Chapter 28 Ore
Chapter 28
Ore
Ore couldn’t wait to get off the island. That morning she had dreaded the boat journey back, but now it couldn’t come soon enough. The day had dragged, each fresh chapter of it bringing a new and bizarre twist that left her feeling more disorientated than the last.
The nausea, the drinking, the encounters with Claude, then Daniel, then Agatha. And to top it all off, a few rounds of spring-break-inspired tomfoolery. She was looking forward to getting back to the cabin, depositing the details into her notebook and unravelling some sense from it all.
At least she had managed to talk to the other investors, although neither Ousman nor Frederik had very much to say for themselves. They were both early supporters of Pagonis, back when it was run out of Chuck’s MIT dorm, and it seemed that loyalty counted for a lot with Chuck. They had all made each other rich, a feedback loop of investment and ever larger returns. Ousman’s remit was property and Frederik’s was, oddly enough, pet food. They were both open, and unfazed by Ore’s questions, a sure-fire sign that they were dead ends on the path to whatever dodgy stuff Claude and Chuck were involved in.
Richard had been drunk most of the day, so Ore hadn’t bothered, but her instincts told her he wasn’t ‘in on it’ either.
As they were bundled onto the dinghy, Ore made sure to keep her expression neutral as she sat across from Agatha and Daniel. Earlier he had been trying to get her attention, but now he seemed to have got the message, making no effort to engage with her. Agatha was looking a little worse for wear, like she was concentrating on keeping her lunch, and copious glasses of champagne, down. Her hair had dried into a frizzy shag, her perfectly applied makeup washed away by the seawater, leaving behind a patchier, slightly sunburned complexion.
Chuck and his friends had gone ahead, so this transfer was just the crew, Agatha and Ore. Nobody spoke. On the second boat, Ore feigned another wave of seasickness and hunkered down in the small kitchen. Sometimes making polite conversation with Carlos, sometimes just watching as he cleared away the pots, pans and various kitchen gadgets Ore had never come across before.
When they finally made it back to Thalassa , Vicky was waiting on deck with one of the other stewardesses. Amanda was her name perhaps.
‘Welcome back, gentlemen. Dinner will be served in about an hour,’ Vicky announced as they climbed the galley.
Ore shot Carlos a sympathetic look. It was relentless – after such a long day in the sun she couldn’t even imagine mustering the energy to cook for a table of eight. Carlos seemed unruffled.
‘Roast partridge with dauphinoise,’ he announced, to a chorus of appreciative murmurs, once everyone had made it onto the deck. ‘Will you be joining, mademoiselle?’
Ore admired his stoicism but she couldn’t match it. ‘Not tonight, thank you, Carlos. I think I’m in need of an early night.’
‘Very well, Vicky will deliver a little something to your door.’ Carlos strode off before Ore could object. She really didn’t want to have any more intense social interactions today, and by the look on Vicky’s face, it seemed Ore was caught in the middle of something that had little to do with her.
‘Yes, Chef,’ Vicky murmured somewhat bitterly under her breath as Carlos’ chef whites retreated into the salon. In the next second, she had turned back to the guests with a smile convincingly stretched across her face, and Ore wondered if she’d imagined the terse exchange.
‘If you’d like to make your way to the top deck, I have refreshments waiting.’ Vicky began leading the group away and in the commotion, Ore slipped away.
Walking through the corridors, Ore was relieved to be alone. She ran to her cabin, and once inside, had to resist the urge to push a chair up against the door handle. She settled on locking herself in instead, and found herself rather dramatically sliding down the laminate wood until she was sat cross-legged on the floor.
She took ten deep breaths, closed her eyes, and for some reason a memory of Kyle slipped into her head.