Colonel Butler's Wolf by Anthony Price Read Free Book Online Page A

you’re going to mix for a few days mustn’t question what you are, and they’ll be far less likely to do that if they think they know already.”
    “In a couple of days’ time you’re going up to a place called Castleshields House. It’s up north, not far from the Roman wall—Hadrian’s Wall, that is. It’s a sort of study centre for Cumbria University, just the sort of place your namesake would go to if he came home.”
    “So you can read ‘em the paper on Belisarius and then you can potter around to your heart’s content. What’s he supposed to be studying, Bob?”
    Stocker consulted the file again. “The rotation of cohorts on Hadrian’s Wall, sir.”
    “The rotation—urn—yes! You’re studying that, so you don’t have to know anything about it. That part’s not important, anyway. You can swot it up in a day or two.”
    Butler resigned himself to the inevitable. Half a lifetime earlier he had been well down the Sandhurst list in Military History—it had been Economics and Map Reading and Military Law that had lifted him into the top twenty. But that half lifetime had also taught him not to be surprised at the jokes duty played on him.
    “And just why am I going to Castleshields House, Sir Frederick?”
    And come to that, Sir Frederick—just what is the significance of Neil Smith’s measles and progress in Latin ? And why did Eden Hall burn for those ?
    “You must be patient for a little longer, Jack. You have my word that we won’t hazard you again without explanation— you shall have them all in due season. But first we have to put you into circulation. You’ve got that in hand, Bob, haven’t you?”
    Stocker nodded. “There was a paragraph in the Evening Standard at midday. And there’ll be another in The Times diary tomorrow—it’ll be written as though the visit was arranged long ago.”
    There was nothing surprising about Stocker’s pull in Fleet Street, where so many good turns were always being sought and done. But what would have happened if he had refused? The answer followed the question instantly: of course they knew him as well as he knew them, so they had confided from the start that he would do his duty.
    “But tonight?” Sir Frederick persisted, prodding Stocker.
    “Yes—well tonight, Colonel, is the quinquennial O. G. S. Crawford lecture at the Institute of Archaeology in Gordon Square. It’s organised by the Society for the Advancement of Romano-British Studies and everybody who is anybody will be there. Just the thing for you, Colonel.”
    Butler frowned. “Just the thing I should avoid, I would have said.”
    “Absolutely the contrary, my dear Butler. We have arranged a chaperone to protect you from outrage. And to see you are introduced to the right people. Believe me, it’s all laid on. And there’s more to it than just showing you off—you must wear your uniform, incidentally, so everyone will notice you—“
    “Damn it! But I never—“
    Stocker overbore him. “This once, Colonel, this once! I know it’s not the done thing, but there’s a very particular reason why you must be there.”
    Clearly there was no further point in questioning even small details of the operation; it had been all worked out by the experts, and there was some comfort in knowing that with Sir Frederick looking on the experts would be doing their best. But oddly enough there was something about this planning that struck a chord at the back of his mind—he couldn’t quite place it, but in time it would come to him. And somehow it was not quite reassuring . ..
    “What exactly do I have to do then?” he said carefully, purging the resignation from his tone.
    “Tonight, Colonel—nothing. It will all be done for you.”
    “Sit back and enjoy the lecture, Jack,” Sir Frederick smiled. “You never know your luck—it may be quite interesting.”

V
    SOMEWHAT TO HIS surprise, Butler found the details of the excavations of the vicus at the Roman fortress of Ortolanacum