Love and the Gods Read online

  The Duke looked at her in surprise, but he did not speak and the Queen continued,

  “I know that I can trust you and that you are very clever at subterfuge when you need to be. Otherwise you would not have visited so many strange foreign countries and returned safely to tell the tale.”

  The Duke chuckled.

  “I like to think, ma’am, that my brains have been helpful not only to me but to others I have worked with.”

  “I know they have, David. That is why I want you to undertake a special secret mission of which no one in England must be aware.”

  The Duke waited apprehensively.

  Then the Queen smiled.

  “I know that you never confide in the many women you have courted. Otherwise by this time people would know far more about you than they actually do.”

  “That is the sort of compliment I really appreciate, ma’am, but quite frankly, the beautiful ladies I know have always wanted me to talk about them rather than about myself!”

  “I am sure that is true, David. But most men, and all women, talk too much and this is an occasion when I am very anxious that no one will know what I am doing.”

  “You can trust me, ma’am,” the Duke said quietly.

  “I know I can. That is why I am confiding in you.”

  “I am very honoured, ma’am.” The Queen smiled again.

  It flashed through his mind that this was going to be something really new and clearly a challenge.

  It was going to be a special mission he had half-anticipated and which he had hoped would occur.

  But for the moment he could not possibly think what it could be and he waited impatiently for the Queen to tell him what was in her mind.

  As he did so, he could not help feeling a sudden excitement creep over him.

  It was what he always felt just before something happened that he had not expected or when he found some treasure he had never thought in his wildest dreams would be his.

  It was a feeling that he could not describe in words even to himself.

  Yet it was there – the thrill of adventure.

  A thrill that he had often thought should be a part of love.

  Yet he had never felt it with a woman.

  Now as he waited, it was almost as if the sun was moving up the sky and into the room.

  He knew even before the Queen spoke that this was what he had been wanting, not only for the last few weeks or months but for much longer than that.

  This was the moment when he really felt alive.

  It was a thrill that came from his mind and burst through his whole body.

  It was a feeling that was indescribable but none the less real.

  CHAPTER TWO

  The Queen was silent for what seemed a long time and then she said,

  “You will understand, I know, that I very much admire the way King George, although so young, has not only reigned in Greece but has captivated all his people.”

  “You are so right, ma’am. I was talking to a friend of mine recently who had just come back from Greece, and he said it was quite amazing how much the King has done in a comparatively short time. I have been told too by a number of contacts that he has won the affection of all the Greeks.”

  “George has not only built roads, which apparently did not exist before he arrived, but has tried to restore some of the glory of Greece’s past. But there he has a long hard task ahead of him.”

  The way the Queen spoke told the Duke that this was clearly an important issue and he thought, while she was feeling for the right words, it would be a mistake for him to interrupt.

  “You will remember in Ancient Greek history,” the Queen went on after a long pause, “that the inhabitants of the Island of Delos, where the God Apollo is believed to have been born, were threatened by the dreaded Persians who arrived at the island with a thousand ships.

  “They were on their way to attack Athens and were then defeated at the Battle of Marathon.”

  The Duke smiled.

  “I remember and it must have been a terrible shock to the poor people, although in fact, on the orders of King Darius, they were unharmed.”

  “It certainly was a shock for them, David, but, if you recall the story, there was much worse to come.”

  “I think, ma’am, that you are thinking of how four hundred years later the vast Army of King Mithridates of Pontus put to death everyone on the island except those they sold as slaves.”

  The Queen nodded.

  “You certainly know your history, David. I admit to having to revive my memory somewhat on the details.”

  “The Romans disposed of King Mithridates,” the Duke went on, “but alas the damage was done and, though in the fourteenth century the Knights of St. John built a fortress on Delos, they soon abandoned it.”

  “I read that as well,” the Queen said a little sharply and it was as if she rather resented his implying that he knew more than she did.

  She paused before she added,

  “In time even the name of the island was forgotten. In the seventeenth century the then British Ambassador in Constantinople, Sir Thomas Roe, heard it described as ‘a small, despised, uninhabited island, where many rare and interesting artefacts can still be found’.”

  “I do remember reading about it, ma’am, and often thought I would go to Delos myself and try to find some of ‘the rare artefacts’ that have been forgotten.”

  “That,” the Queen smiled, “is what I intend to talk to you about.”

  The Duke looked surprised as the Queen continued,

  “Two hundred years later a treasure was found on Delos which proved the British Ambassador’s information to be correct.”

  “A treasure?” the Duke asked in astonishment.

  “A very special one indeed and that is what I want to discuss with you.”

  She lowered her voice, which told the Duke that this was the big secret.

  Then he bent forward in his chair so that he should not miss a word.

  “Over fifty years ago a British archaeologist, who was an aristocrat, found a very special and very marvellous statue of Apollo on Delos!”

  The Duke suppressed an exclamation with some difficulty and the Queen carried on,

  “It had lain buried in the ground for a very long time, which presumably had saved it from the vandals and pirates who had destroyed so much on Delos.”

  “A statue of Apollo!” he repeated almost beneath his breath. “I cannot remember ever seeing one.”

  The Duke was thinking of the many museums he had visited, especially those in Rome, where there was a profusion of statues stolen from Greece – most of them were of Gods, especially Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love.

  Now the Queen went on in a low voice,

  “That statue was brought to England and because the finder was frightened that the Greeks, if they heard of it, would demand it back, he hid it here at Windsor Castle.”

  “Here?” he exclaimed. “How extraordinary!”

  “That is what I thought when I first heard about it, David, but it was locked away and I don’t think either of my two predecessors had the slightest idea it was here.”

  The Duke thought that George IV, if no one else, would have appreciated the beauty and significance of it and he would undoubtedly have taken possession of the statue himself.

  “I now want, David, to send it back to where it belongs. But you know as well as I do that, if anyone here has the slightest idea of what is happening, they will claim it belongs to England and must remain here.”

  “I am sure there are a great number of people, ma’am, who would appreciate it,” the Duke felt obliged to say.

  The Queen smiled.

  “And they, of course, would be far more vehement than anyone else in protesting that we must keep it in our possession. They would doubtless then thrust it into a dingy museum.”

  The Duke was silent, thinking that he agreed with her, but at the same time he could understand the English desire to keep in
this country everything they had collected from overseas.

  “Now what I intend to do,” the Queen asserted, “is to restore to the Greeks the God they still revere and who means far more to them than any of their other Gods or Goddesses.”

  The Duke knew this to be true.

  Apollo, the God of Light and of law and order was, he knew from all he had read and from all he had heard, still in the thoughts of the Greeks.

  They paid their respects to Apollo every time they lit a candle in their own homes.

  “I feel sure,” the Queen said, “that George, as soon as he has the time, will want to restore to Delos some of its former glory.”

  “From what I have read and heard, ma’am, it has always remained a most holy place in every Greek heart. In Classical days no one was allowed to die there and, if a person was ill, he or she was removed to another island.”

  “I know and that is why the statue of Apollo, which must be the finest ever carved of him, must go home.”

  “And so you want me to take it to Delos, ma’am,” the Duke enquired simply.

  “I trust you, David, and I know that you have the facility of travelling to Greece without anyone being aware that you have a secret mission to accomplish.”

  The Duke nodded.

  “If there is the least suspicion in anyone’s mind that I am sending anything so precious out of England, there will be, as you will agree, an outcry from all the collectors and connoisseurs and from our museums both private and public.”

  The Duke concurred with her wholeheartedly.

  “What I want you to do, David, and I know you will do it well, is to take the statue from here at night and if at all possible convey it immediately to the ship you will be travelling in.”

  “That will be my yacht, ma’am, and you can be assured that it will be perfectly safe there.”

  “That is what I thought you would say,” the Queen replied. “I will write to King George telling him that I feel the restoration of Apollo to his own island will thrill and delight his people. But he must never tell anyone that it came to him from Great Britain.”

  The Duke nodded his assent to this.

  Then the Queen added sharply,

  “You must make him realise the trouble there will be for me if anyone has the slightest idea that I have given away anything quite so precious. But I know that you will agree with me that the right place for Apollo is on his own Island of Delos.”

  “Absolutely, ma’am, but at the same time, because it is unique and so precious, it is undoubtedly a treasure that Britain would love to keep for herself.”

  “That is what I thought and what I know, but it will, I am sure, help King George more than anything else I could give him.”

  “I am convinced that you are right, ma’am, and I can only thank you for honouring me with such an unusual and important mission.”

  “I thought you would find it a change from the life you are leading at the moment, David. And that reminds me, I promised your grandmother that I would speak to you about your future.”

  The Duke held up his hands.

  “No, please, please, ma’am, spare me that! I know only too well and can repeat word for word what my dear grandmother has been saying to you. But my answer is quite simple. I will not marry anyone until I fall in love.”

  The Queen stared at him.

  “Are you telling me that despite your reputation you have never been in love?”

  There was silence for a moment and then the Duke replied,

  “Not in the way the Greeks thought of love.”

  “But surely – ” the Queen said a little hesitatingly, “you have been in love with some, perhaps one or two, of the lovely ladies who have given their hearts to you?”

  The Duke smiled.

  “Ma’am, perhaps you will think I am speaking like a Greek when I say that I want the love that Aphrodite told them to find, the love that not only belongs to the heart but to the soul.”

  For a moment, the Queen gazed at him in surprise. “You are right, of course, you are so right, David. That is the way I loved Albert – and he loved me.”

  There was an unmistakable sob in her voice.

  Then the Duke added quietly,

  “I knew you would understand, ma’am.”

  “Of course I understand, but somehow I did not expect you to think or feel that way.”

  “But I do,” the Duke answered, “and that is why I have never married.”

  The Queen looked pensive for a moment.

  “Your grandmother begged me to talk to you about marriage. I had, in fact, the idea of asking you to consider a very attractive young Princess whose father, living in Bavaria, needs the support and help of this country.”

  The Duke knew only too well that the Queen had been endlessly providing Royal brides for bridegrooms in the Balkans for small countries that were being continually threatened by the Russians.

  It was, however, a subject he was not particularly interested in and therefore he responded,

  “I think, ma’am, before we worry about my affairs, I must go ahead immediately to deliver your most generous and inspiring present to King George.”

  “I know he will be delighted,” the Queen replied. “But it would be dangerous to write to him about it until you actually arrive.”

  “As soon as I do, ma’am, I will make sure that he realises what a valuable gift he is receiving and how it is essential that the British people never know they have been deprived of such a treasure.”

  “They will scarcely know what they are missing, since it has been shut up here ever since it reached this country.”

  “All the same I know that there would be a great to-do if it was known that it had been taken away from them, even though they were not aware of it until that moment.”

  The Queen laughed.

  “I knew you would understand. Although it may be thought of as precious by a few in England, the whole of Greece will be thrilled and delighted if it is restored to where it originally belonged.”

  “Of course, ma’am, I think you are being very kind and at the same time very wise.”

  He knew by the expression in her eyes that his praise delighted her.

  “What do we do now?” she asked.

  “I was just thinking, ma’am, that if you were kind enough to invite me to come back to Windsor and stay for tomorrow night, I could leave soon after midnight when there are no curious eyes about.”

  He thought for a moment and then continued,

  “I will carry the statue with me in a large trunk that I will bring to contain my clothes. Only my valet will be aware it will be that much fuller when I leave than when I arrived!”

  The Queen clasped her hands together.

  “That is exactly what I hoped you would do. But I must warn you the statue is quite large, almost life-size. Just one of its legs has been slightly damaged.”

  “I will manage to transport it from here to my yacht which is at present anchored in the Thames. Then, as soon as it is safely aboard, I will leave for Greece.”

  “Leaving many aching hearts and perhaps tearful eyes behind you!”

  The Duke laughed.

  “I will return,” he said, “but Apollo will be back at home and I am sure that all Greece will be on its knees in front of him!”

  He knew by the expression on the Queen’s face how pleased and excited she was that he had agreed to carry out her mission.

  “I will go home now, if ma’am will permit me to do so, and I will mention casually to the equerry who escorts me to my chaise that I will be returning tomorrow night for a party you have invited me to.”

  “I will arrange the party,” the Queen agreed, “but I am sure you will think it would be a great mistake for there to be any Greeks present.”

  “Of course, ma’am. No one must have the slightest idea where I am going when I leave England. It will take a long time before what will then undoubtedly be a subject of gossip and excitement in Athens ge
ts back to London.”

  “It is so important that you are never connected in any way with the whole operation,” the Queen insisted.

  “I will make sure of that,” the Duke promised, “and I thank you again, ma’am, for trusting me with such an interesting and exciting adventure.”

  The Queen smiled.

  “Is that how you look upon it, David?”

  “It will certainly be something new and different to do and that is what I have been looking for for some time.”

  Her Majesty held out her hand and the Duke went down on one knee in front of her.

  “Your Majesty is very remarkable,” he said. “You never cease to surprise those who serve you and those who talk about you. There has never been a woman who has done so much for her country as Your Majesty has done for yours.”

  “I like to think that is true, David, but alas there are still wars, still people fighting against us.”

  “That is inevitable, but Britain is greater than she has ever been because Your Majesty is on the throne.”

  He kissed the Queen’s hand.

  Then he walked backwards slowly to the door.

  The Queen watched him.

  Only when the door was then opened by an equerry outside did she exclaim,

  “See you tomorrow, my dear Duke, and I am sure you will find it a very amusing party!”

  The Duke bowed.

  “Your Majesty is always most kind and gracious.”

  The equerry escorted him down to the front door where his chaise was waiting.

  “That was a very short visit, Your Grace,” he said. “I hoped you would stay and cheer us up tonight.”

  “Do you need cheering up?” the Duke enquired.

  The equerry wrinkled his nose.

  “Shall I say it is not one of our most glamorous house parties at the moment, but, if you were staying, you would cheer us all up!”

  “I will be with you tomorrow night,” the Duke said, “and I hope Her Majesty will invite some beautiful young ladies to meet me.”

  The equerry laughed.

  “We all wish that, but at present all those staying at Windsor Castle are well past their fiftieth birthday.”

  The Duke groaned.

  “Now you are depressing me. Perhaps I would be wise to have an unexpected call to the country.”