Chapter 19
I couldn't close things off as quickly as I thought I'd be able to, so there's actually two more chapters after this one.
I hope everyone's staying safe with all the pandemic stuff going on.
Ron was tired and hungover in the morning. He was careful as he drove to the West End. He would be minding a man called Ramesh for a few days, until the chaps came over. Ramesh knew Toby because he'd been in the Indian Army, and their paths had crossed on an exercise somewhere. Toby described Ramesh as a character. He was in London catching up with friends; he'd been to Harrow school and Sandhurst, so he knew a lot of people. He was staying at the Ritz; Ron would meet him in the lobby.
Ramesh smiled, broadly and brilliantly, when Ron introduced himself. He was stocky but fit looking. He looked to Ron to be mid-forties. Ron liked his suit, he thought it was particularly well-cut. Ramesh wore a pocket square that he seemed to have shoved into the breast pocket of his jacket haphazardly, which Ron found curious. Ron's first task was to escort Ramesh all of three hundred yards, along Piccadilly, to the Cavalry and Guards Club. On the way, Ramesh asked him about his experience in the army, and teased him by saying that, of course, Indian army regiments were smarter and more professional than British ones. Ramesh said he had been a major in the Indian 9 Horse Regiment, the Deccan Horse. Ron had suspected that almost every single member of a cavalry regiment he had ever encountered, in any army, and particularly officers, seemed to have had a noticeable cognitive impairment.
In the club, Ramesh met two men who Ron assumed were ex-army officers. They looked familiar but he couldn't place them. They greeted Ramesh warmly. The three men seemed to be the only customers in the club. Ron sat away from them at a discreet distance. On the walls were mounted paintings of battle scenes and of famous former members of the club. Ron was most amused, despite his hangover, to find himself sitting by a portrait of an officer who had almost been responsible for the loss of the Grenadier Guards' colours, at a battle during the Crimean War.
Ramesh left the Cavalry and Guards Club at lunchtime. They went from there, back along Piccadilly and down St James' Street to Boodles Club, where Ramesh was greeted by a trio of men. Ramesh started drinking expensive scotch whiskey. The paintings on the walls in Boodles all seemed to be either of men from the eighteenth-century wearing wigs, or of hunting scenes. Some of the club members present seemed very old.
In the late afternoon, they went from Boodles around the corner onto Pall Mall. Ramesh was clearly starting to feel the effects of the Scotch. Ron thought he hadn't stopped smiling all day, and he'd seemed adept at amusing his companions. Hungover as he was, he was getting the impression that Ramesh was a decent bloke. He certainly seemed popular. They went into the Athenaeum Club on Waterloo Place, where Ramesh met yet more old friends. Ron noticed that as people came up the stairs and into the club's library, Ramesh would often recognise them and say hello. Ron thought a lot of people in the Athenaeum seemed like army officers.
Ron was hungry; he hadn't eaten anything since the night before. Ramesh told him to order anything he wanted from the menu. Just before he went to the dining room, a couple of gentlemen came up to Ramesh and greeted him warmly. Ramesh seemed suddenly serious. He and the men left the large room they were in, wanting to talk in private.
All day, and all of the night before, Ron's mind wanted to jump to Marie; to how she'd kissed him and to how she'd then behaved with William, the client. He wouldn't let himself think about it. He seemed to spend the whole time batting the thoughts away. He ate sea bass in the club; he wasn't expecting much but when it came, he thought it was amazing. Ramesh was off for about an hour with the two gentlemen. When he returned, he said he'd been talking to "English spies." He tapped the end of his nose with his finger to signify that it was a secret.
From the Athenaeum they went back around the corner to the Reform Club. Ron was impressed by the lobby of the club; there were large pillars, and sculptures of busts of former members. He could remember, when he was a kid, watching a cartoon about Phineas Fogg going around the world in 80 days, but the characters were all animals, like dogs and cats and mice. He could still remember the theme tune. He remembered that the story had started in this club.
Ramesh asked Ron what was wrong, he said he thought Ron was unhappy. Ron told him it was women trouble.
***
Katie was at the flat when he got home. The girls were all there, Vicky and Caroline were draped all over each other on an armchair, Annabelle and Vicky were on a settee. He noticed that Annabelle and Katie's thighs were touching as they sat next to each other. Katie looked to have lost more weight. Ron thought she looked better than ever.
'Hello you!' said Katie.
'Hello Mr Ron!' said Vicky.
There was a bottle of red wine on the coffee table, and everyone had a glass. Ron wondered if it was their second, or maybe even their third bottle.
'How was your day Mr Ron?' asked Vicky.
'It was alright,' said Ron. He was tired. It hadn't been a good day; he just wanted to get to his room and be on his own.
'Have some wine with us,' said Annabelle.
'I'm knackered, honestly. I might just get to bed,' said Ron.
'You look tired, Mr Ron,' said Vicky.
'I am. Long day,' said Ron.
***
There was a knock at his bedroom door about a minute after he went in.
'Yeah,' said Ron. He just wanted to read his book and get his head down. He knew that eventually Vicky and Caroline would go to bed, and from the look of things possibly Katie would spend the night with Annabelle. There would be noise, so he wanted to get to sleep as quickly as possible.
It was Katie.
'Hi Ron. I was hoping to have a chat,' she said.
'Ok. What's up?' asked Ron.
'Marie...' said Katie.
'What about Marie,' said Ron.
'Are you ok?' asked Katie.
'I am, I'm fine, I'm worn out. How can I help with Marie?' asked Ron.
