‘And I was with them too,’ says Marianne quickly.
Gus blinks. ‘What?’
‘You know what I mean! I was here, with you all. Present and correct,’ she hisses at him.
Grace’s eye shift across the room. ‘Mum? You weren’t here last night…’
‘Where were you, Marianne?’ asks James.
‘Right here, safe at home. I may not have been in the same room as everyone the whole time, but I was here. Of course I was. I mean where else would I be?’ she replies quickly.
Gus just stares at her, his brow furrowed, then he looks around the room, as if he’s trying to figure out what’s really going on.
‘I think you should leave now,’ says Marianne, her voice trembling. ‘We have nothing more to say to you.’
The room stills with anticipation.
‘This is so hard… especially as I so loved my time staying here, our chats over tea,’ I say, holding up my hands in a placating manner. ‘We’re not here to accuse anyone; we’re just trying to get to the bottom of this. If you can think of any reason why someone might want to set fire to The Lake House…’
‘It’ll be the ragtag, free-spirited vagabonds living up by The Lake House in the woods,’ says Marianne. ‘At least one of them has fingers like a thief, matted, unkempt dreadlocks, not a word of English. Mick’s house should have been put up for auction immediately – these vacant homes are a breeding ground for troublemakers.’
Grace’s eye glare. ‘Mum, how can you say that?’ Her eyes flash with rage as she turns towards her mother. ‘His name is Jose, not “vagabond with the long hair” not “misfit”. It’s Joseand we’re in love.’ Her words are like steel, the force of her conviction ringing through the air.
Marianne doubles over, like she’s been hit in the stomach, reaching out to grasp at Grace’s arm. ‘You are breaking my heart – I’m not changing my mind. I said what I said last night and I meant it,’ she says, her voice straining.
‘Were you with Jose last night, Grace?’ asks James.
She nods. ‘Yes, I’m with him every night – there are loads of us – you can check with them if you want – we sit around, sing, hang out – we don’t cause anyone any harm.’
‘Grace, tell us what happened,’ I say. ‘It’s best we hear your story from you.’
She sighs and looks to the ceiling, dabbing tears in her eyes.
Gus comes over to her and puts his hand on hers. ‘It’s okay – say what you need to say. Just tell the truth.’
Marianne says nothing, but I can see something in the quick glance she throws Grace’s way. Her mouth is a tight line, and her eyes are wide. Is she warning her or pleading with her? It’s hard to say.
‘Jose and I were together. We did nothing wrong, we’re doing nothing wrong… but my mother can’t accept it. Won’t accept it.’ She sighs and wipes her eyes with the back of her hand. ‘Last night, I went out to the woods after I came back here to drop my guitar and tell Dad that Stephen was in. When I got there, Mum was waiting for me by the lake. She told me to come back home with her that instant or there’d be consequences.’
‘What kind of consequences?’ I ask.
‘I didn’t wait around to find out. We fought. I left.’
‘Marianne, did you go to the woods last night?’ Gus asks her, his tone firm.
She nods.
‘In the Fiat?’
She nods again. ‘But I came straight home. Just because I drove to the woods to protect my daughter doesn’t mean I burned down anything. I had a right to be there.’
Oscar the cat stares up at me with big yellow eyes as he scratches the toe of my shoe. His claws click against the laces, and he makes a mewling noise. When I scoop him up, James, who’s standing nearby, comes over.He gently raises Oscar’s tail. The fur is dishevelled and clumped unevenly around it, and there’s something caught in the fur.
‘You’ve been doing some carpentry out there?’ James asks Marianne, nodding towards the cat’s tail.
Marianne’s eyes widen and she stands up quickly, her chair scraping against the floor. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about!’ she exclaims, her voice trembling.
‘Wood shavings,’ replies James calmly. He picks off the wooden slivers from Oscar’s tail. ‘The fire brigade told us the fire was caused by a paraffin fire-starter.’
