Forty-one
Next morning was Saturday, and a changeover in guests for Rachel, making it a busy day as she had to clean the rooms and change the beds ready for the new arrivals. She hadn’t slept well, thoughts of the poor dogs being poisoned going around and around in her head, and the arrival of Verity to cuddle into her in the middle of the night hadn’t helped.
Rachel rose carefully, taking care not to disturb the little girl who was now sound asleep, after having tossed and turned for what had seemed to be half the night. After a shower, she felt better and pulled on the same outfit she’d worn the previous day, before going to let Molly out and begin breakfast.
Verity appeared as Rachel was farewelling her guests, the two couples thanking her and promising to return. ‘Why do you have all these visitors, Grandma?’ she asked, as Molly licked her bare feet, making her giggle.
‘This house is too big for me and Molly,’ she said, ‘and these people need somewhere to stay when they come to visit Pelican Crossing.’
‘But you have me now.’
‘I certainly do.’ Rachel picked up the little girl and whirled her around. And she was good company. Maybe it was time to make changes, to reduce the number of paying guests. She no longer needed the extra money. Alexander had been very generous in providing for Verity’s keep, and she’d received a small inheritance from a distant relative. It was worth considering.
‘What are we going to do today?’ Verity asked, when they had returned from walking Molly on the beach. ‘Are we going to see the twins?’
‘I’m going to be busy here, but I can drop you off at your Aunt Jess’s first. She called last night after you were in bed, to say the twins wanted to tell you all about school.’
‘When can I go to school?’
‘When you’re five, but… maybe we can enrol you in pre-school this year. Would you like that?’ Rachel didn’t know why she hadn’t thought of this before now. Verity was a bright child who would love the activities and the interaction with other children, and it would give Rachel some time to herself, something she’d been missing.
‘Yes, I went to Kindy Korner with Mummy back home.’
‘Oh, sweetheart, this is your home now.’ Rachel pulled her into a hug, swamped with guilt. She should have thought of asking Alexander and done something about this before now, but she had been so intent on trying to make sure Verity felt at home here. ‘Here in Pelican Crossing we have Pelican Pals . We’ll go on Monday, and you can decide if you’d like to start there.’
‘I’d like that. Are there pelicans?’
‘Maybe not real ones there, but we can see if we can find some by the river on our way home.’
‘Yes please. I loved it when I went to see them feeding with my daddy.’
Once she had dropped Verity off at Jess’s, Rachel went home to start on her chores. Turning on the radio to the local channel, she heard the announcement about the dog beach being closed and the news of the poisonings. She hoped they’d find the evidence needed… and the culprit, though she could understand that might be more difficult. ‘We’re lucky we have our own special beach, Molly,’ she said to her little dog who always accompanied her as she moved around the house.
Rachel was smoothing down the bed in the bedroom which would house her next lot of guests when her phone pinged with a text. Scanning it, she felt a sense of relief. The couple who were due to arrive today had been forced to cancel due to a family emergency. There was another message. This one from Jess asking if Verity could have a sleepover with the twins as the three girls wanted to watch a movie together. Rachel quickly agreed, wondering what Luke was doing this evening. Now she was going to have the house to herself, it might be the perfect opportunity for them to make up for lost time.
*
‘Over here!’
The shout came just as Luke had given up hope. He and a band of others, including members of the local scout troop, had been searching all morning with nothing to show for it. When he looked over to where the voice had come from, he saw one of the scouts in the rough grass at the edge of the beach, his hand in the air. Luke, Joe and Finn hurried over to where the boy was standing, to see a few green pellets of rat bait, hidden in the grass.
‘Is this what we’re looking for?’ the boy asked.
‘It is. Well done!’ Luke said.
‘We should keep looking,’ Joe said, ‘there may be more. But it’s proof it’s been a deliberate act.’
Luke collected the pellets, sealing them in a plastic bag and dropping it into his backpack, ready to hand over to the police. They’d been happy to allow the group of locals to conduct the search, only interested if they discovered any evidence. Though it was doubtful they could take any action on the basis of a collection of pellets of rat poison, and there was no guarantee that whoever was responsible wouldn’t do it again.
‘It’ll be on the front page of the next edition of The Echo ,’ Finn said, when they had retired to The Grand for a quick bite of lunch. ‘Someone must know something.’
‘Hmm. But will they be willing to talk, to dob in a mate?’ Joe said. ‘Pelican Crossing is a small community. People are loyal to their mates.’
‘But would they keep quiet when they knew a dog had died?’ Luke asked. He couldn’t believe anyone would.
Joe shrugged.
It was hot on the beach in the afternoon as the search continued, but there was no sign of any more pellets. Joe offered to drop those they’d found into the police station, saying that as he knew one of the officers there, it might help them take action to find the culprit. Luke wasn’t optimistic. Even though Joe and Finn had their suspicions, it would be difficult to prove. He was on his way home when Rachel rang.
‘Great news! I’m on my own tonight. Can I tempt you to join me for dinner?’
‘On your own? What’s happened?’
‘My guests had to cancel because of an emergency, and Verity is having a sleepover with the twins.’
Luke felt like shouting out loud, whooping like a teenager. An evening – and perhaps overnight – with Rachel was exactly what he needed after the day he’d had. ‘On my way home now. Give me time to shower change and take Nelson for a walk, and I’ll be with you.’
‘Why don’t you bring Nelson, and we can walk the dogs together? Molly needs a walk too.’
‘Perfect,’ he said, his heart racing at the prospect of the evening ahead.