It was tiny. Barely a flinch.
But Marcus saw it.
So did Rowan.
‘Careful with his lead,’ Rowan said.
Mrs Calloway looked down. ‘Oh, he’s fine. Aren’t you, my precious boy?’
She bent and unclipped his lead to exchange it for the new one at exactly the wrong moment.
Another dog barked sharply behind them.
Beau twisted.
The new lead slipped.
For one horrible second, everyone seemed to see it happen at the same time and no one moved quickly enough.
Beau darted sideways between Mrs Calloway’s legs, under the edge of Tammy’s table, and vanished behind the refreshment boxes.
‘Beau?’ Mrs Calloway straightened. ‘Beau!’
Marcus stepped forward immediately. ‘Everyone stay calm.’
Mrs Calloway’s face had drained of colour. ‘He was just here. He was right here.’
Tammy crouched to look beneath the table. ‘I can’t see him.’
‘Nobody chase him,’ Rowan said, his voice cutting through the rising panic. ‘If he’s frightened, chasing will make him run.’
Mrs Calloway pressed both hands to her mouth. ‘Oh, my baby. My baby’s gone.’
The words were so small, so unlike her usual brisk gossip, that Marcus’s heart squeezed.
He touched her arm gently. ‘We’ll find him.’
Rowan’s gaze moved across the beach, assessing everything: the tables, the marquees, the steps, the crowd, the dogs, the gaps where a small frightened terrier could disappear.
Atlas’s head had appeared at the entrance of the quiet-zone marquee, ears forward, alert.
Marcus looked from Atlas to Rowan.
For one fragile moment, Rowan seemed to stop breathing.
Everyone around them waited.
Marcus and Rowan saw that Atlas had stepped out of the quiet zone marquee. His stance was erect as he looked their way.
Marcus looked at Rowan. ‘It’s your call.’
Chapter seventeen
Marcus turned around to face the growing group surrounding them. He lifted his hands, palms facing the crowd. ‘Please, everyone stay here. We’ll deal with this.’
Mrs Calloway held onto Marcus’s arm. ‘Please, I need to come. Beau’s my everything.’
Marcus glanced at Rowan. He nodded. Softening his features, he smiled warmly at Mrs Calloway. ‘Of course.’
