Yes! I want horrors!
Posted by Stolzi on January 23, 1998 at 10:56:38:
In response to Can you work in the Abbey and its horrors?! = ; O *nfm*, written by Carolyn B on January 22, 1998 at 22:51:53
Climactic to NA is Catherine's basic act of misjudgment.
I think Henry's father should be somehow a member of the military-industrial complex, the "Establishment" in Great Britain (see novels of PD James and Ruth Rendell, ad lib, for the dangers herein). In fact maybe he is still a General? He is interested in a private business venture because he is just about to take mandatory retirement from the Army.
The Abbey is the old family home, now turned over to the Government for a semi-secret installation. The Tilneys live in one wing of it, but of course Catherine gets caught wandering around in the Government parts, where she is not supposed to be.
Someone dies, either Valentin the gardener or Henry's mom, and Catherine becomes wholly convinced that Dad, the evil schemer, is behind it all.
Perhaps it turns out, after her sudden death, that a large manuscript is missing from Mrs Tilney's posh Thames-side flat. Catherine says, "Of course, it was her expose' of what goes on at that government installation!!" However Henry is sure that it was a novel or something equally innocent which she had just sent out to the publishers -- or perhaps to Henry for his revisions.
Too late, though. Catherine has already called up the tabloids and TV to make hysterical accusations. In light of this, the govt. authorities naturally demand that Gen. Tilney send his guest packing at once and with no explanations. Top Secret, don't you know.
On the transatlantic flight, Catherine has plenty of time to think about her wrong-doing; for Henry caught up with her
at Heathrow and explained that the ms. had just arrived in his mailbox and contained a heart-wrenching account of his mother's battle with, not some secret killer disease developed in the government labs, but a plain old ordinary killer disease which finished her just at this inopportune moment.
Henry of course will have to scare up the money to make a transatlantic flight himself, to be reunited with Catherine and assure that we are all hastening towards perfect felicity. I think a country wedding in the gardens of the Morland family home, with Catherine in a wreath of flowers and a long trailing highly transparent Regency-style muslin gown, is indicated.
Meanwhile, surprise to all, the guv'nor sends a telegram of blessings from Minsk, where he and Valentin have just opened the first Books Ya Us (Ya in Russian being written like a reversed "R") outlet and taken a luxury flat to enter upon, well, semi-wedded bliss. He has found that the Russian Mafia makes a very satisfactory substitute for the UK military-industrial complex!
H M Govt is apoplectic at this point but there is nothing they can do, and Henry and Catherine agree that the Old Man should find happiness any way he can, and that they are well out of it and will devote themselves to the lit'ry life, staying far far away from any governments they meet.
Catherine did say once, a week or so after the wedding, "But are you sure the disease which killed your mother was truly an innocent one?" but Henry promptly said, "Hush, my love!" -- and she did.
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