Page 52 of Searching for Mr Tilney

‘Meet Randolph, our loyal and loving, but quite useless guard dog,’ he said, trying to rescue me from the dog that was licking me all over. ‘I can’t believe you’re actually here.’

Harry picked me up in his arms, swinging me round until I felt my feet whirling off the ground. I buried my face in his thick jumper and hugged him to make sure he was real. I couldn’t believe it either, and the thought of spending another week with Harry in a castle by the sea was utterly surreal.

‘I hope your journey wasn’t too awful,’ he said, putting me down at last, and picking up my case.

‘No, I enjoyed every second. Thank you so much for arranging everything so beautifully, and for my lovely dinner. I’ve never sat in First Class before, I could get used to it.’

‘I thought you might not think of eating in the rush to get away. I don’t think there’s anything quite as good as having one’s dinner on a train as the world speeds by.’

‘I loved it, Harry, and I’m so excited to be here.’

‘Well, I can’t take any credit for that. Even though he’s still very ill, my uncle wanted to make sure you knew you were very welcome. He’d heard all about you at Christmas, and he hadn’t forgotten, you see.’

‘He sounds very kind.’

‘Geraint Tate has his moments, but he’s never been an easy man to live with, though it can’t be much fun being constantly ill.’

‘I hope I shall be able to help you nurse him.’

‘We’ll see … come along and meet Elsa, she’s dying to see you and show you to your room. Unfortunately, there’s been a power cut, so it’s candles and torchlight this evening. It happens occasionally, and there’s nothing we can do except wait for it to be fixed.’

‘How marvellously gothic.’

‘I had a feeling you might enjoy it … at least once while you’re here. It can be very tedious, though I know your imagination will conjure up all sorts of horrors before we’ve found your chamber in the spookiest part of the castle. There’s also an old manservant I need to tell you about who has a habit of walking the battlements at night, not to mention the Grey Lady, and the White Knight, both headless, of course.’

I couldn’t decide if Harry was teasing or not at first, and when he shone the torch under his chin to make his features appear as ghoulish as possible, I almost screamed. But, I couldn’t be frightened for long. As we crossed the threshold into the great hall, I could see in the flickering lamplight and candlelight that here in the main quarters was a modern space with up to date furniture, with no sign of any ancient treasures or tapestries such as I’d imagined. Still, despite the lack of antiquities seen so far, happiness coursed through my being. What more could I wish for? A gothic castle, my darling Harry and my dear friend Elsa could only prove to be a winning combination for a fun filled time.

Chapter Twenty Six

Caroline

Nr Manorbier, Wales

May 1976

Elsa came rushing through the door and threw her arms round me. ‘It’s so lovely to see you, Caroline. I’m sorry the housekeeper can’t be here to welcome you, but she’s busy with my uncle, and anyway, I really wanted to help settle you in on your first night.’

‘Oh, goodness, the last thing I should want is to be any trouble at all. It’s so kind of you to think of me.’

‘You must be very tired too, Caroline,’ said Harry, running his fingers through his hair. ‘Listen, it’s late … I’ll leave you in Elsa’s capable hands to get settled and see you in the morning.’

Watching him dash off into the dark corridor with Randolph at his heels, he merely waved his hand before he disappeared. I was desperately disappointed. I didn’t want him to go - he hadn’t even kissed me, not even a peck on the cheek.

‘He’s so good with my uncle,’ said Elsa as if she were explaining his behaviour. ‘Uncle Geraint prefers to spend the nights awake, and catching up on sleep in the daytime. I think Harry is quite shattered after one night … our uncle can be very demanding.’

‘Oh dear, I didn’t realise … I shouldn’t have come to add to his workload,’ I said feeling ashamed I’d been so selfish. ‘He should be catching up on his sleep during the day.’

‘No, he couldn’t wait to see you, and neither could I. We’re going to share the nights between us, and catnap during the day when the nurse comes in. I would have done tonight’s shift, but Uncle Geraint insisted Harry do it, and we’re just trying to keep him happy. I’m sure everything will settle down as soon as my uncle’s health improves. Let me show you upstairs, and we can all meet, fresh as daisies in the morning.’

Following her up the wide wooden staircase, I thought it looked like any other belonging to a grand house, as far as I could tell in the dark. Elsa’s torch illuminated the wooden panelling on the walls; it was quite unlike the stone castle I’d imagined.

‘This part of the castle has all been refurbished,’ she said. ‘Most of it was initially modelled in Victorian times, though my uncle has a good eye for modern furniture in a classic sort of country house style. The oldest parts of the castle are on the other side of the quadrangle, still in ruins, as the money ran out for renovations a long time ago.’

‘I should love to see over it all,’ I said.

‘Well, I’m sure Harry will love showing you round. There are sublime views over the coast, and on a fine day there’s nowhere better to explore.’

We’d climbed several flights of stairs and finally turned into a winding corridor where smaller staircases led off in several directions. I had the feeling we were in an older part of the castle when we stopped.