sell it and go travelling.’
Max sniffed. ‘But he wants you to settle down.’
‘It’s blackmail from beyond the grave, though, isn’t it?’
Max chuckled. ‘Not at all. We talked about you sometimes, me and Reg,’ he said. He sipped his drink. ‘He cared a lot about you.’
‘I felt the same about him,’ said Daisy, sounding defensive. She carried the guilt of not visiting often enough but she’d tried to keep in touch through regular phone calls and postcards.
‘He worried about you.’
‘He had no need to,’ said Daisy, her voice flat. She felt uncomfortable that Max knew things about her, it put her at a distinct disadvantage.
Max lifted his shoulders languidly. ‘Maybe not, but he worried all the same. Sounds to me like he thinks you need to stop globetrotting and make a life for yourself here.’
‘But I don’t want to.’
‘But maybe it’s what you need.’
Daisy was taken aback and it showed on her face. ‘What gives him the right to make me?’ She was starting to feel irritated and Great Uncle Reg wasn’t here to debate this with, but unfortunately for Max he was.
‘He was a close relative and he cared. It’s not a crime.’
‘But you can’t just decide things for other people and then try to make them do it. That’s like slavery.’
Max laughed and Daisy’s irritation hitched up a notch.
‘Do you think maybe you’re overreacting to someone trying to help you?’ Max leaned forward and watched her closely.
‘No. It’s not helping if it’s manipulation.’
Max pulled a face. ‘Reg’s intention was good. By my reckoning that makes it okay to offer you some help.’
‘I don’t need help. I need people to mind their own business!’ Daisy got up and almost tripped over the toolbox and box of railway items. Cock, she thought. She was never going to manage to carry them both all the way back to Aunt Coral’s on her own. Max turned and followed her gaze and a wry smile formed on his lips.
‘Do you, er, need me to help you with those?’
Daisy plonked the railway box on top of the toolbox and lifted them into her arms in one awkward movement as her muscles tried to cope with the weight. She turned and glared at Max who was looking annoyingly smug. ‘No, thanks,’ she said, walking unsteadily out of the pub.
Her anger propelled her quite some distance before the heaviness of the boxes weighed her down and her arms longed for her to stop, but she knew if she did it would be even harder to set off again. She tried not to think about the letter or the railway or Reg for that matter, but it was impossible because they were all swirling around in her head and overwhelming her.
Back in the pub, Max was just finishing his Diet Coke and still chuckling about Daisy when Jason came in wearing tailored shorts and a neatly ironed polo shirt.
‘Perfect timing, it’s your round,’ said Max meeting his friend at the bar.
Jason glanced skywards. ‘I doubt it but what are you having?’
‘A pint please.’ Monty was already on the case without the order having to be relayed. ‘You won’t believe who just bought me a drink,’ said Max raising one of his eyebrows.
‘I like quizzes,’ said Jason. ‘How many questions can I ask?’
Max rolled his eyes. ‘Bloody hell, Jason, just give me some names.’
‘Okay, okay. Is it someone famous?’
‘No, and it’s not twenty questions, just guess already.’
‘Someone who looks like the photofit of the bloke who stole the gnome from the garden centre?’ Jason was a police officer who was keen to work his way up the ranks.
Max was shaking his head in despair. ‘No, and that was just someone who left it on the bottom of the trolley and forgot to pay.’
‘This is what happens. Common crimes start to become acceptable and before you know it you have a crime wave on your hands. It’s like insurance fraud. Years ago nobody would have dreamed of putting in a false claim but nowadays practically everyone falsely claims for a new camera and sunglasses on their holiday insurance.’
‘You included.’ Max gave him a knowing glance.
Jason looked outraged. ‘Good God, how many times have we had this conversation? I left my Ray Bans on the bus in Tenby and nobody handed them in.’
‘Yeah, that’s what they all say. But you, an officer of the law. Tut, tut, tut,’ said Max loving every minute of winding up his friend. ‘One last guess, I’m getting bored now.’
Jason’s expression changed to one of serious concentration. ‘Right. I’m going to say … my mother?’
‘No. Daisy Wickens.’ Max leaned back on the wooden chair and put his pint to his lips all the while watching Jason’s reaction. Jason’s face lit up and he searched the pub, his eyes darting about before they came back to Max.
‘Really, where is she now?’
‘Dunno, she got the hump and left.’
Jason frowned. ‘Did you upset her?’
Max took a long slow sip from his pint and then placed it back on the table.
‘Not intentionally,’ said Max, but the corner of his mouth twitched.
‘Bloody hell, Max, do you get some sort of kick out of upsetting people?’
‘No, she’s always been a stroppy mare. She used to swan about for a couple of weeks each year like she owned the place. One minute she’d be hanging around with us, the next she’d ignore us. I can’t cope with that.’ He knew too well what sort of person she was. She was fickle and never lasted anywhere more than five minutes and those sorts of people were always going to hurt you eventually. He’d had it happen too many times – first his mother, then his father and more recently a now ex-girlfriend. If someone wasn’t likely to be a permanent feature in his life then he’d learnt, for his own self-preservation, to keep them at a distance.
‘I always liked her,’ said Jason his gaze drifting to his shandy. ‘She went through a lot with her mum and everything. She was only a kid.’
‘We all have stuff in our past that could mess us up, Jay. It’s no excuse.’
‘Agreed. But she was nice to me, you know, she’d show an interest. Didn’t mock like some.’ He
