Best Kept Secret Read online

  ‘I need to ask you something, man to man,’ he said, sounding even more pompous than usual. ‘Your response may well influence my decision as to whether I advise the admissions tutor at Cambridge to withdraw your scholarship, which would be a great sadness for us all at Beechcroft. However, my paramount responsibility is to uphold the school’s reputation.’

  Sebastian clenched his fists, and tried to remain calm. Being rusticated was one thing, but losing his place at Cambridge would be quite another. He stood there, waiting for the headmaster to continue.

  ‘Take your time before you answer my next question, Clifton, because it may well determine your future. Did Kaufman or Martinez play any part in your –’ the headmaster hesitated, clearly searching for the right word, but finally settled on repeating – ‘indiscretions?’

  Sebastian suppressed a smile. The idea of Victor Kaufman uttering the word ‘knickers’, let alone trying to remove said article of clothing from Ruby, would have caused incredulity and mirth, even among the lower fifth.

  ‘I can assure you, headmaster,’ said Sebastian, ‘that Victor has never, to my knowledge, smoked a cigarette or taken a sip of beer. And as for women, he’s embarrassed when he has to undress in front of Matron.’

  The headmaster smiled. Clearly Clifton had given the answer he’d wanted to hear, and it had the added advantage of being the truth.

  ‘And Martinez?’

  Sebastian had to think on his feet if was going to save his closest friend. He and Bruno had been inseparable since Sebastian had come to his aid during a dormitory pillow fight in his first term, when the new boy’s only crime was being ‘Johnny Foreigner’ and, even worse, hailing from a country that didn’t play cricket, a pastime Sebastian loathed – which only made their bond stronger. Sebastian knew that Bruno indulged in the occasional cigarette, and he had once joined him at a local pub for a beer, but only after their exams. He also knew that Bruno wouldn’t be averse to what Ruby had to offer. What he couldn’t be sure of was how much the headmaster already knew. Added to that was the fact that Bruno had also been offered a place at Cambridge in September and, although he’d only met his friend’s father a couple of times, he wouldn’t want to be the one held responsible for his son not going up to Cambridge.

  ‘And Martinez?’ the headmaster repeated a little more firmly.

  ‘Bruno, as I’m sure you know, headmaster, is a devout Roman Catholic, and he has told me on several occasions that the first woman he sleeps with will be his wife.’ That much was true, even if he hadn’t expressed that view quite so vociferously lately.

  The headmaster nodded thoughtfully, and Sebastian wondered for a moment if he’d got away with it, until Dr Banks-Williams added, ‘And what about the smoking and drinking?’

  ‘He did once try a cigarette during the holidays,’ admitted Sebastian, ‘but it made him sick, and to my knowledge he hasn’t indulged since.’ Well, not since last night, he was tempted to add. The headmaster looked unconvinced. ‘And I did see him drink a glass of champagne on one occasion, but only after he’d been offered a place at Cambridge. And he was with his father at the time.’

  What Sebastian didn’t admit was that after Mr Martinez had driven them back to school in his red Rolls-Royce that evening, Sebastian had smuggled the bottle into his study, where they’d finished it off after lights out. But Sebastian had read too many of his father’s detective novels not to know that guilty people often condemn themselves by saying one sentence too many.

  ‘I am obliged, Clifton, for your frankness in this matter. It can’t have been easy for you to be questioned about a friend. Nobody likes a sneak.’

  This was followed by another long pause, but Sebastian didn’t break it.

  ‘Clearly there is no reason for me to trouble Kaufman,’ the headmaster eventually managed, ‘although I will need to have a word with Martinez, just to ensure he doesn’t break any school rules during his last few days at Beechcroft.’

  Sebastian smiled, as a bead of sweat trickled down his nose.

  ‘Nevertheless, I have written to your father, explaining why you will be returning home a few days early. But because of your candour and evident remorse, I shall not be informing the admissions tutor at Cambridge that you have been rusticated.’

  ‘I’m most grateful, sir,’ said Sebastian, sounding genuinely relieved.

  ‘You will now return to your study, pack your belongings and prepare to leave immediately. Your housemaster has been forewarned, and will sort out your travel arrangements to Bristol.’

  ‘Thank you, sir,’ said Sebastian, his head bowed, for fear the headmaster might see the smirk on his face.

  ‘Do not attempt to contact either Kaufman or Martinez before you leave the school premises. And one other thing, Clifton, school rules will still apply to you until the last day of term. Should you break even one of them, I will not hesitate to reconsider my position concerning your place at Cambridge. Is that understood?’

  ‘Absolutely,’ said Sebastian.

  ‘Let us hope you have learnt something from this experience, Clifton, something that will benefit you in the future.’

  ‘Let’s hope so,’ said Sebastian, as the headmaster rose from behind his desk and handed him a letter.

  ‘Please give this to your father as soon as you get home.’

  ‘I most certainly will,’ said Sebastian, placing the letter in an inside pocket of his jacket.

  The headmaster thrust out his hand and Sebastian shook it, but without a great deal of enthusiasm.

  ‘Good luck, Clifton,’ the headmaster said unconvincingly.

  ‘Thank you, sir,’ Sebastian replied, before closing the door quietly behind him.

  The headmaster sat back down, well satisfied with how the meeting had gone. He was relieved, though not surprised, that Kaufman had not been involved in such a distasteful incident, especially as his father, Saul Kaufman, was a school governor, as well as chairman of Kaufman’s Bank, one of the most respected financial institutions in the City of London.

  And he certainly didn’t want to fall out with Martinez’s father, who had recently hinted that he would be giving a donation of £10,000 to the school library appeal if his son was offered a place at Cambridge. He wasn’t altogether sure how Don Pedro Martinez had made his fortune, but any fees or extras were always paid by return of post.

  Clifton, on the other hand, had been a problem from the moment he had walked through the school gates. The headmaster had tried to be understanding, in view of all that the boy’s mother and father had been through, but there was a limit to how much the school could be expected to tolerate. In fact, if Clifton hadn’t been likely to win that open scholarship to Cambridge, Dr Banks-Williams wouldn’t have hesitated to expel him some time ago. He was glad to have finally seen the back of him, and only hoped he wouldn’t join the Old Boys.

  ‘Old Boys,’ he said out loud, jogging his memory. He was due to address their annual dinner in London that evening, when he would present his end-of-term report; his last, after fifteen years as headmaster. He didn’t much care for the Welshman who had been chosen to succeed him; the sort of chap who didn’t tie his bow tie, and probably would have let Clifton off with a warning.

  His secretary had typed up his speech and left a copy on his desk for him to go over in case he wanted to make some late changes. He would have liked to read it one more time, but having to deal with Clifton had made that impossible. Any last-minute emendations would have to be added by hand during the train journey up to London.

  He checked his watch, placed the speech in his briefcase and headed upstairs to his private quarters. He was pleased to find that his wife had already packed his dinner jacket and trousers, a starched white shirt, a bow tie, a change of socks and a wash bag. He’d made it clear to the chairman of the Old Boys that he didn’t approve when they’d voted to stop wearing white tie and tails for the annual dinner.

  His wife drove him to the station, and they arrived only minutes before