Page 76 of Atlas: The Story of Pa Salt

‘We’re French. We recently fled here to avoid the imminent invasion.’ Elle paused, sticking to the script. ‘Our people are under threat everywhere,’ she added.

‘Who, the French?’ He snorted, looking comically perplexed. Elle shook her head, and Archie briefly shut his eyes as comprehension dawned. ‘Oh, gosh. I see. Well, you’re most welcome here. And don’t worry, I’m confident we’ve got the Hun on the run.’ He rearranged his legs under the table, wincing as he did so. ‘What brings you to Inverness specifically?’

‘We’re trying to find work,’ I replied honestly.

He chuckled. ‘Well, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you’re in the wrong area. Whoever advised you to come up to northern Scotland deserves a slap on the wrist. As you’ve probably realised, it’s mountains and lochs as far as the eye can see.’

‘Are you from the area?’ Elle asked.

‘No, most definitely not. I’m very familiar with it, though. I’ve been coming up here for shooting weekends ever since I was a lad. It’s why I’m here at the moment. I have a week of leave from the Royal Air Force, so I’ve come to get some Highland air.’

‘Where are you based?’ I enquired.

He paused for a moment, choosing his reply carefully. ‘The South of England. Kent, as it happens. Not that it will mean much to you!’

‘The home of Charles Dickens,’ I remarked.

Archie looked genuinely surprised. ‘Good Lord, are you sure you’re French?! I commend you on your British literaryknowledge.’ He leant back and folded his arms. ‘Don’t forget that Miss Vita Sackville-West is from our neck of the woods, too!’ Elle and I stared blankly back at him. ‘Yes, all right. That one might have been a bit of a stretch.’ He took another sip of beer, before training his eyes on me. ‘May I ask how you’ve managed to avoid the battlefield, Robert?’

I felt a little nervous at his line of questioning, but was assured in my reply. ‘I’m unable to fight because of an injury to my arm. We’re really looking for anything to pay our way.’

Archie raised his eyebrows. ‘Ah, a fellow invalid. Sorry to hear that, old chap. You might have noticed I have a dodgy leg, so I can’t fight either.’ He gave it a slap. ‘The Boche are to blame, but it’s not a recent injury. I copped this one in the Great War. Now I’m stationed behind a desk.’

‘And I’m sorry to hear that too,’ I replied.

He looked at me with sympathy. ‘I know what it’s like for a young man unable to fight. I’ve got a son, perhaps only a little younger than you, Robert. His name’s Teddy. He’s got flat feet.’ I shook my head. ‘Very unfortunate business. Not that he’s particularly cut up about the whole thing.’ Archie rolled his eyes.

‘How does he spend his time?’ Elle asked. ‘Is he behind a desk like you?’

Archie gave a beleaguered smile. ‘No. Teddy is twenty-one and the heir to my enormous country estate.’ My ears pricked up. ‘Despite my best efforts, I can’t seem to motivate him. As a result, he dandies around, getting into scrapes, most of which have to be cleared up by my long-suffering wife Flora.’

I seized my opportunity. ‘A country estate? You must have a lot of staff to run things for you.’

Archie chuckled. ‘I’m rather afraid those days might be gone for High Weald. Things have been a little... tight since the Great War. And the staff we did have are now either onthe front lines or working in munitions factories.’ He sighed. ‘Flora does almost everything. It’s very unfair. But unfortunately, there’s little choice at the moment.’ Archie looked into his near-empty beer glass. Elle put a hand on my leg, urging me to continue.

‘That sounds very difficult for her. Perhaps we might be able to fill the void?’ I offered.

Archie looked up, suddenly embarrassed. ‘Right, of course. Sorry, I can be a little slow on the uptake. You said you were looking for work.’ His eyes darted around the pub as he attempted to formulate his rejection. ‘You seem like awfully decent chaps, but as I mentioned, finances are a little difficult in the Vaughan family at the moment. My home, High Weald, is slowly crumbling, and virtually every penny I earn goes back into keeping it from falling down.’ He rubbed his eyes. ‘It’s been in my family for generations and I don’t want to be the Vaughan that lets the side down. In short, I could hardly offer you anything in terms of payment.’

I had resigned myself to Archie’s rebuff, but Elle wasn’t going to give up. ‘Oh, we’re quite used to a petty income, Mr Vaughan. In Paris, we only had a tiny apartment.’

‘Actually, it’sLordVaughan, if we’re being strict about it,’ he said with a wink. ‘All right then. Tell me, what was it you did for work in Paris?’

‘Apologies, Lord Vaughan.’ Archie waved it away with a laugh. Elle looked at me. ‘Robert and I worked together at an orphanage,’ she lied. ‘Robert was the caretaker and gardener, and I cooked for the children, and did some cleaning too. Naturally, orphanage funds were limited, and so we weren’t paid much at all.’ The smoothness of Elle’s fiction was astounding.

‘Was it a big place?’ Lord Vaughan asked, eyebrows raised.

Elle nodded vigorously. ‘Oh yes, enormous. It’s called theApprentis d’Auteuil if you’d like to look it up. And we guarantee you, whatever mess young Master Teddy may create, it will be nothing compared to the chaos which one hundred children caused!’

Archie raised his eyebrows and swilled his remaining beer around his pint glass. ‘No, I don’t imagine muchwouldbe a challenge after that. Well, I can’t deny that Flora would be very grateful, particularly with me tied up at the airbase.’ He thought for a moment. ‘Listen, although I couldn’t pay you much, High Weald does have a number of cottages on the estate, all of which are currently unoccupied. Would a roof over your head and all the game you can shoot be adequate?’

Elle beamed. ‘Oh sir, we would be forever grateful to you!’

I joined in her enthusiasm. ‘Honestly, Lord Vaughan, we would be indebted to you.’

‘Well then’ – he slapped his thighs and stood up – ‘welcome aboard!’ He shook both of our hands warmly. ‘What a fortunate meeting this has proved to be.’ He didn’t know the half of the matter. ‘But I must be getting back to my lodgings. I’m on the sleeper in a few hours.’ I looked at him quizzically. ‘Oh, sorry. The overnight train. It runs from Glasgow to London. Speaking of which, where are you staying at the moment? I’ll have some tickets arranged. Could you start next week?’

Elle and I looked at each other. ‘Of course, we’d be grateful to,’ I replied. ‘We’re at the Sheep Heid Inn.’