Chapter 7

Henry stayed where he was. Samantha walked slowly into the kitchen. Henrietta was indeed there. She opened her arms.

"Hallo, darling," she said softly.

Samantha fell into them with a sob. Henrietta held her.

"Henry warned me," she murmured. Samantha nodded but otherwise did not move just clung to her drawing on her strength and love.

Eventually they drew apart but continued to hold hands. Their eyes met and held. Samantha's were full of grief tinged with shame or fear. Henrietta's held no reproach, just love and concern.

"Don't be ashamed of yourself, darling," she said with the whisper of a smile, "and don't be afraid that we're going to criticise you. Daddy and I are quite sure that you've done what you have for a good reason."

Samantha's eyes cleared and she nodded but remained silent still gripping her mother's hands tightly.

Rupert had been waiting in his office. He found Henry still standing miserably in the hall and put an arm round his shoulders.

"Don't worry, old son," he whispered. "She'll get over it, probably quite soon. A lot of the problem will be guilt."

Henry looked at him questioningly. Rupert smiled, nodded, squeezed his shoulder and went into the kitchen. Henrietta turned Samantha towards him and she went into his arms.

"I'm sorry, Daddy, "she whispered.

"There's nothing to be sorry about, darling. These things happen. You haven't let us down and I'll bet you haven't let yourself down." He kissed the top of her head. "All you'll find here is love and support."

She tightened her hold on him. He rubbed her back and then prised her away from him. He smiled down at her.

"Even though it's a bit early, I think we all need a drink and you can tell us all about it."

Henry moved to her side and gently took her hand. She looked up gratefully at him and leant against him for a moment.

"Shall we stay here or take our drinks into the garden," asked Henrietta.

"Garden," said Rupert decisively. "We don't want to waste the fine weather."

"When you're ready, darling," said Henrietta when they were settled.

"It all started when we discovered we couldn't have children." Samantha went on to tell her parents what she had told Henry several months before. Henrietta looked pained, Rupert disdainful but neither said a word.

"When I got back to work last time Marty's secretary, Clare, came to see me and said that on two days during the week I'd been away when she had got back early from lunch the same girl from the typing pool had come out of Marty's office. The girl said she had been delivering some typing but Clare said she had not sent any typing down to the pool. Then when she went into Marty's office it smelt of sex. I thanked her but couldn't really believe that Marty would behave like that so put it to the back of my mind. Apart from that the first week home was fine. He was loving and gentle and fun. The next weekend though the fertility rites started again.

"I couldn't bear it and told him so at breakfast. He asked me if I was denying him his conjugal rights."

"Pompous ass!" muttered Rupert.

"I asked him yet again why he wouldn't believe the results of two tests and all he could say for the umpteenth time was that they were wrong. I lost my rag and asked him whether he would believe them if I went and got myself pregnant. He was furious. I thought for a moment that he was going to hit me. Anyway, it made no difference except that I put up a fight every time and he effectively raped me four or five times a day for the next week."

She buried her face in her hands and her shoulders shook. Henry went to her and put an arm round her shoulders.

"You don't have to go on, Sams," he said softly.

She shook her head. "Yes I do," she said fiercely. She did not bother to wipe her eyes and slowly the tears dried on her cheeks as she went on.

"After the rites were over he left me alone and we started going in to work in separate cars on several days because he said he was going to be working late. There were also days when he said that he wouldn't be joining me for lunch. I began to smell a rat, particularly when Clare told me that the girl from the typing pool had been up again on the days that he had been 'unable' to have lunch with me.

"I contacted a private eye and within a month he had irrefutable evidence of Marty having an affair with the typist and also another girl in the company on the evenings that he was working late. The bloody man was still trying to prove he could father a child and was doing exactly what I had offered to do which nearly made him hit me.

"I decided that that was that. I wasn't going to confront him as that would just result in an ugly row and possibly violence. I decided I had to leave and come home without him realising it. I went and told my departmental head who, needless to say, was horrified and whisked me up to see the CEO. Both of them were sweet and completely on my side. Between us we hatched out a plan. I would see a solicitor and file for divorce. When he was ready I would fly home on a business trip and he would serve the papers on Marty the following day. In the meanwhile the CEO, bless his heart, got onto the chairman, arranged a replacement for me and a job for me back in London. The only trouble was that that took rather longer than I would have liked otherwise I'd have been home a couple of months ago. Anyway, there it is and here am I."