As we cross the lawn I spot one of the security team by the patio doors. I wonder how much this is all going to cost and if Josh has gone overboard. And then I remind myself that we can never be too safe. It’s great I’ve been left all this money from Dorothea, but I can imagine maintaining this place will become a financial drain. We can’t waste it.
‘Everything okay between you and Josh?’ asks Rachel, linking her arm through mine.
‘What makes you say that?’ The wind has picked up, sending a flurry of leaves into the air.
‘Just … you keeping things from him.’
‘You know how he worries.’
‘Hmmmm. He seems to think you’re made of glass.’
‘It’s worse since that whole Dominic Filcher thing.’
She rolls her eyes. ‘No, it’s not. He was like that before. He always insisted he wait for you if you were working late.’
‘He was worried about me. I liked it. I’ve never had anyone worry about me before.’
‘And now you find it stifling?’
‘Um … no, I didn’t say that …’ I blush because, despite my protestations, she’s right.
‘It’s okay if you do. You are nearly thirty years old, you can look after yourself.’
‘Rachel,’ I inject a warning tone into my voice. ‘Everything is good between me and Josh, okay?’
‘Fine. Do you think you’ll be able to come back to work? It’s more of a commute now you live in Bath.’ She puts on a plummy voice when she says Bath and I laugh. ‘Although you don’t need to now, I suppose. Not now you’re minted. You probably never need to work again.’
The subject of money makes me feel uncomfortable. And now I’m concerned that all this will change the dynamics of our friendship – that Rachel will stop seeing us as being ‘the same’. We were always bemoaning our lack of money, our long working hours, our big mortgages and outstanding student loans.
‘I like working, so I hope so. And also Dorothea stipulated that we can’t sell the house for a year. Don’t you think that’s odd?’
‘Actually, it makes sense if it’s linked to the sculpture. Maybe she wanted to give you enough time to work everything out.’
A chill settles over me. ‘Which means she must have known she was in danger.’
‘It looks that way, yes.’ A disbelieving noise escapes Rachel’s lips as we walk further into the woods. ‘I can’t believe you have a whole wood!’ The two dogs lollop in front of us, making me feel a whole lot safer.
It’s not long before we reach the spot where the bunker is and I pull out the key from my jacket pocket. Rachel stares down at something on the hatch door. ‘What’s that?’
I follow her gaze and frown. I kneel down to pick it up, confused.
‘A Zippo lighter?’ she says, taking it from me. ‘Is it the one stolen from the box?’
I push my hair out of my eyes. ‘It looks like it, which means he was here, in the woods.’ The hairs on the back of my neck bristle. ‘What does he want?’
‘He must know about the bunker and possibly the sculpture as well.’
I glance about, wondering if we’re being watched, but then I reason that surely they’d be put off at the sight of the security men on the driveway.
Satisfied we’re alone, I bend down and put the key in the lock.
‘I’ll stay above ground to make sure we don’t get locked in,’ I say to Rachel as I open the metal door. It clanks back against the ground.
She nods, staring down at the open space. ‘Wow, this is so cool. Bit dark though.’
‘There’s a light switch, just on your right. The sculpture is in the corner, covered by a sheet.’
She hands me back the lighter and descends the steps with trepidation. I keep watch as she disappears into the bunker. A rook caws overhead and I shiver, thankful that the dogs are with me. I don’t like being out here alone and I have to keep telling myself that the security guys aren’t far away. I turn the lighter over in my hand, noting the engraved swirls. It’s definitely the one I first found in the box. Why would that man steal it just to then dump it here again? Is it a warning?
