Chapter 36
Two hours later, the sun bursts through the drizzle that’s been falling on and off, creating another one of those shimmering rainbows that seem so common in this part of the world.
As the influencers all rush to photograph it, a single ray lands on Hunter’s head, making him look briefly like he has a halo as he and Ian toil away at the end of the drive, two solitary figures who don’t stop chopping, even though the rainbow is, as Millie says, ‘fire’.
Beside them, Hannah and Rowan stand huddled under a bright red umbrella, cheering both men on simultaneously, apparently not caring which one wins.
Right now, Hunter’s slightly in the lead, but Ian’s not far behind him, and one of the men from the village has started taking bets on who’s going to finish first, while a handful of others stand drinking beer and adding their expert commentary.
If it wasn’t for the fact that we’re all trapped in a castle by a tree, it would feel almost like a party.
Which is, of course, exactly what I was hoping.
‘OK,’ says Luna, joining me on the front steps of the hotel, where a small group of us have gathered to watch the two men hack away at the tree. ‘So, the bad news is that the band I’d booked definitely aren’t going to make it. The storm caused absolute chaos on the railway network, apparently.’
I nod in resignation. I’d expected this, but it’s disappointing, nevertheless.
‘The good news, though,’ she goes on, with a grin, ‘is that I’ve managed to find three guitarists among the villagers, one pianist and a woman who says she once sang backup vocals for the Bay City Rollers.’
I smile back at her, delighted.
‘There are no drums, unfortunately,’ she adds. ‘But there’s a ton of booze in the cellar, so hopefully no one will notice.’
‘Great,’ I reply. ‘And the rest?’
‘Tables have all been taken into the ballroom,’ Luna replies, taking a list out of her pocket and consulting it. ‘The kitchen has enough food to feed an army. And Dante’s in the attic.’
‘The attic?’ I raise my eyebrows, convinced I must have misheard her.
‘Yeah. I had to get him out of the way so he didn’t try to stop us, so I told him Sabrina was lost up there. He’s gone to find her. She’s actually in her room, putting together a presentation for the end of the contest, though, so he’ll be looking for a while.’
‘Good work, Luna,’ I say admiringly, trying not to think about the competition, and how badly I’ve performed in it; not that it matters now. ‘And did you manage to speak to her about your job?’
‘I did,’ Luna replies, her face glowing. ‘I took Zara with me, and she talked Sabrina into renewing my contract. And she’s going to give me more responsibility from now on, too.’
‘Wow! That’s amazing.’
‘It’s strange, though.’ Luna wrinkles her nose.
‘It was almost like she was expecting me to ask; she didn’t even put up a fight.
Then she said she acknowledged that she hadn’t been the boss I deserve, and that she’d aim to do better from here on out.
So she didn’t actually say the word “sorry”, but . . . I think that’s what she meant?’
‘Well, we can’t expect miracles,’ I reply. ‘As long as her behaviour changes now she knows how it’s been affecting you, I guess that’s the main thing.’
‘Absolutely,’ Luna replies, nodding vigorously. ‘Anyway, I better get on; there’s still loads to do.’
I glance at my watch. It’s just past four o’clock, which gives us a few hours before the launch party’s scheduled to start; with just a few more guests than Sabrina had originally planned to be in attendance.
I twist my hands nervously together, hoping we’re going to be able to pull this off. It’s not like I’ve ever tried to organise a party in a castle, after all, let alone one for a couple of hundred people.
‘Look,’ says Millie from behind me. ‘I think they’re almost there!’
Sure enough, Hunter and Ian have both almost chopped their way through their respective sections of the tree trunk; it’s hard to see who’s in the lead from here, but it doesn’t really matter, because, as we stand there watching them, they both suddenly stop what they’re doing, and put down their axes.
‘What’s going on?’ says Yasmin, who’s standing next to Millie. Both of them are wearing chef hats, having been roped into helping Izzie in the kitchen, and both of them look ridiculously cute in them. ‘What are they doing?’
I squint in the direction of the fallen tree, wishing for the twentieth time that I had my contact lenses with me.
Hunter and Ian are still standing in front of the tree, talking.
From what I can see, it doesn’t look like a particularly heated conversation, but you never know with those two, and a familiar bubble of anxiety starts to work its way up my chest.
As I watch, though, Hunter raises his arm and holds a hand out towards Ian; after the briefest of seconds, Ian takes it and shakes it firmly, while Hannah and Rowan dance around them, cheering loudly.
Then all four of them move back towards the tree trunk, and start pushing.
At first, nothing happens, and then, with another shriek of joy from Hannah and Rowan, the middle section of the trunk rolls away, leaving the gates of the castle clear.
I stop the timer on my phone, feeling smug.
‘Hunter technically won,’ says Ian, as the two men come walking towards us.
‘But he’s agreed to sit down with us and have a talk about how we can all work together anyway, so I’ve agreed to stop referring to him as a bawbag.
I can’t speak for Izzie, though, unfortunately. She still thinks he’s a Nuckelavee.’
‘I think he might have won over Izzie too, actually,’ I say, with a grateful smile in Hunter’s direction.
‘I’ll still need to move the rest of the tree, obviously,’ he says, smiling back at me. ‘But at least the gates are clear now, so people can leave whenever they want.’
‘So . . . will you?’ I ask Ian. ‘Leave, I mean? Now that the road’s cleared?’
‘Er . . .’ Ian glances at Hunter, who steps forward.
‘I’ve managed to persuade him to stay until the power comes back on in the village,’ he says. ‘Well, actually, it was these two who did the persuading.’
He gestures at Hannah and Rowan, who’re both sporting matching grins.
‘We’re going to have a sleepover,’ Hannah says importantly. ‘Rowan’s going to stay with me and my stuffed animals, and we’re going to have a midnight feast. Daddy said it was OK.’
‘The road out of the castle’s clear,’ adds Ian, looking slightly abashed.
‘But the roads back to the village aren’t.
And Hunter’s right; there’s no point heading back if the power’s still out.
If it was just me and Callum, I’d give it a go, but I don’t think Rowan would enjoy going back to a house with no power. ’
‘Well, that’s great,’ I exclaim, noting Ian’s use of ‘Hunter’ rather than ‘Bawbag’. That’s definitely progress. ‘And now you’ll all be able to stay for the launch party.’
There’s a murmur of excitement from the assembled crowd, and slowly everyone starts to drift back inside the hotel.
‘So, what happened?’ I say, falling into step beside Hunter. ‘To change your mind about talking to them, I mean?’
Hunter doesn’t look at me.
‘Ian’s a good man,’ he says to the ground beneath his feet. ‘A good man, who’s had a rough deal of it, and now he has a little girl depending on him; and a younger brother, too. So, you could say we had quite a bit to chat about.’
‘And a bit more in common than you realised?’ I suggest.
He stops walking and turns to face me.
‘Don’t push your luck, Rosie Winter,’ he says softly. ‘I could still throw them all out, you know; you too, if I really wanted to.’
‘You’d never do that, though,’ I point out, grinning. ‘Because you’re a good man, too, Hunter Stuart. Even though you do your best to hide it.’
He pulls a face at me, and I respond by sticking out my tongue, like a child.
‘Does this mean you’ve forgiven me?’ he asks, his expression suddenly serious. ‘For not telling you sooner that I was the Nuckelavee, whatever that is? I did try, Rosie, when we were in the maze. I should have said something sooner, though.’
‘You were in a difficult position,’ I reply, having had a lot of time to think about this over the last few hours. ‘You didn’t really know me; and I don’t suppose I made it easy for you, with all of the things I said about you, before I knew it was you I was talking about.’
‘You’re forgiven,’ he says instantly. ‘And you were right – I was being a bit of an arsehole by trying to change the way things worked without speaking to anyone about it first. I didn’t really consider the effect it would have on the village.
I was just trying to figure out how to make sure the castle didn’t have to be sold. ’
My heart gives an uncomfortable little lurch at the reminder that it still might be.
I still have so much to do if we’re going to make sure the launch goes well.
‘Um, I should go and help Luna,’ I say, looking away before this conversation can go any further. ‘There’s still tons to sort out before tonight.’
Hunter eyes flicker with disappointment, but he just nods, and gives me a sad smile as he turns to walk away, me following a few steps behind.
I’m glad he managed to find some common ground with Ian.
I really hope it helps him figure out what to do about the hotel, and this deal he’s been so hell-bent on pursuing.
But as I follow the sound of voices along to the ballroom, where the hotel staff are busy setting up for tonight’s party, my feet feel as heavy as my heart, and I have to force a smile as I join the other volunteers.
Because, assuming the trains are running again by morning, I’ll be going home tomorrow, along with everyone else. Which means tonight is my very last chance to turn myself into a butterfly.
I think it’s time to break out my magic sweater.