Chapter Fifty Sanday
Chapter Fifty
Sanday
Delima put her phone away. She was cold and anxious.
They were losing the battle to save the whales and the weather was threatening to take a turn for the worse.
She was so relieved Evie was there. Caroline was a nice girl, but she was a bit useless, and Delima had been worried about leaving the children with her for more than a few hours.
She was about to shout over to Jack that Ola and Hari were in safe hands, but he was in the middle of an interview with Norman Macleod from STV’s North Tonight.
The story had gone viral all over the world, which was a double-edged sword.
It meant more people were aware of what was going on and wanted to help, but Jack was tripping over all sorts of well-meaning media and volunteers who were getting in the way.
Delima looked at the beautiful creatures slowly suffocating on the beach and felt like weeping again.
It was more than likely one of the whales had become sick and the others had rallied round and tried to help, finding themselves trapped in shallow water.
They would be lucky to save any of them but they had to keep on trying.
Delima consoled herself that at least she didn’t have to worry about her precious babies back at home as Evie would be taking good care of them.
Amelia settled herself in Delima and Jack’s cosy kitchen. It was deliberately designed to look old-fashioned, but everything, including the huge lilac Aga, was brand new. There was underfloor heating and the massive wooden table had been artistically distressed.
Although it was spotless, the kitchen was also the proper heart of the house, with comfy mismatched chairs around the table, colourful pottery on the windowsills and posters of Singapore on the walls.
The massive fridge had snaps of all the rescued seals and otters stuck to the door, and the room smelled of fresh bread and home-cooked meals.
The spice rack covered an entire wall and there were recipe books stacked up on every shelf.
It was usually a place of comfort and solace, but with Amelia squatting there like a malevolent toad, the atmosphere had turned rank with menace.
She had already snapped at Ola for being noisy and made the little girl cry. Baby Hari was lying on the floor in a dirty nappy and grizzling fretfully, but Amelia wasn’t going to be changing him any time soon no matter how much he whined.
She had to consider her options. The last plane and ferry off the islands were long gone, so she decided to stay here in the warmth overnight then somehow get back to the mainland in the morning.
Before fleeing Freya’s house, Amelia had grabbed her handbag with her passport, credit cards and keys to her London flat. The rest of her stuff could be left behind, she just needed to put as much distance as possible between herself and Orkney.
Her plan to ruin Evie might have backfired, but she had managed to create havoc and cause enormous upset and, for Amelia, that was all part of the fun.
She told herself, ‘If that old bag Freya dies, I know Evie will blame herself. It’s something, I suppose, and anyway I’m not finished with her yet. ’
Back at Freya’s, Evie and Ross were waiting for news. Liv had crawled back into her shell and retreated into the kitchen with Rab, trying not to stare too hard at the open bottle of whisky by the sink.
A visibly upset Kate had apologised to Evie over and over again, and had gone back to her mother’s to pick up the girls and take them home. Evie made yet another call to the hospital and was told there was no change in Freya’s condition.
She also left Maureen a message making her swear to call her the instant Freya showed any signs of waking up.
Ross had been keeping busy, calling round all the hotels and boarding houses.
He didn’t think Amelia would be daft enough to check into any of them, but he needed something to do.
They were all going quietly round the bend.
So it was heartening to receive a phone call from Andrzej, who’d been ringing round his pals in the taxi trade and discovered a woman matching Amelia’s description had been dropped off in a cab near Hoxa.
“A lead at last,” he told Ross. He added, “She got out near Jack and Delima’s house. I have a strong feeling she’s hiding out there now. I can go and check it out.”
Ross replied, “Are you sure? There won’t be anyone at Jack’s. They’re all on Sanday right now, trying to save those poor beached whales.”
Evie looked up, “The babies will be there. Delima will have left them with that new girl, Caroline, because everyone else was at Freya’s party.
Andrzej nodded. “And that’s exactly why that snake Amelia would go there. I will take the van and head down right away.”
Ross replied, “Makes sense. But you’re not going alone. Evie and I will come too and meet you there. We’re closer. I’ll call Jack to let him know what’s been happening.”
Evie told him: “I’ll call the landline at the house and check.” She kept on trying the number but there was no answer.
When Ross called Jack he could barely hear his voice over the roar of the sea, the heartbreaking cries of the dying whales and the frantic noise of the rescuers. The line was cutting in and out, and Ross wasn’t sure how much Jack was taking in.
He tried to explain about Amelia, but the signal failed and he was talking to himself. It was getting dark. Ross put the phone down and turned to Evie. “We need to head off to meet up with Andrzej.”
On Sanday, it was getting difficult to see in the gloom. People had brought their cars to the edge of the beach and put on their full beams and there were kids with powerful torches; even fires were lit to try and help the rescuers. It was a race against time.
Jack was almost asleep on his feet. He had hardly seen Delima all day, but they were both sitting on a rock drinking hot sweet coffee when her phone rang. She was going to ignore it but saw it was Evie.
“Hi, Evie. Thanks for calling. Are the kids alright? I hope they have been behaving for you.”
Evie was totally confused. “Sorry? What do you mean? I haven’t seen them.” It took a lot to make Delima lose her cool, but she’d sat bolt upright and her voice rose to a shriek.
“Aren’t you with my babies? Caroline called me. You turned up at our door an hour ago and said you would look after them and stay overnight?”
There was silence, then Evie managed to say, “Delima. I know this will sound mad to you, but I think Amelia must have turned up saying she was me and Caroline believed her. I’m so sorry but I think it’s more than likely Amelia is with the children.”
Delima relaxed. “Oh well, that’s all right then. The kids love Amelia. You had me so worried for a minute. But wait a minute, why would she pretend to be you? That really is mad.”
“Delima,” said Evie urgently. “Has Jack not told you what’s been going on with her?”
“No, we’ve hardly seen each other. He’s with me now but we haven’t had a chance to catch up. What’s happening? Is everyone alright?”
“I’m sorry, Delima, but I think you need to talk to Jack. I just wanted to let you know we’re heading to your place. Andrzej is already on his way, so don’t worry. The kids will be fine.”
Delima was confused and feeling panicky. “I don’t understand. Evie, what’s going on?”
“I need to go. Jack will explain.”
“No, stay on the line. Don’t hang up, please,” Delima turned to her husband.
“Jack, what’s happening over there? I thought Evie was looking after Ola and Hari. But I’ve got her on the phone now. She’s been at Freya’s and they are on their way to our house.”
Jack frowned and replied, “That doesn’t make any sense. I didn’t know anything about Evie or Amelia babysitting. You didn’t tell me.”
“I meant to, but you were so busy and this is the first time we’ve been able to talk all day.”
Jack swallowed hard, “Ross called me earlier but it was a bad line and I couldn’t really hear what he was saying, and with everything going on here, I didn’t give it enough attention.”
“Evie, are you still there?” Delima was beside herself. “Please tell me what’s been happening before I go crazy.” Evie quickly brought her up to speed.
Delima couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“Oh my God, Evie. Are you alright?”
“Aye, I’m fine, but Freya …” Evie’s voice broke. “It’s bad. The shock of it all brought on a stroke and she’s in hospital. I really need to go and check on Ola and Hari. I will call you as soon as I can.”
Delima whispered, “Don’t let her hurt my kids, Evie.” And hung up. Jack had never seen his wife so shaken and that made him full of dread.
She glared at him. “Jack, that hideous woman has fooled us all, she’s caused Freya to be taken to hospital and now she is with our babies,” said Delima, her voice trembling. “If anything happens to them, I will never forgive myself or you. We need to get back home right now.”
Jack felt sick. His mind had been so focused on the rescue, he simply hadn’t understood the seriousness of what Ross had been trying to tell him. He’d barely listened and now Ola and Hari might be in danger. How could he have been such an idiot?
He tried to stay positive but the thought of his children being in any sort of danger made him want to kneel in the sand and scream.
“We are stuck here, Delima. Even if they could spare us the fastest boat on the island, the others will get there long before we could. What are we going to do?”
He started pacing up and down, running his hands through his hair. Delima ignored him.
She was on her phone calling the landline at their house, then the sanctuary, and finally Caroline’s mobile, but there was no answer.
Amelia ignored the persistent ringing in the house; meanwhile, Caroline was happily washing a baby seal, humming a Harry Styles tune.
She couldn’t hear her phone. Delima turned to Jack in despair.
“There’s no answer at the house and I can’t get hold of Caroline. Anything could have happened.” She could feel her panic rising but then remembered something.
She grabbed Jack’s arm and asked him urgently, “Didn’t some of those Norwegian news guys arrive here by helicopter? The one the hospital uses sometimes?”
She didn’t wait for a reply but ran towards the big house by the shore which the kind owners had allowed to be used as a rescue headquarters. A fierce mother on a mission.