The Calling Of The Grave

I hesitated, but there was nothing I could do. Leaving the two of them in the study, I let myself out and went back to my car. The day was still bright and sunny, but the sickly sweet odour of chrysanthemums stayed with me as I drove down the driveway and away from the house.

Chapter 14

I didn't bother much with the coastal scenery as I drove back to Exeter. I'd promised Sophie I'd call in at the hospital again, and I hoped that would take my mind off the disastrous visit to Wainwright. Seeing the archaeologist reduced like that had been a shock. He'd seemed to recognize me, and although I hadn't intended to upset him perhaps that had been enough to set him off. Years ago I'd taken the Hippocratic oath to do no harm.

I hadn't made such a bang-up job of it today.

It took me almost as long finding somewhere to park at the hospital as it had to drive there from Torbay. When I reached Sophie's ward I saw that the screens had been drawn around her bed. I slowed, thinking a doctor might be with her, until I heard the hushed but angry voices coming from behind them.

'Hello?' I said hesitantly.

The voices stopped. There was a pause and then the screen was pulled back.

The young woman who'd opened it was like a subtly altered version of Sophie. She had the same colour hair, the same shape face and eyes. But although their features were unmistakably cast from the same mould, hers managed to be both sharper and rounder than Sophie's. Right now they regarded me with pinched annoyance.

'Yes?'

'I've come to see Sophie,' I said. 'My name's-'

'David!' Sophie's voice rang out. 'It's all right, Maria.'

The woman's mouth tightened, but she stepped aside to let me pass. Sophie was sitting on the bed, a leather holdall open next to her. She was dressed in a sweater and jeans that somehow didn't look quite right, although I couldn't have said why. She still looked tired, and the bruise on the left side of her face was even more livid than before. But for all that she was clearly much better than the last time I'd seen her.

She gave me a smile that held as much relief as anything. 'Thanks for coming. David, this is my sister Maria.'

Now I saw them together, the differences were more apparent than the similarities. Sophie's sister looked older. She must have been devastatingly pretty as a sixteen-year-old, but it was the plump type of prettiness that didn't age well. The genes that supplied Sophie's slim limbs and bone structure had apparently skipped her elder sibling, and her face was already settling into lines that spoke of disappointment and impatience. As though to make up for it her clothes were smart and expensive, her manicured nails as sharp as blades.

I considered offering my hand, but quickly decided against it. The tension between the two women felt strong enough to arc into life and fry anyone who got in the way.

'David's an old friend,' Sophie said, after an uncomfortable pause.

'Good. Then I hope he can talk some sense into you.'

Sophie looked embarrassed. 'Not now, Maria.'

'Then when? You're in no condition to discharge yourself, never mind stay in that place on your own!'

Sophie gave an exaggerated sigh. 'I'm fine. And "that place" is my home.'

'Where someone was able to walk in and attack you! And now you want to go back'? You just can't admit you made a mistake, living somewhere so out of the way I bet you haven't even given any thought to how you're going to get there, have you?'

'David's taking me,' Sophie blurted.

Maria turned to me. 'Really. And will you be staying with her as well?'

I managed to catch my surprise. Behind her sister, Sophie was looking at me in mute appeal. 'For a while.'

'David's a doctor,' Sophie said, smoothly editing the truth. 'See, I told you, I'll be fine.'

'You could have mentioned that sooner.' Maria sighed, reluctantly letting go of her irritation. 'Well, I can see I'm wasting my breath. I hope you have better luck with her, David.'

It seemed safest not to say anything, so I just smiled. This time Maria offered her hand.

'Nice to meet you, anyway. Sorry for seeming a little bossy. I just worry about Sophie.'

'That's all right. It's what big sisters do.'

Her smile was snuffed out. 'You know where I am if you want me,' she snapped at Sophie.

Her heels rapped on the ward floor as she strode out. I turned to Sophie, bewildered. 'Did I say something wrong?'

She'd covered her eyes. 'Maria's two years younger than me.'

The day just kept getting better. 'Oh, God. I should apologize

…'

But Sophie was laughing. 'Don't worry. She acts like she's older. She always has, that's half the trouble.'

'And the other half?'

'That'd be me,' she said, her laughter drying up. 'She thinks I'm irresponsible and impulsive. Hard to argue, really. We're just different. She's got two lovely kids and a nanny to look after them, and enjoys throwing dinner parties. And that's not me. We don't even like the same clothes.'

She looked down at the jeans and sweater she was wearing. I understood now why they didn't look quite right: they were her sister's.

'So you're discharging yourself?' I asked.

'The doctor wants to keep me in for another twenty-four hours. But all the tests are OK and I feel fine. A little woozy, and I still can't remember what happened, but that's all. I want to go home.'

'You've had a bad head injury. Another twenty-four hours-'

'I'm going home,' she said with finality. 'Look, it's just concussion. I'll take it easy, I promise.'

I let it go. It wasn't my place to argue, and if the hospital and Sophie's sister hadn't managed to dissuade her I doubted I'd have much success.

'Sorry, I didn't mean to snap,' she said awkwardly. 'And thanks for covering for me with Maria. I shouldn't have put you on the spot like that, but she wanted me to go and stay with them. And believe me, that would not be a good idea.'

I could imagine. 'So how are you getting home?'

'I'll catch a train,' she said lightly. 'Don't worry, what I said about you staying with me was only for Maria's benefit. And I don't expect you to take me.'

'No, but I will.'

'Oh, no, I couldn't let you do that!'

'I've no choice.' I smiled. 'I gave my word to your big sister.'

Sophie slept most of the journey. For all her bravado she was far from fully recovered, and her eyes had closed even before we'd left the hospital grounds. Her head lolled against the seat rest, but her breathing was strong and regular, rising and falling in the steady rhythm of deep sleep. I drove carefully so as not to disturb her. There were any number of questions I wanted to ask, but they could wait.

Driving out to Dartmoor, with a woman I'd not seen in eight years asleep next to me, I felt oddly at peace. I knew it was only temporary, a brief respite from the real world. Something was obviously troubling Sophie, and her attacker was still out there somewhere. But they were problems for the future. Here in the thrumming cocoon of the car, with the landscape breezing by outside and Sophie’s quiet breathing beside me, I felt strangely content.

It was late afternoon when I pulled up outside Sophie's cottage. She woke when I switched off the engine. 'Where are we?' she asked, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

'Home.'

'God, don't tell me I slept all the way.'

'Best thing for you. How do you feel?'

She thought for a moment, still blinking away sleep. 'Better.'

She looked it. Her colour was normal, except for the shocking bruise on her face. We climbed out of the car. After the tarmac and concrete of the city, the cold autumnal air out here tasted fresh and sweet. The sun was low, casting long shadows across the garden like a spreading stain. Off to one side was the small orchard that had seemed so sinister before. In the daylight it was a little better, although the gnarled old apple trees looked dead and barren.