wooden chairs were next to a white painted table.

"So how do you feel Oliver? It must be the weirdest thing because there is every probability you're like Tristan now, immortal."

"Yes weird is the word. I feel physically great but mentally jumpy," he said, and then laughed.

"I know exactly what you mean. I keep thinking something else is on the horizon but what?" I said to him.

"At the dig Tristan seemed to want to get somewhere fast after he'd seen that stone box. You noticed the Griffin on it, the same as Richard De Stoches crest on his tomb?" Oliver took a sip of water.

"I knew I'd seen that somewhere before," I said, forgetting I was the only one of us who had noticed the carving on my cupboard.

"Oh sorry Oliver I was really thinking aloud then. I noticed the Griffin on the carvings of the massive old cupboard in my room, and I didn't remember where I had seen it before, you just reminded me. Do you think it's just coincidence, maybe they are commonplace in that era, in carvings and coat of arms?"

Oliver thought for a few seconds.

"Well maybe there are a few of them around, but I think it's more likely in this instance not to be coincidence. I'd like to be around for Tristan, now he's kind of saved my life, but he's not really ready for that is he?"

"He's probably not used to having someone like him around, I mean you know," and I looked around in case anyone could overhear, whispering the words, "immortal and Oliver I'm surprised at how calmly you're taking it yourself." I looked at him, still lovely, just sitting there calmly.

"I find I forget it, then I remember it, and I don't want to think about it too much yet, because some of the implications are profound, so much so that I don't want to confront them yet. Also, perhaps it's not permanent."

Oliver looked a little anxious for just a moment then shrugged and smiled at me. He leaned forward, took my hand, and said, "Just in case it's not and I suddenly shrivel up and die, kiss me." I smiled at this, even though it wasn't really funny, since I suspected it was said only half-jokingly, and I did kiss him.

I asked Oliver if he was going to work at the restaurant this weekend thinking he may give it a miss, but he'd decided to go in and try to be as normal as possible. It seemed like a good idea.

After showing me the website he was building for a shop that sold crystals and new age books, we parted. I felt odd leaving him at home. It felt like he should be with me, over in the old mansion that was Tristan's, and to put an even more perverse spin on the whole feeling, it felt as if the three of us, Tristan, Oliver and I were linked, and should be at least on the same estate. I'd be glad when Oliver was at the restaurant working, then he wouldn't be so far away.

As I drove home, I thought about the stained glass window question, did Oliver need one now? Who knew, and should I get one made just in case? I'd ask Tristan what he thought. Although, I reasoned as I was stopped at the cross roads, since Oliver had no spell to make him immortal maybe they weren't a factor in his existence. A car passed me going in the opposite direction, and I was certain Laura was the driver. It was the gray car Liz very often drove. I'd forgotten Laura was due to arrive home. I could hardly believe five weeks had gone by, but at the same time, so much had happened it felt longer. It looked as if she had changed since going to France, had her hair cut and streaked, so maybe it wasn't her.

At home, I went up to look hard at the carvings on the massive cupboard which, it occurred to me, might well be a companion to Tristan's. It was bigger than his was and as I had got inside it earlier, I noticed that the back of the cupboard wasn't in the same wood as the rest of it. In fact, it looked like modern wood. There'd been an effort to color it in the same stain as the older wood but when you got up close, it wasn't. It would be a wild guess as to why Richard had griffins on his jousting crest.

I went over to my drawings and added a horse being led by Tristan and a shield being carried by Oliver and on the shield, I drew what I remembered of Richard's crest. It was just a whim, but looking at the effect, I liked it. I wondered idly if this could be a design for a stained glass window, that way Oliver would be covered if he needed to be.

When I had heard nothing from Tristan, Oliver, Clare, or anyone else by ten that evening I checked my emails. One of my friends had a new boyfriend, and one of my friends was planning her birthday party, asking if there was any chance I might fly over for it. She had already bought the dress she was going to wear and sent me a photograph of it, which she had also put up on Facebook. I read it all and did some emailing back in a lackluster way. Somehow, I felt very distant and different from who I used to be in California. Though there was nothing wrong with that person, I knew I couldn't go back to that.

There were two weddings at the abbey grounds, one that night and one Saturday. The one tonight had fireworks, and they exploded into beautiful colors in the sky, quite visible from my window. I moved to watch them.

Standing at my window and watching the fireworks, I thought how many people were around this estate on a daily and nightly basis. The whole area was a hive of activity. People would be coming and going all the time.

The fireworks ended and I went to bed.

Chapter Twenty-One

Saturday early morning, and I was standing around in the kitchen, listening to Steven on his cell phone making arrangements with John for rehearsals. I was thinking about going over to the drama group if Clare was around. I felt the need to achieve something and finishing off any stage sets, that needed work would be good.

I rang her forgetting it was early. After I apologized for the early call I discovered Clare wasn't going to be doing anything at the hall that day, but said a number of people would be there if I wanted to go down. They'd decided the sets were fine and a change of gel on the lights would be better than trying a set change at the various points they had previously thought would be good. She sounded preoccupied so I ended the call deciding to research the possibility of having a stained glass window made of my drawing.

When I looked at it again I thought it would be a good thing to have a window done, there could be no harm at the very least. What might it cost I thought? I had my netbook open and searched the Glazer glass company. I might be able to get a small version of my design relatively inexpensively. I could get it made as a roundel and hang it in my window, arousing no suspicions whatsoever I thought, especially since the design was in my opinion very attractive.

I was about to take a scanned copy of my drawing down to the Glazer's workshop to get details of what it would really cost, since it would be classified as a commission, when my cell rang. It was Tristan. Everyone was up early I thought. He said hello and sorry he hadn't rung last night, but that he had been putting the order together for the wedding tonight. He was doing the last delivery to the restaurant lawn area marquee soon and he might call by if I was around the place. I thought that was a very casual phrase, and smilingly said I was around the place. He said great.

I didn't want to tell Tristan I was getting a stained glass roundel made of my drawing. I don't know why. I felt I wanted it to be just mine, so I also decided I'd leave out asking if he thought Oliver would need one.

When Tristan arrived looking gorgeous in jeans and T-shirt, I asked him in, offering him coffee.

"I would like some coffee please," he said, "Chloe, I need to take a look at that cupboard in your room if you don't mind."

"I don't mind but I'm intrigued, is this anything to do with the box?"

"Not too much passes you by lovely Chloe," he answered, taking my hand and kissing it. Wow, did he also bow?

I smiled at him. It was good to see him.

We went up to my room and he went straight to the cupboard. He firstly inspected the carvings, then taking out his phone he compared them with the pictures he had taken of the stone box.

"Well the carvings are just like the ones on my cupboard and the box. I didn't want to just trust memory, even though I was sure I was right."

Then he turned to look at me. "You know how your bathroom is modern Chloe?" he stated rather than asked. I nodded. It was all modern fittings, which had been great to find when I first came over. "Well," he continued, "the bathroom itself didn't previously exist. We put in walls to enclose a space for the bathroom, recently. The door that leads to it from the kitchen up that staircase led straight into this room.

After I first had to leave my home, which was the castle, I was at my uncles for a while, and I hadn't been here for many years, well about two hundred actually. This house had a two-story sort of tower then. You can see from the outside if you know about these things. The brickwork was done after the old Anglo Saxon diagonal fashion. This is the oldest part of the house and has had lots of renovation and structural support. That's why you have the windows in strange places and the staircase too. The kitchen has always been under here.

Anyway, when I came back as a visitor I stayed here, which was sort of a gatehouse hunting-lodge from my father's time. You need to remember the Dearings were very wealthy in those times. The cupboard had been over the door. No one would know the door was there. I didn't, not until the first set of renovations. This place wasn't fully my home until about then, and I was a visitor to the Dearings of the time. You remember I used to come and go pretending to be someone else every hundred years or so, well it wasn't quite that simple, but you get what I mean. I came here and the place had started to get run down. The Dearing family of the time was even thinking of letting the place go completely. I convinced them otherwise because really the place was one of the only parts of my inheritance I could really have, no one was very interested in it. We added a wing instead of it being left to ruin.

That happened a few times until you have what it is now. This cupboard I moved when I took my cupboard over to Jack's place, way back before his time, but it did sit in this room next to the one you have, which as I said was over the door. Much later, I had this cupboard put in another room. I knew about the door in the kitchen, but it had also been covered over by a large dresser for as long as I could remember. Then when the dresser was moved, we couldn't find a key to the door. Not wanting to do damage we left it for years. The dresser is up at Jacks. I found the key to the kitchen end of the staircase door in my cupboard. It was hidden in a tiny little drawer that kind of fell open when we hauled the thing up to my room. I used the key to look at the condition of the stairs and surprisingly they were in very good condition, we've done work on them since too. So to cut a long story short the stairs were hidden at both kitchen and bedroom end for many years. When they were first hidden, I don't know. The door to this room had to be removed as we never found a key and that's why it's modern. The cupboard you have now didn't have that back on it, we got that put on."

I was sitting there looking at him. He'd been explaining the passage of time and change in the house as if it were hours not hundreds of years. His blue eyes intent on my face, he had occasionally used a hand gesture to better explain something. It was a pleasure to look at him.

"I get it, of course the staircase was a secret route to this room and back down to the kitchen, and to add to the secrecy the person had to come through the cupboard," I said smiling at him.

He looked at me a bit puzzled. "I guess you're right, I never thought of it like that. I was thinking more like it was an escape route."

My face must have been showing my concern, as he added, "I mean, I've lived in violent times, it just seemed like an escape route..." He tailed off.

"Maybe it was both Tristan," I said to him. "But tell me about the carvings, what significance do you think they have if they are the same as the boxes?"

"I don't know yet, and I don't think the boxes or the carvings are really related. I mean they are in that they have the same patterns and creatures on them, but it was the fact they all feature griffins, it's like a linking motif, but even that isn't why I was interested."

"It's because of Richard's coat of arms isn't it?" I asked.

He looked sad and nodded, "Yes. I thought maybe it might be coincidence but I'm not convinced."

There were so many unanswered questions surrounding Tristan, but I thought the one that was really on his mind, even if he didn't say it, was if Richard was really his half-brother or not. I thought at this stage it was more than likely, pretty much everything pointed to it and from what Max had said to Oliver others thought it too.

I went to Tristan and hugged him.

"What's going on Tristan, you seem saddened?"

"I was thinking if only I had known my blood would heal back then, I could have saved him," he almost whispered.

"You mean Richard?" I whispered back.

"I just thought it was me, I healed, and lived on, I didn't think I could help anyone else. If only I'd known."

"But you didn't Tristan, you didn't know when you helped Oliver, also didn't you say Richard died of an illness, how could you have transferred blood to him?" I tried to comfort him. I held onto him in a hug and he put his head down on my shoulder.

"You're right, I just regret not knowing. I could have saved him, he was my best friend, and I think he was my brother, my half-brother."

He stayed in my arms for a minute then he gently stepped away from me.

"Chloe, I could have saved hundreds of people," his voice cracked.

"Tristan, you don't know that, not for sure. Oliver may have healed, but we don't know for sure he has become immortal too. We don't know anything for sure, maybe it doesn't work on everybody, and maybe it wears off. Then there's the question of going around making people immortal, well potentially. How moral is that?"

He had sat down on my desk chair, and I went to him and held his face so that I looked into his eyes. "Tristan, you can't beat yourself up about anything, you don't know what to expect next. It may be that we need to look for that letter from your father to his lady and the monks. Now we know she was Eleanor Tarrant. I think that's what Jack hoped would be found in the dig. I bet when he sees the box his eyes light up in the hope that the letter is in it. It must be somewhere, unless it's perished or destroyed." I kissed him then, how could I not?

"I feel guilty about Oliver, if he has become like me I mean. You know it's not all great living on and on. Remember in the myths and legends where the Gods are jealous of humans because they can die. I've had cause to understand that in my life especially if you are alone a lot." He shook his head, and looked down.

"I'm a little concerned about Oliver myself. I don't think you should feel guilty, because you probably saved his life. I feel some concern because he seems so calm about it all."

Looking up at me, Tristan frowned a little.

"Maybe we should talk with him about it, yes let's do that as soon as possible." It was interesting how Tristan could become concerned about others and leave his own feelings so easily. He almost seized on the chance. It was obvious he'd made an effort to put a smile on his face, but there was still some sadness in his eyes.

"Let's go for a walk. It's a beautiful morning. I think better outdoors," he said. Standing up he went to the window and leaned out.

"Okay, that would be great," I agreed laughing at the way he leaned right over the windowsill. "Be careful Tristan." I said without thinking that maybe he couldn't hurt himself even if he fell.

He came over to me. "That vine outside the window there looks strong enough to climb. I may try that one night, and appear at your window like Romeo. Pity there's no balcony. I love Shakespeare." He seemed genuinely happier now and came up to me picking me up and spinning around with me.

"I guess you've seen a fair few Shakespearean plays in your time," I said to him, smiling, my arms around him as he put me gently back down.

"I have," he kissed me, a few times, and in between whispered, "I think I will climb it just for fun. I feel happy around you."

We went downstairs and out onto the garden walking hand in hand not choosing a direction, we ended up in the restaurant garden.

"Tristan, where would lovers meet in your father's time, where might they be able to meet secretly do you think?" I asked.

He stopped walking, looked at me, and said, "I don't know, anywhere I guess, but it would be harder if they were married to other people. They might wait until their husband or wife was away. You're thinking about my father and Eleanor aren't you?"

"Yes, it's just if they had a secret place that could be where the letter is," I told him.

"After all this time?" Tristan laughed.

"Well Tristan, scrolls and manuscripts and such are found, look at the ones they found already at the abbey dig."

"Of course, you're right, but they do have to be well protected. I can't imagine my father taking the trouble to do that. He thought the letter would be taken quite quickly by Eleanor, because he went back to the battle intending not to come back in my opinion."

"I bet the hiding place is in the cupboards, the dresser, or the staircase. Also, we can't just assume he didn't wrap it up. He may have wanted to disguise it in case anyone other than Eleanor found it."

Tristan laughed. "Do you think so?" Then he stopped laughing and said "That makes sense, but there just doesn't seem anywhere on the staircase to hide anything, remember we have had it renovated a few times. As for the dresser and the cupboards, I can't imagine where a letter may be hidden in them that we wouldn't have found already like we did with the key."

He put his arm around my shoulders as we turned and started walking around the lake. This took us up close to the patio tables where people were already using the café service. As the summer had grown warm, dad had started to open it at nine for coffee, croissants and other breakfast food. Someone at one of the tables was waving at us.

"Is that person waving at us Tristan?" I asked him. Tristan was smiling, but as he looked at the person waving, he stopped smiling and a look of annoyance came onto his face.

"Oh no, that's Laura," he said turning to me, and taking my hand he was going to walk us down the path again and away from her, but she stood up and started hurrying towards us.

"She's running after us Tristan, we can't just pretend we haven't seen her." I said turning around again and standing still. He let go of my hand and looking pained, he stood there waiting for her to catch us up.

He put his sunglasses on, and then he put his hands in his pockets, standing slightly in front of me, he said as she approached, "Watch out for this one's barbed tongue."

I almost burst out laughing at that quaint turn of phrase, but managed not to as she came up and loudly greeted Tristan.

"Tristan darling, I missed seeing you this last two days, where have you been? What are you doing here?" She looked at me as if to add, 'and what are you doing with her.'

Tristan to his credit was extremely polite saying he had been working and hadn't realized she was home from France, how was she, how was her trip?

She was very haughty and talked at him as if she was in front of an audience in her rather high-pitched voice. She never once looked my way after that first glance, but I bet she was thinking a lot about me.

I didn't listen to her after the first few minutes and was watching one of the peacocks walk in the usual stately fashion down the lawn towards the marquee where I could see people setting up tables and flower arrangements. I remembered the wedding and thought that maybe the reception was going to kick off this evening.

I had been right about the person driving Liz's car. It had been Laura, with her hair cut and with lots of blonde streaks in it, she looked quite different now from Liz.

Laura was turning back to walk up to the patio and her table. Tristan waited for a moment then grabbed my hand and we walked quickly away. He must have been making sure we were out of hearing range then he said, "She's just such an egotist and she's definitely going to start chasing after me again despite she says she's met someone in France. I just know it."

Having not listened to her, I was interested in this development.

"Has she met someone, oh good, that's got to be good hasn't it?" I asked trying to slow us down a little as he was walking so quickly.

"Didn't you hear her tone when she was telling us, it wasn't exactly as if she had fallen in love, more like this guy is some kind of trophy."

I laughed at that. "A trophy? That's hilarious, but sad for him."

Tristan had slowed down his pace and sighing he said, "She's disturbed my calm. I knew she was home, but I avoided her."

He put his arm around me again and we walked back to the house without saying much more.

Oliver's Land Rover was outside the house when we got there. I looked at Tristan and he looked at me, since we had talked about Oliver, it seemed ominous that he had turned up and without a text or call, which wasn't usual.

Inside there was no sign of him. I left Tristan making coffee in the kitchen and went down to mom's study. He was in there with her, and they were busy with some code for an application that obviously I didn't know.

"Hello you two, what's going on?" I asked them. Oliver had spun around in the chair and was already smiling his lovely smile.

"Hello Chloe, just getting some advice from your mother. I needed a particular effect for a web page and just kept missing the mark. I wanted to see you anyway so when I popped over and you weren't here, I asked your mother if she had any tips."

"And I did, I'll put this on a flash drive for you Oliver, okay?" mom said grinning. Nothing pleased her more than solving a computer or software related problem. She was going back to California next week to do a salvage job on one of her business contact's new projects, which was going horribly wrong. Just for the week, but she had asked me if I'd like to go and I was thinking about it, but in reality, I already knew I wouldn't go. This place was more than my home now. It was where I belonged.

"Tristan is in the kitchen making coffee," I told them. "Anyone want some?" Oliver and mom wanted some. I went down to the kitchen and got a couple of cups out of the cupboard, putting spoons of coffee granules in them and boiling the kettle at the same time I told Tristan that Oliver had dropped by, and as I said this, I gave him a look.

"Do you think he's okay?" Tristan asked, leaning against the counter next to me.

"I don't know really, but he seemed okay."

I took their coffee up to them in the study, but Oliver was just about to come down to the kitchen and after thanking mom followed me back down there carrying his cup with him.

We all went out to the patio table and sat down.

Tristan asked Oliver outright if he was okay, and not suddenly in shock from the whole blood thing.

I was watching Oliver's face as Tristan asked this and saw relief on it.

"Well I did wake up this morning with the strangest feeling, it was like fear. I can't describe it properly, but I felt as if I had to be around people, not just wander around the center of town, but be with people who knew me."

He shrugged and smiled a sad smile at both of us, continuing, "For someone who may have all the time in the world I felt as if I didn't."

Tristan sighed. "I get that. I call it edgy. It's as if I want to embark on a journey for me. Does that make sense?"

Oliver smiled a less sad smile. "That's probably a good word, edgy."

Tristan added, "It's not easy Oliver, for me it's about never really knowing what might happen to you next."

I couldn't help saying that it was like that for everyone no one really knew what might happen to them next.

"Well that's true, but this is about the supernatural stuff. For a few years I kept thinking I might suddenly age, you know overnight I'd become my true age for some reason, and blow away as dust in the morning breeze." Tristan said and for some reason we all went silent and for a minute or two just sat silently.

Then suddenly Oliver agreed saying, "Yes it's about the magic bit, the one you can't extrapolate."

"Oliver, if you ever need to talk, I'm here, and well, always will be if you know what I mean." Tristan spoke again, and for some reason this made us all laugh.

"Seriously I mean it Oliver."

Oliver smiled. "Thanks Tristan."

I actually felt a little left out, and inwardly berated myself for this selfishness. Tristan stood up, and said he had to be going, as he needed to get some work done but would be in touch with both of us soon.

I went to the car with him and as he wound down the driver side window, leaned in and kissed him. "You still love me then?" he whispered, I nodded, I did still love him; what could he mean?

He drove away and I returned to the kitchen patio via the little path from the front. Oliver had walked to the garden area and was standing looking out at the edge of the woods. I walked up there myself and he turned around and smiled.

"It's hard to see you with Tristan," he said. "Harder than before, because I thought eventually you would choose me, since I was like you, well, normal." He floundered a bit.

I looked at him, and there was a little sadness in my look. "I couldn't choose before and I can't choose now, I absolutely care for you both, can you accept that? I don't know what will happen. I feel that I'm wrong to feel this way, but then I know I can't help it. If you ever want to pull away from me, you know find someone who doesn't love someone else besides you, then I'll understand." I did genuinely mean this, in fact I loved both of them enough to, as the song says, set them free.

He came over and hugged me. "Not a chance. I've got all the time in the world. I certainly don't need to hurry away from you."

I hugged him and we walked to the kitchen. I put the cups in the dishwasher thinking about that letter of Sir Edmund's. I said, "Oliver, how much time have you got today? Are you up for a treasure hunt?"

He looked at me, raised one eyebrow slightly and nodding said, "You bet," a big smile appearing on his face.

Chapter Twenty-Two

"Okay, well first of all we're going to search every square inch of that massive armoire thing in my room for a secret drawer, panel, or whatever."

He laughed, just the trace of a dimple in his left cheek, his lovely brown eyes sparkling. This was better. I wanted Oliver to be happy.

We went upstairs and straight to the cupboard. First, I took out my things, which didn't take long, and put them on my bed. Oliver got my shoes out of the bottom of the cupboard and put them down by the bed.

I got my high beam torch and was inside the cupboard looking around. Oliver said, "What would this secret drawer contain Chloe, just the letter?"

"Yes, why?" I asked him.

"Just trying to imagine what feature of the cupboard might be a natural place for a secret drawer. You know like the carvings might come apart, or the door panel may be double or something, because right now it looks like a solid thing." He was feeling all along the doorframe and checking the thickness of one door against the other.

I couldn't see anything inside, and getting out, I asked Oliver if he wanted to look. I handed him the torch. He knelt in there, examined the bottom around the joins, and then looked up and down the sides and corners. Then he got the stool from by my bed and stood on it to look over the top of the cupboard and the carvings.

"Nothing but a spider, and a thin one at that."

We both looked and felt all around the carved bits and the feet.

"There's nothing here Chloe." Oliver stopped looking and came to me putting his arms around my waist and drawing me to him, he put his forehead down against mine. I closed my eyes and just enjoyed this closeness. There was a difference in how it felt to be close to Oliver in comparison with Tristan. It was such a comfort to be with Oliver and so intense to be with Tristan.

That's the last time I'm comparing them I said to myself. It's my perception not them I thought.

Oliver softly kissed me, and then letting me go he said, "Let's get your stuff back into the cupboard." He picked up my shoes and put them on the bottom of the cupboard, and I got some of the hanging things and put them on the rail. He put the rest on there. "I guess this rail wasn't an original feature," he observed grinning.

"Well the thing seemed to be built over the door to the staircase originally, Tristan was telling me."

"Over the staircase door, how odd so the hallway wasn't there then?"

Oliver was looking at the bedroom door and I realized he didn't know about the door to the ancient staircase that led to the kitchen.

"Oliver, the staircase I mean is in my bathroom and goes down to the kitchen," I told him.

"Really, can I see it?" he was heading to the bathroom door where I'd pointed.

"Sure," I said and moved forward to open the door into the bathroom.

He saw the chair wedged under the handle of the other door and looked at me, there was question and some worry in his eyes.

"What's the story, doesn't it lock?" he asked.

"Yes and it is locked, it's just that there is another key." I took my key from the window ledge where I had put it and took the chair away from the door.

"Who has the other key Chloe?" Oliver asked as he watched me unlock the door.

I avoided the question by opening the door and showing Oliver the top of the stairs, the staircase had been wired for electric light but the wires were on the outside of the walls looped and taped onto just stick on hooks as if the walls were not to be penetrated. I switched them on and the bare globes lit up.

"Wow," Oliver let out a bit of a startled sound. "This is way old, way steep and way cool," he said. I laughed at him and he laughed too, then he stepped forward onto the top step. "Have you been down them Chloe?"

"I did when I first moved in, but I found it frightening for some reason, not because of the steepness but because it's obvious this part of the house is old and somehow I could feel the oldness. Does that sound stupid?"

"What about something being hidden here?" He started down the first zigzag of steps.

"I don't think so, Tristan said they would have found it when they renovated. He felt sure of it," I answered following him.

There were parts of the walls that were original and these smelt sort of musty, moldy, and dusty. I followed Oliver and he stopped when the stairs not only went down again doubly steeply but sort of seemed to spiral slightly. Looking around he said, "There really could be a secret place here, they could have missed it, let's go to the bottom," and he continued down the stairs. At the bottom, the door led to a sort of alcove area, then the main kitchen.

"Unbelievable," Oliver said elated by the whole thing.

I smiled at him locking the door at the bottom and turned to him.

"Oliver, we'll use the modern stairs to get to my room again." I took his hand leading him away from the door.

Once back in my room, I switched the lights off in the old stairs and locked the door. I replaced the chair under the handle so that it wouldn't turn.

Oliver who was watching me thoughtfully asked, "Is it Tristan who has the other key?"

Faced with the direct question I told him yes.

He grinned. "Good."

I gave him a glance. "Good, so you don't mind?"

"Why would I? I can't think of anyone I'd prefer to have access to the bedroom of the girl I love, and you have the chair to prevent the handle turning. Though I suspect anyone determined to make it turn would be able to. I have another question, why does Tristan have a key?"

"It's his house," I said, watching Oliver shake his head and begin smiling.

"Of course it is," he stated.

"So does he have keys to the whole place then?"

I had to say yes, and then I added, "He doesn't use them and all owners that rent their places out kept a set of keys for emergencies."

"True," Oliver said, sitting on the desk chair. He caught sight of the drawing I was going to take to the Glazers that was on my desk. He picked it up and looked closely at it.

"I drew that to get something made for my bedroom window. I was about to take it to the Glazers when Tristan called earlier," I told him wondering what he would make of it.

"Has Tristan seen this drawing?" he asked without looking at me.

"Yes he did catch sight of it before it was finished," I answered.

"It looks like me and Tristan. Is it?" Oliver looked at me with a strange look on his face.

"Yes Oliver it is." I went across to him and put my arms around his neck, kissing his cheek from behind.

"You're getting a stained glass window made of me and him?" Oliver persisted.

I went around to face him.

"A roundel, to hang in my window to catch the light, Oliver it's a decoration. After I had drawn it, I so liked the effect I wanted to preserve it in some way."

He looked at me as if I wasn't telling him the whole truth and because I knew I wasn't, I sighed and said, "Ask me the question in your mind."

He looked at me kindly, and asked, "Do you think it will protect me from death the same as the one at the abbey museum does for Tristan?"

"I don't know, I doubt it, because it was Tristan who had the spell cast for him."

He suddenly stood up, put his hands on either side of my face, and kissed me.

"If it's to keep me alive that's very reassuring. It means you do love me."

"You already know that Oliver."

"I think we should go and see the Glazers now." Oliver was grinning again. "That's if we have finished looking for the letter from Tristan's father."

We went downstairs passing mom in the kitchen. Oliver called, "Thanks again Mrs. McGarry."

I smiled at her.

"Hi, Mom, we're just heading out to Ben's place for a while."

I put the drawing on the back seat of my Wrangler automatically assuming I would drive us. It seemed okay with Oliver and he got into the passenger seat.

The Glazer family workshop was in the town after the village where Oliver lived and we arrived quite quickly. There were a number of different villages, ranging in size in the area, all with their own charm. Right now most had all kinds of flowers in bloom either in the gardens or in hanging baskets, and pots. It was all so pretty.

Ben was in the workshop and greeted us.

"Hi I'm just about to head home to shower for work at the restaurant. Aren't you supposed to be working tonight too, Oliver?"

"I'm due in at nine just to help with the last part of the wedding party, late supper, and hot drinks. I'm working the whole of the Sunday café shift."

Seeing me holding my drawing, Ben asked, "What did you want Chloe?"

"I hoped to get an estimate to have this design done as a stained glass roundel."

He took the drawing to an older man who seemed to be painting in the color on the halo of an angel on a glass panel. The older man looked at my design for a short time, and then asked me a few questions about the outlines in lead work and the colors, then he gave me a price that was twice what I expected, but still I wanted this work done. I signed an order and left the drawing.

We said to bye to Ben and drove off.

Oliver was quiet for a while then he said, "You know, neither Ben nor the older guy realized I was in that drawing. Ben didn't even recognize Tristan although he has met Tristan a few times."

"I know, I've told you before we're special in some way, no one sees Tristan in the stained glass, except you and me, and well I guess Jack and Liz, but only because they know he's there I suspect."

I was just about to pass Oliver's house when Oliver asked if we could drop in and get his clothes for work that night.

We went into his place and Oliver found his things quickly and came back into the office room. He put the flash drive my mom had given him on his desk and we left the house again.

"Chloe, I was hoping to hang out with you until I have to work," he said as we were driving again.

"That will be great, Oliver."

My cell started ringing about a road away from our turn off. Oliver asked if he should answer it. "Sure Oliver it might be important."

"Hello, Chloe's phone," he said in his extremely British accent making me smile.

"Oh hello Tristan...yes I'm still with her...well we're driving...I think definitely...I'll just check." He turned slightly to me.

"Chloe, Tristan has had a call from James. They've unearthed a Norman font at the dig. Jack was with them when it happened, but has stalked off, James's words, will we meet Tristan at the dig and take a look with him?"

I nodded vigorously, and said, "Tell him yes, on the way now."

"Hello Tristan, Chloe, and I are on the way now. Okay great, yes, see you there."

He rang off as I took the fork in the road that took us up to the tourist car park at the abbey ruins.

"Wow, that's a cool find," I said.

"It certainly is and isn't it interesting how Tristan always invites us both to look at the finds now, although maybe he was just ringing for you," Oliver finished in a low voice.

"No, he wants you in on it all now. He told me, and has he got your phone number anyway?" I asked.

"Not sure, maybe I'll text it to him, he may have it, but maybe he thinks it could have changed," and he texted his number to Tristan, right then.

Chapter Twenty-Three

I parked at the far end of the abbey car park. It was easier to go down to the dig from there.

We walked quickly down the field and past the church, taking the wooded slope to the dig. The trees were thicker there and the ruins started quite quickly with bits of wall. The dip where the moat would have been was only slight now and the two towers that would have formed the gatehouse area were almost completely gone. At the dig, I noticed they had shored up the Norman door and surrounding bits of wall with timbers and wadding. Perhaps the dig close by was undermining the stability of it.

Tristan was there and he came forward to meet us saying, "Hello, you got here quickly. They have the font still in situ, and we will need to go down a couple of steps to look at it."

He seemed excited and keyed up by the find, which I had to admit, was even cooler than I had first thought.

They had washed a side off and the carvings were obvious now, the other side had some damage but remarkably not much. I was intrigued by the carvings, they were very like the ones on the stone box that James, and Phil had found.

Tristan was kneeling down on a rubber mat that was laid in the front half of the trench. He was intent on the carving there at the front of the font, and Phil was there too with a brush gently removing a bit of soil that was lodged in the crease of a bird wing. I looked over their shoulders to see the carving beside the two birds was a Griffin. It was quite big, in a standing position, and its wings were spread. Its feet reached down the font and one of them had flowers carved under it so that the Griffin looked as if was trampling through a field of flowers. It still had quite a lot of soil around and on it. Oliver came and stood beside me.

"That's quite a fabulous carving."

"I know," Phil said, "and the other side after it's cleaned up is going to be just as glorious, even if it's a bit damaged." He smiled in pleasure.

Tristan stood up and nudged my arm. I looked at him and he looked at the Griffin, and I acknowledged I had noticed with a wide-eyed stare. Oliver was watching us and smiled, he looked at us as if to say 'what?' I looked at the Griffin, hoping Oliver had followed my eyes.

Tristan asked, "Phil, what did Jack say about the font?"

"Well he spoke to James, but I heard that he wants it for the church. He's donated the relic box to the museum. Oh, here comes James now, he knows." He nodded at James approaching. Clare was with him.

"Hello, how's it going Phil? Tristan, Oliver, and Chloe all in the trench too now, interesting isn't it?" He grinned at us all.

Phil said it was shaping up nicely and continued with his brush.

Tristan got out of the trench. "Hey James, I heard Jack wants the font for the church."

"He said that and then stalked off having inspected that relic box and obviously not found what he wanted," James replied.

Tristan raised his eyebrows. "Do you think the font fits that bill James? I mean it looks like a Norman font to me, not a mystery."

"Really Tristan I still don't know what he's after, but the font is a superb find. We'll finish cleaning it up and it will go to the church maybe just for the time being though. I think the archaeological association may want to try to petition him to display it for a while in the museum along with the other finds."

I was watching this exchange and somehow it seemed there was stuff not being said. It seemed what was being said was for the benefit of the other people around, Phil, Leslie the other workers, which was weird I concluded.

"It's really great," I said, having had the chance to get a close look and touch the bird wing.

Oliver was squatting beside me, and he traced a flower stalk down and around the font to other carved flower buds.

Phil brushed it and then poured some water on it and brushed it again.

Oliver smiled at me. It was as if Phil had cleaned his finger marks off. I smiled back. The font was a lovely thing and I could understand Phil's gentle care of it.

We went up the makeshift steps to Tristan and James. I heard James saying that the dig only had a week left, but they were almost sure nothing else was coming out of the trench they were in now. Nothing had been found in the other two trenches. They would dig one more at an angle to the door where there was evidence that a staircase had been once upon a time and that was it, more or less.

We stood around for a short time as James and Tristan talked. Then Tristan turned to us. "Do you want to come back to the house, did you have any plans?

We said not until Oliver had to go to work. I was thinking what was going on? Tristan must have something he wanted to tell us.

I asked him if he'd walked down to the dig from the house and he had so we all walked back to the abbey car park.

Getting into the Wrangler I felt we were far enough away from anyone to ask Tristan if anything was going on.

"Tristan what's happening, it feels like something secret is going on."

"There is Chloe. Clare came over about lunchtime with something that was found in the font."

"What?" I couldn't wait find out, and I switched off the engine again.

"Well this is what happened. Clare and James were at the dig early this morning. There had been some part of the font seen late last night, but it was just about dark and so they had 'tarped' up the trench, and pitched a tent over it for the night. They went back early this morning to get the place ready and couldn't help but start unearthing the font. You've seen how it is in the soil at an angle, and the front is all cleaned up, as they were digging, the soil subsided to do that. The font came up out of the ground a little and half the front of it was exposed. They cleaned it up a bit and were about to leave it for Phil and Leslie to finish when Clare slipped on the rubber mat where soil and water had formed a bit of mud. James caught her but she clutched at the font because it was right there at hand height. The Griffin you saw fell into the font. It has a hollow space behind it."

I gasped at this and Tristan nodded, then continued.

"They eased the carving out with two of those spatula things that James always has in his back pocket with his brushes. The thing stuck in the middle of its space. As it fell inwards, it disclosed a rolled parchment, wrapped up as usual in linen and leather, hard leather this time. James said this is very rare to find and he thought it was originally tubular and possibly Arabian. Anyway, sorry it's taking so long to tell, but this is the story. They eased it out of the bottom space. James told Clare he had to keep this a secret for me."

He raised his eyebrows at us then continued. "They put the carving back in its place and packed dirt in all the cracks with water until it looked as if it had just come out of the ground. Then James packed a bit more dirt around the base until half of it was hidden, by this time the others had arrived, and he made out he was just moving the tent. Clare had the parchment thing in her parka pocket and just in time too because Jack rocks up to the dig.

Phil gets down in the trench and says 'there's been some subsidence in the night and he wants the door shored up before he will dig.' He says that there's way too much damp in the trench, and they all get a ticking off for not wrapping up better the night before."

Tristan grinned at this and we did too.

"Well he continues the dig and the carving looks to be solid again. I mean did you notice anything wrong. Jack gets down in the trench to inspect what is showing of the font already, but soon seems disinterested. He tells James the relic box is donated to the museum, but he wants the font for his church. Anyway sorry that was an aside. At lunchtime, James takes Clare to her car in the abbey car park. At least that's what everyone thinks is happening, and it is except on the way he tells her that he will fill her in on the secret later, but she must bring me this parchment and tell absolutely no one."

"She did and you have it at your place don't you Tristan?" I couldn't wait to hear and had to ask.

"Yes, she found me just as I got back from your place Chloe. Let's go," he said.

I started the Wrangler and we had only a few minutes journey but Oliver had time to ask if James wouldn't get into trouble doing this stuff. Tristan said he would but that the finds technically belonged to him, as the heir anyway, so it wasn't too bad, and he hoped that this was the last time James had to do anything like this. He was only doing it because let's face it the thing is a matter of life and death.

I burst out laughing at that. It was just the way he said it, but Tristan and Oliver didn't find it funny.

At the big Dearing House, we hurried up to Tristan's room. No one was around and there were no cars out in the car park. I asked if he had told Clare anything and he said, "Not yet, not really."

Inside, Tristan went to his bed. His quilt was in a lump at the bottom of his bed and the pillow strewn on there too. He got a wrapped package from under the quilt and brought it to the desk that was in one corner of the room. He undid the wrapping and there was this ancient looking material, which must once have been the leather he had talked about. He unrolled this and then unrolled more fabric. It was quite delicate and I wondered if it would crumble.

"It's okay. I've already looked at it and the parchment itself is in bad condition but I can still read it. It's in my father's hand and in Latin, it's the missing letter."

"Tristan, why did you have us meet you at the dig instead of here?" I asked thinking he could have just got us to come to his place if he had the letter.

"Ah, that's because of Laura. She was haunting me as soon as I was back here. She must have high-tailed it from the restaurant to get here and hang out until I got home. When Clare showed up, Laura wanted to get lunch for all of us, have a social occasion. I told her we were meeting James and you two that I couldn't. I asked Clare stick to Laura like glue down in the drawing room, and I nipped up here to my room, supposedly to change my shirt, but then I hid the letter. When Clare and I left, Laura passed us on the path in Liz's car, waved, but drove on. We waited until we couldn't see the car any more then ran back. I had to read the letter. I told Clare I read old Latin and that's why James had sent it, plus technically, it belonged to me since I was the last Dearing earl and a baronet and a knight." He shrugged then continued, "I am still alive to hold that title."

"Ye gods," Oliver said. "How did she take that roll of honor?"

Tristan sighed. "Look I only told her because I thought it would alleviate her fears James was doing something wrong. I don't usually spout about it all, as you know." He emphasized the 'as you know.'

"You read the letter Tristan?" I asked wanting to get back on track.

"I did and it's a revelation, that's why I wanted you both here. I kept myself together at the dig, but I feel so bad now I just wanted you both here.

My father," he took a breath, "My father, told the Magi when he got that magic spell to save the life of his youngest son," he stopped and had trouble speaking for a few seconds. "He gave them Richard's name. He called himself Sir Edmund not Dearing. The whole letter is a plea for forgiveness to his lady Eleanor. Forgive him for not marrying her, but marrying my mother instead, for naming Richard to the Magi, for using magic at all, for not bringing home Rupert when he came home himself, for not extracting the payment for the Magi. His pathetic pleas for her to take his plight to the monks who would pray for his soul, it never ends. Forgive him for abandoning Richard his son, and for not saying goodbye in person. Forgive him because the loss of Tristan, that's me, was so great he couldn't think straight. He does mention there is money to pay for prayers and valuables for her and Richard. I'm guessing they never got it, the money I mean. Obviously she never got the letter." He stopped again and the look on his face was pure despair. He took a breath and Oliver moved a bit closer to him.

"Richard was my half-brother then, a little over a year older than I was. Richard my best friend, he knew he was my half-brother and he tried to say it in a hundred different ways. I think he didn't when he knew about my immortality. Poor dear Richard he died instead of me when the Magus came for payment, and gave him the plague."

Tristan stopped and threw the letter down on the desk, a bit flew off it at one end, but otherwise nothing happened. He stood looking at us then he crumpled up and sat on the floor. His head down. I went forward to him, so did Oliver. I knelt on the carpet next to him and put my arms around his shoulders. Oliver sat down cross-legged near him.

"Tristan, none of this is your fault," Oliver said softly.

Tristan was shaking a little and I put my head against his. I was facing Oliver and I looked at him to express concern.

Oliver said, "Tristan would you like to be alone with Chloe, I could go and make us some coffee?"

Tristan put his head up. Tears were streaming down his face. His navy blue eyes looked extra blue and his face was white.

"Thank you Oliver, but I've lived long enough to be able to cry in front of a man as well as a woman. We can make coffee up here anyhow," and he smiled through the tears, let out a little sob, and shuddered.

Oliver looked at me with tears in his eyes. I wasn't tearful, just appalled by the whole sad story, until I saw this, then I felt them well up in my eyes. I looked back at Oliver. He gave me one of his kind looks, he got up, and he put his hand on Tristan's shoulder.

"I'll make coffee." He went to the door in the far end of the room and opened it. I didn't know what it led to, but he came out with a kettle, which he plugged into the socket near Tristan's desk.

I was holding onto Tristan and he took a deep breath then looked at me.

"I'm okay. It's just that I was shocked when I read the letter, but I couldn't let Clare know. I saw her back to the dig and called you two." He stopped then and sighed. "Thanks for being here. There's a bit more in the letter, but what I've already told you, that's about the gist of the important bit. The rest of the letter is still about the shame of using magic and how it brought him to nothing. The money or whatever he leaves for Eleanor is 'in their safe place.' How many places did these guys have? The secret place was the font, who can guess where the safe place is? Who cares anyway since she and Richard never got what he left? That's why you had to go through that horror with Max too, Oliver, because of my father." He stopped talking and rested his head against me.

I could smell the coffee Oliver had made, and he came over to Tristan.

He offered his hand to him and Tristan took it and stood up. Oliver handed him a cup of coffee. I don't drink coffee normally, but I almost had some from the stress of all this. Tristan took the cup and went to his big window where he stared out. Oliver went and stood next to him. I went to the letter on the desk and carefully picked it up looking at it. It was a bit of a mess and totally unintelligible to me. I carefully replaced it. Tristan knew what it said and that's all that mattered.

Tristan turned and watched me.

"I feel like burning it," he said. "It can never be acknowledged as archaeology. Thank heavens there's the font and before that the relic box. I owe James. I want to tell Harry about this, maybe he will keep the letter for me for a while at his place."

I walked over to him and put my arm around his waist. Oliver was to my left, and I put my arm around his waist too. The three musketeers I thought as I looked out of the window and they drank their coffee.

Our reverie was broken by Tristan's cell ringing, the first few bars of 'Super massive Black Hole' echoed out. We all looked around as it continued, then I started to laugh, Oliver joined in. Tristan coming to his senses went over to his jean jacket, which he had put on the desk chair and took out his phone, and then even he was laughing as he answered.

"James...my friend...yes I have...yes it was what I had hoped for. I don't know about Jack...maybe not. I want to go to see Harry. Do you know if he'll be home tonight? Okay that will be great, thanks James. I owe you big time." They ended the call and Tristan looked at Oliver and me.

"Well that was James I guess you realized. I'd like to take the letter over to Harry tonight. Between now and then, I have no wish to be on my own, what about we go into town and have something to eat?"

"Let's do it. I was going to hang out with Chloe until I had to go to work at nine because I couldn't face being on my own today either," laughed Oliver.

"What are we coming to?" Tristan smiled a sad smile.

"I think it's a good idea to stick together today. It's been an intense couple of weeks and I think today's stuff has about done us in." I stated.

Oliver hadn't had a go at driving my Wrangler yet. I offered him the keys, and he smiled and took them. Tristan said he would bring the truck as he wanted to call in at Harry's place, and we waited for him to go the stable area where it was, before we followed on as he passed us in it.

"Do you think he's okay?" Oliver asked me as we drove along a little behind Tristan's truck.

"I think he will be. Are you okay?" I asked.

Oliver nodded and said, "I will be too. I feel different, like I've moved on somehow from what I was. It's almost as if I can't go back to being what I was, but I know I have to try to carry on normally because that's the wisest thing."

"I do know a little bit of what you're trying to express. I feel like that too, as if I could never go back to California. Somehow my destiny is tied up here."

We followed Tristan, he had chosen to go to Kool Kafé, and there were parking spaces on the road, so we didn't have to go in the pub car park.

"That was lucky, finding those parking spots. I wouldn't have wanted to go in the pub car park," I said to Tristan as we met him over at the café tables.

"Yes sorry about that. I came down here out of habit I guess."

We sat down at one of the tables by the stream. The late afternoon air was warm, and the sun was slanting sparkles across the water.

Clare's sister came out to take our order. She gave Tristan a big smile. I think she liked him a lot.

When she had gone to get our food, I looked over at Oliver his blonde hair was lit up by the sun. I sighed inwardly because he was so attractive and he was looking at me too. I looked down. Tristan was sitting next to me and he must have seen the look Oliver gave me. It felt weird now we were out in the sun to be with two of the best looking guys I had ever seen, and know that I loved both of them, and they loved me, but the weirdest thing still was that it felt like we were some kind of family. Tristan suddenly said he would like to go back to the Tarrant estate and see Richard's tomb again.

"I'd be up for that too," Oliver said leaning forward in his chair.

Just as suddenly, a thought came into my mind,

"Tristan, does your mother have a tomb anywhere and your other ancestors do they?"

"My mother does, she and a couple of other Dearings who lived in the castle have tombs. They were moved in the Elizabethan times to the crypt under the present house. She has an effigy almost intact, but the others didn't survive so well. The graves of my brothers and sisters were lost. You can't get down there. The place was sealed in the seventeen hundreds. My uncle Tristan's tomb was lost too down in Cornwall, I was gone for a long time from there, and the place was run down considerably because he didn't have sons. The brother in the north went down there a couple of times and eventually it was taken over by a cousin. My uncle Tristan's tomb is under the ruined west wing, it's got stables built on it now."

"Is there a special reason you want to visit the Tarrant estate Tristan?" Oliver asked.

The food had arrived and Tristan waited until Samantha had gone before answering.

"I want to take the seal that was on my father's letter to Eleanor's tomb."

I was thinking that was very romantic as I bit into my sandwich.

"You know what I think would be good to do, but I'll understand if you are set against it, Tristan, I think we should say or get a prayer said for your father as he had wanted Eleanor to do. You know in a church somewhere."

I was surprised.

Having moved my chair so that I could see Tristan as well as Oliver I looked now at Tristan to see him smile.

"That's a good thing Oliver, I like that. I don't really forgive him yet for laying a false trail to Richard's door but I think it may finish his story.

If we did it we could use the church, especially since that's where Jack is putting the font that hid the letter."

"I can't help wondering why she didn't get the letter," Oliver said. "Who was supposed to tell her about it again?"

"It's a best guess really, but the monks of the abbey near the Dearing castle. It was a monk who wrote the account of how a letter was hidden. The main thing is she didn't get it, and even though he never came back, she had a tomb for him next to hers for when she died. What a weird thing both her lover, and son by him, have empty tombs."

None of us made further comment on this.

Tristan announced that if he was going to call into Harry's place he should get going. I felt we should all go to the cars together, and we paid the bill. Walking over to the cars Tristan asked if I was still worried about Max. I said I wasn't, but for some reason had felt like we were being watched. We all looked around then fell about laughing. It was just my imagination running away with me, I told them.

I took Oliver back to my house and we went up to my room. Oliver stood looking out of my window and then said he should maybe get changed to go over to the restaurant for his shift.

He changed in my bathroom, coming out in what was dinner dress without a jacket. He looked completely gorgeous and I wished I was working too, to be near him.

I went down to the Land Rover with him. He turned to me before he got in and held both my hands putting them on his chest over his heart he kissed me.

"I'll call tomorrow," he said.

Chapter Twenty-Four

It was weird to be on my own in my room, and I sighed thinking I'd go down and check what mom was doing.

She decided to have a break from work and came with me into the kitchen. We talked about her trip to California and then she said, "I hope everyone will be safe here when I'm gone, there seems to be a lot of stuff happening."

"No Mom, it will be fine things are settling down and there's been no sign of the guy who took Oliver. I'll be extra careful, and watch out for Steven being safe too."

She was leaving late Sunday afternoon and I offered to help her pack since she hadn't done anything yet.

"Chloe, it's okay I'm hardly taking anything, just a couple of shirts and underwear. I'm going to find time to stop at my favorite shops."

I laughed at this, and we spent a little time talking about clothes.

It was about eleven and mom had gone to her study to 'just finalize something', her words. A text arrived on my cell. Picking it up I paused the song I was listening to on my computer. It was Tristan, he had left the letter with Harry, he sent his love, and would call tomorrow. I texted back to take care and my love.

I couldn't sleep and about three in the morning I got up and wandered over to my window, I stood there staring out in the night. It was very light, the moon was out, and there were stars, but the sky was actually quite light. My eyes adjusted to the darkness and as I scanned the garden then the entrance to the woods, I was sure I could see someone there. Not on foot as I had seen Tristan before, but on horseback. A horse with a rider was standing very still and silent in the slight parting of trees where the bluebells had bloomed in the spring. I stared hard. I couldn't tell who it was. There was a glint on something metal in the moonlight near where the saddle would be, and then another glint high up maybe where the rider's shoulder would be. The breeze ruffled the leaves of trees and bushes closer to the house and I looked down at the slight noise that was made, when I looked up again the horse and rider were gone. I spent a few more minutes looking at the spot waiting for them to come back or ride out of the woods, but nothing happened. I went back to my bed and eventually slept.

Chapter Twenty-Five

The next morning I didn't wake until late, and I felt groggy even then. I pulled on a T-shirt and jeans and went down to the kitchen. Drinking a glass of water I went to the patio doors and opened them, the air was warm and still. I could hear buzzing and noticed a bee on one of the flowers out there. I went back into the kitchen as I heard the kettle automatically turn off and made myself some tea. The house was quiet, and I felt peaceful. I was thinking about the horse and rider in the middle of the night. It could only be Tristan. After what had been happening, maybe he couldn't sleep either, and had taken the lovely horse I had seen out for a ride.

Mindful of what my mom had said about safety I closed the doors when I went up to take a shower. I was just drying my hair when my cell phone rang.

It was Clare, 'did I want to meet for lunch today.' I said I'd really like that and we arranged to meet not at her mom's place, but at the café near the library.

It would only be an hour before I was to meet her, so I finished my hair and put my jeans back on with my favorite blue T-shirt.

I looked around the house, mom wasn't around, nor Steven. I called her cell. She was with dad and having lunch with him at the restaurant since she was going away later. Steven was off with John. I told her I'd be going to meet Clare and to call me if she wanted me at all. I knew she had a car booked to take her to the airport and would be gone mid-afternoon to get there for check in. I said have a great trip in case I didn't see her before then, and asked her to call as soon as she was in California, no matter what the time difference. She laughed and we rang off.

I got my keys and some money, stuffed my cell in my pocket, and went out the door. It would be nice to sit in the sunshine and wait for Clare watching people go by. I drove down there and parked in the library car park. Walking around to the café, I realized that I always thought of Oliver when I turned the corner and saw those striped umbrellas. I went down to a table and sat where I could watch people. I ordered spring water and a cup of tea as I sat there. A number of people were at the café and I guessed I'd been lucky to get an outdoor table when more people showed up very soon after I'd been served my drinks.

I watched a group of people who were talking about their imminent holiday. The girls were wearing shoestring-strap tops had a little sunburn, and yet moved from the shade of the umbrella into the full sun. I felt a little hot even in the shade and hated to get sunburn. I made sure the umbrella cast shade in my direction. I was taking a drink of my water when I saw Clare approaching. I looked at her over the rim of my glass. She looked great in a lemon colored sundress.

She saw me and waved. As she sat down at the table, she greeted me happily.

"Chloe, it's great to see you. I didn't get chance to say much to you at the dig yesterday. How are Tristan and Oliver?"

"Yes fine," I said. "How are you?"

"Great, really great, and I have to tell you James and I are getting engaged, it's official," and she showed me her ring on her finger. It was very cool, an antique design of sapphires and diamonds.

"Congratulations, that's excellent. Your ring is really lovely," I told her.

"We're having a party just for close friends next weekend. Sunday afternoon, and it's a garden party. We're using just the top area of the lawns by the lake at your dad's restaurant. Obviously you're invited."

I smiled at her. It was great. She looked so happy.

We ordered, and she went on, "The play opens tomorrow. We have a show each night, and Saturday next weekend is the last performance, so the Sunday afternoon party is really nice. Will you come and see the play Chloe? Bring Oliver or Tristan, or both." She smiled then. "I'll leave three tickets at the door."

I laughed at her. "That's great. I'd love to see it."

"Clare where did you and James buy the ring, it's so unusual?"

"James had it left to him by his grandmother isn't that romantic?"

I smiled agreeing.

"I had to have a little adjustment made in the size but now it's perfect. We're thinking of a wedding next spring."

I smiled again as it was just so traditional.

We talked about the play a little more and then about clothes and finally she broached the subject of Tristan, and what she called, 'his quest for family history.' I played along with this notion not wanting to say anything that might expose Tristan if she didn't know the whole story.

She didn't say much more just that James said he wanted to help in any way he could. I nodded to this. I wanted to ask Tristan what he wanted others to know before I said anything.

We finished lunch talking about how my mom was going to California for the week.

As we were leaving, I wished her luck with the play and said I'd see her in it. I went around to my Wrangler in the library car park and she was going down to her mom's place on foot.

I realized as I was driving home that I hadn't heard from Tristan or Oliver and it was about two thirty in the afternoon. I hoped this wasn't a sign of anything having happened to either of them and yet I felt that I couldn't keep them in my sights all the time.

I had time to say goodbye to mom in person, as her car hadn't picked her up when I arrived home. Then when she had gone, I went up to my room and flaked out on my bed. Because I had my iPod on, I didn't immediately hear my phone. Then I saw the screen light up which always indicated a call was coming in, so I picked it up and took out one of my ear buds to answer. Oliver was working tonight and he was thinking of calling in around five to spend an hour or so with me before he needed to go to the restaurant. I said that would be good.

I was still wondering what Tristan was up to. I checked my emails and answered a couple.

I thought I might have to find out if we were all going down to the Tarrant estate, and when Tristan had thought of going, plus if Oliver was going too. It would need to be early this coming week or he would be working again, and there was Clare's engagement party next Sunday. I guessed they would invite everyone from the restaurant, and since James and Tristan were obviously friends, Tristan would be too.

It was very close to five when Oliver turned up he looked good and was smiling.

"Hello Chloe, what have you been up to?"

"Not a great deal actually. My mom went to California for the next week, I had lunch with Clare she and James are getting engaged, and having a party next Sunday afternoon to celebrate."

"Really, wow, I guessed it was serious between her and James."

We went onto the patio where the trees were now providing shade from the still very warm sun. Oliver seemed back to his usual happy self and talked about visiting the advertising agency to check how things were going when we went down to the Tarrant estate.

The hour went quickly. Oliver had left for the restaurant and I decided to walk over to the greenhouses and check out Tristan's silence.

Chapter Twenty-Six

As I approached the greenhouses, I could hear shouting. It was Laura's voice, and she was really shouting. I could hear every word and I stopped on the path thinking 'oh no I'm eavesdropping again.'

"Where are you, where the fuck are you?" She was yelling. "I've been looking for you for two days and checked out every place you were supposed to be and waited at our meeting place for three hours today. So what, so what, what's going on, where, and why is that? You'll be lucky, okay one more. Next week then, you better be there."

I was about to turn and go when she came hurtling around the side of the greenhouse. She was wearing very high heels and a cream dress, which looked expensive. She stopped when she saw me. I expected someone to be with her but she had a cell phone in her hand and I realized that she had been talking to someone on the phone. I nearly let myself laugh thinking she needn't have phoned them, they probably would have been able to hear her without the phone her shouting was so loud.

As I was just standing there, she marched right up to me and very nastily asked me what I was doing on private property and if I was hoping to see Tristan, he wasn't there.

"You'd better get going, before I ask one of the staff to escort you away," she finished shrilly.

I didn't answer. I felt that silence was probably better. I turned around and walked away. I was thinking about her conversation, and maybe that was her boyfriend she had been calling, the one she met in France. I felt a little sorry for him.

I was halfway home when Tristan came striding up the path towards me.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

"Chloe, I called at your house and found no one there. Where have you been?"

"Looking for you at the greenhouses. I hadn't heard from you and what with everything that's been happening I felt I had to make sure nothing had happened to you today."

He came up and hugged me, then put his arm around my shoulders to walk towards home with me.

"I saw James, he and Clare are getting engaged. I guess she may have told you already." He was smiling, and then he leaned in towards me and kissed my cheek. "I've asked him not to tell her the truth about me yet, even though she helped out yesterday. Who knows it may be dangerous for people to know the truth. What with Max still on the loose."

"That's a good idea, I saw her for lunch, and she said she knew you were on a quest to find out about your family history. That's as much as anyone needs to know really. I agree it could be dangerous to know more unless it's really necessary."

"I admire that Oliver didn't say anything to Max. That took a lot of courage," Tristan commented.

We were at the edge of the garden and I suddenly remembered the horse and rider in the night. I wanted to ask Tristan, but somehow it didn't feel right. Instead, I asked Tristan if he'd made up his mind about going down to the Tarrant estate.

"I want to go, but maybe not yet. James said the font will be in the church by the end of this week. Hey, he was wrong about nothing else being found in that trench. A battered goblet came up. Gold too, flattened but still a good find. We reckon that the stuff in that trench had to have come from the original castle church. James has become a good friend," he ended happily.

I had my arm around his waist and as we reached the end of the path, I let go to face him. He put his arms around my waist. "I was thinking Chloe that the Griffin features strongly in those things he found as well as on the carved cupboards. It's a common thread. We could keep our eyes open for it as maybe it heralds the places my father and Eleanor met."

I thought this was possibly true and I reminded him of Richard's coat of arms.

"Tristan, why do you think that Richard had the Griffin feature on his coat of arms, it's not a De Stoches heraldic symbol is it?"

He shook his head. "No it's not. Who knows, maybe he saw the Griffin carvings at some time. It's not something we could guess."

He was putting my hair strands behind my ears as he spoke and then he kissed my neck under my left ear. It was very sensual. I took a step back from him. The intensity of feelings that came with this was almost scary.

He looked at me and there was emotion in his eyes.

I looked down and he took my hand. "Is something wrong Chloe?"

"No, quite the opposite, you kind of dazzle me sometimes." I wanted him to understand. I gave him a little smile.

He smiled then, and without knowing I am sure, he gave me a look with his navy blue eyes, which was so intense it felt like a kiss.

I had to look away as he said, "Dazzle you that sounds bad, I don't mean to dazzle you I really care so much for you."

"I mean you are so beautiful and sometimes your touch is...is electric." I didn't want to use that word, but I couldn't think of any other to describe the strange intensity of my feelings.

"Ouch, that sounds worse than dazzled." He was teasing me I realized, trying to help the situation with a little humor.

He smiled a little sadly then and I stepped forward, putting my arms around his neck and kissing him, which was dangerous because as he kissed me back I felt as if I was about to tell him I loved him.

"I may be dazzled myself," he said as I stopped kissing him and stepped away a little again.

"Let's do something tonight. I just can't let you go yet. Maybe we could walk by the river. It's pretty up there right now. The banks are full of daisies and buttercups." He was taking my hand again.

"Okay that sounds great. I have to admit to not wanting to let you go right now," I answered happily.

We walked over to the restaurant and cut through the hedgerow, reminding us both of Oliver being kidnapped. Then crossing over the road and walking down we came to the path, which took us to the riverbank. The river was running fast even if it wasn't such a big river. There were daisies, and buttercups as well as some purple flowers I didn't know the name of along both banks. We were hand in hand walking along, when in the distance on the path we saw Laura. We knew it was Laura because she was so distinctive. I knew for sure because she was wearing the cream dress and even from this distance, I could see the very high heels.

We stopped and looked at each other.

"Tristan, I didn't tell you I came across her earlier and she was really quite unpleasant to me," I started to tell him.

He grinned. "Nothing's changed then."

"Well Tristan she was screaming at someone on her cell. It sounded like she had expected to meet someone and they let her down."

"Poor them, she can be unforgiving in her tirades, wonder who it was," and he smiled again. "Sorry, I know I speak unkindly about her but she's unkind to other people all the time."

"I know, I agree with you," I told him and I let go of his hand and put my arm around his waist. The closer I could get to him in her presence the better I thought and then let go because that was mean.

Tristan took my arm and put it back around his waist, then kissed me.

"Let's see where she's going. It looks like she's just come out of the abbey ruins and museum area. What's she up to I wonder?"

The car park at the abbey was where she was heading. She was on the phone again by the looks of it, and I was surprised we couldn't hear her.

She hadn't seen us, and we weren't walking any more so she'd left the path and obviously gone into the car park.

The sun had gone behind a couple of clouds, and because it was almost setting anyway, the breeze was a tiny bit cooler. I shivered in my blue T-shirt and Tristan noticed. He stopped and cuddled me up to him asking if I was cold, and saying let's just go back the way we have come before the sun is completely set.

We turned around and he took my hand and started walking quite quickly. I tried to match his pace and soon warmed up. He slowed down as we crossed to the hedging that led into the restaurant car park.

"Tristan, have you always walked so fast?" I asked him breaking into a laugh.

He looked perturbed. "Sorry, yes I guess I have. I didn't really know until you pointed it out. Sorry are you out of breath now?"

"No just warmer." I smiled and he walked quite slowly across the car park and onto the path, which led around the lake, and then to the garden path from which I could access my house.

The lights were all on in the garden and the lanterns around the lake were lit. It was as usual very pretty.

We reached the house and I asked Tristan to come in and eat something.

"We could watch some TV maybe. I never really watch it anymore, but I used to love TV in California," I said.

Tristan and I made some food. He talked about the engagement party, and told me he would like to get Clare and James a present. I had to admit that I hadn't thought of that yet.

"What do you think might be a good gift for them?" he asked as we sat down to eat in the kitchen.

"I don't know. Do you think they will give out a list, that's what usually happens isn't it and then you go and get something from the list." I gave him my version of the experience of engagement and wedding gift giving.

He shrugged and said, "Probably, James is very traditional."

I put the dishes in the dishwasher and Tristan made himself some coffee.

"I can't help thinking about getting a prayer said or saying one for my father. I'd like to do it soon. I feel like I need that ending, more than putting the seal on Eleanor's tomb. In fact, I'm beginning to think that maybe that's not such a good idea, because it will blow away or be lost some other way. Maybe there's a better place for it. Poor Eleanor, she died not knowing he'd written the letter. She had only just made peace with Richard too. I wish I'd questioned him more about what had happened between them. I bet it was about my father."

I sat down beside him again and thought about this.

"It's a really sad story all of it. I wonder why he married your mother instead of her. It doesn't make much sense chronologically either since you had an older brother," I reflected.

"Who knows, I think it may well be more complex than we could guess. Remember I grew up with no idea about Eleanor or Richard. They hid things well. Whatever it was, you're right the whole story is a sad one."

I thought that maybe a change of subject might lighten the mood.

"I'm going to see Clare and the theatre group this week one evening, maybe mid-week when they've had chance to get used to performing," I told him.

He looked a little worried. "On your own?" he asked.

"Well it doesn't have to be why?"

"I worry about you being out at night on your own. It still might be dangerous Chloe." He stopped and took my hand in his.

"I will take someone, you maybe?"

"I have heaps to do these next few days. Meetings with Jack, the board, and meetings with the accountant. We have an audit too coming up, and Jack has some new ideas about the estate business. He wants to start some craft weekends or art holidays or some such. It's a bit like the week from hell business wise so I may not see much of you, but I will call and text. Perhaps Oliver could go with you. My father's prayer will have to wait huh?"

I looked at him with interest. He sometimes surprised me with his business persona. He looked so young and yet was old and was very skilled in many ways.

"It sounds like you will be so busy if you find time to call I'll be surprised." I smiled at him.

He moved forward a little and kissed me a few times. We didn't end up watching TV at all.

I didn't want him to walk home on his own and persuaded him to let me drive him saying I'd call as soon as I was back in the house. It took me a few minutes to get him to accept.

I dropped him at the Dearing house. All the cars were parked up, including one I hadn't seen before. I mentioned this to Tristan.

"That's Laura's car, it's been in the shop this last few days, she's been using Liz's car, when she could."

I promised him I'd call as soon as I was inside the house and watched him go inside before I drove away. I thought we may need to stop being so skittish. There had been no sign of Max and nothing untoward had happened at all since Oliver had recovered.

I turned into the drive and Will's car was there. Inside Will, John, Liz, and Steven were all in the kitchen, drinking coffee, cola and listening to a music track. It turned out to be the band's own song. They were going to record an album and it sounded exceptionally good.

I texted Tristan and he replied right away.

The track stopped and we all started talking at once about how good it was. I went to the fridge for water and then over to Liz, asking her if she would like to go and see Clare in the play any evening this week. I thought that maybe taking neither Tristan nor Oliver might be the fair way to go.

She said she would be free Tuesday if that was any good and it would be fun. Clare had been practicing her lines at the restaurant during the breaks and they were funny. I said great and I'd call her Monday to arrange to meet.

We sat around a little more, until about midnight, and discussed the engagement between Clare and James, as well as Laura's claim to have a boyfriend in France. Will finished discussing things with John and Steven, and they decided to call it a night.

When they left, I asked Steven why I never saw John's older brother who was also in the band. He told me that he played piano in a bar in the next town, and when he wasn't playing with them he was there working. We hadn't heard from mom yet and Steven texted her that he was going to bed. As he went up to bed dad arrived home a little earlier than usual. We talked about how busy the restaurant was for a few minutes.

When I was in my room, I looked through my clothes. I needed to get some laundry done, and maybe I even needed to buy a couple of things. I quickly showered and got into bed. I hoped I'd sleep this time. I had my head on the pillow when a message blinked onto my phone. Oliver missed me, was home from the restaurant, and sent his love. I replied then put my head back on my pillow, which was the last thing I remembered until I was woken, it was daylight, and the rain was absolutely pouring down.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

I checked the time it was eight fifteen. It looked earlier but it was just the cloud cover. I went to my window and looked out. I had it half-open and rain bounced into my room. It was kind of refreshing. I stood watching the rain for a few minutes. It has such a soothing effect on me. Since I was young, I loved any kind of water. The drops ran in wide rivulets down the glass. I watched them drip from the end of the window frame. Looking out onto the garden the rain had been so heavy it had drenched everything fast, and drops were coming off the end of leaves and bending blades of grass.

When I was ready and dressed, I went to see if Steven was up. There was a message on my phone from mom. She was at LAX when she had sent the message a couple of hours ago. The flight had taken about eleven hours plus of course all the check in waiting around and then the arrivals stuff. It had been a good journey.

Steven was still asleep I went down to the kitchen and got some tea and pancakes, which I ate standing at the patio doors watching the rain. Around ten Steven appeared just as I was going to write him a note saying I had gone shopping.

I went to a few shops and bought just a few things to pad out my existing wardrobe. If I was going to an engagement party, I thought I needed to wear something different from what I'd worn before.

As I was passing what appeared to be an antique shop I saw a lovely vase in the window. It was quite big and was patterned in blue and white. It was quite lovely and I immediately thought of Clare and James. This was a good present for their future home. I went inside and discovered there were two of them. One hadn't been placed in the window, but they were designed to be a pair. Although they were expensive I bought them thinking they could have one each and when they lived together the pair would be united.

I asked if they could be delivered because they were big and they were to be a present.

My phone rang as I was just exiting the shop. It was Tristan saying hello and he had passed the house on his way to a meeting and noticed my Wrangler wasn't parked in the drive. I told him I was shopping and about the vases and he thought that was amazingly romantic. We ended the conversation with Tristan saying the break in his meeting was over and he would text later.

At the end of the road, I went into the last shop I wanted to visit. It had women's stuff on one side of the store and men's on the other. I wandered around, not really seeing anything I wanted. Then I saw a jungle green cross over top, which I did like. I tried one on and deciding it would be good to wear with jeans to the party, I went to the cash desk to buy it.

Who was in the line in front of me but Oliver? He didn't see me until he turned when paying, to get his wallet out of his jeans back pocket, then a smile lit up his lovely face.

He waited for me at the door.

"Buying jeans," he told me, holding up a lime green bag.

"Oliver, it's great to run into you. I was looking for something to wear to Clare and James' party on Sunday."

"Did you find it?" He smiled again at me, obviously pleased to run into me too.

"I think so. I didn't want to be too formal. What's going on Oliver, how are things?"

"Great really, I got a paper cut this morning and it just healed in front of my eyes, can you believe it?" He had whispered this, and we edged out of the shop front onto the wet pavement.

I grinned. "How cool, paper cuts are such a nuisance."

"I need to finish some work today on the website I am building then I thought maybe we could catch up." He moved out of the way for someone and we ducked under the awning of another shop because it had started to rain again. I was just about to answer when I saw Laura over his shoulder crossing the road and coming straight for us. She just didn't seem to see us, and walked right past. Was it because Oliver had his back to her and was in front of me which disguised me, or was she deliberately ignoring me in her rude way?

When she had passed by into the shop, I became aware it was a shoe shop and I looked at Oliver my eyebrows raised a little. "Oliver, did you see that was Laura, Liz's twin, just marched past us into this shoe shop?"

"Was it? Sorry I don't know her that well and I thought she had dark hair. Why?" Oliver asked peering at the shop window as if he might see in through the display to check out Laura.

"Not really anything, it's just she sets my teeth on edge. I can't really explain it, but oh my god, that's Max." I grabbed Oliver's arm as he was turning to look behind him.

We went back inside the shop where Oliver had bought jeans, heading kind of sideways and trying not to be seen as well as look where Max was going. To my horror, Max stopped exactly where we'd been standing.

"How is it possible he hasn't seen us Oliver?" I asked.

"I had my back to him, you were hidden, he was crossing the road, his mind is elsewhere, who cares as long as he doesn't know we've seen him." Oliver leaned close to my ear to say this as if Max would hear us.

We were able to see through the display of clothes sideways and watched him. He was standing there looking out at the traffic passing by and swinging a black umbrella, which despite the rain remained closed up.

His back to us, I could see his long hair in the ponytail, he was wearing a suit, which looked expensive even from the back, and his boots had Cuban heels. He seemed to be waiting for someone in the shelter of the awning and now and again moved from one foot to the other in impatience.

"We should call the police Oliver," I said watching Max.

"You're right we should, but I'm not afraid of him. He's not got the advantage of knocking me senseless, tying me up, and drugging me this time. I've a good mind to go out there and break his neck," Oliver said in a low voice.

"Call the police Oliver, if you break his neck you'll be in trouble," I whispered.

"Okay," Oliver said, flipping open his phone, when to my shock the person Max had been waiting for came out of the shoe shop. It was Laura. I grabbed Oliver's hand.

"Oliver, stop. Laura's with him look."

He stopped mid dial and looked.

"For heaven's sake, what's going on?" he said, looking out at them.

We didn't have long to see them together as Max unfurled the umbrella, Laura put her arm through his, and both together they made off down the street in the opposite direction from us.

"I think this changes things a little." I turned to Oliver to see him putting his cell phone away.

"Because?" Oliver asked.

"Well, because she's Liz's sister, because we don't know what their relationship is, and because of Tristan," I answered.

"We need to follow them and see where they go," Oliver stated, starting to walk out of the shop and taking my hand.

"Oliver, we can't let them see us," I reminded him. We were on the pavement and could see them just a few meters in front of us.

"They seem oblivious, and they're under their umbrella. Let's just duck in and out of the shop fronts for a while, just to check out where they go."

It started to rain quite hard again and some raindrops ran down the back of my neck from my turned up jean jacket. I held onto Oliver's hand as we followed. The end of the street was coming up, when quite suddenly they stopped. Max got a key from his pocket and unlocked the door of a car, parked to drive away from us. He let Laura in the car holding the umbrella for her then ran around to the driver's side putting the umbrella down as he did. We'd stopped in the entrance to a bakery and were looking through the angle of glass made by the two windows side and front. He hadn't seen us. Max maneuvered out into the traffic and drove off up the road away from us.

It suddenly occurred to me where I had seen that car. It was the one Tristan had told me was Laura's on the parking area at the big Dearing house.

"Well, she's letting him drive her car Oliver. I think that means she knows him quite well," I commented.

We looked at each other, questions on both our faces. Oliver turned around to the door of the bakery as he let an older couple pass by.

"Hey, this place has a café at the back, let's go in, and dry off a little. Okay?" he asked.

We went in right to the back of the place where there were a few empty tables. Sitting down it became obvious we needed to order from the counter then the order would be brought to us if we gave our table number at the till.

We went to the counter having determined the table number was eight.

Sitting down opposite each other Oliver took my hand over the table.

"She can't know who he is, or what he did. As unpleasant as she is, I don't think she would want to be involved with someone who is being looked for by the police." I sighed then, and Oliver gave me one of his caring looks.

"Maybe, but the fact remains he's around the place as if nothing has happened, what do you make of that?"

"I'm amazed actually," I said, as our order arrived.

I had taken my jean jacket off and hung it over the back of my chair. Now I fished some tissues out of my pocket and dried off my hair a little, just squeezing the moisture out a little before the tissue was soaked.

Oliver smiled at this. He reached forward and put a strand behind my ear.

"It's quite warm in here, my hair is nearly dry," he said, running his hand through the spiky top of his hair.

"I think we have to tell Tristan about this incident. What if she shows up with Max at the house or the restaurant or someplace we are all at?" I was still amazed by the whole thing.

"Surely he'll keep a low profile. Clare knows him. Did Liz ever see him, yes of course he was at the birthday party and most people saw him, well I didn't since Tristan was with you then." Oliver shook his head. "What the hell is going on? He doesn't know about Tristan."

"We need to tell Tristan as quickly as possible. He was just on his way to a meeting earlier so maybe we have to ring him later." I let go of Oliver's hand and took a sip of my tea.

He drank his coffee silently for a couple of moments and I was thinking about having asked Liz to go to the play with me this week.

"I'm supposed to go and see Clare in her play this week. I asked Liz if she wanted to go and we were going mid-week."

"I better go too. What if his next plan is to grab you after all?" Oliver was concerned and took my hand again.

"Surely not Oliver, why would he? He thinks he has the payment of blood out of you. You can come if you want to, but I thought you would be busy with the website and work."

"Let's give Tristan a heads up on Max, and then just wait and see if he shows up at any of the events, where frankly I may just have to break his neck regardless." Oliver laughed then, and we finished our drinks. We decided to go back to my Wrangler that was parked in the local supermarket car park, and then I'd drive Oliver to his Land Rover, which was parked down by the river. We walked hand in hand. The rain had stopped, and a watery sun was trying to shine.

Having driven Oliver to his Land Rover, he asked me back to his office.

"Call Tristan from there, and let's see what he has to say before you go home."

Oliver had a short film sequence rendering on his computer and checked this as I called Tristan. I walked to the window looking out as I waited for Tristan to answer his phone.

Tristan didn't pick up and then as I was walking to Oliver at his desk, my phone rang, and it was Tristan.

"Chloe, sorry I missed that call. I was just pulling into the car park and had my phone in my pocket."

"Tristan," I didn't give him chance to say anything else. "I saw Max, well Oliver and I saw Max, and you will never guess in a thousand years who he was with."

Oliver at my side burst out laughing at this, and on the other end of the phone so did Tristan.

It took a couple of seconds to realize what I had said, but I couldn't laugh.

"Tristan, he was with Laura."

"Good lord, with Laura, well what happened?" Tristan was suitably surprised.

After I'd told him he said exactly what Oliver had said, and we decided to just wait and see where he showed up next.

I ended the call, Tristan having said 'take care both of you I will contact you later.'

Oliver didn't want me to leave. He asked me to stay a little longer, telling me that I'd be closer to where Max might pop up if I was near the Dearing house and estate. I agreed because I didn't have any deadlines myself and it was nice to watch him work at the website he had designed and built. I became restless after about an hour, thinking I should be out hunting down the whereabouts of Max.

Oliver laughed at this. "The website is finished now and I think I may come back with you to your place."

He showed me the finished website and it was very attractive. I thought the client would be pleased with it.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

We drove to my place. We thought it prudent to take both our cars and swung into the driveway one after the other to park by mom's Cherokee that was outside the front door.

Inside I went upstairs to change as I still felt damp and Oliver said he might make some coffee. There had been some mail on the mat and I put it on the hall table to check out after changing.

One of the letters was the confirmation of the order for my roundel and the estimated date of delivery. I was glad I had gone ahead with that idea.

Oliver and I were still discussing the importance of seeing Max when the doorbell rang. It was the delivery of the vases, I had completely forgotten about it and was relieved to have come home in time for it. Oliver looked at them. He was smiling when I told him about how I saw the one and then bought two. He had no idea what to give Claire and James he told me as he helped me carry the vases down to the bottom room where Laura's painting was still propped up against a wall. We put them on the long table in there and Oliver looked around.

"We never use this room really," I told him. "Well in fact we hardly use any of the house when I come to think about it. It's huge and we haven't furnished all of it. I think mom would need at least one hired help if we did live in all of it."

I turned around then to see a massive puddle of water that reached to one end of the big windows over by the big fireplace.

"Oh look Oliver, somehow the place is wet. It must be some kind of leak," I called going to that end of the huge room. Oliver came with me.

"It looks like it's run down from the back of the fireplace," he said, stepping around the puddle and looking into the back. "It looks like the room slopes too, see how the water has run down by the window area instead of spreading out evenly," and he pointed it out.

"I agree, I noticed that too," I nodded.

We stared into the massive walk-in fireplace. The water was coming in about a meter and a half up the back wall. It was soaking in through the plaster quickly, and was cracking the paint there in a long line. Even though the rain had stopped right now, there were droplets of water seeping in and trickling down the back wall of the fireplace.

"It looks like this hasn't been used as a fireplace for a very long time. I think it's been left half painted for a long time too." Oliver said, looking all the way around it. It did look that way, half cream paint, and half a pinky colored plaster. There were signs of remodeling of the mantelshelf high above, and of the ornamental pillars on either side of the fireplace opening. You would need a stepladder to place anything up there.

As the plaster was wet, there was a sharp smell of damp in the air. Careful not to walk in the puddle, I looked at the other end. The water was finding a way out at the edge of the big window. It must have been going into the foundations because it was disappearing down where the skirting board met the floor.

"Maybe we should try to mop it up and then put something to catch the rest before it does any big damage," Oliver said practically.

I nodded. "Sure, mops are in the room off the kitchen." We went down there and got them. I didn't know how we could catch any more water, as we had nothing flat enough or high enough, but we took a couple of square buckets down there and a massive roll of paper towel that was in the laundry room.

We mopped up and then tried to position the buckets to catch the water.

I took the mop wringer attachments out of the buckets and that helped a bit.

"I suppose it is rain and not something upstairs, like a bathroom tap left on," Oliver said.

"We better check, but I think it is rain. It has rained hard," I answered him as we went up to check the bathrooms.

It was rain.

"It's going to keep happening now, look it's pouring with rain again Chloe." Oliver had gone to my window as we checked my bathroom last.

I went over to look. "I love rain, I love all water," I told him smiling.

We were mesmerized by the fall of rain heavy and yet it was not cold. The garden and vegetation beyond was saturated, and the rain bounced off the patio below. Oliver put his arm around me and I leaned into him watching the rain. It had a special smell, and it was so relaxing to stand and watch this display. Oliver turned and kissed my temple, then my cheek. I turned slightly and kissed him. We learned our heads together and turned to look out the window again. The rain was still throwing down, but the valiant sun was up in the sky trying to shine. A massive rainbow appeared. It was so close, and big, it looked as if one end of it was actually at the entrance to the woods. I had never seen the place where a rainbow looks as if it actually touches the ground and it was fascinating.

I went and got my phone.

"I have to give dad a call," I told Oliver. "This house is listed so we can't just call any builder. It has to be a special one. He'll need to deal with it."

When dad was on the phone, I him about the leak and how we had tried to catch the water. He asked me if everything else was okay since mom wasn't around. After assuring him everything was okay, we ended the call so that he could contact the builder.

Oliver and I went down to the big drawing room again to look at how bad the leak was since the rain was beautiful, but relentless.

We walked in to see the back of the fireplace was almost totally gone, the plaster was off and we could see the stone behind. A big crack was there in the stone, going up and down the wall, the horizontal crack was really gaping, and the rain was coming in.

"How is so much rain coming in Oliver? I want to go out and check the outside of the house."

"I'll come too, have you got an umbrella?"

I didn't, so we just held our jackets over our heads and went out there. The wall that was leaking was the sidewall where my bedroom corner window was. It would let in rain if I opened it when the rain came from a certain direction at times, especially when the rain was heavy.

The big vine had branches, which reached to here, but the vine wasn't the problem. It didn't track across where the rain must have been getting in. Oliver was looking closely.

"How weird, the ground level seems to be different out here. Look around the corner, the garden seems higher here, and we're on a sort of mound. I think the water is coming in at ground level out here, but that is halfway up the chimney back inside."

I looked around. It was like an optical illusion. The chimneybreast had the ground built up to it, and yet the slope was so gentle down and around to the wall where the windows were, it was hardly discernible from that side.

It was disguised by the path that came up from the patio to the garden.

"Oliver, I think you're right, there's no evidence of damage on the chimney breast, nothing. It must be coming in at ground level where the rain is just hitting the building and pouring down it onto the lawn here, as well as onto the lawn in general. I don't know for sure, but that's how it seems."

"Something like that. Chloe let's go inside we're very wet." Oliver burst out laughing and grabbed my hand.

I laughed too and we ran inside.

I put the jackets to dry on chairs and we went upstairs. I took some cargos and a T-shirt into my bathroom changing quickly.

"Oliver, let me get you one of dad's t shirts and chuck your jeans in the drier. You can't stay soaked like that," I told him on my way out to mom and dad's room. I got him just a plain navy T-shirt and a big bath sheet from the linen press outside their room.

Inside my room Oliver was standing by the window, he turned around.

"Chloe, it's just throwing down, are there any dust sheets or anything around to try soaking up the rain leaking in?"

I didn't know, but I told him to get into the T-shirt and give me his jeans to dry. He came out of my bathroom with the bath sheet around his waist and the navy T-shirt on.

"You look great. Let's have the jeans," I said, taking them from him and I took them along with my own jeans down to the drier.

Oliver was sitting self-consciously at my desk when I got back.

He smiled at me. "Thanks Chloe. I can't believe we got that wet and didn't achieve much."

"I don't know Oliver I get to see how you would look in a sarong." I smiled.

"That's very, very funny. How long will it take to dry my jeans?" He grinned back at me.

"Not long Oliver. I'm thinking of calling Tristan and asking if he has any dust sheets or anything kicking around as the parquet down in that big sitting room will be ruined."

I called Tristan who answered right away, and told me he was just about to meet with the accountant, but he knew there were dustsheets in the library, stacked on the third shelf up. There were no books, he said, so I should see them easily. He would call the agent and the builder they used to speed things up.

I told Oliver and we went down to the library which was a long thin room along the left of the corridor opposite the middle drawing room and dining room.

"Can you believe I haven't been in here," I told Oliver.

"No, I can't believe it, why not?" he asked me holding onto the towel around his waist.

I grinned at him. "Just glanced from the door and saw it was empty so I haven't bothered. I have been busy Oliver."

We went into the room and Oliver walked the length of the shelves.

Following on I noticed his damp footprints on the floor and caught up with him.

"Oliver, your feet are wet too, oh the dust sheets are there."

I saw them and they were stacked on the third shelf, it looked like there were a lot of them.

I picked some up. They were quite heavy in their stack.

"I'd like to get my jeans on before I help," Oliver said.

I turned to him. "The damage is done to a certain extent Oliver. I'll throw a couple down on that big puddle then let's go check your jeans, and then get the rest of the sheets on the puddles."

I took the dustsheet and tossed it into the big puddle by the window. Oliver had padded up behind me and threw on another large one. We watched some water start soaking up and then we went down to the kitchen and I checked the jeans in the drier in the laundry room.

"I reckon maybe five more minutes," I told him.

We made some coffee and tea. I checked the jeans again and handed Oliver his, he had me turn around to put them on which was hilarious.

We got the rest of the dustsheets and took them to place on the puddles, which had grown considerably. That was all we could and so we took our drinks up stairs.

I gave Oliver some of dad's socks and he was putting his shoes back on preparing to go home.

I'd almost forgotten about Max when Oliver said,

"I really want to be at the play with you and Liz because I hate to think Max will show up there, Chloe.

"Okay Oliver it's tomorrow evening, will you meet us there?"

We arranged to meet at the hall where it was being staged and Oliver decided he should get going.

I went downstairs with him. He turned to me at the door and kissed me, holding my face.

Not so long after, Steven came home and we talked about California for a while since mom was there. I got my netbook down and we tried 'Skyping' her but she wasn't online.

I was reading in bed. The rain was still coming down, but it was warm, and I had my windows open, except for the corner one that would have let the rain in. I thought about the mess that the floor down in the big drawing room would be in if it rained all night.

Chapter Thirty

Tuesday morning I sent a text to Liz asking if she would like me to pick her up to go to the play and that Oliver wanted to come too, if she didn't mind. She texted back 'it would be great to be picked up...Laura's car was back in the garage...Laura wanted to borrow her car'.

Interesting I thought as I texted back to her.

Dad was in the kitchen with a cup of real coffee having set up the percolator.

"Hey, Dad what are you doing here it's half past nine?"

"I know it. I'm waiting for the builder who was coming at nine this morning, but as yet hasn't. I need to meet with him because of the building listing and so on. The agent said that this builder is favored by the Dearings because he's done lots of heritage work."

He drank some coffee and looked out the patio door at the still falling rain, which was now a fine mist in weak sunlight.

We heard an engine and the crunch of the gravel driveway.

"That will be him now I guess, Dad," I said going to the door.

It was the builder and dad went down to the bottom drawing room with him. I followed because I wanted to see how bad everything was.

The dustsheets were soaked and the back of the fireplace was worse than ever. The builder wanted to put a camera thing he had into the big cracks to check the origin of the leak. I told him about Oliver's theory that it was at ground level outside and he decided to check that out too. His assistants had come down through the house with some technical stuff and I went back to the kitchen out of the way.

They were all still down there when I went upstairs and settled down to do some drawings from my photographs.

As usual, I was lost in the process for a few hours before I was disturbed by dad.

"Chloe, this is exciting, they've seen a cavity behind the fireplace back and it may even be a room. The county archaeology team has to take a look at the findings and then they'll need to check the place out before we can do anything else, since it's kind of a new find."

"Really, wow, that's so cool, but how can it be a room, it would be underground?" I asked him.

"That's exactly why the archaeologists have to see it. Who knows there may be hidden treasure in there? What do you think?" he said laughingly.

I laughed then stopped because I remembered the money left for Eleanor and Richard in a safe place by Sir Edmund Dearing. Maybe that's what was going to be found.

After some thought I figured I didn't really believe it. It would surely have been found hundreds of years ago if so. That little mound couldn't be the safe place.

Even so, I smiled again at dad and agreed it was exciting asking when the archaeologists might come around. It seemed like it would be this week, maybe Thursday, and they were going to confirm.

Dad left for the restaurant and I couldn't concentrate any more.

The rain had stopped completely and the sun was coming in and out of clouds. When it was out the damp grass was glittering.

I went around the outside of the house to look at the mound. I couldn't believe it might house a room.

I'd told dad I'd go for the grocery supplies and went off to do this chore.

It was time to collect Liz and go to the play. Oliver met us and we went in.

No Max and nothing eventful happened. The play was quite fun and we went around to the dressing rooms and saw Clare afterwards.

I didn't mention the leak and the builder's findings even though I wanted to, because it would open up all kinds of questions, and I didn't know how much Tristan told Liz. In fact, I wanted to talk to him about it all.

I dropped Liz off at home and was back in my room. I called Oliver and told him what had happened, all about the supposed room behind the fireplace. He had the same reaction as me, what if the lost money for Eleanor, and Richard was there and then he too couldn't believe it would be there. We ended the call saying we would catch up in a couple of days. Oliver needed to see his clients with the finished website before he put it online. I had forgotten to tell him about what Liz had said about Laura's car.

I thought I'd call him the next day.

I expected Tristan to know about the archaeology finding and it was quite late so I didn't ring him.

Chapter Thirty-One

The next day it wasn't raining, but the sky was a dull gray, and the sun had disappeared. It was still warm and humid. I went out for a walk and found myself heading down to the waterfall. I hadn't been there for some time. I didn't think about the effect that the downpour of the last two days might have had on both the path down the bank to the pool or the pool. I slid a bit on the way down, and used the big strong ferns to help keep upright. I was surprised when I saw the pool. It had flooded up onto the bank quite a lot, and the way to the ruins by the left side was completely flooded. The stairs at the other side had a marsh at the bottom now, water of unknown depth where all the vegetation that had been sprouting from the ground now came out of water.

You couldn't use this route to the other ruins and the dig nor to the top where the river fell to become the waterfall. The waterfall was no longer the silk curtain it used to be, but fell faster and more heavily into the pool.

I was about to turn and go back up the bank path when Charlie came snuffling along in the vegetation to the right of me. Wagging his tail, he walked up to me. He put his nose into my hand as I held it out to him and I stroked his face and ears.

I looked around. "Where have you come from Charlie," I asked him, as if he could answer.

He wagged his tail more and Tristan came striding along from the trees a little further along, where I had once tried to climb back up the bank and couldn't.

"Chloe, you must have read my mind to come down here. I was just thinking of you being here," he called as he approached. "I'd probably not have run into you if Charlie hadn't dashed off down here."

"Good dog," he told Charlie as the dog ran up to him in a waddling fashion with his tail wagging again.

I waited for Tristan to get to me and then smiled at him.

"You were thinking about me?"

"I just wanted to set eyes on you. I didn't expect you would be down here, it's kind of water logged at the moment."

He came right up to me and took my hand, which he kissed. Then stepping closer he kissed me on the cheek and because I turned my face to him, finally on the lips.

I closed my eyes as he put his forehead against mine and we just stayed there for a few seconds.

I whispered, "Tristan, did you hear about what the builders found?"

He moved back a little and grinned at me. "I did," he said. "Intriguing isn't it?"

He kissed me again, and I put my arms up around his neck and kissed him back. The whole atmosphere felt charged and I expected to wake up and find I had dreamed this because that's how it felt.

Charlie broke us up snuffling too near the marshy bit near the bottom of the ancient stairs. He splashed loudly and barked happily, as he went up to his chest in water.

"Charlie," Tristan called, and as he walked over to the dog, I noticed he was wearing some kind of boots up to his knees. He walked straight into the marsh. His clothes became the knight's clothes, and then helping Charlie out by his hindquarters he returned to modern Tristan. I watched this. It would never cease to fascinate me. I decided that one day I'd ask Tristan to stand in the pool with me and look into his beautiful eyes as he appeared in his knight form.

He came back over to me. "Let's get back up to the top path Chloe, old Charlie will keep going in the pool otherwise. He loves water."

"I understand that, so do I," I said as Tristan took my hand and started Charlie going up the bank in front of him with a guiding hand.

On the top path, Tristan asked me where I was heading to and I told him I had just come out for a walk. Then I really wanted to know what he thought of the builders finding at the back of the chimney. Tristan shrugged.

"I can't think what it might be. As long as I remember there has been a slight mound there, and I've never seen anything to suggest what the builder is saying that some sort of room exists there. That doesn't mean is doesn't of course. The house has always existed in some form or another and I have missed some years when I didn't know what was happening there, including when I was a child. I remember a tower in that corner more than anything else. I think I'll wait for the archaeologist's findings."

"Well yes I guess that's all we can do. Who will that be, not James and his crew?" I asked him.

He smiled and said, "Unfortunately not."

Charlie was rolling in the patches of buttercups by the path and then decided to go off. Tristan called him back.

"Chloe I need to go can I call you later?"

I told him yes, and he hugged me, and then went off with Charlie following him.

I walked home and checked the answer machine for any message from the builders. I was hopeful that something would be found though it had felt as if Tristan wasn't.

I called dad at the restaurant and asked if Clare was in at all this week because of the play requirements. He told me she wasn't in until next Monday and neither was James. As he had asked why I wanted to know, I told him about the present of vases, which were quite big. I didn't know how I'd actually give them to her and James. It happened that dad knew there were instructions for any enquiries about the delivery of gifts. They could be delivered to Clare's parents' address, because the party was small and relatively short.

I decided to take the vases to Clare's parent's house myself. I printed out a gift card, and carrying them to the Wrangler one by one, I secured each one with a seat belt on the back bench-seat and put a rolled up quilt in front of them to catch them should they roll forward at all.

I looked up the address and found driving directions on Google maps. It was very easy and turned out to be a house at the end of the street where the Kool Kafé was. This end of the street had a few residential houses on there, Georgian places. Looking for a place to park, I pulled into a spot that was vacant just a car length away from their front area, which was lucky since this was still the center of the town. I rang the bell hoping someone would be in. I hadn't thought to check. Samantha opened the door and I smiled at her asking if she remembered me and that I had brought a present for Clare and James.

She helped me carry the vases in and we put them in the dining room on a lovely old table. Clare's mom appeared from somewhere and looked at the vases. She really liked them herself she said and that it was a lovely present. She asked if I'd like to have a cup of coffee as she had just made some, but I thought I'd like to get going, and after asking would I see them at the little celebration party on Sunday, I left.

I drove home listening to music occasionally thinking about Tristan, and then Oliver.

At home, I was surprised to find the place a hive of activity. There were people and a few computers on the kitchen table. I could see down to the big drawing room area at the far end of the corridor, and there were people in there too with spotlights set up shining on the fireplace. The whole floor seemed to be covered in plastic.

Dad was in the kitchen drinking coffee and talking with two guys who were showing him something on one of the laptop screens.

"Chloe, come and see this," he said, as I walked to the fridge to get some water. I detoured to where they were set up at one end of the big table and looked at the screen.

"Wow, where is that?" I asked as I saw a wall painting. It was half covered in something, dirt or maybe half of it was missing. It was quite dark wherever it was.

"That," said the man who was using the laptop, "is in the back of the fireplace and we are going to be going in there to find out how extensive the painting is."

"Wow, how exciting, is it really old?" I asked.

"We estimate early eleven hundreds, not many of these around if it is" and he smiled a big happy smile.

"How cool is that?" I was thinking of Tristan back in that time. "When will you know?"

"When we get in there and have a really good look at it. The owner has been contacted and has given full permission for any exploration as long as you residents are not 'terribly disturbed', his words." The guy laughed and dad joined in.

"I guess that's Jack then."

I wasn't going to say anything. Surprisingly the archaeologist didn't correct dad. Maybe Jack stood in for Tristan to keep him 'under wraps.'

"Dad, who's looking after the restaurant?" I asked thinking it would be Patrick.

"Liz and Marcel, and then Patrick for the chefs, I took the rest of today off and will take tomorrow morning off, but then the guys here will be settled and I thought I'd just leave them to it. Is that okay with you?"

"Sure Dad, it's excellent. Are they only tackling it from the inside?"

I introduced myself then thinking it would be good to call the archaeologist something. He was called Adrian and the man on the other laptop was Robin.

"Sorry Chloe I should have done that, but I was so enthralled by the finding." Dad tailed off as the woman I had already met at the 'Norman door dig' came in.

"Hello Leslie, this is Chloe my daughter," he said, and smiling we both said we had already met.

I went down to the big drawing room, but couldn't see much except for a cable going into the cracks, which turned out to be a camera.

I messaged Tristan to find out if he knew about this activity in the big drawing room, and he texted back that he did.

Around eight, everyone had gone and the door to the big drawing room was closed. Dad, Steven and I went up to the restaurant for dinner, which Steven thought was a nuisance, but I liked it, it had been a long time since we actually sat down to eat with dad.

Chapter Thirty-Two

I was sitting at my desk surfing the net. It was nearly midnight by my computer clock, and I was beginning to feel a little tired. There was a funny little sound and I turned around to see a couple of white pieces of gravel on the wooden floor by my window. Smiling I went to the window. It would be Tristan I thought and looking out it was him. He was on the lovely horse. Its silver, white, and gray mane, and tail, shone in the moonlight, and the residual light cast by the garden lights mom had programed to 'always on.'

I laughed a little, and hung out the window saying, "Tristan, how very cool, you were riding that horse a couple of nights ago near the edge of the wood weren't you?"

"Maybe I was. Come down to see me please?" he whispered.

"I'll come down the ivy."

"You will not," he said, and then seeing me smiling, realized I had been teasing and shook his head at me.

The lovely horse was standing very still and tossed its head without a sound.

I pulled on my boots and went down to see him. I went out the usual way via the middle drawing room and walked the few paces to where Tristan had gone. He was stroking the horse's neck and patted him as I approached, then got down from the saddle.

I realized the boots I had seen him wear sometimes were riding boots. Otherwise, he was wearing jeans and a long sleeved T- shirt, and looking very attractive as his hair blew back in the breeze. He reached out to take my hand, and drew me to him. He kissed me quickly.

"Chloe, I want to see the fireplace, can I come in? I'll be careful and quiet."

I smiled at him. "You can, naturally."

He wound the reins of the horse around a little branch of one of the bushes at the edge of the path.

"Will that keep him there?" I asked not wanting the horse to disappear off down the road.

"No," replied Tristan, stroking the horse's neck again. "He'll remove the rein from the branch when I am gone with his teeth, then he'll eat the grass and any flowers he likes the smell of and wait for me."

He smiled then added, "He likes to think he's outwitted me by undoing the rein from the bush, but I hardly tie it tight."

"He's a lovely horse and clever really, plus loyal. He could just go off and have a good old gallop but he waits for you," I observed.

"Oh he's done that too, but he's always back when I am. I think he could be telepathic," Tristan laughed.

"What's his name?" I said as I watched the horse standing patiently by the bush.

"Cedric," Tristan told me and he took my hand as we headed for the drawing room French door.

I flipped the lights on as we went into the big end room. The technical equipment was still set up, and Tristan switched it on and the laptop into which it was plugged. The camera cable was on a hook hanging from one of the spotlights. Tristan took it and fed it through the biggest crack in the wall until the laptop had the picture on it that I had seen earlier in the kitchen.

Tristan put the rubber wedge in the crack, which held the cable in place and came to the laptop.

He looked at it for a couple of minutes, then he sighed, then he looked at it again.

"Looks like something I have actually seen. I was a very young child, and I was in a room with a woman and another child. I don't know who they were. I'm not sure, but I think my father was there. I don't know. Maybe it was somewhere else. I can only just remember and I think it was a tower I was in, not a tiny little room. I could be wrong. I've been to so many places, and lived overseas so much too that sometimes when I'm remembering things I sometimes have trouble remembering for sure which time or country they were in."

He sighed again and looked at me.

"Have they told you when they are going into the wall?"

"No maybe they told dad, maybe its tomorrow, he's home for almost the whole day and off to the restaurant about five. Don't they tell the owner, which is you?"

"I just told them to do what was needed, without disturbing you people terribly much."

I smiled at this. It was Tristan they'd talked with. Maybe Adrian just hadn't known or someone else had spoken with him.

"It's hardly disturbing Tristan this is really interesting."

He looked at the laptop picture again, stared at it with his head resting on the knuckles of his hand and then he shrugged. "It's a bit dark in there to know what's really what. The light cable they have isn't throwing much light is it?"

He started to pack up the technical material and I helped. We left the room as we had found it.

"I'm surprised they left all this," I commented to Tristan as we closed the door.

"The place is insured up to the rafters and anything in it," he said and grinned.

We went out the middle drawing room doors to find Cedric eating the grass on the lawn, his reins hanging free. I smiled at this. He knew Tristan was coming back because he looked up and then quietly walked to him.

Tristan stroked his nose and put the reins over his head. He was talking to him in a low voice, "Thanks for waiting for me old chap, clever one."

The horse pushed his nose into Tristan's hand and made a small soft sound.

Tristan turned around to me watching him. He looked lovely in the moonlight by his horse.

"Why do you ride around at three in the morning Tristan?" I asked him.

He moved forward. I could see amusement in his eyes.

"Because I'm a Norman knight."

I just kept looking at him and he looked back at me, and then he leaned in and kissed me.

"Maybe you should go in and get some sleep," he said softly. "I'll not leave until I see you at your bedroom window."

I kissed him again and then I went in.

When I leaned out of my window, he was seated on his horse and looking up at me. He gave me a little wave, and he turned Cedric. The horse walked softly away. I watched until I couldn't see him anymore.

I didn't sleep too well that night. I tossed, and turned until it was nearly light, then I dropped to sleep.

Chapter Thirty-Three

The next morning the sun was blazing out of the sky when I got up. I went downstairs about a half hour later in my cargos and a strappy top I could hear people. Obviously the work on the fireplace had been started.

I skirted it, because I wanted to go and see Oliver if I could. I felt edgy.

I knew dad was home as I could hear his voice. I went in that direction. He was out on the kitchen patio on his cell. When he saw me, he nodded and held out his arm. I went and got a hug. "Its mom, say hi."

I talked to mom for a few minutes. She was due home on Sunday, and that was cool. I'd missed her. We finished our little chat.

"Dad I'm going to meet a friend. I think I'll be home about mid-afternoon."

He smiled, nodded, and went back to talking to mom.

Driving to Oliver's I stopped to get petrol. It took me two goes to park in front of the pump because of my left hand drive, and the massive truck that was really blocking everyone's view.

I reached Oliver's place and parked in front of his conversion. I figured he was out. You can see straight into his office drawing room from the front windows when sitting in a Wrangler parked in front, and there was no sign of him in there. I remembered he might be with a client and was thinking of just going home again when I decided to ring the bell anyway.

He came around the side of the house, after a couple of rings echoed down the hall.

"Chloe, this is a nice surprise, what's happening?" he asked with a big smile on his face.

"Oliver, Laura was borrowing Liz's car the night we went to the play. She'd told Liz that her own car was in the shop again, but we'd seen her with it and with Max. I think she must have lent her car to Max for some reason," I started to tell him.

He took my hand and we went back down the opening between the conversion and his parents place onto the little garden at the back of his kitchen area. His skin was dry and cool, and his hand felt strong around mine.

"Let me get you something to drink Chloe, it's quite warm today."

We went into his kitchen and he got me some orange juice.

"So tell me more?" Oliver said to me when we were out at the little table in the garden again.

"Well that's it really I didn't say anything the other night because Liz was there, but I really think there may be more to this Laura and Max thing than meets the eye. I was thinking Oliver if she shows up at Clare's party, maybe we should try to find out more about her boyfriend in France. I can't help thinking this can't be a coincidence. Maybe Max is still out to find the right blood. I worry now for both you and Tristan."

As I said this, Oliver burst out laughing.

"Chloe, we're both able to spontaneously heal, if anyone should be worried it would be me and Tristan, and about you. Please what's brought this on?"

I thought for a moment. "I guess that I didn't sleep well and I just felt edgy. I'd be devastated if anything happened to either you or Tristan. Something about the whole Max and Laura issue kept drifting through my mind, in the night, I can't quite remember but I think I had a dream about them."

Oliver leaned over and took both my hands.

"Chloe, lots of things have happened, you are bound to feel edgy, now and again. I was walking down the street the other day, and suddenly I felt totally unreal. If I hadn't been going to see my clients I'd have come straight around to see you." Then he smiled. "Maybe there is something to this Laura and Max thing, but the thing is, he does think I was the carrier of the healing blood and he does think he got some. Let's try to find out more but let's do it carefully. We don't want to draw his attention to Tristan and let's face it we don't want him getting my blood again now either, do we?"

Somehow, some of Oliver's calmness transmitted to me and I told him about the wall painting and about Tristan coming to see it at midnight and what Tristan had almost remembered.

At this, he raised his eyebrows. "No wonder you're having dreams."

We decided to go back to my house and check out what was happening with the fireplace.

At the house, the driveway was almost full of various four-wheel drives, and a truck. Oliver parked on the road close to the drive and we went in through the front door, which was ajar. There seemed to be a flurry of activity in the big drawing room down at the far end of the hall.

We went into the kitchen. Adrian was at the table again with his laptop, and Robin was there with his.

I turned around at the doorway and said, "Let's go upstairs," to Oliver as softly as I could.

As we turned around Leslie came down the hall and said, "Hey Chloe, do you want to see the room at the back of the fireplace?" and then she looked at Oliver, and so I introduced them. We both went to look at the room, following Leslie.

The back of the fireplace was completely open, and there were square planks and wadding pressed up against the chimney back that was left standing. The hole at the back of the fireplace was big enough to walk into, and even Oliver could go in there with only a slight dip of his head. We went in very carefully as there were steps to go down into the hole. They appeared to be very old steps and were very wide. All along the sides was moss and green marks. The steps would have been slippery I think, except that Leslie had placed sheeting over them in the middle to walk over. The whole place was lit by a number of lamps on tripods. The room went back further than I could see and Leslie told us that they hadn't finished going back into the cavity, as they were concerned about collapse of the roof above. To which I looked up surprised to see stone undercroft vaulting there.

The wall painting was lit too and it was damaged in places but was also very vibrant considering how old it must be. The main area was a painting of angels and the middle one was just lifting off the ground full of flowers with her wings open, what made me catch my breath was that her face was unmistakable; it was Eleanor. I gasped and Leslie saw my face and heard my gasp, misunderstanding she said, "It's still magnificent isn't it, how it's not more water damaged than it already is...well that's a mystery. It's obvious this place floods occasionally, and I think the steps would have been covered once or twice by water. There is more too, it's so exciting." She was positively gleeful. "We have a tunnel, well passageway, it's not opened yet, but it's down there," and she pointed to the right of the steps. On close inspection, the steps did turn as if to spiral down and led into the wall.

"Phil has looked at it and he thinks this was closed over in medieval times, and that by the angle of the steps there will be a steep drop down to what could only be a tunnel or passageway. We have come across one like this before a bit further north in England and a bit younger. This promises to be very exciting."

By this time both Oliver and I were standing staring alternately at the angel in the painting, and then the spiral staircase leading to a stone wall.

He had clasped my hand when my gasp had alerted him to the angel with Eleanor's face and now he squeezed my fingers to get my attention.

I looked at him and he cast his eyes upwards at the border of the painting. There were a few birds and fish in the border but at the far end, a Griffin stood with its wings folded. I took a step forward and peered closer at the other angels. They were boys, and the background was of trees. The wall painting bottom had been reached by floodwater at times and was extensively damaged. The boy angels would have been standing on flowers like Eleanor, but these had fallen away.

"Wow, this is simply awe-inspiring Leslie," I said. "Has the owner seen this place?" I wanted Tristan to see it.

Leslie told us that he had been informed and was coming down in a couple of days to see what had happened with the tunnel.

We carefully stepped out of the fireplace and I thanked Leslie for showing us. She told us that the builders would be in for the day tomorrow to survey and shore up anything they felt might be in danger.

We went up to my room. "Oliver, what do think of that, it's just fantastic don't you think?" I said to him not waiting for an answer. Once there I checked the windows, looking out of them as if we might be heard by someone below.

Oliver watched me grinning, and then when I was perched on my desk next to him he said softly, "You saw the Griffin?"

I said, "You saw Eleanor?"

We looked at each other both raising our eyebrows almost at the same time, which made us smile, and I leaned over to him and kissed him as we both smiled more.

"Tristan will flip out," I said.

"I think he will be a bit upset, I mean to say, it's not very nice for his mother that a picture of another woman survives to be seen when his mother's own tomb is sealed off," Oliver commented. I wouldn't be too impressed to think a hidden picture of my dad's secret lover was under my house." He finished talking and I couldn't help but agree really.

"Do you want to come and get something to eat Chloe, its way past lunchtime?" Oliver suddenly asked after we had been sitting silently contemplating the Eleanor angel for a few moments.

"Let's go up to the café service at the restaurant, they serve until five thirty."

"Okay, that's a good idea," Oliver answered.

"Let me put a different T-shirt on." I went to my cupboard and took out my antique green T-shirt and I went into my bathroom and put it on, brushing my hair afterwards.

Oliver was standing at the window when I came out and he turned around.

"You look lovely."

I smiled at him.

We walked over to the restaurant and found a table as far away from the other people there as possible at the far end, where a peacock was balancing on the balustrade that bordered the rose garden at the side of the restaurant.

Ben came over to take our order and we talked to him for a few moments. Oliver and he talked about the archery club he belonged to and I was surprised to find Oliver wanted to get lessons and join too. Then Ben said that he knew my stained glass order was nearly finished and it was looking spectacular.

He went off to get our food.

"When did you decide to learn archery Oliver?" I asked him.

"I've wanted to for a while, but always thought I didn't have the time to take away from my business, but now I do. Ben has been in competitions and I've gone to see him a few times. It's a really fine art to watch." It was nice to hear Oliver enthused. I thought he'd forgotten about his comment by the lake after finding out about Tristan's immortality, but obviously not.

"I'm looking forward to seeing your design in glass Chloe," he smiled at me continuing, "You don't seem to be doing anything about being a designer any more. Is it still top of your list?" He said this kindly and I knew what he meant.

"Well I have done some work recently but as for going to college I just haven't applied anywhere. I'd like to just design things and try to sell them. The thought of going to classes every day and maybe having to do things that really have nothing to do with the subject I love, doesn't fill me with joy. I need to talk with mom and dad really about it. They still hope I'll go to college full time."

Oliver nodded. "Well why not do that? Design some things such as those roundels, whatever you want, and try to sell them."

"I may just do that. Although I think the roundel would cost too much to have made for me to make much of a profit, so I could just sell a client the design, and they get it made."

Ben brought our order and we talked about how difficult it was to get a business really going on little capital. Oliver was lucky he said because he had so much parental help. I felt lucky with my parents too.

My cell rang and I fished it out of my back pocket and saw it was Tristan.

"Hello Tristan, what's happening?"

He told me that he had heard about the room, the painting and the supposed tunnel could he come by tonight and look at it again. I said yes and asked him what time he wanted to come by. I told him the team at the house probably wouldn't leave until around seven thirty, which was their usual finishing up time.

He said that maybe he would be there by ten o'clock.

When Tristan ended the call, I asked Oliver if he was working that night.

"Yes, tonight and Saturday."

I thought we had better hurry so that Oliver could go home and change for work.

"I'm not in until seven thirty, so it's okay. If you don't mind dropping me home in about an hour Chloe that would be good. Anyway what did Tristan say?"

"He wants to come around and see the painting tonight," I answered.

"Another midnight visit," Oliver said a little wistfully.

"Oliver, you know how much I care for you don't you, and if you weren't working I'd ask you to come around tonight. It's been really great to be with you today."

Oliver smiled still a little wistfully.

"Sometimes I wish it was just me you cared for, that's all."

I put my hands over the table to hold his and just sat silently for a couple of minutes. What was I going to say to this?

Suddenly he smiled. "It's as much as him though isn't it?"

For a second I couldn't answer because for some reason I had the word more on my lips.

I got up and walked around to him. His blond hair had streaks of very light blond in the top where the sun had bleached it. I put my arms around him and he turned to face me. His eyes were questioning. I kissed him. "I love you Oliver," I said and you know, I meant it.

This must have been what Oliver wanted to hear because he smiled and said, "I love you too."

Ben came out to check if we wanted anything else, but we paid and walked off down by the lake. The air was very warm and humid, and the sun hadn't come back out. We were hand in hand and walking back to the house when my cell rang again, this time it was Clare thanking me for the present and saying she loved it.

Back home I got my keys and drove Oliver home. We were a little quiet on the drive, and at his house, I felt a strange need not to leave him. I said that I wanted him to text me tonight at least three times and when he had finished his shift. He laughed at this and said 'okay will do.'

I didn't know what to make of this feeling as I drove home. Maybe this was what it felt like to love someone. Maybe you didn't want to be apart from them at all.

I said hello to 'the team' when I got home. I was thinking of them as 'the team' now instead of individuals or archaeologists and builders. I went up to my room after telling them when they were leaving if they could just let me know they were going.

I wanted to check out my work that I had done this week. Maybe there was something real in the idea of trying to freelance design.

Sure that I had some work that may translate into designs for stained glass, I spread my drawings out on my bed and desk. I chose the ones that were of flowers and scenery. I started to label where outlines of lead work might go and what colors would go where. I completed one, which was of bluebells and blades of grass. It looked great and I could imagine it in a front door design panel. I decided to ask Ben where the Glazers got their designs from and if they were open to submissions from artists.

I really liked that, thinking of myself as an artist. I felt as if I had found my niche, I just needed to make it work.

I heard a knock on my door. Leslie was saying the team was leaving. I went down and saw them out. I went into the kitchen, and found they had put all their cups and stuff in the dishwasher, and I turned it on. Making myself tea, I was humming a favorite song when the doorbell rang. I opened the door and it was Tristan.

"Hello Chloe, I just saw the crew drive off, I narrowly missed them then?" and he grinned at this. It was obviously what he wanted.

"Can I make coffee?" he asked, and started to before I answered but of course it was fine.

"Seriously I've had such a week and if I see one more accountant I just might have to run in the other direction." He came to me and hugged me to him, then kissed my forehead. I laughed at this. He made his coffee and sat down at the table. I had my cell in my back pocket and heard the little sound I had set up to tell me I had a message. It was Oliver and he simply said, 'love, Oliver', I hit reply and messaged 'same'.

Tristan asked if it was Oliver. I told him it was, and he smiled.

He took a few sips of his coffee then standing up he sighed and said, "Let's see this room they found."

We walked down there and I switched on the light. Tristan went around switching things on and then he stopped and stood looking at the opening. It was as if he didn't really want to go in there. Then he walked in and down the old steps, which were still sheeted up. He was standing in front of the painting when I went in and joined him.

"You realize who this is?" he said to me pointing at the angel.

"Yes," I answered softly.

"Bloody hell," he muttered, and then he turned around and looked at the spiral stair top. He looked for about a minute then again at the stone surrounds.

"There's the Griffin again," he stated, then he took my hand and we went out of the place. We switched all the lights off again and closed up.

When we were in the kitchen, Tristan drank his coffee. I was watching him. He seemed either nonplussed, or disgusted, and I couldn't tell which. His face was set.

Then suddenly he sighed. "What can I say about that painting? How did my mother not know what was going on?"

"Maybe she did and chose not to let it interfere with her life with your father. Maybe she didn't and that room was always secret. Are you hurt by it?" I asked him.

"I don't think so, well maybe, it's just that lately I realize I didn't know my father at all really."

I didn't want to comment, so I just took a seat at the big table and waited until he spoke again.

"It's okay, I feel as if I've moved on from it all anyway. This past few months I feel my life is different because of you really and maybe Oliver too. If I have anything left over from my initial life, it's the regret about Richard. I feel like he died because of me and you know Oliver almost did too."

I was a little surprised by this. "He didn't, and that was because of you."

Tristan smiled then and went to the kettle where he made more coffee, and asked if I'd like something.

"No thanks, Tristan. You're addicted to coffee."

He laughed. "I know it and I don't care."

I told him about Laura's apparent lie to Liz about her car and he raised his eyebrows. "I could check that out, we all use the same garage, she's probably forgotten that, or doesn't expect anyone to check."

"I just think Max is using it," I said simply.

Steven came home and started to tell us about the band. They were going to surprise Clare and James with a performance on Sunday at their engagement party.

Tristan grinned. "I haven't bought them a present yet. Chloe will you help me choose one tomorrow in town?"

I nodded at this. "Yes I will. Hey, Steven, are you keeping up with the archaeology that's going on in the big drawing room? It's all very cool."

"It's not really my thing although I might be up for going into the secret tunnel if one does exist."

Tristan smiled at this and agreed the tunnel might be interesting.

When Steven had gone up to his room, Tristan smiled.

"I've heard stories that there used to be a secret passageway from the kitchen to what used to be the tower, but I thought it alluded to the stairs up from the kitchen to your room Chloe, and another set of stairs that disappeared centuries ago."

"Really Tristan so they're not really stories they are true." I thought it was all exciting. Tristan smiled and stood up.

"I need to go see Cedric. I haven't called in on the horses today."

The dishwasher was still going so he left his cup in the sink.

He hugged me tight. "What time will be okay for you tomorrow to help me choose something for James and Clare?"

"How about midday?" I asked giving him a hug back.

We agreed on midday and he left.

I went upstairs to my room and my laptop. A message came on my phone again, and it was Oliver. He was having a break and thought he should contact me as I'd asked. I grinned at this. I messaged back and then decided to check my emails. Sitting there at my desk afterwards, it occurred to me how since the room had come to light in the downstairs fireplace, Tristan hadn't mentioned saying the prayer for his father. I hoped he hadn't changed his mind because I still thought this would be a good ending to Sir Edmund's story. Then I thought of the font and if it was in the church yet, and then I thought of Harry, and what he would make of the fireplace room. I was thinking, I must ask Tristan if we could get Harry in for a look at it, just because he would be bound to be interested as I wandered into my bathroom and took a shower. I hoped I'd hear one more time from Oliver and put my cell where I could hear it.

It wasn't until I was in bed that I heard again from Oliver and it wasn't the goodnight text I was expecting.
Chapter Thirty-Four

My cell rang, and it was Oliver,

"Chloe, I'm coming to see you. You can't imagine what's happened in the last couple of hours. It's Max and of all people, he was with Jack Dearing, and Laura and they were like long lost friends. Be with you in ten minutes is that okay?"

Surprised, I said it was okay.

Having put my jeans and a T-shirt on over what I was going to sleep in, I went downstairs and got some water. As I came out of the kitchen, I heard a car pull into the front area. I opened the door because it had to be Oliver. He came across from his Land Rover. He was wearing his white shirt and his black bow tie open at the neck. His hair caught the light from the garden lamps and his eyes were dark as he reached me.

I offered him water, he shook his head, and I took him up to my room.

When he was sitting in my desk chair and I was leaning against my desk near him. He took a deep breath then shaking his head again said, "He was there with Jack Dearing and Laura. When I saw them I thought about calling the police. I told your dad and he was all for it, but the guy was just so blatant I thought maybe I'm mistaken. Maybe we were mistaken, and it's just some dude looks exactly like Max but isn't. I mean you see those doubles of people, and some people are really alike but for a parting in their hair or something."

He took a breath so I asked, "What doubles do you mean look-alikes, you know like Elvis and so on?"

This made him laugh and he took my hand.

"Exactly, well I said to your dad, maybe I'm wrong. What if it's not him and I get the police in? So we hatched this plan. I'd go to do their order and if there was any recognition in the guy's eyes, we would call the police. Patricia was to come with me to check out his face too, not because she knows him, but to see what his expression was. I know it sounds ridiculous, but he was just sitting there chatting to Jack and Laura as large as life. Well Patricia came with the wine list and hovered near me. I said hello to Jack and Laura. You know I've hardly met them, anyway I asked for their order. All the time I'm staring at Max just willing him to flinch or have a glimmer of recognition. Nothing, he looked straight at me, not a flicker. Laura says, 'Oliver I didn't know you worked here.' She must have known, she's such a poser, she says then, 'you know my father Jack, and this is my very good friend Rene.' Rene not Max, looks straight at me and says 'pleased to meet you.' I was still waiting for some slip in his act, a sign of recognition, nothing. Either he is an exceptional actor or he doesn't know me. That's what Patricia said too."

Oliver was looking intently at me.

"Well that's that then it's a look alike," I said, but all the time I was thinking its Max he's such a cool customer.

Oliver looked at me with a frown and then sighed. "I think it's him, sorry to be so melodramatic."

"I think it is too Oliver, I bet it's him, he's up to something," I agreed then with Oliver and he broke into a smile.

He got up and put his arms around my waist. I leaned into him, and he put his head down on my shoulder then up. We were face to face, he whispered, "We should let Tristan know, you know that Jack was there with Max." Then he kissed me and almost whispered again. "We better watch that character he's up to something no doubt about it, the question is what."

I kissed him this time.

He reached into his pocket still holding me with one arm and flipped his phone open.

"Midnight, too late to bother Tristan I guess.

"Maybe not," I told him and so he called.

"Hello Tristan, sorry to disturb you so late, but I wanted to give you a heads up, I saw someone I am sure was Max with Jack and Laura tonight in the restaurant."

Then his face became serious as he continued speaking to Tristan he said, "I know, and I tried to, well, I think it's an act, Rene, really well good luck with that, yes, see you later. Sunday? Yes, okay then." Oliver closed his phone.

"Tristan is going to try to get some information about the guy from Laura. He said he would be at Clare's party to catch up with us if he found out anything."

"Was he surprised, about Jack at least?" I asked.

"No, he didn't seem to be. I don't think he's gotten over the sword and manuscript stuff."

"It might be that Jack is just meeting Laura's boyfriend. For all we know neither of them may know it's Max, if it is, that is," I commented.

"I'm watching him very closely whoever he is," Oliver said hugging me again.

Then I had an idea. "Oliver, did it sound like Max?"

"Sound like him? Well yes I think so, as far as I can remember how he sounded when he was carrying on at me in that place where he had me drugged and tied up."

I shuddered thinking about that. Oliver hugged me again saying, "Are you cold?"

I told him it was the thought of what Max had done to him.

We hugged each other for a moment then Oliver said he better get going, Nick would wonder what the Land Rover was doing in the driveway when he got in.

Oliver had only just gone when dad came home. I heard him humming as he came in the door. I was on my way upstairs and I called down,

"Hey Dad you sound happy."

"It's because your mom is coming home," he said as he came up the stairs two at a time. He kissed my cheek, "Night Chloe" he said, and I went up to my room.

It was one in the morning, I should have been able to sleep, but I was in my bed thinking about things instead. Suddenly I realized it was raining. I went to my window. Massive great drops of warm rain splashed on my face as I stuck my head out. The air was warm and the night was quite dark from cloud cover. I thought about the wall painting and was about to go down and see what arrangements had been made in case it rained, when the rain stopped. I stood for a while looking out at the night. The rain didn't come back and I finally went into bed and fell asleep.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Saturday, I woke up to a dull gray sky and going to my window, I could feel a warm breeze coming in. Tristan was coming around at midday and I wondered if the team was downstairs working away already as I brushed my teeth.

When I went downstairs, the house was deserted. 'Seems they get Saturday off then' I said to myself, but I went down to the big drawing room to check if that bit of rain in the night had come in the house.

There was no sign of water in the fireplace where it would have come in, so maybe they had put something to catch it somehow on the outside of the house.

When I'd made a piece of toast, I walked around there eating it. There was a great big tarpaulin sort of stapled to the wall on the outside, and some sort of transparent drainage pipe rigged up. Satisfied I went back into the kitchen and got some tea.

I messaged Oliver. To tell him that I was going to get a present for Clare with Tristan at midday, and asking what he was up to.

A few minutes later he replied, 'work this afternoon, for your dad, right now taking an archery lesson'.

I smiled to myself. This was good I thought. Well unless Oliver had decided to shoot Max with an arrow. Suddenly and surprisingly, the thought seemed hilarious and I was laughing as I went up to my room to put some shoes on.

Tristan was early. It was only eleven thirty. He had walked over and his hair looked a bit windswept, which did not detract from his general attractiveness in his blue shirt and black jeans.

"Chloe, this Max stuff," he said, almost as soon as he had kissed me hello.

"I've actually talked to Laura this morning, and Jack, well sort of. I went down to breakfast, which I never do. I knew they'd be there. Then because I know what she gets up to, I said to her that I'd heard she was seen around town with a guy, and who was he? I knew that if I seemed vaguely interested she'd take it that I was jealous, and try to rub it in. Jack said 'oh you must mean Rene, such a nice boy.' I asked her where she had met him was it at the Art summer school. Characteristically she couldn't wait to tell all. She did meet him there but not until the final exhibition when he was there looking at his sister's work. They, Laura and he, have such a lot in common because he's a twin like her. Well as soon as I heard that I thought maybe that's it, maybe Max is the evil twin."

He laughed at this and then becoming serious again he said, "She thinks I'm jealous now and it's kind of set her off again chasing me. Which is awful and I feel guilty because I did kind of give that impression so that she would spill all."

I smiled at this phrase. "Well all's fair in love and war Tristan," I told him.

He looked questioningly at me but didn't comment further.

We went into town and Tristan ended up getting Clare and James a gift voucher for this designer home-ware shop. We just couldn't think of anything and the voucher was valid for a year so it gave them time to buy something they really wanted.

I couldn't help keeping my eyes open for Max and Tristan kept laughing about it. Then just as we were heading back to the car park, Tristan actually spotted him and Laura. They were going into the coffee shop over the road.

Tristan decided it would be interesting to 'run into them' and we crossed the road and went into the coffee shop. They were just coming back out and we did run into them in a very natural way.

Laura enthused over running into Tristan and then sort of dismissed me, but it was plain to see she hated the fact I was with him. The Max lookalike watched this too. I was keeping my eyes as far as I could on his face and before he could hide it, I saw jealousy on his face. Interesting I thought, as Tristan asked Laura if this was Rene. We edged out of the doorway, because someone wanted to get past and on the pavement outside Laura introduced us.

I looked straight at Max. He hadn't one speck of recognition in his eyes, but there was something. He was hiding something. Something was a lie, and I was sure it was because he was Max. He shifted once or twice on his feet and it was enough to make me look down. I was sure he was wearing those shoes that had given him away the first time. They were not the Cuban heeled boots that Oliver and I had seen him wearing. When I looked back up at his face, I saw for just a split second a look on his face. He knew that I knew who he was.

I tried to put a look of innocence on my own face as we said goodbye and I called him Rene.

Tristan steered me into the coffee shop, and when inside he said, "Well, I decided I wanted some coffee, and it looks better too that we come in here, although I'd prefer to follow them."

He asked for his coffee to go and asked me if I wanted something, then as the girl behind the counter went to the machine to get his coffee, he bent his head to mine and whispered, "He's lying you know, he's Max not Rene. I wonder who Rene is and if there even is a Rene?"

He paid, picked up the paper cup of coffee and we went out of the shop onto the street. There was no sign of Max and Laura.

In my Wrangler driving home with Tristan drinking his coffee I asked him about showing Harry the wall painting. He said he was going to bring him along when everything was sorted out so that he could see the whole thing. Then I broached the subject of the prayer for his father. He didn't answer for a moment then he said, "I think I will do it, maybe get it over with tomorrow."

"Get it over with, Tristan, it sounds like you don't want to do it anymore. I still think it would be a good ending for his story."

"I know, it would, are you up for it tomorrow? I'm not going to do it in the church. I thought the abbey ruins, in one of the places they use for weddings, ruined walls, alcoves with candles, it seems a happier place, and it's the same as the church consecrated ground and all that."

I told him I thought Oliver might be interested in being there too.

"What if we make it about three tomorrow what do you think?"

I told him it was okay for me and I'd invite Oliver. We could all go straight to Clare and James's party afterwards, it would lighten the mood I thought.

I still didn't know if Tristan really wanted to do it. I looked at him at the next set of lights. He seemed thoughtful. Maybe the wall painting had changed things for him.

"Tristan we can wait you know because you don't seem too happy with the decision to do it," I commented.

We were nearly at the house. He nodded, "No let's do it, tomorrow."

Inside the team was back, they must do Saturday afternoons not mornings and I commented on this to Tristan, who shrugged. We went into the kitchen, I expected to see Adrian, but no one was there. The whole team was down in the drawing room.

"That's good because Leslie knows who I am now and I'd have to inspect the progress more than likely, and I just can't face it right now." Tristan told me.

We went up to my room so as not to run into 'the team.' Tristan seemed to relax a little up there. We were looking out of my window, and suddenly the massive drops of rain were back. It was quite fun hanging out of the window with the massive drops of rain splashing down. Tristan put his hand out of the window and caught a little rain. Then as suddenly as it had started, it stopped again.

It was late afternoon and we decided to walk over to the restaurant and check out if Oliver was still there. We wanted to invite Oliver to the abbey ruins and to get out of the house full of archaeologists all chipping away at Tristan's past.

It was warm and the ground was barely damp even though it had rained, we passed the place they were setting up marquees for tomorrow and arrived at the patio tables of the restaurant.

Oliver was sitting at one of the tables with Liz and Ben. It looked like their shift had ended, and they were sitting there talking.

As we joined them, I saw Liz look from Oliver to Tristan and back. She must wonder what was going on. I smiled at Oliver and asked how his archery lesson went.

Ben grinned, nudging Oliver. "He's a natural, aren't you Oliver?"

Oliver grinned back. "It went okay for a first go, yes I liked it, and I'd like to continue learning."

Tristan was interested. "Archery, that's excellent, maybe I could learn."

I looked at him. I bet he already could use a bow. I was thinking that maybe he wants to make friends finally with those around him, when Liz announced she was going home, because 'Laura was borrowing her car again tonight.' I looked at Tristan and he looked at me. I caught Oliver watching this exchange and he raised his eyebrows.

"Where's her car Liz?" Tristan asked.

"Can you believe it's still not fixed," Liz said, and Tristan said 'he couldn't' to which Oliver and I gave strangled laughs.

Liz looked my way but I managed to put a serious look on my face.

Ben was leaving too he said and they walked to the car park together.

When they were out of hearing Tristan told Oliver about the abbey idea for the next day and Oliver said he would come along. Then we started discussing the weird business of Laura continually borrowing Liz's car.

"We saw Rene and Laura today so what's the story I wonder? Does he drop Laura off and take her car to wherever he is living? Then she borrows Liz's car to visit him. Or does she borrow it when she knows he's leaving for a few days using her car to get wherever he's going?" Tristan hypothesized.

"It's all weird and it's him don't you think Tristan?" Oliver asked. "Now you have seen him?" I knew he meant it was Max.

Tristan nodded. "It's Max, he's just so smooth, and knowing, it has to be him." To which we all laughed.

We arranged that Oliver would come to my place and then we would meet Tristan in the abbey ruins the next day before the party. We went around to the car park with Oliver and he drove away in the Land Rover, but not before giving me a thoughtful look. Maybe it was because I was about to walk home with Tristan.

On the way, I asked Tristan if he thought Jack was in any way a threat to him rather than an ally because of the hidden finds and the fact Max was hanging around. Tristan thought not.

"He seems a bit naïve to me. He's taken Max at face value as Laura's boyfriend. I don't think he meant anything by hiding the finds either. I really think now that it probably seemed to him the best thing to do, just hide everything."

At home, Tristan came into the house with me but said, "I need to go, and do some work, so I'll see you tomorrow, Chloe." We hugged and he kissed me briefly.

"Tomorrow then Chloe," he said, as I saw him to the door.

"Yes at the abbey ruins. Take care Tristan," I said to him. We both lingered and I know I didn't want him to leave so maybe he didn't want to go.

When I had watched him walk to the edge of the woods from my bedroom window, I went to my desk. I took out my drawings and shaped another into a design for a stained glass. It took some time and I scanned them up to my computer. I found the Glazers website again and got their email address. I emailed them a letter and my designs. It was the first step in trying to freelance.

It was very late again when I went to bed. I found my new top for the next day and put it on a hanger on my bathroom door.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Sunday morning was suddenly outside my window. The sun was shining and the birds were singing out there.

I went downstairs in my jeans and shirt to find Steven in the kitchen eating pancakes with Will, John, and David. We all said hellos.

"So guys what songs have you chosen to play as the surprise at today's party?"

They told me and it seemed like a great line up. I told them this but also that they played so well anything they chose would sound great.

"You'll hear the songs soon because we're doing a practice run in the library. We're thinking of setting that up as a permanent alternate rehearsal room. It's never used is it Chloe?" Steven smiled happily.

"I think that's a good idea. Tell me how will you secretly set up at the party?"

I grinned because it seemed a little impossible to me.

Will beamed at me. "We have a smaller tent to the left of the main marquee and we'll set up about an hour before anyone is due to arrive." They were all very excited.

I excused myself to go and do a little work.

I was in my room and getting ready to go to the abbey when mom got home. I dashed downstairs to see her and wheeled her suitcase in for her. She was talking about her work, seeing grandmother, visiting a friend. Then she said, "It's good to be back, I missed you all, and I miss here too." She smiled in a surprised way at this last bit.

I asked her if she was going to the restaurant to see dad because he had been so happy that she was going to be home. I told her Oliver would be around soon and we were just going to the abbey ruins before we went to Clare's party.

We just gabbled information to each other. It's always like this. Mom and I suddenly realize we haven't talked properly for a while and just chatter non-stop for a few minutes. Even so, eleven hours in a plane and extra in airports and taxis is a long time and she wanted to have a shower. I helped her carry the suitcase upstairs.

I finished getting ready and went to see mom again. She really liked my top, and said being green, it went with my eyes. Oliver was ringing the doorbell. I kissed her on the cheek and said I'd see her later.

We drove to the abbey car park in Oliver's Land Rover. Tristan was already there leaning on the cab of the battered truck he favored driving.

Having greeted each other, we walked with Tristan leading the way to one of the ruined parts of the abbey. There were candles and flowers around it in places where stones were missing creating natural alcoves. We were walking about a meter apart. It was weird not to be holding hands with one or the other of them. That thing where if we were all together, neither one touched me was still happening. I totally understood it. In the small enclosure of ruins Tristan stopped. There was a piece of carved stone in the grass and he put the seal from his father's letter on this, and then he started to speak.

"This is a prayer said for Sir Edmund Dearing. He asks for forgiveness for engaging with magic, and for leaving his loved ones without a good bye. He asks for forgiveness because he did not acknowledge his son Richard, and he led danger to this son. He asks for forgiveness."

He stopped and we stood there waiting for something else, but it didn't happen, that was all Tristan was going to say.

He turned around and looked at us, then shrugged his shoulders.

"Okay let's go," he said.

I raised my eyebrows at Oliver and he gave me an inquiring look.

"You are sure that's all you want to say Tristan?" I asked him.

"That's all there is to say Chloe. Those are the things he wanted forgiveness for and now it's been said."

"And you are okay?" I persisted.

He nodded. "I'm fine, let's go to the party."

We left to drive to the restaurant.

I asked Oliver what he thought of the prayer at the abbey. He said he thought maybe Tristan's heart wasn't really in it, but it was done now at least, and as Tristan had said, the words were out in the open.

At the restaurant, we parked by Tristan's truck and walked down to the marquee with him.

The marquee was packed. Everyone I had met at the drama group was there already. There were people I hadn't come across, and I assumed they would be friends of James. Leslie was there and Phil. Liz was hanging around at the back looking suspicious, and I thought it must be because she was ready to dash out to the little tent where the band must be setting up, to help, or just be with Will. The table to one side had loads of food and drinks on there for people to help themselves. I looked for Clare but she wasn't in the marquee.

We seemed to split up just naturally, Oliver said he was going to get something to eat and Tristan went towards James who was talking to Adrian and a girl I hadn't met. After looking around to make sure I wasn't seen, I went back outside and along to the little tent to check out the band. They were all in there and looked up to see who I was as I came through the flap, which they would later roll up I guessed. The thing was a small marquee with one of those pointed roofs you see at fairs and fetes. Steven said, "Oh it's only Chloe," and they went back to plugging things in.

I asked if everything was okay and Will said yes, they were going to show their faces at the party then one by one come back and suddenly start playing.

I was careful to check who was around before I went out of the tent. It would be horrible to spoil the surprise. Seeing no one around, I quickly went out and went back to the main marquee.

This time I saw Clare with James in the middle of the marquee. Tristan was still there talking with them. At the end of the food table Oliver was standing his back to the entrance of the marquee, and he was talking with Laura. I approached James, Clare, and Tristan, but I had another glance at Oliver and Laura. No sign of Max then.

I congratulated Clare and James on their engagement. Clare was wearing her ring, which was lovely, and she looked very cool in a short, electric blue, shift dress. Tristan seemed to be watching something over my shoulder as I was speaking and as I asked Clare about the play's success, I maneuvered myself to look at whatever it was. It was Max. He was standing watching Laura and Oliver. Laura had taken Oliver's arm and was flirting with him. She was leaning on him, touching his shirt buttons, and generally making him uncomfortable by the look on his face. I'd finished my conversation with Clare and Tristan moved closer to me, he whispered in my ear, "Go rescue him."

"How will I do that Tristan?" I asked and somehow, Clare heard and had been aware of the Oliver, Laura thing, because she said, "Hang on here James, you two, I'll do it." She nodded at both Tristan and I, and then walked down to Laura and Oliver.

She was great. She took Laura's hands off Oliver's person and took his arm herself. She was laughing, and saying something and the next thing Oliver and she were with us. Laura stood there for a second or two, then turned to the refreshment table and took a glass, pouring herself some punch as if nothing had happened.

"Thank heavens, thanks Clare that was becoming unpleasant and yet I didn't know how to get away from her without being horrible. She just went on and on, I don't even remember what about. It was as if she was putting on a show somehow." Oliver sighed and shook his head, and then he brushed the front of his blue striped shirt as if to get her touch off him. I smiled at that and at him.

Tristan laughed and said, "Welcome to my world Oliver. She sometimes does that stuff to me and it's just straight out weird, mostly because it is just like a show, it hardly ever seems sincere."

I was standing close to Tristan, and I moved slightly away from him to keep Max in my view. Tristan felt me move and changed his stance so he got close to me again, which was endearing.

I noticed Max hadn't gone to Laura who was now chatting to one of the Drama group, a girl who had helped paint the sets I'd worked on. Earlier that week I'd told Clare about the Max lookalike and Clare agreed he was so very like Max that we decided to watch out for him doing anything suspicious. Now I asked her if Laura had introduced her to the Max look alike.

"She introduced him as Rene," Clare said, "and he has the effrontery to stand there as if I'd never met him." I nodded and agreed with Clare.

James and Tristan were now talking about the wall painting and somehow Clare and Oliver got onto talking about not seeing Will after his initial entrance to the party. I knew why, but couldn't say anything. Then suddenly we could hear music and people went to see where it was coming from, then to watch.

The band was so distinctive we knew it must be Will singing. James and Clare were beaming as they heard congratulations being said to them over the microphone and that the band had some songs especially for them. They left to stand in front of the small tent, which now had the entire front rolled up to display the band. Oliver grinned at Tristan and me, saying that he was off to watch the band. Tristan said we would join him he just wanted to get a drink.

When Oliver was gone, he put his arms around my waist and hugged me, giving me a really quick kiss.

"Sorry I can't help it. You know I try not to be public about it, but I do love you," he whispered as we stood face to face. Then he let go and we did go down to the table and got something to drink. The punch was heavily fruited and way too sweet for me so I left my glass on the table after the first sip. I leaned a little left to reach a bottle of water from the chilled group on the table and met Laura's eyes full on. She was looking at me with the most venomous look I have ever had cast at me. I looked away as Tristan said, "Ugh that punch is like syrup. I might check out how to get coffee. I tried earlier without success when you'd disappeared."

"Let's just visit the band, which is where I'd disappeared to earlier, and then we could go up to the restaurant staff area and make you some coffee. I'm surprised there isn't any, but maybe it will be served later." I told him, grinning.

I held his hand and we were walking towards the entrance of the marquee when Laura caught us up, calling out, "Tristan I haven't had chance to talk to you all day.

We stopped and Tristan let go of my hand. I stepped a little away from him as she stopped abruptly and directly in front of him. I didn't listen to her just watched the display she put on. She was flirting so alarmingly with Tristan I could hardly believe my eyes. I thought 'is she drunk, or on something, first Oliver and now Tristan what's her game.' Over her shoulder, I saw Max slink into view. There was another weirdo, why didn't he come and lay claim to his girlfriend, since the look on his face was thunderous, and I figured he was jealous of the men she flirted with. Then I thought 'maybe that was it maybe she was trying to make him jealous.'

To my horror he did come to us and with a flourish said, "Chloe isn't it? That's right I met you at the coffee shop. Since Laura here is talking to her cousin, maybe you will accompany me to the excellent band I can hear playing." He still sounded like Max and it was the style of speech he had used to me at Clare's birthday party in Kool Kafé so I was certain it was him, whether he called himself Rene or not.

He looked at me with a challenge in his eyes and I answered, "Okay Rene, they are a very good band. See you later Tristan, Laura," and I began walking out of the marquee with Rene who I knew was Max.

He glanced behind him as we turned to go to where the crowd of people were watching and doing a little dancing by the tent where the band was playing. Just the slightest glance back and I knew he was jealous.

Luckily, Tristan caught us up with an annoyed looking Laura tagging along behind him. He came straight up to me and put his arm around my shoulders, whispered in my ear 'kiss me,' and then when I turned to him, he kissed me. This seemed to be too much for Laura and she went to Max took his arm and said loudly, "I'm feeling quite hot. Could we go and get some iced water please Rene?" It was very melodramatic stuff.

Tristan let go of me and shook his head. In his eyes was a slight look of sadness.

"Sorry Chloe, I just had to be rid of her, please forgive me for using a kiss from you like that?"

I nodded thinking this whole thing was down to Laura.

Oliver had watched it all from the other side of the group of people and he was looking dejected too. I was just so angry with her. Tristan moved over to Oliver and I could see them talking, but not hear them. I hoped this stuff hadn't spoiled Clare and James' celebration. I looked over at them and realized they hadn't seen any of it, arms around each other they were listening to the band and it seemed only five people had been in on the whole horrible scene. Thank heavens.

I was standing in the grass, just thinking how odd things had been so far today, and I found myself looking at the ground. I felt someone beside me.

"Let's go and get some coffee," Oliver was beside me, and then Tristan too.

I couldn't help but dwell on the fact that Laura had provoked a display of affection from Tristan in front of Oliver. Our unspoken pact had been broken. I looked at their expressions. They looked okay. All the same, maybe I should stop seeing both of them, well just be friends, would that be the best thing to do I asked myself. I decided I'd start trying to think of them as just friends and see where that led me.

We walked up towards the restaurant. The music could still be heard. It was a favorite song of mine, and I couldn't help but hum the song they were playing and then I heard Laura's voice.

That place in the hedging of camellias and box was obviously one of her favorite places to berate her companions.

"What the fuck, Rene? You announce you're going back to France next week, sulk in a corner half the afternoon and when I try to have some fun you accuse me of flirting." She took a breath.

Oliver, Tristan, and I looked at each other. I could tell they didn't want to hear any more. We were walking fast and silently past but we still heard her shrill.

"You might as well know if you do go Friday, I don't want you back. I don't think for one minute that you love me anyway."

Going through the little corridor of shelves into the staff area, Oliver said, "I wonder if she'll stop lending him her car now?" and we all three burst out laughing.

Tristan made the coffee for both himself and Oliver. Oliver asked if he could have it less strong, since the last time Tristan had made him coffee he could stand the spoon in it. I asked them when that was, and it turned out to be the time Oliver had gone to see Tristan the morning he had discovered he was mysteriously healing.

"We are all okay after this Laura stuff aren't we?" Tristan asked, pouring the boiling water into the mugs. "She can really set people up. I've experienced it before."

I looked at Oliver, he looked at me, and then we looked at Tristan.

"Sure," I answered. I knew Tristan had meant that our careful no touch policy had broken down and that he felt bad about kissing me in front of Oliver.

"I think so," Oliver said.

"Let's go and listen to the rest of the music. I think they may finish soon," I took a bottle of water out of the fridge and they picked up their coffee.

We walked slowly down to the party.

Some people had dragged chairs out of the main marquee and put them around outside on the grass to listen to the band. Some chairs were vacant and Oliver sat down with his coffee. Tristan went to stand a little closer to the band and I went and said hello to Liz who was standing alone watching Will. I asked her how she was going with her plans to join the restaurant business and she was still enthusiastic about it.

The band did actually finish playing about five minutes later and Will came bounding up to Liz, picked her up, and spun her around. I stood back smiling at them.

"Hi Will, the band was great," I said, as he stopped spinning and smiled at me.

His arm around Liz he answered, "We're getting better and better." Liz hugged him and I left them both walking towards the musical instruments. I guessed Will would want to do some packing up.

I wandered back to Clare and James saying to them it had been a lovely afternoon and I was thinking of leaving.

As I was standing with them, Ben came up to me,

"Hey, Chloe, I've been meaning to catch up with you all afternoon. You'll get an email, but dad asked me to say your order is ready and will you be available to take delivery tomorrow morning?"

I was pleased and told him I'd certainly be available, that would be great.

Then Ben announced to all of us, "Guess what, I'm working in half an hour on the crew cleaning up this party so see you all later," and he left us grinning and bowing.

It was only early evening, but the party was due to be wound up. People started saying their goodbyes to Clare and James so I looked around for Oliver or Tristan.

Oliver was heading towards me, and smiled as he reached me.

"Chloe, did I tell you I said to your dad I'd stick around and help clean up the party so I'm going up to the restaurant with Ben."

"Oliver, I just want to ask you if things are okay before you go. You know it was out of character for Tristan to be openly affectionate in public."

It was important to me that Oliver was okay.

"By in public you mean with me around don't you?" he asked me.

I nodded and he continued, "He said that too. He actually apologized and said he wasn't happy about it but the thing with Laura was getting out of hand. I don't know Chloe it is weird knowing that sometimes, somewhere you and he are holding hands, or whatever. I try not to think about it. Seeing it was quite hard."

"I know and I feel bad about the whole thing of liking both of you." I started to say, but Oliver put his hand on his heart and reeled back, saying, "Oh, like us both, we've been relegated to like?"

He was teasing me but at the same time, I think he meant it.

I almost smiled but couldn't.

"Oliver, I love you, but I was thinking maybe I should just back off with both you and Tristan. We could all just be friends because it's so wrong of me to keep you both."

I was going to say hanging on, but Oliver interrupted, "Stop right now, just stop, let's not talk about it now. It's been too weird a day," he said.

I wanted to hug him or something, but I couldn't so I said that it was true it had been a weird day.

He went off to catch Ben up who had started on the path to the restaurant. I watched him, his tall, slender figure walking away. His shirt was out of his jeans at the back and he had rolled his cuffs back a couple of times. He looked good. He looked like someone who knew me, cared for me, and was dear to me. I tried to imagine what it would feel like if he was walking away from me forever. I felt the most horrible sense of loss I've ever felt. It was like fear, and despair rolled into a terrible sinking feeling in my stomach. I couldn't move for a few seconds. If we were just friends, he would still be there. I wouldn't have to feel this loss, but deep down I knew I would.

My thoughts were interrupted by Steven who came up behind me. "Chloe, mom and dad are having an early dinner in the restaurant, and I'm going up there are you coming?"

I told him no thanks, that I wasn't even hungry yet. "I'll eat at home later, have a nice time." I felt sick actually.

Tristan was suddenly by my side.

"Hello, what's going on you look very pale," he said.

I felt stupid and looking at him, I told him I was fine, but I knew he didn't believe it from the look in his eyes.

"Where's Oliver?" he asked.

"He's working now Tristan so maybe I'll go on home, everything is winding up here."

"I'll drive you," Tristan said, and he tried to take my hand to walk to the car park, but I quickly put my hands in my jeans pockets, which was a bit hard to do, as my jeans were quite a skinny style.

He knew I'd avoided holding his hand and I could feel the confusion coming off him. I was sick at heart because of this.

When we reached his truck, he opened my door but didn't try to help me in. I guess he worried I wouldn't want this touch either.

When we were driving the tiny distance to the house, I started to explain.

"I'm so worried about the way I care about both you and Oliver, and about the unfairness to you both, that I'm thinking maybe I should resolve to be a friend to both of you and stop any romantic stuff."

He was quiet for a few seconds. "Do you think that would work?"

"I don't know, maybe," I answered.

"Well Oliver and I don't fight over you, we are almost good friends since the blood incident." He stopped talking and parked the truck. Turning to me he continued, "I'm not sure what will happen eventually, but I don't feel like losing you yet at any rate and I think this day has been too weird a day to make decisions. If you start trying to change what's between you and me, and between Oliver and yourself, you may find it too hard; you may even leave and go back to California. I'd hate for that to happen. What's the hurry anyway to choose? It's because of Laura and what her games provoked isn't it? Do you want to know why I don't walk away from you? I know traditionally lots of guys would if they knew you cared for someone else as well as them. Well, I've lived too long and seen too many horrible sad things. I've done some horrible sad things, had to, and I want your love as long as I can get it. If you ever stop loving me that's when I will walk away."

He was very sincere. His voice was soft and low, and as I looked into his honest blue eyes, I knew I didn't want to choose. I didn't want to lose him, and that awful feeling of loss I had thinking of Oliver walking away forever had taught me that I didn't want to lose Oliver either. I hadn't come very far with my decision to be just friends with them both. I leaned into Tristan and kissed him. He held my head kissing me back.

I just wanted everything to be back to the way they were before the party. I left my face against Tristan's with my eyes closed. The comfort of being close to him was too good to let go of, but I did move after a few seconds.

Tristan asked if he could come in and look at how the removal of the old wall blocking the stairway was going in the big drawing room.

We went down there. A couple of the team was still working. I said hello to them and asked them if they wanted tea, or coffee or anything. They said tea would be great and Phil was supposed to be back soon ready for packing up that night.

I went down to the kitchen as Tristan started to talk with them and made some tea and coffee. It amused me how Tristan liked coffee so much.

I found myself humming one of the songs the band had played at the party as I made the drinks.

Tristan came up to the kitchen and helped me take the cups down to the workers then we went back to the kitchen ourselves.

I picked up my cup taking it out onto the patio outside of the kitchen French windows.

Tristan came out there and smiled at me.

"They think there is a passageway and from the camera pictures they're getting so far, it may well come all the way to the kitchen."

"That's so cool." I smiled at him.

Tristan put his cup on the small balustrade and came over to me. He put his arms around me. "I love you no matter what," he said.

I sighed. "I love you too," I told him. As we looked at each other, I realized some sort of equilibrium had been reached again within my heart.

Tristan left after the team had gone. He needed to put to one side some pots of flowers for a conference display the next day.

I went up to my room to check my email and to start a new design. I was so tempted to use some of the photographs of Tristan in the waterfall, but I thought it would be dangerous really and I already had a picture of both him and Oliver out in the open in the design for the roundel. I opted instead to use parts of the photograph, those without his presence. I was still drawing and labeling my design when around eleven my cell phone rang.

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Oliver said he felt weird about how we had left each other that afternoon, and could he see me for half an hour.

I said yes. His Land Rover drew up very quickly after the phone call and I went out to greet him. It had just gone totally dark and the lights in the garden were on. He was already smiling as he got out of the driver's side. I couldn't help it. I went and put my arm around his waist and he put his around my shoulders. We went into the hall, and he kissed my cheek as we walked along. I took him up to my room and we sat on the bed side by side.

"I just had to come and see you because it felt as if you were about to ditch me," he said.

I swallowed, thinking before I answered him, so that I had the right words.

"This afternoon I felt that I was being unfair to both you and Tristan, and I was thinking maybe we should just be friends. Since then I've realized I love you too much to do that. Is that selfish?" I asked him.

He sighed. "Do you mean be friends with the both of us or just me?" he asked.

"I meant the both of you," I said softly.

He smiled. "You love me, you said. I don't want that to change."

"I can't see that happening. I do love you," I told him.

Oliver smiled again. He stood up, and pulled me up too. His arms around my waist he danced us around a few steps. Then he stopped.

"Hey what's going on at the abbey ruins, they are in that direction right?" He was waving his hand at my window. I had my back to the window since he had been dancing me around and I turned now to look at what he meant.

I saw a red glow in the direction he had indicated. Going to stand at the window, I could see the red glow over the top of what would be the abbey ruins, not only that, but even though it was dark I thought there was smoke, black smoke and not clouds.

"You know what Oliver I think they're on fire. Oh my god the museum and the stained glass windows, I'll call Tristan." I realized at once the implications of a fire at the museum, and I grabbed my cell. Oliver called the fire department from his phone.

Tristan answered but seemed to be running. I told him about what seemed like a fire at the museum and ruins. He knew he told me, the alarms and security they had set up there had picked it up, but the fire department wasn't there yet. He was on his way. I told him we would get there too.

Oliver said the fire department was responding to the call and we raced downstairs.

I went into mom's study. She wasn't there, so as we went out of the house and got into Oliver's Land Rover, I called dad. Steven, mom and dad were still at the restaurant. I told dad about the fire and that Oliver and I were going over to help Tristan. He said keep away from it, don't go near it, he would come over too. I said we wouldn't go near the fire but stand away and offer support to the family.

We were at the abbey car park and the flames were obviously high in the shop and museum. The ruins had no flames, but the smell of smoke was quite pungent and I covered my mouth as Oliver and I went towards a small group of people. Liz was obviously there. I could see her and Jack Dearing standing at the edge of the group.

No one was doing anything except stand watching. I couldn't see Tristan and I thought 'oh no surely he wouldn't go into the flames.' The fire department had arrived just before us and they seemed to be having an effect. The flames seemed less and the smoke more. Jack was talking to someone on his cell phone and I realized it was Tristan. I was standing next to Liz and told her how sorry I was that this had happened. We stood there for about twenty minutes as the flames ceased and there was just smoke in the air and fire fighters walking around talking to Jack and Tristan.

Oliver and I went over to Tristan. He told us the fire was out, and the technicians would go in as soon as it was light to investigate the fire but right now, it looked like the cause was an electrical fault. I looked around before I asked him about the stained glass windows. He looked around before he answered. "They are okay, unbelievable I know. They look a bit black, but there doesn't appear to be any melting. We'll not know for sure until daylight, all the power is out now. Thanks for coming over both of you. Your dad rang, he was going to come over, but I said not to, that everything was under control and I'd send you and Oliver home too."

Oliver asked if he was okay, did he need any help at all, that we could stay for a while longer.

Tristan shaking his head answered that no really it was okay. I went over to Liz and asked her if she needed anything, but the Dearings had closed ranks and she said they were fine.

Tristan said he would see us tomorrow and not wanting to get in the way we walked back to the Land Rover.

"Do you think things are okay?" Oliver said to me. I told him I thought they probably were because I'd seen some nasty fires in California during the summers and the flames at the abbey museum and shop were not that bad in comparison. All the same, I wished we could really see the windows or that there had been something we could have helped the Dearings with.

Oliver was thoughtful.

"We can't see the windows, not until the morning, but maybe we could call Tristan later, except it's already late. Maybe leave it until the morning."

We climbed into his car. On the way to my house, I had a thought.

"Oliver, you don't think this could be anything to do with Max?"

He answered quickly, "No I really don't think so, why would he?"

I thought about it. It probably had nothing to do with Max. I was just being overly suspicious.

Oliver dropped me and drove away as I closed the front door.

I said hi to dad and mom who were in the kitchen talking. I guessed they had waited for my arrival home and I told them about the idea that the fire was an electrical fault. Telling them we had offered help but that the Dearings seemed okay and to be handling things.

I went up to my room and looked out of my window. There was a pall of black smoke high over the ruins drifting away now in the night breeze. The moonlight picked it out as patches of leaden gray in a sky that was remarkably light for the time of night. I really wanted to talk to Tristan. Should I call I thought, but in the end I went to bed, it didn't seem right to disturb when probably the family were discussing the horrors of the night.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

It had rained in the night, in the morning the first thing I did was look out of the window in the direction of the abbey ruins, there was nothing to be seen.

Downstairs the team was already hard at work. I couldn't believe how early they started. It was only eight thirty. Dad must have given them keys. There was no one in evidence to have let them in. I went to ask them if they would like tea or coffee. There was huge excitement in the big drawing room. It turned out that they had opened the wall to the spiral staircase and could shine spotlights down there to disclose a passageway that at the moment was very damp and had a few inches of water in the bottom, but otherwise 'seemed pretty sound' they said.

Everything had to be done really carefully, 'they didn't want the house falling down,' this caused huge mirth, then they went back to being serious and said that wasn't likely as the passageway was established as part of the house. It would be great to see where it led. They wouldn't go further until the owner had seen what they had found at this stage.

I made them coffee and raisin toast, which they loved. Then I left them talking on the phone and computer modeling the passageway.

I desperately wanted to talk to Tristan and at the same time, I didn't want to disturb him if he had the aftermath of the fire to handle with Jack.

I had showered, changed and was wandering about doing a few chores for mom, loading the washing machine, emptying the tumble drier and the dishwasher. The doorbell rang and happily, it was the delivery of my roundel. I put the box on the big kitchen table and carefully took it out of the mass of packaging. My design and paid invoice as well as a pro forma thank you for your order letter was with it.

I carried the roundel out to the kitchen patio and held it up to the light, it wasn't that heavy, and it was beautiful. I was so glad I had it made.

I took it carefully upstairs and propped it up on my desk where it would catch the light from the window there. I knew that the skill of the Glazers had brought it to life, but I was very pleased with my design and felt sure I could sell some designs if they turned out like this when made up. I looked at Oliver and at Tristan in the glass. I knew who they were, but possibly no one else would recognize them.

I was still admiring the colors when the doorbell rang again. I went down to answer and it was Oliver. I hugged him at the door.

"Oliver, have you heard from Tristan and my roundel has arrived." I got the words out quickly holding his hand and going upstairs.

He laughed. "Chloe, I haven't heard from Tristan. You're obviously taking me to see the roundel. You're pleased with it then?"

I showed it to him holding it in the full light of the bigger window then when he was suitably impressed I propped it back on my desk in the light of the smaller window.

"We could call Tristan. Let's call" he said, and got out his phone.

Tristan must have answered as he proceeded to talk. "Hello how's things? Okay, and nothing happened...well to you I mean. Did they definitely think an electrical fault? No, well Chloe was thinking maybe Max. I agree, why would he? I think that would be good, I'll ask..." and then he asked me if we wanted to meet Tristan for lunch at the restaurant. He didn't want to go far but we could talk then. I said 'yes of course.'

I told Oliver about the secret passageway and he wanted to look so we went down to 'the team' who let him see via the computer that had been linked to the camera. We speculated about the end of the passageway as we walked to the restaurant, both of us thought it would end somewhere in the kitchen.

It was still raining a little but the sun was out and the grass was glistening wet and very green. Two birds were drinking from a puddle further along the path and they flew away as we passed. It was a lovely day, and I hoped it would stay that way.

We took a table at the end of the patio so that we could be nearer the lake. We watched the swans and ducks diving into the water fishing for things on the bottom of the lake at the shallow end. There must be something to eat in the reeds at the bottom I was thinking, when Tristan came around the corner obviously from the car park.

He sat down in a chair opposite both Oliver and I. Sighing he hung his arms over the sides of the chair saying, "I don't need much sleep but some occasionally would be nice. Jack was determined to fish out all the relevant documents to do with security, insurance, inventory and the like, which he took most of the night doing. Laura came home at two am and had to be told all about the fire. Then the fire technicians were around early and I went over to hear what they had to say. Old Jonathon was in fine fettle worrying over the family fortunes. Only Liz was calm and I think she's come over here to work actually," he finished with another sigh.

"Tristan, we only have one question, did the fire damage to the stained glass have any effect on you?" I asked.

"Not really," he said thoughtfully.

"Not really," I said. "What do you mean, not really?"

"Well I was in my room, and I just felt worried. I couldn't understand why. I just had this sort of nagging feeling that something was wrong. Next thing I knew all hell had broken loose. The security people had called the fire department and you know the rest," he explained.

"Have you seen the windows this morning?" Oliver asked.

"Yes and they are smoke damaged. Parts of them are quite black but no melting, the fire didn't get hot enough in that part of the museum." Tristan shrugged, "I don't know for sure that they are linked to my destruction anymore."

We all just looked at each other with questioning looks, and then I had a thought.

"You know if ever you seem to be dying, Oliver could save you now, just via his blood, apart from the windows influence. After all he's become like you don't you think?"

Oliver looked at Tristan and then at me. "That's true, I hadn't thought of that."

Tristan didn't comment.

I hadn't seen Peter for a while and he came to take our order. He stopped to ask Tristan how the abbey shop and museum had fared in the fire.

It was going to be difficult getting the museum and shop back up and running Tristan told us, but not as bad as first feared. It was really only organization. He had elaborated for Peter on the cause of the fire and it seemed the fire department was satisfied it was an electrical fault. I asked him if he was happy with that explanation.

"I think they know what they're talking about. What else could it be? I think our suspicions about Max are making us question more innocent events, well if an accidental fire could be called innocent."

Our order came quickly and although I had thought I was hungry, I found I could only pick at the food.

"Have you seen any sign of Max since yesterday's party Tristan?"

"No and Laura was driving her car at two am because it's in the car park area this morning so I assume he doesn't need it at the moment," he replied and then he grinned.

"I don't believe it," Oliver suddenly said. "Here they come."

For a second I didn't know who he meant, and then I saw Laura and Max. They had come through the main restaurant onto the patio area.

Tristan was twisting around to see them and Oliver said, "Don't look."

They'd seen us and I saw a shadow of annoyance go over Max's face, but Laura was animated. She came forcefully down to our table exclaiming all the while and dragging Max by the hand.

"Tristan, why didn't you say you were coming up here for lunch? We could have driven up together. I missed how brave you were at the fire Tristan I came home so late."

She turned to Max. "He was trying to save the exhibits you know."

Then turning back to Tristan she continued, "Jack will lean on you for help with the renovation and of the museum and shop."

She was gushing over Tristan. Oliver and I looked at each other, and he moved his eyes to signal look at Max, which I did. Max had a look of pure jealously and hatred on his face. If Tristan hadn't been in danger from Max before, he probably was now. It seemed Max cared very much for Laura, surprising, but true. He was jealous of Tristan because of how Laura acted around Tristan. She couldn't have been thinking about her boyfriend's feelings at all.

Oliver kept his face impassive. I tried to appear indifferent, but I felt like slapping Laura's silly face. She had just put Tristan in the firing line.

Suddenly Tristan got up and said, "Speaking of Jack I promised to meet him at the museum and shop to go over the damage to the stock, so I'll catch up with everybody another day."

He gave me a look as he passed, it was wide eyed, contained an appeal for empathy and I felt his frustration at Laura.

Laura wasn't interested in Oliver and me. Both she and Max were gone up to a top table immediately. Max looked back once and because I had expected it might happen I had taken Oliver's hand and was leaning into him. Let's make sure Max is not after both Oliver and Tristan I thought.

Oliver was making the most of this attention and he lightly kissed me whispering,

"Wow, did you see Max's face?"

"I did and I was so cross with Laura. I'm beginning to think she's either trying to make Max jealous or just doesn't care about him at all."

Oliver sat back from me. "She's trying to make Tristan jealous, and have you noticed how we all call Max, Max, and not Rene?"

"I think she's a horrible person. She's nothing like Liz, and Tristan finds her very difficult to cope with. Look he barely ate his lunch and he's left."

Oliver looked at me thoughtfully.

"We need to watch out for him she's put him in Max's sights."

I nodded at him and pushed my food around my plate a few more times.

Oliver and I were walking back to my place when Tristan rang my cell.

He apologized for leaving Oliver and I so abruptly saying that he was truly exasperated by Laura. I said it was okay she would drive anyone away.

We walked down to the house and went up to my room. Oliver looked at my new designs as I was checking my email. I had an email from the Glazers and the chief designer wanted to meet me with any designs I had to offer. Could I make today at five thirty as he had some free time then and would have no more for a week. I called the number he sent and arranged to go down to see him. I was excited and Oliver was happy for me. He hugged and kissed me.

"You're so talented Chloe, this is great."

I put together the designs I had and found my art folder in the back of my cupboard.

I was trying to decide what to wear, and I thought the green flowery dress might be okay. Oliver was watching me.

He smiled and said, "You looked great in that dress," and he came to me and kissed me.

"I'm going to get some work done and leave you to get ready for your meeting."

I went down to the front door with him and out to his Land Rover.

He leaned out of the window before he drove away and asked me to call him after my meeting.

Once inside again, I got ready, putting my hair up and a little make-up on.

I left around four fifteen. I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time.

My meeting went well. The chief designer was the oldest brother in the Glazer family. He looked a tiny bit like Ben and his hair was darker.

He liked my designs and said he would be prepared to put them on the website for people to order. I'd get a generous commission, but always own my design. It seemed like a good deal and I accepted.

At home, I phoned Oliver and put him on speakerphone. I told him all about my meeting whilst I scanned up my work.

I wanted to check everything out and then email them to Joshua Glazer that night.

I found mom around seven thirty in the kitchen and told her about it all. She was very pleased for me and said it sounded like a good deal too.

We were eating a light dinner when I got a message on my cell. It was Tristan asking if I'd meet him at the greenhouses about eight thirty. I messaged back that I would. I talked with mom for a while longer and when I told her I was going up to see Tristan, she teased me about it saying, "Oliver in the afternoon, Tristan at night." I told her it wasn't like that.

I walked up to the greenhouses. Tristan was expecting me and was out the front on the paths. He looked vulnerable from a distance. He was tracing something in the gravel of the path with his shoe. Then he looked up, saw me, and smiled. He came down the path to meet me, and held out his hand. I took it holding it tight. We walked up to the first greenhouse and he opened the door. Going in there, I was struck by the vivid colors of the flowers all down one side. I was about to comment on them when Tristan put his arms around me and kissed me.

Then he leaned against the workbench with his arms around me.

"Chloe something weird happened today, well this afternoon. I went up to my room and the door was open. I went in thinking maybe Jack had come to look for me, and left it open. I was thinking about what had happened at the restaurant with Laura, just wishing it would all stop and I went into my bathroom and can you believe this, someone had taken my toothbrush. I looked everywhere, but it had gone. Then I noticed my laundry basket, it was open, things were spilling out, someone had been messing with my laundry. Why would they?

I thought, what's going on, and I tipped it up. I know what was in it because I only just sent some stuff down to the laundry. One of my blue T-shirts, a favorite in fact, was gone."

He was looking at me, concern on his face.

I knew the T-shirt he was talking about.

"How odd Tristan, that's so weird. I don't know what to make of that." I was shaking my head and frowning. I looked at him, and he raised his eyebrows.

"I know this is going to sound ridiculous, but it's all I can think of, maybe it's Laura. She's in love with me."

I sighed this was probably it.

"You might be right. She's the obvious culprit, and she has access and motive. She's not so much in love with you as obsessed."

Tristan flinched slightly, and then put his head down on my shoulder. I put my arms up around him and we stayed like that for a moment.

Then lifting his head he looked into my eyes.

"Maybe I should straight out ask her if she did it," he whispered.

"Maybe you should," I whispered back.

He kissed me and then we went out of the greenhouse and into the cool night air.

"Let me walk you back home" Tristan said.

On the way, I told him about my designs for stained glass and he thought that was great but funny too for some reason. He said he had checked the abbey glass and thought it was going to be fine, but one of the craftspeople from Glazers was coming to assess what was needed to restore it properly the next afternoon.

At my house he turned around to go back the way we had walked, then stopped, came back to me, and kissed me. He smiled at me and walked off again. As I watched him walk up the path, I wished he didn't have to leave.

Around three in the morning, I was woken by some noise somewhere. I got up and went to my window. Below in the garden was Tristan on Cedric.

I whispered down to him that I'd come out of the middle drawing room doors. Pulling on my jeans and a shirt I went down softly and out of the windows. He got down from Cedric who was already having a nibble at some petunias.

"Can you ride?" he asked softly.

"Not very well," I answered smiling.

He lifted me into the saddle and then swung up behind me. Talking to Cedric, he turned us, and the horse walked up the path into the edge of the woods. At the woods, he made a sharp left and skirted the trees for a few hundred yards. Tristan had his arms around me and was holding the reins. He put his cheek next to mine, and I turned my face to him so that he kissed me. We were out in some open field. Cedric started to gallop, not fast, quite regally, and yet it was magical to be moving through the night air with this lovely animal. Tristan asked if I was okay and I said I was great. We didn't go far and the horse turned and came back the way we had come. At the edge of the woods Cedric stopped. It was as if he was waiting to know if both of us were going home with him.

Tristan turned us and took me down to the garden windows again.

He got down from Cedric then lifted me down with his hands around my waist. It was natural to hug each other.

Tristan put his face against mine. "I can go and get some sleep now," he whispered and I closed my eyes as he kissed me.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

The next day I thought it could have been a dream. The sun was burning through my bedroom window, but there was still damp grass on my shoes, and the very bottoms of my jeans that proved it was real. I picked them up and shook them into my waste paper basket.

I pulled on a T-shirt and I was cleaning my teeth when my cell phone rang. Joshua Glazer had received my email and had already looked at how the design could be incorporated into the website. He had asked a local IT company to do a mock up for him before they were uploaded properly, just from a website design point of view. I thanked him and we had only just ended the call, when my cell went again. It was Oliver.

I told him I knew that the Glazers had asked him to review the site for the addition of my designs. Oliver was laughing and saying thanks a lot, he had only just finished their site and it was tight, but then he said my designs would be a beautiful addition.

I walked down to 'the team' in the big drawing room as we finished our phone conversation. They had progressed to being able to have an archaeologist walk along the passageway as far as it went. Cool.

I had already made them coffee, tea and pancakes, because I just knew they would want some, so I went back and got the tray and put it on the big table in there. One of them had moved Laura's painting to the very back of the room away from all the activity. I looked at it and thought I should put it in the library where it could be in no one's way. I lifted it. It was quite big really, and one of the team came to my aid and we put the painting into the library. He said he thought he recognized the picture somehow, and surprised I asked him how. It turned out that he thought he had seen a similar picture on some artwork in another archaeological dig somewhere, maybe stained glass, he had added. I didn't encourage this conversation because really, more stained glass worries, I didn't want them.

I took my orange juice out to the kitchen patio. I was thinking about the ride on Cedric in the night and smiling to myself when Charlie appeared in front of me. He was wagging his tail and looking pleased with himself, and being Charlie decided to go into the kitchen. I followed him in.

"Hey Charlie are you alone? Here's a pancake for you."

I rolled it up and the dog happily took it when a soft knock at the French door followed by, "Hello Chloe, that's really bad for him," announced Tristan's arrival.

I looked up smiling at him, looking particularly lovely in a pale blue shirt and jeans. His eyes as usual made even more attractive by the blue in the shirt. He was carrying a jacket of some kind over his shoulder.

"We're going down to the waterfall for a walk, do you want to join us?" he asked.

I did want to, and I put my glass in the dishwasher. My sunglasses were on the hall table and I went to get them. Charlie came too, and then followed me back out to the kitchen and out onto the paving where Tristan was waiting. He took my hand as we started around the house to walk towards the restaurant then take the top path to the waterfall.

"Is it a special visit Tristan or just for Charlie?" I asked him. I couldn't help thinking he was going to the waterfall to touch the water there.

"A little of both, I feel disconnected from something, and the waterfall always helps me." He let go of my hand and put his arm around my shoulders.

I told him about the call from Joshua Glazer, and about how it was Oliver who was doing their website, so he would add my design to it.

We walked single file down the bank path to the pool. Tristan turned occasionally and held my hand where the soil was still loose from all the rain we had a week earlier.

At the pool, Charlie went straight into the edge where a sort of mat of thick reeds had grown. Tristan laughed at him and went down by the pool to where the waterfall splashed close to the edge of the bank. He tied his jacket around his waist with the sleeves and then he held out his hands and splashed the water on his face. I watched him change briefly, his fur and leather armor appearing and his hair looking longer. He walked back towards me and put a drop of water on my nose. I smiled at him, caught his hand bringing him closer, and kissed him. Charlie was splashing and we turned to look at him.

"He can't help himself," Tristan said, and went in the edge of the pool after him. I watched Tristan and the change in him as he went one leg knee deep in the water and reached for Charlie. Tristan disappeared then, he just disappeared. I called out his name, and Charlie who must have felt something came out of the pool edge himself and right to my side where he sat down. I looked at the dog and then at where I had last seen Tristan. He couldn't have fallen in. He wasn't sucked down in the reeds was he? I went in as far as I could calling Tristan, Tristan where are you? I looked around. Had he materialized on the other bank, in the trees? I was distraught by the time I accepted he had totally disappeared. Charlie kept close to me. I took out my cell and called Oliver.

"Oliver, Tristan has disappeared in front of my eyes just like that. I'm down by the pool. I can't believe it, ring the police, tell them someone fell in the pool and disappeared. Please come. I'm calling Liz and dad."

I called Liz and she was hysterical in about two minutes saying she was coming down to the waterfall, and for me not to go anywhere. As if I was going anywhere, I thought sadly.

I called dad and he told me to keep away from the water, not to try looking for Tristan myself, maybe there was a current that sucked people down. He was coming over.

I kept walking around the pool and looking at the spot where Tristan had disappeared. Charlie followed me. Up and down around and around and I started to cry. I thought if I stared hard enough at where he had disappeared, I'd bring him back.

There were suddenly uniformed men everywhere, with Liz and Jack. I kept telling my story. He went after Charlie, and he stepped in the pool and he disappeared. They sent divers into the pool. It turned out it did have an outlet in the rocks to one side of the pool where the waterfall was, about twenty feet down. I had no idea it was so deep.

They said he must have been sucked into the outlet and couldn't explain where he might surface if ever. Liz was so very upset. She sat by the pool with Charlie, sobbing. I went to her and she choked out that 'he was magic she had seen him as a little girl why would this happen. It was the glass wasn't it, in the fire?' I had my arms around her but I wasn't much help because I was crying again too.

Oliver had arrived. The whole thing is a jumble in my mind. Dad was there talking with the uniformed men. I knew tears were streaming down my cheeks most of the time and I told Liz things would be okay, Oliver and I would find him. She had her head on my shoulder, and then Jack took her home. Everything had gone on for hours and it was late afternoon.

Everyone went home. I had to go too. I swore to myself I'd come back when everyone was asleep, and just check that he hadn't come back in the moonlight. The police put their tape all around the pool as if that could help, and as if it could keep me out.

Oliver stayed with me and we sat in the kitchen with mom and dad. I told them it was okay, Tristan was strong he would come out somewhere downstream. I knew this wasn't true. I had to tell them something, which meant I had hope. I couldn't say he will just appear again. Even though I hoped that was what would happen. I knew he hadn't been sucked into the water so he couldn't come out downstream.

We had a half-hearted sandwich because no one had eaten all day. We didn't really eat it and I scraped them into the bin putting the plates in the dishwasher. Mom and dad tried to talk about normal things. When Steven came home asking if what he had heard about Tristan was true, they talked with him. I sat there silent wanting to go out looking for Tristan.

Eventually they went to bed telling me that I needed to get some sleep too.

Oliver moved around the table to be next to me. He put his arms around me and his forehead against my temple.

"We will find out what happened and we will get him back," he whispered.

Wasn't that what I had told Liz? I thought.

"Do you really think so Oliver?" I whispered back.

I turned to him. He looked sad and beautiful, "Yes" was all he said.

I asked him not to go.

We went softly upstairs, and lay on my bed. He just hugged me close and we looked out at the stars through my window. I think we fell asleep for a couple of hours and then I jolted awake, which woke Oliver too.

"What is it Chloe?" he asked.

"Do you think this could be anything to do with Max or Rene or whatever he calls himself?"

Oliver propped himself up on one elbow, his eyes wide, "Oh my god, it's bound to be, why didn't we think of this earlier?"

"Shock I guess," I said and I sat up.

Oliver sat up with me and we leaned against the headboard of my bed holding hands.

"As soon as possible in the morning we'll find out where Laura is. Did you notice she didn't show her face at the waterfall pool? We'll find out where Max is and I'll throttle the information out of him," Oliver said.

"I didn't think of Laura at the waterfall pool but now I realize she wasn't there. Oh no, Oliver I've just remembered Tristan thought yesterday that she'd stolen his toothbrush and a T-shirt. How that could have any bearing on what's happened I don't know, but maybe it's significant. I don't think throttling Max would do any good."

I put my head on his shoulder. He put a hand against my cheek and kissed me on the forehead.

"It will be okay eventually. Tristan is immortal remember," he said, and we sat silently again until we must have fallen asleep.

Chapter Forty

Dawn was just sending pale gray streaks across the sky when Oliver moved from my bed. He came around to me and kissed the top of my head saying, "Chloe, I'm going to finish some work that I really need to do to free myself up to find Tristan with you. Please don't go anywhere without me, wait here for me."

I nodded and said, "Thanks Oliver, okay."

He left quietly. I didn't even hear his Land Rover go.

I didn't really sleep again because so many thoughts were going around in my mind. The principal one being that we needed to find out if the fire damage to the stained glass had anything to do with Tristan's disappearance. Also, did Max have anything to do with his disappearance? It could be both or either. I couldn't believe there was no concrete reason why Tristan would simply disappear.

I got up about six and went downstairs for a drink. Dad was down there, he looked up from a document he was reading whilst drinking some coffee.

"Hi Chloe, how are you feeling?"

"Okay Dad, thanks, a bit wobbly, but less distraught." I smiled a watery smile at him. I wanted him to think I was okay so that I could just get on with the job of finding out what had happened to Tristan.

"I have to go into the restaurant, mom has a lot of work to do, but if you feel bad ring me or go and see mom. We just want you to know we're there to listen any time. The police may call again. They said they would give you a day to be calmer then go over what actually happened again."

I nodded at him and inwardly cursed. I didn't want to be tied down talking to the police. I'd already told my tale at least five times yesterday.

I made some tea and stood looking out of the patio doors onto the garden area beyond. Only yesterday, Charlie had come down to the doors with Tristan. It was as if a hole had opened up and swallowed part of my heart and soul in the form of Tristan. I knew what people meant now when they said they were sick with despair or worry, you actually do feel nauseous. You also feel that you must be doing something to remedy the situation. You have to be actively trying to solve the puzzle of where the person is that is missing. It's devastating. Dad left for work and I went up to my room and showered, changing into clean jeans and T-shirt.

It was almost ten when my phone rang.

Liz was on the phone.

"Chloe, I had to tell Laura this morning about Tristan's disappearance. She didn't come in until about one o'clock this morning, and went straight to bed. We'd gone to our respective rooms. There was nothing to be done about the situation with Tristan so I didn't hear her. When she heard about him, she was in hysterics and then she said it was all her fault. I didn't know what to make of this. I finally got her to calm down, and she told me she'd been trying to make Tristan jealous by having Rene as a boyfriend. She admitted flirting all the time with Tristan in front of Rene, saying she loves Tristan and couldn't help it. Last night Rene left for his home in France, she spent the evening with him then took him to the airport, and then came home herself from Heathrow. She said he told her she would be back in France looking for him very soon as her darling Tristan would never return her feelings and certainly can't now anyway."

I gasped and sat down at my desk.

"What do you think that meant? 'He couldn't now anyway.' How could Rene have known Tristan would disappear into the water?" I knew as I said it that as a descendent of the Magi he might well have everything to do with it. I couldn't say this to Liz.

"Laura is so very distressed, I think she really does love Tristan I want you to meet us or come over and talk with her as she may have clues about Tristan's whereabouts. I don't know how, but I am willing to grasp any straw, I love Tristan too as a relative of course, she's not the only one who is grieving for him."

She stopped talking. I thought of Oliver and now I thought it was crucial he be there too, it would take both of us to sort out Max for sure.

"Liz could I ring you with a time and place, only because I have some things I have to do. Then after that I am totally free to look for Tristan."

I found myself saying something similar to what Oliver had said to me.

She said, "Okay, Laura needed to pull herself together anyway as she was currently being sick." I didn't doubt it, that's exactly what I felt would happen to me when she was off the phone.

We ended the call and even though I felt it, I wasn't sick.

I went down to mom and said I'd probably be out for the rest of the day with Liz and Laura. She said, "Okay honey, ring every so often so I will know you are okay." I smiled at this.

I didn't want to disturb Oliver in his work but I thought if he didn't ring me by midday I'd ring him.

I made sure everything to do with my designs and the Glazers was finalized and taking my phone, I went down to the garden. I was about to phone Oliver when he drew up in his Land Rover.

I went to meet him as he got out and we walked into the house. I told Oliver what Liz had said and he raised his eyebrows and let out a breath.

"I knew it. I didn't want to say it, but I knew it. It'll be Max I thought to myself. I rang the Glazers and talked to Ben to find out about the stained glass. The damage is superficial. A techie is up there now cleaning it and checking to see if anything else is needed. I knew then it had to be Max." Oliver paced up and down the kitchen by the big table. He had obviously showered just before he came out and his hair was still wet. He was wearing a black T-shirt and jeans, and he looked ready for battle.

"I think we should meet Liz and Laura somewhere she can't run from, such as the restaurant. If she feels sick she can't go up to her room and not finish answering our questions." I felt ready for battle myself. Oliver agreed and I called Liz and asked her and Laura to meet us for lunch at the restaurant. I thought the more normal the atmosphere the better and she agreed.

Chapter Forty-One

Oliver and I drove there in my Wrangler. I felt better doing that.

We sat at the exact same table as we had when we were there with Tristan only two days ago. I sat in the chair he had sat in. Oliver took my hand across the table, and smiled at me. His eyes were kind and he sighed. "I know you love Tristan but remember I love you and I am still here. There is still someone who loves you and will help you."

"I know Oliver and I love you. Thank you so much for the comfort you've given me not just yesterday, but in the past." I moved my chair close to his as the twins came towards us.

Liz sat down. Laura hovered for a moment then sat next to her. It was a long time since I had the chance to compare them even unconsciously. This time I did it on purpose. Liz with her lovely hazel eyes, red in her glossy chestnut hair, a dimple, pale skin. Laura nearly black eyes, her hair streaked so that it was almost blonde, tanned skin no dimple. They were supposed to be identical but they weren't really, there must be another term for almost identical and not fraternal.

Liz started the conversation. "Laura has the address for Rene in France."

"Laura please tell us what Rene said to you about Tristan," I asked as politely as I could.

She almost gulped, which surprised me because I hadn't realized she could be anything other than arrogant.

"We started arguing about Tristan. He said he knew I liked Tristan better than him but that he just didn't know why since Tristan obviously liked that Chloe girl. I told him Tristan didn't like you in that way that he loved me deep down and would realize it soon. Then Rene said I'd be back in France looking for him very soon as my darling Tristan would never return my feelings and certainly can't now anyway."

Her voice wavered at that point and I looked away from her eyes to give her space.

Oliver asked her what she thought that meant and she answered she didn't know, Rene could be enigmatic. Then he asked her what Rene had been doing with her car when he borrowed it for days. I was impressed by this. It hadn't crossed my mind to ask about the car.

She seemed a little surprised but willing to answer.

"He was going to see his grandfather in France, he would take the ferry. His grandfather had gone home because Rene's twin was very ill."

We looked at each other. Oliver widened his eyes at me.

"What was his twin called?" I was thinking this must be the Max person that disappeared after what he did to Oliver. If he had been ill, that's why he went after the healing blood. The mention of the grandfather fit with this idea too.

Imagine my surprise when Laura said, "His twin is called Scheherazade, she's very ill that's really why he's gone home now. That's why we struck up our friendship in the first place at the art summer school. We both have twins. Then I did like him very much until I came home myself and saw Tristan again, and then I knew I wasn't over Tristan. I think now I might have been kinder to Rene these last couple of weeks." She stopped and looked down at the table.

I sighed and looked at Liz to see what she made of this. She shook her head sadly. I sighed again. Oliver had waved Patricia away once when she had come to take an order from us, now she was back looking questioningly at us. We ordered sandwiches, coffee, tea, and Liz had a banana milkshake. It sat in front of us for a while after it arrived as we found out Rene's address in France and asked Laura if she would come with us to find out exactly what Rene had meant. He was the only clue we had so far to Tristan's disappearance. I didn't say that to her. I didn't want her knowing anything magic was going on. I told her he had disappeared into the water and I wondered if an elaborate trap had been set for him to be pulled down and drowned. Oliver raised his eyebrows at my outright lie, but didn't say anything. Liz looked hard at me and I looked down at the table and at my sandwich pushing it around a bit, so that she wouldn't see my eyes.

Laura didn't want to come to see Rene, they had split up she said, she didn't want to see him again.

Liz sighed at this, she wanted to come and asked when we were thinking of going. Oliver stepped in here and told her maybe she needn't and what about her work, and supporting Jack with the fire damage, and Will. That maybe it would be better if just he and I went to France. We could stay in touch with her all the time. He said, what if Tristan is found, someone needs to be here. At this Laura burst into tears. Liz was a little shaky but said that this was probably true, and sensible. Laura was crying and saying it was her fault. I didn't want to say it was, but I thought that it was.

I said, "Stop blaming yourself now Laura, it isn't going to help."

Liz for her part put her arms around Laura, and said to calm down and stay calm that would be the way to help Tristan now.

We didn't eat anything we had ordered. Oliver stood up first and went inside to pay the bill. Then Liz and Laura left and I promised to be in touch.

When we were driving the tiny distance to my house from the restaurant, Oliver was voicing plans for us to go to France.

"Let's go soon, ask your mom and dad if you can go. Just say we had been planning a day over there. It's only Lille. We can go there and back in a day, if we get on with it. By the way, do you remember if this is the same address you got from the hotel when you pretended to be a car hire company?"

I sighed. I didn't think it was the same address and as for my parents I didn't want to lie to them, but I wondered if it would be simpler if I just said I'd be out for the day and not actually where I was. Something just said to me don't tell anyone much. I ended up saying this to Oliver when we were outside my house. He turned to me and said, "It's a risk because what if the police want to see you and your mom doesn't even know where you are?"

In the end, he came into the kitchen with me, our favorite place to hang out, and as he made some coffee mom came up the hall. She talked for a few minutes about computers and then Oliver simply said, "Mrs. McGarry, we were planning a day in France and even though there's been this tragedy, I was thinking, would it be okay if Chloe came along? It might take her mind off things, already Liz has backed out, understandably of course."

I was thinking this was genius and not a lie really as mom smiled a big smile at Oliver, who was really the epitome of an English gentleman at this point.

"That's a great idea Oliver. When are you going?"

"It's actually tomorrow Mrs. McGarry and that's why I'm here asking now."

She said it was fine. Oliver had made her some coffee, and taking it from him, off she went to her study happily.

Oliver waited until she was definitely gone and said, "Your mother is the coolest I have ever met. My mother is still checking out if I'm okay from the kidnapping incident."

He came around the table to me and set his coffee cup down then put his arms around my waist, when he had hugged me close, he smiled at me.

"It will be okay. Let's check out the route and if it would be better to fly and hire a car or simply drive and get the ferry as our friend Max was doing. That stuff about his twin sister is an eye opener don't you think?"

"It sure is. I wonder what's wrong with her? That must be why he was after your blood Oliver, well the healing blood, which he thought was yours. It sounds like there could be a reason for his madness, but hey, more interesting is his acting ability he never missed a beat introducing himself as Rene. I mean he even dressed differently and everything. That took some nerve," I said to Oliver who was still holding me.

"I'm impressed too. I'm also guessing that Tristan's blood has nothing to do with what's happened to him. If Max is to blame it's all about him being jealous since he seems to care for Laura. I don't get it really. It was obvious Tristan wasn't interested in her. Why punish him when really it's Laura who is at fault? Not that I'm suggesting he punish her either."

I had freed myself from Oliver's hug and now holding his hand we went onto the kitchen patio and began walking up the garden.

"I agree its radical stuff. Do you ever feel jealous of Tristan because of me?" I asked him.

"No because you love me," Oliver said simply, and he let go of my hand and put his arm around my shoulders. We walked quietly along the path just to the edge of the woods and back, and then we went up to my room to plan the trip. I had just needed to walk and think a little.

Having checked out the journey times and address Laura had given us for Max we decided that we would fly. It would only take us an hour and we could get to Heathrow quickly too if we took the bus from Oxford. Amazingly, we got tickets to fly out at seven thirty in the morning and back at six thirty in the evening. That would do said Oliver.

"Let's check if Liz will drop us at Gloucester Green for the bus."

I called Liz and told her our plans. She said she would gladly drop us at the bus station, and did we want picking up in the evening, she could arrange that. We decided we would take her up on the offer because she would want to know what had happened and it only seemed fair to let her know stuff as soon as possible. It seemed the safe thing to do too considering we were going to visit a Magus, someone should know when we were due back.

I booked the tickets for the planes and buses online with my handy dandy VISA card. I didn't want Oliver to go home yet and he didn't really want to go so we hung out just talking about what could possibly have happened to Tristan and then about the trip. It helped ease the sick feeling I had every time I realized Tristan wasn't just a phone call away, and that in fact I had no idea where he was.

About seven Oliver decided he better go home and tell his folks we were just popping over to France tomorrow, he laughed at that as he said it, and then kissed me quite a few times as we went out to his Land Rover.

I watched as he drove away thinking that I wouldn't sleep that night. I just wished we had gone to Lille then, it was hard to wait for anything to do with finding Tristan.

Oliver must have felt the same because about nine-thirty he called me and we spent twenty minutes on the phone just to hear each other's voice.

****

Volume Three of 'A Spell Cast' is available free now

Where is Tristan and how will Oliver and Chloe find him? Resolved to helping the knight out, the old wizard Aristide feels shame that his ancient and noble family has been brought into question by his grandson Rene.

Oliver and Chloe are in love but at the same time Chloe loves Tristan and will go to any lengths to get him back. Does she find him? How will Tristan change Chloe's life?

Will this incident have any effect on the lovely Oliver?

The shocking continuation of 'A Spell Cast' is available now as Volume Three.

Free now. Also available free Volume One: A Spell Cast.

Find us on Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Seven-Spell-saga/138580806204048

Find us on Google + https://plus.google.com/107096961952142643679/posts

Find the blog http://tess-three-in-the-morning.blogspot.com

