God's Crusade

Part Forty-One

Lady Osborne had to socialise. Her husband had a team of Pastors working under him, and knowing them and their families was fairly important for his wife. Sebastian liked to know everything about all his people, and Brogan was forced to give detailed reports after visiting any of them at home. Not that she objected, of course. She was a good wife. One thing Harry and Sebastian had taught her was obedience. She had only ever managed to keep one thing from them, and that was her own mind, but even that was under constant attack most of the time. She had never believed in God, and she still maintained that position inside her head at least, even whilst she was praying for something or someone. She was outwardly pious, as a good bishop's wife certainly should be, and inwardly confused and conflicted, fighting all her lessons. Meeting Mrs Brown again, the latest arrival, she found herself quoting the bible, and leading a short prayer before accepting coffee. It did not even sound like her, and she had not intended to do so, but she was not acting either. It came from somewhere within her as she did her best to be a good wife.

"Such a pleasant house, Mrs Brown, I do hope you will all be very happy here?" Brogan said, making conversation as she sipped her coffee. They had met before, when they came to stay with the Slade girl, Brogan remembered, and several times socially since.

"Oh I am sure we will be...it is the centre of things in a way isn't it?" Megan replied, a little on edge. She was happy that Nigel had been promoted, and Meadvale was certainly a very nice place to live. Her boys were at an excellent private school, all paid for by the Church, of course, and Selena, and Megan herself, had a little more money for their clothes and the finer things in life. Miss Donald followed Nigel's instructions with her and her daughter to the letter, but he was a very reasonable man, and life was good. Better than most she thought, and better than her sister, working as a guardian in Washington of all places.

"Certainly as far as the Church is concerned...and Selena has a friend here already, doesn't she?"

"Yes, Hermione Slade...it will be nice to see the Slade's again..."

"Of course it will, and I am sure you and Pastor Brown will be invited to dinner soon, and I shall ask Miss Derbyshire to invite Selena to meet India, too. It will be nice for you to get better acquainted with everyone. Meadvale may be the centre of everything but it is still a small, close community." Brogan said, trying not to sound too wistful. She still missed the buzz of London, and of being around the action in Westminster, even if half the time she only overheard things of interest. Church politics were not nearly so interesting for her. But she was forcing herself to rise out of her depression. She had a life, a family around her. And she could not let the bastards grind her down.

۩

"So you are going? Just like that?" Sharon Rosen asked, hating the hurt in her voice.

"Do the people you intend to promote linger on when you call them home?" Sir James Middleton grinned, flopping down onto the sofa in his rented apartment, which he used for any meetings that did not appear in his public diary. "Radcliffe really wants to announce his presidential team, and he doesn't really expect his new Foreign Minister to hang around in his old job...unreasonable of him I know, but there you are..."

"Your King has certainly put the cat amongst the pigeons." Rosen sighed, sitting down beside her lover. "I had a call from Radcliffe last night, and the election is set for four weeks time. He isn't hanging around, is he?"

"Oh the plans have been set for years. It was just a question of time. The Royal family were such a decadent, useless bunch something had to be done sooner or later."

"James, you calling them decadent is a little hypocritical, isn't it?"

"Could be, except I have never been caught, have I?"

"Not so far...and is the wedding still on?" Rosen asked, well aware that it was. She could understand the desire. Linking a very senior Reformist directly to the Saudi Royal family made sense. Even if the Princess was hardly top drawer, she was a favourite daughter of their Foreign Minister's, and British/Saudi relationships had never been stronger. She was jealous and it hurt. She hated herself for feeling like that, but she was jealous and there was no point in trying to hide it from herself. If he had seriously asked her to marry him and move to London she would have. She would have got divorced and joined him like a shot, once her term in office was over. She would have veiled for him, in public at least, and it made her feel angry. He had used her, just as she had used him at times. He was right about that, and she always knew it would end one day. It was not exactly a surprise.

"The Republic will be very different I think. The House of Commons will just be a talking shop, the House of Lords will soon cease to exist and, the senior team won't even need to be elected anymore...you know I would hate to lower myself to elections...and no one is even standing against Radcliffe...after a little behind-the-scenes bullying I believe. And yes, the Princess is already in London, preparing herself for me."

"So, we will not be able to see each other in London if I come over."

"Sharon, don't...this was fun, but we have to move on, we both are moving on." James Middleton sighed. "It's a life phase thing...that's all."

۩

"Are you sure?" Alistair Forbes asked, ignoring the noise and bustle of the bar.

"Completely. He is cleansing his past, like your man said...I got some good shots, and you have the paper evidence, you have him by the balls."

"Someone does...not me. I am so out of here. But you'll get wired the money from the Caymans as usual..."

"Cool, is it going to hit the press?"

"No, I doubt it...he can keep it all quiet if he is sensible. And so will you...ok?"

"Don't worry about it; I don't even know who you are."