Chapter Fifty-one
It might have been the crowds or the heat in the banqueting hall, but Lara felt her legs weaken and a hot flush come over her.
Luckily Flynn was now holding her arm. ‘Oh my God. They must know.’
‘Maybe they haven’t opened it yet,’ he said.
‘Then why have they brought it to the ball? Oh, no …’
The Lord of Misrule banged the gong again. ‘Pray silence for His Lordship!’
‘They’re not – oh God, please no – going to open it here. I have to do something.’
‘Hold on. Not now. You can tell them afterwards, but now would be the very worst time.’ He squeezed her hand to prevent her from dashing forward. ‘Trust me.’
‘I have to tell them.’
‘No. It’s too late. They probably won’t notice. Most people are pissed. Henry and Fiona won’t look at it closely. They’re too preoccupied.’ She slipped from his grasp and made her way around the to the side of the room.
A hush descended that seemed even more portentous because of the revelry and noise that had come before it.
‘As you all know, this is the anniversary of an important event in the history of Ravendale. Many centuries ago, King Henry, bestowed this treasure on the castle.’
Lara longed for magic powers so she could melt into the flagstones. Instead, she had to watch in horror as Henry removed the chalice from the box.
‘You could say that, throughout this time, our fortunes have depended on this small and rather humble looking piece of glass.’
She wondered if, at any moment, the chalice would spontaneously set itself on fire and start irradiating the people in the room like the Ark in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Perhaps that would be preferable to Henry suddenly discovering the chip in front of a hundred people and having a heart attack.
Why oh why hadn’t she confessed before? All her reasons for keeping quiet now seemed ridiculous.
‘Maybe that’s true. Some of my ancestors certainly believed it, but, you know, while this chalice is precious – indeed priceless – to our family—’
‘Don’t …’ Flynn warned, with a hand on her arm, having finally made it to her side.
Henry was on a roll. ‘While it is very precious, I know our fortunes will never depend on it.’ He held the chalice high like a tennis player who’d won Wimbledon. Convinced she could see the chip from metres away, Lara was sure it had grown bigger, possibly large enough to shatter in Henry’s hands.
‘Our future depends not on luck … but on you. You people here in this room and the many who have come before. The people who work here and volunteer here and love this place as we do. Tonight isn’t about us, or the Penhaligons, or even Ravendale, but a celebration of your hard work and dedication and love for the place.
‘We can never be the owners of Ravendale, we can only ever be custodians, along with you all. And on that note, I am delighted to announce that, over the Christmas break, our wonderful daughter Harriet, and her husband, Julian, have decided that the time is right for them to take over some of the reins. They will be moving to Ravendale this spring and jointly learning the ropes regarding running this property.’ Henry still had the chalice in one hand, holding it by the stem.
Lara wasn’t sure she’d breathed properly for the past half a minute.
Any impact and drama created by Henry’s dramatic declaration that one of his children would be taking over was lost in Lara’s terror of him noticing the damage to the base.
‘I hope you will all give them the same unstinting support you have always shown us. Now, all that remains is me to urge to raise your glasses to the future of Ravendale and to yourselves!’
Clutching the chalice in one hand, Henry accepted a glass of champagne from a waiter and raised his fizz and the chalice high in the air.
Cheers erupted amid cries of ‘hear, hear’ and thunderous applause. Then, as Henry thrust the chalice even higher into the air, grinning like a World Cup-winning captain, several things happened at once.
The chalice slipped, Flynn let go of her hand, his crutch clattered to the flagstones, and he dived forward.
There was a collective gasp, a shriek from Fiona, a cry from Lara, and Flynn lay on the floor, the chalice clutched to his chest.
‘Good God! How did that happen?’ Henry declared.
‘Because you’re tiddly, that’s why!’ Fiona said, rushing to Flynn’s aid.
Lara joined Fiona by Flynn’s side. ‘Are you OK?’
‘You poor man!’ Fiona said, taking the chalice from him and handing it to the page. ‘What about your knee?’
‘I – I think it’s OK,’ Flynn said, although Lara could see he was trying not to grimace in pain.
By this time, people were crowding around them, muttering and staring.
‘Is anyone hurt?’ Jazz asked, pushing her way to the front of the throng. ‘I’m a trained first aider.’
‘Are you hurt, Flynn?’ Lara asked, worried about him far more than the chalice.
‘Um. I – er …’ He pushed himself up onto his elbows. ‘I think I got away with it.’
Jazz and her husband helped him to his feet and Lara offered the crutch.
There was a sudden collective murmur of relief and then a round of applause.
‘You should play for the village cricket team!’ Henry said. ‘What a catch.’
‘Flynn’s in no fit state to play any kind of game, Henry. He could have seriously injured himself!’ Fiona said. ‘Now, let’s find you a seat while security put that bloody chalice back in the safe. Honestly, sometimes I think it’s more trouble than it’s worth.’
‘You don’t mean that, dear,’ said Henry, shamefaced. ‘But thank you for catching it, Flynn.’
‘You’re welcome,’ he said, trying not to wince. ‘And I’ll be fine.’
A few minutes later, Flynn was sitting in a corner of the hall with a drink and Lara by his side.
‘I don’t know how you did that,’ she said, her pulse rate gradually returning to normal.
‘Nor me. Actually, I made the wrong decision, didn’t I? If I hadn’t been so stupid as to save it, and it was smashed to smithereens, no one would have ever known about the – you-know-what.’
Lara sighed and took his hand. ‘I had thought of that, but I can’t wish the thing to be destroyed, not even if it would save me. No, I think the time has come to face the music. The sooner the better.’
‘Not until we have that dance,’ Flynn said, cupping her cheek with a warm hand. ‘I promised you that and nothing is going to ruin it. Even if I can only hold onto you and shuffle.’
Henry and Fiona left the ball at midnight, leaving most of the revellers still dancing.
‘We should go to bed too,’ Flynn said to Lara. ‘We have a big day in the morning. We need our strength.’
Her heart sank at the thought of her confession, but she was determined to do it. ‘You go back to the cottage. I need to say some goodbyes and thank a few people for helping to organise the ball.’
‘Promise you won’t be long?’ It was half plea, half threat.
‘I promise,’ said Lara. ‘Can you make it back to the cottage without falling over?’
He rolled his eyes. ‘I’ll try.’
She watched him hobble across the hallway where people were collecting their coats and saying their rather drunken goodbyes.
Music was still pumping out of the very un-medieval disco and a couple of dozen hardy souls, including Carlos and Neil, were throwing shapes on the dance floor. Jazz and Luke had got a taxi home an hour ago.
Lara lingered in the hall a few moments longer, heaved a sigh, and headed for the family apartments.