Christopher realizes that Victor has been speaking, saying something about difficult old birds and how someone or other was right, this is a heavenly place to be buried, although he hasn’t been paying attention. When Victor stops speaking the silence is awkward and eventually Christopher tugs on the lapel of his suit and goes to his van to change into his overalls.
Victor picks his way back to the tomb and drinks the water, which is warm now. He sits on the lip of stone again and watches the gravedigger work, moving the soil, spade by spade, into the hole.
Acknowledgements
There are lots of people I want to thank: India Fuller Ayling, Henry Ayling and Tim Chapman for their patience, support and time. Louise Taylor, another early reader of Bitter Orange. All past and present Taverners, especially Judy Heneghan, Amanda Oosthuizen, Sarah Wells, Isabel Rogers, Rebecca Lyon, Richard Stillman and Paul Davies. All of the Prime Writers for their moral support. All Friday Fictioneer writers around the world. Everyone at Fig Tree and Penguin UK, especially Juliet Annan, Assallah Tahir and Poppy North. Everyone at Tin House, especially Masie Cochran, Nanci McCloskey, Diane Chonette, Sabrina Wise, Anne Horowitz, Allison Dubinsky and Pricilla Wu. The whole of the Lutyens & Rubinstein team, especially Jane Finigan, Sarah Lutyens and Juliet Mahony. The lovely David Forrer. And the amazing Caroline Pretty. My family – Ursula Pitcher, Stephen Fuller and Heidi Fuller. And for help with research for Bitter Orange: Malcolm Gibney, Patricia Oliver, Marion Kenyon Jones English Heritage, The Grange Estate (in particular Richard Loader), David Brock, Tim Knox, Christian House and John Harris (and his book No Voice from the Hall). And finally, Leonard Cohen for my writing soundtrack.
THE BEGINNING
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FIG TREE
India | New Zealand | South Africa
Fig Tree is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com.
First published 2018
Copyright © Claire Fuller, 2018
The moral right of the author has been asserted
Cover images: William Morris, 'Bird and Pomegranate' wallpaper design, printed by John Henry Dearle, 1926 © The Stapleton Collection/Bridgeman Images (background)
ISBN: 978-0-241-98347-8