Chapter 38
38
I was in a foul mood when I got up the next day. Tired, cranky and even another of Dan’s bacon butties wasn’t hitting the mark. Our walk through the woods was more of a stomp, me trying to get the rage out, and answering Dan’s questions in one-word sentences, while Dan was chattering away totally oblivious to my mood. The unusual hours we were keeping were clearly taking their toll on me though I did feel slightly better after my afternoon nap, which followed our three-mile hike – longer than usual due to me refusing to go back every time Dan suggested we should.
Yet my brother was more understanding and lovelier than ever, sensing what I needed and just going along with it. He sympathised with me when I walked back in the lodge lounge, rubbing my eyes and still trying to wake my body up fully.
‘It’s OK, mate. Sabrina used to be like this all the time. I’m used to it.’
Horrified that I was behaving in exactly the way that I deplored in her, and very probably exactly the reason why he said it, I soon snapped out of my funk and the subsequent three games of Scrabble, which had started off quite tame and ended up in us including all the swear words we could find, certainly put me in better spirits. We watched an action movie, both of us not in the mood for a cheesy romcom, and then grabbed a couple of hours’ sleep again before we headed back out to Driftwood Bay.
This time as soon as we arrived, just after midnight, I headed out to the box at the back, feeling quite forlorn when it was empty.
My chores in the shop done, we were just pulling the door to as the church clock chimed 3a.m., when Dan yelled, ‘Wait!’
He pulled back the doormat, saying he’d noticed something gold poking out from underneath.
Dennie’s now familiar handwriting stared out at me and I waited until we got back to the lodge again before reading the next letter.