Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
In a sleep-deprived trance, Flynn didn’t notice the sergeant enter the station late in the afternoon until he was all the way inside.
“I spent an hour wandering the town, but it’s all quiet,” the sergeant mused, easing into the chair behind the other desk. “Maybe our thief is having a day in bed after their nighttime activities.”
“Lucky him,” Flynn said through a yawn. “It’s odd though, that they didn’t actually commit any crimes yesterday evening.”
“By the sounds of it, they didn’t have the chance – what with you and Lily chasing around, and half the island awake and keeping watch.”
Flynn yawned again. “It still feels a bit off to me.”
“You don’t think it was the thief?”
“My gut says no.”
“Just someone out for a midnight stroll?” the sergeant asked, scepticism clear in his tone.
“I dunno,” Flynn said.
“You look done in,” the sergeant said. “Go home and get some sleep.”
“Do you want me patrolling tonight?”
“No. It’s definitely my turn. And I promise not to leave my phone downstairs when I go to bed tonight.” He gave an exaggerated sigh. “I still can’t believe I did that. I always have my phone by my bed. Every single night. I put it there on autopilot. I’ve no idea what happened last night.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Flynn leaned back in his chair. “And I’m happy to patrol again tonight… I’d just need to get a power nap in first.”
He fully expected the sergeant to turn him down and was a little concerned when he looked thoughtful. Flynn actually wanted to spend the evening with Lily. Although, at the rate he was yawning, he was probably only fit for sleep. He could have a nap, though. He’d be fine after a nap.
“No,” the sergeant said eventually. “You need a night off. Thanks for the offer.”
“Are you still not feeling well?” Flynn asked.
“I feel as though I could do with a holiday. Maybe I’m just envious of PC Hill. A break sounds pretty good.”
Flynn was working up the energy to leave, but paused. “My flight is booked for next Saturday.” It felt surreal that he’d be leaving in barely more than a week.
The sergeant nodded. “You said. Are we going to have drinks before you leave? Seren was saying something about organising a do in the Mermaid Inn…”
Flynn shook his head. “She mentioned it to me, but I told her not to bother. I don’t want any fanfare. The thought of leaving is hard enough as it is. I’m still hoping the powers that be will decide I’m needed here long term.”
“I do think I’m making headway,” the sergeant said. “It’s not going to happen before the end of next week, though.”
“Yeah, I know. I’d just rather we save the drinks for when I’m back here with a permanent job on St Mary’s.”
The sergeant nodded sagely. “I like the sound of that.”
Twenty minutes later, Flynn grumbled to himself when he pushed open the door of the ice cream shop and got no resistance. The sign was turned to closed, and the place was empty.
“Hi,” Lily called from the back room.
“You should lock the door,” he said, the words coming out more harshly than he intended. “There’s a criminal on the loose in case you haven’t heard.”
Given the mess on every available work surface in the back, it appeared that Lily was at various stages of making several batches of ice cream.
“You look worn out,” she said, ignoring his nagging.
“You look busy.” He frowned at the chaotic room. “I was hoping we could grab dinner and chill out for the evening.”
“By chill out do you mean pass out on the couch, because that looks about all you’re fit for.”
He dragged a hand through his hair. “How do you look so perky? You can’t have got much more sleep than me.”
“No, but you also haven’t had much sleep for a few nights in a row.”
“True. Why are you making so much ice cream? I thought things had been quieter?”
“Yeah.” A muscle twitched in her cheek, and he could’ve sworn she looked guilty. “I just have a bunch of fresh ingredients I need to use up. From now on, Sally won’t deliver so much, but she had berries and herbs that she didn’t want to go to waste.”
He stretched his neck and looked thoughtful. “How long is this going to take?”
“A couple of hours at least.”
“Should I help you?”
“That’s about the most half-hearted offer I’ve ever heard.”
His lips pulled into a smile. “Sorry. I’m kind of done in.”
“Go home and sleep,” she said. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I can stay and help if you want.”
“It’s fine.”
“I can go for a nap for a couple of hours and then we can do something.”
“That won’t happen, and we both know it.”
“I’ll set an alarm. Or you can just come and wake me up when you’re finished here…” Now that was an appealing plan. Waking from a nap would be a lot easier if she crawled into bed with him.
She didn’t look at him, and he could’ve sworn she was searching for an excuse.
“Let’s do something tomorrow instead,” she said quietly.
He moved closer, a hand slipping around her waist. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing.” She leaned her head back, snuggling into his chest. “I’m tired as well, and I just think I’ll be wiped out by the time I’m finished here.”
He brought his other arm around her, pinning her to his chest and inhaling the citrusy scent of her shampoo. “You can talk to me, you know?” he whispered against her forehead.
Her voice was a barely audible squeak. “What?”
“I feel as though you have a lot on your mind. I don’t know if it’s the stuff with Maria, or if it’s me leaving, but I think you’d feel better if you talked instead of bottling it up.”
“I’m not,” she said, but her brittle voice gave it away as a lie.
“Okay,” he said, pressing a kiss to her hairline. “But if there’s something bothering you, I always have time to listen.” He loosened his grip, but she clutched at his arms, holding him in place.
Only for a moment, then she inhaled dramatically and moved away.
“If you don’t leave me to get on with this, I’ll never finish.” She gave him a peck, then turned away, focusing on her work.
He lingered for a moment, watching her fold blackberries into the ice cream.
Then he forced himself to leave, hoping she found whatever comfort she needed in her ice cream making.