‘Where are you?’
I glance around, wondering if I should tell him. I can’t lie, not again. No more lies. ‘Polperro.’
‘I thought we were going to go there as a family.’
‘Yes. Trust me on this. I need to find out what happened to Jessica. That’s why I’m here. That message you saw—’
‘Kate, I need some time to think. I don’t know if I can do this, us, any more.’
I almost choke as I gasp. ‘What are you saying?’
‘None of this is right. You lie to me, you’re obsessed with chasing Jessica’s ghost and I’m fed up. It’s not good for the girls. When we get home, they’re going to spend Sunday with my mother and we are going to have a talk. I’ve already arranged it and she’s delighted at the thought of finally having them over for a few hours.’
‘But—’
‘I can’t do this now.’
He ends the call, leaving me standing outside the car park, hands shaking. With a red face, I’m on the cusp of bursting into tears. I’ve finally pushed him over the edge and he gave me no time at all to explain. Fanning my tears away, I try to stay focused. A part of me wants to get right back into the car and drive to him, beg him to listen. He’ll see where I’m coming from, he has to. I can’t lose him. But I have to see this through.
As I walk past a row of houses, most of them converted into bed and breakfasts, I catch up with a couple of people and I hope that I’m following them in the right direction. I see shops in the distance and very soon, I’m there, passing a café, then an art shop. My mind keeps flitting back to Damien. I’ve hurt him and it feels horrible. The lies I’ve told are because he’s stopped supporting me.
Tiny, packed in cottages line the paths as I enter the maze of Polperro. White cottages, blue cottages, vacant signs, fully booked signs. Some have little balconies jutting out and others have large picture windows featuring model ships and cosy dining rooms. I’m transfixed. A terrier sniffs at my feet and its owner pulls it away and continues walking. For a dreary Monday in October, this place is packed. For once, I feel safe. Being in a crowd gives me company and no one will hurt me in front of all these people. My phone beeps. I snatch it out of my pocket, hoping that it’s Damien but it’s Will.
You need to leave, now.
Will has got me to come all the way here, I trust him when he says that he has information about Jess and now he wants me to leave. No way. I’ve invested too much and jeopardised my marriage in the process. I reply.
No, you should keep your promise and meet me. I’m fed up with waiting. Was it you watching me at the cottage earlier? You seem to know where I am all the time. Why are you doing this to me?
My hands shake. A man carrying several bags of shopping nudges past me on the narrow path. I wait for a few seconds but there is no reply. As I’m about to continue exploring, I see another message flash up.
You’re in danger. Go home, Kate, before it’s too late!
As I go to click on it to see if there’s more, I find that it’s gone. Will Wilcox has gone. His whole profile has been deleted leaving me with the earlier messages but not the last one; the one that tells me I’m in danger is nowhere to be seen. He must have deleted it before I had the chance to open it properly and read it.
I keep repeating that last message in my head, over and over as I don’t want to forget it. Before it’s too late – too late for what? It’s definitely threatening. I should call Damien. Maybe the girls are in danger. I press his number but all I get is his voicemail. I’ll try again in a bit. I think of whoever was in that car, watching me, and a tingle runs through my body. Maybe he’s back in Looe, watching my family. No, I shake that thought away. This person wants to scare me, that’s all. Damien won’t let the girls out of his sight and he can look after himself; he’s strong in that way. They’re safe with him.
Whoever has been sending these messages, playing with my mind, knows how close I’m getting to the truth and, for some reason, they’re trying to stop me by telling me that there’s danger ahead. I think of that car and the person who’s been watching me and I feel that if they wanted to confront me, they would have. They’re cowards, hiding in darkness or driving off. My head is full of conflicting thoughts. One minute I believe I’m in danger, the next I feel that someone is playing a sick joke and I’m nothing more than entertainment to them.
Seagulls squawk from above and I get nudged out of the way again by a huge family trying to pass. The children seem to range from toddler to teenager and there are at least eight kids and three adults. Before I know it, I’m swept up in the crowd. I hear them talking of Willy Wilcox’s haunted cave so I follow them in the hope that they will lead me to where I need to be. Will wanted me to see it so I’m going to see it. He may have ghosted me but I’m going to follow this ghost until I find out if Archie hurt Jessica and if Cody has been keeping it a secret all these years.
TWENTY-FOUR
KATE
After weaving around more tiny paths, I follow the family to a square with a restaurant on one side and a café on another. The restaurant is Nelson-themed but all I can think of is pirates and Will. The image in my head of an eye patch and grisly beard sends me a little dizzy. I haven’t eaten today and my stomach spasms. The café is in a tiny courtyard and there are a few tables, chairs and umbrellas by the door. The waft of frying onions and something cheesy makes me hungry. The restaurants are all open and each one gives off an appetising aroma. I gaze at the square and wonder what fun things have happened here in the past. It looks to be the hub of the community with its posters advertising the entertainment to come.
I feel sick with hunger now and I know I must eat. Following the family into the café, I order a small Danish pastry then I wait and watch, hypervigilant of everyone who is around, each one of them possibly watching me. There’s a man in a dark anorak and a woman wearing a navy headscarf. Both make me shiver. The worst thing is not knowing who is following me and sending the messages. Maybe the person watching me is Will, maybe he isn’t. Maybe the messenger and my stalker are two different people. Or maybe they are Cody. My mind is still on him. I don’t trust him at all.
The large family with its line-up of children all take doughnuts out of a paper bag, then they continue walking. I glance at another man sitting on a wall and a woman catches my eye as she talks on her phone. I don’t recognise either of them but maybe they recognise me. Word is well and truly out about my being here, and maybe it’s spread to the next town. That article had spread far and wide.
One of the children shouts about the cave again and I hear their mother telling them that they can go there now. The little girl’s lips are covered in sugar and she giggles with delight as she follows her mother. An older woman leads the way, at a guess I would say she’s the grandmother. The large man, walks behind them, huffing and puffing as he uses his inhaler.
Within minutes of walking past more shops and restaurants, I’m gaping at the most beautiful harbour. Surrounding it are houses that reach heights that make me a little giddy. I imagine the views from up there to be amazing. The thought of not sharing this with my little family wrenches at my heart.
I wobble slightly as I’m transported back to that day on the boat with Jess and my parents. We came here. I remember mooring up and walking along that huge wall. It was the same back then, except the people now all have mobile phones. Some snap away with their cameras, others sit on the benches. Fishing nets are hung up everywhere, drying out on boats and on the path, just like back then. I take a moment to appreciate what’s in front of me as I take a bite of the pastry, enjoying its buttery flakiness. Despite my emotional state, it’s going down well. If only we’d known what would happen next when we got back to Looe Harbour. A bit of pastry catches the back of my throat and I cough violently as I try to dislodge the crumbs. There was no point in toiling over the what ifs. Jess died and nothing will bring her back.
The family keep chatting as they pass a pub and a jewellery shop. Polperro is a town that a person could get lost in for hours, taking in the coffee shops and having long lunches but I haven’t come here for that. I’m here to find out why Will Wilcox wants me here and how that relates to my sister. Something about this place draws me in deeper. It’s a puzzle waiting to be solved and only Will knows how it will all pan out. The family stall, but I hear them saying that the beach is ahead and I know that’s where I need to be. They stop at another café. That’s where I leave them.
