40
‘Here’s to a long and happy marriage.’ Sebastian raised his glass. Tobias and Marcus joined theirs.
‘Cheers,’ they replied.
Marcus was enjoying his stay at Treweham Hall, secretly glad to get away from the full-on celebrations at The Templar, and the wedding wasn’t until tomorrow. As he’d predicted, Dermot had taken his hospitality to a new level – which his family had lapped up no end. Whilst it was good to see everyone enjoying themselves so much, Marcus was now glad of a bit of peace with just his two brothers. He was touched that they’d organised a stag do, however intimate, and really appreciated the time with them. Having only just discovered he actually had two half-brothers months ago, they all had a lot of catching up to do.
Tobias, very thoughtfully, had brought family photo albums to show Marcus, while he had talked about his childhood in Roscommon, and his mother, who he had nursed before she had died of cancer. It was the first time Marcus had really opened up. Apart from confiding in Finula, he hadn’t discussed his private life before, choosing instead to throw himself into his career as a TV producer.
‘How’s the documentary coming along?’ asked Sebastian.
‘Good. We’re on schedule.’ Marcus nodded, taking another sip of his favourite Jameson Irish whiskey.
‘So, it’s still to be aired in the autumn?’ asked Tobias.
‘Yep. We’ll be good to go,’ confirmed Marcus firmly.
All three brothers sat and contemplated for a moment, knowing the effect the documentary would have on them all. The Cavendish-Blakes, an ancestral family dating back to the twelfth century, with connections to the Knights Templar, was about to announce that the late Lord Richard Cavendish-Blake had actually sired his firstborn son out of wedlock, to a girl who worked in the kitchens at Treweham Hall some thirty-two years ago. Albeit Richard hadn’t ever known this, the repercussions were about to be faced – on national TV.
Each brother, especially Marcus, knew what to expect. He had seen how Tobias had been practically plagued by the press throughout his life and dully realised his own would suffer the same intrusion. It was inevitable. He was only glad that his marriage to Finula was taking place before any of the revelations could cause such an invasion of his privacy.
‘I suggest we all watch the documentary here, at Treweham Hall, together,’ Tobias stated.
‘Yes, so do I,’ agreed Sebastian.
‘Fine by me,’ chipped in Marcus. Not a bad idea, he thought; at least he’d be protected from the media inside this enormous fortress. Then he half laughed to himself. This “enormous fortress” was in fact his family home.
