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RED DIE A Dorset Mystery by ROGER NORMAN

In October 1916, Lance-Corporal Jack Yeoman arrives back in England from the trenches of the Western Front. Guided in his movements by a pair of unusual dice he carries with him, he returns to his home in deepest Dorset and arranges a secret rendezvous with his adoptive sister Maggie at a village pub. But his recklessness in word and deed soon land him in trouble and he finds himself a hunted man. His war-wounded brother Charles, the embittered stone-builder Bate, the vindictive local squire of Minterne, and the sinister priest of Urley – all have their reasons for pursuing Jack as he flees deeper into the heart of his native land and deeper into the mystery that envelops him.

Several others are drawn into his sphere through the roll of the dice, some of whom are more than they seem, like the happy-go-lucky Londoner Cockler, or Mrs Dooley, landlady of The Duntish Rings. But there are other forces at work in this haunting tale of reality and illusion, of the living and the dead, a tale of natural potions and supernatural powers in which the threads of human destiny unravel and intertwine. As Jack seeks to come to terms with his conflicting loyalties and beliefs, with the death of his father, with his love for Maggie, events build to their violent climax on All Hallow's Eve on Giant Hill at Cerne Abbas.

‘I have a game right here in my pocket,’ said Jack Yeoman. ‘Draw near to the table, friends and fellow travellers, and I’ll show you how it goes.’

‘What the devil is this?’ Charles said.

‘A game of dice,’ said Jack. ‘Bring your drinks and take a seat. The last supper’s coming up, but first the dice must be cast.’

He reached into his pocket and drew out the red and white dice.

‘I’ll have none of this tomfoolery,’ Charles said.

‘Dying man’s last wish, brother. We ask the dice a question and they give us the answer. Reading the options, you can call it. Six faces on the red die, six on the white. Thirty-six options in all, but the white die has only numbers so it’s the red die that signifies. My question is this: what should a man do who has run away from a battle that he saw nobody could win? No. What should a man do who refuses to fight for his country right or wrong even though thousands of his countrymen will go on dying?’

From Chapter Eight ~ THE DUNTISH RINGS ~

Read Chapter One      Roger Norman      Author Interview      RED DIE      Questions & Answers      A life in couplets

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