The Pupil by Caro Fraser

Author:Caro Fraser [Fraser, Caro]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, General, Mystery & Detective
ISBN: 9781857990638
Google: TDOKAgAAQBAJ
Barnesnoble:
Goodreads: 749949
Publisher: Orion
Published: 1993-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

It seemed to Anthony, when he awoke the following morning, that his brain had reached some hard-fought decision while he had slept. He knew, with a sudden certainty, that, given all the circumstances, he would have to tell Julia that for the time being at least he would not be able to go on seeing her. This realisation was largely the result of his acquired tendency – acquired through the years of adolescence and early manhood, when he began to perceive that only he, and no one else, would ever serve his interests – to detach himself from others in pursuit of his ambitions. He was aware that this affair of Julia, and the drain on both his finances and his reserves of pride, was distracting him from the attainment of his precious goal. He was conscious that the company of Julia and her friends – and now, blatantly, of Piers – was colouring his estimation of his own worth. He could not allow any notion of failure to taint him, no matter how bogus he might know it to be in reality.

He loved Julia. But Julia, like all people, wore many faces, and the one which he now saw most often – the public, socially agreeable face – was the one he liked least. The private, sweet, solitary face that he adored, he had seen little of recently. Perhaps, if he carried his resolve through, he might never see it again. For the moment, however, and in more than one sense, he could not afford Julia.

Lack of choice over the years had bred in him a sort of ruthlessness, the kind displayed by those who, in their paucity of options, know that once a decision is made, it is practicable only if put into effect without delay. And so he did not postpone the matter. After breakfast, he asked Julia to walk down to the river with him.

‘All right. Let’s get David – there’s a rowing boat down there, so maybe we could do some exploring.’

‘No, don’t ask David. I want to talk to you.’

Slightly surprised, Julia left the house with him and they walked in silence down the lichen-covered steps.

‘Well, what is it?’ she asked, as they reached the little wooden jetty at the bottom. ‘You look very grim, I must say.’ Julia felt faintly nervous; she wondered if he had seen her kissing Piers last night. Once was unlucky, but twice might seem a bit much.

Anthony said nothing for a moment, but sat down on the warm wooden planking, his knees drawn up before him, and looked out over the water.

‘Well,’ he said at last, reluctantly, ‘I’ve been thinking that maybe you and I should give things a rest for a while.’

‘Oh, don’t tell me you’re in a huff because of last night! I know you felt a bit out of it, but—’

‘No, I’m not in a huff about anything,’ interrupted Anthony, speaking quite matter-of-factly. ‘I just think that – well, things should stop.’ There was a pause, during which she looked at him curiously and with concern.

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