The Secret of Excalibur (4 page)

‘Because there’s nothing I want to go back for.’ The tone in his voice was now irritation.

‘Yeah, but why?’

He looked round at her, frowning. ‘Jesus, is this a fucking interrogation? Why’re you suddenly so interested in my family?’

She gave him a disbelieving look. ‘Come on, Eddie! We’re going to get
married
, so they’re going to become
my
relatives as well. You can’t claim
that
part of your past is a state secret! I just want to know what they’re like, and why you don’t talk about them.’

‘If there was anything important to tell you, I’d tell you.’

‘What, like Sophia being your ex-wife? Took you long enough to bring
that
up—’

‘I don’t get on with them, all right?’ Chase snapped. ‘’Cept for my nan. To be honest, if my sister didn’t live in the same town, I wouldn’t have gone out of my way for you to meet her as well.’

They sat silently for several moments. ‘That’s a shame, Eddie,’ Nina said finally.

‘What is?’

‘I don’t have any family any more, except for some distant cousins I last saw when I was maybe twelve. You still do, but you don’t want to see them? To me, that’s just . . .’ She let the words tail off, unspoken.

Chase turned his back to her and pulled his blanket up over his broad shoulders. ‘Not every family’s as close as yours. Now, any chance I can get some kip?’

Nina leaned over and kissed the back of his head. ‘Good night, Eddie,’ she whispered, before looking back at the mystery on the laptop screen.

2

England

‘
S
o, this Bournemouth place,’ Nina asked as Chase brought their rented Ford Focus on to the M3 motorway. ‘What’s it like? What’s there?’ She’d looked at a map of southern England before leaving the States, but aside from the town’s being about a hundred miles from London on the country’s south coast, it hadn’t revealed a great deal.

‘Fuck all,’ said Chase. ‘There’s a pier, and that’s about it.’

Nina smiled. ‘This isn’t one of those English “north-south divide” things I’ve heard about, is it? I mean, I know you’re big on the whole “roof, toof, Yurkshahman from oop narth” thing—’

‘We’ve been together over two years, and that’s the best Yorkshire accent you can manage?’ Chase interrupted incredulously.

‘Hey, it’s better than your American accent. We don’t
all
sound like John Wayne with severe blunt force trauma. Well, maybe in Alabama. Anyway, this place must have something going for it for your grandmother and sister to have moved there in the first place.’

‘Lizzie moved ’cause she married this ponce from there,’ said Chase. ‘Nan moved after my granddad died because the weather’s better, that’s all.’

‘And she wanted to be near your sister. And your niece.’

‘Maybe. Whatever, the place is still dead boring.’

Any further comment of Nina’s was interrupted as her phone rang. She glanced at her watch as she answered it. Not even one minute past nine. ‘Hello?’

‘Hello, Nina! This is Bernd Rust.’

‘I thought it might be,’ Nina said, giving Chase a resigned smile. ‘Where are you?’

‘In London. I am trying to find out how best to get to Bournemouth. Are you on your way?’

‘Yeah, we’re on the freeway. Motorway, I mean.’

‘Excellent! I shall meet you there, then. Where are you staying?’

‘The Paragon Hotel. But look, Bernd, I’ve got other commitments. I’m meeting my fiancé’s family. I can’t just drop everything to see you as soon as you arrive.’

‘I understand. When
will
you be able to see me?’

‘Well, we’re having lunch, so . . .’ Nina looked across at Chase for suggestions, but he only offered her a don’t-ask-me shrug. ‘Okay, how about if you meet me at the hotel at three o’clock?’

‘Three o’clock, the Paragon Hotel. I shall see you there. Goodbye!’

‘Couldn’t you have made it
two
o’clock?’ Chase grumbled. ‘That way, we’d have a guaranteed escape route.’

‘But you’re not meeting Bernd.’

‘Yeah, but they don’t know that.’

‘Aw, come on, Eddie,’ said Nina. She realised that Chase was, for once, barely exceeding the speed limit. Clearly he was in no rush to reach their destination. ‘They can’t be that bad.’

‘Well,’ he said, voice flinty, ‘we’ll see.’

Nina’s previous visits to England had only taken her to London, so she wasn’t sure what to expect outside the capital - especially after Chase’s disparaging description. But Bournemouth turned out to be a quite attractive seaside town, the pedestrianised main street an appealingly random jumble of architectural styles and eras above the standardised shop façades of the national chains.

They had arranged to meet Chase’s family in the middle of town, another pedestrian zone called the Square. A park stretched away down to the beach and the pier; Nina and Chase had strolled through it to the town centre after checking into their seafront hotel, passing a large tethered balloon offering tourists an aerial view of the resort.

To Nina’s delight, the Square was playing host to a street market, stalls selling a wild and wonderful range of foods from all over Europe, everything from German sausages to exotic fruit. The air was filled with mouth-watering scents, forcefully reminding her that the only thing she’d eaten was an airline breakfast. Only the knowledge that she would soon be having lunch stopped her from sampling everything - although she was still sorely tempted.

She had an odd feeling in her stomach, but it wasn’t solely from hunger. ‘I’m . . . I’m a bit nervous,’ she admitted to Chase.

‘Why?’

‘Y’know, meeting your family for the first time. It’s just a weird thought, getting a whole new set of relations all of a sudden. And what if they don’t like me?’

‘If you’re that worried, we can just leave,’ Chase suggested, almost hopefully. ‘Get a head start on that trip to Indonesia. I’m up for it - I’d rather be somewhere exotic having an adventure than pissing about here.’

Nina smiled. ‘Tempting, but you’re not getting out of this that easily.’

‘Arse chives. Oh, there they are,’ he said unenthusiastically. The centre of the Square was occupied by a circular café topped with a clock tower. Outside it, Nina saw three people: a small, grey-haired old lady, a girl whom she guessed to be in her mid-teens, and a woman of around forty with a rather severe haircut. The old lady and the girl waved at Chase; the woman did not. ‘Well, here we go,’ he said. Nina touched her pendant, wanting all the luck she could get.

They met the trio by the café’s outdoor tables. ‘Uncle Eddie!’ cried the girl, running to him. She hugged him. ‘I haven’t seen you for ages!’

‘Hey, Holly,’ said Chase, returning the hug and smiling. His pleasure on meeting his niece again seemed completely genuine to Nina. ‘I’ve been busy.’

‘I know! And I know why!’ Holly released Chase and turned to face Nina, long brown hair swishing. ‘I know who you are,’ she said, beaming.

‘You do?’ Nina asked.

‘Of course! Come on! You discovered Atlantis! It was so great when it was announced, ’cause it meant my history teacher had been totally wrong about it not being real. That was fun, seeing his face when he had to admit it. I’m Holly, by the way. Holly Bennett.’

‘Nina Wilde. Hi.’

‘Hi! So, you’re going to be my aunt! That’s so cool. When’s the wedding?’

‘Yes, when’s the wedding, Edward?’ said the old lady, tottering up to Chase. ‘Ooh, let me have a look at you. It’s lovely to see you! My little lambchop. Come on, give your nan a kiss.’ Chase, to Nina’s amusement looking decidedly sheepish, bent down so his grandmother could kiss him noisily on both cheeks, then pinch them. ‘It’s so good to see you again!’

‘Hi, Nan,’ said Chase, cheeks pink, and not solely from the pinches. ‘Nan, I’d like you to meet my fiancée, Nina Wilde.
Doctor
Nina Wilde. Nina, this is my nan - my grandmother, Catherine.’

‘Call me Nan: you’re going to be family.’ She shook Nina’s hand vigorously. ‘And you’re a doctor! Holly tells me you’re famous too. It’s wonderful that Edward’s getting married again. And you seem so much nicer than his first wife. I never liked her, she was very uppity. Where is she now, Edward?’

‘She’s in prison at Guantánamo Bay, Nan.’

‘Best place for her. Oh, it’s good to meet you.’ She shook Nina’s hand again, then turned back to Chase. Nina belatedly realised she hadn’t been able to get in a single word. ‘So, when
is
the wedding?’

Holly also moved back to crowd Chase. ‘So why aren’t you famous too, Uncle Eddie? I wanted to show my friends pictures of you finding all these amazing things, but you’re never in any of them!’

‘You know me, love,’ he said. ‘Just naturally modest.’ That provoked a sarcastic snort from the third woman in the party. Chase’s expression tightened. ‘Oh, and Nina, this is my sister, Lizzie.’

‘Elizabeth,’ the woman said firmly, stepping forward to greet Nina. ‘Elizabeth Chase. I changed back to my maiden name after my divorce.’

‘Nice to meet you,’ Nina replied, not sure how to respond to being given an answer to a question she hadn’t asked. Elizabeth was clearly related to Chase in looks, but while he was only of average height and quite stocky, she was a couple of inches taller, thin and rigidly upright. Her expression was just as closed as her brother’s. Whatever Chase’s problem with his older sister, the feeling was apparently mutual.

‘You too. So, how long have you two been engaged now?’

‘Nearly a year.’

‘And Eddie still hasn’t committed to a date.’ It was a statement, not a question. ‘Well, that doesn’t surprise me.’

Nina felt obliged to defend him. ‘We’ve been busy. But now the discovery of Atlantis has been officially announced, we should have more time together, so we can decide what we want to do.’

‘Speaking of deciding what to do,’ said Chase, looking up at the clock, ‘are we going to have lunch? They do drinks in this place, right? Lizzie, you could have some
whine
. Or maybe a pint of
bitter
.’

‘Yeah, let’s have lunch,’ said Nina hurriedly, trying to defuse the situation by taking hold of Chase’s arm and resting her head on his shoulder. ‘Let’s sit out in the sun, it’ll be nice.
Won’t
it, Eddie?’

His response was distinctly lacking in enthusiasm. ‘Yeah, I suppose.’

Holly, on the other hand, was energised at the prospect. ‘So you’re going to tell us about all the cool places you’ve visited, aren’t you?’ she asked. ‘You’ve been all over the world - you must have seen tons of amazing stuff. Much better than being stuck here in boring old Bournemouth.’

‘Told you,’ Chase said to Nina. He led the way to the café’s entrance, walking slowly to let his grandmother keep pace. ‘Well, when we started looking for Atlantis, the first place we went was Iran . . .’

Chase - with help from Nina, to correct the historical inaccuracies and tone down his more fanciful recountings - told Holly and Nan about the hunt for Atlantis and the discovery of the Tomb of Hercules over a leisurely lunch. Elizabeth, meanwhile, sat on the sidelines, disinterested. It wasn’t until they’d finished eating and were wandering up another pedestrianised shopping street curving uphill out of the Square that she offered Chase anything more than a perfunctory response. ‘I suppose I have to give you
some
credit. That’s the first time lately Holly’s seemed interested in anything that didn’t involve text messaging.’

‘Well, you know,’ said Chase, ‘if the subject’s interesting, kids’ll pay attention.’

Holly pouted. ‘I’m not a kid.’

‘Okay, so, what? Young lady?’

She shrieked. ‘Oh, God! That’s even
worse!
That sounds like you’re telling me off !’

Chase shrugged helplessly. ‘So what
do
you call fifteen year olds?’

‘We used to call you “trouble”,’ offered Nan. ‘Edward and Elizabeth were such rivals when they were young! Always fighting, they were.’

‘Thank God that’s stopped, huh?’ Nina chirped, wishing she hadn’t when she saw Chase’s and Elizabeth’s expressions.

Fortunately, Holly provided a distraction. ‘So, you know you said you broke your arm when you saved New York, Uncle Eddie?’ She gestured at his left sleeve, voice dropping in part-fearful, part-gleeful anticipation. ‘Was it, like, snapped in two? Or did it get sort of . . . squashed?’

‘You want to see it?’ asked Chase.

Holly winced, hands over her mouth. ‘Oh, no, no! I don’t know. Is it still gross? Not if it’s gross. Is it?’

‘Tell you what,’ Chase said, taking off his leather jacket, ‘why don’t you judge for yourself ?’ He rolled up his sleeve and held out his left forearm. Holly recoiled, then moved back for a closer look. A crooked, X-shaped scar ran almost from wrist to elbow, smaller lines of wounded skin branching out from it.

‘Does it hurt?’ she asked, one hand hovering above his arm, afraid to touch it.

‘It bloody did at the time!’ Chase assured her. ‘Smashed both the bones, had a great jagged spike three inches long sticking out right through the skin there.’ He pointed, Holly making a high-pitched
Eeeeeeew!
‘They had to bolt it all back together with titanium. So I’m sort of bionic now. Freaks ’em out when I go through the scanners at airports.’

‘Edward, that’s terrible!’ cried Nan, looking appalled. ‘You poor thing! Does it still hurt? How long did it take to mend?’

‘It was in a cast for nearly two months,’ Nina told her.

‘Yeah,’ Chase added. ‘When it finally came off, I had one arm bigger than the other.’

‘Just like when you were fifteen and had all those magazines under your bed,’ said Elizabeth, with the air of someone who’d just scored an unbeatable point.

Chase held back a rude reply and turned instead to his grandmother. ‘It still hurts a bit sometimes, but it’s more or less fixed now. Had to be careful when I was training back up, though. Didn’t want to overdo things and have a bolt pop out through my arm.’

Holly remained fascinated by the scar. ‘So now you’re okay again . . . could you beat just about anyone in a fight?’

Chase nodded. ‘Why, got someone you want me to sort out?’

‘No, no!’ She paused, thinking. ‘Although there’s this absolute cow at school . . .’

‘Nah, I don’t hit girls,’ Chase told her. ‘Unless they’re a really,
really
bad person. But if you ever have any bloke trouble, just let me know and I’ll have words.’

‘Eddie,’ snapped Elizabeth, an angry warning.

‘So who could you beat?’ Holly asked, ignoring her. ‘Could you beat . . . Jason Bourne?’

Chase laughed mockingly. ‘Doddle. He’s CIA, he’s a spook. They’re all wimps.’

‘What about Jack Bauer?’

‘Hmm. Tougher, but . . . yeah. No problem.’

‘James Bond?’

‘Which one?’

‘Any of them.’

He pretended to consider it. ‘All of ’em except . . . Roger Moore,’ he said at last. ‘He’s the one I wouldn’t want to mess with. That eyebrow, I just can’t match it.’

Holly giggled. ‘You used to be in the SAS, right? Could you beat the S
B
S?’

‘Course I could. The SAS is the best fighting force in the world. No contest. Why?’

‘Because there’s a girl in my class whose big brother is in the SBS, and she says that he says that the SAS are just a bunch of gayers.’

‘Holly, don’t say things like that,’ Elizabeth chided, although she was clearly amused by Chase’s affronted expression.