I don’t know whether I’m appalled by her or whether I secretly admire her, but I have to admit Catriona is great fun to spend the day with. Whatever the morals of her relationship with Bill, she’s clear-eyed about it, and it’s not my role to judge her. By the time we set off to the rendezvous point for the minibus, she’s firmly established herself as my favourite person in the group. Thankfully, the other cliques have also had an enjoyable time, from what they tell me, so they don’t appear to mind that I’ve taken her under my wing for the day.
* * *
It’s still light when we get back to the house, but it’s not long before I hear the sound of the tractor crossing the yard bringing the guns back. I walk out to meet them and Tony gives me a cheery wave from behind the wheel. The men are all in high spirits, and they’ve obviously had a good day too if the number of corpses hanging from the bar in the game cart is anything to go by. As soon as the tractor stops, James jumps down from the trailer and helps them all down, laughing and patting them on the back as if they’re his oldest friends rather than paying customers. I have to admit, grudgingly, that he’s playing his role to perfection.
The last person off the trailer is Emily, and straight away I can tell that something is very wrong. Her face is white as a sheet and she seems unsteady on her feet. James helps her down gently and I rush over.
‘Slightly squeamish, this one,’ he laughs as he hands her over.
‘I’ll get her inside. Tea has been set out and the staff are ready to pour, so we shouldn’t be needed for a while.’
I rush her through the house and up to her bedroom.
‘Please don’t ever make me do that again!’ she sobs, as soon as we’re alone. ‘It was brutal. Those poor frightened birds didn’t stand a chance. How could people do something like that for sport? I’ve never seen anything so cruel, and they were just laughing and congratulating James on the size of ‘the bag’ the whole time.’
‘If it’s any consolation, I think they die pretty much instantly.’
‘That’s not true, though. There was one, it fell out of the sky and it was just lying on the ground, flapping its wings and trying to get up until one of the dogs got to it. I think I’m going to be sick.’
Hastily, I grab the only receptacle in the room, a metal bin, and position it under her head. I’m only just in time, and she vomits several times. I feel awful. I should have known that Emily would never have been able to cope, but I was so busy selfishly avoiding my husband that I never thought what the potential impact on her might be.
‘I’m so sorry,’ I say, as I hold her trembling frame. ‘I should have gone instead of you.’
‘No, it’s my fault,’ she replies, catching me by surprise. ‘I was so busy trying to be the big-shot organiser that I didn’t think it through. If you’d have offered to go in my place, I would have refused. I can’t do it again, though. If I wasn’t a vegetarian already, that would have been enough to persuade me.’
‘We’ll find a way,’ I reassure her. ‘It’s only clays tomorrow, but maybe neither of us need to be there. From what you’ve described and what I saw, James has that part of it pretty well under control. Why don’t you do the spa day with the ladies, and I’ll hang around here in case I’m needed?’
The look of relief in her watery eyes is all the confirmation I need. ‘Just one thing,’ I tell her. ‘Look after Catriona, will you? The other women have taken against her a bit.’
‘I’ve got a theory about her,’ Emily replies, as she wipes her mouth with a tissue and takes a sip of water from the glass next to her bed. ‘I reckon she’s rented.’
‘I’m sorry?’
‘You know, an escort. Paid for the weekend to make him look good.’
‘Interesting theory,’ I reply, and leave it at that. When I get back to my room and check my phone, there’s a message from Elliott.
Thinking of you. How’s it going? xx
I smile and type out my reply:
Discovered one of the ‘wives’ is a sugar baby. Poor Emily completely traumatised by the shoot and vomiting in her room. Just another boring day in the office, really. You? xx
I can see he’s typing, and his reply arrives a few seconds later.
Wow! Sounds interesting. I can’t really compete with that. I’m having pasta for dinner and that’s probably the most exciting thing that’s happened today. xx
I’ll tell you all about it when I see you next. xx
Can’t wait xx
By the time dinner comes around, Emily has recovered and we’re back to our double act. The guests are tucking into rib of beef from James’ own herd, the wine is flowing freely, and even Catriona looks like she’s enjoying herself. The men are regaling their partners with exaggerated tales of their shooting prowess, and James is lavish with his praise, stroking their already inflated egos. It’s all going very well, and I take the opportunity to grab a plateful and head for the butler’s pantry to eat it undisturbed.
I’m sitting on a box and only a couple of mouthfuls in to the amazingly tender beef, silently wondering if there’s a spare glass of red somewhere to help wash it down, when I become aware of another presence in the room. I look up to see James standing there with an unpleasant look on his face.
‘Well, this is quite the turnaround, isn’t it?’ he sneers. ‘You’re not so hoity-toity now, are you? You’re just a skivvy, a servant, myemployee. Just think, if you hadn’t deserted me, you could have been out there enjoying the high life with me instead of skulking around in the servants’ quarters, grabbing whatever scraps we decide to leave for you.’
I’m incensed, not only because he’s completely wrong, but also because our current situation makes it look like he’s right. Every fibre of my being wants to tell him exactly where he can stick his ideas, but thankfully I’m stone-cold sober and just about able to maintain my professionalism. I set my plate aside and stand up, so at least he’s no longer looking down at me.