He shakes his head grumpily. ‘Hewasgoing to come, but he missed the bus.’
‘Oh no.’
‘Where does he live?’ Finn asks.
Michael frowns at him. ‘Why doyouwant to know?’
‘Maybe I could give him a lift if it’s not too far away.’
‘Perranporth.’
Finn’s jaw twitches.
‘You don’t need to do that,’ I say hurriedly.
He shakes his head. ‘No, I can. Do you want to come with me?’ he asks Michael. ‘Show me where his house is?’
‘He’s this side of town, not in the centre,’ I tell him, hoping he won’t have to drive past his old house, something he’s avoided doing for years. ‘But call him first to see if he’s still keen,’ I suggest to Michael.
Half an hour later, when Finn returns, Michael is in amuchperkier mood.
He leads the way inside, Timothy hot on his heels. The pair of them are wearing identical baggy red T-shirts.
‘We saw where Finn used to live,’ my brother says happily.
‘Did you?’ I flash Finn a quick look.
‘It was a shithole!’
‘Michael!’ I gasp.
‘It’s okay,’ Finn interjects, coming in behind them. ‘He’s not wrong.’
‘There were weeds everywhere!’ Michael says with unbridled glee. ‘And it was tiny!’
‘It’s a caravan,’ Timothy chips in, buoyed by Michael’s enthusiasm.
‘A mobile home,’ Finn clarifies for my benefit.
He says it flippantly, but the way his gaze lingers on my face makes me think he’s not as indifferent to my reaction as he makes out.
‘You sound as though you’ve all been on an adventure. Michael, can you get Timothy and Finn a drink please? The others will be here soon.’
As soon as Michael and Timothy have turned away, I grab Finn’s arm and step forward to plant a single kiss on his lips.
He doesn’t meet my eyes as he pulls away.
‘Tyler asked me to take him to the spot where they found Mum’s clothes.’
I open my eyes and look at Finn, barely able to make out his features in the darkness of my bedroom later.
I was just starting to doze off after a fun day with our friends when his voice brought me back to consciousness.
‘How do you feel about that?’ I ask, sensing that he’s been in two minds about saying anything.
‘I haven’t been back since you and I went.’ He lets out a heavy sigh. ‘He wants to see where she jumped.’
‘Oh,’ I say tentatively. ‘Has he asked your grandparents if they might go with him?’
