“I think you should quit while you’re behind,” she says, popping a final bite of burger into her mouth.
“You think you don’t need me, but Hope Falls is not the same as London.”
“Well, there’s something we can agree on—”
“I know the area. I know the people. The locals here respect me and that counts for something even if you don’t think so.”
She doesn’t answer. Instead she sucks each of her sticky fingers in turn, then takes what looks like a wet wipe from her bag and thoroughly cleans her hands. I’ve barely touched my food yet but she has cleared her whole plate. Even the dollop of ketchup is gone, as though she squeezed out the perfect amount. I take another bite but the wolf dog keeps staring in my direction and drooling as though he’d like to eat my burger, or possibly me.
“You do know it’s illegal for a dog not to wear a collar?” I say, wishing he was tied to something. Preferably outside. Far away.
“He doesn’t like wearing one. You can arrest me if you like.”
“What if he got lost?”
“He won’t, but if he did I’d find him. Sunday is smarter than most people.”
She gives me a look that suggests she thinks the dog is smarter than me too, then she sucks the straw in her milkshake, and returns her attention to her laptop as though I’m not here. I put down my burger; I’m not sure I can eat any more. I seem to have lost my appetite.
The barmaid comes to collect our plates and frowns when she sees that I barely touched my food. “What’s wrong, Lulu?” she asks, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Not like you to leave food on your plate. He normally inhales it,” she says, smiling at Bird, who suddenly seems more interested in me than whatever she was reading on the screen.
“We’re trying to work if you don’t mind, Maddy,” I say.
“It’s fine, tell me more about Sergeant Lulu,” Bird says, closing the laptop.
Maddy laughs. “Sergeant, I still can’t get used to people calling him that.”
I glare up at her. “Thank you, Maddy. Always so good to see you. We really do need to get back to work now,” I add, desperate to shut this down.
“Don’t you be getting all high-and-mighty with me, Luke Carter. I’ve seen you naked,” Maddy says, then she ruffles my hair. “Sorry, pet. Didn’t mean to embarrass you. Luke is a man of many talents,” she says to Bird.
“Thank you—”
“All of them unproven.” Maddy chuckles to herself and walks away.
Bird laughs too. “You’re right, the locals definitely respect you. You never mentioned that you had a girlfriend.”
“She’s not my girlfriend.”
“She said she’s seen you naked—”
“She means when we were kids. She’s mybig sister, not my girlfriend. She used to change my nappies, for god’s sake.”
I look up and it’s the first time I’ve ever seen Bird look confused.
“Yoursister?”
“Our parents used to be the landlords of this pub and it was our home when we were kids. Our folks never owned it, just ran the place, so when the brewery bought the freehold during the tourist boom a couple of years ago, Mum and Dad lost their home as well astheir livelihood. Maddy still likes working here. I think it’s her way of staying close to them.”
“What happened to them?”
“They left. Couldn’t afford to stay. The price of properties in Cornwall has gone through the roof because of people buying holiday homes. Mum and Dad couldn’t afford to live in the village they were born in. The stress of it all was too much for them. They’re gone.”
“They died?”
“Worse. They moved to Spain.”
Bird smiles, so I don’t ruin the moment by telling her that Mum has been diagnosed with cancer or that I think the stress of losing the pub is what caused it. I’m sure she doesn’t need to know my whole sorry life story.
