Book of JUDAS

Chapter Three-1

Chapter Three

Sutton Dean, Oxfordshire

The interior of Tudor Hall was as grand as its façade. Philip entered the main reception room off the hallway and sank into a comfortable floral paisley-covered armchair while waiting for Bairstow to make his final preparations. His brother, following closely behind, stood with his hands clasped behind his back before the magnificent stone fireplace admiring the original lithograph of ancient Jerusalem by David Roberts that took pride of place above the mantelpiece.

It was a bright airy room with high corniced ceilings, exposed beams and two sets of glass double doors leading out on to the terraced patio beyond. Both brothers had followed careers that took them overseas and returning to the childhood house where time had stood still felt very peculiar – at every turn an object or a room would bring memories flooding back. The two of them had been totally inseparable during their formative and early teenage years, which was hardly surprising given the intensity of the trauma they had suffered after the tragic loss of their parents. In the early years, the emotional attachment to, and dependency on, Sir Lawrence was incalculable but as time moved on, their grandfather derived great pleasure as he watched the strength of their bond grow before him. Simon grinned as he caught sight of one of the early pictures high up on the mantelpiece depicting the young boys struggling to keep pace with their grandfather.

“Do you remember this one? He was enormous!” he said, pointing with a nod of the head as he recalled the amusing anecdote.

Philip focused on the picture in the silver frame and smiled.

“You still owe me for that,” he said laughing at the fond memory although it had been far from funny at the time.

It was not a typical family picture. It depicted a visibly annoyed Sir Lawrence dragging the brothers by their arms on a cold winter’s day with their primary school in the background. On closer inspection you could make out bruising around Simon’s face. The year six school bully had made the elementary mistake of picking a fight with the younger Trenchard, who was half his size. Alerted by the commotion, Philip, who was not known for his aggression, dashed to the rescue and felled the giant tormentor with one powerful blow. Hearing the report from the playground attendant, the misguided headmaster had been furious at this shameful behaviour called their grandfather to come and remove the brothers from the battle scene. His initial annoyance soon faded to respect for young Philip when he grasped the truth behind the events and the photo was installed as a memento to his brave deed.

The close bond between them continued until they reached early adolescence. After that it didn’t come to an abrupt end but rather gradually transformed as their personalities and mutual dependency evolved and the dependency. Watching proudly from the wings, their grandfather was as surprised at the growing difference in their characters as he had been impressed by the strength of their union in their formative years. The elder Philip was extremely clever and his academically prowess enabled him to sail through exams without too much difficulty. By contrast, Simon was intellectually “middle of the road”, constantly striving to join the band of the elite although he didn’t get too upset about not making the grade. From his side there was no envy because he had strong attributes of his own, excelling on the sports field not just by representing the school in rugby, swimming, hockey and athletics but also by being selected to represent the county and achieving “local” fame and recognition by touring with junior England teams. Again, mirroring Simon’s intellectual capabilities, Philip played and enjoyed sport but his skill and ability were outclassed by his younger brother’s innate flair.

Their grandfather often wondered how his son had managed to produce offspring with such abundant yet starkly different talents. Always looking to find new ways of encouraging them, he observed how their abilities affected the development of their personalities. Competing in two alien environments, Philip in his world of academia and Simon in his sporting arena, meant that they grew up in two very separate social worlds.

When they reached “A level” age, their day to day lives went their separate ways. Philip passed his Oxbridge exams with flying colours and accepted the invitation from St. Edmund’s Hall to enter Cambridge University. The following year Simon achieved the grades necessary to accept a place at Loughborough University, which was renowned for its development of sporting talent. The notion of his taking the Oxbridge exam had been dismissed out of hand by the teaching staff at St. Edward’s.

As they embarked on their differing paths, Sir Lawrence watched as the nature and intensity of communication and interaction between them changed. He was pleased that neither had lost his confident, outgoing personality – nevertheless, the social circles and peer groups in which they moved were radically different and the ease and comfort they once felt with each other’s friends steadily diminished.

Throughout his university career, Philip’s academic results continued to flourish and impress his grandfather. Not only did he graduate with a first class honours degree – he also received the distinction of becoming head of the Cambridge Debating Society attracting many gratifying plaudits from eminent professors along the way. As the time approached to leave, Philip devoted a lot of thinking time to his future career. He considered politics but felt that he would prefer a more well-defined and structured environment. As consequence he settled on the more lucrative and glamorous choice of Investment Banking. Cambridge University, being what it is, one of the top producers of executive talent in the world, attracted the biggest and best “City” firms to its hallowed halls, jostling to recruit the pick of the crop. Philip, at the top of their hit lists, was seduced by the financial rewards and responsibilities that were thrust upon him by one of the Big Five American investment houses. He accepted the offer and after completing the management training program and three years’ work experience in London, he returned to Tudor Hall to make an announcement. His grandfather was delighted to hear the news that he had been promoted to Vice President but his enthusiasm was dampened when he learnt that the position also required his relocation to their Wall Street office. Accustomed to his regular trips back to Tudor Hall, his grandfather realised he couldn’t stand in his way and gave the move his blessing.

Simon on the other hand, continued to excel in the world of sport but only bordered on a level where he began to toy with the idea of turning professional. After much deliberation and soul-searching, his head finally overruled his heart and he decided that he should embark on a structured career path. In the end, he too followed a career in the City of London but not in the privileged, high profile footsteps of his brother. Instead he started on the bottom rung with a gently declining, middle-of-the-road stockbroking firm. Simon’s progress was rapid. He was friendly and go-getting and, more importantly, he started to make lots of money for the firm. His grandfather suspected that he felt slightly aggrieved by the differential in status and remuneration compared with his older brother so he went out of his way to applaud Simon’s efforts.

In reality, though, his concern was unfounded because the goals and targets they set themselves were very different. If Simon had wanted to succeed in the City, if he had been motivated by others’ perceptions or the trappings of success he could have made it, but the truth was that he didn’t care. Philip only realised as much when Simon suddenly handed in his notice to his employer who was disappointed to learn of his departure after such an auspicious start to his career. Simon felt that he was following too closely in his older brother’s shoes without really stopping to consider the alternatives. On top of everything else he felt stifled and bored in the job; it was not what he wanted. His next move was impulsive but still received his grandfather’s full backing. He decided to join the army and obtained a commission with the Royal Duke of Edinburgh Regiment stationed in Berkshire. Enjoying the camaraderie, Simon passed through Sandhurst with flying colours and as a young captain he was posted on various peace-keeping assignments including tours of duty in Cyprus and Northern Ireland. After two years, just as his promotion to Major was announced, his command was sent into the Kosovo war zone. The death, the poverty and the barbaric conditions in which the local population lived and survived shocked him. Simon struggled to come to terms with the absurd futility of the “ethnic cleansing” as he watched innocent bystanders getting caught in the crossfire day after day. He saw friends killed in cold blood a few feet from where he stood and in turn he shot the enemy, justifying his actions as self-defence. It was insufficient – the senselessness of war distressed him and he found it harder and harder to live with his actions. In the end he saw out the tour but immediately on arriving back in England he bought his way out of the regiment. His grandfather was disappointed but understood his principles. He was also slightly concerned that Simon would be unable to find his true vocation.

After taking stock of his life and reassessing his own values, Simon discovered where his true calling lay and he conveyed his views to his grandfather over lunch in Oxford. Unsure how the news would be received, he was pleasantly surprised by Sir Lawrence’s friendly and enthusiastic support and guidance. About a month later, while staying with Philip in his apartment off Sloane Square, Simon informed him of his decision to leave England. He told him that with the help of their grandfather, he had been offered a position within an international volunteer organisation affiliated to the United Nations that dispensed medical and teaching aid to the poorest communities in Africa and South-East Asia. Initially Philip was stunned and argued vehemently against it, but eventually he realised that further discussion on the subject was fruitless. Simon’s mind was made up.

Just a week later, he boarded a plane for Namibia and the brotherly inter-dependence that had been so strong in their early years was formally broken. As each day passed, the ties that had once bound them so tightly together began to loosen, but not entirely to unravel – and over the years that followed and the thousands of miles that separated them, they gradually grew further apart.

In Tudor Hall’s main reception lounge, Simon moved away from the impressive, stone fireplace to look at other memorabilia of a bygone age around the room. He stepped towards a circular mahogany George III table covered with more framed photographs surrounding an elaborate dried flower arrangement in the centre.

“Do you remember how happy he was that day?” asked Simon, holding up another picture.

The photograph showed the brothers beaming at the camera with grandfather, also grinning broadly, standing between them with his hands clapped around their shoulders. They were standing on the lawns of St. Edmund’s Hall, Cambridge and Philip gave the impression of being very learned at his graduation ceremony in his black gown, mortarboard balanced on his head and clutching his degree certificate.

“I remember it well,” recalled Philip fondly.

“He looks so well and full of life… Good times!” he added wistfully.

Now at the tender age of thirty-five, Philip had carved out an enviable reputation within New York’s indiscreet, scandal-ridden banking community. Since embarking on his career, he had become the doyen of the senior management who had lavished the rich trappings of success upon him to pre-empt counter offers from rival firms. If he managed to avoid the many pitfalls, partnership status was on the horizon.

Simon looked at the picture one last time before replacing it on the table.

“Have you made any plans yet?” asked Philip.

Simon had already told Philip on arrival at Tudor Hall that we wouldn’t be staying long – in his United Nations relief agency role he was constantly in demand, co-ordinating projects to alleviate the suffering in various war-torn, famine-infested third world countries, none of which could be put on hold for a family bereavement.