Виктория Холт - Curse of the Kings

"What is it?"

"I've no idea. What would you say, Dorcas? There are scratchings on it. Look."

"Where did you find it?"

"In Josiah Polgrey's grave. Mr. Pegger was digging it and I had a go, and lo and behold my spade struck this. I shall clean it up and then see what I shall use it for. It's a sort of birthday present from Josiah Polgrey."

"What an ideal I've seen something like this before," continued Alison. "I think it may have some significance."

"What do you mean, Alison? Significance?'

"Sir Ralph would know."

Dorcas and Alison exchanged looks. Alison said, speaking rather slowly: "I think, Judith, that you should take it along to Keverall Court and ask if you may show it to Sir Ralph."

"Whatever for?"

"Because he's interested in this sort of thing."

"Things that are dug up you mean?"

"Certain things. Of course this may be just nothing . . . but there is something about it. I think it may be very old indeed and you have stumbled on something important."

I was excited. It was true there was talk of digging up Carter's Meadow. How interesting if I had been the first to find something!

"I'll take it right away," I said.

"I should wash first, change your dress and comb your hair."

I smiled at them. I loved them very much; they were so normal. It was my birthday; they had just told me that I had been unclaimed, my parents had been killed and I might be just anybody; I may have stumbled on something important from centuries ago and they were worried about my changing my dress and making myself presentable to see Sir Ralph!

Under the portcullis, into the courtyard, sniffing the stables and touching the mounting block for luck; and then into the great baronial hall. The heavy iron-studded door creaked as I pushed it open. How silent it seemed! I stood there for a second or so looking at the two suits of armor on either side of the wide staircase and the weapons on the walls; on the refectory table were pewter utensils, and there was a great bowl of flowers too.

I wondered what Hadrian and Theodosia were doing and what fun I would have tomorrow when I told them what I had found. I had already magnified it into something priceless. The greatest archaeologists in the world were shaking me by the hand. "We are so grateful to you, Judith. We have been digging for years and never have we found anything quite so wonderful as this."

I heard the scraping of a chair behind me. I had not noticed Derwent, the footman, dozing in a chair.

"Oh, it's you," he said.

"I want to see Sir Ralph immediately. It is a matter of the utmost importance."

He looked at me superciliously. "Now, Miss. This is another of your tricks, I know."

"It's no trick. I have found something which is of great value. My aunts"—I called Dorcas and Alison aunts; it simplified the relationship—"said I was to bring it to Sir Ralph without delay and woe betide anyone who tries to keep this from him."

I hugged the piece of metal against me and faced him squarely.

"He's taking tea with her ladyship."

"Go and tell him I am here," I said imperiously.

Because there had been some talk about Carter's Meadow, and Sir Ralph's interest in what could be dug out of the earth was well known, I eventually prevailed on Derwent to go and tell Sir Ralph that I had found something which my aunts thought might be of interest. Consequently within five minutes I was in the library, that fascinating room full of Sir Ralph's collection of exotic pieces.

I laid the metal on the table, and from that moment I knew that I had made an impression.

"Good God," said Sir Ralph; he used oaths of which, I reflected, Dorcas, Alison, and the Reverend James would not have approved, "where did you find this?"

I told him that it was in Josiah Polgrey's grave.

His bushy eyebrows were lifted. "What were you doing there?"

"Helping to dig it."

He had two kinds of laughter—one a wild sort of roar and the other inward when his chin shook and I think that was when he was most amused. He was amused in that way now and pleased. He spoke jerkily always as though he were in too much of a hurry to complete his sentences.

"H'm," he said. "Graveyard, eh?"

"Yes. It's important, isn't it?"

"Bronze," he said. "Looks prehistoric to me."

"That's very interesting I believe."

"Good girl!" he said. "If you find anything more, bring it to me."

He nodded in a way which I realized meant dismissal, but I had no intention of being dismissed like that.

I said: "You want me to leave you my er . . . bronze?"

He narrowed his eyes and his jaw wagged slightly. "Yours!" he bellowed. "It's not yours."

"I found it."

"Findings—keepings, eh? No, not with this sort of thing, my girl. This belongs to the nation."

"That's very strange."

"Number of things you'll find strange before you're much older."

"Is it of interest to archaeologists?"

"What do you know of archaeologists?"

"I know they dig and find things. They find all sorts of wonderful things. Roman baths and lovely tiles and things like that."

"You don't fancy yourself as an archaeologist because you found this, do you?"

"It's doing the same as they do."

"And that's what you'd like to do, is it?"

"Yes, I would. I know I'd be good at it. I'd find wonderful things that people didn't know were there in the earth."

He laughed then—the wild roar. "You fancy archaeologists are constantly finding jewels and Roman villas. You've got a lot to learn. Greater part of the time is spent digging looking for tilings of little value—things like this—the sort of things that have been found times out of number. That's what the majority of them do."

"I wouldn't," I said confidently. "I'd find beautiful things, significant things."

He laid a hand on my shoulder and led me to the door.

"You'd like to know what this is you've found, wouldn't

"Yes. After all I found it."

"I'll let you know when I get the verdict on it. And meanwhile, if you find anything else, you'll know what to do with it, won't you?"

"Bring it to you, Sir Ralph."

He nodded and shut the door on me. I went slowly down through the hall and out into the courtyard. I had lost my piece of bronze but it was pleasant to remind myself that I had contributed to the knowledge of the world.

Although my find was identified as part of a shield, possibly of the Bronze Age, and it appeared that many of its kind had been found before, it brought about several changes which were important.

In the first place it sent up my prestige in the schoolroom. When I arrived for lessons both Hadrian and Theodosia were far more respectful than they had been before. I had always thought Theodosia rather a silly little thing— although she was about a year older than I—and Hadrian was slightly older still. They were both fair, Theodosia rather fragile looking with innocent blue eyes and a chin that receded a little. I was taller than she and, in reality, almost as tall as Hadrian. I never felt the difference in our ages, and in spite of the fact that they lived in this mansion and I came from the rectory I was a kind of leader and was constantly telling them what they ought to do.

They had been informed by their father that I had found something of some importance and had had the good sense to bring it along to him. He would like to see them show as much interest as I had.

I spent the morning on and off explaining how I had dug Josiah Polgrey's grave and how I had found the object, and I drove poor Miss Graham to despair. I drew the object for them. It had become enormous in my mind; it shone like gold. It had belonged to some king, who had buried it in the earth so that I should find it.

I whispered to them that we should all get spades and dig in Carter's Meadow because that was where they thought there was a lot of treasure. That afternoon we found spades in the gardeners' sheds and set to work. We were discovered and reprimanded; but the result was that Sir Ralph decided that we might learn something about archaeology and ordered the long-suffering Miss Graham to give us lessons. Poor Miss Graham was obliged to read up on the subject and she did her best in a difficult situation. I was fascinated—far more than the others. Sir Ralph discovered this and his interest in me, which began when I discovered the bronze shield, seemed to grow.