The Cavalier

He’d wandered into the party through

The French Doors, facing the lake,

Was vague, and missing a bob or two,

Perhaps he’d made a mistake?

Taken a left at the crossroads where

The kids had hidden the sign,

Instead of a right to the Graham’s house,

I’d ask him, given the time.

 

The party was getting out of hand

The punch was spiked with gin,

And vodka and tequila and…

God knows what else was in!

For Jane was down to her underwear

While Pat fell down in a heap,

And Margaret danced on the table while

Her kids were sound asleep.

 

The clock in the hall struck midnight then

And I was getting tired,

I went on the hunt for Carolyn,

I thought that she’d expired,

But there she was, in the corner with

The stranger in the hat,

A funny thing with a feather in

And fancy dress, at that.

 

I thought that I’d introduce myself,

I’d not seen him before,

Perhaps he worked at the agency,

I’d ask, she’d know the score,

But Carolyn acted nervous when

I tried to hold her hand,

‘What gentleman is this, I pray?’

He asked of Carolyn.

 

‘Oh Phil, he’s simply a husband,’

She replied, she was sublime,

I note she mentioned ‘a husband’ but

No mention that ‘He’s mine!’

‘And what are these folk that prate, disport

And act themselves remiss,

Is he from the Long Parliament?

God help him, if he is!’

 

I knew the punch had been tampered with

But he hadn’t been there long,

Maybe he’d savoured something else,

Who knew what he was on!

But Carolyn gave me that funny look

And I edged back into the room,

Leaving the two of them talking there

In the corner, in the gloom.

 

We’d always had an arrangement, she

Had friends, and I had mine,

We never questioned each other, and

We found that it worked out fine,

She’d spend a night on the town or so

And fix me up a tray,

While I’d go visiting Annabel

For a tumble in the hay.

 

We’d purchased the house at Kineton,

When she’d said: ‘It has such charm!’

And I was content to be out there

In the country, near a farm,

They said the place was historic

Dating back to the civil war,

But not ‘til the night of the party

Did I give it a second thought.

 

By one, the following morning, when

The party was winding down,

I found that Carolyn disappeared

With the stranger to the town,

She sent me a mobile message, ‘Will

You come and get me, Phil?

I’m right in the heart of a skirmish

Down the slope, just by Edgehill!’

 

I drove to the ancient battlefield

In the dark, on a Moonless night,

But nothing stirred in the field out there

In the beam of the car’s headlight,

My phone lit up with another call

And her voice came drifting through,

‘My God, I’m stuck in a battle, Phil,

In 1642!’

 

She’d taken off with the Cavalier,

I knew what he was by now,

A straggler caught in the folds of time

That had fetched up here, somehow,

And Carolyn faded into the past

As she’d made it more than clear,

I’m the only man with a wife that ran

Away with a Cavalier!

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Valentine]

Neat ending..I was wondering about the trading mates so casually and thought he was on his way to pick one up..instead..she was stuck in another century..How you think of all of these masterpieces amazes me..Great one David..love and God bless.Lyn and you..Kathie

[John Alexander McFadyen]

So you still have your roots in the battlefields of England! Such a wonderful tale as always. I can't be the first to spot the theme of lost love?

[spiritwind]

This was quite a story! I had absolutely no clue where this one was going. It went here, it went there, it went everywhichway. I thought that he was being lured out into the dark countryside to be murdered by his partner in domestic almost bliss. I was so far off what was happening that I feel bushwacked. Ha! That doesn't happen all that often.

[gombeggar]

reads very well

[Marie]

Oh, that's lovely. To be swept away by a cavalier...into another time. Perhaps she regretted it--but such an adventure it must have been...

[Tate Morgan]

There you go again messing with my mind lol.Well she got what she sowed for sure. He won't have to pay to bury her But he might meet her descendant fall in love and marry her.

[spiritwind]

Oh! What a creative idea! Now you're messing with my mind.

[Clayton Bardwell]

One a day, that's all I ask, just one a day. Well maybe that's not enough. I want your new book; 'The Demon Horse on the Carousel - and Other Gothic Delights'. Please let me know when it's available.

[David Lewis Paget]

Not long now, Clayton. It went to the printers yesterday, should be available sometime over the next 10 days. I'll let you know the moment it arrives.

[spiritwind]

let me know too, please?

[David Lewis Paget]

Not a problem. For your interest, and anyone else out there, the book consists of 69 gothic poems, 242 pages, A5 format with a soft coloured cover. It will sell for $25 + p/p ($15 airmail to the US). Each copy signed of course, there won't be many so first come first served.

[Clayton Bardwell]

I claim dibs on the first one. Would you like the money now! -A

[David Lewis Paget]

You're down for the first, Clayton. I'll let you know when they arrive.

[The Refined Poet]

This is another awesome poem. The meter is perfect as usual. The word choice is fitting conveying the story, moving the reader with you from start to finish.