Edward MARSTON - The Repentant Rake

Copyright 2001 Edward Marston

The right of Edward Marston to beidentified as the Author of

the Work has been asserted by him in accordance with

the Copyright,Designs and Patents Act 1988.

First published in Great Britain in 2001

by HEADLINE BOOK PUBLISHING

10 98765432 1

All rights reserved. No part of thispublication may be

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All characters in this publication arefictitious

and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead,

is purelycoincidental.

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ISBN 0 7472 7586 6

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In memory of

Arthur Heale, friend and historian,

who first took medown the long road into the past.

'The pleasure past, a threat'ning doubt remains,

That frights th'enjoyer with succeeding pains.'

A Satyr Against Mankind: Lord Rochester

Tableof Contents

'Londonis a veritable cesspool!' he said, banging the table with a bunched fist. 'Aswamp of corruption and crime.'

Christophershrugged. 'It has its redeeming features, Sir Julius.'

'Doesit?'

'Ithink so.'

'Well,I've never seen any of them. A capital city should be the jewel of the nation,not a running sewer. The place disgusts me, Mr Redmayne. It's full of arrogantfools and strutting fops. Babylon was a symbol of decency compared to it.Immorality runs riot in London. Whores and rogues people its streets. Drunkardsand gamesters haunt it by night. Foul disease eats into its vitals. And theworst villains of all are those who sit in Parliament and allow this depravityto spread unchecked.'

Thetirade continued. Christopher Redmayne listened patiently while his hostunburdened himself of his trenchant views. Sir Julius Cheever was not a man tobe interrupted. He charged into a conversation like a bull at a gate and it waswise to offer him no further obstruction. Sir Julius was a wealthy farmer, big,brawny, opinionated and forthright. Now almost sixty, he bore the scars of warwith honour on his rubicund face but it was his wounded soul that was now ondisplay. The oak table was pounded once again. Eyes flashed.

'Why,in the bowels of Christ, did we let this happen?' he demanded. 'Did we spill allthat blood to end up with something even worse than we had before? Has therebeen no progress at all? London is nothing but a monument to sin.'

'ThenI am bound to wonder why you wish to build a house there, Sir Julius,' saidChristopher gently. 'Given your low opinion of the capital, I would havethought you'd shun rather than seek to inhabit the place.'

'Necessity,Mr Redmayne. Necessity drives me there.'

'Againstyour will, by the sound of it.'

'Myconscience has subdued my will.'

Christopherfound it difficult to believe that anything could subdue Sir Julius Cheever'swill. He positively exuded determination. Once set on a course of action, hewould not be deflected from it. Evidently, his obstinacy and blunt manner wouldnot make him an easy client but Christopher was prepared to make allowances.The commission appealed to him. In the interests of securing it, he wasprepared to tolerate the old man's rasping tongue and uncompromising views.

'Letme explain,' said Sir Julius, legs apart and hands on his hips. 'I'm anunrepentant Parliamentarian and I don't care who knows it. I fought at Naseby,Bristol, Preston, Dunbar and Worcester with the rank of colonel. You can seethe results,' he added, indicating the livid scar on his cheek, the healed gashabove one eye and the missing ear. 'The Lord Protector saw fit to reward mewith a knighthood and I was grateful. Not that I agreed with everything he did,mark you, because I did not and he was left in no doubt about that. I favoureddeposition of the king, not his execution. That was a cruel mistake. We arestill paying for it.'

'Youspoke of conscience, Sir Julius.'

'Thatis what is taking me to London.'

'Forwhat reason?'

'Tobegin the process of cleansing it, of course. To root out vice before it takestoo firm a hold. I'm not a man to stand back when there's important work to do,Mr Redmayne. I have a sense of duty.'

'Ican see that.'

'Parliamentneeds people like me. Honest, upstanding, Godfearing men who will lead thefight against the creeping evil that has invaded our capital. I will shortly beelected as one of the members for the county of Northampton and look to knock afew heads together when I get to Westminster.'

Christophersmiled. 'I wish that I could see you in action, Sir Julius.'

'Fightingis in my blood. I'll not mince my words.'

'You'llcause quite a stir in the seat of government.'

'Theseat of government deserves to be kicked hard and often.' Sir Julius gave aharsh laugh then stopped abruptly to pluck at his moustache.

Theywere in the parlour of the Cheever farmhouse in Northamptonshire. It was a big,sprawling, timber-framed structure, built with Tudor solidity but littlearchitectural inspiration. The room was large, the oak floor gleaming and thebulky items of furniture suggesting money rather than taste. Christophersuspected that the place had looked identical for at least half a century. SirJulius Cheever belonged there. He had the same generous dimensions, the sameignorance of fashion and the same hopelessly dated air. Yet there was somethingstrangely engaging about him. Beneath the surface bluster, Christopher detectedan essentially good man, given to introspection and animated by motives ofaltruism. He could see that Sir Julius would be a loyal friend but an extremelydangerous enemy.

Christopherwas seated in a high-backed chair but his host remained on his feet. Strokinghis moustache, Sir Julius studied his guest carefully before speaking.

'Thankyou for coming so promptly, Mr Redmayne,' he said.

'Yourletter implied urgency.'

'Imake decisions quickly.'

'Andare you firmly resolved to have a town house in London?'

'Nowthat I am to sit in Parliament, it is unavoidable.'

'Theremay be some delay, Sir Julius,' warned Christopher. 'Houses are not builtovernight. When you first come to London, you will have to find otheraccommodation.'

SirJulius waved a hand. 'That's all taken care of,' he said dismissively. 'My daughter,Brilliana, lives in Richmond with her dolt of a husband. I'll lodge with themuntil my own abode is 'complete. The sooner it's ready, the better.'

'I,too, can work quickly when required.'

'That'swhat I was told.'

'Doesthat mean you are engaging me to design your new house?'

'No,Mr Redmayne,' said the other. 'It means that I brought you here to gauge yourfitness for the task. You are the third in line. It's only fair to tell you thatyour two predecessors were found seriously wanting.'