Читать книгу Revenge By Seduction - Alex Ryder, Alex Ryder - Страница 6

CATRIONA almost choked over a mouthful of coffee when she saw the picture in the morning paper. She clattered her cup down in the saucer and tried to stifle a groan. Well, there’d be no phone call now. That was one dream which would have to go into cold storage. Feeling sick at heart, she pushed her Sunday breakfast aside.

From across the table Madge regarded her through world-weary, morning-after eyes. ‘What’s wrong? Another scandal in high places?’

Catriona stared at the picture again. Oh, there was no mistaking that man! Tall, broad-shouldered and immaculately dressed. A rakish tilt to the dark eyebrows and a finely chiselled nose and jawline. The same genial smile on the wide, generous mouth.

For a moment her head spun and her heart thudded as she remembered how it had felt when he’d first taken her in his arms. She shivered as she recalled the delicious, nerve tingling instant his mouth had claimed hers…and later…when those strong, sensitive fingers had slowly begun to undress her…

She got a fierce grip on her emotions and murmured, ‘Nothing… It…it’s nothing, Madge.’

‘Huh! You’re acting pretty damn strange over nothing. Let me see that.’ She reached over and took the paper from her hand. After studying the picture, she read the text aloud. “‘Ryan Hind, the well-known, swashbuckling property tycoon, and Miss Diane ReesBoulter seen last night dining at Cardini’s in the West End. Diane is the latest in a seemingly unending line of attractive young ladies to be squired around the nightspots by London’s most sought-after bachelor. Can we look forward to the society wedding of the year in the near future? Don’t hold your breath.”’

She let the paper drop, then stared at Catriona in silence before raising her eyes imploringly to the ceiling. ‘Please don’t tell me that you’ve got yourself involved with that despicable excuse for a man! He’s every mother’s nightmare. I should never have gone on holiday and left you on your own.’ She heaved another sigh of sympathy. ‘Come on then, young lady. Tell me all about it.’

It was hard to believe how much of a fool she’d been, and even harder to admit it to someone else, especially Madge, who’d looked after her like a daughter. ‘I…I met him two weeks ago,’ she began in a subdued voice. ‘He…he was so charming…and before I knew it I’d accepted his invitation to dinner that evening.’ She toyed with her cup, reluctant to go on.

‘Well?’ asked Madge impatiently. ‘Then what happened?’

She drew a deep breath and took the plunge. ‘He sent a car round here to pick me up at seven-thirty. We had a wonderful dinner. Then he…he took me to his hotel and…and we spent the night together.’ She looked at Madge, her eyes pleading for understanding. ‘He was so kind and…and wonderful, and he made me feel that I was the most important thing in the world to him.’

She paused and swallowed the bitter taste in her mouth. ‘In the morning he was gone. There was a note on the bedside cabinet explaining that he’d had to leave early to catch the Paris plane but that he’d get in touch with me the moment he got back in a few days’ time. There was also a twenty-pound note for the taxi fare home.’ She swallowed once more. ‘I…I really did believe that he’d keep that promise to call me when he’d returned from France. And now…’ She pointed a quivering finger at the newspaper. ‘There he is as large as life with…with someone else!’

Madge shrugged. ‘So? Now you know the kind of creature he is. My advice to you is just to forget him. Believe me, you’re well rid of that rogue. He’s bad news.’

Catriona’s breathing became rapid and shallow as the full realisation began to slowly sink in. All those whispered endearments…the murmured promises and declarations of undying love…nothing but empty lies!

She clenched her fists as a cold rage gripped, then pierced her heart. For a moment she was too choked to speak, then she exhaled an explosive breath. ‘I’d never slept with a man until I met him! He took advantage of me and now he’s dumped and humiliated me! And you expect me to forget him!’ She managed to get herself under control, then laughed bitterly. ‘I suppose I’ve got no one to blame but myself. You’d think that at twenty-one I’d have more sense, wouldn’t you? Now I know what my mother meant when she warned me about coming to London.’

Madge stared at her in amazed disbelief, then reached for another aspirin, washed it down with a mouthful of black coffee, lit another cigarette, coughed harshly, and spluttered, ‘Are you telling me that you were a virgin? At twenty-one! My God! Were there no red-blooded men in that unpronounceable Scotch village you came from?’

‘Kindarroch,’ she muttered. ‘And the McNeils of Kindarroch never forgive nor forget an insult. If any of my kin ever find out what he’s done he’ll be deprived of the means of ever doing it to another woman.’

Madge gave a shudder. ‘Yes…quite… Well, it was some time back in the Jurassic age when I lost mine. He was the drummer in a rock band and I…’ She paused, then smiled wryly. ‘I’m turning into a boring old bag. I’ve told you all this before, haven’t I?’

Catriona nodded indulgently. ‘Yes, Madge, you have. I’ve heard every detail of your lurid past. No one could deny that you’ve led an interesting life. You should write a book about it some time.’

A scattering of ash spilled down Madge’s dressing gown as she laughed shrilly. ‘My dear girl, there are lots of people in this town who’d pay me a fortune simply not to write a book. But what the hell…I’m no tell-tale.’ She squinted at her through a cloud of smoke. ‘Mind you, I would have told you about Ryan Hind. Everyone in London knows about his reputation. I’ve even met him at a couple of those Chelsea bun-fights. Course, he never paid any attention to an old wreck like me.’

Catriona was still finding it almost impossible to accept the truth and her blue eyes looked at Madge in misty appeal. There was always hope, wasn’t there? ‘Are…are you sure about him, Madge? Is he really as…as bad as you say? I find it hard to believe. He seemed so sincere.’

Madge studied her thoughtfully, then gave a sigh and said quietly, ‘I’m a fool. I should have realised straight away. You fell in love with him, didn’t you?’ She saw the answering miserable nod and went on in a slightly bemused voice, ‘Good old-fashioned love at first sight. I thought it had gone out of fashion. But I was wrong. Now I know why you were still a virgin at twenty-one. You’re too principled to indulge in sex for mere pleasure. You would have to be in love with the man first. And of course you would have to believe that he was in love with you.’

Catriona felt too choked with embarrassment and anger to answer and Madge nodded in commiseration. ‘I’m afraid that your Mr Hind is every bit as black as he’s painted. There’s hardly a social event in this city where you won’t find him with some ravishing young beauty clinging to his arm. Never the same one two nights running, mind you. And even then I’ve been told you can almost see those shark-grey eyes of his searching out his next victim. The man is a womaniser of the worst kind. An absolute rake.’ She studied Catriona’s reaction in silence, then shrugged and muttered, ‘I’m only sorry that I wasn’t here to warn you about him.’

Catriona shook her head. ‘You needed that short holiday in the sun. I should have been able to look after myself.’

‘Oh, well, don’t blame yourself too much,’ Madge consoled. ‘I’d have probably been taken in by his lies myself at your age. He might be the worst thing to hit London since the Great Plague, but I must admit that he’s a handsome-looking devil.’

She studied the end of her cigarette for a moment, then said disparagingly, ‘They call him The Golden Hind. And it isn’t just because of his ability to make money. The Golden Hind was Sir Francis Drake’s ship, and we all know what a freebooting pirate he was.’

She took another draw at her cigarette and drawled, ‘The word around the West End these days is that he’s either doing it for a bet or he simply wants to see how many women he can seduce in a year. Trying to break some sort of record, I suppose. Personally I think he should be painlessly neutered so that women can go about in safety.’

‘Well, he made a mistake when he put me on his list,’ muttered Catriona darkly. She retrieved the paper and looked at the picture again. The anger burned in her throat at the sight of him and she said bitterly, ‘Cardini’s! That’s where he took me on the night it…the night it happened.’

‘He takes all his victims there,’ Madge said casually. ‘It’s his favourite restaurant. He has a table permanently booked there and Humphrey the head waiter has orders to shoot any uninvited guests on sight.’

Catriona studied the picture of the girl by his side. She was a slim blonde hanging onto his arm and gazing up at him in obvious adoration. ‘I’m sure I’ve seen this girl before,’ she said. ‘Her face is vaguely familiar.’

‘It should be. She’s one of the current “Chelsea set,”’ Madge said disdainfully. ‘They’ve all been in the shop at one time or another. Tailored suits and chiffon scarves. They go for the trendy female executive look, although I doubt if any of them has enough intelligence to hold down a job. When the Golden Hind dumps her, I for one won’t feel sorry.’

‘Well, I will,’ Catriona disagreed. ‘No girl deserves to be treated that way. We’ve all got feelings, haven’t we? We are not just put here as playthings to satisfy that man’s lust. He’s nothing but a moral degenerate who deserves to be smitten by the hand of vengeance, and I’ll be that hand if I only get half a chance.’

Madge raised delicate eyebrows. ‘Hmm… Very biblical language you Scots indulge in.’

Catriona felt a little sheepish after her outburst and she gave an embarrassed smile. ‘Aye. It comes from going to the kirk every Sunday and listening to the Reverend McPhee preaching fire and damnation from the pulpit. If he knew about me now he’d have me in sackcloth and ashes.’

‘I was never bothered by a conscience myself,’ Madge said brightly. ‘No doubt there’s a special place waiting for sinners like me, but in the meanwhile…’ She waved a negligent hand around the room. ‘I’ve been wise enough during my dissolute years to acquire this charming flat, a successful boutique in Chelsea and a nice little portfolio of shares for my old age. I never, ever met a man with whom I’d want to spend the rest of my life, but that never stopped me from using them for my own ends. Mind you, I never knowingly made an enemy, and most of those men and I are still good friends. I still manage to get invited to all the right places.’

Catriona regarded her with genuine affection. ‘I don’t care what kind of life you’ve led, Madge. To me you’ll always be an angel. Until I met you I was desperate and ready to slink back home with my tail between my legs. Then it all changed. You gave me a decent job and even a place to live. I’ll be eternally grateful to you.’

‘Well, you had such an honest face,’ Madge said with a grin. ‘You don’t see many faces like yours in London these days. In this day and age you have to learn to spot a fake at fifty yards or you get taken to the cleaners.’

‘Aye…’ muttered Catriona. ‘Just like I did.’

‘Oh, cheer up, girl! It isn’t the end of the world. You’ve got a broken heart and the world seems empty. But you’ll get over it. You’re young, but you’re a quick learner, and if you take my advice you’ll put this behind you and get on with your life.’

Catriona lowered her eyes. She didn’t want to hurt Madge’s feelings but Madge just didn’t understand. Where she came from such things were a matter of family honour, not to mention pride and self-respect. Ryan Hind had trampled that into the mud and one way or another he was going to pay. She didn’t yet know how she was going to go about it, but she’d find a way to make that man wish he’d never laid eyes let alone a hand on her.

Seeing Madge reach for the aspirin bottle again, she eased back her chair and got to her feet. ‘You were late home from that party last night and you’re still a bit under the weather. I know we were going to take stock in the shop today but I can quite easily do that on my own. Why don’t you just take it easy and have a day in bed?’

Madge looked at her gratefully. ‘That’s kind of you, dear. I’m afraid I can’t handle late nights like I used to. I’ll spend the day resting. But make no mistake, once my batteries are recharged I intend growing old disgracefully, so don’t order a Zimmer frame yet.’

Catriona cleaned up the breakfast things first, then tidied the lounge. Satisfied with her handiwork, she took a final look round, then smiled. When Madge had offered her a spare room in her flat at a nominal rent she’d never expected anything as grand as this!

Madge had taste and style. Period furniture and luxurious carpeting throughout, and double-glazed sliding doors led from the lounge onto a balcony offering a fine view over the river.

For a moment as she gazed out towards Chelsea Bridge she felt a brief tug of nostalgia for the wild seascapes and the rugged grandeur of the mountains surrounding Kindarroch, then she took a deep breath. Only losers allowed themselves to wallow in self-pity and homesickness.

She’d almost succumbed. Her first few weeks in London had been a heartbreaking round of menial, poorly paid jobs and a hunt for half-decent accommodation, and she’d been rapidly running out of money. It had only been because of Morag’s prediction that she’d meet someone who’d become a good friend that she’d stuck it out.

Of course, Morag had also said that she’d meet a rich, handsome man, but she’d neglected to tell her that he’d turn out to be a lying lecherous swine. But then perhaps she shouldn’t have taken Morag too seriously in the first place. It all seemed so long ago now, and yet it was only a couple of months or so since the day she’d decided to leave Kindarroch.

There were people in Kindarroch who’d have sooner walked barefoot over broken glass than cross the threshold of Morag’s cottage up on the hill, but Catriona wasn’t the least bit nervous.

The older generation, even her own mother, always spoke about Morag in whispers, after looking over their shoulders to see that she was nowhere around. Morag was the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, so no one was surprised that she had the ‘gift’. She was a seer who had visions of the future. Well, that was quite acceptable in a culture where romantic myth and legend lived comfortably alongside satellite television and microwave ovens, but it was whispered that Morag could see right into your heart and mind. Naturally enough that made folk a little wary of her, because everyone has their little secrets, and they tended to avoid her eye as much as possible.

None of this bothered Catriona. As far as she was aware old Morag had never harmed a soul in her life and that was more than could be said about most.

She’d been on her way home from the post office when she’d spotted Morag ahead of her, bent over with a bag of shopping in each hand, and she’d caught up and offered assistance. And now that they’d reached the cottage it would have been churlish not to accept Morag’s invitation to come inside and have a cup of tea.

Morag removed her shawl and smiled gratefully. ‘Just put the bags down, Catriona, and make yourself comfortable while I go into the kitchen.’

She made herself at ease on a chair by the scrubbed pine table and looked around the tiny living room with mild curiosity. From the window you could see right across the harbour, empty now except for a few gulls waiting patiently on the sea wall for the arrival of a fishing boat. Towards the south the dark and jagged peaks of Skye were just visible above the hazy horizon.

As for the room itself, she found it faintly puzzling at first. It was clean, with everything polished to perfection, but it was so…so old-fashioned. It was like stepping into a time warp. That heavy wooden radio, for example. Casting her eye around, she saw that everything seemed to belong to the twenties or thirties.

Then she remembered the stories about Morag. It was said that she had come from one of the islands, sailing alone out of the morning mist into the harbour, a dark-haired, softly spoken girl of seventeen. She had fallen in love with a handsome young fisherman from the village and within a month they were married.

Then tragedy had struck. Two days after the wedding her new husband’s boat had been overwhelmed in a storm and all the crew had perished. Ever since that dreadful day she’d lived here by herself and it was said that she spent most of her time at the window staring out to sea awaiting the return of her lost love.

It was a story which always touched Catriona’s heart, but she’d often wondered… If Morag really did have the ‘gift’, why hadn’t she warned her husband not to sail that day? Then again, as some maintained, perhaps it had been the traumatic shock of losing him that had awakened the dormant power.

Once again she gazed around the room thoughtfully. Was this exactly how the place had looked when Morag had first set up her new home? Nothing added…nothing taken away…nothing changed from that day to this. Everything preserved and lovingly cared for. A shrine, in fact?

Suddenly she remembered something else. She’d been about eight years old at the time and a crowd of them had been playing down by the harbour. Jamie Reid had made a catapult and he was using the seagulls as target practice when Morag had descended on them.

‘Jamie Reid…’ she’d said in a soft, sorrowful voice. ‘Don’t you know that every seagull has the soul of a drowned sailor awaiting to be born again?’

It wasn’t the sort of thing eight-year-old kids thought about, but she’d never seen Jamie playing with that catapult again.

She stopped her reminiscing and got to her feet as Morag came through from the kitchen bearing a tray. ‘Is there anything I can do to help?’ she asked politely.

Morag smiled. ‘You’ve helped enough as it is. I’m still not too old to look after a guest.’

She smiled back and watched in silence as Morag poured two cups of tea. The knuckles on the crooked hands looked swollen and arthritic and she wondered just how old Morag really was. She had to be seventy-five at least. Her face was wrinkled, and yet in spite of her apparent frailty you could feel the inner strength and vibrant energy of the woman.

‘Well, now…’ Morag said, lowering herself carefully into a chair opposite. ‘It’s a while since I’ve seen you, Catriona. You’re quite the young lady now. Twenty-one, isn’t it?’

‘Aye. A month ago.’

Morag nodded and smiled. ‘You always were a pretty girl, but you’re even prettier now that you’re a woman. You’ve the sky-blue eyes of your mother and the red hair of your father. A McNeil if ever I saw one. And how are they both keeping, these days?’

‘Och, they’re fine enough, Morag. Like everyone else up here they’re just waiting for the fishing to get better so that folk have a bit of money in their pockets.’

‘Aye…’ Morag sighed and looked towards the window. ‘Times are hard, right enough. I dare say they’ll be a bit upset at first when you tell them you’re leaving.’

Catriona’s cup stopped halfway to her mouth and she blinked in astonishment. She hadn’t confided to anyone about the feelings of frustration and restlessness which had been tormenting her for weeks now. In fact it was only this very morning, while she’d been waiting in the queue at the post office, that she’d finally made up her mind to leave Kindarroch and try her luck down south.

‘How…how did you know?’ she managed faintly.

Morag’s eyes twinkled. ‘We’ll just call it a guess. Anyone can see that a girl like you shouldn’t have to waste her time in a backwater like this, just hoping for the best. For the last ten years anyone with an ounce of ambition in them has gone south where the opportunities are.’

Catriona accepted the explanation. ‘I suppose you’re right. There’s no work to be had in Kindarroch, that’s for sure.’

‘And not much chance of a girl finding a husband either,’ Morag added innocently.

Once again Catriona was jolted by surprise, and she quickly covered her embarrassment with a self-conscious laugh. ‘I really haven’t been giving it that much thought.’

‘Haven’t you?’ Morag asked, regarding her with fond amusement. ‘Well, if you say so. But I’ve an idea there’s a rich and handsome young man out there just waiting to fall in love with a girl like you.’

Catriona smiled in embarrassment. ‘Away with you. You’re just teasing. Anyway, he wouldn’t have to be rich…or even that handsome. I’d settle for someone with a kind heart, nice teeth and a sense of humour.’

Morag gave a nod of approval. ‘Aye…I know you would. So where are you thinking of going?’

She’d been trying to make her mind up about that. ‘I’m not sure. Edinburgh or Glasgow, I suppose. They’re not so far away that I can’t come back and visit my folks any time I feel homesick.’

Morag shook her head. ‘You’ll find what you’re looking for in London, and you’ll be far too busy to feel homesick.’

‘London!’ Her blue eyes widened doubtfully. That was the south of England! Another planet as far as she was concerned. She was about to reject the idea out of hand when something made her pause. Morag had sounded so sure of herself.

‘Why London?’ she asked cautiously. ‘I don’t know a soul down there.’

Morag merely smiled. ‘Donald could give you a lift the next time he takes a load of fish to Inverness. There’s an overnight train from there that would get you to London the next morning.’

If Morag did know anything she was keeping it to herself, and Catriona still looked doubtful. ‘I…I don’t know… I’ve a bit of money saved up but I hear it’s a terribly expensive place to live.’

Morag closed her eyes for a moment, as if deep in thought, then she opened them and said with quiet confidence, ‘You’ll manage. I know you’ll have a hard time at first, but I’ve never met a McNeil yet who’s afraid of a challenge. Anyway, you’ll meet someone who’ll become a good friend. She’ll help you to find your feet.’

She didn’t much like the sound of the first bit and she frowned. ‘Excuse me, Morag. What exactly do you mean by a “hard time”?’

Morag leaned across the table and patted her hand affectionately. ‘I just mean that it’s never easy when you suddenly find yourself in a strange place…amongst people you don’t know.’ She glanced towards the window again, her eyes distant. ‘I remember how I felt when I first came here from the islands.’

Catriona wondered if she should be taking this seriously. Shouldn’t she just humour and play along with this eccentric but sweet old lady and then be on her way, having done her good deed for the day?

‘Aye. I suppose there’s something in that, Morag,’ she admitted. ‘But I’m not expecting a bed of roses.’ She finished her tea, then rose and said brightly, ‘Perhaps I will go to London. And if I do meet this wonderful man you say is waiting for me I’ll be sure to write and let you know.’

An odd little smile played on Morag’s lips. ‘There will be no need for that, Catriona. I’ll know well enough when it happens. Now you’d better go home and break the news to your parents.’

As things turned out she put off telling her parents until after supper that evening. Suddenly the only sound in the room was the heavy ticking of the clock on the mantelpiece as they both stared at her in silence.

She sighed. ‘Well, don’t look so surprised. You must know it’s been on my mind for some time.’

Her parents looked at each other in resignation, then her father nodded. ‘Aye, lass. We can’t say it’s come as a great surprise.’ He toyed with his pipe, then cleared his throat. ‘Where are you thinking of going?’

‘London.’

‘London!’ exclaimed her mother in horror. ‘But that’s so far away!’ She appealed to her husband, ‘Tell her not to go. You’re her father. She’s only a child!’

‘I’m an adult now,’ Catriona reminded her gently.

Her mother sniffed. ‘Barely. You’re still a child as far as I’m concerned.’

‘Oh?’ She smiled. ‘Aren’t you forgetting that you were only eighteen when you married Dad? I dare say that Gran said the very same thing about you.’

Her mother sniffed again, but her father chuckled. ‘She’s got you there, Jean. And a bonnie bride you were.’ He grinned at his daughter. ‘Don’t worry, lass. Your mother doesn’t think you’re ready for London, but I’m wondering if London is ready for you.’

‘I hear it’s an awfully wicked place,’ her mother warned, ‘Gangsters and drugs and terrible tap water you have to filter before you can drink it. Anyway, you were born and raised here. You’ll get lost. And all your friends are here.’

‘And they’re all in the same boat as me,’ she replied. ‘There’s no work here and I’ve been a burden to you long enough. I can’t let you go on supporting me for ever. I’ve got to stand on my own two feet.’ She smiled at both of them, then said quietly, ‘Besides, I don’t want to end up an old maid. You’ll be wanting grandchildren, won’t you?’

‘Aye…’ her mother said wistfully. ‘But I’d always hoped that one day you and Jamie Reid would…’

Catriona gave a snort to indicate what she thought of a man who still let his old mother fetch the coal from the back shed.

‘She’s right,’ her father agreed. ‘There isn’t a lad in Kindarroch I’d want for a son-in-law. All the good ones leave here the first chance they get. They know there’s no future in the fishing now. They’ve all gone south to work in banks or factories.’

Her mother sighed. ‘I suppose you’re right. I even heard that the Harbour Hotel might soon be up for sale. Trade is that bad.’ She looked at Catriona sadly. ‘There’s no use me trying to make you change your mind. You’re just like your father. The McNeils always were a stubborn lot.’

Catriona gave her a kiss on the cheek, then hugged her. ‘That’s why you married one, isn’t it? Maybe I’ll be as lucky as you were. Old Morag seems to think so.’

It had been said in all innocence but her mother gave a start and her eyes widened. ‘When did you see Morag? Is she the one who’s been putting this idea into your head?’

‘Och, no,’ she answered lightly. ‘I helped her home with her shopping this morning and when we got there she invited me in for a cup of tea.’

There was a shocked silence then, ‘You were inside her house?’

‘Aye. And I dare say you’d have done the same if she’d invited you. Anyway, I’d already made up my mind about leaving and I swear on my life I hadn’t told anyone. But she knew.’

Her father scratched his head in amused wonder. ‘Aye…that’s Morag for you. There isn’t much goes on around here that she doesn’t know about.’

‘She has the second sight, right enough,’ her mother agreed in a respectful whisper. ‘It’s no wonder that the poor wee minister takes to drink whenever he sees her.’ She paused, then asked with bated breath, ‘What’s it like inside her house?’

Catriona reassured her. ‘Well…it’s very old-fashioned but everything is clean and polished. And there wasn’t a black cat or crystal ball or black candle in sight, if that’s what you’re asking.’

‘Oh…’ It was a sound of disappointment. Then, ‘So what exactly did she tell you?’

‘She just said that I had nothing to worry about because I was a McNeil and the McNeils had always known how to look after themselves.’

Again her mother sounded disappointed. ‘Is that all?’

‘Isn’t it enough?’ she asked, skilfully avoiding a direct answer. ‘Haven’t you always said that she has the “gift” and that she was a person you could trust?’

‘It’s good enough for me,’ her father said firmly. He bowed to the inevitable with good grace. ‘We’ll organise a wee going-away party for you in the hotel bar the night before you leave.’

Her mother bit her lip, then nodded and gave a tired smile. ‘Aye…I suppose you’re right, Catriona. I always knew this day would come. But you’ll come back and see us as often as you can, won’t you?’

‘Of course I will, Mum.’ She hugged and kissed them both, then turned away quickly before they could see the tears forming in her eyes.