Hollow Crown by David Roberts

Author:David Roberts
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9781841197746
Publisher: Constable & Robinson
Published: 2011-12-19T17:14:27+00:00

Edward woke with a blinding headache. He was in an ambulance and the clanging of its bell made his head hurt worse than ever.

‘Don’t move,’ a voice said. He looked up at the speaker expecting to see the calm, beautiful face of a nurse complete with starched uniform and wimple but instead he found himself gazing into the distinctly cross face of Verity Browne. He closed his eyes and groaned.

‘I can’t understand why it is, whenever you are anywhere near a political rally, you get yourself knocked out by one of our brave policemen. First it was the horse in Cable Street and now . . . a policeman said you assaulted him. You really musn’t assault policemen. They’re supposed to be on your side – you are a member of the ruling classes, aren’t you?’

Edward did not feel in the mood for irony and said, ‘I say, what happened back there?’

‘Loyal supporters of the cause took you for a blackshirt – that’s what happened. You hurt one poor fellow quite badly. Oh well, I suppose I must forgive you. Were you trying to protect me from the nasty men, diddums?’

‘No, I was not! I just . . . ouch, you’re supposed to soothe me not bang my head.’

‘Sorry, it’s not easy being soothing in a moving vehicle.’

‘Where are we going anyway?’

‘They thought you ought to go to hospital. I said you had a thick skull and would soon come round but I was overruled. Sorry.’

‘No, I probably need hospital treatment.’

‘Anyway, the interesting news is that guess who I saw in the middle of the rioting?’

‘Major Stille?’

‘How did you guess?’ Verity said, annoyed. ‘The point is that, once again he wasn’t with the blackshirts, as you might suppose, but close to them pretending to be one of us.’

‘One of us?’

‘A Party worker – a member of the proletariat. He swung a punch at one of Mosley’s thugs and I think it must have been some kind of signal because that was when the riot started.’

‘Give me some water and an aspirin, will you,’ Edward said, struggling into a sitting position.

‘I don’t think you ought to get up,’ Verity said doubtfully. ‘Concussion is a very tricky thing, you know. Even with a bean as thick as yours, you’ve got to be careful. I remember Tommie saying – when he was knocked out in some rugger match – that he had revelations of angels and whatnot for two weeks afterwards. In any case, it’s very discouraging for the ambulance people if their patients heal themselves. Hey, hold on! You’re pushing me over.’

‘No, I’m not,’ he said. ‘I’m kissing you. Patients always fall in love with their nurses. It’s the done thing.’

Whether it was the knock on the head or the scent of the girl so close to him but Edward was at last able to do what he had wanted to do for eighteen months and take her in his arms and kiss her. She struggled at first but then seemed to accept the inevitability of it and even began to return his kisses.

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