“Looks like it’s all go today. You want to see what’s going on?” Jen asked.
Jack swallowed the bite of sandwich he had been chewing. “And to think I thought this was a sleepy village.”
They left the house and quickly made their way back down to the harbour. The ambulance waited with its lights flashing, the paramedics standing beside it looking out to sea. A small crowd had already gathered, and among them, Jack noticed Rocky. When Rocky saw Jen approaching he waved and grinned. Then he saw Jack at her side, and his grin became a scowl.
“What the hell you doin’ with him?” Rocky growled.
“We were just talking,” Jen said, stepping between them and kissing Rocky on the cheek.
Shazam stood at Jack’s side. A low growl emanated from her and she bared her teeth.
“You better hope that mutt don’t come near me, otherwise it’ll be dog meat.”
“It’s okay, girl,” Jack said, patting the dog on the head. He stared at Rocky. “I know there’s a bad smell around here, but I’m sure it’ll be gone soon.”
Rocky clenched his fists. He looked ready to start trouble.
“Cut it out you two,” Jen said. “So what’s going on here?” she asked Rocky, pointing towards the fast approaching boat.
Rocky held eye contact with Jack for a moment longer then turned to Jen. “I dunno. Did you hear about that man this morning?”
Jen nodded. “Yeah, it’s awful.”
“You can say that again. It got the wrong person.” He glared at Jack.
For Jen’s sake, Jack decided not to rise to the bait. He watched the boat as it sped into the harbour. There were two men in it from what he could see. When they reached the quay, one of them jumped out and moored the vessel up, while the other crouched down in the back.
The paramedics rushed down to meet the boat, carrying a stretcher. They boarded the boat, and moments later, they hurried back to the ambulance carrying someone between them. Jack peered through the crowd. He caught sight of the person on the stretcher; recognised her as the girl that he had given a light to in the bar. She wasn’t moving.
“Do you think she’s dead?” Jen whispered.
Jack bit his lip. If she wasn’t dead, then she was sure as hell as close as she was going to get.
“Well I’m out of here,” Jack said.
Jen turned and looked at him. “You don’t have to leave. Stay.” Rocky’s expression said otherwise.
“Nah, guess it’s time to head home.”
Jen lowered her gaze. She kicked at the floor and then nodded. As he walked away, Jack couldn’t help thinking that he had seen something in her expression. Something that said she really wanted him to stay. He smiled. Perhaps there was hope yet.
Chapter 14
“Are you sure it was her?” Bruce asked, putting down the paintbrush he’d been using to paint the window. White paint splattered the front of his blue shirt and speckled his cheeks and hair.
Jack nodded. “I don’t know what happened to her, but she looked real bad.”
Bruce shook his head. “My god. I was only talking to her this morning. What a day this is turning out to be.”
Jack recognised something more than regular sympathy in his dad’s voice. He saw concern; wished now he hadn’t mentioned anything. The previous altercation with his dad seemed to have been forgotten, which was better than having to listen to another lecture.
“Perhaps I should go see how she is,” Bruce said.
“Why? You don’t know her.”
“I know, but it seems the right thing to do. I think I’ll go and have a wash. Do you know where they took her?”
Jack shook his head.
“Well, there’s probably a hospital nearby. I’m sure someone in the village will know. And Jack, thanks for the milk.”
Jack shrugged his shoulders. “It’s no big deal.”
Bruce ruffled Jack’s hair. “Still, thanks anyway.” He smiled and then left the room, leaving Jack feeling glad his good deed hadn’t gone unnoticed, but resentful that his dad was going to see another woman.
Bruce parked the car opposite the harbour and then walked into the hardware shop. Duncan Roberts was sitting behind the counter reading a book.
“Hello again,” Duncan said, smiling amiably. “It’s Bruce, isn’t it?”
“That’s right. I don’t know if you heard about the woman that had the diving accident earlier—”
Duncan nodded his head. “Terrible business. What with the attack this morning. Never seen anything like it in all the years I’ve lived here.”
“Well I was just wondering if you could tell me where they might have taken her.”
“Probably to the hospital in town.”
“Is it far?”
“No, you passed through it on the way here. The one with the new resort.”
“Thanks.”
Duncan clucked his tongue. “Mind how you go now. You know what they say, bad luck has a way of travelling in threes.”
Bruce subconsciously fingered his wallet with the good luck charms inside.
“If you’d like a drink later, get to know a few people, I’ll be in the bar about eight,” Duncan said.
“What… yes, thanks. I might just take you up on that.”
Outside the shop, Bruce stared across the harbour and saw Zander standing on the bow of his boat, staring back at him. Bruce held his hand up in acknowledgement. Zander spat into the sea, turned and disappeared below decks.
Bruce didn’t like animosity, but he didn’t think Zander was going to be on his Christmas card list anytime soon.
Once in the car, he took out his phone and rang Jack, who answered on the sixth ring.
“Yeah?”
“I’m going to drive to the hospital. Don’t know what time I’ll be back. There’s some money on the table in the kitchen. If I’m not back in time, buy yourself something to eat.”
“Buy something where?”
“There’s a cafe in town isn’t there? Oh, and can you feed Shazam too?”
“Whatever.”
“Thanks. See you later. Be good.”
Bruce disconnected the call and started the car. He drove out of the village at a leisurely pace. With so much work to do on the house, he felt guilty leaving it. But he knew he was going to have to get back to his real job of website designing eventually when they connected his phone line and set up his internet account. Some of the tasks, like the rotten bedroom window and the dodgy plumbing, were best left to the professionals. This reminded him to ask Duncan if he could recommend anyone; better not to upset the local tradesmen if he could help it by getting in outsiders to do the work. One person off his Christmas card list in a small village was already one too many.
The new resort was bustling. Families were playing on the beach, and kids were paddling in the sea and running through the arcades. Bruce wondered whether news of the attack had filtered through yet. Looking at the kids in the sea, he doubted it. Perhaps the attack was an isolated incident, but then what had happened to Erin? He assured himself it was probably unconnected, and followed the signs to the hospital.
He parked in the car park and made his way to the reception. The hospital was a modern building with a large glass front. The automatic doors glided open and Bruce walked inside. He basked in the cool interior, took a moment to waft the neck of his T-shirt. He’d tried to dress casually in new black jeans and a T-shirt, but now he wondered if it was appropriate attire for visiting someone in hospital. That’s if they let him see her.
The woman seated at reception looked up and stared at Bruce over the top of her glasses. She had a studious expression, her black hair tied back in a severe ponytail that only accentuated the sharp angles of her face.