Kirkland Revels by Victoria Holt Page A

necessary to tread warily, for here and there stones jutted dangerously out of the ground. I lost Friday for a moment and was immediately conscious of a panic which was quite ridiculous; equally so was my relief, when after I had called to him, he came running back to me.

    I wondered from what part of the Abbey the stones had been taken to build the house. I wanted to learn something of the history of this house and the family to which I now belonged. I laughed at myself.

    There was so much I did not know about my own husband. Why was he so secretive with me? Why was there this constant feeling that he was hiding something from me?

    I sat down on a ridge of stones, obviously all that was left of a room of some sort the monks’ dorter, I hazarded and I told myself then that I had not thought enough of Gabriel since I had arrived here.

    Naturally Gabriel would be full of odd fancies; he was a young man who was afflicted with a disease of the heart which threatened his life.

    It was for that reason that he was moody. He was afraid of death and I had thought it was something in the house, something in these old ruins which had disturbed him! How should / feel if Death were round the corner, waiting for me? That was something which one could not imagine until it happened to one.

    I would make Gabriel happy. Moreover, I would not accept the inevitability of death as he seemed to. I would take such care of him that he would live on.

    Friday’s barking startled me out of my daydream. I called:

    ” Friday 1 Friday!”

    And as he did not come to me I went to look for him.

    I found him in the hands of a strange man; be was 55 struggling and, if he had not been so expertly held, he would have bitten those hands which imprisoned him.

    ” Friday 1” I called. Then the man who held him turned to look at me.

    He was of medium height and I was struck by his brilliant dark eyes and olive complexion.

    He released the dog when he saw me and, taking off his hat, bowed.

    Friday ran to me, barking furiously and, as I came forward, stood between me and the stranger as though to protect me.

    ” So the dog is yours, madam,” said the man.

    “Yes, what happened? He’s usually so friendly.”

    ” He was a little annoyed with me.” I noticed the flash of very white teeth in that dark face.

    “He didn’t understand that I probably saved his life.”

    ” How was that?”

    He turned and pointed to what I saw now was a well.

    ” He was perilously perched on the edge, looking down. If he had decided to explore farther, that would have been the end of him.”

    ” Then I have to thank you.”

    He inclined his head, ” This was the monks’ well. It’s deep and probably not very sweet down there.”

    I peered over into the darkness. I was looking down the narrow well, to what might have been water at the bottom.

    ” He’s rather inquisitive,” I said.

    “I should put him on a lead when you bring him here again. And you will come here again, won’t you? I can see this place intrigues you.

    You have a look in your eyes which betrays your interest. “

    ” Surely everyone would be interested.”

    ” Some more than others. May I introduce myself? I believe I know you. You are Mrs. Gabriel Rockwell, are you not?”

    ” But how did you know?”

    He spread his hands and smiled again; it was a warm, friendly smile. “
    A simple deduction. I knew you were due to arrive and, as I know almost everyone in these parts, I put two and two together and tried to guess.”

    ” Your guess was correct.”

    “Then welcome to our community. My name is Devere] Smith. Doctor. I am at the Revels almost every day, so we should have met sooner or later.”

    “I have heard you mentioned.”

    “Pleasantly, I hope?”

    ” Very much so.”

    ” I’m an old friend of the family as well as the doctor; and of course Sir Matthew and Miss Rock-well are no longer young. They both need my services rather frequently. Tell me, when