‘No. And if you keep pushing it we’re going to fall out.’ I said it with a smile though, so she knew I was only kidding.
‘You’re a lovely man, Jack. Pine Harbor is lucky to have you. You are planning on staying here with us, right?’
‘For now, sure. I haven’t really made any long-term plans. Kind of winging it as I go.’
‘What you need is to find yourself a nice local lady.’
‘I met one last night, actually. I mean, not in a romantic way. She’s married. Sort of.’
Her eyebrows puckered. ‘Sort of?’
‘Long story. And not my story to tell, not that I know much about it anyway.’
‘What’s her name? I know most of the families in the area. Some better than others.’
‘Taylor. She’s actually the daughter of the lady I rent the cabin from.’
‘Taylor Calderwood?’
‘That’s the one.’
‘Oh, she’s a lovely girl. From a lovely family. Well, her mother is a decent sort. The father wasn’t on the scene a lot. From what I understand he left when the kids were young. I don’t think they had all that much to do with him after that. Died a few years later in an accident. They brought him back here and buried him in the town cemetery but I don’t think they visit him often. I go once a month to tidy up my sister’s grave, put fresh flowers on, that sort of thing, and I never see so much as a single flower on his grave.’
‘That’s sad.’
‘There’s a lot of graves like that. Neglected. Forgotten. Then of course there was all that other business. Just horrible, it was.’ She shook her head mournfully. ‘That poor family is no stranger to tragedy. How is Taylor? Didn’t she marry that Wilson lad? Adam?’
‘She seemed fine. She’s in town to look after her uncle while her mother is on a cruise.’
‘Ray? Her mother has the patience of a saint, taking him in. He worked on the lobster boats with my brother for a while. He’s one of those people who always has to be right.’ She chuckled. ‘My brother said there were many times the crew were tempted to throw him overboard.’
‘Taylor didn’t seem too happy about being stuck with him.’
‘No, I bet she isn’t. I bet he’s none too thrilled either.’
I swirled the last of the coffee in my cup and then drained it. I was curious about what Irene had said relating to Taylor’s family being no stranger to tragedy, but I couldn’t ask what she’d meant by that. Or rather, I wouldn’t. It would be prying, and I figured if Taylor wanted me to know she would tell me herself. If I ever saw her again.
7
TAYLOR
I don’t know exactly what it was that alerted me to his presence. A noise, probably. Or the prickly sensation of being watched. Whatever it was, when I became aware of it I opened my eyes and saw the dark, unmistakable outline of someone looming over me. I couldn’t make out features, but I could feel the strength of the glare.
‘Fuck off,’ I shouted. ‘I know karate!’
‘Calm down,’ he said. ‘It’s me, Ray.’
‘Jesus Christ,’ I said. ‘What do you want?’
‘It’s about time you woke up. Day’s half gone already.’
I rolled my head, squinted. There was a little bit of light seeping through from around the curtains, but not enough to indicate the sun was properly up yet. ‘What time is it?’
‘Late.’
‘That doesn’t answer my question.’
He grumbled, waved a hand irritably. ‘Noduiaguifsush.’
