Despite the Angels (36 page)

Trynor and Diljas got into the car too and took the jump seats.

“Much comfier than those ordinary cars they have nowadays,” said Diljas. “You have to sit on top of people. Unless you can run along outside, but I find I gauge the speeds wrong and either get left behind, or get too far in front. This is nice. I remember a Bentley I had once, well I didn’t have it exactly, but my human did and there was always plenty of space for me. The only thing I had personally, in the vehicle line, was a rather nice cart. Back in 1123. Dodgy axle though, in the end.”

“Diljas, shut up a minute. We’re not just here for the ride. My girl is about to make a terrible mistake and I can’t get through to her.  Can you get her father on our side again? It’s for his good, too. He won’t be happy if his girl is miserable.”

“He knows, and I know. I’ve tried. You heard him, already. He thinks of these things himself most of the time, he’s had a bit of practice. But she is the most stubborn human I’ve ever seen and I’ve worked with some beauties, I can tell you. Free choice was a crazy idea. They use it for all the wrong things.  Well, here goes….Robert. ROBERT- tell Lucy again you’ll get her out of this! Come on ROBERT, listen to me!”  Diljas leant over and poked Robert in the chest. ‘Come on Robert, you know she shouldn’t do this. Tell her to stop NOW!!”

Robert rubbed his chest thoughtfully. I really must give up fried breakfast, he thought sadly. It seems to be giving me indigestion again. He cleared his throat. “Lucy, like I said, if you want to back out of this, I’ll go in there and tell them you can’t do it. You can go home and not have to face them.”

Lucy looked at her father thoughtfully. Why is he going on like this, she wondered. Have I said anything to give him the idea I don’t want to get married? I want to get married- I suppose. It’s just nerves and a trail of mini disasters today. It’ll be fine once the church bit is over. The church, where Martin’s family might feel out of place and be upset for him, or blame him. He’s doing a lot for me, being married in my church.  “No thanks, Dad” she said quietly. “I’m getting married and I’m going to enjoy today. Please enjoy it with me.”

“Flippering fruitcakes,” said Trynor with such venom that it sounded obscene. “I’m going to have to do something drastic,” and he shut his eyes, took a deep breath, and

“I think we have a puncture, Sir,” said the chauffeur, as he pulled the big car to a halt at a bus stop, the only available piece of kerb. He got out and walked around the car. Lucy was horribly conscious of the queue of curious faces, watching her. I have to stay dignified, she told herself resignedly. I mustn’t go to pieces, I mustn’t. What would Martin think - he’s always so calm and in control. It won’t do any good to cry and it would add to the red splodges on my face. Take another deep breath…
Lucy…Lucy…this car won’t get you there-sit back and think of all the wonderful alternatives, no need to go at all, just sit back, sit back and think again… 

“DAD - does this bus route go past the church?” Lucy twisted around on the seat to look out the back window. “No bus just now, but maybe one’s due soon?” Putting her bridal dignity aside, she wound down the window and asked a woman in the queue.

“Supposed to be,’ the woman replied glumly, ‘but you know the buses, nothing for hours then four in a row.”

“Dad, have you any money? If we’re getting a bus we’ll need a fare.”’

“Just a twenty. No coins. I’ll just get out and help with the wheel.”

So, thought Lucy, in mounting frustration, which is more dignified on your wedding day, sitting in a jacked-up car at a bus stop, or getting on a bus in a wedding dress? At least the photographer isn’t here, at least I can pretend I was just late. So I think I won’t move, I’ll just stay here and rest.

The chauffeur was avoiding Robert’s eye.

“I’m afraid the spare is flat too, Sir. I don’t know how that can have been allowed to happen. I’ll radio in for another car.”

“It’s OK, if you can lend us some change. We’ll get this bus now. It’ll leave us at the side gate of the church, I think.” Robert leant back into the car. “Are you still game to get the bus, or will we just go home?”

Lucy looked up: “Well, if that’s my choice, I think the bus it is!”

“Why did you let a bus come? We could have delayed her for ages, maybe Martin would have got fed up and gone. Remember ‘Far from the Madding Crowd’?”

“Firstly,” said Diljas patiently, “I have no control over Dublin Bus. Does anybody? I can’t even control my own man here. Secondly, that was only a film, a work of fiction. That young man didn’t want to marry anyway. He set up the delay. What I’ve seen of Martin makes me think he’ll hang on all day. He likes the idea of marriage. Conventional thing to do. Come on, I want to get on this bus, not jog along beside.” Diljas grasped the pole on the platform and with a flourish, swung around it into the interior.

Fifteen minutes later, Lucy and her father got off the bus and followed by shouts of ‘Good Luck’ and ‘May all your troubles be little ones!’ walked in through the side gate to the church grounds. The ground was muddy and Lucy’s white satin shoes were soon the worse for it. 
“Yes!” said Trynor.

“Oh, please, Trynor, just stop,” said Diljas “You’re not going to stop her going in at this stage. Don’t make it worse for her. Wait till she’s inside. Maybe we can silence her.”

The ushers quickly went inside to signal to the organist; the bridesmaids, whispering excited questions, gathered up behind and Lucy and Robert walked slowly into the church. Calm, thought Lucy, desperately, Calm. She held on tight to Robert’s arm. Dad’s solid, she thought. I’ll never be alone with Dad around. She turned to him as they reached the top of the church and smiled. ‘Thanks, Dad !’ She turned towards Martin, who was grinning at her. She looked at him for a long moment and she was seeing a stranger. Nerves, she thought again, just nerves.

“No, Lucy, not nerves. Me, trying to TALK TO YOU.” Trynor was beside Martin now, pushing his way in beside Roki, looking Lucy in the face. “Come on, girl, please, LISTEN TO ME. You aren’t meant for this one. He’ll be happy with someone else. You’ll make each other miserable and I don’t want that. Come on, kid, tell him you don’t want to marry anyone today. Roki, help me on this one, please. You know my girl here’s meant for someone else.”

“Hey man, what’s that to my guy? He wants to be married, she’s nice. He’s been wanting to marry her for hundreds of years.  Come on, let’s get this over with, I believe there’s a party after these things?” Roki waggled his hips and clicked his fingers rhythmically. Trynor rubbed his eyes.

“Oh no, I forgot what you’re like. If you’d paid attention before you’d be less interested in the party and more aware of the pain later. It’ll hurt Martin too, you know.”

The rector had started talking-“We are gathered together in the sight of God..”

“and some very pissed off angels!” said Trynor. “Would anyone just listen to me! ‘or forever after hold his peace’- huh! That does NOT apply to me, my good man. You’ll all be hearing from me. Or would, if you’d only listen.” He stopped for a moment, thinking, and then muttered “and by the way, sorry for calling myself an angel back there, but that's what the humans understand.”

“Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”

Robert started. He had been dreaming, a thought was just there on the edge of his consciousness. Maybe he should say ‘no-one’. She’d thank me later, he thought - if she ever spoke to me again. Betty poked him in the ribs and hissed ‘Robert - your turn!’ Robert smiled over at Lucy, who was looking at him like - like what, he wondered later. Was she waiting to be thrown a lifeline, or hoping he didn’t embarrass her? 

“I DO,” he said firmly. Diljas sat down heavily, narrowly missing Betty’s handbag.

“Oh, Robert,” he mused sadly, “All we can do now is watch and hope.”

Trynor grabbed Lucy’s shoulder and shook her
. Lucy shuddered, as though a tremor went through her. Alison caught Jen’s eye and they smiled helplessly at each other. 

“Come on Lucy, this time all you have to do is nothing. Just keep your mouth shut and say nothing. I’ll sort out what comes next. Jotin says he’ll get it sorted with David, pretty soon. Just say nothing. Just keep mum, that’s my girl. You’re good at silence, do it now!’

“I do,” said Lucy in an almost inaudible voice.

“Well,
folks, that’s it,” said Trynor, “I’ve had enough. I obviously can’t do this job and I can’t stay and watch the partying,” he turned to Roki. “Over to you, you can keep an eye on them both for a while. I need some time out and maybe a spot of counselling.” And he blinked out.

Lucy felt lighter all of a sudden. Martin was putting the ring on her finger and it was the first part of the service she had really noticed. She smiled at him and his infectious grin shone back at her. Her voice gained strength as she went through her vows and the atmosphere in the little church lightened. Robert took Betty’s hand and squeezed it. ‘It worked out for us, why not for them?’ he whispered.

Later on that evening, in their hotel room, Lucy recounted all of the day’s disasters to Martin.

“But, you know,” she said with a laugh, “I had been beginning to wonder if I was actually meant to get married at all, everything was going so wrong. But as soon as I said ‘I do’ I felt calmer, as though everything would be all right now!”

“Of course it’ll be all right, you silly. Come here and let’s start making it all right straight away.”

Roki put his hands over his eyes. But he couldn’t resist peeking.

Lucy pulled open the curtains and looked out at their little garden, the early summer sun just creeping over one hedge to attack the dew on the grass under the other. There was nothing in the garden yet but grass, tussocky and full of clover. Maybe I’ll make a flowerbed at the far end, she thought, in the sun. Pity we couldn’t get a house on the other side of the road, where the sun would have come in the back windows, we could have built a little patio outside the kitchen.

“What are you looking at?” Martin had come back into the bedroom, wrapped in a towel and was now struggling to put socks onto feet still slightly damp from the shower.

“I was just musing about the garden. Maybe we could build a little sitting area down at the end, where it would be in the sun. But I don’t want to cover too much grass, we’ll need that if we have a baby, for kicking a ball on.”

“Grass is easier. And like you say, we’d need a rugby pitch. When are we having this baby?”

“I’d like to try soon. I thought, it’s June now, so if I stay on the pill another month? Then from July, I’d be due in…” she counted on her fingers, “April.” She turned to Martin, a broad smile on her face, watching for his reaction.

“April? Is it not a bit soon? I mean, we won’t have been married a year.”

“It’s more than nine months. Everyone will know it’s legal.” She sat down on the bed and watched as Martin buttoned his shirt. “I don’t know why, but I really want a baby soon. Lots of babies.”

“I’m quite happy to help you make lots of babies. But I’m quite happy to ‘make babies’ without the babies!” He pushed her backwards on the bed and, putting his knee beside her, looked down into her face.

“Now you see why I put on my socks and shirt first and leave pants till last. Just in case I get a good offer like this.” He bent over to kiss her and his other knee slid between her legs.

Six minutes later, Martin was lacing up his runners. Lucy lay back on the bed and watched. The dampness between her legs was the beginning of her interest and the end of his.

“Are you going somewhere?” She tried to keep the irritation out of her voice.

“Training, I told you,” Martin was rummaging in a drawer.

“Oh. I thought you said we were going into town. Window-shopping and a spot of lunch, you said.”

“Yea. Sometime. Maybe next week.”

“Why maybe? Can you not be sure?”

“No. Depends on the lads. When they’re free.”

“Well, you’re part of ‘the lads’. Tell them you’re not free next Saturday morning.”

“Can’t do that.”

“Why not?”

“I am free. Nothing’s forcing me to go into town.” He stuffed his shorts into his sports bag and straightened up. “Well, I’m off. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do. At least, not if I’m not here.” He bent over, kissed the tip of her nose and left the room. Lucy looked at the door and listened to his feet running down the stairs. She felt empty. The fortnight on Crete had been magical, they had spent every moment together and gone to see all the sights. The ruins at Knossos and Malia had been creepy but amazing. Her spine had prickled nearly all the time. Her Granny would have told her someone was walking over her grave. Martin had laughed at her, told her she was imagining things. He had loved the beach and wanted to spend all day there, but she had not liked it, preferring the pool at their apartment. They had gone out for dinner every night, the food was cheap and delicious and they had walked home tipsy under the stars. Lucy had felt at home, had known that marrying Martin was the right thing to do.

“No, my dear one, going to Crete was the right thing to do. Pity it wasn’t with David, he would have remembered Malia too. But it would have been an unpleasant few minutes, with both of you shuddering on the ‘Malatos’ beach. Martin never moved far from Tylissos when he was Niklon, so you never visited anywhere where he felt at home. He was just pleased to have got you at last.”