The Ka of Gifford Hillary (38 page)

‘Alternatively if they have any doubts—although I can’t see why they should have—they may decide against being quite so drastic. That would mean my being hoisted out of my present job and transferred to some God forsaken post in a desert or a jungle where I’d no longer be a security risk. And of course, I’d be barred from any chance of further promotion. They would just let me work out my time in my present rank, then “goodbye Wing Commander Norton”. It would be a jolly life for the next few years, wouldn’t it?’ Johnny ended bitterly. ‘Trying to run some little off-the-map station with everyone whispering behind my back that I was the promising boyho who had blotted it because he couldn’t keep his mouth shut.’

After a moment he went on: ‘I’ve not much doubt that your father meant to do what he threatened; and if he did I’m afraid I’m all washed-up. By the time the Air Ministry are through with me I’ll be little good to myself or anyone else; let alone a sweet person like you. I’m glad now that we haven’t announced our engagement. At least you’ll be spared from officious sympathy and unpleasant gossip through having broken it off. And that’s what we’ve got to do.’

Sue turned her face to his and her little chin stuck out. ‘We’ll do no such thing! Johnny, you’re mine. I love you and I mean to hang on to you. I wouldn’t be worth having if I hesitated about that for an instant. What is more, if they retire you or order you abroad I’ll marry you the very next day after they’ve told you their decision.’

‘No, I can’t let you. I love you much too much to allow you to sacrifice yourself.’ Johnny’s voice was firm, but I could see that Sue meant to fight him for all she was worth.

Feeling that it would be hardly decent to stand in while they faced this private crisis in their lives, I moved off some way along the ditch but kept a watch on the car as I did not want it to drive off without me. Nearly half an hour elapsed then, ignoring the fact that they were on the open road, they suddenly clutched one another in a violent embrace, and from the position of their heads it was obvious that they were kissing. That made me pretty confident that Sue had got the best of the argument; so, having given them a few
endearments, I returned and passed into the back of the car.

Johnny was just saying: ‘I meant to break the bad news to you, than spend the rest of the evening in misery on my own. But since you are determined to see this thing through with me we had better cheer ourselves up with some dinner.’

‘I don’t feel like going to an inn,’ Sue said, after a moment. ‘Let’s go home, and I’ll knock up something.’

‘Better not,’ he replied a shade dubiously. ‘If your old man returned unexpectedly, he would be absolutely furious with you.’

Sue gave an abrupt, defiant laugh. ‘The odds are all against that. But if he did, who cares? The sooner he knows that I mean to nail my flag to the mast about this, the better. Even if he threw me out I’m not such a nit-wit that I couldn’t find a job to keep myself until we can get married.’

Johnny kissed her again. ‘You wouldn’t have to, my sweet. I’d see to that.’

Ten minutes later they were in the kitchen of Sue’s home. As the Admiral was away she had given the gardener’s wife, who came in and cooked for them, an evening off and had meant to get her own dinner. Now, their cares temporarily forgotten, they romped like children playing at husband and wife—except for breaking off to exchange frequent kisses—while preparing themselves a little feast to be eaten off the kitchen table.

But their happy mood did not last long. Before they were through the bottle of champagne that Sue had looted from her father’s cellar Johnny was replying only in monosyllables to her cheerful chatter. Giving him a swift sideways glance, she said:

‘You are looking wretched, darling; and terribly worn out. The big blow-up having taken place only this morning, that can’t account for it altogether. I suppose you are still worrying over the mystery surrounding your uncle’s death. Have you managed to get a line yet on the wicked Lady Ankaret?’

Sue’s question caused Johnny to realise that, not having seen her father since the board meeting, she still knew nothing of the latest tragedy at Longshot. He proceeded to tell her about it and what he believed to be the reason for Ankaret’s
suicide. Once launched on the subject he was soon led to that of myself.

Quite understandably he refrained from disclosing his previous relationship to Daisy, describing her simply as a professional dancer whom he had met soon after his return from Malaya and whom, knowing her to have psychic gifts, he had looked up again to consult.

I don’t think Sue was deceived; but she was the sort of girl who would have had little respect for a chap who had not sowed his wild oats, and had enough confidence in herself not to be jealous of the past mistress of a man she had made up her mind to marry. Anyway she refrained from comment, and Johnny went on to describe in detail all that had occurred during his meeting with Daisy and with Mr. Tibitts.

Sue listened, her brown eyes at times wide with amazement, at others shadowed by doubt or disbelief. When he had done, she said:

‘This can’t be true, darling. It really can’t. The very idea of your uncle having been buried alive is too horrible to contemplate. It will give me nightmares for a week but I simply don’t believe it.’

Johnny’s tale had taken long in telling, and they argued the pros and cons for a further half hour; so it was after half-past ten when he declared:

‘Anyway, I can’t stand this uncertainty any longer. Neither Daisy nor Tibitts were lying. I am convinced of that. And if they are right about this Ka business you see what that adds up to? Uncle Giff is lying there in his coffin; and he is still alive. If they are wrong, and he isn’t, then I’ll be able to sleep again. But I’ve got to find out.’

‘You … you,’ Sue stared at him in sudden terror, ‘you don’t mean that you are going to his grave?’

‘Yes; that’s just what I am going to do. That’s the main reason why I telephoned for an extension of leave this morning. I meant to anyway, before I had the row with your father. I couldn’t go another night with this awful doubt hanging over me.’

‘No, Johnny! No! You mustn’t! It’s sacrilege or something. Anyhow there’s a heavy penalty for anyone caught interfering with a body that’s been buried.’

‘I won’t get caught. You needn’t worry about that.’

‘You might. And if you were I’m sure it would mean a prison sentence.’

Johnny stood up. ‘I can’t help that. I’m sorry I told you, Sue. I wouldn’t have if I weren’t half out of my mind already. But I’ll be driven right out of it if I don’t settle this thing once and for all. It’s a “must”, darling. If I don’t I’ll never have a quiet conscience again for the rest of my life.’

Sue too stood up. She had gone very pale but her voice was firm. ‘All right, then; I’ll come with you.’

‘You’ll do nothing of the sort!’

‘Why not? Be sensible. You’ll need someone to hold a torch while you unscrew the coffin lid.’

‘No I won’t. It’s not screwed down. Uncle Giff left an instruction in his will that it was not to be, and that airholes were to be bored in the coffin itself.’

‘What an extraordinary thing to do.’

‘It seems that he always had a fear that he might be buried alive. I can’t help feeling now that it may have been a premonition. It’s that idea on top of all the rest which decided me this morning that I positively must find out.’

A new look of credulity came into her eyes. ‘I believe you may be right, Johnny. Anyhow, I agree now that you must make sure. It … it’s going to be a ghastly business. But I won’t let you down. I mean I won’t faint, or anything. I’ve never fainted in my life.’

‘No, I’m sure you wouldn’t. All the same I’m not taking you with me.’

‘Yes you are.’

‘No I’m not. You were right about it being a prison job, if one is caught. Do you think I’d let you expose yourself to that?’

‘It’s all the more reason I should come. Two of us would run less risk than one. I could keep
cave
while you are down in the grave.’

‘Sue, I won’t have it. Nothing will induce me to let you mix yourself up in this.’

‘You can’t stop me. I’ve got my own car. I’ll catch you up before you’ve had time to get the lid off the coffin.’

That put Johnny in a fix. For another few minutes he pleaded with her to remain behind; but he could not shake her determination.

‘Very well,’ he conceded at last. ‘But on one condition. You are to remain outside the churchyard and seated at the wheel of your car. If you see anyone about to take the path through the churchyard you will sound your horn, then beat it like hell. No pulling up a hundred yards up the road to creep back and find out what has happened to me. You’ll drive straight home. Is that understood?’

She nodded. ‘Yes. I’ll agree to that.’

‘Promise? No mental reservations now. On your word of honour.’

‘You have it, Johnny.’

For a moment they eyed one another tensely, then he said: ‘We had better not park our cars close together, just in case I am surprised and have to run for it. Anyone chasing me might spot the number of yours as you drove off. You had better pull into the road-side just by the lych-gate outside the church. That’s the most likely direction from which anyone may approach. No one will be going out at this time of night; but there is just the chance that some late-comer might make his way home by the short cut across the churchyard to the village.’

‘Why not put it off till the small hours of the morning? It would be less risky then.’

Johnny drew a hand over his eyes. ‘I suppose you’re right. But I’d rather not. It’s days since I had a really long sleep, and I didn’t get a wink last night from worrying. I just couldn’t face sitting up for another three or four hours.’

‘You could have a sleep here, and I’ll wake you at, say, two o’clock.’

‘No. I’m all keyed up now. I want to get the thing done and finished with. It’s now eleven and everyone goes to bed early in these parts. Really the risk is negligible. By letting you come to keep
cave
for me and dispersing cars I’m only taking precautions against an outside chance. I’ll drive on round the church and up the road that leads to the village. There is a cottage opposite the other entrance to the footpath. I’ll park a little short of that and come into the churchyard that way.’

‘And afterwards?’ Sue asked.

‘As soon as I’m through I’ll drive back past you. As you see me pass, start up and follow me back here. If anything
does go wrong we separate. You’ll already be on your way home, and I’ll drive straight back to Longshot; but I’ll telephone to let you know that I’m all right.’

With everything now settled, they went out to their cars. Sue’s was only an ancient run-about, so after a quick embrace he saw her into hers and gave her a few minutes’ start. I followed with him.

There was no moon and the night was dark, so favourable for this grim undertaking. As we covered the few miles at a steady pace I could hardly contain my impatience. My body had now been presumed dead for five days. Its intestines should be beginning to decompose. As the lid of the coffin was not fastened down ants might have got in and—horrible thought—be eating away the face. Anyway by this time the eyes should have sunk right back and hideous blotches have appeared on the skin. One glance at it would be enough to tell if the beliefs of the occultists were all moonshine, or if I was still tied by an invisible thread to the flesh that had been buried in the grave.

If I was, what then? But it would be time enough to wrestle with new problems when I knew. As with Johnny, the question that caused me such agitation at the moment was: what
should
we find there?

As we reached the valley bottom and approached the church it suddenly seemed to rear up, a black silhouette against the dark grey-black sky. Sue had drawn in her car near the lych-gate as Johnny had directed, but he did not slacken speed as we passed it. Driving on and round the corner on which the church stood he ran up the hill beyond it a few hundred yards, then drew in to the side of the road and switched off his lights.

I had listened to his plan with some anxiety, for I knew a thing that evidently he did not. The cottage opposite the entrance to the footpath was that of Cowper, the village constable. But it had been beyond my power to warn Johnny that it would be safer to go in the other way. Now, my uneasiness was increased by seeing that a light was still burning in one of the upstairs windows of the cottage, which meant that Cowper or his wife was still awake. If Cowper was there and had heard the car draw up, he might look out and, seeing that its lights had been cut off, come to investigate.
The chances were against his actually catching Johnny interfering with my grave, but Johnny would have some awkward explaining to do if on returning to his car he found Cowper waiting there to serve him with a chit for having left it on the road with its lights out. I could only hope that Cowper was already in bed and would soon decide to go to sleep.

Taking a big torch from the car Johnny made his way up the last forty yards of road, turned into the churchyard and walked resolutely down its slope. Having been at my funeral he knew roughly the whereabouts of the grave, but not its exact position. It was one in a line of graves among a group of tall ancient yews, and it was so dark there that he had to put on his torch to find it. Having taken a wrong side path he had to hunt about for several minutes before he got his bearings. Then the beam of the torch fell upon the faded flowers of a wreath. Hurrying forward he found the grave and shone the torch full upon it.

In accordance with my instructions, the great stone slab that sealed the vault had not yet been replaced. It was lying tilted up on edge against another gravestone nearby. But the vault itself had not been left exposed. Presumably, to keep out the rain, or to hide the coffins in it from the sight of the morbidly-curious, a large tarpaulin had been spread over the aperture, and was held in place by a number of loose bricks on its sides and corners.

After a glance at the floral tributes that had been set out on either side of the grave, Johnny selected a harp that had been propped up amongst them and fixed his torch into the wires to that its beam fell on the tarpaulin. Quickly now he threw aside the bricks from one side of it, then drew the free half back.