David S. Jones was born in London during The Blitz.

Upon leaving school at fifteen with nothing ore than a c!cling proficienc! certificate he tried various "obs. #t eighteen he "oined the $iddlese% &ire Brigade serving three !ears until eventuall! leaving for #ustralia on the ten pound assisted passage sche e. 'eturning so e !ears later he "oined the (ousehold )avalr! and served in $ala!a with the #r oured 'econnaissance S*uadron. Bac+ ho e in the U, after his tour of dut! overseas- he beca e part of the $ounted )ere onial S*uadron- based in ,nightsbridge- riding on several prestigious events- including the investiture of .rince )harles at )aernarvon. Upon leaving the #r ! he wor+ed at various "obs- ostl! as a carpenter but also driving truc+s. /ventuall! he found unli+el! e plo! ent as a personal bod!guard to an # erican illionaire and entrepreneur-

travelling throughout /urope. Upon reaching .ortugal he left this e plo! ent- 0fired1 et and arried his .ortuguese wife. David has four children fro that arriage- three living in .ortugal and one in the U,. (e later returned to London and "oined the London &ire and 'escue Service- serving for a further eleven !ears. 2t was during this ti e that he had the idea to develop the childrens character Fireman Sam- now an international success as a childrens T3 series. #fter sustaining a bac+ in"ur! David had to leave the &ire Service. 2t then beca e necessar! for hi to a+e a living b! doing so ething which did not re*uire ph!sical involve ent. This led to hi developing his writing s+ills. Upon his departure fro the fire service he returned to his beloved .ortugal- eventuall! building and anaging a highl! successful bar4restaurant co ple% in the #lgarve. Life then too+ a sadder path and his arriage failed. &ollowing his divorce and having custod! of the children he concentrated on bringing the up until the! had flown the nest. This was a dar+ and difficult period. 5nce the children had gone he decided to raise so e one! and live his life to the full. #fter selling his shares in Fireman Sam he obtained a s+ippers licence- bought an ocean going sailing boat- which he na ed Thankusam- and sailed it fro the U, to .ortugal and later to 6orth #frica. (e has continued to develop as a writer over the past !ears- and several of his ideas have been considered for T3 and fil both in the U, and # erica. (is latest venture Trevelyan is the result of a chance re7union with an old 8uards colleague who visited hi at his #lgarve ho e. (is st!le of writing and abilit! to develop a good stor! line a+es his wor+ hard to put down. Trevelyan is a stor!- which is a co pelling read with an! twists and turns that +eep the reader guessing until the final chapter.

'ead

ore9 http944www.david7s7"ones.co 4

David Jones

TREVELYAN
W
E L C O M E T O T H E W O R L D O F TREVELYAN

I C K

)op!right David Jones The right of David Jones to be identified as author of this wor+ has been asserted b! hi in accordance with section :: and :; of the )op!right- Designs and .atents #ct <=;;. #ll rights reserved. 6o part of this publication a! be reproduced- stored in a retrieval s!ste - or trans itted in an! for or b! an! eans- electronic- echanical- photocop!ingrecording- or otherwise- without the prior per ission of the publishers. #n! person who co its an! unauthorized act in relation to this publication a! be liable to cri inal prosecution and civil clai s for da ages. # )2. catalogue record for this title is available fro Librar!. the British

This is a wor+ of fiction. 6a es- characters- businesses- placesevents and incidents are either the products of the authors i agination or used in a fictitious anner. #n! rese blance to actual persons- living or dead- or actual events is purel! coincidental apart fro the obvious historical references. 2SB6 =:; <>=?@ ?>; @ www.austin acaule!.co &irst .ublished 0AB<@1 #ustin $acaule! .ublishers Ltd. AC )anada S*uare )anar! Dharf London /<> CLB .rinted and bound in 8reat Britain

2 a delighted that !ou have ta+en possession of a cop! of ! novel. 2t is ! greatest desire that !ou will en"o! the stor!. This wor+ can be described as a boo+ full of facts into which is woven a fabric of fiction or alternativel! a wor+ of fiction that is studded with fact. 2t is for !ou to decide which is which. David S. Jones )ontact the author9 david"onesEsapo.pt

1 The New Recruit

Dhen the li ping electric train finall! slowed to a halt at )a berle! station and the doors opened- 6ic+ +new i ediatel! that the tall- upright- barrel7chested ilitar! figure standing on the platfor was waiting for hi . The figure was wearing an i aculatel! pressed unifor whose creases loo+ed as if the! ight have been carved fro ahogan!. # cri son sash crossed the huge chest. 5n his upper ar s were three chevrons denoting his ran+- sergeantF (is red and blue forage cap had a s all shin! blac+ pea+ edged with brass- shielding the blac+ arble e!es and practicall! touching the bridge of his 'o anes*ue nose. 6ic+- pulling hi self up to his full height- and putting on his ost winning s ile- wal+ed hurriedl! up to this i posing figure- whose e!es were barel! visible shielded b! the severe angle of the pea+ of his cap. The sergeant- 6ic+ thought- was built li+e the proverbial bric+ convenience with a broad- "et7 blac+ clipped oustache and a s*uare "aw that "utted forward in a co endable i itation of Desperate Dan. 6ic+ e%tended his right hand- but the sergeant ignored it. 8ood orning- Sergeant- 2 6icholas Trevel!an. 2 so sorr! about G but he was interrupted b! a tre endous roar that ade hi ta+e a hast! two steps bac+wards. The ferocious 8laswegian accent was li+e a blistering wave of heat fro a bo b blast. )olour sergeantH Thats what 2 a I )olour Sergeant $c8arrigal and dont !ou forget itH 2 reall! sorr! but ... $r Trevel!an- !oure lateH But the train was ... S(UT U.- $' T'/3/LJ#6H Join the other recruits waiting for !ou in the car par+ b! the inibus. 2 surprised the! havent died of old age b! nowH Just start pra!ing 2 let

!ou co e to Sandhurst- and dont decide to send !ou bac+ to Daterloo on the ne%t train. Because 2 ight- 2 "ust ightH 2 ... Be *uiet- $r Trevel!anH &ortunatel! for !our future health and career- 2 dont happen to be !our particular troops colour sergeant- but should 2 ever have the isfortune of bu ping into !ou again- !ou will address e as Staff and nothing else. 2s that clearF Jes. Jes- whatF Jes- Staff. 6ic+ hurried with his case to the nearb! station car par+. # regulation Sandhurst inibus stood waiting theresurrounded b! seven other- apprehensive7loo+ing potential officer cadets. 6ic+ cli bed aboardK loo+ing as nonchalant as he could I which at that o ent wasnt ver! nonchalant at all I hoping no one had heard the frantic e%change- which had ta+en place on the platfor . 6ic+ couldnt help thin+ing- though- that with the colour sergeants penetrating roar still ringing in his ears- there was little doubt that ost of )a berle! had been priv! to the tongue7lashing that hed "ust endured. That orning- when 6ic+s real life began- he was twent!7 one !ears- five onths and a few da!s old. Si% feet two- sturd! and athletic- hed pla!ed scru half for his universit!s rugb! tea . (is dar+ brown hair was thic+ and grew fastK on the orning he left for Sandhurst he +new he needed a haircut- but he also +new that Sandhurst would soon be dealing in its traditional efficient wa! with that particular re*uire ent. 2f !ou got up close to 6ic+ !ou noticed that his left e!e was a clear blue- the right one dar+ brown. So ething that 6ic+ didnt thin+ about ver! often. (e could hope to be a second lieutenant in the British #r ! at the end of the fort!7four wee+ )o issioning )ourse he was about to e bar+ on at Sandhurst- if he could stic+ it out to the end.

Beco ing an ar ! officer had been his drea ever since he was eight. Bac+ then- hed been living close b! Dindsor )astle with his other #nnabelle and !ounger sister Sophie while his father 8eorge had been awa! on ilitar! service. Dindsor was the venue for an! ilitar! parades and 6ic+s other had ta+en hi to see the whenever she could. The soldiers- with their perfect arching for ations and splendid scarlet and gold cere onial unifor s- had all ade an indelible i pression on 6ic+s !ounger incarnation. That i pression had led to 6ic+ boarding a train that $onda! orning in #ugust at B=.@? at Londons Daterloo station. This was the dela!ed B=.<; fro Daterloo to )a berle!. The /nglish su er was proving as unpredictable as ever and the gre! s+! above was heav! with rain. Dhats the atter- a voice said- didnt !our u ! wa+e !ou up on ti eF The other cadets fidgeted nervousl!. 6ic+ cast a *uic+ glance at the rearview irror where he spotted his s ir+ing protagonist at the bac+ of the coach. The s ir+ gave wa! to an irritating nasal laugh. Some inbred Hooray Henry with more money than sense 6ic+ thought. (e felt li+e telling this aristocrat that it was hardl! his- 6ic+s- fault- if London 'egional 'ailwa!s couldnt get its act together and its leaves off the line- but with a now cap7less and fairl! terrif!ing shaven7headed $c8arrigal driving as if the vehicle had personall! offended hi - 6ic+ was certain that sa!ing an!thing at all to the aristocrat would be a seriousl! rash plan. The nasal laugh assaulted 6ic+s ears again as the inibus pulled out of the car par+ and headed for its destination Sandhurst- the world7fa ous 'o!al $ilitar! #cade !. 2f this is the wa! !ou are intending to behave then !ou would do better to turn around right now and go ho e- added the aristo. # second strangel! effected voice added support to the co plainant.

Disgwaseful- "ust disgwaseful. The! arrived at the entrance to Sandhurst a few inutes later. $c8arrigal nosed the vehicle up to the ain gate securit! barrier- carefull! placed his treasured cap bac+ on his head- eticulousl! ad"usted it and got out of the vehicle. (e wal+ed over to the securit! cabin- had a *uic+ word with one of the soldiers on dut!- and waited until a bo b search of the vehicle had been co pleted. Then- stic+ing his head into the inibus- $c8arrigal bellowed9 /3/'J56/ 5UTH The eight officer cadets scra bled out of the bus- tripping over one another in their eagerness not to be last. The! for ed so e se blance of a straight line in front of their tor entorwho waited briefl! for the to settle before he spo+e again. 6ow- gentle en- growled the colour sergeant- this side of that barrier !ou belong to !our others. But once !ou cross that line there- !ou will belong to Her Majestys Forces. $c8arrigal stared at the all in turn- his e!es practicall! boring into their s+ulls it see ed- he allowed hi self the hint of a grin adding9 2t ight have crossed !our inds as to wh! such a char ing chap as !self has been given the privilege of bab!7sitting !ou little orphans this orning. Dell- its because 2 considered to be a ussycat that wont upset !ou little darlings too uch before !ou eet the other instructors who wor+ here. The! a+e me see li+e an #68/LH he over e phasised the end of the sentence for a%i u effect. Sergeant $c8arrigal stuc+ out his vast barrel of a chest as if- rather than being an angel- he was the prize tur+e! at an award7winning tur+e!7far . So 2 suggest that if an! of !ou thin+ that perhaps !ouve ade a $2ST#,/ and want to go ho e to !our $U$$2/Snows the ti e to do soH Because once !ou cross that line- !our feet shall not touch the ground for the ne%t fort!7four wee+sH $c8arrigal clasped his hands behind his bac+ and roc+ed fro the heel to the toe of his i aculatel! polished bootsstaring above their heads en"o!ing the o ent. 6o one said a word.

2 deduce fro !our silence- gentle en that !ouve all decided to allow e and ! colleagues to nurse !ou for the rest of !our ti e here at Sandhurst (olida! )a p. 'ight- now 2 re*uire !ou all to for up in a straight line on the other side of that barrier. These last words were said in an al ost fatherl! tone. ! think his barks worse than his bite" 6ic+ thought- or at least he did for the two or three seconds of co parative silence before the air e%ploded as the colour sergeants dulcet tones assaulted the sound barrier. 8entle en- ! regi ent is the Scots 8uardsH 2 warn !ou now not to put so uch as one little pin+ie out of line. 6owstand at ease if !ou +now what that is- and wait there. $c8arrigal strode heavil! bac+ to the inibus- too+ off his forage cap and got in. (e lovingl! placed the prized cap on the engine cover- started the engine and drove the bus past the now open barrier- pulling up alongside the bewildered recruits. Thin+ing that it was e%pected- the! all bro+e for ation and oved forward as one to cli b bac+ into the bus. The sound barrier ripped open again. D(/'/ T(/ (/LL D5 J5U T(26, J5U'/ 85268F The cadets turned fro one to another- hoping so eone would sa! so ething that would appease this ad an- but none dared to spea+. J5U D56T #)TU#LLJ T(26, T(#T J5U #'/ 85268 T5 '2D/ 26 (/'/ D2T( $/- D5 J5U8/6TL/$/6F !elled $c8arrigal. &#LL 26 B/(26D T(/ BUS. 65DH #nd 8od help an!one who 2 spot in the irror dropping behindH 2t had begun to rain. The distance fro the barrier to the ain induction bloc+ was all of a ile- and b! the ti e the! arrived- ever!one was prett! uch soa+ed- partl! fro the rain and partl! fro the sweat pouring fro even the fittest. 6ic+ and the aristo were deter ined to beat each other. 2t was obvious to 6ic+ that the aristo had *uic+l! decided he disli+ed hi intensel!- and 6ic+ wholeheartedl! returned the feeling. Both began to tire towards the end and fell bac+ fro

leading the other en to finish nec+ and nec+ in the iddle of the pac+. $c8arrigal put on his forage cap with all the po p of the .ope donning his papal itre. 65D #LL 5& J5U L26/ U.H Dhen 2 give !ou the order- run at the double to that brown stone building !ou see over there- where !oull be et b! people who- unli+e edont have a +ind disposition. So dont give the an! bac+chatH 65D $53/H $c8arrigals final co and proved re ar+abl! effective in a+ing ever!one disappear at lightning speed. #t the brown building- after a cursor! introduction to his platoon colour sergeant- an angular Delsh an called /vans6ic+ devoted hi self to rushing fro one appointed destination to the ne%t as swiftl!- and with as little fuss- as he could anage. (e received his ar ! nu ber and plastic na e tag- then hurried to his classroo where he ade sure that he blended into the bac+ground while his new platoon co ander ade clear to ever!one e%actl! what was e%pected of the . #fter the briefing- 6ic+ returned to his roo to conte plate the i pending realit! of the harsh regi e hed volunteered for and was about to e bar+ on. Li+e so an! before hi his initiation into ilitar! life had been harsh- he could hardl! help wondering if hed ade the right decision. (e had a prett! good idea of what the first- notoriousl! tough- five wee+s of the )o issioning )ourse would be li+e6ic+ was +een to a+e the ost of the onl! decent nights sleep he thought he was li+el! to get for the best part of the ne%t five wee+s. #s things turned out- he was right.

2 Getting Stuck In
# gre! drizzle greeted the the ne%t orning. The da! started at BC.BB with a road run- followed b! a rushed brea+fast in the coo+house- after which ever!one lined up outside the entrance to the torture cha ber where the Sandhurst barber plied his dreaded trade. #fter ta+ing their turn in the barbers chair- the! ruefull! rubbed their newl! ac*uired haircuts. Through what had now beco e persistent rain the! hurried to the *uarter asters stores where the! gathered the ountains of +it and assorted unifor s that were to see the through their training. 6ic+ then hurried bac+ to his *uarters to drop off his +it before he had to attend another briefing. (is uscles ached as he held the huge pile of unifor s in his outstretched ar s. (e caught up with a s all group of cadets ahead of hi and was about to overta+e the when his foot san+ into a rut in the path- which had beco e disguised b! the downpour and he tripped and lunged forward in an atte pt to regain his footing. 6ic+s clothes and e*uip ent flew fro his ar s in an arc as he tripped. The heav! steel7heeled drill boots- no longer resting on top of the +it- spun through the air as if in a slow7 otion fil se*uence. 2n front- in response to the scuffling behind and his uffled !ell- a fellow recruit turned his head to see what was happening. The heel of the heav! right7foot drill boot caught the recruit s*uarel! on the chee+bone- before the boot so ersaulted onto the udd! grass beside the path. 6ic+ pic+ed hi self up fro the ground where hed landed. Surve!ing his scattered +it- he despondentl! started pic+ing up the cru pled- udd! effects- unaware that his boot had hit a

fellow recruit. #s he reached out- an ar grabbed his shoulder and a voice snarled. 2f !ouve left a ar+ on e- !ou fu bling idiot- 2ll a+e !ou pa!. 2t was the aristocrat who was the recruit that 6ic+ had encountered in the inibus whod got the boot in his face. (is fine7boned face- e%pressionless blue e!es and ood! gri ace were ore than e orable he glared at 6ic+. 2ve had enough of !our a ateur fu bling fro the o ent !ou arrived- d!ou understandF Joure not going to last five inutes here if !ou go on li+e this- and if !ou do- b! so e iracle get an! further- 2ll see to it that life is as unco fortable as possible for !ouH Jour blood! sort are alwa!s trouble. #nd b! the wa!- one of !our contact lenses is a different colour fro the other one. The aristocrat hurried awa!- blood seeping through the fingers that he held over the wound on his chee+ as another recruit- with a weasel featured face- started pic+ing up the +it of the in"ured an after placing his own in a neat pile on the path. Jou certainl! +now how to go out of !our wa! to a+e fwiends- dont !ouF s ir+ed this new arrival at 6ic+. Than+s for the advice9 who are !ouF 6ic+ as+ed the unwelco e co entator whose abilit! to pronounce the r sound was a tad *uestionable. Dho a 2F (ugo De Lisle- a good fwiend of Twistwa . Dhos Twistwa F Twistwa Drath7Bonha . 5h- 2 see- said 6ic+. Jou ean Tristra F Thats what 2 said9 Twistwa . The Dath7Bonha s have been officers in the Bwitish ar ! for ore than three centuwies. (avent !ou heard of 8eneral Sir $ichael Dath7 Bonha - Twistwa s fatherF 5r the even ore illustwious &ield $arshal #nthon! Dath7Bonha F The! both so ehow escaped ! notice- said 6ic+. Dell- the! shouldnt have done. The &ield $arshal was Twistwa s gwandfather. # we ar+able and glowious ilitaw! an- and a *uac+ polo pla!er in his da!.

So he was a weall! good horse7wider- was heF another voice en*uired- fro behind 6ic+. 6ic+ glanced round and saw a an who he hadnt seen a ong the group of cadets in the bus. The fellow had as+ed De Lisle the *uestion in a friendl! 6ewcastle accent- as if he were genuinel! interested in the answer- and now he loo+ed at De Lisle in a good7hu oured wa!- as if he regarded hi as a purel! co ic character- which was fair enough reall!. The new arrival had short blac+ hair following his co pulsor! visit to the barber. (e also broad shoulders and uscular ar s. (e was a couple of inches shorter than 6ic+- but 6ic+ could tell at once that the 8eordie would be ore than capable of loo+ing after hi self. De Lisle gave a loud sigh- loo+ed hard at the new arrivalsaid- !ou widiculous pwoletawian- (eligan- then strode offstaggering under the burden of the two piles of +it. 6ic+ glanced at the 8eordie. Than+s- ate. Joure welco e. Thought !ou could use so e help. 2 Steve (eligan. 2 in !our platoon. Dant so e ore friendl! adviceF .lease. Shift this stuff double *uic+ and a+e trac+s for )olour Sergeant /vans before !our new budd! and his fwiend gets in first and start telling tales. 6ic+ and got Steve hurriedl! got going. 2 dont see to be starting off too well- 6ic+ had to ad it. See s li+e thats putting it ildl!- ate. Listen- 2ve co e up through the ran+s so 2 prett! uch +now the score alread!. Dind !our nec+ in and dont ruffle too an! feathers in !our first wee+. 2ll tr! not to- 6ic+ replied. Joure right. 2d better go and do so e serious grovelling. See !ou later I if 2 dont end up in solitar! confine ent. 6ic+ trudged bac+ to his *uarters with the sodden e*uip ent- then ade his wa! to )olour Sergeant /vanss office- +noc+ed on the door and entered at the bellowed co and. #s he stood to attention- he was painfull! aware of the uddied picture he ust be presenting- and b! the loo+ on

the colour sergeants face he could tell that Tristra Drath7 Bonha had alread! been in to report hi . Joure a sorr! e%cuse for a cadet- $r Trevel!an- /vans said- in his singsong Delsh accent- though his tone see ed to 6ic+ one of disappoint ent rather than anger. Deve hardl! got !ou in a unifor and !oure being accused of assaulting a fellow recruitH 6e%t ti e !ou decide to rearrange so eones features- tr! and a+e sure its not so eone as prett! as $r Drath7Bonha - will !ouF (ell need a fair nu ber of stitches in that wound and we dont thin+ hes ver! happ! about his first battle scarH 2 ver! sorr! about what happened- but it was actuall! an accident- )olour- said 6ic+. Jes- well whatever it was- "ust get out of here and a+e sure !our +it there is clean and read! for inspection first thing to orrow orning. Jes- )olour- said 6ic+- and left the office- feeling hu iliated. 6ic+ hurried to change- and onl! "ust ade it into the lecture on ti e. (e could hardl! fail to notice the platoon co anders withering loo+. 2t was going to be a long da!- 6ic+ thought- his onl! co fort being the sight of Drath7Bonha - as he entered the lecture roo shortl! afterwards- sporting a one7inch raised wound on his chee+- with stiff stitches bristling along its length. Drath7Bonha shot 6ic+ a veno ous glance. 6ic+ was a practical and prag atic an and having an alcoholic father had given hi plent! of practice at a+ing the best of things. 6ic+ i ersed hi self in the dail! life of Sandhurst. (e +new plent! about the 'o!al $ilitar! #cade ! even before he "oined it. Sandhurst was a world7renowned training ground for potential officers who would eventuall! lead a variet! of ar ies spanning the globe. The institute stood in seven hundred acres of countr!side- boasting pla!ing fieldswoods and la+es- which were the locations of the rigorous

progra e of training that had onl! "ust begun for the latest inta+e at the #cade !. The 5ld )ollege building I the splendid wide- whiteuch7photographed ain building I had been built bac+ in <;<A. The ain acco odation buildings I 6ew )ollege and 3ictor! )ollege I were less i pressive e%ternall! but 6ic+ found the co fortable enough. (ed been e%pecting fairl! Spartan acco odation so there was no shoc+ factor. 2t was the 5ld )ollege building that was ho e for 6ic+ and the other graduate recruits throughout the intensive training period- designed to transfor each one into an officer and I potentiall! I a gentle an. /ver! wa+ing hour was cra ed with vigorous activities ai ed at a+ing a soldier out of a civilian. &ortunatel!- Drath7Bonha was in a different training group for ost activities- and 6ic+ anaged to push hi to the bac+ of his ind. The five wee+s of the initial training phase of the )o issioning )ourse were rec+oned to be e*uivalent to the twent!7one wee+s a private soldier ta+es to reach a si ilar standard of drill. These wee+s passed with a relentless concoction of ph!sical training- lectures- weapon training- drill and ore drill. Life was one hectic rush fro one session to another- changing into a different t!pe of unifor for al ost ever! lesson. 6ic+s platoon consisted of twent!7two en and two wo en. /ach recruit +new fro the start that so e of the wouldnt a+e it to the endK a percentage of their nu ber would fall b! the wa!side due to inabilit!- lac+ of talentunpopularit! or "ust because the! realised that ar ! life wasnt for the after all. &riendship7for ing with the platoon was rapid and even frenetic- as +nowing how tric+! and stressful these earl! wee+s could be- ever!one wanted an all!- and ideall! a few of the . Steve (eligan and 6ic+ ver! soon beca e fir buddies. The! had *uic+l! realised the! had had uch in co on and shared si ilar aspirations. 6ic+ was particularl! grateful for the advice Steve offered based on his previous e%periences in

the ran+s. #s the! were the two who ca e fro ore ordinar! bac+grounds- this created a bond between the . Drath7Bonha and De Lisle also appeared to have paired up although the relationship was ver! uch De Lisle pla!ing Dobin 0no- 6ic+ thought- correcting hi self- #obin1 to Drath7 Bonha s Bat an. 6ic+ thought that the weasel wa!s of De Lisle were the perfect co ple ent to Drath7Bonha s strutting air of supre ac!. The training was tough. The long established ilitar! regi es ai was to ta+e en and wo en fro all bac+grounds- brea+ the and I if the! were ade of the right stuff I rebuild the as efficient leaders of soldiers. Ti e in the classroo s and lecture hall was a welco e brea+ fro the hours spent on the parade ground- assault courses- firing ranges and on7road runs. &inall!- once the ultra7gruelling first five wee+s were over with their BC.BB starts- punishing road runsurderous obstacle courses- rushed eals- lac+ of sleep and endless- endless brain wor+ in the classroo s and after the platoon had been inspected on the drill s*uare and had passed the assess ent- the! were given a long wee+end leave. $ost headed for London and hopefull! so e fun as the! had been deprived of an! for of off7ca p distraction during the initial five wee+s. B! the ti e those first five wee+s were up- the cadets were beginning to show signs of specialist interests. 3arious ar ! units started courting cadets whose talents the! thought ight serve the ost usefull!. Those showing a particular flair for engineering- especiall! those having attained an appropriate degree alread! as a prere*uisite- were- for e%a ple- hunted down b! the recruit ent officers fro units li+e the 'o!al /ngineers- 'o!al /lectrical and $echanical /ngineers and the 'o!al Signals. 6ic+ was starting to get seen as so eone showing pro ise for odern tactical warfare in the infantr!. The #rg!le and Sutherland (ighlanders noticed hi and started to ta+e an interest- sending one of their recruiters to eet 6ic+ and as+ hi about his career plans. The o ent that happened- all other contenders for his talents fell b! the wa!side as far as

6ic+ was concernedK he was ore than delighted to have the opportunit! of a+ing his career in this fa ous regi ent. 6ic+ and Steve also de onstrated a health! co petitive spirit in the pursuit of wo en. Dinning girlfriends was an i portant sportK it provided !et another wa! to prove the selves. The! were both still !oung enough not to realise that love could hurt. The endless cleaning of +it was a ritual pla!ed out ever! evening. Steve and 6ic+ got into the habit of doing this together so that the! could use the ti e to chat about the da!s events. Steve- do !ou re e ber the first da! when 2 crac+ed Tristra s face with ! bootF Blood! right- 2 doH 2t ade ! da!- no- actuall! ! wee+H (e laughed. So 2 did what Ti oth! suggested and loo+ed up the Drath7Bonha fa il! tree. Dont tell e the! are si% generations of fish erchants fro Billingsgate- he *uipped. 6o !ou daft prat. The! are practicall! blue blooded. Dell !ou would +now all about that given that !ou spilled so e of it for hi H Their fa il! tree goes bac+ centuries- alwa!s ilitar!ver! i pressive. There appears to have been a Drath7Bonha co anding British troops since the ti e of )harles 22. So where does that put !ou- 6ic+!7bo!F said Steve- a little ore seriousl!. 2 would sa! in deep shit as Tristra s father is a serving 8eneral. (e ight be a 8eneral but he cant actuall! do !ou an! har G 2 dont thin+- he added a little unconvincingl!. 2 dont +now wh!- 6ic+- but !ou certainl! do see to ruffle Tristra s feathers without even tr!ing- he laughed. # da! doesnt pass without hi finding so ething to dig at !ou for and that toad- Ti oth!- is right behind hi with his nose up his arse. Steve was a+ing an atte pt to ta+e the sting out of his discover!.

Jep- 2 cant thin+ wh! he has ta+en it upon hi self to have this vendetta against e. 2ts al ost an obsession with hi - 6ic+ replied. 2ts a ca paign that isnt helped b! the encourage ent of that little turd Ti oth!. 2ts a !ster! to e as to how he ever passed the entrance e%a ination with such a speech i pedi ent- .ondered Steve. (e will be the butt of a lorr! load of piss ta+ing when he gets to his unfortunate regi ent- he added. LJou are forgetting the illustrious 8eneral $ontgo er!! friend who had a si ilar speech proble which didnt hold up his pro otion prospects. #dded 6ic+ with a snigger. 2t appears to e that Ti oth!s tongue is far too large for his outh which is the cause of his unfortunate predica ent. #dded Steve with the authorit! of an ear nose and throat specialist. #h professor thats where !our prognosis falls down. 6ic+ stro+ed his chin with his left hand whilst pointing at Steve with his right. 2 a of the opinion that it is in fact *uite the contrar!. The unhapp! cadet of who !ou spea+ has a *uite nor al size tongueK the proble lies with the di ensions of his headwhich is too s all to acco odate the tongue. Dith the banter over the! carried on with their +it cleaning both wondering what ight happen ne%t in the Trevel!an vs. Drath Bonha saga. The training was tough but e%hilarating- and after their platoon passed off the Drill S*uare- the! were given a long wee+end leave. /ver!one headed off hopefull! to find so e fun as the! had been deprived of an! for of off7ca p distraction during this initial period. The occasional s+ir ish with Drath7Bonha had +ept things interesting- but generall! 6ic+ did his best to +eep out of Tristra s wa!. Despite Drath7Bonha s initial blusteringhe had fa il! traditions to aintain and with a little help fro his )olour Sergeant- certainl! showed that he had abilit! in his *uest for the elusive 5fficers pips.

Ti e in the classroo s and lecture hall was a welco e brea+ fro the hours spent on the parade ground- assault courses and on7road runs. There were an! acade ic as well as ph!sical lessons and the acade ic side of the course was generall! underta+en b! civilian tutors. /ver!one was re*uired to give several lectures when the rest of the platoon would be the audience. &inall!- when the debate was thrown open for discussion- an opportunit! to criticize was entered into with enthusias . 2t was Tristra s turn to give his lecture- which he did with all his usual bluster. #fter all- tal+ing to the troops was so ething that was in his genes. (is tal+ on the spread of the British / pire was actuall! ver! well done. #s the lecture drew to a close- +nowing that it had gone well- he was unable to resist the opportunit! to slip in a snipe at 6ic+. #nd so fro this great legac!- institutions such as the one we are attending at this o ent were born. (ere an atte pt is ade to a+e an 5fficer and a gentle an fro even the lowest aterial- he said- s ugl!. # discernible groan went around the roo and Steve and 6ic+ loo+ed at each other and s iled- +nowing that the pointed re ar+ was obviousl! ai ed at the . Dho would answerF 6ic+ decided that it had to be hi . 8old braid and fine unifor s dont necessaril! a+e a good 5fficer- he said. Tristra s face was turning decidedl! red as 6ic+ stole his thunder. 2t had tripped off the tongue *uite nicel! 6ic+ decided. (e could see that Tristra was ta+en abac+ so he added another analog! that see ed to fit the occasion *uite nicel!. #nd as our illustrious forefather- the Du+e of Dellington stated- M2f a dog sleeps in a stable it doesnt a+e it a horseHN There was a cheer fro the other )adets none of who - apart fro Ti oth!- thought too highl! of Tristra who b! this ti e was fu ing. 6ic+ e%pected a barrage fro the spea+er but another voice intervened and he was grateful to be spared the conflict. Jour re ar+s are nothing but se%ist- shouted Louisa #ldridge who was one of the fe ales in the platoon and renowned for her fe inist viewpoint.

$n %fficer and a &entleman indeedH (ow chauvinistic can !ou getF (ave the two wo en in !our platoon suddenl! beco e invisibleF Jou will need to choose !our words ore carefull! when !ou spea+ to !our soldiers when !ou get to !our regi ent- or suffer the conse*uences of a tribunal- Sall! fu ed. 6ic+ was grateful for her intervention- which too+ Tristra s attention awa! fro hi as he s*uir ed to get out of a self7 ade tight spot. (e was not a happ! an and although it was Louisa who had reall! put the boot in- there was no den!ing that 6ic+ was the real focal point of his anger. 6ic+ beca e intensel! focused on the dail! de ands of the course- and the overall ob"ectives of his training. 2f he could strip awa! the unhapp! events caused b! TD7B- then his ti e at Sandhurst could have been close to id!lic. (is +nowledge of $ilitar! (istor! was so ething that stood hi in good stead. (is love of rugb! was also ver! usefulK soon he beca e an i portant presence on the rugb! field and ended up captaining the #cade ! tea . /lsewhere he proved hi self during the de anding outdoor activities. Steve atched hi stride for stride- and the hard edge of co petition between the two spurred the on to an i pressive catalogue of perfor ances in the field as the )adets were pushed fro one punishing e%ercise to the ne%t. 2t was at about this period of the training- when the! were beginning to show signs of specialist interests that various #r ! units started courting )adets who the! thought ight serve the ost usefull!. Those showing a particular flair for engineering- having got an appropriate degree alread! as a prere*uisite- were- for e%a ple- hunted down b! the recruit ent 5fficers fro units li+e '/$/- The 'o!al /ngineers- and The 'o!al Signals. 6ic+ de onstrated pro ise for e%pertise in odern tactical warfare in the infantr!. The #rg!le and Sutherland (ighlanders noticed hi and started to 2t beca e apparent that- e*uipped with his degree in $odern (istor!- 6ic+ was showing ta+e an interest. #ll other contenders for his talents fell b! the wa!side- as he was ore than delighted to a+e his career in this fa ous regi ent.

Drath7 Bonha s constant hounding had beco e an obsession with hi and was a constant nagging thorn in his side which eant that an! ti e spent awa! fro his tor entor was indeed *ualit!.

3 Stanford Manor
2t was close to si% ocloc+ on a &rida! evening in late Septe ber- a little ore than a onth and a half after 6ic+ had ade his first "ourne! to Sandhurst- the sun had alread! set. (e and Steve (eligan- in Steves ancient and battered blue &ord &iesta- were within a few iles of the pillared entrance to the Stanford fa il!s estate. So- e%pecting to see an i prove ent in !our love life this wee+endF Steve en*uired- as the! sped through the dar+ Susse% countr!side. Dell- !es- 2 beginning to thin+ it ight be nice to see so eone for ore than a couple of evenings. 2 fanc! tr!ing to find a lad! whos going to phone e ost evenings- so eone reall! lovel!- who 2 can go awa! for wee+ends with. Joure going soft in !our old ageH Dhat a+es !ou thin+ an!one with half a brain is going to want to hang out with !ou for longer than a couple of beersF Jouve got no one!- no car and !oure not even good7loo+ing. Steve s iled- /ven !our e!es dont atch. (e! it didnt do David Bowie an! har and so e girls find it char ing. Besides- ight 2 re ind !ou that !oure the one whos had so an! Dear John letters !ou could paper !our ceiling with the F #n!wa!- said Steve- neither !ou or e are li+el! to score this wee+end. Dh! on earth notF There arent enough zeros in our ban+ balances. But Steve pushed his foot harder against the acceleratorall the sa e. Jonathan Stanford- 6ic+s roo ate- had "oined Steve and 6ic+s circle less than a fortnight ago- but friendships developed fast at Sandhurst. Jonathan was a well7spo+en-

friendl!- war 7hearted gu!- and while his parents were obviousl! wealth! Jonathan was oddl! unaffected b! their wealth. The fa il!s one! had resulted fro Jonathans father getting into obile phones in the <=;Bs- when obile phones werent fantasticall! popular- having endured he was well positioned to triu ph in the business at a ti e when the! were. .assing through the outer blac+ elaborate wrought iron gates of the Stanfords estate heralded the start of a drive winding through dar+ fields and paddoc+s for half a ile. The house- 6ic+ saw- in the bright lights that flooded the car par+ at the front of the house- was surrounded b! a variet! of topiar!- which included a neatl! sculptured obile phone- a cha pagne bottle- a pheasant and a sal on. 6ic+ noticed about half a dozen e%pensive cars I including a dar+ blue Bentle! sports convertible- a bright red .orsche and a purple Jag I par+ed in front of the house as the! drew up. Steve par+ed his &iesta inconspicuousl! close to an ad"acent stable bloc+. (e and 6ic+ wal+ed towards the housetheir banter obscuring their trepidation. #s the! approachedJonathan bounded down the elaborate steps of his fa il! ho e and war l! greeted the . 2 thought !oud got lost- !ou chapsH Jou were eant to be onl! five inutes behind e and 2 got here an hour agoH #n!wa! grab !our bags and co e in and "oin the part!. 6ic+ conte plated e%plaining that Steves +nac+ered &iesta wasnt capable of covering the ground as fast as Jonathans #ston $artin but thought better of it. Jonathan hurried the through the entrance hall and showed the to their roo s- so that the! could *uic+l! freshen up and "oin the rest of the guests for pre7dinner drin+s. 6ic+- who I li+e Steve I had never visited the house before- was e%pecting so ething special but the house astonished 6ic+ even ore than he thought it ight. The Stanfords ho e was a huge ancient but full! odernised anor with a wide white facade that 6ic+ actuall! thought bore so e rese blance to the ain classical building at Sandhurst- but the house turned out to be infinitel! ore

rela%ed and fun inside9 a +ind of Sandhurst in heaven. /ach of the dozen guestroo s had an en7suite bathroo and ever! other possible co fort. 2nside- the house was light and cheerful. 6ic+ showeredshaved and changed his clothes. (e and Steve et as arranged on the landing and "oined the part!. 2t felt good to 6ic+ to be in different surroundings where the! could rela% awa! fro the ever present- regi ented staff- the s ell of boot polish and sweat- hall ar+s of the acade !. Dinner I a s o+ed sal on starter- then roast pheasant with all the tri ings followed b! a delicious strawberr! and raspberr! ousse I was e%cellent. Slowl!- 6ic+ began to feel hi self rela%ing. There were ore than twent! guests- but apart fro 6ic+ and Steve no other single en- onl! wealth! arried couples and their teenage children. There was also an evidentl! single lad! called )larisse- a friend of Jonathans other 8illian Stanford. )larisse was about fort!- gre!ish7blonde and had a lovel! figure but hardl! s iled once during the dinner. Jonathansitting with 6ic+ and Steve and sensing their disappoint ent at what see ed li+e the lac+ of ro antic opportunities- whispered that the wee+end wasnt over !et. The ne%t da!- the Stanfords offered their guests the choice of either horse7riding on the e%tensive estate or helping Jonathans father Bernard Stanford /uropes leading obile co unications agnate as hed been described recentl! in The Sun in an article substantiall! supplied b! his public relations fir I give so e of his stunning collection of vintage cars a run around the private roads across the huge estate- or else entertain the selves as the! pleased. Steve decided on horse7riding whilst 6ic+- who had a fair +nowledge of what went on inside a car I both in its engine and in its passenger seats late at night in countr! lanes I chose to spend ti e with Bernard. Later in the orning- Bernard Stanford and 6ic+ were tin+ering with a vintage $organ at the front of the house when a white 'olls 'o!ce drew up. Bernard carefull! cleaned his hands and hurried across to greet the occupants.

5ne was a tall- !oung- e%ceptionall! stunning blonde wo an with large blue e!es- and an athleticall! elegant figure. The other was a balding- thic+set older an who- 6ic+ guessed- was in his id7fifties. Dhat was left of the ans hair was short and silver. (e had a gold filling in one of his front teeth and was wearing a sharp casual blac+ tee7shirt ore appropriate for so eone a!be a decade !ounger. (e e%uded an air of power and influence. 6ic+ wondered who this luc+! devil was to be acco pan!ing such a stunning fe ale. The an shepherded the !oung wo an in a protective fashion. 2t suddenl! dawned on 6ic+ that the! were- in fact probabl! father and daughter rather than a Sugar Dadd! and his delicious escort- which was 6ic+s first assu ption. (e wandered over to the group and was introduced b! Bernard to the an- whose na e was Darren &isher. Darren shoo+ 6ic+s hand powerfull! and greeted hi with a penetrating stare. 6ic+ ade a ental note that this was a an who !ou would do well not to ess with. (is daughter $arina see ed friendlier. She gave 6ic+ the war est of s iles and he allowed hi self a gli pse of hope that this wee+end ight turn out to be ore interesting than he had anticipated. The &ishers disappeared to their roo s later that orning. 6ic+ didnt see an!thing ore of the until the earl! Saturda! evening when ever!one gathered for pre7dinner drin+s. (e caught sight of Steve and )larisse a few ti esK Steve was ta+ing her for a wal+ on the estateK he noticed that she was s iling *uite a lot ore now. The whole occasion for the wee+end was to celebrate 8illian Stanfords birthda!- and people arrived in dribs and drabs throughout the da!. There were a dozen ore people than there had been for dinner on the previous evening. The eal was a splendid affair with )ha pagne and fine wine in abundance. There were an! toasts and congratulations to the hostess on her birthda!. #fter dinner 6ic+ anaged to corner $arina for coffee in the lounge. During the eal $arina had been sitting too an! places awa! fro 6ic+ for hi to have a chance of tal+ing to her- though he had succeeded a couple of ti es in a+ing e!e

contact and when he did he thought that she loo+ed pleased that he had. Dhen the! finall! sat down together on one of the su ptuous )hesterfield sofas- he felt instantl! overwhel ingl! attracted to her. $arina didnt see to feel an! need to hide the fact that she li+ed 6ic+- tooK her s iles- fluttering e!elashes and flashing white teeth said it all. Then- when she had finished her second brand!- she casuall! leaned over to sa! goodnight allowing a provocative gli pse at a glorious cleavage. See !ou in an hour- !our roo H before swiftl! turning awa! to sa! goodnight to the hosts and leave. 6ic+ stared after her with a i%ture of surprise- delight and une%pected anticipation. This reall! was turning out to be an interesting wee+end. (e spent another fifteen inutes tal+ing to the Stanfords and then left- buzzing with e%cite ent at the i plications behind $arinas whispered pro ise. (e hurried to his roo - threw off his "ac+et- tie and shoes- brushed his teeth nervousl! in the bathroo and sat in the co fortable chair in the corner of his roo to wait. (e wo+e with a start and felt cold. 6ic+ glanced at his watchK it was four7thirt! in the orning. (is confused ind slowl! wo+e up and he re e bered wh! he was still sitting in the chair and not l!ing in bed. 5h- great- he uttered to hi self as he slowl! undressed and crawled into bed. Trust me to ick the arty tease' (e fell asleep drea ing of what ight have been- to be awo+en b! the alar on his watch after what see ed to be far too short a ti e. (e saw $arina at brea+fast on the Sunda! orning but had no chance to tal+ to her- as she had Darren on her left and on her right a rather posh7loo+ing elderl! wo an who dripped with gold and "eweller! li+e a pirate treasure horde. 6ic+ cast a few discreet glances in $arinas direction. (e caught her e!e a couple of ti es- but she didnt respond other than to give hi a brief s ile before continuing her conversation. 6ic+ cooled his frustration b! wal+ing twice round the estates la+e. Seeing a !ard7long carp agnificentl! hurl itself out of the water in the centre of the la+e in a ight! splash too+ 6ic+s ind off

$arina for a few o ents- but not for long. #fter a lavish- but frustrating- Sunda! lunch 0e%tre el! tender roast Delsh la b1 when $arina was again far down the table- sandwiched between her father and a tall an who re inded 6ic+ of Basil &awlt!- 6ic+ still hadnt anaged to corner $arina and had al ost given up hope of tal+ing to her. (owever- after lunchever!one gathered in the front hall to go for a wal+ and 6ic+ disappeared into the cloa+roo to borrow one of Jonathans Barbour "ac+ets. Suddenl!- he found hi self alone in the roo with $arina- who had snea+ed up behind hi and slipped her ar around his waist. 2 sorr! about last night- 6icholas- but Dadd! insisted in stopping in ! roo for a nightcap and fell asleep in the chair. (es incredibl! possessive so 2 let hi doze and b! the ti e he wo+e- 2 thought it was probabl! too late. 6ic+- its hard for e to tal+ to !ou here because ost of the people here +now e and 2 li+e to +eep ! personal life secret fro ever!one9 well- apart fro ! father an!wa! who alwa!s finds out about it. 2n case 2 dont get a chance to spea+ to !ou again- heres the address of ! bouti*ue in LondonK do give e a call in the wee+. #nd she pressed a business card into his hand- her longcool- pin+ nailed e%*uisitel! anicured fingers lightl! brushing his hand- and then +issed hi on the lips "ust once before hurr!ing off to re7"oin the throng. She was gone before 6ic+ had a chance to react properl! other than to realise that the sudden une%pected +iss had left hi du bfounded with delight. (e stared after her in a aze ent- and then glanced down at her card. (er bouti*ue was called Serendipit! and was on Sloane Street,nightsbridge- London SD<. #s he drove bac+ to Sandhurst with Steve that evening6ic+ told hi about his encounters with the !sterious $arina. Dell- all 2 can sa! is- go for it- !ou luc+! sod. She loo+s li+e a prett! hot proposition and 2 thin+ !ou ight well have so e fun there. Just one word of warning though9 2 spo+e to her old an for *uite a while and he ade a lot of none too

discrete in*uiries about !ou. (e see s *uite unnaturall! obsessed b! her. 2 thin+ theres so e +ind of stor! behind that. 2n the eanti e though- 2 thin+ $r &isher is a bit of a tough coo+ie. 2f !oure going to pla! around with his daughter- a+e sure !ou find out what his ground rules are as *uic+l! as possible- or !ou ight get !ourself into trouble. 5ne da!- !oure going to a+e so eone a wonderful wife- Steve- laughed 6ic+. Dont worr!K the situation is under control. Dhen 6ic+ got bac+ to Sandhurst- he decided to give it a couple of da!s before phoning $arina. So it was uch to his surprise that the night after his return- he received a phone call fro none other than her father.