I nibble my bottom lip. “I’m Jack’s sister.”
He blinks a few times. Then, slowly, he takes off his sunglasses, and I do the same. His eyes are wide with disbelief. “Jack? My partner, Jack?”
I nod.
He stiffens. “He talked about his sister. She wasn’t called Isla.” Clearly, he thinks I’m lying.
I frown, then realize what’s happened and smile. “Did he call me Bonny?”
He looks shocked, and I know that’s made him realize I’m telling the truth.
“That was his nickname for me,” I explain. “It started off because when I was young, he used to tease me by saying my name the Spanish way—Eezla. And then he started singing the Madonna song,La Isla Bonita, and that got shortened to Bonny.”
He looks stunned. “You don’t have the same surname as Jack… because you’re married?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t understand,” he whispers. “Did Noah ask you to come to the Ark… for me?”
“Not exactly.” He frowns, and I hold up a hand. “A week ago, after Rob hit Max, I walked out and stayed a couple of nights at a friend’s house, but she’s got three kids, and I couldn’t stay there much longer. I called Beth and told her what had happened, and said I was looking to get away for a while. She went to see Noah to suggest I work here for the summer. He did a background check on me, the same way he does for any member of staff, and he must have put two and two together.”
“He worked out that my partner and your brother were one and the same?”
“Yeah.” It’s not that shocking. New Zealand is a small country, and Auckland is a small city.
“Did he tell you I was here?” Cullen asks.
I nod cautiously. “He said you were having trouble adjusting after Jack’s death, and he suggested it might help you to meet a member of Jack’s family.”
Cullen looks stunned. He studies the ground in front of us as we continue walking, lost in thought.
I’m pretty sure I have an idea of what’s going through his mind. Noah told me that Cullen blames himself for what happened to Jack. He has survivor guilt and PTSD, as does his dog. The two of them are suffering. He’s avoided visiting myparents, convinced, I’m sure, that they wouldn’t want to meet the man who caused their son’s death.
“Cullen…” I catch his hand, bringing him to a stop. “My parents know I’m here. They want you to know that they don’t blame you for what happened to Jack. I don’t, either. It was just one of those things.”
He blinks. “But if I’d done my job right, if I’d found that device…” His voice is hoarse with emotion.
“It was the fault of the man who hid the IED from you. Who detonated it with the intention of blowing you and Jack up. It wasn’t your fault, honey.”
He takes a deep, shivery breath and looks away, across the golden sand of the crescent-shaped beach below us to the bright blue gleam of the Pacific Ocean. “I should have gone to the funeral,” he says. “I feel bad that I didn’t.”
“We all understood. It’s okay.” I clear my throat. “Where are you staying?”
He blinks and looks back at me. “I’m renting a room in an Air BnB.”
“I’m staying in a friend’s bach just off the beach. They’re going to the South Island for Christmas and said I could use it until the New Year. Look, I was thinking of getting some fish and chips tonight, and I’ve got a bottle of wine.” I take a deep breath. “Would you like to join us? We could talk for a bit, about Jack and stuff… if you’d like to.”
I’m aware I’ve shocked him, and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he says no. He might resent me for not telling him earlier, and maybe his guilt is so bad that the thought of being in my company makes him feel awkward.
But he looks away again, at the sea, for a long moment. Then, eventually, his gaze comes back to me. “Okay,” he says.
My heart lifts. “Oh… I’m so glad.” The haunted look doesn’t quite leave his eyes, but he smiles, and that warms me all theway through. “Come on, then. I know it’s a bit early for dinner, but I’m ravenous.”
“Their beer batter is terrific,” he says as we head down the hill toward Sunrise Bay. “The snapper will be freshly caught, too.”
“Do they have sausages?” Max asks.
“Yep. And onion rings.”
