The Rape of Venice (12 page)

Although his plump face was so lacking in distinction, its skin was smooth, a good colour, and of a fine texture; so there was justification for his concern at the possibility of an ugly blemish on it. All the same, they were distinctly taken aback by the vindictiveness his vanity led him to display a moment later. On the doctor's replying: ‘Providing no infection sets in, the wound should heal fairly quickly; but I fear it will leave a permanent mark,' Malderini looked up at Roger, his eyes blazing with hatred, and gulped out:

‘As you have spoiled my face, so I will spoil your life. Remember that! Remember! Sooner or later you shall pay for this a hundredfold.'

In normal circumstances, Roger would have offered a defeated antagonist his hand, and expressed the hope that he would soon be recovered from his wounds. Faced with such malice, there was nothing to be said. Shrugging his shoulders, he turned away and walked towards the place where he had left his coat.

Droopy Ned and the Colonel went with him. As soon as they were out of earshot of the others, the latter said, ‘My boy, this is a bad business. I thought it your intention to handle matters so that the affair should have no sequel.'

‘It did not lie with me,' Roger replied angrily. ‘He mesmerised me, and would have killed me in another few moments. Once freed of his gaze, I struck out at him like a madman, caring not what might happen, providing I could end the encounter while I had the chance.'

‘That explanation is acceptable to us, but will not prove so to others.'

‘I see no reason why I should be called on to explain to anyone. That he was put off his stroke through being shot with an
arrow from behind was my good fortune, but I was in no way responsible for it.'

‘Such marksmanship would not have disgraced Diana herself,' remarked Droopy, laconically, ‘and, in such a setting, it would have been easy to take Miss Marsham for the goddess.'

‘You saw her, then?'

‘Yes. My long-sight is far better than my short-sight. I glimpsed her running off into the woods. It is unfortunate that Sheridan should have done so too.'

‘So it was Clarissa!' the Colonel exclaimed. ‘I'd not yet even formed a theory on whom it could have been. And Sheridan saw her. That may provoke a damnably worrying situation. He'll not have meant what he said about clapping her in the stocks, but it's too intriguing a story for him to keep it to himself; and she has laid herself open to prosecution. She could be charged with doing grievous bodily harm—nay, even with attempted murder.'

‘You're right, Sir,' Droopy nodded. ‘And when Malderini learns who pipped him, his malice is such that I greatly fear he will demand the issuing of a warrant.'

Roger's face expressed his consternation. ‘We must protect her at all costs,' he said quickly. ‘She must leave Stillwaters before a warrant can be served on her. I'll take her down to my father's house at Lymington. She could live there for a year without anyone here or in London being the wiser. We'll set off as soon as she has had time to get her things together.'

‘Steady on, my boy, steady on,' the Colonel sought to calm him. ‘There is no call to rush your fences, Sheridan is too much of a gentleman to lay an information against a woman, and especially one who is a close friend of Georgina's. He'll take no action, even should Malderini press him to. If the Venetian is determined to be revenged upon her he'll have to apply to the bench himself, and he'll be in no state to do so for some days to come. Better still, as soon as we can get Sheridan on his own we'll endeavour to persuade him to hold his tongue. If we succeed and he has not yet told Malderini, there will be no need for you to take Clarissa down into Hampshire.'

While they had been talking, Sheridan had fetched the doctor's carriage, and Malderini was now being helped into it. Both Roger and Droopy agreed that the Colonel's advice was sound, and the three of them set off for the house. As the carriage would have to go round by the drive and road, and move only at a walk to avoid jolting its injured passenger, they
did not expect it to arrive for some twenty minutes after themselves; but the Colonel and Droopy remained in the hall, in order to seize the first opportunity of getting hold of Sheridan, while Roger went up to Georgina.

When he came through the boudoir to her room, he found that her curtains were drawn back and she was sitting up in bed wide awake. As he began to tell her what had taken place, she interrupted him:

‘I know all, short of the final outcome. Clarissa has but this moment left me, and she waited until she saw you strike Malderini down. Is he badly wounded?'

‘Her arrow must have made a fairish hole in his bottom; I drew blood from his left side in the region of the ribs and laid open his cheek from chin to ear; so at the moment he must be suffering a fine variety of pains. But there is no cause for alarm on his account and after a week or so his hurts should not prevent his resuming his diplomatic negotiations.'

‘Then that is something. It cannot be said, though, that you kept your promise to me of letting him off lightly. Why, in God's name, did you have to wound him twice and thrust your pike into his face? I'd hoped that after this meeting we might count the whole horrid business done with; but now I fear he may seek to be revenged upon you.'

‘You are right in that,' Roger admitted. ‘It seems he's mighty vain of that smooth skin of his; so he has sworn to make me pay for ruining it. But I was fighting for my life. The swine used his power to hypnotise upon me, and all but had me at his mercy.'

She nodded. ‘Clarissa feared that might prove the case, and gave it as her reason for creeping up on the meeting and shooting at him.'

‘Thank God she did; or I'd not be here to tell the tale. I must go to her now and thank her.'

‘No, Roger, you must not. To prevent you doing so was her main reason for coming to me. She displayed a-fine nerve in carrying through such a daring feat; for, had her aim been bad, she might have killed you. But afterwards, reaction set in and, by the time she reached me, the poor child was in a storm of tears. I gather that yesterday she asked you to marry her, and you refused. Now, she is afraid that you might change your mind, but only because you feel that she has placed you under an obligation to her; and that would be more than she could bear. She implored me to do my utmost to convince you that
she would have done the same for any man she liked, and all the thanks she asks is that the matter should never be mentioned between you.'

‘Then she has shown great sensibility as well as courage,' he said slowly. ‘I appreciate the embarrassment it would cause her if I suddenly displayed a change of heart, and equally the disappointment she might feel if I failed to give any sign that her act had strengthened the ties of affection that already exist between us. I will, in private, observe her wish; but there can be no escaping references to the affair by us in her presence if, as may occur, proceedings are taken against her for assault.'

‘What say you?' Georgina exclaimed, sitting up with a jerk.

Roger told her how matters stood and when he had done, she cried, ‘But this might mean prison for her—or even transportation. Oh God, Roger, the Devil himself must have been lurking at my elbow when I agreed to invite this vile Venetian to the house. Papa is right, though. We must nip in the bud this threat to her. They'll be back by now. Go down and find out what has happened. If Dick Sheridan has made the least difficulty about promising to keep silent, send him straight up to me. He shall swear on the Bible not to give Clarissa away, or it shall cost him my friendship, and much more besides.'

Down in the front hall, Roger found the Colonel and Droopy still waiting. The latter had just been outside and reported that there was no sign of the carriage. They remained there uneasily for a further quarter of an hour, then decided either that it must have broken down, or that Malderini's injuries had proved more serious than expected and that, instead of bringing him to the house, Dr. Chudleigh had had him carried into a gamekeeper's cottage.

Before leaving the house, the Colonel had ordered breakfast to be served early against their return; so, leaving a footman to report should the carriage make a belated appearance, they decided to go in to it. Beckford joined them shortly afterwards, all agog to hear details of the encounter. Suppressing Clarissa's part in it and all reference to the arrow, they told him what had occurred, then for the remainder of the meal observed a gloomy silence, broken only by occasional platitudes.

Roger was wondering if he should, or even could, inform the Princess of the result of the meeting. The last thing he wished was to court the possibility of becoming further involved by seeking a private interview with her, and it seemed very possible that, though she could speak English, she could not
read it. It occurred to him that he might ask the Colonel or Droopy to act as his messenger, but he still felt reluctant to give away her secret; so, eventually, he decided to take a chance on her ability to read a foreign language and, when he had finished his breakfast, went to the writing room. There, knowing her French to be better than her English he wrote in that language, and in bold clear calligraphy, a brief résumé of the present situation, and sent it up to her by a footman.

Ten o'clock came, and eleven, while they hung about wondering where Malderini was and what had happened to prevent him being brought back to the House. Then, shortly after eleven, Sheridan arrived on his own in a hired carriage. He told them that he had come to fetch the Princess and Malderini's baggage, as the Venetian had refused to return to Stillwaters. At Ripley, only a little over a mile away, there was a good coaching inn called ‘The Talbot'; so they had taken him there and Pietro had put him to bed.

Tackled at once by the Colonel, Sheridan said that, although he considered Clarissa's part in the affair most reprehensible, he had no intention of giving her away. Then he went upstairs to see the Princess and supervise the packing of his own bags. By half-past twelve all was completed. Georgina was present to see them off and, accompanied by the Princess and his pretty young wife, Sheridan drove away.

The remainder of the Sunday passed uneventfully, but the atmosphere was by no means a happy one, Clarissa took her meals up in her room and the others found it difficult to conceal their anxieties. On the Monday morning Beckford departed, but Droopy, having no important engagements in London, agreed to stay on for another few days. On Monday evening they learned from Dr. Chudleigh that Malderini had been taken with a slight fever on the Sunday afternoon, but as it had completely abated within twenty-four hours, Sheridan had decided to remove him on the following morning from the inn to the greater comfort of his house at Polesden. It was on Wednesday, while they were sitting at dinner, that a groom arrived from Polesden with a letter marked ‘urgent' from Sheridan for Georgina. When it was brought to her, she glanced through it; then, having sent the servants from the room, she read it aloud. It ran:

‘
Believe me, sweet friend, it is with the deepest regret that I now address myself to you upon a subject which must prove highly distasteful to us both. Having enjoyed so many hours of
happiness under your hospitable roof, the last thing I would wish is to disturb the tranquillity of its inmates. But, alas, I have no choice; for despite my most earnest representations and endeavours, the matter has gone beyond my powers of control
.

‘It has now emerged that Signor Malderini's servant, Pietro, also observed Miss Marsham, bow in hand, a few moments after she had discharged her arrow at his master. He, of course, had seen Miss Marsham about the house, and from his description of her, Malderini had no hesitation in identifying his assailant. My appeals to his chivalry have proved in vain. This forenoon he sent for the Sheriff's officers from Guildford and has since made a deposition to them
.

Further to this, while there are many matters upon which Mr. Brook and I most sharply disagree, I feel that, as gentleman to gentleman, I would be failing in honourable conduct did I not convey a warning to him through you that he should also look to the continued freedom of his person. Signor Malderini is so set upon being revenged upon him that, again despite my vigorous protests, he now asserts that their meeting was forced upon him and declares it to be his intention to invoke the anti-duelling laws against Mr. Brook
.

‘I am your most distressed, humble, obedient ...'

Breaking off, Georgina gave a little gasp of dismay, and looked in consternation round the table.

For a moment there was a grim silence, then Roger turned to Clarissa, who was seated beside him, and said: ‘For reasons you will appreciate, I have so far refrained from opening this matter to you; but all of us have been dreading the possibility of such an outcome to it. Now, it would be futile to pretend that, should you remain here, you will not be exposed to grave danger. There will shortly be a warrant out for your arrest, and if we allow it to be executed I greatly doubt whether we could save you from being sent to prison.'

As Clarissa paled, he gave her a smile and went on, ‘But be of good heart. Within a month or two, Malderini will have left the country, and you may be sure that the Sheriff of Guildford will not pursue the affair with vindictiveness. You have only to disappear for a while and Georgina will see to it that he conveniently forgets that the warrant was ever issued. But leave here you must and, first thing tomorrow, I propose to escort you down to my old home at Lymington. You have kinsfolk of your own across the river at Walhampton; so you should be able to spend the rest of the summer very pleasantly there while everyone outside south Hampshire, except ourselves, will remain in ignorance of your whereabouts.'

‘I thank you, Roger, for your thought for me,' she said, a little breathlessly. But Colonel Thursby commented uneasily: