Nicholas Searle - The Good Liar

Stephen accepts the rebuke, delivered drily and with neither sym-

pathy nor annoyance. He knows what Gerald says is true: academic

research is about methodical plodding and not intellectual bril-

liance. Until perhaps, like Gerald, you have served your time and

reached the exalted heights from which you can instruct others to

deliver the facts, leaving you to add the instinct and the inspiration.

2

Later the same day Stephen sits at Betty’s kitchen table.

‘Just how can you stand him?’ he asks her.

‘It’s not at all as you imagine,’ she replies calmly. ‘It’s turned out pretty much as I envisaged.’

‘But he’s repulsive. How can you bear being so close to him?’

‘I’ve experienced worse things. You may not like him. I can under-

stand that. But I make my own choices, thank you very much. I

don’t require your permission or blessing. You may wish to consider respecting my views.’

She speaks these words not as a reprimand but evenly and firmly

as everyday observations.

‘I’m sorry. But he’s big and he’s shambolic and he smells.’

‘He smells slightly because he’s old. He smells because of his age, 49

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seeping from his bones. We die of old age from the inside out, rot-

ting gradually as we get older. It’s not something he can necessarily help.’

‘You don’t smell.’

‘I suppose I’m to take that as a compliment. I’m a woman. And

perhaps women are different from men in some regards, however

much I dislike generalizations. Do I detect a touch of jealousy here?’

Stephen is aware that his face is ablaze. He finds it difficult to

deny.

‘But you aren’t with someone or apart from them because of the

way they smell.’

‘Why not?’ asks Stephen sharply. ‘Why ever not? It’s as good a

criterion as most.’

‘That’s not such a ridiculous observation,’ she says, smiling. ‘But other things come into play, you know. And I must make the odd

compromise if I’m to see my way into the future.’

‘But is it worth it? With him, I mean? You know enough about

him already.’

‘I’m quite prepared to talk about it. But I’m afraid you won’t

budge me,’ she says with an implacable gentleness.

‘My main concern is for you. Is this really what you want? How

can you be sure you’re safe? He does have a quick temper and he’s

still strong for his age.’

‘Oh, he has and he is. But I can manage him. As you know, I have

a shrewd idea what he wants from this relationship and his needs

will act as a brake on his angry impulses. He’s very much in control of those impulses, I think. And to answer your question: this is very much what I want. I need this.’

‘I’m sorry. I just care for you so much.’

‘I know you do,’ she says fondly. ‘So the best thing is to fall in line with my intentions and to be pleasant to Roy. Not over- fawning;

pleasant will do just fine. You should be able to do that, as you’re such a nice boy.’

‘I’ll try,’ he says.

‘It’s Gerald, isn’t it?’

‘What do you mean?’

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‘Gerald’s being difficult, isn’t he? Putting the pressure on.’

‘No more than usual. You know what Gerald’s like. And we do

need to make headway.’

‘Can I help at all?’

‘I shouldn’t think so. But thanks.’

‘I’m not decrepit yet, Stephen. I do know how Gerald’s mind

works, after all.’

‘No. I have every regard for your academic expertise. And I know

Gerald does too. Your views are critically important, of course. But you’ve no need to worry about Gerald. I don’t think weighing in

would do much good.’

‘I’m assuming it’s his normal refrain on accuracy, attention to

detail and verification?’

‘More or less.’

‘Well, he’s right in a way. But he does bore on the subject. Exactly the same when he was preparing his thesis. I think the most important thing in a researcher is a good heart. That’s what I used to tell my students, including Gerald. Objectivity is critical of course. But if one sets about with malign intent to mankind, or even indifference or entirely selfish motives, then that way madness lies. Gerald believes this too, beneath the verbiage. He stresses dispassion precisely because he’s so passionate himself. He has a good heart and

so do you.’

3

‘What’s the matter?’ asks Roy as Stephen peers through the wind-

screen and the car makes its glacial progress towards the bypass.

Though not exactly genial, Roy is not aggressively scornful. Maybe

he too has had a pep talk from Betty. ‘You look as if you’ve had a

hard day. Your face could turn milk sour.’

Prompted by Betty, Stephen has embarked on an excursion with

Roy, who needs to go to the garden centre. In the sketchy curricu-

lum vitae that Roy has delivered verbally there is an obscure

reference to a former role managing a nursery. He professes, at

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least, a knowledge of plants and Betty is looking to revitalize the small patch of walled garden she has at the back of the mews cottage. Roy has taken on the project quite happily, but insists that

Betty does not accompany him on his purchasing mission. Instead,

while he does the job professionally, she may remain at home with

the cleaning and ironing. But he requires a driver and this is where Stephen comes in useful.

‘Not really,’ says Stephen in as placatory a tone as he can muster

while concentrating on the journey. ‘Just normal stuff. Work.’

‘You take it all too seriously if you ask me.’

‘It’s important to me. I believe in it.’

‘It’s just work at the end of the day. Your boss giving you a hard

time?’

‘My supervisor.’ Stephen utters the corrective gently. ‘Kind of.

Well, no. Gerald’s always like that. It’s just a tricky phase.’

‘Sounds like he’s a tricky character. And I’ve known a few in my

time. Needs to have his card marked if you ask me. Tell me about

this bloke you’re researching. What was his name again?’

‘John Graham of Claverhouse, later Viscount Dundee. Born in

1648 and a key figure in the early Jacobite rebellions.’

‘The Jacobite rebellions? What were they exactly?’

‘The revolt against William of Orange and Protestantism and the

fight to restore the house of Stuart to the throne. What’s interesting is how he goes down in folk history. He was known as Bonnie Dundee to the Jacobites, but the Presbyterians called him Bluidy Clavers because he exacted bloody retribution against their communities.

He was a major influence on the Fifteen and the Forty- Five.’

‘What were they?’

Stephen reflects that Roy seems to be feigning interest quite

efficiently.

‘The two Jacobite rebellions of 1715 and 1745. Both crushed by the

English. Graham was killed earlier, in 1689 in a battle that his troops actually won. That victory and Graham were vital shapers of the

later rebellions. But Graham’s death was a critical fault line in

them too.’

Roy says, ‘What’s the point of this work? What’s the purpose?’

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‘Three things really. How John Graham shaped the rebellions.

Then there’s how the mythology and demonology have persisted.

And lastly, what Graham was actually like behind it all. What drove him? What were the actual facts? Was he such a charismatic leader