innovate-issue-005

The Library - Chapter FourI soon learnt what the cryptic comment of the young woman in the back had meant. As we left thetown we pulled onto what I would have said was the motorway, except that traffic was minimal, andwhat there was seemed to be comprised of these old-fashioned looking cars. A moment later we cameto a system of barriers across the roadway and an officious prat in bright blue pantaloons crossed to thecar and peered inside"Two crowns for the car" he said, "Four passengers, that's a 75% discount on the surcharge, so fourcrowns in all"Our driver paid up in reasonable grace, and the barrier was lifted. He gunned the little faun-colouredautomobile through..."What's your name?", it was one of the girls from behind, not I thought the one who had made the quipabout the toll"Luke" I said, then added, "You may know my cousin Randolph""Don't think so" said the driver after a moment of confused silence, "I'm Sid""Thea" said one of the women"Lara" said the other"Nice short names" I commented"You're one to speak" Sid pointed out, to much general hilarityWe pulled out to overtake a boxy vehicle that reminded me of a Tin Lizzy, but which instead bore theemblazon "Potter" upon the rear"Crappy old heap" one of the girls said - Thea, I thought, the one who had not made the commentabout the toll"All some people can afford" Sid said, as if reminding herShe harrumphed and we coasted on, coming up to a queue of slow-moving traffic as we tried to leavethe motorway on the left."S'always like this" Sid sighed"But bloody worth it when we get there!", that was definitely Lara, and I filed her away now as beingthe one who had made the comment about the tollWe drove in silence for another five minutes as vehicles slowly left the carriageway, winding down theslipway, and onto a wide access road, that I saw led up towards a country house."Balthazar's Gate" Sid said, as if showing off his knowledge for me, or maybe for the girls, "Built bythe Duke of Sussex in 1900""It looks older" I said, staring up the tremendous driveway towards the building in the distance"Artifice" Sid said, "He wanted to be old money, old lineage, so he built it looking old""But he was son of the king" I said, too quickly and without thinking"Hmm" Sid looked sideways at me for a moment"Queen" said Lara perking up and looming over my shoulder, "Queen Catherine, only child of KingFrederick II""Ah", it was ironically as I had surmised it might be, then had forgotten my intellectual exercise in theshock of reality, "I drank there" I said lamelyThe girls laughed, and at length Sid relented on my stupidity"Queen Catherine married a parvenu aristocrat" he said, "The Duke of Sussex as her second sonneeded to make his own mark in the clay, so to say""And this is it?" I waved at the gigantic pile which was now almost upon us as we followed the cars infront up the roadway"This and Saint Sebastian's" said SidI looked blank"The hospital for fuck's sake!"