The Busker: A gripping psychological thriller by M.J. Patrick

Author:M.J. Patrick [Patrick, M.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-11-15T16:00:00+00:00

21

Sally discovered, too late, that now was not the right time to joke with Ashley.

‘Did you have a nice time with Sam?’ she asked her friend, smiling.

Ashley fired a warning shot. ’Sally.’ It was a serious warning shot, but Sally ignored it.

‘Was it more or less fun than the pool game?’ she teased again. Sally was doing it out of spite, for how Ashley had behaved up on the cliff with Charlie. She wanted to annoy her, and it was working.

‘Stop,’ Ashley cautioned, glaring. The whole walk down from the cliff she kept her arms crossed, a silent display to show Sally she was Not Happy. She’d done this before, and Sally was used to it. Sally didn’t know why she was so upset, but it irritated her.

They’d made it to the bottom of the hill, where the path merged into the beach front’s walkway. The side of the street they were walking on faced the beach. The busy bars and pubs were on the other side. With its long queue still stretching down the street, Sally could make out the bar they’d been in with Jim and Sam further along the beachfront.

They didn’t speak until they passed the bar, and that was when Sally decided to fight back against Ashley’s moodiness. With every step, she was growing more annoyed about how curt Ashley had been on top of the cliff. Something was wrong, and she wanted to find out what.

‘This is stupid. You’re pissed off, and I don’t know why. What was that performance up there on the cliff?’ Sally asked, but Ashley didn’t respond. Instead, she hurried forward on the path, her sandals flopping loudly on the concrete. Sally rushed to her side, careful not to trip on the pavement. ‘Okay, what’s wrong? Why the rush?’

Ashley’s words came out sharp and fast. ‘I’m cold, and I’m tired,’ she said.

‘If you were cold and tired, then why were you looking for me?’ Ashley didn’t reply. ‘I hate it when you’re silent. Talk to me, please. Tell me what’s wrong.’

Ashley remained silent, facing straight ahead, continuing at a brisk pace.

Sally remembered once, back at university, Ashley had decided not to speak to Sally for an entire day because of some drunk argument they had late at night. The next morning Sally couldn’t even recall what the argument was about, but Ashley continued to remain silent for the whole day. This was another repeat.

She tried again to prod her friend with more teasing. ‘Sam was really that bad, huh?’ Sally asked. No response. ‘Look, I don’t want to go back to the hostel if Sam and Jim are still there.’

‘They aren’t there,’ Ashley corrected.

‘Good. Then tell me what’s wrong. I hate it every time you do this silent treatment, it freaks me out, and it’s making me sound needy.’

‘It was lucky I went up there,’ Ashley said, pointing to the cliff behind them. The night’s darkness shrouded the top of the hill. If Charlie was still up there Sally wasn’t able to see him.

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