True Colours (43 page)

Sebastian shrugged. ‘It’s been a tough week, we deserve to treat ourselves once in a while.’

‘
It’s a bit more than a treat.’

‘
I think I owe it to you, don’t you, after the accident with your dad, the picture?’ Sebastian grimaced ruefully, filling her glass from a bottle chilling in a silver cooler on the table. ‘And I wanted to tell you face to face that you don’t have to worry about your dad. I’ll look after him.’

Alex tucked a blonde curl that had strayed across her face back behind her ear, focusing on the cloth in front of her, sorting her thoughts, taking in what he had said. It had all been so perfect and then, like always, they came back down to earth with a bump. Why did reality always get in the way of your dreams?

Looking up, she met his eye, her voice practical, no nonsense, like they were in a business meeting ‘But he can’t work’.

Sebastian shook his head, pulling out his own chair, sitting down with a sigh; she wasn’t getting it.

‘
There is nothing I regret more than that accident.’ He spoke slowly, spelling it out. There were other things he regretted, lots of them, but right now that was at the top of the list. ‘Tom built this estate. I don’t want to lose him, as a friend or as a member of the staff. I want him to stay on in the cottage – for life – my lawyers are drawing up the papers. And I want him to train in a couple of assistants to do the grunt work. I need an estate manager more than a gamekeeper. I haven’t discussed it with him, but I hope he’ll agree.’

Sebastian stopped abruptly, fiddled with his dessert fork for a moment, giving her time to take in what he was saying. It had all come out in a rush, not what he’d planned at all. Then, putting the fork straight, ‘Do you think he’ll do it?’

Alex felt a tear prick, pretended something was irritating her eye, brushing it away with her fingertip, trying to look natural, trying to look relaxed. She couldn’t cry now.

‘
I’m sure he will.’ Her voice cracked – what else could she say?

Behind her, a voice made her start.

‘
Here we are Mr Wingfield. I hope everything’s to your satisfaction.’ The food – she’d completely forgotten about it.

‘
Thank you Anna, that’s perfect.’

Alex managed a smile as the young girl laid her plate in front of her, twisting it around to its best advantage, the Wingfield crest at the top. Alex took another sip of her wine, trying to hide her confusion behind her glass.

The food was just as good as it had smelled, gave them something safe to talk about. Their main course arrived as promptly as the entrée.

‘
Thank you Anna, tell David that was all delicious. We’ll help ourselves to dessert; the two of you can get off home now. You’ve done a great job.’

‘
Thank you Mr Wingfield. I’ve put out the cheese and port in the kitchen.’

Sebastian nodded, his smile of appreciation sincere.

‘
So how did you know that I adore duck and sea bass?’ Alex looked at him quizzically.

Sebastian played with his glass, swishing the contents around, watching the tear drops form on the sides. ‘Let’s just say a little bird told me…well, maybe not that little.’

Alex giggled, ‘Joss?’ He tried to look non-committal, failed desperately, ‘but how did she know…did she speak to Marina? Does she know about all this?’

Sebastian shook his head, ‘No, don’t worry. Joss is very discreet.’

‘
And my dad? I hope she’s not taking him out as part of some master plan.’

‘
Your dad? Is he out of hospital?’ Sebastian sounded genuinely surprised, ‘that’s great. I’m sorry, I didn’t know. I haven’t spoken to him since before... with everything…’

With everything…Alex watched Sebastian’s face, could see a shadow pass. His grandfather and his house. She bit her lip. She was dying to ask about Caroline, but she couldn’t just come out and say it…Sebastian didn’t seem to notice that she had fallen quiet, that she was doing battle with a little red demon with curiosity written in capital letters across his chest.

‘
He’ll be glad to be out of that place, he hates being cooped up.’

The demon gave Alex a sharp poke with his trident. She hesitated for a moment, desperately trying to think of a tactful way to ask. From somewhere behind the house she heard a car start and pull slowly away, its tyres crunching on the rough lane that ran up towards the main house and the front gate. Now they were alone. The distraction gave her a moment to formulate her thoughts.

‘
Dad told me what happened, with the accident; well what he thought had happened,’ Alex paused, teetering on the edge of accusation, unsure whether she should continue,’ he reckoned Caroline had something to do with it.’

She’d said it. Alex held her breath; under the table dug her nails into the palm of her hand. What would he say?

Sebastian nodded, running his fingertips along his eyebrow, his eyes unfocused. She could hear the exhaustion in his voice when he spoke.

‘
She’s had a lot to do with my problems recently. I’m sure Tom will be very pleased to see the back of her.’

The back of her? Alex felt a surge of elation, but it was elation tinged with a glimmer of guilt. She mentally kicked herself: why should she be feeling guilty? The demon did a jig.

‘
Has she gone somewhere?’ Alex’s tone was deliberately innocent. She mustn’t gloat.

Sebastian grimaced, putting his head in his hands, rubbing his face hard, like he was trying to clean away the past, ‘New York. I hope.’

‘
What? Why on earth?’ Alex put her glass down too hard, flinched at the impact. She hadn’t expected that…

But Sebastian didn’t seem to notice. His voice was low, angry, hurt, his eyes fixed on a moth fluttering around the chimaera, attracted by the light from the coals glowing inside.

‘
There’s been a lot happening.’ Sebastian paused, looked at Alex, his eyes hard, his mind somewhere else, somewhere where there was smoke and flames and the body of an old man being dragged out of a house by a two fire fighters, two fire fighters who were prepared to risk their lives to save his. ‘She came to the house…before the fire…they found her cigarettes on the drive.’ He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, ‘she had a bit of a go at your laptop I’m afraid.’

‘
My laptop. But…?’ The questions jostled for attention, falling over themselves…Her cigarettes?

As if Sebastian knew what was coming, he interrupted her, clearing his throat, moving on.

‘
I’ve got someone looking at it, trying to salvage the hard drive.’ Then he grimaced, like it was his fault, ‘The guards reckon it could have been a stray cigarette that started the fire.’

‘
My God.’ Her eyes wide, Alex shook her head. It was all such a lot to take in. She’d already heard some of it from Jocelyn, but not the part about Caroline. And coming from Sebastian, seeing his pain, it was suddenly much more real. She shivered involuntarily.

‘
I’m not sure if they will be able to tell conclusively.’ Sebastian chewed the nail on his thumb for a moment, his mind obviously elsewhere. Something in his voice made Alex look up. Then he picked up the bottle of red and emptied the rest of it into his glass.

‘
They don’t know for sure it was her. There’s more to the picture – always is with Caroline.’ He paused, ‘She’s been having a fling.’ Sebastian stopped speaking, obviously in pain.

Alex held up her hand, stopping him, ‘You don’t have to tell me.’

Sebastian cleared his throat. ‘It’s better you know.’ He picked up his glass and took a sip, ‘It was someone in the company. Guy called Jackson, everyone calls him Peter though, like Peter Pan. He’s an ex-Royal Marine, brilliant negotiator.’ He paused. ‘He’s Joss’s son, so just be careful...’

Alex swallowed hard, trying to take it in. Joss’s son? ‘I won’t say anything. You know me.’

A smile flicked across Sebastian’s face, that was true.

‘
The thing is, whatever about it looking like Caroline being involved, if anyone’s likely to have started the fire, it’s him.’

‘
Jeez,’ the word slipped out, incredulity written all over Alex’s face, ‘What are you going to do?’

Sebastian shrugged, ‘Not much I can do. The guards are looking after it now. There’s a load of circumstantial evidence that Caroline was here, but no forensics to prove she set the fire, and Jackson told them that he came down to the house, saw Caroline leaving, that there was no sign of a fire then. I don’t think she’d know how to start one be honest.’ He cleared his throat. ‘They questioned her yesterday and she was totally clueless. And she was so drunk when they picked her up, she could hardly stand.’

‘
She was arrested?’ Alex could hear the disbelief in her own voice.

Sebastian nodded ruefully, ‘Forgot to say that. She was as pissed as a newt. The guards arrested her for drink driving; she was in court yesterday.’

Sebastian paused again, took a sip of his wine. ‘The thing is, with Jackson’s background, he’d know exactly how to start a fire and not leave any traces. The guards keep saying that if he did set it, he wouldn’t have told them that he’d called to the house, wouldn’t have admitted that he was anywhere near the place. But I reckon he’s cleverer than that. He told them he was in the pub for most of the evening,’ Sebastian shook his head, ‘he said he got a call from New York, so they remember him being there all right, and he ordered a steak...but, well, it’s all too neat. I don’t know – I’ve just got a feeling. We’ve been having problems with a couple of journalists trying to dig the dirt on the company. I can’t help feeling it’s all connected somehow.’

‘
But why? Why would he want to set the house on fire, to ruin your business?’

Sebastian went quiet for a moment, then said, ‘His father was killed in a fire. A fire at one of our factories.’ Staring at the foot of his glass, unfocused, Sebastian left the words hanging there.

‘
But he could have killed you. Us.’ Alex’s words came out as a whisper, ‘he might try again. He isn’t still working for you is he?’

Sebastian looked up at her sharply, shook his head. ‘He resigned before I could sack him. I wanted to knock him out to be honest but...’

Alex interrupted, ‘But you said he was in the Marines, he could have killed you.’

Sebastian nodded, ‘That crossed my mind,’

‘
Can’t the guards do anything, arrest him?’ Alex knew she sounded desperate.

Sebastian shrugged, ‘They need evidence for that. What do they say in the movies, ‘means, motive and opportunity’, well he had it all, but whether they can prove it is an entirely different matter.’

Sebastian knocked back the rest of his wine like the subject was closed; the whole business, like the wine, finished.

Alex watched him, speechless, even the demon had dropped his trident in surprise. Joss’s son? Having an affair with Caroline? Trying to burn down Kilfenora? Dear God.

Sebastian shook his head. ‘Let’s not talk about all that tonight. One way or another, the wedding’s off and Caroline’s history. Ancient history.’

Alex took a deep breath. Ancient history?

As if he read her mind, Sebastian leaned forward, put his hand out across the table, linking his fingers through hers.

‘
I’m sorry, sorry for everything, the picture, well everything…’ His hand was warm, strong. Alex shook her head – it didn’t matter, after hearing about his grandfather, about Caroline, the picture was the last thing he should be worrying about. Giving her hand a squeeze, Sebastian said ‘your hands are cold, do you want to go inside?’ He obviously wanted to change the subject.

Alex nodded, ‘Do you mind, it’s lovely out here but…’

‘
It’s May and Ireland, not July in Spain.’

She grinned. ‘It’s taking me a while to adjust.’

Inside Anna had left the table lamps on, had banked up the fire in the Elizabethan-style fireplace, the mantel hewn from an enormous oak, almost meeting the beamed ceiling. A log shifted as Sebastian opened the front door, spitting and cracking, the flames leaping. With the cool fresh scents of the woods clinging to them both like a cloak, he pushed the door closed.

‘
Sit down by the fire, get warm. Does port still make you dizzy?’ Alex laughed, nodding, heading for the sofa ‘Baileys and ice then?’

‘
Perfect.’

A moment later Sebastian slipped a tumbler of crushed ice into her hand and sat down on the sofa beside her, was pulling over a side table, sliding the laden cheeseboard onto its polished surface. Alex sipped her drink, enjoying the raw heat of the flames from a safe distance. Coming from concealed speakers in the corners of the room she could hear the strains of an orchestra tuning up; a pause before they joined together for the opening bars of something classical, it took her a moment to recognise what – Smetana’s ‘Ma Vlast’, one of Sebastian’s favourites.

Then the demon started hopping up and down again. There was a question that had been bothering her since that first meeting – it seemed trivial now, but it had been bugging her – maybe this was the time to ask.

Alex took another sip of her drink, put it carefully on the table, reached over to pull a grape off the bunch on the cheeseboard, ripe and purple, deliciously sweet.

‘
Tell me, before all this, why did you want me to decorate your apartment?’