The Midnight Rose (64 page)

“I’m sure your mother was right,” said Rebecca. The more Alice said, the more Rebecca was starting to understand.

“You know, I was so lonely as a child. Mummy didn’t let me have
any other little girls over to play, so I had no friends. I wish you could have been here then,” Alice mused sadly. “We do get on well, don’t we? We’re so similar, aren’t we?”

“Yes,” said Rebecca, “and I’m so sorry you were lonely.”

“Well, as a matter of fact, I made up an imaginary friend called Amy. We used to talk for hours, although I knew she wasn’t real. But now I have you. I want you to stay with me forever. You won’t leave me, will you?” Tears suddenly filled Alice’s eyes.

“No, of course I won’t.”

“My mother left me, you see, and then I was completely alone. And do you know, I really don’t think she liked me very much. She was always shouting at me. I—”

Rebecca watched as Alice began to cry, the tears sending rivulets of black mascara down her cheeks.

“Can I get you a handkerchief?” Rebecca offered, grasping a reason to rise from the chair.

“Thank you, you are so very sweet,” Alice replied gratefully. “They’re just over there, in the drawer by the bed.”

Rebecca realized it was now or never. She stood up and headed as fast as she could for the bedroom door, threw it opened and stumbled down the narrow staircase. She reached the front door and turned the handle desperately, but it was stuck fast.

“Where are you going? Come back!”

As Rebecca turned back down the hallway toward the rear of the cottage, praying there was another way out, she heard Alice thumping down the stairs behind her.

“Help!” Rebecca shrieked in terror as she found herself in the kitchen. Banging the door shut in Alice’s face, she groped around in the pitch-black trying to find a back door. She could hear Alice was in the room with her now, stumbling over furniture.

“Where are you, Violet? Please, I don’t like this game. I’m afraid of the dark . . .”

Unable to find a way out, Rebecca backed into a corner and slid down the wall as she heard Alice coming toward her.

“There you are!” The huge hands pulled Rebecca to a standing position. “I don’t like this game. Why don’t you come back upstairs with me and we can play dressing up?”

“Please . . . let me go,” Rebecca moaned as Alice dragged her clumsily
across the kitchen. Then she heard a door open from somewhere in the room.

“Now, come along, dear, stop being naughty and let your friend go,” said a familiar, gentle voice. “I know you’re only playing, but really, Mummy won’t be happy at all with you if she hears about this, will she?”

There was a pause before the hands holding her let go. Rebecca slumped to the floor like a discarded rag doll.

“Mr. Malik, can you switch the light on please? These two naughty children have been playing ‘murder in the dark.’ ”

Suddenly, the room was illuminated and, dazed, Rebecca saw Mrs. Trevathan and Ari standing in the kitchen.

“I’m sorry, Brenda,” said Alice, “I’ve been a naughty girl, haven’t I?”

“You have a bit, yes, but if you’re good and come quietly with me, I promise not to tell Mummy. Come on now, dear.” Mrs. Trevathan held out her hand. “It’s time for your new friend to go home.”

“But I don’t want her to go. Please, Brenda, can’t she stay? I . . .”

Rebecca and Ari watched as Alice’s bottom lip wobbled and she began to weep.

“If you’re a good girl, perhaps your new friend can come back and play tomorrow.”

“Please, can she? I’m so lonely all by myself, so lonely . . .”

“I know, dear, but it’s very late. Now,” she said pointedly to Ari, “I’m going to take this child upstairs and get her ready for bed. Why don’t you take your little girl home with you and maybe they can play together another time. All right?”

Ari, who was staring in shock at the creature holding Mrs. Trevathan’s hand, nodded mutely.

“Good night, then, and thank you for coming,” said Mrs. Trevathan firmly.

As Ari pulled Rebecca to her feet and half-carried her out of the back door to his car, they could hear Mrs. Trevathan’s voice continuing to talk calmly. He placed Rebecca gently in the passenger seat.

“Are you hurt?” he asked as he climbed behind the wheel and started the engine. “Should I take you straight to hospital?”

“Just get me away from here,” she moaned. “And from that terrible—
thing
.”

“Did he hurt you, Rebecca? Really, even though I promised Mrs.
Trevathan I wouldn’t call the police if she told me where he’d taken you, what I’ve just seen goes beyond that.”

“I’m not hurt, honestly. Just get me away from here!” Rebecca repeated with a sob.

“Okay,” he said. “Don’t worry, sweetheart, I’m taking you somewhere safe.”

As he drove across the moors, Ari picked up his cell and called Steve.

“Rebecca’s with me. I won’t go into detail, but I need to take her to a hotel and I’d like you to telephone the doctor she saw the other day and have him come and check her over.”

“Is she hurt?”

“I don’t think so, no, but she definitely needs to be looked at.”

“Right, well, bring her here to my hotel in Ash-burton and I’ll contact reception immediately. I’m sure they can find her a room. If not, she can have mine.”

“And get the doctor there as soon as you can.”

Steve gave Ari the address and he set his GPS to it.

When they arrived at the hotel, Ari was grateful that Steve had managed to procure a suite for Rebecca. He had left a message with reception telling Ari to contact him if there was anything more he could do.

Rebecca let Ari steer her toward the elevator and then along a corridor to her rooms.

“I don’t have anything with me,” Rebecca said, sighing wearily as Ari helped her up onto the bed.

“Where’s your suitcase?” he asked.

“In a bush somewhere on Astbury’s grounds.” She gave him a weak smile.

“Never mind. I’ll go and collect it tomorrow. There’s nothing you need urgently, is there?”

Before she could reply, they heard a knock on the door, and Ari went to answer it.

“Good evening,” said Dr. Trefusis, “or should I say, good morning? I’m sorry it’s taken a while for me to get here, I was with another patient. How is she?”

“From what I can see,” said Ari, “she’s physically unharmed but very shaken. Can I explain what happened?”

“No need for that,” the doctor said quietly. “The patient I’ve just been attending to is Lord Astbury. Mrs. Trevathan sent for me.”

“I see. Where is he now?”

“Still at the cottage on the moors. I’ve given him a heavy sedative, which means he’ll sleep soundly until I organize things for him in the morning. Mrs. Trevathan is watching over him. The chances are he’ll wake up tomorrow and remember nothing of what happened tonight. Anyway, let me see how Miss Bradley is.”

Ari left the room quietly as Dr. Trefusis walked over to Rebecca.

“I hear you’ve had a bit of a time tonight,” he said gently as he sat down on the edge of the bed and took her limp hand in his to feel her pulse. “Did he harm you?”

“No.” Rebecca was so exhausted, she could barely string a sentence together. “But he put a cloth over my face that smelled strong and I lost consciousness, then I woke up in some house. I still don’t know where it was.”

“I’m pretty sure he used chloroform, which is what surgeons used years ago to knock a patient out. It’s harmless, with no long-term side effects. Mrs. Trevathan thinks he probably found it in the medical cupboard in the pantry. I dread to think how old it is. She’s handed me the bottle and I’ll have its contents analyzed tomorrow just to make sure.”

“I thought”—Rebecca licked her dry lips—“that I’d never get away from him.”

“I’m sure you did, Miss Bradley. It’s been a terrible shock for you. All I can do is reassure you and say that I’ve known about Lord Astbury’s condition ever since I took over the medical practice from my father. And it’s extremely doubtful that, however upset and confused he was tonight, he would have hurt you.”

“He thought I was his grandmother Violet,” murmured Rebecca.

“Yes, Mrs. Trevathan did tell me that.”

“Oh my God! He doesn’t know where I am, does he? He won’t come after me, will he?” She gripped his forearm as terror appeared in her eyes.

“You’re perfectly safe, Rebecca, trust me. He has no idea where you are, and he’s so heavily under sedation at present that he doesn’t know where he is either. Now, I’m not going to make you relive what happened tonight, but let’s have a look at you.”

As the doctor prodded and poked her, checking her vital signs, Rebecca lay still. There were so many questions she wanted to ask him, but her muddled, exhausted brain couldn’t find the energy to voice the words.

“How’s the headache?” he asked as he listened to her heart.

“Terrible just now.”

“Well, the chloroform Lord Astbury used won’t have done it any favors. As a matter of fact, I was going to come by and see you tomorrow morning, because I think I’ve discovered what’s been making you feel so ill.”

“Really?”

“Yes. And I can at least reassure you on that count; there’s absolutely nothing to worry about,” he smiled.

“Am I pregnant?”

“No, Rebecca, you’re not. In fact, all the tests came back negative. Anyway, I’ll explain my theory tomorrow. For now”—Dr. Trefusis reached into his bag and pulled out a couple of tablets—“I suggest you take these. They’re a light sedative, which will calm you down and help you sleep.”

“What’s wrong with Anthony? Why was he dressed up like a little girl? He called himself Alice. I—”

“It’s a very long story, Miss Bradley, and one which I’d be happy to explain at length tomorrow, when you’ve had some rest. But for now, my prescription for you is to tell you that you’re physically fine, very safe here, and the best thing you can do is sleep.” Dr. Trefusis stood up. “I’ll tell the young man outside he can come back in now. Good night.”

Outside, Ari was pacing up and down. “How is she?”

“As you said, unharmed but very frightened. And I don’t blame her.”

“I saw him in his—costume, and even I was terrified,” admitted Ari. “I know Rebecca won’t feel safe until he’s under lock and key. Surely we should be calling the police after what has happened to her tonight? After all, he abducted her.”

“If that’s what Miss Bradley decides she wants, then yes, she should call them,” Dr. Trefusis agreed. “But I’d like to talk to her before she does so. I’ll be back to see her early tomorrow morning. Good night.”

Ari watched the doctor leave and reentered the suite. He perched on the edge of the bed and took Rebecca’s hand in his. “How are you?”

“Okay,” she mouthed, her eyes closed.

“Are you comfortable with me staying in here with you tonight? I can sleep on the sofa in the sitting room next door again.”

“No!” Her hand gripped his and she opened her eyes. “Please don’t leave me alone. Please stay in here, Ari.”

“Of course, if that’s what you’d prefer.”

“Yes, thank you,” she said, and her grip relaxed. “So many questions,” she said, sighing.

“I know,” he said, trying to comfort her, “but they’re not for now. Please, Rebecca, try and get some sleep,” he said as he walked to the chair in the corner of the room.

“Ari?” she asked shyly.

“Yes?”

“Would you come and hold me? Then I’ll know it if you leave.”

“Yes, but do you mind if I climb onto the bed next to you? It might be easier than trying it from here.” He grinned at her.

“Of course.”

Ari climbed onto the bed and Rebecca turned over and snuggled into his arms like a child.

“Thank you for being here,” she murmured wearily.

“That’s okay. Sleep well, Rebecca,” he whispered.

•  •  •

As a pale but calm Rebecca sat nursing a cup of coffee in her suite the next morning, Dr. Trefusis spoke to her.

“Lord Astbury was diagnosed as a schizophrenic when he was in his midthirties. He had a breakdown after his mother died and exhibited similar behavior to what you saw last night. Hardly surprising he lost the plot—his mother, Daisy, controlled him completely, hardly letting him out of her sight for his entire life. Anyway, he was taken into the local psychiatric hospital, where he spent almost a year being stabilized with drugs and constant therapy. No one knows exactly what triggers this condition, whether it’s nature or nurture, but certainly, given Lord Astbury’s difficult childhood, I’m sure that had an effect.”

“He talked to me when he was”—Rebecca swallowed—“dressed up. He said his mother bought him beautiful dresses from Harrods. Surely, that can’t be true?”

“Sadly, it’s perfectly true. Lord Astbury’s mother, Daisy, had been brought up by her grandmother to believe that all men were evil. So, when she herself was forced to marry and produce an heir to the estate, and that heir turned out to be a boy, she refused to accept it,” Dr. Trefusis explained. “You can ask Mrs. Trevathan, or in fact, her
mother, Mabel, who have both known him all of his life. She put ribbons in Lord Astbury’s long hair and he wore dresses every day of his childhood.”

“Oh my God, that poor child,” Rebecca said. “You know, thinking about it, I saw a photograph in his study of a little girl who looked just like Anthony. I thought it was his sister, but it must have been him. What about his father?” she asked. “Didn’t he have something to say about it?”

“From what my own father said, who took over from his father and was Daisy’s doctor at the time, Lord Astbury’s father was an absentee husband and parent. The marriage had been no more than a pragmatic arrangement in the first place. However much Maud Astbury loathed men, she accepted one was needed for her granddaughter to produce an heir. The man she chose for Daisy turned out to be a renowned drunkard and he spent most of his time in London, frittering away the estate’s money. He died there when Lord Astbury was very young.”

“Yes, Anthony told me that once. So it was just Maud, Daisy and Anthony at the hall as he grew up?”

“Yes, and then Maud died, which should have helped, but by then the damage was done.” Dr. Trefusis shook his head slowly. “Daisy refused to send Anthony away to school, and instead had him tutored by a collection of female governesses. Her obsession with Violet, her beautiful but dead mother, didn’t end either. Lord Astbury was brought up to idolize her.”