I couldn’t believe this. I caught hold of her hand.
‘I won’t let him take you, Val! I said I would help you and I’m going to help you! I’ll tell the tax people he is preparing to skip. They’ll arrest him!’
She shook her head.
‘It’s too late to do that. He is protected by his lawyers. Before the Federal people could get a warrant, he’ll be gone, taking me with him. No... that’s not the way.’ She stood up abruptly and began to move around the room. ‘There is no way...’
A violent gust of wind slammed against the house followed by a crash of thunder. I could hear the rain beating on the roof.
I thought of the gun in my desk drawer.
‘I have a gun, Val.’
She paused to stare at me, her eyes widening.
‘A gun?’
‘When he is dead you will be free.’
She put her hand to her throat.
‘I can never be free even when he is dead.’ A crazed expression came into her eyes. ‘Shoot me!’ Her voice turned shrill. ‘That is the solution! If only you knew how tired I am of living the life he has forced me to live. If I had the will I would beg you to give me the gun and I would do it myself.’ She came up to me, laying her hand on my arm. ‘You can do it Clay! Shoot me in the head! They will think it is suicide. No one would blame you, darling! Don’t you see? You would be freeing me! Please say you will do it!’
I looked at her in horror.
God! I thought. He has driven her out of her mind!
Her fingers were digging into my arm as she went on, ‘No one will hear the shot in this storm! The doctors know I am on the verge of a breakdown! You will be safe, darling. No one would suspect you. Get the gun now! Then do it please! No one will suspect you!’
‘Val! For God’s sake, pull yourself together!’ I had to raise my voice against the noise of the storm which was beginning to become deafening. ‘I’m not doing it! Now, stop it! Pull yourself together! There must be some way out for us!’
She let go of my arm and stepped back. The misery in her eyes sickened me.
‘I thought you loved me! How can you love me and let me suffer like this... oh, go away!’ She ran to the bed and threw herself face down on it. As she began to sob there came a tremendous crashing sound as if a tree had been uprooted and had fallen against the house.
I went to her and put my hands on her shoulders.
‘Darling Val! Please don’t. I said I would help you and I will help you. Please be patient.’
She rounded on me, her face convulsed with anger and fear.
‘Go away! I hate you! Leave me! Go away!’ Her voice rose to a scream. Fearing that even above the noise of the elements raging outside someone might hear her, I backed to the door, hesitated, then moved into the corridor.
I stood for some moments listening to her wild sobbing, then unable to bear the sound, I closed the door and made my way unsteadily back to my office.
The noise of the hurricane beat against my skull. I went to my desk chair and sat down, holding my hands against my ears, feeling as if I were going demented.
I had to do something! I had no alternative now if I wasn’t going to lose her! I had to kill Vidal!
A grinding sound, followed by the sound of splintering wood coming from downstairs brought me to my feet. Then my door slammed open by a violent gust of wind that swept my desk clear of papers, overturned my desk lamp and threw two of my telephones to the floor.
‘Burden!’
Vidal’s voice bawled from below.
I reached the corridor, bracing myself against the wind that roared up the stairs. I started down them, hanging on to the banister rail. I was stunned by the force of the wind which was howling through the open front door.
I could see Vidal and Dyer struggling to get the door closed.
The hall with its big oil paintings and its suits of armour was a shambles. Four of the big pictures had been blown off their hooks, two of the suits of armour were in pieces.
Lying in the middle of the floor was Gesetti, blood on his face, an oil painting in a heavy frame on top of him.
Stepping around him, I struggled across the hall and joined the two men wrestling with the door. With my added weight, we got it shut.
‘Wedge it!’ Vidal snapped. Use one of those pikes.’
Dyer released his hold on the door and dashed to pick up a pike that had fallen from the wall. As soon as his weight was removed, the door slammed open again, sending Vidal and myself sprawling. Another struggle began to shut the door. Not only the wind but the rain hammered us and by the time we got the door shut and jammed into place by the pike we were all soaked.
Gesetti groaned and tried to sit up. Dyer went to him and supported him. I couldn’t touch him. He gave me the horrors.
Vidal joined Dyer and they got Gesetti to his feet. He shook his head, spraying blood, blinked and straightened up.
‘I’m okay, boss,’ he muttered but he leaned heavily on Dyer.
‘I’ll take care of him,’ Vidal said. ‘You two clean up this mess.’
Catching hold of Gesetti he led him down the corridor towards the back of the house.
‘Phew!’ Dyer wiped his dripping face with the back of his hand. ‘Did you bring a change?’
‘Yes.
‘We’ll get out of these wet things and then get this mess fixed. This is the worst goddamn hurricane I’ve run into, and it’ll last for at least another four days.’
We went up the stairs and separated at our rooms. It took me only a few minutes to strip off, dry myself and put on a sweatshirt and slacks. I was down in the hall stacking the oil paintings against the wall when Dyer joined me in an open neck shirt and hipsters.
‘The telephone’s gone,’ he said as we began to carry the bits of armour into a small reception room. ‘The electricity will go any moment now.’
I saw he had a powerful torch stuck in his belt.
Vidal appeared, still dripping.
‘How is he, sir?’ Dyer asked as Vidal started up the stairs.
‘Not so good... concussion I guess.’ Vidal paused. ‘How are you enjoying yourself Burden?’ He gave his barking laugh. ‘A bit of a change from Boston, huh?’
I stood silent, hating him.
He turned to Dyer.
‘I’ve told him to stay in bed. Let him be. I’ve given him a couple of pills. With luck he’ll be all right tomorrow. You’d better take care of the supper. You help him Burden.’ He started up the stairs two at a time and disappeared along the corridor.
I looked at my watch. The time was 17.50. The afternoon seemed to be going on forever.
‘Let’s finish this, then we’ll inspect the kitchen,’ Dyer said. ‘I could do with a drink, couldn’t you?’
It took us only a few minutes to complete what we had begun, then we went along to the kitchen.
Dyer inspected the big refrigerator.
‘Plenty of cold cuts.’ he said with satisfaction. ‘Cans galore at least we won’t starve.’
Going to another cupboard, he found the liquor store.
‘Whisky?’
‘I guess.’
He built two big whiskies, added ice and saluted me.
While all this was going on the rain and the wind lashed the house and thunder crashed. The noise was infernal.
I felt steadier after the drink. My mind kept going to Val.
‘While we have the light,’ Dyer said when he had finished his drink, ‘suppose we check the doors and windows. We don’t want another blow in like that one.’
We found one of the doors leading to the garden unsafe.