Village Secrets (21 page)

Kate didn’t answer immediately. When she did it was in a low voice. ‘A coal shot out of the fire and tangled in her fur and burnt her before I could get it out. She’s really quite unwell.’

‘I’m so sorry. She’ll need good care.’

‘Of course, and she’ll get it. Cat’s a dear friend.’

Peter smiled and said goodbye.

‘Peter! I’m amazed you didn’t realise yourself it was all lies,’ Caroline said that evening when they were sitting by their own fire. ‘I told you she’d bought a load of logs from Greenwood Stubbs. You remember, they cut down those trees and he’d advertised the logs for sale on the Village Voice board? I heard her in the Store ordering them from Pat, and giving her the money. So she’s a liar to boot.’

‘Maybe last night she burnt coal instead.’

Caroline sighed. ‘Come on, Peter. I saw Sykes this morning. Chang and Tonga couldn’t inflict wounds of that size and depth on Sykes, they’re not big enough nor strong enough. But her
cat
could. Sorry, but you’ve got a witch for a head teacher.’ Caroline burst out laughing. ‘That must be a first!’

‘It’s all very well you laughing, Caroline Harris, but I’ve got a monumental problem. It doesn’t just concern the school: it’s affecting the whole of my parish. It’s got to stop.’

‘Well, don’t ask
me
for advice! I haven’t the faintest idea what to do with a witch.’

‘Darling, in the light of what has happened, I can’t avoid telling you something that I’ve kept putting off and putting off till now I can’t delay any longer.’

Caroline turned swiftly to look into his face. She asked sharply: ‘What have you got to tell me?’

‘It’s about Mimi.’

‘Mimi!’

He paused, then looked Caroline full in the eyes. ‘Have you accepted the fact that she might be dead?’ he asked gently.

‘Of course.’

Caroline waited for him to go on. She noticed he was twisting his wedding ring round and round, a sure sign he didn’t like what he was going to have to say. ‘Her collar’s been found,’ Peter said at last.

‘Her collar? Where?’

‘In Sykes Wood, near the bonfire you saw.’

‘Oh God! You don’t think they used her for—’

‘I doubt it. It could just be chance.’

‘Who found it?’

‘Sylvia, but she didn’t dare tell you. She was so frightened, and she didn’t want you upset.’

Caroline took out her handkerchief and wiped her eyes. ‘I can’t bear to think of those dreadful people having poor Mimi in their power. When did she ever do anything unkind to anyone at all?’

‘Never. Come here.’ Caroline laid her head against his chest and wept quietly. Peter encircled her with his arms and wished he could say something of comfort but there wasn’t anything that could alleviate her distress.

Caroline finally put her hands on his chest and pushed him away from her. ‘I shall personally strangle the woman,’ she said in a quivering voice. ‘I shall go round to the school tomorrow and
do it
.’

‘Darling, we have no evidence that she is involved – none at all. It’s all pure conjecture.’

‘No evidence? Of course we have!’

‘What evidence? Tell me that.’

‘The cat fighting Sykes.’

‘But the cat could have been there quite by chance.’

‘Why will you go round this world believing the best of everybody? I bet if you’d been on the jury at the Yorkshire Ripper trial you’d have found a reason for letting him off! It won’t do, Peter. It won’t do.’

‘It’s the way I’m made.’

‘Poor Mimi! I shall make sure that Kate gets her comeuppance. She’s got her cat, but I haven’t got mine because of her evil ways.’

‘Caroline!’

‘Don’t say “Caroline” in that tone of voice. She’ll have to go.’

‘I can’t sack her! There are no grounds for me to do that.’

At that moment, Chang and Tonga flicked through the cat flap. They’d come in to go to bed. Caroline rushed towards them and hugged them close. ‘We shall have to have litter trays and they won’t be able to go out ever again.’

‘Oh no! That was something we knew we couldn’t have once we got the children. You agreed on that. No more litter trays. I never liked them in the first place and we are not having cats doing their business in this house. I forbid it.’

‘You
forbid
it?’ The ringing challenging note in Caroline’s voice made Peter’s heart sink. He forced himself to speak calmly.

‘You have got to be rational about this. Much as I love the cats, the children’s health and well-being come first. As a doctor, you know I’m right. Besides, it’s cruelty of the first order to forbid the cats their freedom. I can’t bear such cruelty.’

‘But if it’s to save their lives?’

‘Even to save their lives. I refuse to have an argument about it. No litter tray and the cats have their freedom. One year of freedom is better than ten years locked in a house. I won’t have it.’

‘They’re my cats.’

‘They’re your children.’

There was a split second of stunned silence and then she rounded on him and, in a controlled, ominously quiet voice, she said, ‘The cats are
not
my children. I’m not some idiotic sentimental fool.’

Peter was furious that she should think that he knew so little of her as to make such a mistake. He retorted angrily, ‘I know you better than to think that of you. I didn’t mean the
cats
, I meant Alex and Beth are your children.’

Caroline opened her mouth to protest and then changed her mind. He was right: the children did come before the cats. Peter watched her gather herself together.

Caroline swallowed hard. ‘I’m so sorry. Of course you’re right. I do beg your pardon. I got everything out of proportion with being so upset. Yes, the cats shall have their freedom, no matter what. But Kate Pascoe is another matter. I shall go to see her tomorrow, and you mustn’t try to stop me.’

‘No, Caroline. Please, leave it to me.’

‘Someone has to confront her with it.’

‘I know, but I need time to think how to go about it.’ He took both her hands in his and raised them to his lips. ‘My darling girl, I’m so sorry about Mimi; so very sorry. I wouldn’t have you hurt for the world.’

‘Peter, where’s her collar now? I’d like to see it.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Yes.’

‘Wait there.’

When he came back with it in his hand, Caroline smiled sadly. She cradled it against her face, looked up at him and said, ‘You know, I used to confide in her about you. When I got back to the flat after being out with you, I told her what you’d said and the things we’d done, and where we’d been. Told her how lovely you were and how much I loved you. Silly, wasn’t I?’

‘Of course not. I love you for it.’

‘Do you think she suffered?’

‘I don’t honestly know. I just hope not.’

‘And so do I. So do I. But Kate Pascoe will have to go.’

Kate surveyed the paintings Class Three had done that afternoon. They were most unsatisfactory. Almost all of the children had become obsessed with black. There were black cats, black hats, black trees, black people, black clouds and two of them had a dreadful black interpretation of the devil. What on earth had happened to them all?

‘Weird, ain’t it?’ Kate jumped. It was Pat Duckett coming in to clean the classroom. ‘Downright spooky. Our Michelle didn’t do paintings like that when Mr Palmer was ’ere. He wouldn’t have allowed it.’

‘But then Mr Palmer didn’t know how to encourage children’s talent.’

‘Well, if that’s talent give me mediocre any day. I don’t know about him not encouraging them – all three of the kids who’ve applied for Prince Henry’s and Lady Wortley’s this year have had interviews. They’ll be hearing any day now. So he must have taught ’em something.’

‘Indeed he must, but that was the three Rs; this is creative talent.’

‘Is it? I wouldn’t have known if you hadn’t told me. What about Liz Neal’s boys? Guy’s turning out real talented at painting at Prince Henry’s. Liz says—’

‘All right, Pat, there’s an exception to every rule.’

Pat began to sweep. ‘I’ll say this for you, you keep a lovely tidy classroom. No bits to pick up at all and every cupboard top as clean as a whistle. No Brownie points though for the paintings. That one of the devil is the rector really.’

‘I beg your pardon?’

‘Well, when it’s Stocks Day in June the rector dresses as the devil, horns and the lot, but underneath he has his white wedding cassock on and he flings off the devil’s costume, blesses the stocks and everything’s all right for another year. Something to do with the time when the Black Death came to the village, and we always celebrate it every year or else things worse than the Black Death might ’appen. So that’s ’im. Strikes me he’ll have to be doing some of that exorcising that a man of the church like ’im can do. There’s another one of’ im there, look, with great big horns. You can just spot the white of his cassock at the bottom – see? These kids knows a thing or two, they do.’

‘Nonsense!’

‘Everybody’s scared to death. Talking of death, look at Sadie Beauchamp – alive and kicking one day and dead as a dodo the next. Never ailed a thing. And why’s Rhett and the sergeant’s wife frightened out of their skins? Answer me that.’

Kate dismissed the ideas as quite ridiculous. ‘They are all a load of rubbish, these scaremongering tales. And it’s time you got on with your work, Pat.’

‘Thanks very much. Only offering a bit of advice.’

Kate swept out of the room ahead of Pat’s broom. She went to her little office, and stood looking out at the bins. Cat came in and, sensing the disturbance of Kate’s mind, jumped up on the desk and rubbed her head against Kate’s hip asking for attention. Cat’s huge bald patch caused by her burn was beginning to grow new fur, and she was feeling and behaving more like her old self.

‘Hello, Cat. Time to go home, is it?’ Kate fondled Cat’s ears and tickled her chin. Outside, Pat came round the corner to empty a wastepaper basket. Kate watched her. The paper cascaded into the recycling bin, except for one piece which blew upwards in a sudden gust of wind. She watched Pat reach out to catch it. Pat was right. The children
were
being affected, that was obvious from their paintings. In their own ways, they were suggesting that Peter did something about it for them. Kate shook herself. She was becoming even dafter than Pat, reading such ludicrous things into paintings the children would have forgotten about by now. Exorcism! Whatever next? All of it was pure coincidence, wasn’t it? Cat purred. Pure coincidence.

‘Tea and toasted teacake, I think, Cat. What about you?’ Cat purred louder still; Kate’s finger was scratching her in just the right places. Life was good here in Turnham Malpas. Everything had fallen into place. Soulmates, yes indeed, there were soulmates here. Cat jumped down ready for going home. When Pat came in to clean the staff washbasin, Cat, back arched, tail fluffed, spat at her.

Kate usually drank her afternoon cup of tea at the kitchen table, but today she took it into the living room and put a match to the fire. Her technique for lighting fires had improved by leaps and bounds and it was crackling healthily in no time at all. Cat had learned nothing since her accident and was sitting as close as she possibly could to the flames, busy washing herself and licking the bald patch as though to speed the growth of the fur there. Kate watched her dreamily.

She’d definitely done the right thing by leaving Africa and coming home to England. The climate suited her better and suited Cat better too. And here in Turnham Malpas there were such possibilities. The school for one offered her a tremendous opportunity to educate as she saw fit. The tight lines within which Michael Palmer had operated were not for her. All-round education, that was what these children needed, and the next thing she would do on that score was to buy computers. It was nothing short of scandalous that there were none in the school. One wouldn’t be enough, not by any means. Kate had just put her mind to how she would fund her computer project when the front door burst open and the sound of children invaded the house.

Cat sprang up and ran to see who’d come, but Kate already knew. It was Simone with her brood.

‘Hi! It’s me. As if you didn’t know.’

‘Hello! Come in!’

‘We are.’

The children spread like a plague of locusts around the little living room. Simone had the baby enveloped in the huge shawl she used as her baby carrier. Only wisps of dark curly hair showed above the shawl. Simone hitched the baby higher and sat down on the futon.

‘Well?’

Kate raised an eyebrow. ‘Well?’

‘What about it then?’ Cat leapt onto her knee, purring gleefully and begging to be stroked. ‘What are we going to do?’

‘Do?’ Kate echoed again.

‘Don’t be stupid, Kate. You know what I mean.’ The fact that the children were playing with just about every moveable object in the room, some of which were in imminent danger of being broken, didn’t intrude on Simone’s consciousness at all. It made Kate edgy.

‘Do I?’