Chapter 60
Issy stepped up to the lectern and gazed out at the crowd.
There was still no sign of Hugh or Spencer.
She avoided looking at her parents. Instead, her eyes met Felix’s.
He sat beside Polly, who was still looking at her phone.
Issy looked at Chrissy then, standing behind Robbie in a wheelchair, his weak torso leaning awkwardly to one side, both unaware that their daughter was in danger.
She took a breath and tapped the microphone. The crowd grew silent. She glanced down at the speaking notes on the lectern. Was she really going to carry on with the launch as though everything was fine?
To her side, Kelly hissed at her, ‘Get on with it.’
Issy nodded, flustered. ‘Hello, everyone, I’m Isobel Ashworth.
On behalf of my—’ the notes said family but she couldn’t bring herself to say it, ‘—on behalf of everyone who has worked so hard to create this new space for residents of and visitors to Hartwell, I would like to welcome you all to Hartwell Entertainment Quarter.’ She saw Polly lean towards Felix, holding her phone in front of him.
Felix frowned, then looked up at Issy, attempting to convey something to her.
To one side of the crowd, a dark-haired guy was doing the same, holding his phone up. She’d seen him with Meg earlier. ‘Watch Isobel Ashworth’s Instagram live!’ he shouted. The people around him craned their necks to see his screen.
The rumble of voices grew as the news travelled through the crowd. People reached for their phones or jostled for a better view of someone else’s. At the front table, Heather looked around, trying to make sense of the strange energy. Malcolm looked increasingly irate.
‘What’s going on?’ Mayor Skelton said, blustery and irritated, from where he sat on the stage.
Issy shrugged. Derek Palmer, who was still looking over his speaking notes, oblivious, looked up. Kelly walked onto the stage, phone in hand.
‘Someone’s hacked your Instagram,’ she whispered, her breath hot on Issy’s ear.