The Sins of the Father - By Jeffrey Archer Page 0,1

mother to suffer unnecessarily, but at the same time I needed her to understand why I'd made such a drastic decision.'

'Yes, I can understand why you might have considered that changing your identity would solve all your immediate problems, while not appreciating that it could involve you in a series of even more complicated ones,' said Jelks. His next question surprised Harry even more. 'Do you recall the contents of that letter?'

'Of course. I wrote and rewrote it so many times I could reproduce it almost verbatim.'

'Then allow me to test your memory,' Jelks said and, without another word, tore off a sheet from his yellow pad and handed it and his fountain pen to Harry.

Harry spent some time recalling the exact words, before he set about rewriting the letter.

My dearest mother,

I have done everything in my power to make sure you receive this letter before anyone can tell you that I died at sea. As the date on this letter shows, I did not perish when the Devonian was sunk on September 4th. In fact, I was plucked out of the sea by a sailor from an American ship and thanks to him, I'm still very much alive. However, an unexpected opportunity arose for me to assume another man's identity, and I did so willingly, in the hope it would release Emma from the many problems I seem to have unwittingly caused her and her family over the years.

It is important that you realize my love for Emma has in no way diminished; far from it. I cannot believe I shall ever experience such love again. But I do not feel I have the right to expect her to spend the rest of her life clinging on to the vain hope that at some time in the future I might be able to prove that Hugo Barrington is not my father, and that I am, in fact, the son of Arthur Clifton. At least this way, she can consider a future with someone else. I envy that man.

I plan to return to England on the first available ship, so should you receive any communication from a Tom Bradshaw, you can assume it's me. I'll be in touch with you the moment I set foot in Bristol, but in the meantime, I must beg you to keep my secret as steadfastly as you kept your own for so many years.

Your loving son,

Harry

When Jelks had finished reading the letter, he once again took Harry by surprise. 'Did you post the letter yourself, Mr Clifton,' he asked, 'or did you give that responsibility to someone else?'

For the first time Harry felt suspicious, and decided not to mention that he'd asked Dr Wallace to deliver the letter to his mother when he returned to Bristol in a fortnight's time. He feared that Jelks might persuade Dr Wallace to hand over the letter and then his mother would have no way of knowing he was still alive.

'I posted the letter when I came ashore,' he said.

The elderly lawyer took his time before he responded. 'Do you have any proof that you are Harry Clifton, and not Thomas Bradshaw?'

'No, sir, I do not,' said Harry without hesitation, painfully aware that no one on board the Kansas Star had any reason to believe he wasn't Tom Bradshaw, and the only people who could verify his story were on the other side of the ocean, more than three thousand miles away, and it would not be long before they were all informed that Harry Clifton had been buried at sea.

'Then I may be able to assist you, Mr Clifton. That's assuming you still wish Miss Emma Barrington to believe you are dead. If you do,' said Jelks, an insincere smile on his face, 'I may be able to offer a solution to your problem.'

'A solution?' said Harry, looking hopeful for the first time.

'But only if you felt able to retain the persona of Thomas Bradshaw.'

Harry remained silent.

'The district attorney's office has accepted that the charge against Bradshaw is at best circumstantial, and the only real evidence they are clinging on to is that he left the country the day after the murder had been committed. Aware of the weakness of their case, they have agreed to drop the charge of murder if you felt able to plead guilty to the lesser charge of desertion while serving in the armed forces.'

'But why would I agree to that?' asked Harry.

'I can think of three good reasons,' replied Jelks. 'Firstly,