Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
As soon as she heard Martha and Saffron’s footsteps receding, Lily hurried back into the bedroom. First she checked the wardrobe, then the drawers. Her heart hammered so violently that after a moment she had to pause and force herself to breathe evenly.
There really weren’t many places to hide a backpack, and she soon ran out of places to look. Crouching to peer under the bed, she spotted a suitcase and slid that out to undo the zip, but it was disappointingly empty.
Worried about being discovered, she pushed the suitcase back to its place and returned to the bathroom to flush the toilet and run the tap for a moment.
“Thanks so much,” she said, joining the women in the kitchen. “You’ve been really helpful.”
“Saffron says you live on the island,” Martha remarked while pouring boiling water into three mugs. “What do you do?”
“I run an ice cream shop on the promenade.”
“Oh! We were looking at that place this morning. Silas got very excited, didn’t he?”
“He’s a bit like an overgrown kid,” Saffron said gleefully. “He really doesn’t act like a thirty-year-old. Did I tell you I saw him climbing a tree the other day?”
“He’s a funny one,” Martha said and handed a mug to Lily.
They moved to sit at the table.
“What do you do when you’re not on art retreats?” Lily asked Saffron. “Do you make money from your art?”
“Gosh, no.” She grinned widely. “I’m not a proper artist – I just like trying different things. I don’t have a proper career, but I always find jobs when I need them.”
Martha frowned over her mug. “How did you afford this then? The retreat isn’t cheap.”
“I’d been staying with my aunt for a couple of months. I was saying I’d like to try my hand at painting, and she suggested I go on a retreat. She paid for it.”
“That’s generous.” Martha’s brow wrinkled. “Very lucky.”
“Yes!” Saffron beamed. “To be honest, I think she might have been looking for a way to get rid of me, but I’m lucky she was willing to pay for it.
My mum always says I sail through life on good luck.
I think she’s right – I don’t know if you believe in manifesting, but it’s like whatever I want, I think about it and somehow things work out. ”
Martha rolled her eyes, and Lily couldn’t decide whether she found the notion absurd or didn’t like the thought of some people getting by on luck while others have to work.
“How does the retreat work?” Lily asked. “Do you have an itinerary for your stay?”
She sipped her tea while they filled her in on the schedule, which seemed to be split between working in the studio, and out on various excursions.
After finishing her drink, Martha declared she was going for a walk before their afternoon art session.
Saffron moved to wash the mugs.
“I think I’m going to lie outside for a bit,” she said, setting the last one on the draining board. “I love to lie on the ground and stare up at the clouds floating by. It’s a sort of meditation.”
“Sounds nice,” Lily said. It also sounded like her cue to leave, unless she could come up with an excuse to hang around for longer. Inviting herself to stare at clouds with Saffron probably wouldn’t be useful.
“Maybe I can check to see if Gideon is back now,” she said, following Saffron to the front door.
“That’s a good idea. If he’s here, he’ll show you his paintings. It’s the only time he speaks more than a few words at a time – talking about his pictures.”
A door in the hallway opened just as they were about to step outside.
“I thought I heard voices,” the man with a pointed grey goatee said.
“This is Lily,” Saffron said. “She has a friend interested in doing the retreat, so I’ve been giving her a tour. I couldn’t find Gideon.”
“Right.” He scratched at his silver hair. “I see.”
“So far I’ve heard glowing reports about the retreat,” Lily said, taking a few steps towards him. “Are you enjoying it?”
He kept a hand on the door, his body blocking the gap between the doorframe, making it impossible for Lily to see inside. “It’s good,” he said curtly. “I’d recommend it.”
“And you’re happy with the accommodation?” Lily said. “Is your room nice?”
“Lovely.” His narrow-set eyes went to Saffron. “Can I speak to you in private for a moment?”
“Of course.” She patted Lily’s arm. “I’ll catch up with you in a second.”
With a tight smile, Lily ignored the urge to barge into the guy’s room and instead walked out the front door.
She lingered on the front step but had no hope of hearing what was being said inside.
A couple of minutes later, she moved aside as the door opened.
“Everything okay?” Lily asked as Saffron stepped outside.
“Yes.” She shook her head. “Roland is a bit twitchy. I don’t know if you heard, but there was a break in a couple of nights ago at a house down the road.”
“Really?” Lily said, feigning ignorance.
“Yes. The police were here asking questions.” She set off around the main house.
“Roland thinks I shouldn’t really be showing strangers around, given the circumstances.
” She spluttered a laugh. “As though you might be a burglar and you’ve come here in broad daylight to rob us! I told him not to be so silly.”
Lily managed a small laugh. She wasn’t a thief – she only intended to take back what was hers in the first place.
“It’s very suspicious of him,” Lily said. “What did you say his name is?”
“Roland. He’s an interesting man. He worked his whole life in accounting and had his own firm and everything. Then, a couple of years ago, he gave it all up. He sold his house and car and most of his stuff and went travelling. He’s been all over the world. He tells some fascinating stories.”
“Amazing,” Lily muttered.
“Yes. You meet really interesting people when you do stuff like this. We’re all so different, but I feel very close to them.
I’m hoping we’ll keep in touch after the retreat.
” Her eyes sparkled. “It was a bit of excitement having the police here the other night. How many police officers are there on the islands?”
“Three,” Lily replied. For now, anyway.
“Well…” Saffron lowered her voice. “The one who was here the other night was lovely. A young guy – probably around thirty. Dark hair and a gorgeous deep tan.”
“PC Grainger,” Lily stated.
“Yes. That’s him! Do you know him?”
Lily nodded vaguely.
“Do you know if he’s single?”
“I… umm …” Lily did an uncanny impression of a goldfish as her mouth opened and closed. “I’m not really sure,” she said.
“He’s probably taken,” Saffron said with a shrug.
“Not that it matters. I’ll be gone again in a few days.
He’s gorgeous, though. It might be a uniform thing too.
” Her eyes drifted overhead. “Look at those fluffy clouds. Just beautiful, aren’t they?
Maybe I’ll try painting clouds this afternoon. I’ll lie down and get my inspiration.”
“Thanks so much for showing me around,” Lily said. “I’ll just nip inside and see if there’s any sign of Gideon.”
There was no one inside, and further snooping didn’t prove helpful. Not that Lily had expected it to. Stepping back into the fresh air, she considered her options.
The backpack was close, she was sure of it. Roland had seemed shifty, and definitely not keen for anyone to see inside his room. Which could mean he’s hiding something or just that he’s a private person… or it could mean nothing at all.
The locked door up in Gideon’s studio had Lily itching to get inside and look around too. Her eyes went to the tent at the far end of the field. Silas and his rope were nowhere to be seen. Lily’s impression of him didn’t give her any suspicious vibes, but she also hadn’t really spoken to him.
A tent shouldn’t be hard to get access to for a quick root around.
She needed to come back when no one was here.
With the place to herself, she could do a thorough search.
Briefly, she pondered what lengths she’d go to in order to get her backpack.
Would she break the law herself? Breaking in to retrieve what was hers didn’t seem that immoral to her.
The problem was knowing exactly where to strike.
If she knew for definite who had her stuff, she wouldn’t think twice about breaking in.
Besides, she couldn’t imagine a thief would report the loss of stolen goods.
“Did you find him?” Saffron called, breaking Lily from her thoughts.
“No. I might try again tomorrow.”
“We’ll be out on an excursion to Tresco Abbey Garden in the morning, but we’ll be here in the afternoon.”
“Thanks.” That was good to know.
On the walk back to Hugh Town, a constant prickle of anxiety plagued Lily, and her thoughts wouldn’t slow down. Certain she’d be no use in the ice cream shop, she didn’t return directly but wandered aimlessly.
Or so she thought. The fact that she ended up outside the police station would suggest it wasn’t so aimless after all.
She pressed her lips together as she stared at the grey building, wishing she could go inside and tell Flynn everything. She’d feel better if she could confide in someone.
Not just someone – in Flynn.
Emotions caught in her throat.
She couldn’t share this with Flynn. Thanks to her uncle, she had to deal with it alone.