The Island by Lilly Mirren

Author:Lilly Mirren [Mirren, Lilly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781922650122
Publisher: Black Lab Press

Twelve

Bradford’s truck was in the driveway the next day when Bea came home from a full day’s work at the beach cottage. She sighed as she pulled the station wagon into the barn and turned off the ignition. She was exhausted, covered in paint dust.

All she really wanted was to climb into the enormous claw-footed bathtub in the ensuite off her old bedroom with a giant glass of red wine and look out the portrait window over the beach while she soaked and felt sorry for herself.

She was supposed to be going out to dinner with the girls from high school as soon as she’d showered and changed, but she wasn’t sure how to get to the Blue Shoal Inn. She’d only ever been there with her parents as a child and vaguely recalled a narrow, winding track somewhere through the centre of the island. She’d have to ask Dad for directions. Hopefully, the old station wagon would manage the trip.

Dani was still unwell and had been tucked beneath the covers with a fever when Bea left that morning. She’d called to check on her at lunchtime, and Dad said he was feeding her chicken broth while she watched a movie in the living room. At least she’d managed to emerge from the bedroom. And so far, none of them had caught the flu from her. Bea assumed that’s what it was, since she had all the symptoms.

It often seemed that when a person slowed down after a period of stress, they managed to catch something. She was only now beginning to realise just how stressed and overwhelmed her daughter had been while studying at university. All this time, she’d believed her to be fine and completely in control. But apparently that’d all been an act.

She trudged up the stairs and kicked off her muddy boots outside the door, then stepped into the warm interior. Dad had been reading a newspaper in his favourite armchair. He’d fallen asleep with it open between his two hands, his light snoring filled the silence. Dani lay asleep on the couch, with the television screen stuck on a frozen image.

When Bea sat down, he opened his eyes and licked his dry lips. “There you are.”

She smiled. “You were really out to it. How’s the back?”

He grimaced. “A little better, I think. The medicine helps. But I’m struggling to turn my head much from side to side.”

“That’s hard, I know.”

“How did it go at the cottage today?”

She shrugged. “Good, I think. It’s slow going and hard work. I’m aching all over. But I’m loving it at the same time.”

“I’ve been thinking about that roll of film you found in the wall yesterday.”

“Oh?”

“The family who sold it to us was related to that woman who runs the local café — June Clements.”

“Really? I always thought you bought it from someone on the mainland.”

“I’m not sure where he ended up, but he was linked to June in some way. I can’t recall how exactly. And the funny thing is, we only found out about the place because your mother and June were friends.

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