The Toymaster's Castle

Chapter Forty - The Chaplain

We made our way down to the cathedral but the only person we could find there was a lady who was busy cleaning. She directed us to a little house around the back.

There, we found an elderly gentleman tending a vegetable plot.

"Good afternoon," Daniel said. "Are you the vicar?"

"St Davids is a cathedral so we have a bishop here... or at least we did but she hasn't been seen for several weeks." The slight stress he put on the word 'she' hinted that he was not entirely comfortable with the idea of female clergy.

"Oh!"

I guess we must have sounded a bit disappointed because he went on, "However, I am a retired chaplain and I have unofficially taken over.

"And are you able to marry us?"

"I am able to perform the wedding ceremony in the sight of God and man, however obtaining the sanction of the State is somewhat challenging at the moment."

He stood up, stretched his back and turned to us all. "But first I have a question. Were you involved in the deaths of the three young men who were killed up on Highfield farm?"

"I am head of the group and I therefore accept ultimate responsibility," Daniel replied, looking him straight in the eye. "Have you been told what happened?"

"Reports have been mixed and..." he paused for a moment, obviously trying to work out how to say what he was thinking... "not entirely credible."

"I was up on the farm with a couple of my men... retired Royal Marines... and was negotiating terms with Dave Jones for providing security services for him. A group of about twenty youths turned up, most were carrying clubs and other improvised weapons but four were armed with shotguns. The two Marines who were with me deployed. They issued a warning, telling the young men to drop their weapons. When one of the youths took a shot at them, they returned fire, killing three of the four who were holding firearms. The fourth, who managed to drop his gun in time, was not shot. After confiscating their weapons and making clear the consequences of any further home invasion attempts, we sent them on their way."

"Boys playing at being men who bit off more than they could chew," the guy observed sadly. "Regrettably, they had not been taught that that sort of behaviour would have unpleasant consequences."

"Correct," Daniel agreed.

"That account fits rather neatly with the confused and contradictory reports I have been receiving," he said. Then he went quiet for a moment. "With that clarified, I am prepared to perform the wedding ceremony for you."

"Thank you," Daniel said.

"And when were you hoping to tie the knot?" the chaplain asked.

"As soon as possible," Daniel answered. "With the current state of the world, I see know point in delaying." He looked at me and I nodded enthusiastically.

"Traditionally, the Banns are read at three successive Sunday services but, as you are not from around here, that would really only be a formality. I think that if I read them once, that would be sufficient."

"So a week on Saturday?" Daniel suggested.

"I think I have a gap in my hectic schedule," the chaplain said with a twinkle in his eye.

"Whilst we are here, there is one other matter you might be able to help me with," Daniel said. "In my opinion, one of the key things we need to do for the town is to develop a functioning local economy. Now, I'm working at getting some of the local farmers to route food to Tony's supermarket... for example, Dave up at Highfield farm is going to start slaughtering a couple of his cows per week... but we really need to establish a recognised currency. Everything becomes impossibly cumbersome without."