Delphine rolled over onto her back, her hand still holding him, slipping him into her and he helped, his own fingers touching hers and sliding himself in.
She gasped with pleasure. This was so different from Rachael, this was an act that made her senses reel and her mind swirl, affecting her whole being, mind and body, her heart included, so that she was soon breathless with the joy of it, pulling him in more and more, groaning every time he deliberately drew back, then giving out a small cry of bliss when he returned, plunging in again, each time harder, each time deeper. Every part of her body was awash with sensation. She quivered in surrender, every tendon tight, a tingling joy, so that she was lost in the uproar of her elation, the sheer rapture of her wholeness. Soon she began to feel an even greater surge, aware that it was happening to him too, her senses rising, building, until she thought she could take no more, yet wanting so much more. Her body became rigid as she arched her back in the euphoria sweeping through her until eventually – too soon, too soon, almost unbearable until the climax broke and was so exquisite in its torrent that she clutched at his hips to make the climax last and she almost screamed with the exhilarating thrill of his release into her until she shuddered, and shuddered again, the pleasure gradually calming itself, bit by bit, piece by piece, until she was left floating, coming down from some great height to slowly sink into a well of indelible gratifying glory that would stay in her mind forever, perhaps to savour, to revel in that remembered thrill for days to come. Maybe years to come. Or just until the next time.
Now Ash, too, was satiated and weak with exhaustion. Part of his joy was that he had enraptured and satisfied this perfect, entrancing woman, with her liquid brown eyes and a body so perfectly proportioned it could only be relished.
Still clutching each other, Delphine’s head resting against Ash’s shoulder, they murmured words of love before gradually falling into a calming sleep. They never heard the eerie night sounds of more animal screeches that came from the distant woods, nor saw the incandescent sparks that flew from the electrified fencing as deer and other small creatures tried, in vain, to escape the compound and the vicious, crazed wildcats in their new hunting grounds.
Oblivious, Ash and Delphine slept peacefully, bodies entwined, for it had been a long, eventful day.
50
Ash and Delphine were woken at the same time by the crash of the bedroom door, but the psychologist reacted faster.
Ash’s bleary eyes opened to see Delphine next to him holding the bedsheets up to cover herself. She was wide-eyed at the furious nurse standing in front of the door she’d just slammed shut behind her.
‘You bitch!’ Senior Nurse Krantz shrieked. ‘You bloody whore!’
Ash pushed himself onto an elbow and looked at the white-uniformed nurse with alarm and bewilderment. What the hell? he thought, and then he recalled their conversation. Krantz must have got wind of their assignation from the smirking guard.
‘Rachael,’ Delphine said sharply, as if admonishing a recalcitrant patient, ‘please get out. Get out now!’
‘Can’t you see he’s using you?’ came Krantz’s shouted response. ‘He’s just a typical man who only wants one thing! Sex is all he’s after!’ She was pointing an accusing finger at Ash.
‘Now wait a minute . . .’ began the investigator, who had swiftly become perfectly clear-headed.
‘You bastard! Why couldn’t you have left her alone? She’s not for you!’
‘Krantz,’ Ash said calmly as he sat upright in the bed next to Delphine. ‘Delphine is not for you. No matter how much you might like to think so.’
‘Bastard!’ Another screech, but this time Krantz raced towards the bed, her arms flailing the air, headed for Ash.
He blocked the blows with his lower arms and had to admit, those blows hurt.
‘Leave him alone,’ Delphine cried out, leaning across him so that she took some of the wild punches on her arms. ‘I love him, Rachael! Not you – I love David!’
While this was music to Ash’s ears, he was getting a little irritated by the punishment he was taking as punches and slaps rained down. Finally, he’d had enough and he moved Delphine aside so that he could get out of bed, naked or not.
If Krantz was shocked, she didn’t show it, but continued to hit out at him. Ash caught both her wrists and pushed her back, surprised at the strength of the woman. The curses coming from her wide mouth were now obscene, but succeeded in goading him into anger. He pushed her back hard towards the wall, letting go of her wrists so that she felt the full impact. As she strived to pull herself together to make another strike, the wind temporarily knocked out of her, Ash quickly pulled the door to the corridor open wide and grabbed her again.
‘Let me go, you bastard!’ she managed to scream at last.
‘Sure,’ he replied more calmly than he felt.
He shoved her into the corridor so hard that she rebounded off the opposite wall. Ash was conscious of other curious faces peering out to see what was causing the fracas.
But Krantz was not quite finished with him yet. With a yowl of hatred, she rushed at him again. This time Ash acted in a way he never had before.
He made a fist with his right hand, pulled it back, then let go with a punch that landed squarely on the bridge of her nose. Without further sound, save for the smack of the punch itself, Krantz went flying backwards, her shoulders hitting the opposite wall again, then sagged down to the floor. And there she sat, white-stockinged legs splayed, her hands to her nose from where blood poured as it swelled, able only to groan.
Ash swiftly slammed the door shut, grabbed a ladder-backed chair and stuck the top bar under the door handle. All the while, Ash was puzzled by his own reaction, for he’d never even raised his hand to a woman before, let alone punched one squarely on the nose. But as he chided himself, it occurred to him suddenly that Comraich itself was to blame: there was something lurking here in the castle’s very ether, something malign that encouraged such violence. How else would he have gouged the Serbian’s eye out in the lift only yesterday? David Ash felt disgusted with himself, although lingering somewhere in his subconscious was a perverse satisfaction and relief.
He went back to the bed where Delphine sat, bedsheet still drawn up to cover her nakedness, a petrified expression on her face. He paused as they both heard movement outside in the corridor. Suddenly, there was a thump on the door, as if Krantz had smashed her hand against it.
‘You bastard!’ they heard again, muted this time, then footsteps marching down the corridor, fading into the distance.
Ash sat on the bed, ready to calm Delphine, but if he was honest, to calm himself too.
Delphine dropped the sheet, and pressed against him, kissing his cheek, first hugging, then clinging to him.
‘David, are you all right?’ Her voice was filled with concern.
‘Well, my knuckles feel a bit raw, but I think I’ll survive. Nurse Krantz is going to have a hell of a bend in her nose though.’ He grinned at her.
‘Don’t underestimate her, David. She can be a dangerous woman.’
‘She’ll fit in well with Comraich, then. I hardly need to state the obvious, but there’s something extremely odd about this place. I’m not just saying it’s haunted. I mean it’s full of powerfully malevolent spirits. I’ve got to tell you, I don’t want to be in this castle much longer.’
‘You’d leave?’ Delphine was dismayed and she drew back so she could look into his eyes.
He found her left hand and clutched it in both of his own. ‘Not without you,’ he told her simply.
She cast her eyes down and dark ringlets framed her cheeks. ‘I couldn’t leave here, David.’
He frowned. ‘Why not?’ he ducked his head so that he could see more of her downcast face. ‘There’s nothing here for you.’
‘You’re forgetting Lewis.’
Ash sat back.
‘You might be perfect, Delphine, but you’re not indispensable. Lewis would be taken care of.’
> She shook her head sadly. ‘No one could ever know him as well as I do. He depends on me, David. I just don’t know how he would get by if I left. You see, you haven’t seen the other side of Comraich. Nobody’s free here, every one of our guests is monitored wherever they go.’
‘Okay, then I’ll make out a full report on this place, advising it should be shut down immediately.’
‘They would never do that, no matter what you say. Sometimes I think Comraich is the heart of their empire.’
‘Empire? Aren’t you exaggerating a little?’
She gave a small, bitter laugh and shook her head. ‘Do you really think you could go up against the Inner Court? Do you understand the vast wealth that is theirs? The contacts, the people – dictators, despots, wealthy Arabs, financial wizards who’ve taken a step too far. Then there’s the disgraced politicians, not only British, but from all over the world, individuals who are supposed to be dead but with inside knowledge of the affairs of their own countries – the businessmen, the diplomats, the billionaires – people whose very existence would be under threat should it be discovered they’re still alive because of the hidden knowledge they have, the contacts they hold, these failed ministers of state and business tycoons who have to hide because of their corruption. David, I thought you realized just how powerful the Inner Court is. The IC has power over life and death.’
‘I didn’t realize you knew so much about the organization,’ Ash said, a little disappointed that she was not quite the innocent he thought. ‘Are you part of it, Delphine?’ The question was bluntly put, his mind almost numb to the prospect.
‘No, David, I’m not part of it. I only know what my father told me long before he died. He said I should never betray the Inner Court because my life would be over. And I’ve learned things during the last few years that have truly frightened me. But the only reason I do stay is because of Lewis. I think if I left – if I was allowed to leave – poor Lewis would no longer have any future. Can’t you understand that, David?’
‘I understand you can’t stay here,’ he said. ‘Look, once my assignment is over, we’ll take him with us.’
‘It would be impossible. We’d never get out the gates.’
‘Then I’ll do it alone and come back for you. I’ll bring the police if I have to.’
She shook her head in frustration. ‘Don’t even think about it, David. It’s far too dangerous, and if Sir Victor found out you’d . . .’
She paused.
‘Yes?’ he prompted.
‘You’d be ruined.’
His shoulders slumped. ‘Yeah, I’d forgotten that. My boss and I have signed pretty solid contracts. The whole might of the organization would come down on us like a ton of bricks. I’m not worried about myself, but for the Psychical Research Institute itself. It would break Kate.’
‘Kate?’
‘Kate McCarrick, my boss.’ He raised his shoulders again, his back straightened. ‘Okay, we’re both trapped here for the time being, and Kate and I are contractually bound, so let’s at least fulfil the contract. I’ve got an idea about the castle and where these dark forces are emanating from. I’ve got a feeling that events are about to reach a climax as far as these hauntings are concerned, and Comraich, guests and staff, might be forced to abandon the place completely whether they like it or not.’
Delphine smiled. ‘Well, I can’t fault your optimism.’
‘I’ve got something in mind that I want to investigate before I put in my first report and recommendation,’ he went on, ignoring her restrained amusement. ‘We’ll see how things go today and tonight and we might even find that the problem will resolve itself.’
It might – might easily – be a false hope, but right then, Ash had nothing else to offer.
51
The rocks along the seashore were slippery and lethal – a bruised knee or a twisted ankle was always a strong possibility. Ash cautiously followed one of Comraich’s rangers, Jonas McKewin. He was a fit young man – in his early thirties, Ash guessed – and while somewhat brusque in manner, his grey eyes had a softness about them that tempered his attitude.
McKewin turned as the investigator let out a sudden curse. Ash’s booted left foot was ankle-deep in a small pool of water.
‘Have a care, Mr Ash,’ the ranger advised unnecessarily. ‘This shoreline is treacherous and not truly suited to sightseeing.’
Ash grinned back at him. ‘Yeah, I already got that impression.’
He pulled his foot free and balanced precariously for a moment on the rock he’d just slipped from. His hands stretched outwards to steady himself as he took another step forward.
‘You’ll get better when you’re used to it,’ the ranger told him. ‘You’ll see, you’ll get more confident. Just don’t be afraid of ’em.’ He pointed around at the rocky beach. They set off once again, for this hadn’t been the first time Ash had stumbled or had his boot slip off a mossy stone.
Ash and Delphine had earlier breakfasted together in the staff canteen, less sumptuous than the dining hall, of course, but the only facility available so early in the morning. The place had been buzzing with gossip about the previous night’s invasion.
The glass-and-brick annexe was built on the west side of the castle, out of sight to anyone arriving at Comraich through the ‘ruined’ archway entrance, and the sea, rough and surly this morning, could be seen stretching out to the grey land mass that rose from it like a smudge on the horizon.
Before heading to the canteen, Delphine had, as promised, arranged for one of Comraich’s khaki-clad rangers to show the investigator the cavern at the foot of the cliff on which the castle stood.
They had made love again after Krantz had left – less wild, more tender than in the earlier hours of that morning – which had left them comfortable in each other’s arms. When Ash had removed the tilted chair from beneath the door handle, he’d half expected to find Krantz lingering in the corridor outside, one hand holding a blood-sodden handkerchief to her swollen nose, a meat cleaver or butcher’s knife held high in the other, ready to bring down on whoever left Delphine’s room first. Of course, it hadn’t happened, Krantz hadn’t been there, and Ash couldn’t help an inward smile.
He’d returned to his own room and showered, wincing at the bruises that had bloomed overnight, then dressed awkwardly because of the stiffness of his entire body. He’d returned with his equipment bag to Delphine’s room, where she’d been ready and waiting for him, wearing a heavy coat over her skirt and high-necked jumper, even though she wouldn’t be accompanying him on this morning’s venture. They had hugged and kissed in the entrance of her room, regretfully preparing for the day ahead of them.
The warm memory did little to dispel the wind chill coming off the troubled sea. It was freezing, causing Ash to pull the muffler up high under his stubbled chin. He began to wish he’d worn a thick woollen scarf too as he took a pair of black leather gloves from his pocket and slid them on. He carried a bright yellow hard hat at the ranger’s insistence, to be worn when they entered the big cave that Ash had asked specifically to inspect as part of his investigation. McKewin had warned how easy it was to bang your head on the low roof, and the area was prone to rock falls.
As he picked his way across the slimy rocks, Ash noticed a long metal pipe, about a foot in diameter, that ran from the foot of the cliff face and into the sea.
‘I take it that’s an old sewage outlet from the castle,’ he called out to the ranger, who was a few yards ahead of him. He reminded Ash of a mountain goat, sure-footed and swift.
Jonas paused for a moment to look around at the investigator.
‘Aye,’ he returned, ‘it runs a long way out, as you can see. These are dangerous waters, Mr Ash, and every summer we have to warn swimmers not to go too far offshore. Mostly we tell ’em not to swim at all in the sea. Fortunately, it’s normally too chilly to swim in these parts, summer or winter.’
As Jonas looked out, hands on his hips, booted legs set apart for
balance, Ash could not but feel there was something noble in the man’s stance. The investigator followed his gaze and could just make out the darker haze of the land mass in the distance.
As if reading Ash’s mind, McKewin said, ‘That’s the Isle of Arran you can just about see. Beyond is Kintyre.’
‘Like the song?’
‘Aye. Mull of Kintyre. McCartney got it so right.’
‘I can’t imagine anyone wanting to swim around here, no matter what the season.’
‘You’d be surprised. But honestly, it’s to be avoided.’ He pointed a finger at the angry tide, then lifted his hand to point a little further out. ‘Y’see, just about twenty, mebbe thirty yards out there’s a deep shelf, full of rip tides. Y’could almost walk out to it with your head just above the water. Then you’d step off the shelf and sink down further than you might imagine. The sea’s black down there, it’s so deep, and the currents could easily drag you off the ledge; then you’d be swallowed into the depths, your body probably never found again.’
‘Just as well I didn’t bring my trunks, then.’
The ranger grinned at Ash. His weather-beaten face became serious once more. ‘Just don’t say you haven’t been warned,’ he said with a false scowl. Then: ‘Well, there’s the cave you’ll be wanting. You can see the opening easily enough from here.’ Hard hat in hand, he waved it in the general direction ahead. ‘Take no notice of the smaller ones: they go nowhere.’
Ash peered towards the large black cave entrance, which was closer than he’d thought. That was a relief at least, for the journey down to the rocky shoreline had been arduous enough, by short flights of zig-zagging wooden steps. With a mute groan, he wondered how tiring it would be climbing back up.