Chapter 79

A few days later Victoria came running into the house tears streaming down her face.

"Somebody's slashed Patch," she cried. "He's got a great wound on his left haunch and is limping."

Mark and Elspeth looked at her in alarm. She took no notice and rushed to the telephone and rang Toby Weatherspoon. He promised to be round within two hours.

"Who could have done it?" wailed Victoria. "I've no enemies. I haven't hunted with him. I haven't competed yet with him. Why should anyone do it?"

"There are perverts," said Mark.

"Maybe but I haven't heard of anything like that happening round here."

"Is it deep?"

"I don't know but he's limping."

"Well, that indicates that the muscles and tendons are still all right otherwise he'd have a hoof off the ground and be moving on three legs."

Victoria looked at him gratefully. "I do so hope you're right," she said.

Toby Weatherspoon was as good as his word. He examined Patch meticulously and pronounced him not seriously hurt. He then administered a general anaesthetic and stitched up the wound while Patch was lying on his side.

"There," he said when he was finished. "All sorted. Give him a couple of weeks and I'll whip the stitches out and he'll be as right as rain."

Victoria had been kneeling beside him throughout. Spontaneously she gave him one of her smiles and kissed him full on the lips.

Toby rebounded thunderstruck.

"Thank you, Toby dear," said Victoria. "You've no idea what this horse means to me."

Toby smiled. "I think I do. I don't ride him and I don't know him like you do but he's always struck me as pretty special."

Victoria told him the story and Toby nodded.

"Very, very special," he said.

At lunchtime David suddenly said, as part of the conversation, " I had to chase off some bloody photographer this morning."

"Coo!" said Serena. "Getting a bit stuffy, aren't you?"

"No," said David. "I don't mind people walking across our land as long as they behave themselves but people taking photographs of the farm and the house just upset me."

"Why?"

"Because I suspect they're doing it to make money and if that's the case they can jolly well ask permission or offer to pay me something. Anyway they might have caught your mother pruning the roses in the nude."

There were screams of laughter from the girls and even a smile from Mark.

"Hardly at the moment, darling," said Elspeth. "Too cold and the wrong time of year."

David smiled.

"Was he all long haired and bearded?" teased Serena. "Can't have hippies on our land."

David smiled. "No, poppet," he said. "He was actually quite well turned out. Almost military looking."

"What colour was his hair?" asked Victoria.

"Blond."

"Eyes?"

"Blue. Are you looking for a new man, Little Bit?"

"Not yet," said Victoria with a smile. "But it sounds as though he was quite good looking."

"I suppose," said David, "but personally I didn't take to him. He struck me as one of those slick fellows: all good looks, charm and bonhomie but I wouldn't trust him."

Victoria looked at Mark but got no reaction from him.

Two days later Victoria received a letter with two photographs. They were both of her and Toby. In the first Victoria was giving him one of her world-lighting smiles and their faces were within inches of each other. The second was of her kissing him. The letter, typed, said "I have more such intimate photographs which I will send you in the next few days."

Victoria recognised the photographs immediately. It was of her smiling at Toby after he had stitched Patch up and told her that all would be well and then her giving him a grateful kiss. She could not understand what other photographs there could be. She did not want to raise a storm so tucked them away and said nothing.

Sure enough, two days later another letter arrived with four more photographs. They were smaller than the first two. One showed Toby and a small blond girl eating somewhere, the second showed them from the back walking together with their arms round each other, the third showed them kissing and the fourth showed the blond bent over the bonnet of a car being taken from behind. Victoria was stunned. It was quite clearly Toby in all of them but the only resemblance of the blond to her was her size and her hair. There was no view of her face. The letter said, 'Unfortunately I could not get your face but your hair and your pettiteness indicate it was you, particularly after the previous photos I sent you. I am sure you would not wish your husband to see these. I suggest we meet to discuss the way forward. Please use your friend Toby to arrange this. As his future in his veterinary practice is at stake, he is more than happy to act as an intermediary.'

Victoria was stunned. That she should be the victim of attempted blackmail shocked her. It also offended her deeply. Under no circumstances would she have betrayed Mark however difficult he had and was being. Then her mind went back to David's remarks about the photographer and her premonition that she had dismissed as Mark showed no reaction. "Fitzmaurice!" she breathed. "He swore he'd get his revenge."